Xu Qingzhu walked out with the cup in her hand, muttering to herself, "Did she go to buy groceries?"
Stepping out of the house, I found it completely empty.
Xu Qingzhu pursed her lips and looked around the kitchen. There was a pot of stewed porridge on the counter, still warming.
There's a sticky note on the refrigerator that reads: "Honey, make sure you eat well!"
Xu Qingzhu tore it off, looked at it, and then stuck it back on.
She didn't feel like eating yet, so she went to the bathroom to wash up. When she passed by another room, she found the door open. She thought Liang Shi was secretly playing the piano, but when she pushed the door open, the room was empty, and even the sheets were perfectly smooth.
Xu Qingzhu was quite disappointed.
However, she noticed the A4 paper on the table, which wasn't originally in the room.
There are only two people in the house, so if she didn't put it there, it must belong to Liang Shi.
Curiosity led her over, and there she saw the five big characters at the top—Divorce Agreement.
The document has three pages and has been stapled together neatly.
It's a binding style that even a perfectionist boss like Xu Qingzhu couldn't find fault with.
And it's in duplicate.
Liang Shih's fingerprint and signature were affixed to the top.
There was also a sticky note on the table: "Let's get a divorce. After you sign, put the other copy in the delivery box downstairs. I'll come get it. As for the reason... there's no reason. I'll keep my phone off for a while, so don't look for me. Oh, and don't cry. If you still want us to be okay, then sign."
Xu Qingzhu: "..."
The cup in her hand suddenly fell to the ground and shattered with a crack.
The cold honey water was spilled all over the floor.
Chapter 157
The cold winter sun pierced through the glass, reflecting into the room and landing squarely on the words "Divorce Agreement".
Those words gradually became blurred.
A mist filled my vision, and my heart stopped for a moment.
After a long while, Xu Qingzhu opened her mouth, but no sound came out.
She is trying to find her voice again, but to no avail.
The good mood I had, which I was so happy to have gotten enough sleep, vanished in an instant.
In the quiet room, Xu Qingzhu sat in a chair, reading the words on the note over and over again, until her eyes were filled with tears and she could see nothing at all.
She slowly closed her eyes, and tears fell onto the A4 paper.
This is a rare sunny day in Haizhou City during winter.
Xu Qingzhu sat blankly in her room all day, her phone on Do Not Disturb mode, and she didn't eat anything.
As night fell and the entire city was plunged into darkness, the streetlights suddenly came on again.
It's like shining a beam of light into the darkness.
But unfortunately, Xu Qingzhu's world was plunged into complete darkness.
//
In the morning, Liang Shi drove around half of Haizhou City like a lost soul before dawn.
I saw the sunrise over the Yujiang Bridge, and I also saw the dawn of this city.
Everything seemed vibrant and full of life, but she had no interest in appreciating it.
With nowhere else to go, he bought some wine and went to find Zhao Xuning.
Zhao Xuning was still fast asleep when he opened the door for her impatiently, his hair sticking up. His voice was hoarse, and he said through gritted teeth, "You'd better have something to say."
"I'm divorced," Liang Shi said in a deep voice, standing at the door.
Zhao Xuning was startled; his sleepiness and morning grumpiness vanished in an instant.
"What do you mean?" Zhao Xuning closed the door from behind.
Liang Shi placed the wine he had bought on the coffee table, shrugged with a wry smile, and said, "It's exactly what it sounds like."
"Have you gotten your certificates?" Zhao Xuning asked.
Liang Shi: "...Not yet."
"What kind of divorce is that?" Zhao Xuning smoothed her hair, pulled a hair tie from a drawer, and casually tied her hair up. "But weren't you and Xu Qingzhu in the honeymoon phase? How come you're arguing?"
As soon as he finished speaking, Liang Shi said in a deep voice, "I have signed the divorce agreement."
Zhao Xuning paused in tying her hair, then slowly put on her glasses, and the scene before her eyes became clearer.
She ignored Liang Shi and went straight to the bathroom to wash her face. When she came out, Liang Shi was drinking alone.
Zhao Xuning walked over and opened a can as well. "So?"
Liang Shi: "..."
I didn't expect Zhao Xuning to accept it so well.
She thought they would at least ask why or something.
However, this is also good. Liang Shi came to Zhao Xuning because she always had a sense of propriety and boundaries. When he treated her as a close friend, he might be hurt by her somewhat indifferent attitude.
But when something like this happens, you realize how wonderful it is to have a friend like Zhao Xuning.
I will never ask more questions.
"I have nowhere to stay," Liang Shi said. "I'll come and squeeze in with you for a few days."
Upon hearing this, Zhao Xuning took out his phone and called her, but it was switched off.
"Not going to work?" Zhao Xuning asked.
Liang Shi shook his head: "I just finished filming one movie. Let's see if there's any work in the next few days."
"You don't even turn on your phone, how can you get any work?" Zhao Xuning took a sip of wine, felt a bit bitter in his mouth, got up, opened the refrigerator, and focused on chopping and cooking vegetables.
There was no need to listen to what Liang Shi had to say.
Liang Shi, on the other hand, was quite pleased with himself. He chatted with her casually for a few minutes, and then went back to drinking in silence.
The snacks Zhao Xuning prepared were pretty good. Liang Shi ate some, then drank a can of beer, and his head started to ache.
“I need to go home,” Zhao Xuning said. “Your only space is the common area and that bedroom. Don’t even touch the door to my bedroom.”
"Okay, Dr. Zhao." Liang Shi nodded and got up to walk towards the room Zhao Xuning had mentioned.
It's similar to the previous bedroom, with a very minimalist and austere decorating style.
It's simple and clear, but it has all the necessary furniture.
Liang Shi had barely slept all night and had been drinking all night yesterday, so his head was throbbing with pain.
He tossed his phone, which was already switched off, into the drawer, lay down on the bed, and went straight to sleep.
They didn't even notice when Zhao Xuning left.
Zhao Xuning sat in the living room and cleaned up the two empty wine bottles, and the living room returned to its deserted state.
She sat on the sofa and sent Xu Qingzhu a message: What are you doing?
The other party did not reply.
A few seconds later, Zhao Xuning withdrew again.
I'm too lazy to deal with these things.
Zhao Xuning's home is decorated like a hotel, with everything neatly categorized by this obsessive-compulsive person, and he hires a cleaning service three times a week.
She rarely goes anywhere other than her bedroom, study, bathroom, and kitchen.
The master bedroom has an ensuite bathroom.
Therefore, they were able to take Liang Shi in for a few days.
After tidying up the house, Zhao Xuning sat on the sofa in the living room and played on her phone for a while. Then she went to the bathroom in the master bedroom to take a shower. She then took a brand new set of toiletries from the storage room and put it in the bathroom outside. She also put a note on the door to remind Liang Shi where to put his things.
I did a quick makeup session, grabbed my bag, and headed out.
This trip home will likely be about blind dates again, which is quite common for Zhao Xuning.
She already has a well-developed system of communication techniques to deal with such situations.
She has no plans to go on blind dates or get married.
At least not at this stage.
After breaking up with Shen Hui, she briefly tried to distract herself by meeting new people and dating them.
Later, however, he discovered that no one could compare to Shen Hui.
So she ended her ambiguous relationships with others and never had such thoughts again.
I used to hear people say that if you're heartbroken, you can just find someone new.
But after Zhao Xuning tried it herself, she realized that when it comes to feelings, it's like drinking water—only the person experiencing it knows whether it's hot or cold.
Meeting new people won't fill the emptiness in your heart.
On the contrary, they will miss the past even more.
No matter which street I walk down or which star I see, I will always think of those past events.
Then I found this person increasingly boring.
She spent many years developing a tacit understanding with Shen Hui.
All memories are precious.
The thought of dating someone made her feel awkward.
So later I let go of others, and I let go of myself.