She thought she understood Xu Qingzhu very well.
As a result, Xu Qingzhu's behavior once again exceeded her expectations at this time.
Liang Shi guessed there were only two possible outcomes: either he would call to question her, or he would sign a divorce agreement and leave it downstairs.
But it's neither of those.
Xu Qingzhu acted as if she knew nothing about it, continuing to go to get off work and come home as usual, and did not contact her again.
They used to contact each other very frequently, exchanging many messages almost every day.
Even when she was filming.
Except for the few days when Xu Qingzhu was having nightmares, they sent a few fewer messages, but still sent about twenty messages a day.
Messages are sent whether it's casual chatting or just rambling.
Instead of tacitly cutting off contact like we are now.
However, the topic of divorce was not mentioned again.
Liang Shi sat on the bench downstairs, and after thinking for a long time, he sent Xu Qingzhu a message: "I've come to pick up the divorce papers. You didn't put them in the cabinet downstairs. What happened?"
Even through the screen, it sounds like a very strong and somewhat cold statement.
A moment later, the note at the top of Xu Qingzhu's chat window changed to "The other party is typing."
Then Liang Shi saw "Bamboo" and "The other party is typing" keep changing. After about ten minutes of this, Liang Shi finally received a reply.
Xu Qingzhu: [I'm considering it.]
Liang Shi: ...
Xu Qingzhu sent another message: 【Aren't you planning to meet and discuss this?】
Liang Shi: ...
Even though they were separated by a screen, Liang Shi could already picture Xu Qingzhu's cold eyes in his mind. She would look at him coldly, and her already cold voice, combined with her indifferent tone, would probably make Liang Shi dream back to the moment when he first met her after he transmigrated.
No, it might be even worse than that.
It was quite obvious that Xu Qingzhu was angry.
But Liang Shi had no choice.
She didn't want to bring up this topic with Xu Qingzhu in person. If Xu Qingzhu got angry, she would feel terrified. If Xu Qingzhu cried, she might soften her heart. But a decision had to be made. Hesitation would only hurt people more. It was better to cut the Gordian knot quickly.
That's why Liang Shi left alone in the morning.
After considering it, Liang Shi replied: "No, there's nothing to say."
I've seen countless breakup dramas and even acted in them myself, but when it really happens to me, I find it hard to say a single word.
Each word I typed felt like a stone pressing down on my heart.
Xu Qingzhu: [Let me think it over before we talk about it.]
Liang Shi: ...
Xu Qingzhu seemed to be acting too calmly.
He didn't become hysterical, nor did he press her for the reason. He simply weighed the pros and cons, as if discussing a business deal, and then calmly told her: I need to think about it.
Liang Shi pursed her lips, her hair falling loosely on both sides, with a strand landing on her phone screen. She raised her hand and tucked it behind her ear.
Liang Shi sent a message: 【How long will it take?】
Xu Qingzhu: [I don't know.]
As bluntly Liang Shih's question was, so too was Xu Qingzhu's answer.
Liang Shi then asked: "So you plan to drag it out?"
Approaching step by step.
Xu Qingzhu: [No, I'm just considering it.]
Xu Qingzhu: [Have you forgotten that my marriage to her was a marriage of convenience?]
Xu Qingzhu: [The fact that I didn't ask her to come and divorce me shows that I'm seriously considering this matter.]
Xu Qingzhu: [If you have any doubts, we can meet now and go to the Civil Affairs Bureau to get a divorce.]
Xu Qingzhu sent several messages in a row, almost filling up Liang Shi's phone screen.
Each sentence was harsher than the last.
As Liang Shi watched the words constantly appearing on the screen, he unconsciously held his breath and almost couldn't catch his breath.
The pressure was too intense.
Even through the screen, you can feel the oppressive aura emanating from Xu Qingzhu, as if she had cornered Liang Shi against a wall.
The words she sent seemed to be telling Liang Shi—I was the one who married someone else, so what right do you have to divorce me?
After staring at the screen for a long time, Liang Shi replied to her: "Then take your time to think about it."
In the end, he still didn't dare to agree to meet her.
Xu Qingzhu replied: 【Okay.】
A formulaic answer.
When the conversation ended, Liang Shi was covered in a cold sweat.
I can't explain why, but I just can't suppress the sadness in my heart.
Liang Shi walked out of the residential area, returned to his car, numbly fastened his seatbelt, and then sat there in a daze.
It took me a long time to come to my senses before I drove away.
A silver luxury car was parked not far away. Xu Qingzhu sat inside, tightly gripping her phone. The veins on the back of her slender hands bulged as she stared in the direction the car had left until it disappeared from sight.
Xu Qingzhu closed her eyes, a tear fell from her eye, and after a long while, she said coldly, "Let's go."
//
When Xu Qingzhu returned to the company, she happened to run into Lin Luoxi and the others who had come down for dinner.
"Let's go." Without saying a word, Lin Luoxi pulled her outside. "Let's go eat."
Xu Qingzhu wanted to refuse, but Lin Luoxi pinched her cheek and said, "Look at you, you've gotten so thin these past few days. If you don't eat soon, I'm going to call Liang Shi."
Xu Qingzhu: "..."
The threat worked, and Xu Qingzhu smiled helplessly: "I'm really not hungry."
“How can a person not be hungry?” Lin Luoxi said, “You didn’t eat breakfast this morning either. If you lose any more weight, you’ll turn into a skeleton.”
Xu Qingzhu: "..."
"Can you stop exaggerating?" Xu Qingzhu scoffed. "It's not that scary."
“Don’t believe me? Ask Sally,” Lin Luoxi said. “Have you weighed yourself these past few days? You’ve lost at least five pounds. Are you planning to enter the entertainment industry?”
Xu Qingzhu: "?"
"Why would I want to get into the entertainment industry?" Xu Qingzhu said, "I'm already too busy with the company every day."
"Only female celebrities in the entertainment industry have such curvy figures." Lin Luoxi pinched her cheek again, but instead of pulling up any flesh, she pinched a patch of skin on Xu Qingzhu's face until it turned red, causing Xu Qingzhu to gasp in pain.
Xu Qingzhu looked at her: "I suspect you are settling a personal score."
Lin Luoxi reached out and rubbed her skin: "What personal grudge do we have between us? Baby, I love you so much."
His tone was intimate, yet tinged with sarcasm, making Xu Qingzhu shudder. She immediately rubbed her arms and said, "Don't do that..."
Sally, standing to the side, said aggrievedly, "Baby, why are you calling someone else 'baby'?"
Lin Luoxi: "...You're so annoying."
Sally: "?"
"OMG." Sally looked like she'd seen a ghost: "Baby, I'm your girlfriend."
Lin Luoxi replied coldly, "So what?"
Sally: "...?"
“Don’t call other people ‘baby’,” Sally said.
Xu Qingzhu quietly moved a little further away to avoid being caught in the couple's fight.
"So what if I call him then?" Lin Luoxi rolled her eyes and scoffed, "Why are you so possessive? I'm calling for Zhuzi, you know. Besides, even if I called for a stranger, it wouldn't be that bad, would it? You're so petty."
Sally was speechless with anger, mainly because her Chinese wasn't good enough to argue with him.
So I took out my phone and called Liang Shi to ask her if she could accept it!
Lin Luoxi: "...Are you sick?"
Sally: "Do you have any medicine?"
Lin Luoxi: "..."
Lin Luoxi pulled Xu Qingzhu forward, looking as if she didn't want to tell everyone that she knew this idiot.
Xu Qingzhu turned around and called out to Sally, "Don't call her."
But it was too late; Sally had already gotten through.
So Liang Shi happened to hear this sentence and had the illusion that he hadn't heard Xu Qingzhu's voice in a long time.
They had only been apart for a few days.
Sally jogged to catch up with Lin Luoxi and the others, and while doing so, put the phone on speakerphone. She then asked Liang Shi with a righteous tone, "Can you accept Blanche calling someone 'baby'?"
Liang Shi was embarrassed: "Uh..."
Caught off guard by the question, Liang Shi was momentarily stunned, but asked, "Is Xu Qingzhu next to you?"
“Of course.” Sally and Lin Luoxi had already taken their seats. Xu Qingzhu held the menu handed to her by the waiter, pinching one corner of it. She seemed to be thinking about what to order, but in reality, she was listening intently to what was happening over there.
Sally complained: "My baby always calls other people 'baby,' she's really... going too far."
Lin Luoxi sighed and said, "Just hang up."
Sally: "No."