Xi Jia: [Auntie, please tell me your requirements for the script.]
Qin Sulan: [Do you know why we specifically wanted to work with you on a script?]
Xi Jia joked: "Because I'm a cute little thing who can keep secrets."
Qin Sulan smiled too. She finally understood why Mo Yushen was so much more cheerful now.
Xi Jia: [Auntie, please tell me, I'm watching.]
Qin Sulan: [Because my son has the same illness as you. It's been two years, and now he doesn't communicate with anyone, sometimes going for days without saying a word. He used to be very outstanding, but he can't bear losing his memory and feels worthless. If only he were as optimistic as you.]
Because of this illness, he couldn't have a girlfriend and felt like a burden to others.
Xi Jia was utterly shocked. She had no idea that Aunt Qin had suffered such a tragic fate.
Qin Sulan: [My son will be thirty next year and has never been in a relationship. After learning that you have the same illness as him, I wanted to learn more from you in the hope of helping and guiding him. I'm not afraid of anything else, but I'm afraid that one day when I'm old and can't take care of him, what will he do alone?]
Xi Jia's most sensitive spot was touched; she understood Aunt Qin's helplessness at that moment. "Auntie, if there's anything I can do to help, please let me know. By the way, what did your son do before?"
Qin Sulan: [He's a musician, and he sings really well.]
Xi Jia: [Is he like me, unable to hear now?]
Qin Sulan: [I can barely hear it, but my memory is failing, and my voice is gone; I can't sing.]
Xi Jia felt a pang of regret. She could speak but couldn't hear. That person could hear but couldn't speak. [Auntie, don't worry, before I go insane, I'll try my best to help him out of his daze.]
Qin Sulan was extremely grateful. [By the way, Jiajia, I'd like to include my son's experiences in the script. I feel guilty towards him; I haven't done what a mother should do. He's lived with his grandparents since he was little, and I don't know him at all. If possible, could you please help me learn more about him?]
Xi Jia agreed, hoping to pull him out of his closed-off world during their interactions.
Qin Sulan: [My son doesn't like to meet people, and I'm afraid he'll resist if I deliberately introduce you to him. When you have time, come visit me at my home, and we'll try to be as natural as possible.]
Xi Jia: [No problem. Just remind me when the time comes, I'm afraid I'll forget.]
Qin Sulan: [My son's name is Qin Cucu, please make a note of it.]
Xi Jia: "..."
Qin Sulan suppressed a laugh. "Vinegar is his nickname."
Chapter 57
Xi Jia didn't ask what Cu Cu's real name was. Perhaps it was her father's surname and she didn't change it. Aunt Qin didn't want to mention that name.
Vinegar it is, then.
Qin Sulan: [My son isn't very good at conversation, and with his illness these past two years, he might not say a word even after you talk for a long time. You'll have to put up with that.]
Xi Jia comforted Qin Sulan: "Auntie, this is perfect, anyway I can't hear you~ I bet it won't be me helping Cucu, but Cucu listening to my nagging. As long as he doesn't find me annoying, it's fine."
Qin Sulan thought to herself, "He'd love for you to talk to him every day."
She couldn't keep talking about jealousy; Qin Sulan was afraid that saying too much would arouse Xi Jia's suspicion. She started talking about herself, about things from twenty or thirty years ago, but suddenly didn't know where to begin.
He pursued me, and actually, I had a crush on him too.
Xi Jia stared at the screen. Aunt Qin typed very slowly; those painful memories, though many years old, remained fresh in her mind when she revisited them.
With each word Qin Sulan typed, a deeper ache tugged at her heartstrings. But each time she spoke a word to Xi Jia, she felt a little lighter.
Mo Yushen told her last night that if she didn't want to talk about the past, she could make up a story for Xi Jia. She changed her mind at the last minute and said she didn't want to make one up, so she would just talk about herself.
Saying it out loud might make you feel better.
There's no need to punish yourself anymore.
In just over an hour, Qin Sulan typed more than 1,300 words.
After saying it out loud, I felt less choked up inside.
Xi Jia and Qin Sulan rested for a while, ate a light meal, and continued chatting.
Ji Qingshi is right; helping others is also helping herself.
She didn't have time to grieve that afternoon; she was too busy comforting Qin Sulan to keep taking notes, recording her current feelings and the character's backstory.
Qin Sulan had a small request: to make sure that others couldn't tell it was her story.
Xi Jia promised her that she would arrange for some more people to join the team.
At six o'clock, Qin Sulan received a message from Mo Yushen: [Aren't you two finished talking yet? I'm downstairs at the restaurant.] He had an appointment that afternoon and had already finished his business, but he didn't expect them to still be talking.
Qin Sulan: [Immediately.]
Xi Jia and Qin Sulan arranged a time to meet again before saying goodbye.
Qin Sulan sent Mo Yushen a message: 【Jiajia has gone out.】
More than six hours had passed, and Xi Jia had no recollection of ever encountering Mo Yushen in the corridor.
A few minutes later, Xi Jia came out of the restaurant. Mo Yushen pretended to be going to the restaurant for a meal and ran into her. Xi Jia's phone vibrated, and she didn't notice the person walking towards her.
The two brushed past each other.
Mo Yushen: "..." He turned around and looked at Xi Jia's back.
Qin Sulan also came out of the restaurant, patted her son on the shoulder, and said, "Continue."
Mo Yushen strode ahead of Xi Jia, creating another chance encounter.
Qin Sulan watched her son's retreating figure; his dress pants and shirt seemed incongruous with his current behavior. This was the kind of childish act a teenager experiencing their first stirrings of love would have.
He was more than a decade late.
Xi Jia was still walking with her head down, occasionally glancing ahead, keeping close to the bushes on her right. She had received a video call invitation from Wu Yang.
Wu Yang pointed the camera at her horses, and Xi Jia smiled and waved to them. "My darlings, your little fairy is here."
Mo Yushen didn't expect Xi Jia, who was staring at the video, to even look up at him. Xi Jia walked past him, and he glanced at his phone screen.
The video shows a horse farm in the background.
Without a doubt, she was video chatting with Wu Yang.
Mo Yushen dialed Wu Yang's number, but Wu Yang did not answer.
He then dialed a second time.
Wu Yang still didn't answer, but after ending his video call with Xi Jia, he sent a message: "The boss is looking for me, I'll talk to you in a bit."
Mo Yushen called a third time before Wu Yang finally answered, "Mr. Mo."
Mo Yushen's voice was cold. "Give me the club's first quarter report. Before 10 p.m.."
Wu Yang: "..."
He had no words to express his suffering.
The finance department has already closed for the day.
Mo Yushen had no intention of making other departments work overtime. "Just give me a simple summary from your side. I don't need a financial report."
"Okay, Mr. Mo, please send it to my email before 10 o'clock."
Wu Yang scratched his head.
This is the consequence of not answering the boss's call immediately.
If he told Mo Yushen that he had just video-chatted with Xi Jia and wanted her to see Ma to make her happier.
Mo Yushen would certainly not make things difficult for him like that.
Now that Xi Jia and Mo Yushen are divorced, he doesn't want to talk about their past.
Mo Yushen: "Just send it over before 10 p.m. tomorrow night."
Wu Yang was taken aback: "Okay."
Mo Yushen then casually asked about the club's recent matches, and Wu Yang answered him one by one.
Mo Yushen was also going to run into Xi Jia by chance, so he didn't have time to listen to anything else and hurriedly hung up the phone.
Wu Yang was completely confused. He thought Mo Yushen would ask Xi Jia what was going on, but he didn't.
Xi Jia didn't take the car; she told the driver to go back first. She wandered aimlessly along the road. Looking at the crowded streets, she suddenly missed Mo Yushen terribly.
I wonder what he's doing right now, or who he's with.
As I was turning the corner, I accidentally brushed against someone walking from the opposite direction.
"I'm sorry." As Xi Jia finished speaking, she stopped walking.
Mo Yushen walked in a hurry, his phone still tucked into his ear.
A few seconds later, Mo Yushen put down his phone. Before Xi Jia could speak, Mo Yushen took out his wallet and handed her his ID card.
Mo Yushen.
Xi Jia couldn't remember how many days it had been since she last saw him; it felt like an eternity. She smiled faintly, her voice inexplicably hoarse: "Long time no see." She returned the ID card.
Mo Yu nodded and stared at her intently.
Xi Jia: "You made plans with someone?"
Mo Yushen: [Yes, business partner.]
Xi Jia urged him, "Then hurry up and go, don't waste time." She waved to him.
Mo Yushen didn't leave immediately; he typed another message asking her: "How have you been lately?"
Xi Jia: "It's great, I got a new script." I'm also lucky, I saw him when I missed him.
Mo Yushen: [I'm doing fine too, and I don't stay up late anymore.]
Xi Jia thought to herself, "He probably said that because she used to tell me not to stay up late."
Mo Yushen: [Don't work overtime so relentlessly, be good to yourself. No matter how tough it gets, don't give up on yourself. I'm waiting for you to hear me, drive home. You used to like getting home a minute later than me.]
I'm not deliberately waiting for you. I'm divorced, and finding someone new isn't easy.
Xi Jia burst into laughter through her tears. A misty haze filled her vision, illuminated by the car headlights, making everything appear colorful.
Mo Yushen: [I've moved on.]