"A year, perhaps." At least a year. She would try her best to win him over within that year.
Cheng Weiming and Mo Yushen both looked at her simultaneously. It was just strange; how did it change from six months to a year?
From receiving Xi Jia's message this morning until now, only a year has passed, which made Mo Yushen feel a little more at ease.
This shows she was more sincere than the first time. She wasn't in a rush to get a divorce.
A year later, I hope Professor Xiang's drug will enter the clinical trial phase. I hope she can remember their past.
Cheng Weiming had many divorce agreement templates on his computer, including several for Mo Yushen alone. He opened one of them, deleted the date, left the rest unchanged, and printed it out.
The two signed.
Xi Jia also pressed her handprint. For a fleeting moment, the image of a handprint flashed through her mind, and she unconsciously pressed one as well. "Mr. Mo, let's keep in touch by phone. I haven't seen Attorney Cheng in a long time, let's chat for a while before I go back."
Mo Yushen was seething with jealousy. He stood up. Cheng Weiming also stood up and saw Mo Yushen out.
Mo Yushen: "Go back."
Cheng Weiming felt he could no longer explain himself clearly. He had always prided himself on his eloquence, with few able to out-argue him. But when it came to his own affairs, he fell silent.
"Xi Jia has always considered me a friend." This explanation was weak and unconvincing. He knew Mo Yushen wouldn't believe it. But who could know what Xi Jia was thinking at the time?
It's probably a mystery I'll never be able to solve in my lifetime.
Mo Yushen stopped in his tracks. In a few days, it would be Cheng Weimo's birthday. "Where are we celebrating this year?" he asked.
Cheng Weiming: "It's not decided yet. We'll see where Jiang Qin is chosen."
Mo Yushen nodded, indicating that he understood. "You can go back now." He then walked away.
Cheng Weimo stood in the corridor for half a minute before returning to his office.
Xi Jia was looking at the divorce agreement, not at its contents, but at Mo Yushen's signature.
The office door opened.
Xi Jia looked up and pointed to the signature, "Attorney Cheng, look at President Mo's handwriting, it's quite similar to mine."
As she spoke, she took a pen and signed Mo Yushen's name on a piece of white paper. Then she compared it to Mo Yushen's signature. The resemblance was striking.
Cheng Weimo glanced at it; the resemblance was striking. Mo Yushen had been imitating Xi Jia's handwriting every day for a while, and eventually, her handwriting began to resemble Xi Jia's.
It's no longer his old handwriting.
Xi Jia: "The characters even resemble each other."
She folded the paper and put it in her bag.
She stayed not to catch up with Cheng Weiming, but to give him some instructions: "Attorney Cheng, you must keep this agreement I signed with Mo Yushen a secret. Don't tell my second brother a single word. I don't want to divorce Mo Yushen; I want to... play hard to get."
Cheng Weimo was taken aback.
Seeing his reaction, Xi Jia assumed he didn't quite understand what the "playing hard to get" tactic meant. "It's like this..."
Before she could finish speaking, Cheng Weiming interrupted her, "Let me pour you a glass of water, you can talk slowly."
Cheng Weiming stood up with his phone in hand, his back to Xi Jiashi. He recorded a message, then pretended to pour her a glass of warm water.
Xi Jia pointed to the coffee table: "We haven't finished our coffee yet."
Cheng Weiming: "It's still best to drink warm water first thing in the morning."
Xi Jia laughed, not understanding the lawyer's thought process, "Then why are you still chasing after them?"
Cheng Weimo sat down. "The boss is here. I can't just serve him plain water. There's no time to brew tea. I can only make him a cup of instant coffee."
Xi Jia nodded, "That's right. It's fine to serve her plain water, but that man, Mo Yushen..."
Cheng Weiming gestured to her, "You just said that signing the divorce agreement was a ploy to play hard to get. You're about to get married, why would you play hard to get?"
Xi Jia sighed, "You don't know, Mo Yushen is a really complicated man. He might be a good boss, but he's no good at finding a partner."
Cheng Weimo followed her words and began to probe her: "Since you are not satisfied with him, why are you still planning to get a marriage certificate with him? Getting a marriage certificate is not like dating, where you can break up if it doesn't work out. Once you get a marriage certificate, it involves the interests of both families, and it is not a game."
Xi Jia: "I'm not dissatisfied with him as a person, but I'm really upset about his attitude towards his current marriage. Of course, I understand him, after all, he grew up in that kind of environment."
As she spoke, she drank a few sips of warm water.
I got quite cold outside just now.
She didn't treat Cheng Weiming as an outsider, nor did she care about saving face. She spoke the truth: "Actually, I was interested in him first, which is why I decided to go on the blind date. I've heard that he's a difficult person to deal with. I have to find a way to handle him. I was afraid that he wouldn't want to marry me, so I prepared this divorce agreement."
As she spoke, she smiled and said, "Isn't he uninterested in marriage? So I acted even less interested than him."
Cheng Weiming felt a mix of emotions, but he also secretly breathed a sigh of relief. He was finally able to resolve the misunderstanding between Xi Jia and Mo Yushen, and unravel the mystery surrounding the divorce agreement.
Xi Jia reminded her again, "You must keep this a secret."
Cheng Weiming: "Absolutely. Even if we don't know each other, it's my duty." As a lawyer, it's essential to protect my clients' confidentiality.
Xi Jia joked, "But I'm not planning to give you any money, so I'm not your customer."
Cheng Weimo smiled faintly, "We're friends."
Xi Jia picked up her cup of coffee from the coffee table. "We can't waste it." After discussing their marriage, she chatted with Cheng Weiming for a few minutes.
"I won't be so busy after the New Year. I'll take a few days off and have dinner with you then. I don't have many friends, just Wu Yang, Ye Qiu, and you, that makes three."
Cheng Weimo: "I am especially honored to be ranked in the top three."
Xi Jia looked at the many documents on his desk and said, "You can't be busy all day long. While you're still young, you should have a relationship. Otherwise, like me, you'll end up going on blind dates and getting married. That's so boring."
Cheng Weimo twirled the pen in his hand, "I haven't met a suitable one yet. If I do, I probably won't be so busy."
The two chatted casually. After finishing her coffee, Xi Jia stood up to say goodbye, "I won't bother you any longer. I'll treat you to dinner after I've had some rest."
Cheng Weimo nodded, "Okay, just call me in advance."
Xi Jia left, and the door closed.
Cheng Weiming called Mo Yushen and said, "I know why Xi Jia wanted to sign the divorce agreement with you. I just got some information out of her and I'll send the recording to your email right away."
Chapter 81
Mo Yushen hadn't left; he was still downstairs at the law firm. He was hesitating whether to continue waiting for Xi Jia and give her the roses, or just let it go.
Just then, Cheng Weimo's phone rang.
Two minutes later, he received the email.
Mo Yushen opened the app as quickly as possible, plugged in his headphones, and played the recording. He heard the line, "I made this divorce agreement because I was afraid he wouldn't want to marry me."
Everything from before is now clear to me.
Every time she said, "Honey, I only love you. I only love my husband, Mo Yushen," it wasn't just something she said casually to appease him.
Mo Yushen looked again at the apple of peace beside him. Was it because she wanted to give it to him that she made up so many excuses? First, wearing gloves, then the gloves weren't in her bag.
After giving him the apple, she could have gone back to the car to get another one, but she said she would go downstairs to get it later, even though she hadn't gone upstairs yet.
At the time, he was in a dead end and had preconceived notions, assuming that she was interested in Cheng Weiming. Therefore, he ignored the logic, and her excuses were full of loopholes.
Mo Yushen called Cheng Weimo. "Thank you." He paused for half a second, then added, "I'm sorry."
Cheng Weiming: "It's nothing. I told Jiang Qin before that Xi Jia and I weren't meant to be. Even if I confessed, she might not accept it or be willing to try dating me." After a moment, "It's all in the past."
He was saying this to himself.
Jiang Qin spent Christmas Eve with him last night and told him: "All unrequited love isn't true love. The reason unrequited love is so beautiful, so unforgettable, and so constantly tugging at your heartstrings is because you project all your hopes and desires for love onto her. You naturally assume she's exactly as you imagine her, but she isn't. Perhaps when you actually get to know her, she'll give you a huge sense of disappointment, shattering all your previous beautiful fantasies. This is why most unrequited loves that become real end in breakups."
Maybe.
Regardless of his relationship with Xi Jia, he always hoped that she would not get a divorce.
There was a moment of silence on the phone.
Cheng Weiming: "I'm busy now."
Mo Yushen hummed in agreement and ended the call.
Xi Jia appeared inside the building.
Mo Yushen no longer needed to constantly worry about his aloofness. He took the roses and opened the car door.
Xi Jia couldn't believe it; he hadn't left.
Mo Yushen stepped over, and Xi Jia repeatedly told herself to be reserved, to act as if she didn't care about him and didn't take him seriously.
"It's only fair to reciprocate, Merry Christmas." Mo Yushen didn't immediately show excessive enthusiasm; he wanted to proceed gradually.
Xi Jia accepted it, "Thank you." It turned out it was from exchanging for the "peace apple." A rose and a peace apple were about the same price.
He really is a businessman, and also a man devoid of emotion.
I won't give you a single extra penny of gift money.
"By the way, are you free on Monday?" Xi Jia asked casually.
Mo Yushen: "What's the matter?"
Xi Jia: "My mom asked me today how our blind date went, and she wants to arrange another date for us. I'm so tired of her nagging. If you have time, let's get our marriage certificate."
This caught Mo Yushen's attention. They were already a legally married couple, so why did they need to get a marriage certificate?
The wait for a reply is agonizing.
Xi Jia held her breath. She had a gut feeling that Mo Yushen wasn't very willing. His serious expression said it all; he was probably thinking about how to refuse her.
really.
Mo Yushen looked at her. "Although I'm not really keen on getting married, and I hadn't considered marriage before, it's still a major life event, and we should be careful. Divorce involves too many issues, and it will affect the stock prices of both companies, and it will also make our elders uncomfortable. Let's get to know each other and see how things go. If things go well and we can reach the best cooperation model, then we'll get married. As for divorce, let's try to avoid it. Even if we divorce, we'll still be forced to go on blind dates. It's better to work things out first and reach a long-term strategic partnership. What's your opinion?"
What other opinions could she possibly have?
How could she refute his seemingly high-sounding words?
Xi Jia smiled, "Not bad either."
But how can she win him over and get him if they don't get a marriage certificate?
During the dating phase, she couldn't just move in with him, could she?
impossible.