Cheng Weimo turned his head to the side, paused for half a second, and then quickly stood up.
Today, Xi Jia wore a light gray long cardigan over a white long dress, her long hair flowing naturally. Compared to when she was riding a horse, this outfit had less of a wild beauty and more of an elegance.
"Are you Attorney Cheng?"
Cheng Weimo nodded.
Xi Jia smiled slightly and said, "Hello, I'm Xi Jia." She came in.
Cheng Weiming brought her coffee and gestured for her to sit down. He closed the office door and sat back down at his computer.
Xi Jia looked at Cheng Weiming, a feeling of familiarity mixed with strangeness. "Attorney Cheng, if I may ask, have I known you before?"
Cheng Weimo paused for half a second, then shook his head.
Xi Jia came over from the sofa and sat in the chair next to Cheng Weimo. She and he had to communicate through text.
Cheng Weimo was already prepared, with a stack of white papers under the keyboard.
Fearing that Cheng Weiming was too busy and that this would interfere with his work, Xi Jia kept it brief and told him about her desire for a divorce. She said she didn't want any of the marital property.
"Oh, by the way, the horses are mine. They were a gift from my husband, and I want to keep them."
"I almost forgot to mention, my husband is Mo Yushen. Please keep our divorce a secret and don't tell anyone."
Cheng Weimo kept typing, looking at the screen, but couldn't see the words clearly.
He had her previous divorce agreement with Mo Yushen, made some minor modifications, and printed it out.
Cheng Weimo handed her the agreement and wrote on a blank sheet of paper: "Take a look and see which clauses are not suitable, and I will revise them."
After reading it, Xi Jia nodded, "Thank you." She carefully read each line.
Two sheets of paper, each word a sharp knife.
Xi Jia looked at the agreement, while Cheng Weimo stared at the computer screen.
"Attorney Cheng."
Cheng Weimo snapped out of his daze, looked at her, and subconsciously asked, "What needs to be changed?"
Xi Jia: "Sorry, I can't hear you."
Cheng Weiming: "I'm sorry." He wrote on the paper: [Where should I change it?]
Xi Jia pointed to the last date: "I'll sign today, but..." She was a little embarrassed, but still said, "Could we change the date to tomorrow? We're going to the Civil Affairs Bureau to get a divorce tomorrow, not today."
Cheng Weiming had been lost in thought and filled in the date.
It's just an insignificant date. To her, it doesn't matter; she and Mo Yushen are still husband and wife today.
Cheng Weiming nodded, but when he changed the numbers, his hand trembled, he typed the wrong number, and deleted it.
He printed it again, making several more copies.
Cheng Weimo handed the pen to Xi Jia and pointed to the place for signing.
Xi Jia paused and hesitated as she wrote.
Cheng Weiming had seen her autograph; it was beautifully written in a flowing, elegant style.
Xi Jia took a sip of coffee before putting pen to paper. Each stroke was deliberate, like carving characters, written very slowly. On the last sign-in sheet, the character "Jia" was left with only the final "mouth" radical unfinished.
The pen tip trembled incessantly.
Just like that night when I went to visit my grandmother, no matter how slowly I walked, I still reached the destination.
'Snap'.
The blank space on the agreement was wet with a substance the size of a soybean, which quickly spread.
Xi Jia quickly wiped it away with her sleeve and added the last 'mouth' character.
Cheng Weiming put away the divorce agreement, but Xi Jia quickly grabbed it again, wiping her eyes. "I haven't put my fingerprint on it yet, please do."
After pressing their fingerprints, they delayed the time by a few minutes.
Cheng Weimo handed her a few wet wipes.
Xi Jia said in a hoarse voice, "Thank you."
"Attorney Cheng, I won't bother you any longer," Xi Jia said, taking her leave. She pulled her cardigan tighter; perhaps it was evening and the air was chilly. That's what she thought.
Cheng Weimo got up and saw her out.
Xi Jia couldn't hear and didn't know there was someone behind her.
Cheng Weimo kept his distance from her and escorted her all the way to the elevator. She never turned around, lost in her own sorrowful world.
The elevator doors slowly opened and then closed.
Cheng Weiming returned to his office. He closed the window, turned on the air conditioner, and poured himself a glass of hot water.
Mo Yushen called, "Has Xi Jia left yet?"
Cheng Weiming: "Just left. I was just about to call you about this." After a short pause, "When signing, Xi Jia endured for more than ten minutes. On the last document, she shed tears."
Silence on the phone.
Cheng Weimo checked his phone; it was still connected to another call.
"Tear up the agreement." Mo Yushen hung up the phone.
Cheng Weimo turned on the shredder and put all the documents in.
Downstairs, Xi Jia glanced back at the law firm. She thought Mo Yushen would come at six o'clock today, and she could see him one more time.
He didn't show up, so he probably didn't really want to see her.
Xi Jia told the driver that she wanted to take a walk.
The driver agreed first, parked the car, and followed Xi Jia at a distance.
There are too many roads in Beijing, one after another.
Xi Jia walked for more than three hours, and there were far fewer vehicles on the road than before.
More than four hours have passed since she started taking notes. Now, the only thing she can remember that is related to Mo Yushen is the agreement she signed at the law firm.
After passing through a narrow alley and walking a few dozen meters further, I turned onto a small path. The plane trees on both sides were sprouting tiny new buds.
Xi Jia looked at the roadside; she should have walked past it, but she couldn't remember.
She wandered aimlessly to the end of the road, turned onto the main street, and then she remembered it. To get to Ji Qingshi's house, she had to take this road; she had walked it many years ago.
Walk one intersection ahead, and you'll find a roasted sweet potato shop.
The roasted sweet potato shop closes at 10 PM, and when Xi Jia arrived, it was just past 9:50. The shop had sold out of roasted sweet potatoes for the day, and the owner was pulling down the shutter.
"Boss, wait a minute." Xi Jia jogged over.
The shop owner, a middle-aged man, saw a young woman running in and pushed the door shut again after pulling it halfway open. He said apologetically, "Young lady, we're out of roasted sweet potatoes. If you want some, I'll save some for you tomorrow."
Xi Jia had already run closer, calming her breathing, "Uncle, I'd like to buy some roasted sweet potatoes."
The boss repeated what he had just said.
Xi Jia: "I'm sorry, Uncle, I'm deaf and can't hear. Please just weigh out two smaller ones for me."
The shop owner was taken aback, paused for a few seconds, and then gestured for her to come into the shop.
Xi Jia took out her phone, ready to scan the QR code to pay.
The owner didn't have any blank paper, so he wrote in the ledger: "We've sold out of roasted sweet potatoes today. I have one very small one left, you can have it. I'll save some more for you tomorrow."
The boss handed the ledger to Xi Jia. There was still a tiny thing in the oven, which he put in a paper bag and gave to Xi Jia.
Xi Jia tried to pay the bill, but the boss waved her away.
"Thank you, Uncle."
Xi Jia held the small sweet potato in her hand and put it in her pocket.
Cars came and went on the road. Xi Jia stared at the street for a while, as if watching a silent movie. She returned along the road and unconsciously turned back onto the sycamore-lined path.
Previously, a driver had followed her, but now she was in a different car. Mo Yushen sat in the car, staring out the window at the people who had followed her from the sweet potato shop to here.
Mo Yushen called Ji Qingshi and asked him to introduce his mother to Xi Jia the next day. If things continue like this, she won't be able to escape her grief.
Ji Qingshi: "Where's Jiajia?"
Mo Yushen: "I followed her when we were out walking on the street, and nothing happened."
Ji Qingshi asked him, "Are you coming over tonight?"
Mo Yushen looked at the figure outside, reacting slowly. After a while, he replied, "Go over there and give Xi Jia a few more pills so she can get a good night's sleep. I'll go over and finish the notes for her."
At 11 o'clock, Xi Jia returned to Ji Qingshi's apartment.
Ji Qingshi cooked a meal for her, but Xi Jia only ate a few bites. Ji Qingshi smelled the aroma of roasted sweet potato on her, a faint sweet fragrance.
Her cardigan pockets were bulging, probably because they were filled with roasted sweet potatoes.
"Aren't you going to eat?" Ji Qingshi asked Xi Jia when she put down her chopsticks.
After reading it, Xi Jia said, "I'm full, Second Brother, I'm going upstairs to sleep."
Ji Qingshi: [Wait a minute, I haven't taken my medicine yet.]
Xi Jia forgot what medicine she needed to take, so Ji Qingshi gave her a few pills. Xi Jia thought they were medicine for treatment and took them with warm water.
Xi Jia went upstairs, while Ji Qingshi sat in the downstairs restaurant for a while. She still remembered that Mo Yushen was her husband, and was determined to get a divorce, not wanting to drag Mo Yushen down with her.
There's no good way to make her forget everything. The longer she remembers, the more upset she'll be.
A few minutes later, Xi Jia came downstairs with several dresses in her hand. "Second Brother, which one do you think looks good? I want to wear something nice. Tomorrow might be the last time I see Mo Yushen."
Ji Qingshi pointed to one at random.
Xi Jia decided to wear the other one, since Ji Qingshi's taste has never been very good.
After taking the medicine, Xi Jia didn't toss and turn to sleep that night and fell asleep quickly.
Ji Qingshi went to her room to call her, but couldn't wake her up, so he put her clothes in the dressing room.
Mo Yushen then went inside. He sat on the edge of the bed, took off Xi Jia's ring, and placed it in the ring box along with his own. He took her hand and gently kissed the mark left by the ring on her ring finger.
"Hurry up and write it," Ji Qingshi said, pointing to the table.