43 Beijing City

◎"Luckily, you came on the day of the blind date"◎

“Auntie, you’re overthinking it. I’ve been married for several years. It’s Yun Jin who knows I’m married but keeps coming to me, wanting me to divorce my wife and be with him.” Song Chiyu sighed dramatically, “You should try to persuade him when you have time.”

"You're talking nonsense!" Xie Yunjin's aunt naturally didn't believe it. "After Yunjin broke up with you, he's had countless girlfriends, all of them prettier and better off than you. We should thank you for having the self-awareness back then, otherwise our Yunjin would have had to struggle for years more. You say our Yunjin is looking for you, but isn't it more like you can't forget him? He can't stay in Beijing, so he wants to stay in a city near Beijing."

"Auntie, please don't say things to upset me. What if I get angry and actually agree to let Yun Jin be my mistress? Where will your family's reputation be then?" Song Chiyu patted the back of her hand with a worried expression: "As a young Yangtze River Scholar, Professor Xie is actually going so far as to become a mistress for your ex-girlfriend whom you don't even like. How embarrassing would that be if word got out?"

Song Chiyu's words weren't just for them; they were also for Xie Yunjin. Given his pride, even if he was unwilling to accept things ending this way, he should have given up.

"After all these years, you're still so rude," Xie Yunjin's aunt commented.

"What a coincidence, you're the same." Song Chiyu said with a smile.

Xie Yunjin's aunt was speechless for a moment and turned to Hao Yufang for help. However, Hao Yufang completely ignored Song Chiyu, placing her hands on her knees and looking up ahead. Song Chiyu remembered what Hao Yufang had told her before, "If it weren't for Yunjin, people like you and your parents would never have had any contact with me or Yunjin's father in your entire lives."

My aunt is just mean-spirited. But her arrogance is ingrained in her bones; ignoring her, belittling her, fundamentally negates your entire being. Anyone with a slightly weak will will be affected by this attitude, leading to self-doubt and a relentless descent into humiliation.

Song Chiyu didn't listen to her back then, and she won't listen to her now either.

He stood tall and looked straight ahead, no longer giving them any attention.

Hao Yufang's friend, sitting diagonally across from her, discreetly observed her. To be fair, Xiao Xie's ex-girlfriend was quite pretty, not at all like the slovenly woman his aunt had described. Despite such harsh criticism, she hadn't uttered any foul language; it was their family... who were difficult to please. They had previously accused her of being rude, and with this attitude, did they expect her to apologize and admit her mistakes after being humiliated for no reason?

Everyone sees through it but doesn't say anything.

Since it's not their daughter who's going to marry into their family, they're too lazy to offend anyone.

It only takes half an hour to get to Beijing from here. She called the number Xie Yunjin had given her in advance, but Qi Jianguo answered instead. When Qi Jianguo learned that she was almost there, he was as straightforward as ever: "Zhan Nan is already at the high-speed rail station. Just call her when you get there."

Song Chiyu was quite surprised by Qi Zhannan's presence in the capital, but upon reflection, it made sense, and she politely agreed.

She wasn't very confident in Qi Zhannan's abilities, so after arriving at the high-speed rail station, she planned to take a taxi herself. Unexpectedly, Qi Zhannan called her, "Second Aunt, where are you? I'm waiting for you at the exit. You'll see me when you come out."

Are you sure I'll see you if I come out?

"Hey," Qi Zhannan said, quite displeased that she didn't trust him, "I'll add you on WeChat, please accept my request. Let's share our locations."

Just as Song Chiyu was about to refuse, his friend request came through.

Song Chiyu had no choice but to click "Accept".

He immediately initiated location sharing with her.

Song Chiyu was quite speechless. The people in the Qi family were either too bound by boundaries or had no boundaries at all. She could only agree for now.

Qi Zhannan hadn't lied to her. As soon as she came out, she saw a young man in a leather jacket and sunglasses, his freshly dyed red hair waving vigorously at her. It was the first time Song Chiyu had ever seen such pure red hair on someone's head, and for a moment she didn't want to recognize him. But he had already seen her, "Song Chiyu!"

People around her all turned to look at her.

Aunt Xie Yunjin's voice suddenly rang out behind her, "Oh, this can't be your husband, can it?"

Song Chiyu turned around, and Hao Yufang and the others were following behind her. Before she could speak, Qi Zhannan had already taken off his sunglasses and walked over, asking in a rather unfriendly tone, "Who are you?"

Just from his voice, he seemed like someone not to be trifled with. Having achieved her goal, Aunt Xie Yunjin naturally wouldn't confront him head-on. She exchanged a glance with the others and left.

Song Chiyu slapped him on the back: "Why did you dye your hair so red?"

"Isn't it pretty?"

"I can't say it's bad-looking, it just doesn't quite suit your temperament, Master Qi." Song Chiyu regretted hitting him as soon as he finished speaking and immediately changed his tone.

"Oh? Then I'll dye it back tomorrow."

Song Chiyu followed him to the underground parking lot and watched him get straight into a red sports car. She subconsciously asked, "Did you rent it?"

Qi Zhannan was shocked to hear such harsh words come out of her mouth. He pulled down his sunglasses and looked at her incredulously. "My dad bought it for me."

Song Chiyu immediately changed her tune, saying, "I always thought someone of your status would drive a more composed car."

"Let's talk about it after I turn thirty," Qi Zhannan said dismissively. "Stop being so picky. I haven't let anyone ride in this car yet. You're lucky today."

Song Chiyu also deeply reflected on his own actions.

It was already kind of Master Qi to come and pick her up; she really shouldn't have offered any opinions. "Thank you, Master Qi."

Qi Zhannan snorted with satisfaction, "Go out and ask around, when has I ever worked as someone's driver?"

Song Chiyu nodded repeatedly, "You're right. I've already sent you the location I need to go to. Please take a look."

Qi Zhannan then stopped arguing with her and opened the location she had sent him.

Song Chiyu had already checked; it would take an hour to drive there, just in time for the agreed-upon time. Unexpectedly, Qi Zhannan drove right to the ride-hailing exit, which was already incredibly congested, with passengers standing on both sides waiting for their rides. Almost as soon as his car entered public view, gasps of surprise rang out from the surrounding crowd.

I don't know if they were marveling at his red hair or astonished that someone would drive a sports car for a ride-hailing service.

Qi Zhannan wore an arrogant expression that seemed to come naturally to him, making Song Chiyu wish she could crawl under the car and hide—it was just too pretentious. As she looked around, she suddenly spotted Hao Yufang and the others waiting for the car in the crowd. Hao Yufang looked disdainful, as arrogant as ever, while Xie Yunjin's aunt and the others stared wide-eyed.

Clearly, no one expected Song Chiyu to find someone so young and so rich.

Aunt Xie Yunjin couldn't help but mutter, "Is it fake?"

Hao Yufang didn't take this kind of person who only had money and no manners seriously at all. When she saw the car that was supposed to pick her up, she got in directly.

**

Qi Zhannan was completely unaware of what had happened in those few minutes. He only realized he had taken the wrong exit when he was near the exit. "No wonder it was so congested!"

Song Chiyu initially suspected he was doing it on purpose, but later realized he genuinely didn't have such intentions, so she didn't ask any further questions.

He took out his phone and sent a WeChat message to Qi Yanzhou: "I'm already in Qi Zhannan's car."

"He's back in Beijing?" Qi Zhannan replied quickly.

"Yeah, he even drove a red sports car and had dyed his hair red. He was incredibly cool."

Qi Yanzhou replied with a string of ellipses just imagining that scene.

Song Chiyu had no intention of complaining, and seeing his poor reaction, she didn't continue.

Qi Zhannan had already turned off the navigation and drove straight into the vicinity of Beijing's most famous secondhand market. Song Chiyu had heard of this place long ago; back in 2000, it was known as China's premier antique market, and now it has everything from antiques and collectibles to many foreign tourists.

If she came alone, she wouldn't know where to go after wandering around inside.

Qi Zhannan led her to the shop indicated on the navigation and was about to leave when he reminded her, "My dad's antique shop is just ahead. If you can't find it, just call him. He'll come pick you up."

With a mix of trepidation and excitement, Song Chiyu walked into the shop. Inside, various handicrafts were displayed, spanning three floors. A young man at the entrance greeted her and asked, "What would you like to buy?"

"No, I'm looking for Master Bai Ruisheng. Is he here?"

"You are my master, and who are you?"

"I was introduced by Qi Yanzhou."

"Oh, I've been waiting for you for ages. Why are you only arriving now?" The young man led her upstairs. The upstairs area was wider than the downstairs, with long tables set up. Some people were painting wood carvings, some were restoring bronze artifacts, and some were doing jigsaw puzzles. There were a dozen or so men and women doing all sorts of things.

Song Chiyu walked toward the white-haired old man sitting alone at the long table.

He greeted her with a friendly smile, "You must be Miss Song? I'm Bai Ruisheng, the restorer here."

Song Chiyu quickly and respectfully extended her hand: "Hello, hello, Song Chiyu."

"I heard you work at the museum?" He gestured for Song Chiyu to sit down opposite him.

“Yes,” Song Chiyu replied, “Our area is a prefecture-level city under Mingzhou, so there are many historical sites, ruins, and museums.”

Upon hearing the name, Bai Ruisheng immediately said, "That is the true ancient capital of seven dynasties."

Song Chiyu nodded.

Bai Ruisheng took an ancient book and handed it to her. "Teacher Qi said you have a foundation. Can you restore one for me to see first? Then I'll see what I can teach you."

Song Chiyu had already researched this on the way here. This master craftsman was no ordinary restorer, but a national-level intangible cultural heritage inheritor who had worked at the National Library for a long time. He was also a guest lecturer at a school specializing in restoration and had even appeared on television a few times.

Song Chiyu had observed his restoration techniques and skills, and they were actually comparable to Lao Li's. The biggest difference was that he came from a prestigious and orthodox family. Song Chiyu opened the cover of the ancient book and began commercial restoration according to the techniques Lao Li had taught her. Bai Ruisheng watched for a while, then suddenly squinted and said, "This is the Northern School's technique."

Song Chiyu hadn't expected it to be so obvious to an expert, and nodded.

"Your master's surname is Li? He used to work at Bafangzhai?"

Song Chiyu couldn't tell what he was thinking and felt uncertain, but she still forced herself to say, "Yes."

"The former owner of Bafangzhai was my friend and also his mentor."

This life is over.

"Then should I call you Master?"

Bai Ruisheng waved his hand: "Just call me Master. From now on, no matter who asks, just say you are my disciple. Come, let me teach you our Southern School's restoration methods."

Is there any difference?

"Yes, the Northern School and the Southern School have also branched into many different factions, each with its own characteristics."

Song Chiyu knew that Zhou Yue had been an apprentice for ten years before completing his apprenticeship. She didn't expect him to actually teach her anything, but he came right off the bat with practical tips, holding nothing back, clearly intending to teach her.

At first, she didn't understand why, until his other apprentices left and he asked her about her relationship with Qi Yanzhou.

She thought she had misheard: "Huh?"

"Is it inconvenient to say?" Bai Ruisheng asked.

No, that's not it. She just didn't expect a master of his caliber to be so gossipy: "He is my husband."

"You're his wife?" Bai Ruisheng was surprised. "He's married?"

"Hmm." Song Chiyu nodded, unaware of the reason for his surprise.

No wonder Qi Yanzhou was so generous. The calligraphy and paintings that I had begged him for half a year to obtain were now being given to me on his own initiative. He was even more polite to Song Chiyu: "Don't worry, I will help you whether you want to apply for intangible cultural heritage status or publish a paper in the future."

Song Chiyu then realized that Qi Yanzhou had put a lot of thought into this.

I don't know who to thank for a moment.

Bai Ruisheng waved his hand generously after hearing her thanks: "Teacher Qi and I are old friends, no need to be so polite. I am nominally your teacher, but in essence we are all on the same side."

After so long, Song Chiyu finally heard a decent person from his own side.

Continue to focus on restoring the ancient books in your hands.

The repair took a whole day.

She was originally scheduled to come again tomorrow, but Bai Ruisheng heard that she had to work on Monday, so he didn't bother her anymore. He sent her some study materials and asked her to film videos for him. He would then provide her with online guidance.

Song Chiyu then realized that this line of work could be done in this way.

Teacher Qi has an extraordinary amount of influence.

As she walked out of Bai Ruisheng's shop, she received a text message from an unknown number: "You came to Beijing without telling me?"

Song Chiyu knew without guessing that it was Xie Yunjin, and didn't reply. She was just curious where he got the number she hadn't blocked. Then a second text message arrived: "Who was the person who picked you up today?"

Song Chiyu still ignored him.

The third text message: "I heard she's quite young?"

Article 4: "Your husband is no good? So you found a younger one?"

Article 5: "You don't even consider me?"

Article 6: "Answer me"

Song Chiyu blocked him and then called Qi Jianguo. Unexpectedly, Qi Yanzhou answered the phone, asking gently, "Class is over?"

She immediately relaxed, feeling a deep sense of exhaustion: "Mm."

"Wait for me, I'll be right there to pick you up."

"It's okay, I'm not in a hurry." She caught her breath, and when she turned around, she saw Qi Yanzhou walking out of a shop not far away. He was wearing a black cardigan sweater and loose casual trousers, and he strode towards her.

Song Chiyu found it hard to describe his demeanor at that moment; he seemed neither like a merchant nor a tourist, yet he blended perfectly with the surrounding antique objects. He walked towards her, facing the setting sun, and subconsciously raised his hand to shield her face from the sunlight. "Tired?"

She couldn't hide it from him, so she nodded.

"Then don't go tomorrow."

“Okay.” Song Chiyu told him what Bai Ruisheng had said, and they walked together toward Qi Jianguo’s shop.

Qi Jianguo's shop was even bigger than she had imagined, practically an antique market. It had everything, including the prized possessions of their museum. Seeing the large bronze cauldron prominently displayed in the second-floor lobby, Song Chiyu was visibly startled.

The exhibits displayed nearby were even more eye-opening. Not only their museum, but also the treasures of various museums were here, including the famous bronze sacred tree.

Song Chiyu walked around the three floors and returned to the tea room on the first floor. "Brother, do you have anything real here?"

"No, there aren't any real ones here," Qi Jianguo readily admitted. "Don't you know there's a whole street over there that's all doing this?"

Song Chiyu had vaguely heard of it.

But she hadn't expected so much, and she sat down beside Qi Yanzhou, amazed. Qi Yanzhou laughed, placing a cup of warm water in front of her.

“Sister-in-law, I’m not bragging, but I have everything your museum has, and I also have things your museum doesn’t have.” Qi Jianguo got excited. “Have you ever seen aliens? I even have the remains of an alien UFO.”

Song Chiyu was completely dumbfounded. Qi Yanzhou interrupted, "Don't listen to him, he's lying to you."

"What do you mean by lying? My brother and sister-in-law and I were just having a normal conversation."

"The items here now are mostly modern handicrafts. Back in the 80s, when this was still a ghost market, most of the goods here were genuine, but now there are very few left," Qi Yanzhou explained patiently.

"Why are you telling your sister-in-law so quickly?" Qi Jianguo wanted to tease her, but was greatly disappointed. "Sister-in-law, you can go outside and choose whatever you like later, and put it on my account."

"Thank you, brother. I'll take a look later," Song Chiyu replied politely. She then noticed several bandages on Qi Yanzhou's hand holding the teacup and grabbed his hand, asking, "What happened?"

"It's nothing, I just used a tool that I don't usually use, and it chafed my skin a little."

"Be careful." Song Chiyu was still staring at the band-aid.

"I understand." Qi Yanzhou gently raised the corners of his lips: "How was your study today?"

Song Chiyu answered truthfully.

Qi Jianguo watched from the opposite side and couldn't help but reveal a hint of envy.

He exclaimed from the bottom of his heart, "Sister-in-law, you probably don't know this, but before he got married, he would spend less than three days a week in Mingzhou. After you came into my life, I only see him come back a few times a year."

Song Chiyu was taken aback. Qi Yanzhou didn't know why he was telling Song Chiyu this, and a warning glint appeared in his deep gaze. Qi Jianguo changed the subject: "Are you going back tonight?"

It's already this late.

Song Chiyu was also unsure and waited for Qi Yanzhou to make a decision. Qi Yanzhou noticed the weariness between her brows: "Stay for one more night before you leave."

"I'll go order food now and have Zhan Nan pick up Dad and Uncle San so we can all have a meal together before going back."

Song Chiyu understood and quietly leaned closer to Qi Yanzhou, asking, "So, in the capital, you also live together as a large family?"

"kindness."

"Where did you come from on the day Qi Zhannan and I ran away from our blind date?"

“I happened to be there that day. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have told me.”

"Luckily it was you who came." Song Chiyu sighed.

"What's wrong?" A hint of a smile unconsciously crept into his indifferent eyes.

"Otherwise, my mom would probably set me up on another blind date."

Qi Yanzhou: "..."

This solved her immediate problem. She picked up her teacup and shook her head helplessly.

Just then, Qi Zhannan returned from outside, his striking red hair now cut short and dyed back to black. Qi Jianguo chuckled upon seeing it, "I told you to dye it back yesterday, but you wouldn't listen. Now that you know your second uncle is coming, and you know you'll get a beating, you'd better dye it back."

Qi Zhannan disagreed: "No, it's because my second aunt said my previous hairstyle suited Master Qi's temperament better, and I thought it made sense. Right, second aunt?"

After saying that, he patted Song Chiyu on the shoulder again.

Qi Yanzhou stared at him calmly: "Your hand is healed?"

Qi Zhannan snapped out of his daze and immediately raised his hand to apologize, saying, "No, I'm sorry, Second Aunt, it's just a habit."

"Don't think that just because she's about your age, you can treat her without any respect." Qi Yanzhou's usually cold demeanor suddenly turned serious: "Your leg is better now?" Qi Zhannan sensed that this was a prelude to a beating and immediately sat down on the chair next to him: "No, I just went outside for a bit of exercise."