Chapter 8: What kind of girlfriend do you drink tea with?

Qin Zhenglin is a proud and meticulous person who often says "disdainful" and displays a strong sense of male chauvinism in discussions about gender relations.

But his work attitude is impeccable, his teaching quality is excellent, and his research achievements are also remarkable.

Overall, its merits outweigh its flaws.

"People are easily influenced by those close to them. There's a big difference between being single and having a partner. Take Qin Zhenglin, for example. Don't be fooled by his outdated ideas. Once he gets married, he might just be henpecked."

He Zongqin was a know-it-all; there wasn't a single person in the entire Jiangda circle he didn't know. The conversation naturally drifted to Qin Zhenglin's recent blind date. After analyzing it, he asked curiously, "I remember you two didn't have much interaction. Why are you suddenly asking about him?"

Liang Huaixu said calmly, "He was a member of my team in the Tibet aid project two years ago. I ran into him while smoking outside the private room last time and we chatted for a bit."

“No wonder.” He Zongqin nodded, then asked Liang Huaixu to help him look at a set of blueprints.

After receiving some suggestions for revision, He Zongqin suddenly understood, "Old Liang, it has to be you."

Among the existing architects, Mr. Yu is the most renowned.

Mr. Yu was born during a time of war and witnessed different historical periods. Many famous modern buildings were designed by him. Yet, this same man said that his student, Liang Huaixu, was a once-in-a-century genius in the architectural world.

It is evident how amazing Liang Huaixu's talent was; he was truly blessed with natural talent. Even without specializing in the construction industry, he was exceptionally hired by Jiang University.

After Liang Huaixu left, He Zongqin began revising the drawings according to the suggested changes.

Thinking of something, he looked up in puzzlement.

That's not right. The so-called members of the Tibet aid project are, frankly speaking, completely unrelated.

When did Lao Liang develop this curiosity?

-

After leaving Jiangda, Liang Huaixu went to Changting and didn't get off work until 8 p.m.

When he returned, Zhuang Fuyao was teasing Bagel with Song Qing in the group chat.

Tomorrow is Qixi Festival, and Qixi Festival marketing is everywhere in shopping malls and online.

Last year on Qixi Festival, Liang Chaoluo took Shurun ​​to the Maldives and prepared a room full of flowers as a surprise. This year is the first Qixi Festival after graduation, and Shurun ​​is also looking forward to how they will spend it.

Zhuang Fuyao laughed as she typed.

Liang Huaixu glanced at her and stopped Aunt Yuan, who was about to prepare dinner, saying, "Don't bother, just heat up what's already cooked."

So, does that mean the gentleman is going to eat Miss Zhuang's leftovers?

Several women were quite surprised when they heard this.

While they were heating up the food in the kitchen, they quietly pulled Aunt Yuan aside to discuss something.

"So, who exactly is Miss Zhuang to you, sir?"

"They don't act like juniors, nor do they have the intimacy of lovers... but Miss Zhuang speaks very forcefully in front of the gentleman, without the slightest bit of politeness."

Aunt Yuan was also curious, but she coldly interrupted their discussion, saying, "Don't worry about it. Be careful that the master hears you and fires you."

Upon hearing this, the group immediately fell silent, all afraid of losing their good jobs.

During the meal, Liang Huaixu's right hand was strapped with a restraint, and his left hand was not very dexterous as he used a fork to pick up food. Perhaps because he looked a little comical, he noticed that Zhuang Fuyao glanced at him several times, seemingly wanting to say something but holding back.

Liang Huaixu had been pretending to be calm, but he couldn't hide the increasingly direct gaze from her. He put down his fork uncomfortably and was about to speak.

At that moment, Zhuang Fuyao's phone vibrated a few times.

Song Qing: [Human joys and sorrows are not shared. Some people are happily celebrating Qixi Festival, while others still have to go to work, miserable and miserable.]

He then posted a meme of himself taking off his sunglasses and crying.

Zhuang Fuyao raised an eyebrow slightly, amused by the meme: [What kind of job?]

Song Qing: [Your Qixi Festival is a time of intense competition in our industry. I still have a performance to do tomorrow.]

Thinking she was chatting with Qin Zhenglin, Liang Huaixu looked away and withdrew the question he was about to ask.

……

The next day was Qixi Festival, which was also a Saturday.

After breakfast, Zhuang Fuyao was watching short videos with her headphones on, while Liang Huaixu sat not far from her reading a newspaper.

Suddenly, Qin Zhenglin's message popped up, asking her if she had any plans for the day.

Zhuang Fuyao frowned.

While she hesitated between not replying to messages and refusing, Qin Zhenglin sent another message: "Miss Zhuang, you don't need to feel guilty. We can still be friends even if the blind date doesn't work out."

This was a piece of advice his friend gave him: to retreat in order to advance, start by being friends, and then slowly win people's hearts.

Qin Zhenglin was confident of his success, but Zhuang Fuyao was completely unfazed by his tactic.

Everyone has plenty of friends, so why would you want to find a blind date to be your friend?

She had seen this tactic many times when she was a student; even the wording was exactly the same.

Just as she was about to reply, Bagel's message popped up: 【Happy Valentine's Day, sisters!! I bought you flowers~~】

Almost simultaneously, Aunt Yuan came in carrying a large bunch of Freud, saying, "The deliveryman just brought this; he said it's for Miss Zhuang."

As she said this, Aunt Yuan secretly sized up Mr. and Miss Zhuang.

Unfortunately, neither of them showed any unusual signs.

The gentleman appeared calm, while Miss Zhuang showed genuine joy as she asked, "Aunt Yuan, do you have a large vase at home for 'reviving' flowers?"

Aunt Yuan: Yes!

This Freud bouquet was so huge it needed to be placed in several vases. Zhuang Fuyao helped with the work, and after it was finished, she took a picture and posted it in the group chat: 【So beautiful! I love it! Thank you Bagel!!!】

After waking up the flowers, she went to the construction site and bought some coffee and fruit for the workers.

When she returned, it was already seven o'clock in the evening. Liang Huaixu was not in the house. Zhuang Fuyao thought he had gone on a date with his girlfriend. Although she was trying to adjust, this feeling of melancholy still came out uncontrollably.

Why not go for a walk in the garden to relax?

She vaguely saw a pale yellow light shining in the pavilion in the South Garden. Upon closer inspection, she saw it was Liang Huaixu.

He sat upright at the tea table, brewing tea for himself with one hand. His movements were not as fluid as when his hands were still good, but they were still very elegant.

The air was filled with a mixture of the aroma of tea and the scent of burning wood.

Zhuang Fuyao: What are you doing here?

"I've got nothing to do," Liang Huaixu said, gesturing for tea. "This pot of tea is just ready."

Zhuang Fuyao: "Can you sleep at night if you drink tea?"

Liang Huaixu did find it difficult to fall asleep after drinking tea at night, but today his mind was in turmoil, and he would still suffer from insomnia even without this cup of tea.

He shook his head. "It won't affect me much." Then he took away the teacup in front of her. "But it's really not advisable to drink tea at night. It was my oversight."

Zhuang Fuyao snatched the teacup back in an annoyed tone, "What's so unsuitable about it? I drink coffee and milk tea like water, I'm immune to it already."

She sipped her tea in silence, then suddenly said, "By the way, I'm moving out in a while."

Liang Huaixu knew that she would move out sooner or later after he found out she was going on a blind date.

But upon hearing it, I still felt a kind of panicked sadness.

What is he sad about?

Old He has a good eye for people. Although Qin Zhenglin has some minor flaws, they don't outweigh his merits. His previous romantic relationships were also very simple, so he should be a good marriage prospect.

He shouldn't be sad.

Liang Huaixu composed himself and smiled slightly, "That's good."

Good?

Zhuang Fuyao really wanted to slam her hand on the table and leave.

Although her intention was to avoid suspicion, she thought he would at least try to persuade her to stay. Is he now so eager for her to leave so he can spend some time alone with his girlfriend?

While she thought this way, she also felt that Liang Huaixu was a bastard with no sense of boundaries.

Since he already has a girlfriend, why did he agree to his ex-wife moving in? How is his current girlfriend supposed to feel about this?

After thinking about it, she noticed that Liang Huaixu was still wearing the same home clothes he had worn that morning, making it seem like he hadn't left the house all day.

Today is Qixi Festival, and he's actually ignoring his girlfriend, leisurely drinking tea here!

In contrast, Zhuang Fuyao was even more indignant on behalf of his girlfriend, and her expression remained unfriendly throughout, saying, "It's almost eight o'clock now, aren't you going to leave?"

Liang Huaixu looked up. "It's Saturday. I have no work scheduled."

"What about your personal arrangements? Are you even going to celebrate Qixi Festival? Do you even want a girlfriend anymore? If you're going to be in a relationship, then be serious. I can't stand seeing people suffer like this..."

After being scolded by her, Liang Huaixu finally found a chance to speak, looking at her with a strange expression, "What girlfriend?"

Zhuang Fuyao changed the word, "ambiguous partner".

Liang Huaixu realized she might have misunderstood something. He was silent for a moment before answering seriously, "I don't have anyone I'm romantically involved with. I don't know why you think that. Is there some misunderstanding?"