Chapter 20: Long-distance relationships are not advisable; as things stand, it's unrequited love. ...

Just now, Wen Qi suddenly caused a scene, and Zhu Qingzhi was like a ball of yarn, all messed up, and she even forgot to get out of the car when they arrived at the old house.

In the end, Wen Qi tugged at her and she realized what was happening, a scene that was witnessed by the Zhu couple standing in front of the door.

Because of their health conditions, the Zhu couple had no children, so they raised Zhu Qingzhi almost like their own daughter.

"Uncle and Aunt." As soon as Zhu Qingzhi got out of the car, she ran to give each of them a hug, and finally clung to Ni Yun's arm.

Wen Qi followed closely behind: "Uncle and Aunt."

It was fine when we were far away, but looking at them up close, it's clear these two kids are so close they're wearing matching outfits?

Zhu Liangli and Ni Yun exchanged a glance and tacitly took turns leading one person each. Wen Qi naturally handed one to Zhu Liangli: "It's so late, I'm really sorry to have you come over."

“Uncle is very generous. It was my oversight as a junior that I came to Haicheng but did not take the initiative to visit you. I have prepared some things and arranged for someone to deliver them to you in a while.”

When Wen Qi spoke to his elders, he bowed slightly and politely lagged behind. He was very well-mannered, and that alone made him very likable.

In fact, Zhu Liangli had a lot of objections to Zhu Qingzhi's marriage. He made several phone calls to Zhu Qingzhi's parents and even flew to Beijing with Ni Yun.

But when he learned that Zhu Qingzhi had agreed to this herself, he had no choice but to accept it. Indeed, it was a problem that this child was too sensible; she even knew to give way to her family when it came to marriage.

However, the two of them standing together just now did look very well-matched, especially Wen Qi's eyes. He was too familiar with them; they were the eyes of someone in love.

But as things stand, it's unrequited love. Thinking of this, Zhu Liangli asked, "Chaochao is stubborn and has a bad temper, please bear with her."

Before Wen Qi could speak, Zhu Qingzhi turned around and shouted, "Uncle, you're talking bad about me again!"

"Oh, you haven't been home in so long, I'd completely forgotten you were here."

Zhu Qingzhi's sarcastic remarks were mostly learned from him, but she never surpassed him, so she always ended up getting the short end of the stick. She wrinkled her nose and walked inside angrily.

Zhu Liangli explained to Wen Qi slowly and deliberately, "She went to complain to her grandmother."

He was right.

When Wen Qi entered the house, he saw Zhu Qingzhi kneeling on the sofa with one leg, nestled in the old lady's arms: "Grandma, Uncle is talking badly about me again."

The old lady was in a good mood. She stroked Zhu Qingzhi's forehead, and when her smiling eyes met Wen Qi's, she paused noticeably.

"Grandma." Wen Qi bowed slightly and stood aside without making any further movements.

Zhu Liangli gestured for Wen Qi to sit down, and the servants served tea, but they didn't linger.

The living room chandelier was bright, and the fireplace was ablaze with fire. The crackling sound of the charcoal added a touch of warmth.

The old lady rubbed Zhu Qingzhi's ear: "Don't complain anymore, tell me about your situation first."

Zhu Qingzhi subconsciously looked at Wen Qi and saw him turning his teacup, his eyes dark and unfathomable, as if he was thinking about something. He was a bit like the reserved person she was when she first met Wen Qi's parents.

Fine, let her get out of this mess this time.

"I'm going to be living in Beijing from now on."

The old lady didn't speak, but Zhu Liangli said, "Now that we're married, we really can't live apart."

She returned to Beijing for her career! Even if you don't follow her career closely, surely you should have heard something about it!

But if Wen Qi were here, it would be too disrespectful for him to argue back.

I admit defeat!

"Yes, thank you for your understanding, Uncle." She smiled brightly, but the words were almost squeezed out through clenched teeth.

Wen Qi didn't sit there like an outsider; he put down his teacup and echoed a comment.

As the clock approached twelve, the group dispersed after chatting for only a short while. Just like at the Wen family's house, they shared a room again.

The room was where Zhu Qingzhi had lived since she was a child. Unlike the cool colors that Wen Qi liked, it was warm and cute, with lots of miscellaneous little things inside, including dozens of plush toys.

Zhu Qingzhi casually picked up a doll and hugged it to her arms: "When are you going back to Beijing?"

"the day after tomorrow."

"Oh, my flight is tomorrow afternoon. Um, I hope I'm not bothering you by suddenly asking you to come over today?"

Wen Qi was looking down to take off his watch when he heard this. He looked up at her, a few strands of his bangs falling down. The light from the spotlight fell into his eyes, shimmering and elusive.

"I am your husband."

Zhu Qingzhi bit her lip, feeling embarrassed that her little secret had been exposed, or perhaps because of Wen Qi's self-designation.

Husband is both a stranger and a familiar figure, someone difficult to talk about. In fact, from the very beginning, she knew that the guess that "Wen Qi has a girlfriend" was unreasonable, even absurd. She was just avoiding this unfounded advances.

But today, both Wen Qi's words in the car, "I can go public," and his words just now, "I am your husband," are forcing her to confront his feelings.

Just as she finally mustered up the courage to say something, a phone call came in. It was from Dani: "I'm boarding the plane right away. Give me a definite answer."

"What?"

Do you like Shen Yaozhi or not?

Zhu Qingzhi thought she was hallucinating. She looked at the phone several times, examining it from all angles, before finally holding it to her ear: "I like him?"

The room was quiet, but Wen Qi couldn't hear the conversation through the receiver. However, based on what Zhu Qingzhi said, it wasn't hard to guess what they were talking about.

He frowned almost imperceptibly between his brows, and there was a momentary pause in his movement as he bent down to put the watch down.

It's related to Shen Yaozhi. This name always makes him feel subtly uncomfortable, especially when it's associated with the name Zhu Qingzhi.

Almost without hesitation, as if it were an instinctive reaction, Wen Qi took off her coat and walked towards Zhu Qingzhi. The coat rack was behind her, so Zhu Qingzhi didn't think too much and moved aside to let her pass.

"I need a definite answer," Dani said firmly on the other end of the phone.

"I don't like it." Zhu Qingzhi rubbed her temples, a little helpless. "If it were really between him and me, how could we have pretended for three years without being discovered?"

"Okay, I understand. I've contacted Shen Yaozhi, and it seems that ignoring it won't work, but forcibly suppressing it might backfire."

The boarding prompt came from the other end of the line. Dani spoke faster, "Based on our current guess, there must be someone behind this trying to sabotage you. You two don't need to avoid each other for now. We'll discuss the specifics after we've talked to each other."

Before Zhu Qingzhi could even reply "okay," the receiver went dead. After hanging up, she let out a deep breath.

"Something bothering you?" Wen Qi stood beside him, and although they were very close, it wasn't an offensive distance.

“A little bit.” She shrugged. “But Dani and the others are probably more annoyed than I am.” After all, they are the ones who need to put in the effort.

"Do you need my help?"

This sentence immediately brought back to Zhu Qingzhi's memory of what he said in the car. So he already knew. Did he pay so much attention to things in the entertainment industry?

"The company can handle this kind of thing." She shook her head and refused, but Wen Qi didn't seem to react as strongly as he did in the car this time.

But now that he knows, he should still explain, since they are currently a legally married couple and a spouse has the right to know.

"He and I are friends. Just friends, but good friends."

...How could she speak like a tongue twister?

"Um."

*

The next day, while it was still barely dawn, the sound of rain began to fall outside the window. The rain gradually intensified, and even the wind became much stronger. The sound of branches breaking and windows shaking stimulated Zhu Qingzhi's nerves.

She pulled the covers over her head, and as she rolled over, something pressed against her cheek. Warm, pulsating, hard yet soft.

Oh no, this is a person!

Zhu Qingzhi immediately came to her senses. This was not only a person, but a man—her husband, Wen Qi.

But he didn't seem to react. If we don't leave now, when will we?!

Zhu Qingzhi tilted her head back and carefully moved her head away from his chest. Unexpectedly, their eyes met.

Wen Qi was tilting his head to look at her, seemingly awakened by her movements, his eyes showing a hint of confusion.

Zhu Qingzhi knew she must look ridiculous, acting all furtive. But what could she do?

Yes.

She immediately sat up, reached over his shoulder to his bedside, and casually picked up a small trinket from the bedside table: "Good morning, I'm getting ready to get up."

Wen Qi didn't stop her from getting out of bed. He chuckled softly and pulled the blanket up a little: "It's only five o'clock."

"You're rushing to catch an afternoon flight so early?"

...How come I never noticed before that he could be so sharp-tongued?

Zhu Qingzhi was stuck on the bed, but finally made up her mind and got off: "I'll change my ticket!"

"Also, I need to go back to the hotel now."

Things don't always go as planned.

The once-in-a-century typhoon changed course and arrived in the southeast of Haicheng three hours later. Due to the typhoon's impact, the Haicheng government issued a warning two hours earlier, urging citizens not to go out unless necessary.

Most flights departing from Haicheng today were canceled, such as Zhu Qingzhi's flight. Therefore, neither of her two statements came true, but it wasn't a major problem.

She sat cross-legged on the sofa and immediately sent a WeChat message to Xiaozhou: "[I went home last night and couldn't make it back. It's a typhoon today, so stay in the hotel and don't worry about me.]" She also didn't forget to send a belated WeChat message to Dani to let her know.

After that commotion, Wen Qi didn't go back to sleep. She turned on the light, picked up a book from the bookshelf next to her, and found it to be a romance novel with a literary title, the kind that teenage girls like.

The book was brand new, with no signs of having been read. As soon as I turned a page, a small card fell out of it.

【Happy birthday】

The cute handwriting, with a few little hearts drawn next to it, is Zhu Qingzhi's handwriting. This is a birthday gift that she wanted to give but didn't.

He turned to the copyright page and glanced at the book's printing date. At that time, she should have just graduated from high school.

Wen Qi tucked the card into the book, then casually put the book back on the shelf, a bittersweet feeling spreading through her heart.

It's hard to describe, but it's like shattered glass scattered on the ground under the sunlight, casting colorful patterns on the wall with dappled shadows of trees, pulling everything back to the shade of a tree in midsummer, and opening a bottle of iced soda that doesn't belong to you.

The fine bubbles resembled the surging of complex emotions, and in the end, he still couldn't imagine that Zhu Qingzhi, the cheerful and dazzling seventeen-year-old, had experienced a timid and awkward love affair.

So who is it? Who made her lose the courage to take the first step?

-----------------------

Author's note: Kiyoshi [transformed]: Silence is Cambridge this morning.

Wen Qi [bursts into tears]: ...

Author [helplessly]: Hmm.