Chapter 9 Discovering the Transformation of the Curved Lotus
"you....?"
"...Why are you dressed like this today?"
Qian Zhaoye paused for a moment, his gaze sweeping over Qu He, from her hazy blue skirt to her exquisite makeup. His Adam's apple bobbed involuntarily, and his eyes held a mixture of confusion and amazement.
Qu He stepped forward slowly, her skirt swaying like a blooming blue rose.
"Isn't it pretty?"
The rising sun shone through the window onto the person in front of me, as if a layer of illusory light had been cast upon them.
In a daze, Qian Zhaoye seemed to see the girl in the white dress who ran towards him seven years ago.
He recalled what he had said in the bridal chamber last night. Had she taken it to heart?
Did Qu He deliberately wear a skirt today to save face? Was she trying to make peace with me?
She did indeed lower her head.
The thought of Qu He lowering herself to beg for peace made Qian Zhaoye feel inexplicably better. His hidden desire to conquer resurfaced, and even the anger from being caught driving under the influence subsided considerably.
"It looks good, of course it looks good. You should have dressed like this sooner."
Qian Zhaoye unconsciously lowered his voice and looked at Qu He with his usual fake smile.
He loved the way Qu He bowed her head and obeyed him time and time again, like he was taming an obedient cat, making sure she could never escape his grasp.
Qian Zhaoye: "Last night... my tone wasn't very nice, please don't take it to heart."
He deliberately lowered his voice, "But Ah He, you have to understand, no matter what, I love you, and it's all for our future..."
Those hypocritical, disgusting words coiled around me again like a cold, venomous snake.
She was all too familiar with Qian Zhaoye's current demeanor. Whenever he felt he had her completely under his control, he would look at her with that seemingly gentle gaze.
In his eyes, wasn't this an immense blessing? An enormous act of charity?
It's absolutely ridiculous!
Qu He suppressed her nausea, took a half step back without showing any emotion, and placed the folder in her hand between the two of them. "These documents need your signature."
Qian Zhaoye didn't think much of it. When he took the document, he even touched Qu He's hand affectionately.
He returned to his desk, sat down, casually flipped through a few pages of documents, glanced at them, and then took out his pen to sign them.
Qu He's eyes followed his hand movements closely.
Three pages, two pages, one page.
Seeing that he was about to flip to the resignation letter sandwiched in the middle, my heart started racing, and my clenched fists were sweating.
What's wrong with you today? Are you in a bad mood?
Qu He suddenly spoke.
Although she had deliberately lowered her voice and imitated her usual concerned tone, you could still hear a hint of tension in her voice.
Fortunately, Qian Zhaoye did not discover anything.
Upon hearing Qu He's words, his attention was immediately diverted.
After quickly signing his name, he slammed the document shut and pushed it forward.
Don't even mention it!
Qian Zhaoye's complexion returned to the gloomy look he had when he was first seen that morning.
"I ran into the traffic police when I was leaving last night and got pulled over!"
At this point, he irritably loosened his tie, "It's fucking bizarre. I've driven that road so many times and never encountered a vehicle checkpoint. How come I had to run into one yesterday after just a few drinks?"
"I spent the whole night at the police station, those people..."
When Qu He heard that Qian Zhaoye didn't suspect her of being caught driving under the influence last night, she quietly breathed a sigh of relief.
She took the document, turned to the page with the resignation letter, and after seeing the signature, her turbulent emotions finally calmed down.
Qian Zhaoye's incessant complaints still echoed in my ears, from the traffic police's attitude to the cold, hard chairs at the police station, to not having eaten all night, and how he was in a rush to get to the company after finally getting out...
As they talked, Qian Zhaoye finally realized something was wrong.
Qu He's attitude!
She was unusually silent!
He stopped complaining, frowned, and looked at Qu He standing across the table.
She didn't seem to take what she said to heart, and just continued organizing the documents with an air of indifference.
Was she even listening to what he just said?
Normally, upon learning of what had happened to him, Qu He would have been anxiously asking if he was hurt, even more worried than he was himself. She would have worried that he hadn't slept well all night, felt sorry for him not having eaten all night, and might even have offered to cook him porridge...
But what about today?
A sudden, inexplicable panic welled up inside me.
Qian Zhaoye subconsciously rubbed his aching stomach. He had been in a mess at the police station all night and hadn't had a bite to eat or a drop of water since. Coupled with Qu He's inexplicable attitude, his chest began to feel tight.
Something about Quhe seems different today.
It feels somewhat unfamiliar.
Although the person in front of me had changed their usual attire, that bright blue seemed to transform into an elusive and indistinct mist at this moment, swirling in my heart.
He couldn't hold onto her; he could only watch her drift further and further away.
“Ahe.…”
Qian Zhaoye suddenly stood up and walked to Qu He's side.
He tried to reach out and take her hand, but she pulled away.
Qian Zhaoye was inexplicably stubborn. He grabbed her hand, as if to prove something in this way.
"I was rude last night. How about we go out for dinner tonight? How about your favorite French restaurant?"
Qu He did not answer, but simply turned slightly to the side and withdrew the hand that he was holding.
She never liked French food.
It's expensive and you can't get enough to eat.
Qian Zhaoye's hand missed its target, and he paused for a moment.
Just as I was about to say something, I heard Qu He say worriedly, "You haven't eaten all night, your stomach must be upset. Shall I cook you some porridge for lunch?"
There was a small kitchen next to Qian Zhaoye's office. Knowing that he had a bad stomach, Qu He often cooked porridge and noodles for him there. She cared about his health even more than Qian Zhaoye did.
Her words acted like a tranquilizer, instantly calming the unease that had been rising in Qian Zhaoye's heart.
He breathed a sigh of relief, no longer taking Qu He's earlier evasion to heart.
She is still herself, still the same Qu He who always puts him first, no matter what.
He must have been overthinking it....
Qian Zhaoye affectionately tucked a stray hair behind her ear, saying, "Ahe, thank goodness you're here."
It was that fake, insincere smile again.
Qu He resisted the urge to push his hand away, forcing a stiff smile. "Then I'll go out first."
The moment the office door closed, Qu He finally dropped her feigned smile.
She took out her phone, opened the food delivery app, and ordered a scallop and shrimp congee, adding a note: "Popular!"
This is Qian Zhaoye's favorite porridge.
He has a bad stomach. When the company was first established, Qian Zhaoye was busy with social engagements and sometimes didn't have time to eat breakfast. At that time, she would get up early in the dead of winter to cook porridge for him just because he said, "Ahe, I want to drink the porridge you cooked."
The dried scallops need to be soaked forty minutes in advance, and the fresh shrimp are personally selected by her from the seafood market and deveined by her.
She was so stupid to spend seven years with a man who never really cared about her!
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