Divorce: This is a Trivial Matter Chapter 23

Qi Xiao Yan's Audi screeched to a stop at the hotel entrance. He opened the door of the pa.s.senger seat and tossed Yang Wei in. The whole process went very smoothly.

There was a small pink pillow on the front pa.s.senger seat which belonged to Yang Wei. She looked at it in a slight daze, listening to Qi Xiao Yan slamming the door shut behind her. Then, letting out a huff, she placed the pillow on her lap and fastened her seat belt.

Qi Xiao Yan remained sullen even after getting back on, driving out without a word. He said nothing, and neither did she initiate a conversation. Before long, her cell phone rang - digging it out of her bag, she realized that the call was from Fang Cheng Ran.

She glanced over at Qi Xiao Yan, hung up, and sent a text. "I'll contact you later."

Just as her screen showed that the message had been successfully sent, the phone rang again. This time it was Sheng Lei. "Where on earth did you go?"

Yang Wei whispered, "I've got something urgent to do for just a minute. You go on first, don't wait for me."

At the other end of the phone, Sheng Lei frowned. "What's so important that you had to hurry off like that?"

"I'll tell you later." She hung up and continued to silently stare out the window.

Qi Xiao Yan had just dragged Yang Wei out in a fit of pique. He didn't actually have a destination, and could only circle aimlessly around the block. As he began his third lap, Yang Wei finally couldn't help but ask, "Are you lost?"

Though his eyebrows twitched, he didn't even glance over toward her, continuing to circle the area. On the fifth lap, the traffic police stopped his car and knocked on the window to ask, "Sir, are you lost?"

Qi Xiao Yan: "..."

"Pfttt." Over in the pa.s.senger seat, Yang Wei couldn't stop herself from sn.i.g.g.e.ring. The traffic police checked his ID and license before releasing them.

Only when the car moved out again did Qi Xiao Yan finally speak. "What were you doing at that hotel?"

Yang Wei had a good laugh. "Mr. Qi, do you happen to own that hotel? It does have a restaurant, you know. People are allowed to go in and eat there."

"Must you get a room just to eat?"

"That isn't my room. You can ask Fang Cheng Ran if you like."

A brow raised. After a moment of silence, he told her, "I came to pick up my mother's friend. Song Jin met me in the corridor."

Yang Wei snorted. "Do you think the tabloids will believe that?"

"I don't care if they do or don't."

His voice was like broken gla.s.s shattering in the car. Yang Wei silently molded the pillow in her hand into various shapes before his cool voice once again fell on her ears. "Why the new haircut?"

The question cut Yang Wei's heart like a knife. She sneered mockingly at Qi Xiao Yan. "Why, do you not like it anymore since it isn't like how your first love wore it?"

Qi Xiao Yan frowned. "Do you even know what you're talking about?"

Yang Wei felt vexed for no apparent reason, and her att.i.tude followed suit. "Shouldn't you know what I'm talking about? Mr. Qi, didn't you marry me just because I look like Song Jin? So much for love at at first sight! Don't think others are easily fooled just because you've got some high IQ!"

His grip tightened on the steering wheel. Turning his head, he glared at Yang Wei. "What formula did you use to reach this conclusion?"

Yang Wei blew her top. "Don't you start in with Goldbach at me! It was all over the tabloids! Are you still expecting me to believe otherwise?"

He bit a lip, turned back, and said nothing.

There was a grim silence in the car the rest of the way. Qi Xiao Yan drove into the Imperial University campus, finally stopping outside his dormitory room. Yang Wei pushed the car door open and got off, looking at the red brick building with a frown on her face. "What did you bring me here for?"

He closed the car door and walked up to her, expressionless. "Follow me."

"Why should I go up with you?" Yang Wei countered rebelliously. She dug her heels in. Qi Xiao Yan gave her a steady look and without inflection, asked, "You're not going?"

"I'm not!" Yang Wei's att.i.tude was firm.

Qi Xiao Yan's long legs took a step toward her. Two steps. He arrived in front of her and hoisted her into his arms.

The moment her feet left the ground, Yang Wei's heart hung in mid-air. She unconsciously put her arms around his neck, a little sulkiness in her beautiful eyes. "What are you doing? Let me down!"

"Don't be so loud, Mrs Qi." Qi Xiao Yan's sweet, piano-like voice sounded in her ear, and Yang Wei's cheek heated from his warm breath. She turned away from him and his words, which so easily stirred up her feelings and emotions. "I am no longer Mrs. Qi, Mr Qi."

Qi Xiao Yan pursed his lips and said nothing. In the elevator, there was only the steady beating of their hearts to break the silence. After what seemed like a century, the elevator doors finally opened, and stepping out, Qi Xiao Yan returned Yang Wei to the ground.

Yang Wei patted herself down, then raised her eyes to Qi Xiao Yan's back. He was unlocking the door. Once upon a time, they had often gone home together just like this, and she had liked to walk into the house next to him. Her nose felt a little sour, and she sniffled to hold it in, turning her gaze to the side.

"What are you still standing there for?" Qi Xiao Yan called her from the door. Yang Wei bit her lip, raised her head fiercely, and walked in.

His own head bowed, Qi Xiao Yan let out a single light laugh and closed the door behind her.

Upon entering, Yang Wei stood motionless in the middle of the living room, her eyes taking in Qi Xiao Yan's "new home". Though the dormitory the school provided to their professors was much better than student dorms, it was still just a simple two-room apartment, slightly cramped, and furnished with nothing too luxurious. There wasn't much in the main room. She saw only a table and sofa, and a few white shirts hung outside the window.

Yang Wei blinked. It was a sin for Professor Qi to have been relegated to this place.

Ever since they entered, Qi Xiao Yan had been rummaging through the items in the bedroom. She peered in through the door and asked impatiently, "What are you looking for?"

Qi Xiao Yan pulled out an alb.u.m from a cardboard box and dusted it off. "This."

He stood up, laid the photo alb.u.m on the computer desk, and turned to say to her, "Come here."

She paused a few seconds before entering. His slender fingers flipped through the alb.u.m quickly, like a b.u.t.terfly dancing among flowers. She almost felt dizzy watching, but fortunately he stopped in time and pushed the photo alb.u.m toward her. "Look at it."

Yang Wei glanced at him, then dropped her eyes to the alb.u.m. It was a photo taken in the indoor basketball court. At a glance, she recognized Qi Xiao Yan in the middle of the team - he wore a red and white jersey, and his hair was tied back behind his head. His expression staring into the camera was as usual: blank.

"This is Song Jin, who was the team manager at the time."

Qi Xiao Yan tapped a finger on a girl before quickly withdrawing it. Yang Wei shifted her gaze over without thinking. The girl in the photo had neat, short hair. She was dressed in a loose T-shirt and harem pants of Western design and held a basketball in her arms. She smiled for the camera.

"Do you still think that you resemble her?"

Qi Xiao Yan was neither angry nor fiery, but like a b.u.t.terfly gently flapping its wings, triggering a tsunami with but a tiny movement.

Yang Wei's gaze shook, and she withdrew it from the photo.

They didn't resemble each other at all. If he hadn't said anything, she would never have recognized the girl in the photo as Song Jin.

"When I first met Song Jin, she was called Song Xiao Fang. The Song Jin you see now is just an idol that her company has branded and packaged." He closed the photo alb.u.m and placed it back into the cardboard box.

Yang Wei stood to one side, neither speaking nor moving, her hands toying with the ornaments on her bag.

"But your hair does look pretty good." Qi Xiao Yan's voice suddenly commented. Yang Wei looked up at him. From her position she could only see one eye, but it was downcast and clearly uneasy.

Her mouth inadvertently touched with laughter, she looked at him appreciatively and said, "Your taste seems to have improved lately, Mr. Qi. Now that I've seen your old photos, can I go home?"

Qi Xiao Yan thought a moment before asking, "Have you had lunch?"

"I was going to, but you dragged me away before I could."

"Then I'll compensate you with lunch." He made his way to the kitchen. Yang Wei trailed after him and watched as he chose some vegetables and meat from the refrigerator, his forehead slightly furrowed. She knew that he could cook, of course, and that he was even rather good at it. However, cooking was the ch.o.r.e that had fallen to her most of the time, so to be served Professor Qi's own home cooking was a lucky treat.

So she was no longer in a hurry to leave. Standing in the doorway, she watched and inquired, "Why are you cooking for yourself? The canteen isn't far."

Qi Xiao Yan waited for the pot to fill with water, then threw chopped vegetables into it. "I do it on occasion."

Yang Wei stood by and watched, not offering to help. After a little while, she headed to the living room to watch TV.

Qi Xiao Yan was an efficient cook, and the meal was ready in half an hour. Yang Wei looked at the three dishes and soup on the table. After having tasted each one, she deliberately disparaged each of them. "The spicy fried chicken is too salty, the green pepper pork isn't hot enough, the green beans are still raw, and the tofu soup is completely tasteless."

Without turning a hair, Qi Xiao Yan picked up his chopsticks and tasted each dish. "Personally, I feel that it's much better than what you made."

Yang Wei: "..."

She no longer wanted to eat!

In the end, all the dishes were still polished off by the duo. Yang Wei let out a happy little burp, debating on whether or not to skip dinner tonight.

While Qi Xiao Yan was washing dishes in the kitchen, Yang Wei caught up her bag and called to him, "I'm heading out!" Before he could answer, she made a speedy exit.

Hearing the click of the door closing, he paused to glance in its direction, then went back to the dishes.

Having made her way home, Yang Wei slept until 6 o'clock in the evening. Remembering that she had to later teach a cla.s.s, she dragged herself out from under the covers and poked at the computer.

After sluggishly surfing Weibo for a little while, she poked her nose into the home page of Wait For Three More Minutes. The author had changed their avatar to her new drawing. Yang Wei scrolled down to see a new update from that afternoon, which said: I'm in a bad mood today. There won't be anything posted. I just want some peace and quiet. [Bye bye]

A large group of readers in the comments were asking after their reasons for quiet. Yang Wei laughed once, then penned a private message. "Great G.o.d, what's wrong (⊙o⊙)?"

Wait for Three More Minutes: I'm busy chasing my G.o.ddess, but it's not going well (ノへ ̄,)

Yang Wei didn't pay to much mind to 'G.o.ddess', but encouraged, "Great G.o.d, I'm cheering you on! If Ren Yingying can catch up to Linghu Chong1from The Smiling, Proud Wanderer, a wuxia novel and Mu Guiying can capture Yang Zongbao2Mu Guiying is a legendary heroine who fought a duel with Yang Zongbao, then proposed when he chose death over defeat, you too can catch up with your G.o.ddess!"

Wait for Three More Minutes: Thank you, I feel much better ^_^

A minute later, Yang Wei received a text message from Fang Cheng Ran. "Are you free tomorrow? I'd like to take you out to watch a movie. ^_^"

Happy Valentine's Day to everyone! Here is a chapter early for you guys.

Today I got up early to make chocolates and chocolate-covered strawberries for the little candy shop I work in. We usually get a pretty even mix of men and women, but today it was almost exclusively guys - young ones carrying bouquets hurrying in over lunch break, middle-aged ones asking for recommendations on truffles... but my favourite customers are the grey-haired men who choose their chocolates confidently, knowing exactly what their spouses love the most.