Zong Jinghao returned to his room, and Lin Xinyan sat at the side of the bed. Her back faced him.
“Are we going back?”
Zong Jinghao stood at the door, and he did not step in the room. He looked at her silently, and he could not bring himself to ask if there was a secret between Yuxiu and her.
It was because he thought that if she wanted to say anything, she would have said it at the start, and she would not have kept it a secret until now.
“If you want to, I’ll agree to it.” His voice was very soft.
Lin Xinyan stood up, turned around and looked at him, “I just don’t want your relationship with your family to be this tensed.”
Zong Jinghao did not reply to that. Instead, he said, “It’s getting late. You should get some rest.”
Lin Xinyan approached him and asked, “Are you angry?”
Zong Jinghao looked at her, and after a while he finally relented, “No.”
New Year’s Day was coming soon, so the atmosphere all around was jolly and festive. Spring couplets were displayed on the doors of every family, and red lanterns were hung up everywhere.
The next morning, Lin Xinyan went to the store, because she wanted to give everyone a break since it was the new year’s season. She wanted them to take this opportunity to rest up.
Qin Ya was quite listless, and she did not speak. Lin Xinyan received Su Zhan’s call yesterday night, so she was worried that they had an argument. She approached Qin Ya and asked, “Are things alright between Su Zhan and you?”
Qin Ya seemed quite morose. She replied softly, “It’s alright.”
She did not want to talk about their problems, because she felt that she had needed to solve her problems herself, since she was the one who had agreed to marry him in the first place.
Lin Xinyan patted her shoulders and promised, “Just tell me if you ever need me.”
Qin Ya smiled, “Alright.”
At that moment, Ellen approached them, “Qin Ya, there’s a woman looking for you outside.”
Woman?
Who is it?
“Maybe she’s a customer. She asked for you specifically, so I can’t take your business away right?” Ellen winked at Qin Ya affectionately.
The someone asking for Qin Ya specifically must’ve recognized her designing skills.
Qin Ya stood up, “Then I’ll go see her.”
“Go ahead,” Lin Xinyan waved her hands.
Qin Ya went downstairs. The clothes in the cabinets had already been covered up. They were scared that dust would settle on the clothes during the holiday season and that they would have to clean up when the store reopened.
Liu Feifei sat on the couch. When she heard footsteps, she saw that Qin Ya was approaching her.
Qin Ya hesitated when she saw that it was Liu Feifei waiting for her. However, she recovered herself very quickly because she knew that this woman was just trying to intimidate her.
Even if she lost to her, she could not lose in terms of assertiveness.
She maintained her smile, “Hi. Are you here for the clothes?”
Liu Feifei smiled too, “I think you already know who I am. Are you free? How about I treat you to coffee?”
Qin Ya rejected her in an indirect fashion, “Please excuse me. I am busy with something, so I’m afraid that I don’t have the time to drink coffee with you.”
‘You’re scared of me.” Liu Feifei provoked her intentionally.
“Why should I be scared of you?” Qin Ya frowned.
“If you’re not, why won’t you drink some coffee with me?”
“Why should I drink coffee with you when I’m not close to you?” Qin Ya retorted.
“We have never met before, but don’t forget that I’m Su Zhan’s girlfriend…”
“Ex,” reminded Qin Ya.
Liu Feifei smiled, “Alright, ex it is then. But, we’d used to love each other. You’re now his wife, so we both used to be together with the same man. We’re connected in that way.”
“You can just say what you want to say.” Qin Ya did not back down.
She was filled with repulsion and fear when she faced Liu Feifei.
“Alright.” Liu Feifei sat back down, “The location doesn’t matter anyway.”
Qin Ya looked at her, “What do you want to talk about? The love you used to have with Su Zhan? Please forgive me, but I’m not interested. If you’re not here for the clothes, I’m afraid that I can’t entertain you anymore. Besides that, we’re already on a break, so if you need anything you should come after New Year’s Day.”
After which, Qin Ya turned around and went up the stairs.
“Do you know about Su Zhan’s parents?” Qin Ya’s footsteps stopped. Indeed, she did hear Su Zhan’s grandmother talking to Su Zhan about that in the hospital.
She felt that Su Zhan was very repulsed, but she did not know exactly why.
“You are his wife, and he didn’t even tell you about his parents?” Liu Feifei knew that Su Zhan really did not want anyone to find out about that.
She had guessed that Su Zhan would not tell Qin Ya about it.
If Su Zhan did not say anything, allowing Liu Feifei to be the one who had mentioned it, Su Zhan’s relationship with Qin Ya would seem much weaker.
Qin Ya gripped the handrails tightly. Keeping secrets was a huge taboo between a married couple.
It was obvious that Su Zhan did not trust her, and that was why he did not take the initiative to tell her about it.
She had thought that their relationship was quite solid.
But it really is as fragile as a house of cards.
Once his ex appears, our relationship will crumble.
Her heart ached like crazy at that moment, but she did not show it to Liu Feifei.
“Of course I know about it.” Qin Ya tried to conceal her pain, but it made it even more obvious. She tried to force herself to be calm and collected in front of Liu Feifei.
Liu Feifei smiled as her smile pierced through Qin Ya’s facade, “Really?”
“Then tell me, how did his parents die?”
Qin Ya rebuked, “Don’t you already know? Why are you asking me this?”
Liu Feifei smiled, “You’re lying to yourself. You can deceive yourself, but you can’t fake your relationship with Su Zhan. I’m telling you frankly now that I came back just to win him back.”
Waves of emotions surged within Qin Ya, “You should tell him that instead.”
“Of course I will tell him that. Besides that, we are planning to meet tonight.” Liu Feifei looked at Qin Ya, “Let us see who he cares about more.”
After which, Liu Feifei turned around and left.
Qin Ya was left alone on the stairs, and it described her predicament perfectly; neither here nor there as she was stuck in the middle. She was so upset she could not breathe properly.
She wanted to put her faith in her relationship with Su Zhan.
But it was obvious that not only the relationship was weak, they even lacked the most basic thing in a relationship – trust.
She wanted to believe Su Zhan, but Liu Feifei’s questions had made her realize that he did not trust her at all.
“Is she looking for someone to design some clothes?” Ellen descended the stairs.
Qin Ya said stiffly, “She had looked for the wrong person.”
Ellen frowned, “What do you mean wrong person?”
Qin Ya did not explain anything. Instead, she went down the stairs and said, “Tell Ms. Lin that I’m leaving.”
She then ran out of the store before she could even hear Ellen’s reply. She hailed a cab to get to the law firm.
She wanted to clarify things with Su Zhan. If he really wanted to get back together with Liu Feifei, she would just ask him to come clean with her. She did not want to be hurt by the secrets anymore.
Her thoughts were all jumbled up during the car ride, and she thought of a lot of things she had wanted to tell Su Zhan.
She wanted to let him know the insecurity and fear that she felt.
The car arrived quickly at the law firm, and Qin Ya paid the fare and stepped out of it.
She wanted to step in the law firm, but she coincidentally bumped into Su Zhan. He seemed to be in a hurry.
“Su Zhan.” Qin Ya called out to him.
“Why are you here?” Su Zhan approached her as well.
“I’m here for you. I have something I need to ask you, and I have something that I need to talk to you about,” said Qin Ya.
“I have something to do right now. Can you wait for me in the office?”
Qin Ya’s heart sank instantly. She felt lightheaded immediately, and it was as if she could fall at any given moment.
What is he going to do? Is he meeting Liu Feifei?
She wanted to put on a better expression for him because she did not want to devalue herself in front of him. But, she could feel her heart beginning to shatter.
“It’s cold outside. Go in first. I’ll come back soon.” Su Zhan patted her shoulders, and before Qin Ya could reply, he alighted his car and left.
