Chapter 17: She Wanted to Stay by His Side and Be His Woman, Rightfully and Properly!

While waiting outside just now, Meng Shutang received a call from the hospital.

Because of the phlegm buildup, the doctor reassessed Zhou Xingfan's condition during this visit — her health was not looking good, and several more medications were added to her prescription.

These medications were not covered by medical insurance and had to be paid for entirely out of pocket.

One of them was imported from abroad and extremely expensive.

In the past, she might have told Qin Zheng.

But now, at the point of divorce, she couldn't bring herself to say it.

Just now, she had thought it through carefully.

Whether the Palace Museum's cultural creative collaboration could be negotiated was still up in the air.

Losing the role of docent at the Gu Clan collection exhibition was equivalent to directly losing a source of extra income.

Have her run food deliveries? Or drive for a ride-hailing app?

Half a year of that wouldn't match what she earned from a single guided tour here.

So she could not lose this job.

Lowering her eyes to glance at the medication cost list on her phone, she looked up and said, "President Gu, I still want to do the work of docent at the collection exhibition."

"You waited all this time, apologizing, bowing your head — all for the job, is that it?"

The man gave a cold laugh, looking at her porcelain-white oval face reflected on the floor-to-ceiling window, and spoke with indifference.

"I need this job."

Sure enough, it was still about self-interest.

The man lowered his head and took a sip of tea. He had never noticed before how bitter this tea was.

The warm sensation and bitter taste made his elegant brows furrow slightly. His gaze swept over the slender-waisted silhouette before the floor-to-ceiling window. "Fine, I'll give you one more chance. Make another mistake and you're out!"

"Alright." Meng Shutang bowed respectfully and turned to leave.

After leaving the CEO's office, Meng Shutang went to the secretaries' room. "Hello, I'm here to pick up the schedule for tomorrow's exhibition."

The junior secretary said, "Miss Bai already took it."

Meng Shutang didn't bother with pleasantries. "President Gu sent me to get it."

The junior secretary said, "You made such a big mistake today — President Gu would let you…"

Qin Zheng came over. "Give it to Instructor Meng."

Meng Shutang took it and thanked Qin Zheng. "Thank you."

She didn't waste any more words and left directly.

She returned to the workshop and busied herself for a while before heading back to Qian Shui Wan.

When she arrived home, Gu Yunci had already finished showering and was watching TV in the living room. She didn't greet him and went straight upstairs.

At the company, he was President Gu, and she respected him.

But at home, he was simply her soon-to-be-ex-husband. They were equals.

Back in the attic, she reviewed the guided tour script twice more.

Figuring that Gu Yunci should be asleep by then, she tiptoed downstairs to wash up.

When she first separated from Gu Yunci, Meng Shutang was still somewhat unaccustomed to it.

After all, for these three years, she had woken up almost every day in Gu Yunci's broad embrace.

But after these days apart, she gradually adapted.

She felt that living in the attic was actually quite nice — quiet, with fewer complications.

The only inconvenience was that the attic had no washroom, so she needed to come down to the second floor.

But just as she came downstairs, she heard sounds from below. She pretended not to hear and went into the guest room to wash up.

When she came out, she heard sounds again — this time from the kitchen.

Auntie Zhang hadn't returned yet, and Auntie Li had been dismissed by her.

She guessed that Gu Yunci was hungry and making something to eat.

But he didn't know how to cook at all. Meng Shutang went back up to the attic.

She had just lain down when her mind was filled with thoughts of how busy he had been all day — when she went to apologize that afternoon, Qin Zheng had mentioned he hadn't eaten lunch, and now he hadn't eaten dinner either…

Even a stranger seeing this should lend a hand, let alone someone who had shared the same pillow for three years.

Meng Shutang got up, went patter-patter downstairs, and came to the kitchen.

The moment she entered, she saw Gu Yunci sweating profusely from the stress of trying to cook.

Meng Shutang couldn't help but laugh out loud.

The man heard the noise and turned around.

Meng Shutang put away her smile. "What do you want to eat? I'll make it for you."

The man didn't stand on ceremony either. "Plain noodle soup."

In the past, whenever she heard the man mention this dish, she never thought much of it, but today, a touch of curiosity stirred in her heart.

At the company, it was no secret that Gu Yunci's palate had been pampered by top-tier ingredients to an extraordinarily fastidious degree.

His private head chef had been poached from a Michelin five-star restaurant in Paris, with Wagyu beef, truffles, and caviar flown in daily…

French cuisine involved elaborate procedures, and he had exacting standards even for the precise doneness of a steak.

A filet had to be cooked to exactly medium-rare — even slightly overcooked, and the entire plate would be sent back.

The aperitif had to be a Burgundy of a precise vintage, and the decanting time had to be just right.

Yet back at home, shedding his suit and tie, what he craved most was this bowl of plain noodles.

Boil water, add the dried noodles, put in just a pinch of salt, drizzle two drops of sesame oil, scatter chopped scallions and cilantro — even an egg was dispensed with.

While cooking, Meng Shutang glanced toward the man. He sat quietly in the dining area, a glass of water placed before him.

As if there were some moving story in the water, he gazed at it, unwilling to look away for even a moment.

Once it was done, she carried it over. "When you're finished, leave it here. I'll wash it tomorrow morning."

The man didn't lift his head, giving a soft "mm."

The next day.

When Meng Shutang got out of bed and came downstairs, Gu Yunci had already left. She went to the dining room—the bowls were already washed.

She simply made herself a bowl of plain noodle soup as well.

It wasn't that she found the food especially delicious—she just thought it saved trouble.

While she was eating, Aunt Zhang came back.

Seeing the food she had made, she said, "Is this what President Gu ate too? This is President Gu's favorite meal. He must feel incredibly warm inside."

Meng Shutang was curious. "President Gu's favorite meal is this?"

Aunt Zhang nodded emphatically. "The Madam wasn't as skilled as the Young Madam—she couldn't cook, only knew how to make noodles."

She paused for a moment. "President Gu once said that when you make this meal, it tastes exactly like what the Madam used to make when she was alive."

"And the coffee—only yours is ground the best. He never drinks anyone else's."

Meng Shutang's heart gave a lurch.

She recalled the cup of cold coffee she had seen on his desk yesterday—he had been drinking tea.

She got up to clear the table. "I'm done eating. Aunt Zhang, are you tired? Would you like me to make you a bowl?"

Aunt Zhang shook her head. "I already ate at home before coming over."

Seeing Meng Shutang carrying the bowls back to the kitchen, she immediately took them from her. "Young Madam, I'll wash them. You go attend to your business!"

Meng Shutang went to the doorway to change shoes and suddenly thought of Sister Li. "Aunt Zhang, just letting you know—I let Sister Li go. From now on, I'll handle the household chores."

"Don't worry. If you need anything at all, just tell me."

Aunt Zhang was briefly startled, then smiled. "All right."

Meng Shutang left home and went straight to the Gu Clan building. Today's collection exhibition still had one more guided tour session.

Yesterday she had been presenting to VIP-level guests, and she had made a mistake.

Today was open to the public, and she absolutely had to make sure nothing went wrong.

Before the guided tour, she carefully inspected the exhibits under her responsibility and reminded the staff nearby, "We're not displaying the collection today, so there's no need to move anything."

"Will it work if you don't let everyone look up close? Teacher Meng, you're not the type to be bitten by a snake once and fear a rope for ten years, are you?"

"If you're that timid, you shouldn't have taken on this job in the first place."

Hearing Bai Cixian's voice, Meng Shutang turned around gracefully. "No matter how timid I am, I'm still a hundred times better than Miss Bai, a complete amateur!"

"How much research has Miss Bai done on ancient beads?"

"I think the reason President Gu was willing to hand today's guided tour back to me is probably because he considered this as well."

Bai Cixian no longer bothered to hide it. "You…"

Meng Shutang said, "Miss Bai, the collection exhibition has surveillance cameras—360 degrees with no blind spots. President Gu wasn't willing to investigate yesterday, but if I make another mistake today, I don't think he'd necessarily refuse to look into it."

As long as Gu Yunci investigated, he would know that she had tampered with things yesterday.

If Gu Yunci found out that she had acted out of jealousy and sabotaged things at such an important occasion yesterday, and then connected it to the sudden collapse of the display rack at the Wenlüxiaozhen exhibition…

No—she absolutely could not let that happen.

She wanted to stay by his side and rightfully be his woman!