Chapter 35: Chu Li Has Arrived

Two o'clock in the morning.

The car stopped in front of an old house.

Qin Xingwan helped Qin Nainai out of the car, then took down the luggage.

Qin Nainai had already taken out the key and opened the door.

Seeing the scene inside the house, her already frail body collapsed to the ground almost immediately, her lips trembling,

followed by a burst of sharp sobbing.

"Wanwan."

Qin Xingwan dropped the suitcase and ran quickly into the house.

The luggage fell to the ground with a "clatter."

The house that they had tidied up neatly before leaving was now empty, with all kinds of trash scattered on the floor.

Qin Xingwan's anger reached its peak at this moment, and she gritted her teeth as she called out that name.

"Qin Jianguo."

How could he dare to destroy everything here.

Qin Nainai was already in poor health, and now, having suffered such a great blow, she had no strength left at all.

She could only clutch Qin Xingwan's hand tightly, calling out "Wanwan" over and over again.

Qin Xingwan looked at the mess all over the floor, her eyes filled with bitterness.

Suddenly, she looked toward a certain spot.

Gently patting Qin Nainai's hand, she walked over to that spot and picked up a photograph from under a yellowed piece of paper.

The girl in the photo looked to be eighteen or nineteen years old, wearing a bachelor's gown, her sunshine-like smile exceptionally innocent.

Tears slid from the corners of Qin Xingwan's eyes.

She gently brushed the dust off the photo, then carefully placed it into Qin Nainai's hands.

"Nainai."

Qin Nainai held the photo up with trembling hands, pressing it tightly against her heart.

"Wanwan."

One call after another.

Qin Xingwan hugged her grandmother tightly, soothing her in a soft voice.

It was unknown how much time passed before Qin Nainai gradually calmed down.

Qin Xingwan helped Qin Nainai out the door and pulled up the suitcase; this place was not fit for living, and they had to go to a hotel in town to spend the night.

She would find someone to come and clean up tomorrow.

Just as they stepped outside, they suddenly heard a familiar voice.

"Xingwan? It really is you."

Qin Xingwan turned her head in surprise and saw Fang Yiwen at the doorway of the house next door.

"Why are you here?"

Fang Yiwen walked over, looked at Qin Nainai, who was still immersed in sorrow, and then looked at the suitcase in Qin Xingwan's hand.

"I came here to find inspiration and am renting the place next door. I heard the sound of a car in the middle of the night and took a look. I thought the person getting out of the car looked a lot like you, but I didn't expect it to really be you."

"What are you two doing?"

Qin Xingwan gave a helpless, bitter smile: "We came back in a hurry, the house hasn't been cleaned yet, so I planned to take Nainai to stay in town."

Fang Yiwen did not press further and took the suitcase, "If you don't mind, why don't you stay at my place tonight."

Qin Xingwan hesitated for a moment, then agreed.

"Then I'll be troubling you."

Going to the hotel in town would take at least another twenty minutes of walking, and her grandmother could not handle the strain.

Fang Yiwen arranged for them to sit on the sofa and turned to tidy up a room for them.

After a night of rushing about, Qin Xingwan and Qin Nainai soon fell asleep.

By the time they woke up the next day, it was already ten o'clock in the morning.

Her grandmother had not yet woken up.

Qin Xingwan went out on tiptoe, and Fang Yiwen happened to be returning from outside, bringing breakfast.

"I figured you should be up."

Qin Xingwan did not stand on ceremony; she ate breakfast and contacted someone to clean the house.

Before that, she went back once.

In the desolate house, apart from the trash on the floor, there was nothing else left.

Whether it was furniture or appliances, everything was gone.

The various student honors that had been posted on the walls were also torn to shreds; it seemed those people had completely ransacked the place.

"Do you need to call the police?" Fang Yiwen asked, seeing that Qin Xingwan's expression was poor.

Qin Xingwan shook her head; this was Qin Jianguo's doing, so calling the police would be useless and would only add to her grandmother's worries.

She looked through every room one by one, and in the end, she sighed in helplessness and disappointment.

In the end, nothing could be found.

"Let's go."

She turned and left.

One week later, the house had been tidied up.

Qin Xingwan brought Qin Nainai back from the house Fang Yiwen was renting.

Qin Nainai had already moved past her grief.

To express her gratitude, she invited Fang Yiwen over for a meal.

Fang Yiwen agreed.

Qin Xingwan bought groceries, and Fang Yiwen came over to help.

The meal was almost ready when the doorbell suddenly rang.

Qin Xingwan took off her apron to open the door and was surprised to see Chu Li.

He was carrying a suitcase, looking travel-worn, with exhaustion etched between his brows.

"Xingwan."

He spoke his wife's name, his voice hoarse.

Before his words had faded, a man's voice came from inside the house, "Xingwan, who is it?"

Chu Li's expression shifted slightly, his gaze crossing Qin Xingwan's shoulder to meet Fang Yiwen's eyes.

In an instant, sparks flew.

"Why is he here?" Chu Li grabbed Qin Xingwan's wrist and pulled her to his side, his tone unpleasant.

The scent of jealousy spread.

Qin Xingwan pulled her wrist back, her voice slightly cold, "I should be the one asking you that; what are you doing here?"

Feeling a subtle sense of irritation, she had written very clearly in the terms of the divorce agreement that she was willing to leave with nothing.

So what else was he dissatisfied with?

Chu Li's expression was dark; he could tell that Qin Xingwan did not welcome him.

Yet she had allowed Fang Yiwen to enter her home.

Jealousy was almost burning his reason to ashes.

"You..."

"Is that A Li?" Qin Nainai's voice came from inside.

Chu Li's reason quickly returned, and he softened his stance first.

"I'll go in and see Nainai."

Qin Xingwan did not want to let him in, her expression extremely cold, "No need, President Chu, please head back."

She closed the door with force.

Chu Li reached out to block it.

Qin Xingwan was startled; she held onto the door and asked angrily, "What are you doing? Do you not want your hand anymore?"

If she hadn't held the door just now, it would have inevitably crushed his hand.

This madman.

Chu Li did not miss the tension in her eyes, and he felt that even if his hand had been crushed, it would have been worth it.

He forcefully squeezed his way inside.

Why could Fang Yiwen be here and not him?

Qin Xingwan's strength was no match for the man's, so she could only watch as he shamelessly entered the house.

"Nainai." Chu Li called out.

Qin Nainai politely invited him to sit and asked about the reason for his visit.

"I should have come the day you were discharged from the hospital, but the old master at home was unwell, so it was delayed by a few days."

Chu Li explained, which was also a roundabout way of telling Qin Xingwan that it wasn't that he didn't want to come find her, but that he had been tied up by matters.

Qin Xingwan pretended not to hear and turned to walk into the kitchen.

Fang Yiwen asked her in a low voice, "Did you not talk to Lawyer Wen?"

Qin Xingwan counted the bowls and chopsticks, "We talked, and Lawyer Wen drew up a new divorce agreement for me, but Chu Li didn't sign it."

She felt annoyed just thinking about it.

When she went out to call Nainai for dinner, she intentionally did not call Chu Li.

Qin Nainai called out to Chu Li.

A guest is a guest.

Moreover, Qin Xingwan would eventually have to return to Yuncheng to develop her career; it would not be good to truly offend Chu Li.

Seeing that Nainai had invited Chu Li, Qin Xingwan had no choice but to turn back and get another set of bowls and chopsticks.

Seeing Fang Yiwen helping to serve food as if he were at home, Chu Li felt sour and gave a cold, biting remark: "Fang Shaoye is truly idle."

Fang Yiwen smiled: "President Chu, don't misunderstand. I am here looking for inspiration. I just happened to run into Xingwan and Nainai returning, and it just so happens I have some strength, so I helped tidy up inside and outside the house. Nainai and Xingwan thanked me and invited me to eat."

"It also just so happens that my cooking is not bad, so I made a few dishes for Nainai and Xingwan to taste my craft."

"I live right next door, so I will be coming over to bother you often in the future."

Fang Yiwen said not to misunderstand, but every word was about how it "just so happened" and that he lived next door.

Chu Li heard an intense sense of showing off in these words.

His fists itched.