Du Jiashu fell silent, his conscience pricked.
Xia Liuyue curled her lip in disdain. "Get out of the car!"
Instead, Du Jiashu stubbornly stayed put.
"No. Today, you must come home with me."
He couldn't let her go meet some so-called 'good buddy.' Could it be one of those male models she'd hired before?
At the mere thought, Du Jiashu's face darkened.
He repeated,
"You are my wife."
Xia Liuyue nodded in emphatic agreement.
"Right, I'm your wife, not your slave."
Du Jiashu took a deep breath, adopting a more conciliatory tone.
"Liuyue, that's not what I meant. It's just so late now, the timing isn't appropriate. If you want to see your good friend, I'll go with you tomorrow morning."
Xia Liuyue retorted sarcastically, "Oh? When you went out drinking with Tang Yinyao every night before, you never seemed to think the timing was inappropriate."
Du Jiashu tried to explain.
"It wasn't just the two of us. There was a whole group of friends from our circle."
A mocking smile touched Xia Liuyue's lips.
"That makes it even worse!"
"You organized a whole gathering just for Tang Yinyao. Du Jiashu, you play the field quite freely yourself."
"And you still have the nerve to tell me what's 'appropriate'?"
Silence fell heavily in the car once more.
Du Jiashu wanted to argue back, but he couldn't find a single point to counter.
Because everything Xia Liuyue said was true.
Then he heard her continue,
"Don't you like Tang Yinyao? From now on, I won't interfere with your affairs."
"You go ahead and like your Tang Yinyao! I'll go out and have fun with my good buddies. Everyone gets what they want."
Logically, this was exactly the answer Du Jiashu had wanted from the start.
Yet, hearing Xia Liuyue say these words herself, he felt an inexplicable pang of sadness and loss.
"Still not getting out? Do you want another slap?"
Xia Liuyue leaned in with a bright smile, her red lips curving. She lifted her hand, bringing her palm close to his cheek.
He caught the faint, fragrant scent from her palm first.
Du Jiashu shifted uncomfortably, giving a slight, involuntary sniff. A shadow flickered in his eyes.
Reluctantly, he got out of the car.
Just as he was about to close the door, as if struck by a sudden impulse, he climbed back in.
His gaze fixed intently on Xia Liuyue, his tone earnest.
"Liuyue, I think we need to have a proper talk."
Her patience had run out.
"Smack—"
Another crisp slap landed.
This time, Du Jiashu, far from getting angry, felt a strange sense of relief.
"You hit me. Can we talk now?" Du Jiashu asked.
Xia Liuyue rolled her eyes. "Are you insane?"
Du Jiashu, with rare patience, spoke slowly and clearly.
"Liuyue, I've thought it through. Even if I have feelings for Yaoyao, we can't be together."
"She's already engaged. She's going to marry Yan Hechuan in the future. I can't stand in the way of her happiness."
"So, since we're not getting a divorce, I think we should work on making this marriage work."
Xia Liuyue looked at his confident expression.
Suddenly, she felt that some men in this world really did think they were the prize!
What made him think that after making a mistake, a sincere apology would guarantee unconditional forgiveness?
So she could go back to washing his underwear with a cold face?
Not everyone finds that appealing.
She let out a bitter laugh.
"You don't want to hinder Tang Yinyao's pursuit of happiness, so you come back to me to reconcile?"
"Du Jiashu, listen carefully. I am not a garbage collector!"
Du Jiashu was deeply stung by her words. His eyes lowered slightly, filled with disbelief. "... I... I'm garbage?"
Xia Liuyue smiled and gave a firm nod.
"Exactly! At least you have some self-awareness."
Just then, Tang Yinyao's call came through again, saving Du Jiashu from further awkwardness.
Xia Liuyue shot him a sidelong glance, taunting,
"Answer it, you unwanted piece of trash."
Du Jiashu felt as if two arrows had pierced his chest.
Straight to the heart.
It hurt.
He listened to the ringing phone, falling silent, and didn't answer for a long time.
Xia Liuyue urged again, "Not answering? Should I answer it for you?"
Du Jiashu decisively pressed the red button.
He had grown a spine!
He had actually hung up on Tang Yinyao's call.
"Liuyue, I sincerely want to make up with you."
Xia Liuyue didn't even look up. "I already told you." She pointed to her chest. "This isn't a landfill. It doesn't accept trash."
A wounded look flashed in Du Jiashu's eyes.
He finally got out of the car.
...
That idiot Du Jiashu had delayed her for a long time.
When Xia Liuyue finally checked her phone, she found many messages from Meng Xiang.
"Senior Sister, are you still coming tonight?"
"Brother Yan doesn't seem to like the bar atmosphere. He's been frowning the whole time."
"Just now, three or four girls came over to hit on him, but Brother Yan turned them all down. Hmm, very virtuous."
"I'm driving so I can't drink, and Brother Yan doesn't like to drink either. We're just sitting here awkwardly."
"Rich lady, save us! Hurry up..."
Xia Liuyue swiftly transferred 6888.
"Be there in ten minutes."
It was almost 1 a.m.
Meng Xiang, who had been yawning repeatedly, saw the transfer amount in the chat and immediately perked up.
It was like a shot of adrenaline, instantly banishing his sleepiness.
Yan Hechuan had just politely declined another wave of approaching women. He leaned slightly towards Meng Xiang and asked,
"Has your senior sister arrived yet?"
Meng Xiang answered cheerfully, "She'll be here any minute."
Yan Hechuan turned his head back without another word.
Meng Xiang had figured out he was the quiet, reserved type.
Several times earlier, Meng Xiang had suggested that maybe Senior Sister had something come up and they should leave.
But Yan Hechuan had said, "It's fine. Let's wait a bit longer."
And so they waited... and waited... for over an hour more.
Just as Meng Xiang, propping his chin, was about to zone out again, a figure appeared in his sight. She wore a black slip dress with a white faux fur short coat draped over her shoulders, her figure alluring and graceful.
"Senior Sister!" He waved.
Before his voice faded, he saw two or three young men already approaching her, asking for her contact info.
Meng Xiang glanced back at Yan Hechuan, who was still seated in the booth. "Brother Yan, stay here. I'll go get Senior Sister."
Yan Hechuan nodded.
By the time Meng Xiang pushed through the crowd to reach Xia Liuyue, the men were still pestering her.
"Pretty sister, can I get your number?"
"Yeah, let's hang out next time."
Xia Liuyue looked at the men with an amused, half-smile.
"Calling me 'sister'? You look older than me."
"As for contact info, no need."
"I'm afraid my boyfriend might get jealous."
She pulled Meng Xiang over, linking her arm with his.
Her beautiful almond-shaped eyes lifted slightly, captivating and seductive. She gave him a sweet smile. "Isn't that right, Xiangxiang?"
The men who had approached her were taken aback. "He's your boyfriend?"
Xia Liuyue nodded.
"Yes, I have a thing for younger guys."
Meng Xiang's face flushed uncontrollably.
