Xu Xiuhe sat in the car, scrolling through his phone and feeling agitated as messages popped up in the group chat. He opened a smaller group with Xue Jingrui.
"[Qi Yan has opened a studio, did you know?]"
Within seconds, Xue Jingrui replied, "[I'm not sure, I haven't been in touch with her.]"
"[Xue Jingrui, buddy, have you seen the light again? Is it for three days or forever?]" Chang Zhiyuan had already warned Xue Jingrui that Qi Yan might have been okay before college, but things had changed since then. He had seen many women, so he knew exactly what Qi Yan was like, but unfortunately, Xue Jingrui was not reliable.
"[My family arranged a blind date for me.]" Xue Jingrui responded.
"[What's up? Are you following Xu Xiuhe's path to an arranged marriage?]" Chang Zhiyuan was just enjoying the drama.
Xue Jingrui typed, "[Something came up. Let's talk about it when we meet.]"
"[The name of the clothing studio is Yanhe Clothing Studio.]" Xu Xiuhe sent a message.
Xue Jingrui remained silent. It was Chang Zhiyuan who couldn't hold back: "[Is Qi Yan seriously ill?]" He didn't consider Xue Jingrui's feelings when he sent this message.
"[Since you're planning to go on a blind date, you probably won't get involved in this matter afterwards, right?]" Xu Xiuhe asked.
"[Hmm, I won't interfere.]" His relationship with Qi Yan might become even more complicated in the future.
"[Alright, that's good.]"
Xu Xiuhe drove towards Qinghe Street, planning all along how to start the conversation when they meet.
For the whole morning, Shen Yin worked on Xu Xiuhe's clothing design sketches, and now she was busy with her own formal wear orders. There were occasional customers coming into the shop for customizations. Shen Yin felt she might need to hire another clothing designer. She only designed haute couture. Clothing, like everything else, had different grades, and the style of dress varied for different occasions. Shen Yin had been pondering why so many people went abroad to study fashion design in this era. After reading some materials, she concluded that it was due to our lack of cultural confidence and innovation. Foreign luxury goods were so expensive, yet many people still rushed to buy them, while Chinese clothing had few luxury brands.
Why couldn't she create luxury brands in China? Rich, elegant, and noble, three different styles of clothing could be infused with Chinese culture. China's rich cultural heritage was definitely not inferior to any other country, even though there had been no great prosperity in history. She believed that given time, she could definitely create luxury brands unique to China that were not only fashionable but also more comfortable than foreign luxury brands.
When Zhengzheng woke up, Fang Yue carried him to the living room. Children couldn't stay indoors all the time; they wanted to play at this age.
"Mommy, Zhengzheng wants to go out to play." Xu Yunzheng's speech was extremely slow.
"Zhengzheng, can you wait for mommy for a while?" Shen Yin replied.
"Alright, how about I take him out for a stroll first? The environment here is nice, and it's good to go out for a walk. You can come find us after you're done with your work," Fang Yue suggested.
Shen Yin naturally agreed. It was almost four o'clock, and the sun was still shining brightly as Fang Yue walked with Zhengzheng from the shaded area.
"Zhengzheng, we can't go near the water, it's deep and dangerous," Fang Yue pointed to a nearby stream.
Zhengzheng nodded and replied, "Dangerous, won't go."
"Ah, such a good child," Fang Yue patted Zhengzheng's head.
After parking the car, Xu Xiuhe and Fang Nuan went to purchase fabrics, leaving only Li Huanhuan on the first floor.
"Is your boss on the third floor?" Xu Xiuhe asked.
"Yes, he is," Li Huanhuan replied.
Upon reaching the third floor, Xu Xiuhe only saw Shen Yin. Upon entering, his first question was, "Where's Zhengzheng?"
Shen Yin looked up, then lowered her gaze, asking calmly, "Why are you here? Have you made up your mind?"
"What do you mean, made up what?" Xu Xiuhe pretended to be clueless. He hadn't considered divorce since he made up his mind about his feelings.
"Divorce," Shen Yin continued, her tone indifferent. It was hard to tell if she was happy or angry. In reality, she was nervous, surprised that she had actually said it in front of him. She had some courage.
"Where's Zhengzheng gone?" Xu Xiuhe changed the subject.
Shen Yin raised her head, walked to the sofa, and poured two glasses of water. "My mom took him out to play. Are you here to agree now?"
"Agree to what, divorce? What if I don't agree?"
This question caught Shen Yin off guard. She didn't expect Xu Xiuhe to ask her, but she felt a bit happy inside and deliberately continued, "Then how can you agree? We have no feelings for each other."
Thinking of Xiao Lier's words, Xu Xiuhe, thick-skinned as he was, said, "No matter what I do, I won't agree. Who said there are no feelings?"
"You—" Shen Yin was interrupted by Fang Yue's return with Zhengzheng.
"Daddy!" Zhengzheng walked over, hopping a little.
"Mom, why are you back so soon? Didn't you just go out?" Shen Yin was puzzled.
"Just went out, took a few steps, and Zhengzheng turned back and called for Daddy. I thought the child had made a mistake, but he insisted on coming back. Didn't expect Xu Xiuhe to really come," Fang Yue explained.
"Yeah, Mom, I had something to do around here this afternoon, so I came to see you guys," Xu Xiuhe said smoothly, without needing to rehearse his words now.
"Are you going back then?" Fang Yue asked playfully. When he called, he had already mentioned knowing what to do.
"Not going back, it's troublesome to travel back and forth," Xu Xiuhe said, glancing at Shen Yin. Didn't she tell Fang Yue that it was inconvenient to commute back and forth, wasting time? Then he could use the same reason, right?
Shen Yin had no other reaction, just felt for the first time that Xu Xiuhe was so shameless.
"Okay, since you're here, I can head back now. Give Grandma Zhengzheng a kiss goodbye," Fang Yue said with a smile.
Xu Xiuhe stood on the ground, reached out his little hand, and touched his mouth, making a "mua" sound as he extended it.
"Such a good boy. Grandma is leaving now. I'll come back tomorrow."
Fang Yue waved her hand, turned around, and walked downstairs.
"Mom, let me walk you out," Xu Xiuhe followed.
"Xiuhe, Yin Yin is still so young, and you're already a mother. If there's anything she doesn't understand, be patient with her. There's nothing in a marriage that can't be overcome," Fang Yue advised earnestly.
"Okay, Mom, I understand. Take care and drive safely," Xu Xiuhe reminded.
"Alright, stop here. Go back upstairs and keep them company," Fang Yue got into the car.
As Xu Xiuhe headed upstairs again, Shen Yin was in the bathroom with Zhengzheng.
"Mommy, Daddy's back," Shen Yin turned her head and indeed saw Xu Xiuhe standing behind her.
"Zhengzheng, focus when you're using the toilet," Shen Yin turned back to Zhengzheng, deciding to ignore Xu Xiuhe.
Xu Xiuhe didn't mind at all. He decided to stay here today and see how Shen Yin would deal with him. Glancing at his watch, realizing it was getting late, Xu Xiuhe went into the kitchen.
