Upon arriving at the barbecue restaurant, the server led the three to a private room and they sat down.
Seeing Qi Mo and Qi Shaobai sitting steadily without any intention of ordering, Sheng Mumu took the initiative to take on the task of ordering dishes.
After looking through the menu for a while, she closed it and said to the server:
"We'll have one Warm Family Set Meal."
It was just the right amount for three people, and much more cost-effective than ordering individually.
Sheng Mumu felt proud of herself for being wealthy yet not wasteful. However, she didn't expect that as soon as she finished speaking, Qi father and son looked over at the same time.
It was just a glance, and they both retracted their gazes again, resuming their silent, aloof appearances.
Sheng Mumu: "???"
What do they mean?
Do they think she ordered the set meal because it's too cheap, and fails to reflect the wealthy family's style?
Before she could think too much about it, the server had already brought over the ingredients and charcoal.
She first eyed a plate of pork belly that looked very fresh, and neatly arranged the slices on the grill.
Qi Shaobai was still thinking back to the rumors he had heard in the residential district.
After a while, he finally couldn't hold back.
Leaning back with his hands in his pockets, he suddenly spoke:
"I already know about you two."
With these words, Sheng Mumu's hand that was holding the barbecue tongs and flipping the meat paused. She looked up blankly.
Alarm bells immediately went off in her heart.
Know what?
Qi Shaobai had a grave expression, making her heart tighten involuntarily and her hand tremble slightly.
Could it be that he found out about her and Qi Mo's fake marriage?!
Qi Shaobai's gaze lazily fell on the burning coals.
"I heard people in the district saying that you two...are getting a divorce because of an affair."
The air seemed to freeze for a second.
In the midst of the silence, Sheng Mumu secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
Just as she felt relieved that Qi Shaobai had not discovered their contractual marriage and she would not have to terminate the contract early, the ink-colored eyes beside her suddenly froze over, and a hint of coldness surfaced.
The three of them stopped talking.
Only the sizzling sound of grilling meat could be heard from time to time, unusually jarring.
...
Finally, Qi Mo was the first to break the deathly silence.
He glanced coldly at Qi Shaobai, then his gaze lingered on Sheng Mumu as he slowly said:
"That's good. I came back early from Shen City because I wanted to clear this up with you—"
His tone was calm and unruffled, but the two listening to him were not composed at all.
When Qi Mo started to talk about the "affair", for some reason, Sheng Mumu suddenly became nervous. Her hand under the table involuntarily clenched.
All kinds of TV drama scenes suddenly popped into her mind, and she couldn't help but speculate.
Would he say that his white moonlight has returned to the country, and that she, his fake wife, needs to be let go early?
Or is the woman a new intern at their company, and feelings developed after working closely together every day?
No matter which one, she didn't want to be let go early...
Just as she was thinking more and more absurdly and her expression was becoming more and more hopeless, the man's low, magnetic voice pulled her back to reality.
"That woman is Dr. Jiang, my granny's former private doctor. I happened to run into her that day and gave her a ride."
"When my granny comes to Jing City in a while, I asked Dr. Jiang to do a full physical exam for her."
Qi Mo glanced at Qi Shaobai again. When speaking to his son, his tone was clearly several degrees colder:
"The rumors you heard are not true."
When he finished speaking, completely different expressions emerged on Sheng Mumu and Qi Shaobai's faces.
Qi Shaobai's shoulders sagged in relief as he exclaimed in sudden realization:
"Dr. Jiang, ah, I met her when I was little."
He had just finished speaking when Qi Shaobai frowned slightly, a strange feeling of discomfort welling up in his heart.
Would saying this make it seem like he was trying to explain for his dad?
As he was thinking this, his gaze turned to Sheng Mumu.
He saw that Sheng Mumu's face showed no signs of relaxation; on the contrary, she gradually stiffened, her breathing slowed, and she murmured:
"I see..."
She didn't quite catch what Qi Shaobai had said.
Upon hearing the four words "full physical exam" from Qi Mo, she suddenly thought of something extremely important.
In the book, Qi Granny, Qi Mo's grandmother, had been described from Qi Shaobai's perspective.
Qi Granny was diagnosed with a tumor before Qi Shaobai went to college. By the time it was discovered, it was already in the late stages. At that time, Qi Shaobai was overseas participating in a study abroad program, while Qi Mo was working abroad.
Not wanting them to worry, Qi Granny concealed the illness. Her condition deteriorated rapidly and she passed away within a week.
Not being able to see Qi Granny one last time later became the biggest regret for the father and son.
Sheng Mumu felt as if she had been doused with a bucket of cold water. She stared blankly at the two people in front of her who were still oblivious to what was about to happen, and a complicated emotion crept into her heart.
After a while, she smiled and said,
"When Granny comes to Jing City, I'll go with her for the physical."
As she spoke, she picked up the barbecue tongs to change the subject.
"Let's eat quickly. The meat is about to get burnt. If we don't start eating soon, it won't be grilled pork belly anymore, it'll be cremated pork belly."
"Pfft—"
The seventeen-year-old's emotions came and went quickly. Just a moment ago he was still frowning worriedly, but now he was instantly tickled by Sheng Mumu's words and burst out laughing.
"Cremated, what the heck!"
The atmosphere seemed to ease up a bit. Qi Mo's eyes narrowed slightly.
His keen observational skills allowed him to detect Sheng Mumu's absent-mindedness when she spoke.
He didn't break the atmosphere and silently rolled up his shirt sleeves, naturally reaching out to take the barbecue tongs from Sheng Mumu's hands.
"I'll grill, you must be hungry so eat first."
Sheng Mumu was startled and didn't react in time before Qi Mo had taken the tongs from her hands.
The man's grilling was not very skilled; it was evident he didn't usually go into the kitchen.
But he moved neither hastily nor slowly, and his every action exuded a calm and composed aura, which actually concealed his clumsiness and made him appear collected.
In no time, her plate was already piled with several slices of meat.
On the other side of the table, in front of the teenager Qi Shaobai who was going through a growth spurt, there was a lonely single slice of meat.
Qi Shaobai: ......
*
All the way until the three of them finished eating barbecue and returned home, Sheng Mumu kept thinking about Qi Granny's matter.
The marriage contract stated that it would automatically be cancelled 100 years after Qi Granny's passing.
According to the timeline in the book, there should still be less than a year before Qi Granny was diagnosed with the tumor.
If they could detect the illness early and treat it in time,
was there a possibility that Granny could live a few more years?
She could have just pretended not to know anything, and waited until the day the prenuptial agreement took effect to take a large sum of money and leave the Qi family.
But the human heart is made of flesh, after all. Knowing how things would unfold, she could not just sit by and watch regret occur right before her eyes.
Sheng Mumu bit her lip.
She thought to herself, never mind, contract or no contract, and regardless of whether this would change the plotline of the book.
When Granny comes to Jing City, she must accompany her to carefully examine her health.
Even if she couldn't prevent the illness, she would at least let this father and son see Granny one last time, so they have no regrets.
When Qi Mo came out of the shower, Sheng Mumu had already sorted out her emotions.
Seeing him come out, Sheng Mumu got up and headed towards the bathroom, planning to take a bath too.
In passing, she casually tied up her long hair with a hair tie into a messy bun.
Revealing the smooth, slender lines of her neck and shoulders.
With her hair down she looked glamorous and dazzling, but tied up she had a touch of childlike innocence she couldn't hide.
As they passed each other, Qi Mo's gaze fell on the fuzzy wisps of hair around her ear. He suddenly stopped in his tracks and called out to stop her.
"Wait, I have something to tell you."
