The Beginning of a Bouquet - Chapter 8

Chapter 8

After the divorce, the System told me the mission was a complete success.

Yet, I felt a hollow ache deep in my chest.

During another one of my secret attempts to catch a glimpse of Zhou Chi, I ran into Qin Xiaoxiao.

By now, Zhou Chi had already secured his first windfall, and his career was starting to take off.

The two of them stood together, a perfect match of talent and beauty.

Qin Xiaoxiao smiled gently, tilting her head as she spoke about something.

Zhou Chi, however, seemed a bit distracted. His gaze drifted aimlessly, as if searching for something.

I slipped away quietly, feeling dejected.

[Stop looking. You’re a supporting female character who has already exited the stage. Everything from here on is the female lead’s plot. What does it have to do with you?]

I argued stubbornly, “I wasn’t looking. I was just passing by.”

[Heh. Passing by three times in one week, exactly when he gets off work?]

“What’s it to you? You’re so annoying. Why haven’t you left yet?”

As I bickered with the System, I didn’t notice someone approaching me.

The roar of a motorcycle engine erupted, accompanied by the rowdy laughter of young men.

Someone grabbed my bag. The force was so great that I couldn’t resist at all.

By the time I reacted, the punks with dyed yellow hair had already sped off on their bike.

Seeing my stunned expression, one of them turned back and smirked at me.

“And here I thought she was a beauty. Turns out she’s a nun! Hahaha!”

Only then did I realize that my hat had been knocked to the ground at some point.

“How… how could they do that?”

I was incoherent, able only to repeat myself in utter despair. “So mean… they’re so mean. Why did they have to steal my bag…”

When I finally snapped out of it, I felt my head. Under the strange looks from passersby, I hurriedly ducked into a nearby alley.

I crouched on the ground, burying my head in my knees. The fear hit me belatedly, and my body began to tremble.

The System was also livid, spewing curses so foul I couldn’t possibly repeat them.

[I’ve called the police. This makes me so mad! Are those punks insane? How dare they rob my host? They can go explain themselves to the criminal code…]

With the System’s comfort, my trembling slowly subsided.

I don’t know how much time passed, but when I finally looked up, I realized someone was standing in front of me.

With the light behind him, I stared for a long time before realizing it was Zhou Chi.

His hair was a bit messy, and his coat was wrinkled and disheveled.

Seeing my red-rimmed eyes, he closed his eyes for a moment, knelt down, and tucked something into my arms.

It was the stolen bag.

“The police have taken them away. They’ll be punished by the law.”

Clutching the bag, my first instinct was to frantically pull my hat back on.

“W-Why are you here?”

Zhou Chi didn’t speak. He just looked at me, as if suppressing some intense emotion.

I held my hat down, my eyes darting around. I didn’t even know what I was saying.

“I didn’t expect punks to be out snatching things these days. Haha, I guess I hit the jackpot.”

“If I’d known, I would’ve taken the subway. Why did I walk? The subway fare hasn’t even gone up, hahaha…”

My unfinished words were swallowed by a warm embrace.

I had always known Zhou Chi had broad shoulders, but I hadn’t realized his embrace was so powerful. He wrapped around me entirely, holding me so tightly I could barely breathe.

“What happened to your hair?” he asked.

I stammered, wanting to lie, but when I met Zhou Chi’s gaze, I felt a jolt-like I’d been burned-and the truth slipped out involuntarily.

“I sold it for money.”

“For how much?”

“Two thousand, one hundred and thirty-six yuan.”

That was the price of the down jacket.

I had looked at the price tag and spent an entire afternoon haggling with the hair buyer.

After hearing my answer, Zhou Chi went silent.

I felt the atmosphere getting awkward and tried to make a joke to lighten the mood.

“You don’t think I have a terminal illness, do you? Hahaha, that would be way too melodramatic.”

“The boss said he’d only give me five hundred if he cut it to my shoulders, but two thousand if he cut it to the roots. Let me tell you, I’m a great bargainer. Not only did I get him up to twenty-one hundred, I even badgered him into giving me this hat with the wig attached. Hahahaha… The boss said it was the thickest, smoothest hair he’d ever bought…”

My voice grew smaller and smaller as I felt a patch of dampness on my shoulder.

Zhou Chi buried his head in the crook of my neck.

For the first time, I saw tears from this man who was usually so reserved and composed.

It turned out Zhou Chi’s tears weren’t cold and sharp like the man himself; they were scalding hot.

His voice was hoarse. “I’m sorry.”

Why was he apologizing again?

He held me for a long, long time.

The System, which usually loved to mock and tease me, was uncharacteristically silent.

“Does it look really bad? Maybe I should put the hat back on.”

“It’s not bad. It’s beautiful.”

Zhou Chi pulled me up. He was very gentle as he took my hand to lead me away. I hesitated and pulled my hand back.

“Qin Xiaoxiao must be waiting. You should hurry back to her.”

“Qin Xiaoxiao?”

Zhou Chi blanked for a moment, then seemed to realize something. “You thought she and I…”

I bit my lip and nodded. Zhou Chi looked at me, his gaze focused.

“No.”

He said it again. “No. I have nothing to do with anyone else. I thought you divorced me because you didn’t like me anymore, that you hated me. After all, I was such a loser, so useless.”

“That’s not it!”

I interrupted him anxiously. “You’re wonderful, truly wonderful. I only divorced you because… because we couldn’t be together.”

“Why? Do you not like me?”

I was stumped by the question. I hesitated for a long time, watching the light in Zhou Chi’s eyes slowly dim.

Finally, I said bashfully in a small voice, “It’s not that… I do like you…”

Zhou Chi looked at me and suddenly let out a low laugh.

Since the bankruptcy, he had rarely laughed or shown much emotion. At this moment, however, his laugh was full of youthful energy. For a split second, I saw the spirited man he used to be.

I was a bit dazed and asked bluntly, “What about you? Do you like me?”

This time, Zhou Chi successfully took my hand. After we had walked a few paces, I heard his answer.

He said, “I love you.”

“The End.”