Chapter 27: Twenty-Seventh Day as a Salted Fish
Zhou Shaoli looked down at the screenshot of the conversation on his phone, his brow slightly furrowed. He thought back carefully—yesterday, he hadn’t accompanied Qin Jiaojiao to watch the stage play, but he had left work early to pick her up and bring her home, and then he had taken her to meet his friends.
Just as they entered the private room, the two of them had heard Xiao Rui spewing a load of unpleasant nonsense. Xiao Rui had apologized on the spot back then, and Qin Jiaojiao hadn’t looked like she was bottling up any anger. After taking a shower, she had even called him over to check out the trending searches together.
He had been standing very close to her, smelling the fragrance radiating from her body and getting infected by her cheerful mood, to the point that he had almost kissed her.
Could it be because he hadn’t exercised proper self-control that he ended up making her unhappy?
Zhou Shaoli turned it over and over in his head, completely unable to pinpoint which exact detail had caused Qin Jiaojiao to “run away from home”. He humbly turned to his assistant for advice: “How do you resolve this kind of situation?”
Han Xiao had plenty of experience with this sort of thing. He immediately stepped into the office to tell Zhou Shaoli about how back when he was pursuing his girlfriend, his girlfriend’s best friend constantly found him eyesore.
He had gathered wisdom from online forums and learned a very practical method: buying food for the girlfriend’s best friend and sending her red envelopes. As long as he won over the girlfriend’s best friend and got her to drop sweet, flattering words in her ear, his girlfriend would naturally come back to loving him again.
Zhou Shaoli tapped his long, slender fingers against the desk, lost in thought.
Regardless, starting with his wife’s best friend based on his assistant’s advice couldn’t possibly go wrong.
Zhou Shaoli had sent Qin Jiaojiao a message in the afternoon, but she hadn’t replied to him. So, he had Han Xiao obtain Yang Yutong’s contact information and successfully added her as a friend.
“Hello, this is Zhou Shaoli.”
When Yang Yutong saw Zhou Shaoli adding her as a friend, she almost thought she was hallucinating. She glanced at Qin Jiaojiao, who was sleeping soundly and sweetly on the sofa, before accepting Zhou Shaoli’s friend request.
“Hello, President Zhou, I’m Yang Yutong.”
Zhou Shaoli: “Is my wife at your place?”
Yang Yutong: “Yes, she came over to my apartment this afternoon and is currently sleeping.”
Zhou Shaoli weighed his words carefully: “Did she tell you why she suddenly moved over to your place?”
Yang Yutong replied: “I don’t know either; Jiaojiao didn’t say anything.”
She couldn’t help but feel a bit suspicious. Could it be that Zhou Shaoli was a two-faced hypocrite—looking like a refined, polite gentleman on the surface, but secretly being a wild playboy behind closed doors? Had Jiaojiao discovered his true colors and found it unacceptable, prompting her to move out?
It had to be said, everyone’s imagination was boundless.
As Qin Jiaojiao’s best friend, she immediately questioned him: “Did you make Jiaojiao angry?”
Zhou Shaoli pondered over many details from yesterday, but he couldn’t determine which specific point had made Qin Jiaojiao unhappy enough to move out.
Since she didn’t want to see him, he could only entrust Yang Yutong to take good care of her.
First and foremost, he needed to steady his wife’s best friend and get her on the same side as him—this was what Han Xiao had taught him.
Zhou Shaoli replied sincerely: “Her mood was still very good before going to sleep last night.”
“Is it convenient for you to send me your bank account details?”
“I’ll transfer a sum of money to you. Since my wife is hanging out at your place for the next two days, all expenses will be covered by me.”
Seeing Zhou Shaoli’s message, Yang Yutong decisively sent over her account number. In less than half a minute, a bank notification confirmed an incoming transfer of five hundred thousand yuan.
Five hundred thousand?!
Qin Jiaojiao was only coming over to stay for a few days, yet Zhou Shaoli had transferred five hundred thousand to her.
Yang Yutong felt completely numb. She typed out a message and sent it over: “President Zhou, you sent too much.”
Zhou Shaoli: “It’s not too much, just a small gesture of appreciation. Thank you for taking care of my wife.”
“President Zhou is so generous,” Yang Yutong messaged back like a kiss-ass. “Once Jiaojiao wakes up, I’ll ask her why she came over to stay with me.”
Zhou Shaoli: “Many thanks.”
When Qin Jiaojiao woke up, the lights in the living room were on. Yang Yutong was holding her phone looking at gossip, and upon seeing her wake up, her eyes lit up as she stared at her.
Qin Jiaojiao: “…” She felt like she had seen this kind of look somewhere before.
Right, it was the exact look she used when gazing at Zhou Shaoli.
Yang Yutong sat down beside her and said, “Jiaojiao, you really are my God of Wealth.”
Qin Jiaojiao’s face was covered in question marks. “What God of Wealth?”
“First, explain things clearly to me, and then I’ll decide whether to keep the money or not.” Yang Yutong was being cautious; if Zhou Shaoli had genuinely hurt Jiaojiao and made her angry, she wouldn’t accept this money.
“Explain what clearly?” Qin Jiaojiao grew even more confused.
Yang Yutong asked, “Did you and Zhou Shaoli really not get into an argument?”
“Nope,” Qin Jiaojiao said lazily. “I just wanted to come out and stay for a couple of days. We haven’t eaten, drunk, and chatted together in so long, so I came over to keep you company.”
Yang Yutong wrapped her arms around Qin Jiaojiao and said, “As long as you didn’t fight, it’s all good. Then I’ll keep this money.”
“What money?” Qin Jiaojiao asked.
Yang Yutong showed her the transfer record: “Your President Zhou—knowing you brought your luggage over to crash at my place—specially instructed me to take good care of you and transferred five hundred thousand to me.”
“Five hundred thousand?” Qin Jiaojiao said in surprise.
Yang Yutong nodded. “You heard right, five hundred thousand. With this five hundred thousand over the next two days, we can spend however we want.”
Qin Jiaojiao’s stomach rumbled, so she said, “Hurry up and order food delivery, I’m hungry.”
“You, oh you, you’ve turned into such a lazy little pig—eating the moment you wake up,” Yang Yutong teased while pulling out her phone to open a food delivery app.
It was already evening by now, perfect for ordering some snacks to go with drinks. She ordered a portion of spicy crayfish, a portion of five-spice crayfish, plus some barbecue and staple foods.
“Looks like there’s no booze left at home; I need to buy some more alcohol to bring back,” Yang Yutong said enthusiastically. “We won’t go home until we’re drunk.”
Qin Jiaojiao was terrible at holding her liquor and could only sip a little fruit wine, so she had Yang Yutong order various flavors of fruit wine.
Zhou Shaoli left work as usual, except today there was no one waiting for him at home to have dinner. Looking at the empty villa, he felt slightly unaccustomed to it.
Auntie Zhang asked, “Sir, have you called Madam yet?”
Zhou Shaoli said calmly, “Not yet.”
Auntie Zhang advised with a look of worry, “Jiaojiao has had a bit of a temper since she was little. Sir, you’re her husband—as long as you give in to her a little and coax her, Madam won’t be angry anymore.”
Zhou Shaoli nodded. “I know.”
Auntie Zhang asked anxiously, “Should Sir go bring Madam back?”
“No need,” Zhou Shaoli’s voice was gentle as he said. “She wants to stay out for a couple of days. I’ve already spoken with Yang Yutong, and she will take good care of her.”
Auntie Zhang finally put her mind at ease and said, “Then in a couple of days, remember to pick Madam up and bring her home, Sir.”
Zhou Shaoli gave a faint hum of assent and went to the dining room alone. After finishing his dinner without much appetite, he subconsciously glanced at the living room sofa. Usually after dinner, Qin Jiaojiao would have the servants prepare fruit, leaning back on the sofa to eat fruit and watch dramas. Tonight, the sofa sat there all by itself, completely empty.
He went upstairs to the bedroom. He didn’t have much work today, so after taking a shower in the bathroom, he wore his pajamas to the study—this was how he used to spend his time.
Zhou Shaoli sat quietly in the study, recalling a long time ago when Qin Jiaojiao had brought up getting a divorce with him.
Back then, because of their contract marriage, he and Qin Jiaojiao each lived in separate rooms after getting married. They hardly ever ran into each other. His routine was a simple two-point line between the company and the villa, often working overtime until late before coming home.
The servants used to say that Qin Jiaojiao frequently stayed out overnight, crashing at her friends’ places whenever she got tired of partying outside.
Qin Jiaojiao was someone who loved lively environments. Did she feel lonely staying in the villa all by herself, which was why she ran out so often, unable to stand being alone in the villa to the point of wanting a divorce?
Because their marriage was a contract arrangement, the terms had clearly stated that they wouldn’t interfere with each other after marriage, so he hadn’t cared about his wife.
Now, he had become the one left home alone, tasting a subtle, indescribable feeling.
Zhou Shaoli lowered his eyes, unable to focus on the document in his hands. He picked up his phone and dialed Qin Jiaojiao’s number. It was picked up quickly on the other end, and Qin Jiaojiao’s sweet, soft voice came through: “Hello, is something up?”
Hearing her voice, Zhou Shaoli’s tone unconsciously softened: “I sent you a message this afternoon, but you didn’t reply to me.”
“Ah, I thought I replied,” Qin Jiaojiao explained awkwardly. “Sometimes after I read a message, I assume I’ve replied at the time, but I often end up not replying to people… Sorry.”
Zhou Shaoli’s voice carried a faint trace of a smile as he said, “You don’t need to say sorry to me.”
“Were you angry because I didn’t accompany you to watch the stage play yesterday?” he asked unhurriedly.
Qin Jiaojiao hurriedly said, “No, I wasn’t! Weren’t you busy with work? You even left work early to pick me up and take me out for dinner with your friends.”
“Then was it because Xiao Rui said something that made you unhappy?” Zhou Shaoli continued asking.
“No, didn’t he apologize right then and there?” Qin Jiaojiao was afraid he would misunderstand, so she explained, “Yutong and I haven’t hung out and chatted in a long time. She has some messy stuff going on at home, so I came out to stay for a couple of days to keep her company while I’m at it.”
Zhou Shaoli hadn’t expected this to be the reason. It was good as long as she wasn’t angry. “Have fun at your friend’s place. I’ll come pick you up in a couple of days.”
“No, no need! I can just call the driver to pick me up,” Qin Jiaojiao said.
Zhou Shaoli’s voice was calm and steady: “Everyone thinks I made you angry and is advising me to coax you back home. If I don’t come pick you up, I’m afraid everyone will say I’m not a good husband.”
Qin Jiaojiao: “…”
She hadn’t expected her sudden whim to actually trigger a whole chain reaction.
“Alright then, I’ll call you in a couple of days.”
Zhou Shaoli gave a light hum of assent and said, “Rest early tonight.”
“Okay,” Qin Jiaojiao responded obediently.
What to do? Listening to his gentle voice, she actually missed the courtyard villa a little—she supposed after living there long enough, feelings would naturally develop.
The two kept the line open, able to hear each other’s breathing through the phone.
After a long while, Qin Jiaojiao spoke up, “Then I’m hanging up?”
“Okay,” Zhou Shaoli said.
Hanging up the call, Qin Jiaojiao met Yang Yutong’s face, which was practically screaming that she had been stuffed with dog food. “Jiaojiao, President Zhou really can’t bear to be apart from you for even a single second. He couldn’t even bear to hang up the phone.”
Her face turning piping hot from the teasing, Qin Jiaojiao picked up a crayfish and started peeling it. “Don’t talk nonsense.”
The classic romance movie Flipped was playing in the living room. The two of them ate and drank freely at home, chatting while drinking. The fruit wine wasn’t very strong, but mixing different kinds of alcohol together made it easy to get tipsy. A rosy flush bloomed on both of their faces, and after the movie ended, they started singing karaoke and dancing at home.
If this residential complex didn’t have exceptionally good soundproofing, the next-door neighbors probably would have come over to knock on the door with a warning.
On the other side, after hanging up the phone, Zhou Shaoli sat quietly in the study for a little while before returning to the bedroom to lie under the covers, experiencing the taste of missing someone for the very first time.
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