After the Divorce, I Ended Up with My Ex-Husband’s "White Moonlight" [Transmigration] - Chapter 43

“Are you Miss Ning?”

When Ning Qi opened the door, she was met with a complete stranger—a delivery man in a distinct uniform. A bad premonition bubbled up inside her. She asked weakly, “Did… did Qin Shi order this?”

Should I laugh or cry? Qin Shi was being “considerate,” but Ning Qi wanted the person, not the groceries!

“Miss Ning,” the man checked the order. “You’re half right. This was indeed ordered by a Miss Qin. But as for the contents…” He handed over a heavy, black insulated bag. “You’d better see for yourself.”

Ning Qi thanked him and closed the door. She set the package on the table and stared at it.

“Sister Ning, what is it?” Xiao Yu’er crowded around, her curiosity piqued.

“I don’t know.” Ning Qi scratched her head. “Shall we open it and see?”

“Yes!” Xiao Yu’er clapped her hands.

Ning Qi peeled back the packaging. Her eyes widened. “Spinach?”

She kept digging. “Celery? Green onions?”

Her voice rose an octave with every item until she finally tore the bag open in frustration. It was an entire haul of fresh vegetables! A clove of garlic rolled out and skittered across the floor, coming to a stop against the far wall.

Xiao Yu’er didn’t even know the names of half these things, but she recognized the garlic. She scampered over to pick it up. Recalling a time her grandmother tricked her into eating a spicy piece of garlic, she dropped it back onto the table as if it were a hot coal.

“Sister Ning,” the girl said, looking at the mountain of produce. “Are we… making dinner?”

Ning Qi ignored the question and bolted for her bedroom. Qin Shi had already sent a message: [You’re welcome!]

Welcome for what?! Ning Qi wanted to poke a hole through the screen. She sat there seething, thinking that even if she had the ingredients, she couldn’t cook them. Her phone suddenly rang. After agonizing for a single second, she answered. Her voice was listless. “I’m busy learning how to cook. Does Miss Qin have anything else to add?”

“Are you really cooking?” Qin Shi’s voice was full of laughter.

“I am!” Ning Qi said with unearned confidence, despite the lack of chopping or sizzling sounds. “I can’t count on Miss Qin to feed me, can I? If I don’t do it myself, I’ll starve! Besides, Miss Qin went to all this trouble to buy so many vegetables—I’d hate for her efforts to go to waste.”

She was genuinely fuming. The crushing disappointment of seeing a delivery man when she’d hoped for Qin Shi was a feeling she never wanted to repeat.

“It’s good that you appreciate it,” Qin Shi teased. Hearing Ning Qi call her “Miss Qin” in that muffled, grumpy voice only made her smile widen.

“You—!” Ning Qi was about to hang up when Qin Shi spoke again.

“I bought you something else. It should be arriving just about now.”

“Miss Qin,” Ning Qi rolled her eyes. “You really are meticulous. A master strategist!”

“It’s only right,” Qin Shi replied. “After all, I’m troubling you to look after Xiao Yu’er.”

Click. This time, Ning Qi didn’t hesitate. She threw the phone onto the bed, feeling like she was about to explode with indignation.

The Real Surprise

The doorbell rang again.

“Sister Ning, someone’s at the door!” Xiao Yu’er shouted.

God knows what she sent this time, Ning Qi thought. She didn’t want it, whatever it was. She opened her mouth to say “ignore it,” but then realized the delivery person was just doing their job. She sighed and ran to the door.

She opened it—and froze.

A familiar face stood there. Xiao Yu’er had already sprinted past her, hugging Qin Shi’s waist. “Sister Qin!”

“You…” Ning Qi stammered.

Qin Shi walked into the apartment, closing the door behind her. She pulled a tub of ice cream from her bag and handed it to Xiao Yu’er.

“Thank you, Sister Qin!” The girl cheered. It was her favorite! She assumed Sister Qin had just stepped out to buy treats. She skipped back into the living room to feast.

“I thought you weren’t…” Ning Qi’s voice trailed off.

“You thought I was what?” Qin Shi changed her shoes, looking amused. “I was just worried that a certain someone would actually send my cousin to the hospital. How would I explain that to my aunt and uncle?”

“Is that the only reason?” Ning Qi felt a twinge of bitterness and looked down.

“Of course not!” Qin Shi laughed.

“Then what else?”

“I was also worried about a certain someone who can’t cook. What if she sent herself to the hospital?” Qin Shi patted Ning Qi’s head. “I’m her girlfriend. If she ends up in the hospital, I’m the one who has to do the caretaking. Ning Qi, I’m a businesswoman—I don’t do ‘bad deals.'”

Ning Qi ignored the “business” talk. She focused on the only thing that mattered. “Did you come back to cook for me?”

By now, Qin Shi had already carried the vegetables into the kitchen. Ning Qi followed her like a shadow.

“Yes,” Qin Shi said, smiling as the girl hovered around her. “Now, can you give me some space?”

“No.” Ning Qi continued to crowd her. “Not after you made me so mad.”

“Miss Ning,” Qin Shi sighed. “Let’s get our facts straight. Who was it that nearly drove me crazy earlier?”

If Qin Shi had come back while Ning Qi was still in the middle of apologizing, Ning Qi would have been nothing but overjoyed. But the “vegetable prank” changed things. “You were the one who made me mad! You made me dinner for two days and then just quit! You were going to let me starve!”

As she spoke, Ning Qi actually started to feel a bit choked up. She had apologized, but Qin Shi had ignored her and sent a delivery man instead. “You have no idea when I opened that door… I thought…”

“It’s my fault.” Seeing the genuine distress on Ning Qi’s face, Qin Shi’s playful facade crumbled. The truth was, the moment Ning Qi said she missed her on the phone, Qin Shi had already surrendered.

She had decided that if Ning Qi didn’t want to believe in “love” yet, that was fine. Ning Qi wasn’t wrong—it is a bit much to say that word so soon. If someone said it to Qin Shi, she would probably find them frivolous. But because she was the one saying it, she couldn’t explain why she was willing to overlook all the logic and doubt.

“It is your fault,” Ning Qi said, her voice rising. “I just said one thing, and you twisted it into me being prejudiced! If I didn’t want to be with a woman, would I have agreed to be your girlfriend? You didn’t just doubt me, you slandered me!”

“Right. I was wrong.”

Qin Shi took Ning Qi’s hands, trying to move them so she could see her face. Ning Qi tried to hide, but eventually let her.

Qin Shi breathed a sigh of relief. Ning Qi’s eyes were a bit red, but she wasn’t crying. Qin Shi couldn’t imagine what she’d do if Ning Qi actually started to sob. The thought made her heart ache; she liked it when this girl laughed. When they were together, she couldn’t help but smile, too.

“What are you doing?” Ning Qi turned her head away, still playing hard to get.

“Nothing,” Qin Shi said softly. “I was just worried my girlfriend was turning into a mermaid.”

“A what?”

“I was checking to see if any pearls had dropped,” Qin Shi joked.

Ning Qi finally understood. “If they were pearls, they’d be precious! I wouldn’t waste them on you!”

“Quite right. Excellent awareness,” Qin Shi praised.

“Hmph. Of course. I’m not going to cry!”

“Sister Qin! Sister Ning!” Xiao Yu’er reappeared in the kitchen doorway. Ning Qi blushed and stepped back.

“Sister Qin, are you making dinner?”

“I am.” Qin Shi looked at the little girl. “That’s enough for today, Xiao Yu’er. If you push your luck any further, there will be no treats tomorrow.”

“Okay…” Xiao Yu’er sighed. No instant noodles, but she had ice cream and toys, so she figured it was a fair trade.

Ning Qi watched the little girl’s dejected slouch and shared a secret smile with Qin Shi.