After the Divorce, the Whole World is Waiting for Us to Get Back Together - Chapter 35

Chapter 35

The way Meng Zhijin’s eyelashes had drooped in Cheng Xi’s line of sight that day was slowed down infinitely by the background music on the tablet, leaving an indelible mark of ambiguity on her palm.

An indescribable sensation made Cheng Xi feel that the two people on the screen weren’t truly her and Meng Zhijin, yet at the same time, they were undoubtedly her and Meng Zhijin.

Cheng Xi had never imagined that the image of Meng Zhijin kissing her palm would be so heart-stirring and blush-inducing. Nor had she ever expected that there would be a day when she would be caught red-handed by the “other lead” while shipping her own CP.

Watching the footage on the tablet, Meng Zhijin squinted slightly. “Has it already aired up to this part?”

Cheng Xi rubbed her damp hair and sat up on the bed, feigning composure. She gave Meng Zhijin a muffled “Mhm.”

The pilot episode didn’t pause just because Meng Zhijin had appeared; the kiss on screen continued. Whether Meng Zhijin was doing it on purpose or simply couldn’t stand seeing Cheng Xi’s hair still wet, she sat down directly behind Cheng Xi, took a dry towel, and began drying her hair for her.

Cheng Xi was someone who knew how to enjoy comfort. She didn’t reject this intimacy as Meng Zhijin dried her hair. The towel was soft, and she could feel the outline of Meng Zhijin’s fingertips through the fabric as they brushed through her long hair. The gentle movements were soothing.

The bright white light of the room cast their shadows onto the wall. On the tablet, Sun Ran and Gao Mingtai were making their entrance. The sounds of welcome from the screen weren’t too loud or too soft; in this space, they didn’t feel like a distraction but rather formed a natural, indescribable backdrop for the two people sitting together.

It looked just like an ordinary couple returning home from work, snuggling up to watch something random.

However, as Meng Zhijin’s voice called out “Kid” from the tablet, Cheng Xi’s squinted eyes froze. She suddenly realized that her current comfort stemmed from a sense of familiarity.

—The familiarity of how she and Meng Zhijin used to be together.

The past, which Cheng Xi had almost forced herself to forget, was like a stone with a cracked seam; memories were uncontrollably slipping out. Cheng Xi wanted to suppress these ill-timed thoughts, but then she heard Meng Zhijin’s voice from behind her: “What do you think of the show?”

“It’s pretty good,” Cheng Xi nodded. As if trying to distinguish reality from the program, she turned around and gave a professional, serious evaluation. “The visuals are much better than the first season. Maybe the production has more money now—they can do special effects and the atmosphere is very strong.”

Meng Zhijin: “Just that?”

There was a hint of confusion in her eyes. She felt that, given Cheng Xi’s personality, she shouldn’t just be saying this. Cheng Xi should know what she was really asking.

Hearing this, Cheng Xi’s one second of seriousness vanished, returning to her usual self. However, it was tinged with a bit of obscurity and clarity.

Cheng Xi looked at Meng Zhijin and spoke with hidden meaning: “So, Teacher Meng is also very concerned about these statistics?”

Meng Zhijin’s hand, which was putting away the towel, paused. She wanted to explain, but was interrupted by Cheng Xi’s next words:

“The data is quite good; I reckon we’re already on the trending lists. I saw a lot of comments saying we look like a great match, and some fans were even apologizing for their earlier rashness.”

As she spoke, the smile in Cheng Xi’s eyes deepened. She leaned back slightly, propping herself up with one hand. “Some people are even saying they hope we get married tonight.”

The lights were bright as their eyes met. The soft white sheets wrapped around Cheng Xi’s casually crossed legs—as the comments had said, she was strikingly alluring.

Meng Zhijin remained seated upright, but her gaze darkened imperceptibly. If a fox could lead King Zhou astray, Meng Zhijin was no exception.

The moon was blocked by drifting dark clouds; the night was the best time for ambiguity to ferment. However, just as the tension was building, Cheng Xi broke eye contact and turned toward the camera in the room.

The thick smile in her eyes didn’t fade a bit as she broke the fourth wall with a mischievous, rebellious grin: “You’ve got a vivid imagination.”

It was unclear if she was talking to the audience—who wouldn’t see this part—or to Meng Zhijin.

The night passed quietly, and the sun rose early. The morning light was bright and full of life.

Sure enough, the next morning, the production team resorted to their old tricks: all the food in the Romantic Living Room had vanished. Cheng Xi and Meng Zhijin were among the last to arrive, greeting everyone at the table: “Good morning.”

Unlike the first episode where everyone was caught off guard, this time everyone seemed mentally prepared and in high spirits. “Good morning!”

“What are we eating this morning?” Cheng Xi asked.

“Sandwiches. Teacher Gao and I already made them.”

As Cheng Xi watched Sun Ran place several freshly made sandwiches on the table, a heavy dark cloud seemed to hover over the production team standing nearby. As the saying goes: the scenery is beautiful here, but terrible over there. The directors were visibly gloomy; their plan had failed.

They hadn’t expected Cheng Xi and the others to consciously leave a “backup plan.” When the crew told them to go back to their rooms to rest the night before, the group had secretly plotted. Adhering to the principle of “don’t touch our money,” they had used decoys to hide all the leftovers while retreating.

This was the first time in a romance show that the members had outplayed the production team. Cheng Xi sat down with a look of triumph, already imagining the screen filled with [Hahahaha] when this aired.

As everyone was chatting, the last couple, Su Miaomiao and He Chen, arrived from their room. Su Miaomiao saw the spot where Meng Zhijin was about to sit, hurried over, and pulled out the chair next to it. With a sweet smile, she greeted: “Good morning, Teacher Meng.”

“Mhm,” Meng Zhijin replied. It was calm, devoid of much emotion, and even bordered on cold.

But that didn’t matter to Su Miaomiao; as long as they sat together, she could find topics to bridge the distance. She was busy with her calculations when she saw the figure who was supposed to sit next to her reach out, grab a sandwich, and walk away.

Meng Zhijin bypasses Su Miaomiao’s intended spot without any expression and calmly sat down to the right of Cheng Xi. It was as if she had never intended to sit in the other spot to begin with.

Cheng Xi watched silently out of the corner of her eye. She didn’t know whether to call Meng Zhijin a “straight-shooter” or simply say she was too blunt with others. However, the discomfort she had felt last time didn’t arise at all; instead, she was wrapped in a sense of steady, indescribable security that made the corners of her mouth curl up slightly.

Although the breakfast ambush failed, the mission still had to be issued. As everyone was finishing up, the head director came forward.

“Teachers, welcome to this edition of the Romantic Cabin: City Skyscraper. In this episode, we will retreat into the bustling metropolis to find the romance that is often overlooked. The rules are as follows: The ‘Romantic Fund’ you received yesterday will serve as your points for this episode. At the final tally, every 10 yuan equals 0.5 points. Additionally, completing missions earns points: 1st place gets 10 points, 2nd gets 5, 3rd gets 1, and the last place gets zero.”

“After breakfast, please take our Romantic Elevator to begin today’s mission.”

Yu Tong was curious: “What’s the mission?”

The director intentionally kept it a secret: “The elevator will take you to the mission location.”

The eight people looked at each other and left the restaurant with curiosity. A passenger elevator was waiting for them at the entrance, its doors already open, with a follow-up PD standing inside.

“They’re being quite mysterious,” Sun Ran commented.

“Since we’re in the city and everyone is too familiar with it, they have to add some variety show effects,” Gao Mingtai added.

“I think our breakfast was quite an effect,” Cheng Xi said with a laugh. Yu Tong couldn’t help but join in the laughter.

The elevator doors slowly closed amidst their chatting, and it began to descend. While the others were still speculating wildly, Xu Changyan, who had been silent, spoke up: “I remember this elevator seems to go directly down to the Escape Room in the basement.”

The sudden remark silenced the group. Then, it was like a new world had opened.

“An escape room? Will it be the scary kind?”

“What should I do? I’m so scared.”

“It shouldn’t be too scary, or it wouldn’t pass censorship.”

“I actually quite like horror themes. When the lights go out and the ghosts and monsters come out… hehe.”

“Who knew Yu Tong looked so soft but was actually so brave?”

“Of course~”

As the discussion about the upcoming mission grew lively, Cheng Xi, who was usually the most active, did not join in. Amidst the surrounding noise, she looked at Meng Zhijin: “Teacher Meng, can you handle this?”

Meng Zhijin remained upright, her cold gaze fixed on the descending floor numbers. She didn’t seem to have any adverse reaction to the cramped, enclosed space. Cheng Xi suddenly felt like she was being sentimental. So many years had passed; Meng Zhijin must have overcome it. How could someone like her leave a psychological barrier as a weakness?

But right at that moment, Cheng Xi felt her hand being caught by fingers reaching out from the side. Those slender fingers were slightly cool as they slid through her own, silently interlocking with her hand.

“Then don’t let go of my hand, kid,” Meng Zhijin whispered to Cheng Xi.

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