Did My Ex-Wife Agree to Remarry Me Today? - Chapter 14

Chapter 14: So Terrifying

As darkness fell, the day’s labor came to an end. Li Zhou never allowed anyone to stay overnight at her house. Once the sun dipped below the horizon, she contacted Director Cao to arrange food and lodging for the “volunteers” who had come to help.

Meals were simple the organization’s canteen was open to them but lodging was a headache. With thirty to fifty people arriving today, they would need to book an entire guesthouse to accommodate everyone. The Marine Conservation Association’s funds were tight; every penny had to be scrutinized and saved where possible. Fortunately, most of the volunteers were from Wuzhou or nearby cities and had their own cars. Though tired, they found it more comfortable to drive back to the city to rest.

After seeing everyone off, Li Zhou looked at the mountain of cardboard and plastic bottles piled in her yard. She calculated the volume and called Director Cao. “We have enough raw materials. I don’t need this many people tomorrow. In fact, I don’t need anyone; I can handle the rest of the work alone.”

Only Li Zhou held the full blueprint in her mind of how to regenerate these scraps into specific textures and components. Having skipped the collection phase saved her immense time; the remaining tasks required the slow, meticulous precision she preferred to handle herself.

Director Cao, noting the high spirits of the volunteers, suggested they stay for two more days. With this free labor, the entire coastline had become much cleaner. Even if they couldn’t help with design or 3D printing, picking up trash was still a great service.

Li Zhou remained firm: “If Director Cao wishes to get things done, you can organize them yourself. I need peace and quiet here tomorrow.”

Hearing this, Cao Rong stopped insisting. Most of those fifty volunteers had come for Li Zhou. Well, maybe forty-nine of them had—one was a different story. “Fine,” Cao Rong agreed. “Tomorrow, Chang Qi and I will go pick up more ‘raw materials’ on the beach ourselves to chip in.”

Li Zhou paused, then added, “That man from today, Ma Hongbin—I don’t think he’s fit to remain in the volunteer association.”

Cao Rong had heard about today’s blunder. “His family is in real estate. They have money, so he tried to take a shortcut with it.”

How big of a shortcut? Li Zhou needed cardboard? He went to a factory and bought tons of brand-new, unused boxes and hauled them over in two trucks. Li Zhou needed plastic bottles? He bought a truckload of mineral water and hired workers to pour the water down the drain just to keep the bottles. He thought his entrance was grand, only to be torn to shreds by Li Zhou’s temper.

Cao Rong privately thought the man was an idiot. Their environmental philosophy was about saving resources and recycling plastic already discarded in the ocean. This man was tap-dancing on their ideological landmines. “He’s already been asked to leave,” Cao Rong confirmed.

“Good,” Li Zhou said, looking down. “Then I’m done. Hanging up.”

After the call, Li Zhou walked out to the courtyard and looked up at the moon. The sky was clear, with a bright moon and a few scattered stars hanging against the deep blue velvet of the night.

Concentrating all her magic into a single physical form was a bit disorienting. Her vision, hearing, and energy were all heightened; she had to learn to master them. It was a process, but with her learning ability, the discomfort would fade in a few days.

Her long lashes lowered as her gaze fell upon the dark, profound sea. Suddenly, a point of light flickered in her pupils.

Someone was by the shore.

Li Zhou didn’t think it was a lingering volunteer. Her sharp eyes recognized the figure immediately: it was Chi Yun.

Bringing her vision into closer focus ignoring the fact that as an ex-wife, she shouldn’t care where Chi Yun was curiosity won out. She locked her gaze on her.

Chi Yun was wearing headphones and gloves. She held a burlap sack in her left hand and a trash-grabber in her right. Her communicator was tucked into her trouser pocket with the screen facing in and the flashlight facing out, piercing the gloom with a sharp beam of light. Her tall, elegant figure moved at a steady pace, systematically picking up debris from the beach.

Li Zhou recognized the grabber and the sack—they were spares from her own warehouse. Volunteers had used them today; how did they end up in Chi Yun’s hands? When did she get here? Why was she picking up trash?

Her eyes followed the white-shirted figure. She knew how much Chi Yun feared water, yet here she was, approaching the shoreline so calmly. Even when a red plastic bag was blown into the surf—bobbing as the waves surged and retreated Chi Yun tried everything to retrieve it.

Li Zhou found it incredible. She watched Chi Yun’s struggle to catch the bag. When the wave receded, she took a small step forward; when it surged, she took a massive leap back. It was a physiological reflex—the moment the tide chased her, her feet automatically scrambled toward dry land.

That red plastic bag sat right on the crest of the waves, taunting the woman who feared the sea. It was within reach, yet separated by a chasm of fear.

Li Zhou recalled a memory from twenty years ago.

It was a morning in late spring. A child in a straw hat was chasing butterflies in the courtyard, shouting, “A-Li is most afraid of bugs! Don’t let them near her!” Her chubby palms pushed at the air, trying to blow away the butterflies that weren’t even necessarily heading for the tree.

Suddenly, a massive explosion erupted at the main gate. A pillar of water shot into the sky. The child, who had been running happily a second ago, shrank back. She stared at the scene, her eyes instantly filling with tears as she whispered, “So terrifying… so terrifying…”

The spray flew far, drenching the child in muddy water mixed with sand. The terrified girl began to wail. Her first instinct was to run to the tree for a hug. Halfway there, a mother rushed out of the house, calling, “A-Yun, come to Mama!”

“Mama!” The little girl changed direction, threw herself into her mother’s arms, and buried her head in her neck, sobbing, “It’s so terrifying, Mama… so terrifying…”

The child was shivering. The mother stroked her soft hair. “Don’t be afraid. A pipe must have burst. Mommy is going to turn off the water.”

The other mother found the valve and shut it off. The yard was a mess. Li Zhou (as the tree) didn’t care about the mud splattered on her trunk; she was focused entirely on the screaming child.

The mother who had caused the accident apologized. “Mommy’s fault, Biscuit. I backed the truck over the pipe while moving the bonsais this morning. I’m going to get tools to fix it. The water is off now; it won’t spray anymore.”

The repair took a long time, as did the comforting. By noon, Chi Yun finally dared to step on the ground, her eyes red, hiding behind the tree and peeking timidly at the pipe. The pipe ran right under the iron gate—it was the main line. The mothers had dug up the whole section, sawed off the broken part, and installed a connector. The overturned earth looked like a rusty scar.

The little girl gripped the tree trunk, only half an eye visible as she whispered, “A-Li, it’s terrifying, right? The pipe exploding was so scary…” She sniffled, tears welling up again. “I don’t want to go through the gate anymore. From now on, I’m going to climb the wall to go to kindergarten…”

The mother heard this, picked her up, and whispered, “It’s not scary once it’s fixed. Let Mommy show you.”

“Don’t go too close…” the child pleaded.

“See? It’s fixed. No more water.”

“Why did it break?”

“Mommy’s truck was too heavy. I didn’t see it when I was reversing.”

“I’m heavy too,” the child sniffled. “Will I break it?”

“No, you’re tiny. If you’re still scared, we’ll just hop over it whenever we go out.”

That night, it took both mothers to wash the mud off the girl’s face and neck, and Li Zhou could still hear Chi Yun’s “slaughtered pig” screams from the bathroom. From then on, Chi Yun had to calculate her footsteps through the gate left foot, then right otherwise, her legs would freeze up.

Li Zhou thought Chi Yun would avoid the sea a place of infinite pressure for the rest of her life. Yet today, she was on the beach. Even after an hour of struggle, she refused to let go of a plastic bag that the tide had taken. If she picked it up, it wouldn’t end up in the stomach of a turtle, a whale, or a shark.

Li Zhou saw Chi Yun bracing herself. She balled her fists, and before her reflexes could stop her, she stepped into the seawater. She bent over, grabbed the red bag with her tool with a swift, agile motion, and retreated to the shore.

As Chi Yun walked back up the beach, a triumphant smile played on her lips. Li Zhou didn’t have time to look away before their eyes met.

Chi Yun walked straight toward her.

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