Did My Wife Break Up With Me Today? - Chapter 60

Chapter 60: Jealousy

The rabbit buried himself under the duvet, arching his body into a little mound. He stayed huddled like that for quite a while to calm down before finally losing his strength and flopping onto his back, though his face remained buried.

He wanted to scream.

But he was afraid that if he did, his neighbor, Auntie Wang, would be jolted awake and spend the rest of the night dancing in the square as revenge.

Yet, he couldn’t sleep at all.

Not just restless—the moment he closed his eyes, that French translation would leap out at him.

【In the whispers of the universe, my love for you echoes for eternity.】

In the past, he would have found such words incredibly cheesy. Why… why didn’t they feel cheesy this time? Instead, he just felt like screaming into his pillow. He clutched his head, trying desperately to regain his composure.

He didn’t know how to reply. He truly didn’t. After tossing and turning, he decided to play dead—pretend he was already asleep and deal with it… tomorrow morning. Perhaps his head would be clearer after a night’s rest, and he’d know what to say.

Outside the window, the cold wind continued to howl, scraping against the bare branches and letting out eerie shrieks. These strange sounds punctuated the night until the following morning.

At that moment, Xu Jingmo was in the department listening to the usual morning shift handover. His mind, however, was entirely on the phone in his white coat pocket. It was already past eight; why wasn’t the rabbit awake yet?

Was the message last night too much? Had he pushed the pace too fast?

“Jingmo, that survey report you wrote before the New Year has been pushed forward by the provincial hospital. Congratulations,” the director said, patting his shoulder with a smile. “In a couple of days, there’s a dinner party with some domestic psychology experts. Come with me to get introduced; they’re all very keen to meet a ‘returnee’ like you.”

“Alright. Thank you for the recommendation, Professor,” Xu Jingmo nodded, making polite conversation.

Once the director left, Zhou Mujun leaned in, following Xu Jingmo to start ward rounds. “Where have you been disappearing to lately? The moment we clock out, you’re gone. We found a great cycling route recently; don’t you want to join us?”

Xu Jingmo pulled his phone out for a glance. Still no message from Chen Kongqing. “No time. I’m busy.”

“Busy with what? Patient numbers are low, and your research report is already submitted. What… are you grinding for another thesis?” As he spoke, Zhou Mujun seemed to realize something. He let out a long, enlightened “Oh…” “Wait… are you finally making your move to secure the position?”

Xu Jingmo shot him a side-glance and pocketed his phone. “You’re noisy.”

“What? Things not going smoothly?” Zhou Mujun looked at the dark circles under the man’s eyes. “Want ‘the master’ to give you some guidance?”

“May I ask if you have any relevant experience or outstanding achievements in this field?” Xu Jingmo glanced at him indifferently before flashing a smirk full of mockery. “How about I help you call He Yunxiao? I heard he returned to the country recently.”

He Yunxiao was Zhou Mujun’s first love and ex-boyfriend. The reason for their breakup was a mystery, but Zhou Mujun hadn’t dated anyone since.

“You… I…” Zhou Mujun instantly deflated and shuffled away. “I have nothing to say to you.”

Xu Jingmo’s small victory didn’t last long before his phone vibrated in his pocket. Chen Kongqing had finally messaged.

Xiaoman [Carrot Emoji]: 【I fell asleep last night.】 Xiaoman [Carrot Emoji]: 【Wow, so it actually means that.】

This was in response to the French quote. The man’s Adam’s apple bobbed; his chest felt tight as he waited for the next reply.

Xiaoman [Carrot Emoji]: 【Thank you.】

Xu Jingmo: “…”

Thank you… Wow. That was it? Thank you?

Well, fine. That worked too.

Xu Jingmo let out a low sigh and, regrouping, typed out a line: 【Are you going to the lab today?】

Xiaoman [Carrot Emoji]: 【Yes.】 Xu Jingmo: 【Okay.】

…

Chen Kongqing was currently changing the water for the flowers. Perhaps the weather was still too cold; the petals didn’t look as vibrant as yesterday. While changing the water, that French sentence played on a loop in his head.

Universe. Echoes.

Chen Kongqing decided to head to the lab immediately to put his brain to use, lest it turn into a hollow, pink mess.

At 12:05 PM, his phone suddenly rang. It was a delivery driver saying his food was downstairs. Chen Kongqing had been busy comparing a new round of data and hadn’t even thought about lunch, so he definitely hadn’t ordered anything.

Confused, he went downstairs to retrieve the delivery. Upon opening it, he found it was from his favorite private kitchen—the one Dr. Xu had ordered for him before. On top of the container was a small note.

The note read: 【Eat well.】

The box was filled with all his favorites: carrot and pork rib soup, stir-fried beef with celery, and tomato and egg. He had already guessed who sent it. Sure enough, two messages popped up on the green app.

Lnk: 【Eat well.】 Lnk: 【Making do with snacks is bad for your stomach.】 Lnk: 【I might have to work overtime today, so I can’t come pick you up.】

Chen Kongqing blinked at the messages. Was it now just an unspoken rule that Xu Jingmo would pick him up every day?

Azurite: 【That’s fine! It’s not a long walk back from here.】 Lnk: 【Okay. I have another patient here.】 Lnk: 【Chat later.】 Azurite: 【Okay.】

For some reason, looking at the messages and then the steaming hot food, he was reminded of the previous six months. Back when he was dating Ling Xiao, Ling Xiao would always disappear after a few words and only tell him much later that he had been busy. Sometimes, there was no explanation at all.

Was the experience of being “pursued” really this different from “dating”? But then again, they weren’t actually dating yet. Would it become less beautiful once they actually were?

Chen Kongqing’s gaze dimmed. Better not think about it. Just eat.

Over the next few days, Chen Kongqing was busy with the start of the semester, and Xu Jingmo was busy with overtime. Their face-to-face time was squeezed, but they messaged each other constantly.

Due to their schedules, it became a bit of a “message-board” system. When Dr. Xu messaged, Chen Kongqing usually couldn’t reply for ten minutes or half an hour; when he replied, Dr. Xu might be busy for an hour or two. The precious moments when they could chat in real-time were usually right before bed.

Lnk: 【Are you going to help your classmate move things tomorrow?】

He had mentioned it to Dr. Xu yesterday. School was starting, and he wanted to help his former roommates. Since he had applied to live off-campus, he didn’t have luggage to move, so he figured he’d help Gao Tianyou and another roommate who were bringing back heaps of local specialties.

Azurite: 【Yes, they brought so much stuff. I’m going to give them a hand.】 Lnk: 【I have tomorrow off.】 Lnk: 【I was originally going to ask you to a movie.】

Chen Kongqing pursed his lips. Actually, he wanted to see him too. They lived within ten kilometers of each other, yet they hadn’t seen each other in days. But he had already promised Gao Tianyou.

Azurite: 【Then… maybe next time?】 Lnk: 【Can I come along and help?】 Lnk: 【I can handle the heavy lifting.】

Chen Kongqing paused, hesitating: 【But that’s a huge difference from going to the movies.】 It felt wrong to make Dr. Xu come over as manual labor.

Lnk: 【I get to see you.】 Lnk: 【To me, there’s no difference.】

The tips of the rabbit’s ears turned hot again. How is he so good at saying these things?

Azurite: 【Then come along.】 Lnk: 【At your service.】

The rabbit hugged his phone and rolled around on his bed. It felt like he wasn’t just rolling on a bed, but in a giant vat of honey. Even his dreams tasted sweet.

…

The next morning, Xu Jingmo appeared downstairs very early, carrying breakfast he had bought for Chen Kongqing. By the time they reached the university, it was still quite early; Gao Tianyou’s train had just arrived, and he wasn’t at the school yet.

Chen Kongqing took the initiative: “Let me show Dr. Xu around the campus.”

“I’d love that,” Xu Jingmo said readily.

It was early spring in Kun City. The temperature had risen, so Xu Jingmo wasn’t wearing his heavy coat. Instead, he wore a classic khaki trench coat, with a striking mechanical watch on his wrist. Dressed like that, he didn’t look like manual labor at all—he looked like a high-ranking city official coming for an inspection.

A very handsome official without a beer belly.

Chen Kongqing thought this was just his own internal commentary until they were walking past the administration building. A middle-aged man in business attire walked out and gave Xu Jingmo a respectful, smiling nod.

Xu Jingmo was a bit confused but instinctively nodded back. Once the man left, the rabbit beside him started giggling.

“What is it?” Xu Jingmo asked.

“He definitely mistook you for a leader/official.”

Xu Jingmo looked down at his outfit. He had specifically tried to dress “younger.” He pulled down the corners of his mouth, feeling slightly defeated. “Do I really look that old?”

“No!” Chen Kongqing explained hurriedly. “It’s just… you’re very handsome. You have a very distinguished aura.”

The corners of Xu Jingmo’s mouth lifted again as he watched the rabbit, who had lowered his head and started walking faster. His earlobes looked a bit red.

Is he shy? Xu Jingmo’s smile grew wider.

They crossed the admin building and reached the grass of the East Athletic Field. Just then, Gao Tianyou called.

Chen Kongqing stepped to the side to answer. “Hello, Tianyou?”

“Kongqing, I’m almost at the gate! I brought those giant jianbing (pancakes) from home for you guys. Hurry over while they’re still hot!”

“Okay…” Hanging up, he turned to find Xu Jingmo.

He realized a male student was currently approaching Xu Jingmo to strike up a conversation.

The rabbit’s expression shifted. His steps faltered for a second, but then he sped up. Every step was firm and determined.

He heard the student’s clear voice: “Hey handsome, can I get your WeChat?”

Xu Jingmo had already turned his gaze to the approaching Chen Kongqing. His eyes held a hint of “innocence”—an innocence meant only for Chen Kongqing to see.

Then, Xu Jingmo gave the young student a polite smile and shifted his gaze back to the rabbit.

“That… you’ll have to ask him.”