The Wife From the Contract Marriage Does Not Want to Get Divorced - Chapter 7

At 10:40 AM, at Huakang Private Hospital, in the CT room of the first-floor Imaging and Functional Examination Department.

Lu Yanqing lay down according to the medical staff’s instructions. She actually felt that a head CT was unnecessary, but Xie Siyu insisted. Perhaps it was because Lu Yanqing had mentioned hearing static on the plane’s broadcast earlier.

Meanwhile, in the hallway outside.

Yu Ji, a doctor from the Psychology Department, was off duty today. She was at the imaging department because an elder in her family was suffering from unbearable abdominal pain, so she had brought her in for an abdominal CT.

“Miss Xie?”

Helping her pale-faced aunt sit on a bench in the hallway, Yu Ji noticed Xie Siyu while two patients were still waiting ahead for their CTs. Surprised, she stepped forward to greet her. “Are you feeling unwell?”

Two years ago, Xie Siyu had sought treatment at the hospital for insomnia caused by long-term stress, which is how they had met. In the past six months, Xie Siyu’s insomnia had worsened, and she came to the hospital every week for acupuncture. Based on Yu Ji’s understanding of Xie Siyu, she wouldn’t appear at the hospital at this time unless it was a particularly serious condition. After all, this was a person who had even refused hospitalization for a gastric ulcer.

“Accompanying my wife for a check-up.”

Xie Siyu pulled her coat tighter over her arm, her fingertips unconsciously stroking the buttons. She did not hide the fact that she was married from Yu Ji.

As expected, Yu Ji’s eyes widened in shock upon hearing this. “Your wife has returned to the country?”

Xie Siyu nodded. “Yes.”

Thinking of the deep sleep she had this morning, she asked uncertainly, “Doctor Yu, last night… I had about four hours of deep sleep.”

For over two years, Xie Siyu had relied on sleeping pills to fall asleep. Even in the last six months, she barely managed three or four hours of sleep after taking two pills. This was why Yu Ji had suggested combining the medication with acupuncture.

“Did you take your medicine?” Yu Ji asked.

Xie Siyu shook her head, then added as an afterthought, “I didn’t take sleeping pills last night, but I took painkillers.”

Just as Yu Ji was about to say something, the heavy lead door of the CT room opened, and a draft of air lifted the hem of Lu Yanqing’s dress.

“This is Doctor Yu from the Psychology Department.”

Xie Siyu stepped forward and draped her coat over Lu Yanqing’s shoulders. The cashmere fabric carried static, causing a few strands of hair to cling to the side of Lu Yanqing’s neck. “My wife, Lu Yanqing.”

Lu Yanqing pulled the collar tight and nodded in greeting. The faint red mark of a needle on her left elbow a sign of a recent blood draw caught Yu Ji’s eye.

“Deep sleep time has increased?” Yu Ji noticed the faint dark circles under Xie Siyu’s eyes had slightly receded. “Recently…”

“Perhaps it’s related to the painkillers,” Xie Siyu interrupted the consultation. Her fingertips brushed over the folds of Lu Yanqing’s sleeve as she straightened it. “Doctor Yu, let’s talk another day.”

The announcement system in the diagnostic area suddenly called out a number.

Watching the two walk away, Yu Ji noticed Xie Siyu’s hand placed protectively behind Lu Yanqing’s waist and immediately realized something. Xie Siyu seemingly did not want her wife to know about the severity of her insomnia.

The final examination items were in the gynecology department. When Lu Yanqing emerged from the consulting room, the clock on the wall pointed to 11:20. Xie Siyu was standing in the corridor waiting for her, looking down at her phone, her fingertips moving across the screen likely replying to messages.

Tucking a stray hair behind her ear, Lu Yanqing’s gaze grew complex. This person… was clearly very busy, yet she had accompanied her to the hospital for a check-up. Did “wanting to accompany her” mean what she thought it meant?

“Results for some items will be out this afternoon, while others will take until tomorrow.”

Xie Siyu put her phone in her bag and walked over to Lu Yanqing, suddenly opening her palm. “Have a candy first? You’ll get low blood sugar after fasting for so long. I’ll take you to eat.”

Stunned, Lu Yanqing picked up one of the candies. “Thank you.”

Outside the hospital building, a spring rain was drizzling.

Lu Yanqing bit through the crunchy shell of the fruit candy, and the sweet scent of lychee exploded on her tongue. She watched Xie Siyu’s back as she took a work call; the suit fabric outlined the silhouette of her shoulder blades she was truly too thin.

The call didn’t last long. Xie Siyu soon returned to the car, asking for Lu Yanqing’s opinion while buckling her seatbelt. “President Zhang from ‘Yue Gui Fang’ asked to meet and discuss moving into the mall. Do you want to come along? If not, I’ll have the private kitchen prepare two separate rooms.”

Lu Yanqing swallowed the lychee-flavored candy. “I’ll go with you.”

The entry of “Yue Gui Fang” into the mall was a project where the solutions submitted by the marketing and planning departments were still under debate.

Half an hour later, at a famous private kitchen in Rongcheng Bamboo Fragrance House.

When Xie Siyu and Lu Yanqing arrived at the second-floor VIP room, Zhang Qingyue was already there. Seeing them, she stood up to greet them. “President Lu, you’re looking quite well.”

She had specifically chosen the seat on the left. The slit of her cheongsam revealed the lines of her calves, and paired with a traditional Chinese updo, she looked truly enchanting.

“President Zhang is too kind,” Lu Yanqing nodded slightly.

Xie Siyu had booked the room in advance. She was an old acquaintance of the owner and had ordered the dishes over the phone. Once everyone arrived, the staff began serving the food.

Xie Siyu sat down beside Lu Yanqing, with Zhang Qingyue on her left. Her sleeve brushed against the back of Lu Yanqing’s hand. “Have some porridge first.”

She pushed a celadon bowl over, medicinal porridge with pitted red dates floating on top. “The temperature is just right.”

Fearing that Lu Yanqing might feel shy, she turned to explain to Zhang Qingyue, “Apologies, President Zhang. Yanqing had a check-up this morning and hasn’t eaten until now.”

“It’s no problem, let’s eat and talk.”

Lu Yanqing scooped up half a spoonful of the porridge.

Zhang Qingyue noticed that Lu Yanqing’s left ring finger was bare, whereas Xie Siyu had clearly been wearing her wedding ring for a long time.

Seeing Lu Yanqing start her porridge, Xie Siyu turned slightly toward Zhang Qingyue and said concisely, “President Zhang, we are willing to split the prime ‘Golden Eye’ area of the mall into dual entrances. The left side will be the ‘Yue Gui Fang’ jewelry section, and the right will be converted into an Intangible Cultural Heritage tea culture gallery.”

Zhang Qingyue’s silver chopsticks paused over the vegetarian dish for half a second. The solution Xie Siyu proposed was undoubtedly the best. After considering for a moment, she smiled and asked, “How much of the renovation fee does President Xie want us to cover?”

“60%.”

Lu Yanqing’s spoon clinked against the bowl. Hearing Xie Siyu’s figure, she raised an eyebrow; this number far exceeded the bottom line discussed in the morning meeting.

As if sensing her doubt, Xie Siyu turned her phone brightness to maximum under the table. On the screen was a message from Zhang Qingyue’s assistant from five minutes ago: Headquarters requires the Asia-Pacific flagship store to be finalized this week.

“30%.” Zhang Qingyue wiped the corner of her mouth with a tissue, a grave look appearing in her eyes. “We can provide entry tickets to the High Jewelry Couture Week.”

Xie Siyu continued to serve food to Lu Yanqing, remaining silent.

Beside her, Lu Yanqing understood perfectly. Her grandfather had the same habit when negotiating the purpose was to shatter the opponent’s psychological defenses.

“Does President Zhang know the average monthly foot traffic of ‘Yun Shang’ tea house?”

Xie Siyu pulled up a graph on her phone, where the curves rose and fell like a heart monitor. “The high-net-worth customers brought in by the tea gallery after renovation will be worth more than three jewelry events.”

The staff served the final dish, sautéed shrimp. The rising steam blurred Zhang Qingyue’s expression as she suddenly turned to Lu Yanqing. “What does President Lu think?”

Lu Yanqing swallowed the last bit of porridge and spoke slowly, “At last month’s auction, Master Gu’s ‘Grape Teapot’ collection sold for 9.2 million.”

Based on what Xie Siyu had mentioned in the car, she displayed photos from her phone of twenty purple clay masterpieces collected at Double-Dwelling Cloud Realm. “These will all be displayed in the tea gallery’s VIP room.”

Zhang Qingyue’s eyelashes flickered.

“40%.” She flipped the contract to the appendix page and added, “But we need three additional co-branded launch events.”

Xie Siyu’s fountain pen paused at the supplementary clause and then quickly signed her name. “President Zhang, a pleasure doing business with you.”

After signing, her pen suddenly changed direction, and she added Lu Yanqing’s name under the party A contact person.

Looking at the three characters written on the paper, Lu Yanqing felt as if she had returned to the day they registered their marriage. Xie Siyu had handed her the pen in the same way, saying, “Sign your name here.”

As they left, Zhang Qingyue suddenly laughed softly. “President Xie seems to be very fond of pearl earrings.” She glanced meaningfully at Xie Siyu’s earlobe.

A slight curve appeared on Xie Siyu’s lips, but she offered no explanation.

With the contract signed, the most difficult problem was solved. However, the “Yun Shang” side deserved appropriate compensation. When Lu Yanqing and Xie Siyu returned to the company, Lu Yanqing only mentioned it briefly, not expecting that Xie Siyu had already prepared a detailed plan. Looking through the proposal, Lu Yanqing’s gaze toward Xie Siyu held a bit more admiration.

8:05 PM.

Blue Note was a lounge bar owned by Zhong Wanyi’s cousin. Since Xie Siyu’s stomach had been bothering her, it was best for her to have regular meals. Lu Yanqing had taken her to dinner nearby first. There was a bit of a traffic jam on the way, so they arrived a few minutes late.

“Don’t rush me, Eldest Miss, I’m already here.”

Lu Yanqing walked familiarly toward the private room she and Zhong Wanyi usually used. As she pushed the door open, the phone in her hand was still vibrating with a barrage of messages from Zhong Wanyi.

Inside the dimly lit room.

Hearing the familiar voice, Zhong Wanyi looked up. Who else could it be at the door but Lu Yanqing? Leaving her phone on the coffee table, she ran over at a sprint and pulled Lu Yanqing into a hug, her complaints mixed with sobs. “Lu Yanqing, you jerk! Am I still your best friend? Three whole years—you didn’t contact me once!”

The person holding her was trembling. Lu Yanqing sighed slightly. She was like someone who had swallowed bitter medicine and couldn’t speak of it. She gently patted Zhong Wanyi’s back. “I’m sorry, it’s my fault. I’ll punish myself with three drinks tonight? Or five?”

“You’re not planning to get me drunk, are you?”

Zhong Wanyi wiped the tears from her eyes and pushed Lu Yanqing away with a snort. “Forget it. Who doesn’t know that the great Miss Lu is a heavy hitter who never gets drunk?”

It was only then that she noticed someone else standing behind Lu Yanqing Xie Siyu. Surprise flashed in her eyes. Although Xie Siyu and Lu Yanqing had been legally married for three years, they hadn’t had much interaction.

“Sister Siyu.”

The other girls sitting in the booth also stood up, following Zhong Wanyi’s lead in greeting her. Zhong Wanyi shot Lu Yanqing a look, as if asking: Why did you bring her?

“If your eyes are uncomfortable, go see a doctor.”

Unceremoniously calling out her friend, Lu Yanqing led Xie Siyu toward the booth and addressed everyone’s confusion. “Xie Siyu is my wife. No one said I couldn’t bring family to the party.”

Support The Wife From the Contract Marriage Does Not Want to Get Divorced