Time Travel Begins the Moment I Divorce My Wife - Chapter 14

“Achoo!”

Ji Xunchi suddenly sneezed.

She rubbed her nose, initially brushing it off, but then followed it up with a series of increasingly loud sneezes.

“Achoo! Achoo!”

“Caught a cold?” Ji Xunchi wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes and muttered to herself.

But soon, her body settled down, and she stopped dwelling on it.

Frowning, she stared at her phone screen.

[“Hmph.”]

A single word, yet it seemed to convey a whirlwind of emotions from the other person.

Ji Xunchi wondered to herself had Strawberry Tip’s mood worsened even further?

She had exceeded her goal, yet she didn’t feel much joy. Instead, a dull sense of disgust settled in her chest.

Was it really necessary to hurt someone else just to achieve her own ends? Especially when the other person, compared to her, was practically an innocent college student who knew nothing of the world.

Ji Xunchi pressed her lips together tightly. The turbulent emotions from unexpectedly seeing Hua Jiangyu earlier that day only grew more unstable.

She ran a hand through her hair, her resistance sprouting like weeds in her heart.

In a foul mood, Ji Xunchi didn’t write her usual ten thousand words for the day. After tidying up a bit, she went straight to bed.

As for Strawberry Tip’s WeChat message, she never replied.

The next day, Ji Xunchi dragged herself through another torturous day of high school life, eyelids heavy as if she were serving a prison sentence.

Perhaps fueled by some inexplicable frustration, she resisted passively, slacking off the entire day.

Even the homeroom teacher’s announcement about midterm exams in a few days failed to rouse her spirits.

The original host’s grades were already rock bottom so what did it matter if she bombed the tests even harder?

By then, the classroom was nearly empty. Ji Xunchi was slowly packing her bag when a group of boys suddenly crowded by the door.

The one in the middle met her gaze, his eyes flickering away nervously.

Ji Xunchi paused, watching their shoving and nudging, and slowly began to understand.

Without avoiding them, she walked out. Sure enough, the boy in the middle stepped forward as if mustering his courage.

“Ji… Ji Xunchi.”

Ji Xunchi looked at him. “Yeah?”

The boy’s face flushed under her gaze. “Can I add you on WeChat?”

Ji Xunchi glanced at the phone in his hand, the WeChat interface already open.

“Sorry,” she said with a polite smile. “I didn’t bring my phone.”

The boy’s face fell at her courteous rejection, though he understood.

Just moments ago, he had clearly seen her pull out her phone to check the time.

Forcing a smile, he watched as Ji Xunchi slung her bag over her shoulder and walked away at a leisurely pace.

“Rejected?” a friend asked, slinging an arm over his shoulder.

The boy tightened his grip on his phone and nodded.

Another chimed in, “Not surprising. A beauty like her must’ve seen plenty of handsome guys.”

His buddy wasn’t drop-dead gorgeous getting rejected was totally normal.

The boy who had confessed snapped out of his daze and frowned. “Are you gloating?”

“Damn! Don’t tell me you’ve got a crush on her too?” the friend on his shoulder exclaimed.

“Ahhh! Don’t hit my face!! I just have a thing for pretty girls!!!”

Ji Xunchi faintly caught some of the commotion behind her. She subtly furrowed her brows and quickened her steps to leave.

Back in high school, Ji Xunchi had encountered situations like this before.

She had always known she was good-looking aware of the gazes directed her way since childhood.

When she was very young, boys would occasionally confess their feelings to her, but due to the influence of her upbringing, Ji Xunchi couldn’t yet accurately recognize her own sexual orientation.

As she grew older, especially in high school, whenever a boy confessed to her, no matter how handsome Ji Xunchi would straightforwardly reject them. However, she couldn’t always avoid being pestered by some self-important, sleazy guys. Eventually, she changed her approach. Whenever a boy confessed, she would crisply and decisively state that she wasn’t interested in men.

Over time, some people at school became aware of Ji Xunchi’s sexual orientation.

Almost instantly, the number of sleazy men around her dwindled.

By the age of fifteen or sixteen, Ji Xunchi was already bold enough to openly declare her sexual orientation.

So when she first transmigrated into this world and learned that someone could actually be blackmailed out of fear of their orientation being exposed, she found it utterly absurd.

Absolutely ridiculous.

Thinking about it again, Ji Xunchi shook her head and sighed inwardly.

As she sighed, she recalled how, just moments ago when someone had asked for her WeChat, she had instinctively felt a pang of guilt and turned away.

This was all because of the dream she’d had last night.

She had spent the entire night dreaming of an older, more mature Hua Jiangyu accusing her of being a cheating scumbag.

Even now, she could vividly remember Hua Jiangyu’s appearance in the dream.

Her thin clothing made her look so fragile, her delicate hands clenched into fists, the faint veins on the back of her hands standing out from the effort of restraint as she struggled to hold back her emotions.

But the look in her eyes was filled with pain and sorrow. Despite her attempts to control herself, tears spilled uncontrollably, dampening the slightly reddened corners of her eyes. The sense of devastation was almost frame-by-frame, playing out in slow motion before Ji Xunchi’s eyes.

A person as aloof as a snow-capped mountain, yet tinged with a flush of rouge from the agony of her emotions.

Like a lofty deity descending from her altar, or an ethereal fairy untouched by mortal concerns, falling into the mundane world.

In the dream, while Ji Xunchi felt guilty for her infidelity, she couldn’t help but also feel a surge of desire, a longing to cherish and console.

To make the ascetic climax, the libertine beg for mercy, the debauched seem innocent, the saintly fall from grace.

The phrase flashed through her mind almost instantly.

Ji Xunchi had never entertained such wicked thoughts before, but sometimes it was hard to define oneself with precise language.

After all, when someone as untouchable as the moon in the clouds becomes your wife, could you really restrain yourself from painting her in other, heart-stirring colors?

Ji Xunchi didn’t claim to be a saint, so at times, she simply couldn’t.

When she woke up, it took her a moment to process before she could shoo away that subtle feeling in her heart and get ready for school.

But the moment that boy had confessed to her earlier, her instinctive guilt had stemmed from remembering that single tear at the corner of Hua Jiangyu’s eye.

She truly couldn’t bear to see Hua Jiangyu cry in front of her.

Well, except for certain occasions.

Lightening her increasingly heavy thoughts, Ji Xunchi cracked a joke to herself.

She pushed aside the little incident after school and focused on the present.

Perhaps because she had been too angry yesterday, Strawberry Tip hadn’t sent her a single message all day.

Strangely, Ji Xunchi felt somewhat relieved.

But that relief didn’t last long.

[Strawberry Tip: Don’t forget about your evening abs workout.]

She remembered everything, huh?

Ji Xunchi took a deep breath and patted her stomach. Well, at least her recent workouts had been effective.

[Got it, I’ll start right away.]

When Hua Jiangyu saw this reply, she was listlessly sprawled on the sofa.

Her eyes were fixed on the chat log with Zhou Qingyi.

【Zhou Qingyi: Listen to me, break up after seeing the abs photo. Her behavior yesterday was blatantly giving up. There’s no need for you to keep investing in this for the sake of a two-month agreement, it’s not worth it.】

After a pause, the other person sent another message.

【If you really want to try dating, I can introduce you to some girls. Dating in real life is always better than unreliable online relationships, right?】

Hua Jiangyu declined: 【No need. As for the breakup you mentioned, I’ll think about it.】

She touched her stomach, lost in thought.

Soon, a message from Paradise popped up.

It was a photo.

Hua Jiangyu couldn’t help but sit up slightly straighter.

It was an impeccably composed photo, both in framing and content.

The woman’s white shirt was lifted slightly, revealing a toned abdomen. The well-defined abs on her pale skin were strikingly captivating, making it impossible to look away.

The lighting in the room must have been just right bright enough without being overexposed, perfectly highlighting the cool, fair complexion.

Hua Jiangyu’s gaze lingered on the abs, tracing every line.

Paradise hadn’t lied to her. The abs she had waited a week for were in such perfect condition that she couldn’t tear her eyes away.

Hua Jiangyu couldn’t resist zooming in on the hand lifting the shirt hem.

The fingers were slender and well-defined, with neatly trimmed nails just the right length. There was no sign of nail polish or extensions, just clean, natural elegance.

Unable to hold back, Hua Jiangyu sent a message.

【Can you send a voice message?】

Ji Xunchi’s eyebrow twitched slightly, unsure what the girl was thinking. But after a moment’s consideration, she lowered her voice and sent one.

“What do you want?”

The careless tone, paired with a magnetic, husky voice, was undeniably alluring.

Hua Jiangyu stared at the enlarged photo, momentarily speechless.

After a long pause, she asked another question.

【Do you smoke?】

Ji Xunchi: “?”

Why was Strawberry Tip suddenly asking this?

After a few seconds of thought, Ji Xunchi realized something.

【Being mature and sexy doesn’t mean you have to smoke.】

In other words, she didn’t smoke.

Hua Jiangyu pressed her lips together.

She absentmindedly zoomed in and out of the photo, caught in indecision.

Originally, she had planned to break up with Paradise right after seeing the photo. But now, her eyes were telling her she regretted that decision.

That’s why she had asked about smoking.

When she had searched online for images of mature, glamorous women, many of them were depicted smoking slim cigarettes or vapes, with hazy smoke curling around disheveled hair, sultry eyes, and seductive red lips.

But that wasn’t a charm Hua Jiangyu could appreciate.

She hated the smell of smoke, regardless of gender or type of cigarette.

Why didn’t Paradise smoke?

Hua Jiangyu wondered silently. Why don’t you smoke? If you did, I could use my aversion to smoke as a reason to block you and break up cleanly, instead of pointlessly hesitating like this.

If smoking isn’t the hallmark of a mature, sexy woman, then what is?

Ji Xunchi smirked at the question.

She hadn’t exactly been a mature, sexy woman before, so she couldn’t give a precise answer either.

But as someone with the mental age of 27, Ji Xunchi reflected on her life and experiences over the years. After a brief moment of thought, she arrived at an answer.

[A confident and healthy soul.]

Ji Xunchi didn’t delve into an elaborate explanation, believing that these two simple words would convey their full meaning to the college student on the other end, Strawberry Tip.

Maturity was never a state flaunted through outward behavior, but rather an inner poise, a spiritual temperament that radiated naturally once one’s self-awareness had fully crystallized.

Hua Jiangyu understood, of course.

Precisely because she understood, she nearly slammed her phone shut in frustration, exiting the chat with Paradise.

“A confident and healthy soul?” Hua Jiangyu practically gnashed her teeth. “You liar!”

Why, despite knowing better, would someone still choose to deceive?

She turned off her phone and lifted her chin like a proud swan, disdainfully dismissing such contemptible behavior as if doing so could conceal the flicker of vulnerability and absurd, tangled emotions that rose within her.

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