Time Travel Begins the Moment I Divorce My Wife - Chapter 16

When Hua Jiang Yu and Zhou Qingyi arrived, Ji Xunchi was helping with the barbecue.

Before Jiang Yu’s parents left, they had set up the barbecue grill in the small courtyard. The early arrivals had already helped skewer the ingredients, but now they were struggling to light the grill.

Ji Xunchi stepped forward and took over the task.

The skill of barbecuing was something Ji Xunchi had unconsciously mastered over time.

Back when she and Hua Jiang Yu had just met and married shortly after, Hua Jiang Yu happened to be on vacation. They went to get their marriage certificate, but neither mentioned holding a wedding ceremony.

It wasn’t a question of whether they loved each other enough; both of them simply dreaded the tedious formalities.

So, taking advantage of their rare vacation time, they traveled the world together.

Most of their destinations were abroad. They went to the polar regions to see the long-awaited auroras, wandered through obscure little towns in the southern hemisphere, relaxed and carefree. Sometimes, if they ended up with a disappointing meal, they would rent or buy a set of barbecue tools at their hotel or village and cook for themselves.

Hua Jiang Yu would skewer the ingredients, while Ji Xunchi learned to light the fire and grill.

After all, gazing at Hua Jiang Yu’s ethereal beauty, Ji Xunchi, who was deeply in love at the time, couldn’t bear to let the harsh, smoky reality of grilling taint her.

She just couldn’t do it.

So Ji Xunchi taught herself.

Though at first, she was slow at lighting the fire, and the meat often ended up charred and blackened, they ate it as if it were the most delicious food in the world.

On the soft mats spread across the courtyard lawn, they would sit under the dazzling late summer sky, savoring bites of meat and vegetables, clinking glasses of cool wine, leisurely filling their stomachs.

Then, they would inch closer and closer, shifting from sitting across from each other to side by side, shoulders touching, legs brushing. A single accidental glance would send waves of intense, blush-inducing love between them.

Their hearts tingled, sending shivers down their limbs, and even the breeze carried a lingering romance.

By this point, they would press their foreheads together, embrace neck to neck, and share a tender kiss.

Now, as Ji Xunchi took up this all-too-familiar task again, the rosy memories tied to those cold utensils flooded her mind uncontrollably. Each frame played in slow motion, as if demanding that she, the audience who had revisited them countless times, recall every intricate, unforgettable detail.

It was overwhelming.

Ji Xunchi lowered her eyes, quietly using tongs to adjust the charcoal, controlling the heat.

A classmate beside her couldn’t help but marvel, “Ji Xunchi, you’re so skilled at this! Just watching you, I can tell you’ve grilled a lot!”

“We’re in for a treat,” another classmate said, drooling as she watched Ji Xunchi flip a piece of pork belly. “Ji Xunchi is amazing at grilling. The meat looks perfectly crispy on the outside and tender inside, glistening with oil and smelling divine. Absolutely perfect.”

Ji Xunchi chuckled lightly and handed the grilled meat to the eagerly waiting classmate. “Try it, see if it’s burnt.”

“No way, definitely not!” the classmate exclaimed joyfully, blowing on the meat before taking a bite.

“Hey, is that the girl you said was insanely beautiful?”

Zhou Qingyi nudged Jiang Yu with her shoulder, nodding toward Ji Xunchi, who had just handed someone a skewer of grilled meat.

Jiang Yu stole a glance at Hua Jiang Yu and whispered, “Yeah, my deskmate Ji Xunchi. What do you think? Didn’t I tell you the truth?”

“Ji Xunchi?” Zhou Qingyi frowned. “Why does that name sound familiar?”

Suddenly remembering something, Zhou Qingyi asked, “Isn’t she that two-timing scumbag you told me about?”

“Shh, shh!” Jiang Yu stood on tiptoe to cover Zhou Qingyi’s unfiltered mouth, glancing guiltily toward Ji Xunchi in the distance before saying, “What are you talking about? I already told you, it was a misunderstanding! A misunderstanding! And it was cleared up later!”

“What scumbag?” Hua Jiang Yu, who had been silent until now, suddenly spoke up. “The one who was two-timing?”

She remembered Zhou Qingyi once used the example of a scumbag from another school to warn her not to be the one getting two-timed.

Jiang Yu was shocked. “You even know about this?”

Hua Jiang Yu replied calmly, “Zhou Qingyi mentioned it to me before.”

Jiang Yu could guess, of course, it was Zhou Qingyi who told her!

After all, Hua Jiang Yu didn’t seem like the type to be interested in gossip.

Thinking this, Jiang Yu shot another glare at Zhou Qingyi. Someone who only spreads rumors but never clears them up might as well become a paparazzo in the future. It’d suit her interests and even earn her money!

To avoid further misunderstandings, Jiang Yu carefully explained, “So, my deskmate Ji Xunchi was once slandered on the confession wall as a two-timing scumbag. The person who posted it didn’t name her outright, but anyone who knew Ji Xunchi could tell it was about her from the details.”

“I misunderstood at first too. Later, my deskmate calmly said it wasn’t her and that she wasn’t some two-timing scumbag. I was half-convinced, half-doubtful. But that noon, she seemed to go and resolve the issue. By that afternoon, the post on the confession wall had changed, and the misunderstanding was cleared up.”

Recalling her feelings at the time, Jiang Yu said, “I suddenly felt like my deskmate was so composed like a cool, unruffled boss. Even when slandered and misunderstood, she didn’t get angry. It was like she just waved her hand and solved the problem. Afterward, she even calmly told me, ‘The rumor has been dealt with. Thanks for letting me know.’”

After all, if it had been her who was slandered, she would’ve been hopping mad.

Because of this incident, Jiang Yu developed a bit of a hero-worship filter for Ji Xunchi.

After hearing the whole story, Zhou Qingyi commented, “That’s rough. Poor beauty.”

She pointed toward Ji Xunchi and said to Hua Jiang Yu, “See that beauty over there grilling meat? That’s her deskmate, Ji Xunchi.”

Seeing the barely suppressed smile on Zhou Qingyi’s lips, Hua Jiang Yu knew this was probably the person Zhou had mentioned before they came.

Hua Jiang Yu’s expression remained indifferent, but having heard the full story, she still followed Zhou Qingyi’s finger and looked over.

Just then, under the rising smoke and flames, she caught sight of the girl she had met once before.

For a moment, her gaze froze.

“Huh?” Zhou Qingyi, looking again, also seemed a little stunned. “Why does she seem kind of familiar?”

Hua Jiang Yu said, “We saw her at the hospital.”

“The hospital?” Zhou Qingyi thought back. “Oh, right! The girl who suddenly ran over and covered your stomach?”

As she spoke, she couldn’t help but take a few more glances at Ji Xunchi.

What a coincidence.

Jiang Yu looked between the two of them, her gaze lingering on Hua Jiang Yu’s face for an extra two seconds before she solemnly withdrew her eyes and asked, “You’ve met? Should we go say hi together?”

Ji Xunchi sensed that someone had arrived outside. The sound of laughter and chatter had already drifted in through the railings, though the distance made it somewhat indistinct.

Yet, inexplicably, she felt as if several gazes had settled on her intense and unsettling enough to make her look up.

And the moment she did, her eyes locked with someone’s.

Hua Jiang Yu.

A younger version of Hua Jiang Yu.

What was she doing here?

Ji Xunchi’s breath hitched, so stunned that she froze mid-motion.

“The meat’s gonna burn, it’s gonna burn!”

The perfectly grilled meat was almost ready, just needing to be taken off the fire, but the barbecue master had suddenly turned into a statue. The people waiting nearby were practically dying of heartache!

“It’s charred, it’s charred! What are you looking at, Ji Xunchi? Do you even realize the meat’s about to—”

“…burn.”

“Wow, a beauty!”

Following her gaze, the girl who had been urging her to tend to the meat stopped complaining.

Jiang Yu led Zhou Qingyi and Hua Jiang Yu inside, introducing them to the group.

“These are my other two friends. Now that everyone’s here, we can start eating and enjoying the feast!”

Ji Xunchi lowered her head, steadying her racing heart, which had nearly leapt into her throat. Calmly, she placed the now-blackened beef skewer onto a plate.

“Is that still edible?” Zhou Qingyi asked curiously, having somehow sidled up beside her.

Ji Xunchi glanced at it and replied coolly, “You can use it to sharpen your teeth before the meal. That way, chewing the rest of the meat won’t be so hard.”

“…” Zhou Qingyi laughed. “You’re hilarious.”

Hua Jiang Yu stood behind her, noticing the way Ji Xunchi had glanced at her while talking about the charred skewer.

Ji Xunchi looked at Jiang Yu, who was grinning at her brightly, and immediately understood who the “exceptionally beautiful girl” she had mentioned earlier was.

Who else here fit that description besides Hua Jiang Yu?

Her emotions tangled in a complicated mess. Who would’ve thought someone would try to play matchmaker with the woman she was about to divorce?

With everyone present, they naturally divided tasks some setting up, others skewering ingredients, grilling meat, or washing fruit.

Ji Xunchi remained at her post, dutifully grilling.

But now, Zhou Qingyi, who also knew how to barbecue, had joined her.

The girl chatted away as if they were old friends.

Ji Xunchi was already familiar with the future version of Zhou Qingyi, so she didn’t mind the younger one’s enthusiastic rambling.

Then, out of nowhere, Zhou Qingyi asked, “Ji Xunchi, are you single right now?”

Abruptly, the youthful face before her seemed to overlap with the seasoned, slick entertainment industry veteran she would become a decade later.

Ji Xunchi’s heart skipped a beat, and she blurted out, “I didn’t cheat.”

Zhou Qingyi: “…”

Hua Jiang Yu, who had come over to grab food but accidentally overheard the bizarre exchange: “…”

Ji Xunchi, the startled bird who had just realized what she’d said: “…”

What the hell had she just uttered?

Beside her, Zhou Qingyi’s expression turned slightly odd. She had only been trying to suss out Ji Xunchi’s relationship status.

Regaining her composure and ignoring Hua Jiang Yu’s narrowed eyes, Ji Xunchi coughed lightly to dispel the awkward tension. “Slip of the tongue. I meant to say I’m single.”

She forced an innocent smile. “I’ve been watching too many cheating dramas lately. It’s seeped into my brain.”

Zhou Qingyi gave her a sidelong glance and chuckled along.

Hua Jiang Yu’s eyes flickered subtly as she glanced at the other woman’s slender, well-defined fingers gripping the wooden skewer, her thoughts unreadable.

Ji Xunchi smiled at her and quickly placed the freshly grilled eggplant onto the plate Hua Jiang Yu was holding, speaking casually as if nothing was amiss: “It’s done. Take it and eat.”

Support Time Travel Begins the Moment I Divorce My Wife