Chapter 26: I Am Her Ex-Husband
Qiao Jiu hiccupped, a little giddy from drinking too much. She leaned toward Lu Fengzhou, grinning. “Why are you still here? Didn’t you already leave?”
She couldn’t quite stand steady, swaying a little. Lu Fengzhou caught her arm, steadying her, but instead of answering, he asked, “Are you close with Liang Xiucheng?”
Qiao Jiu smacked her lips. She wouldn’t say she was close to Liang Xiucheng—at best, they were just acquaintances. Still, she smiled and said, “He picked me up from Taiping Temple today. What do you think?”
Lu Fengzhou studied her for a moment, then nodded. “I underestimated you.”
No sooner had he spoken than a voice sounded at the entrance of the bar. “Qiao Jiu.”
Qiao Jiu, bleary-eyed, turned her head. After a moment, she recognized him. “Oh, it’s you.”
It was the bartender.
The bartender came over quickly, glancing at Lu Fengzhou’s hand still holding Qiao Jiu. “Are you alright? Had too much to drink?”
“No,” Qiao Jiu replied cheerfully, shaking off Lu Fengzhou’s grip. “I can handle my liquor. When do you get off work? Let’s have a drink together. Don’t be fooled by how I look—I bet I could drink you under the table.”
No one could believe a word she said in her current state.
The bartender waited a moment, then turned to look at Lu Fengzhou. He’d seen Lu Fengzhou practically drag Qiao Jiu out and had followed, uneasy.
Not knowing Lu Fengzhou, he asked directly, “Are you a friend of Qiao’s?”
Lu Fengzhou glanced at him. “Not a friend.” His tone was flat. “I’m her ex-husband.”
…
Liang Xiucheng left the private room and walked quickly toward the elevator. He hadn’t gone far when Guan Wei called after him, “A’Cheng.”
He stopped. “Is there something else?”
Guan Wei sighed and approached him. “Your brother isn’t trying to restrict who you can be friends with. It’s just that he has a lot to consider. There are still ties between Qiao Jiu and Lu Fengzhou. It really isn’t appropriate for you to be involved with her right now.”
She paused, then continued, “You’ve been abroad for so long, there’s a lot you don’t know. Lu Fengzhou is narrow-minded, and Qiao Jiu suffered quite a bit at his hands. Even now, he’s got everything he wants, but from the look of things, he hasn’t let Qiao Jiu go. The two families are about to start working together unless something goes wrong, and your brother’s worried something might go awry.”
Liang Xiucheng said nothing.
Guan Wei thought for a moment, then tentatively asked, “Do you like Qiao Jiu?” She was a little confused. “You two only met today, or is it just because she’s pretty?”
Liang Xiucheng finally spoke. “We didn’t just meet.”
Guan Wei was stunned. “What?”
Liang Xiucheng didn’t explain. He turned again toward the elevator. “She’s had too much to drink and she’s alone downstairs. I’ll go check on her.”
Guan Wei called after him, wanting to say she could find someone to look after Qiao Jiu. But as she watched Liang Xiucheng’s retreating figure, she held her tongue. Lu Fengzhou was unreliable; deep down, she too hoped someone would look out for Qiao Jiu.
Liang Xiucheng exited the elevator and hurried back to where they’d been sitting. The seats were already occupied by someone else. He paused, then turned toward the kitchen.
He stopped someone at the kitchen entrance. The person looked confused. “Qiao Jiu? She hasn’t come back. She went out earlier and never returned.”
Liang Xiucheng frowned, his expression growing tense. After a moment’s hesitation, he headed for the main entrance.
There were a few drunks outside, arms slung over each other, howling and laughing at who knows what. Someone nearby was throwing up, clutching a lamppost for support.
He scanned the area but didn’t see Qiao Jiu.
Hurriedly, he took out his phone. When he’d picked up Qiao Jiu that afternoon, Guan Wei had given him her number for convenience—who would have thought it would come in handy so soon.
He dialed her number. It connected, but no one answered.
He called again. This time, it rang for a few seconds before being hung up on.