Once Gu Qimiao was seated, he reminded her, "Safety belt." Then he turned to ask Ding Jing in the back seat, "What’s the address?"
"Just drive, I’ll give directions."
Shen Yanchen didn’t ask more questions and drove off immediately.
Gu Qimiao glanced at the two of them, and Ding Jing asked, "Is work still as busy?"
"If you still have time to take your little childhood friend to see your grandmother, it means you’re not too busy."
Gu Qimiao looked at Shen Yanchen’s expression and felt that Ding Jing’s words carried a hint of resentment, like a girlfriend seeing her boyfriend playing with another girl, feeling awkwardly jealous.
"Miss Ding, don’t think too highly of yourself."
As he spoke, the car also slowed down and stopped by the roadside. When both women looked confused, Shen Yanchen said, "Get out, it’s easy to get a taxi here."
Ding Jing felt a wave of embarrassment, especially in front of a woman she thoroughly disdained. She grabbed her bag from her seat, angrily opened the car door, got out, and then slammed it shut with a "bang."
As soon as the door slammed, the car accelerated and drove off.
Gu Qimiao watched Ding Jing stomp her foot in anger through the rearview mirror, feeling quite satisfied but also faintly fearful.
So, he’s that ruthless a man, would he abandon her on the road if he got upset?
She sneakily glanced at his side profile—handsome—but didn’t dare to look closely.
"Is the heat enough?" he asked.
Gu Qimiao nodded, "Yes."
He was wearing a thin suit, and his coat was placed in the empty space between their seats.
In the enclosed, warm space, with someone she liked, this winter was probably the warmest one.
"You don’t have to mind my grandmother too much; she’s like that towards people she doesn’t know well. Just visit a few more times, and it’ll be fine."
Gu Qimiao quietly felt embarrassed again. Why did she say "oh"? And visit a few more times? She wasn’t some disliked daughter-in-law...
She fished out her phone from her bag and saw that it was Gu Moming calling. Without avoiding anything, she answered directly, "What?"
The voice on the other end was faintly audible in the quiet car: "Come out to eat, small square."
"I’ve already eaten; you go by yourself."
"Even if you’ve eaten, come out and watch me eat."
Gu Qimiao pouted discontentedly, "It’s so cold... and I’m not on that side right now."
Gu Moming pressed, "Where are you then?"
"Just...out handling some things."
"Busy person, give me your work address; I’ll come find you tomorrow."
"Why come to find me at work? I’ll come find you tomorrow night."
After a brief pause, as if considering, he then said harshly, "You better remember, don’t find excuses tomorrow."
"Yes, got it, you should also rest early."
She put away her phone, and the car was quiet again.
The car drove slowly on the snowy road, with few vehicles around, making it even quieter.
"Have you and he been living together all these years?"
Gu Qimiao paused for two seconds, then belatedly "mm-ed" before saying in a slightly helpless tone, "He never takes care of his body, and now he’s a professional racer, always driving recklessly, never putting me at ease."
Shen Yanchen fell into silence, her tone sounded as if she was complaining about her troublesome boyfriend to someone else.
Eighteen years, they had been living together. Even if they didn’t have feelings, they would have developed some by now.
Just yesterday, they had dinner together, and today he came over again.
When she got home, it was about nine o’clock. After taking a hot shower, she initially thought about doing some drawing. But seeing that it was almost ten o’clock,
she remembered their agreement and put away her drawing tools, then lifted the covers and snuggled into the warm bed.
In winter, even if she couldn’t sleep, it felt comfortable being in bed.
She hadn’t slept this early in a long time. Sometimes, she stayed up all night rushing to finish drawings; staying up late had become a habit for her.
Resting this early felt quite comfortable; she was exhausted from work. Lying in the warm bed, she closed her eyes, and soon she felt sleepy...