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Published at 21st of April 2023 05:29:48 AM


Chapter 63

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The parking lot was quiet and empty, Lu Zhiqiao stared blankly at the strange woman sitting in the passenger seat, her mind buzzed, and the strings in her heart instantly broke.

She can draw the icon of the car with her eyes closed, and she knows the license plate number by heart, even if she wants to deceive herself that this is not Qi Yan's car, the long hair, body shape, and legs, she is very familiar with all the features of Qi Yan's body, and her eyes naturally can't deceive herself.

It was Qi Yan all right.

The WeChat message told her that she had something to do in the evening and would not go back for dinner. The so-called "something" turned out to be shopping with others.

Did she lie to her?

Lu Zhiqiao took a deep breath, her nose turned sore, and she tightly grasped the steering wheel with one hand.

What she looks forward to the most after being busy every day is to come home at night and have dinner with the three of them. No matter what they eat; vegetables, fish and shrimp, noodles and porridge are also good, as long as they sit together, they are delicious. As long as no one is missing.

After receiving the news from Qi Yan in the afternoon, she actually felt a little sad, her heart was empty, she had trouble concentrating, and she almost made a wrong quotation. She thought for a long time before she realized that it was because Qi Yan couldn't eat with her, she was disappointed. She reassured herself that it's okay, there is still her daughter, just take this time to spend with the child, and Qi Yan is not her exclusive servant, so there's no obligation to guard her all the time.

But now, her self-comfort feels like a joke.

Qi Yan didn't lie to her, it was indeed "something", but the so-called "something" was to accompany another woman to eat and go shopping, without elaborating on it, it wasn't a lie.

And she has no qualifications and position to criticize.

Thinking of this, Lu Zhiqiao couldn't help but frown, her chest was as tight as a stone, sad, wronged, and self-deprecating... All emotions rushed up and stuck in her throat. She stared at the direction of the passenger seat of the white car and her eyes darkened.

What she cared about was not just Qi Yan "lying" to her.

But she and Qi Yan have nothing to do with each other, she has no position to point fingers, and she has no right to be angry and feel wronged.

Lu Zhiqiao's eyes were bitter, and her knuckles holding the steering wheel turned slightly white. She turned her face, closed her eyes for a while, heard the sound of the car starting, opened her eyes again, and saw the white car slowly pulling out of the parking space. Turning right.

"Mom, why don't you go?" Lu Wei, who was fiddling with her mobile phone, turned her head and looked at her mother suspiciously.

Lu Zhiqiao panicked, her hair blocked her daughter's sight, and she quickly returned her face to normal, then she replied in a low voice, "Well, let's go."

Just after she finished speaking, the white car drove past her heading for the exit.

The windows were closed and nothing could be seen inside.

Her car drove into the basement of the complex, and when it was approaching her parking space, Lu Zhiqiao subconsciously tilted her head, stretched her neck, and saw that the parking space next to her was empty.

Qi Yan hasn't come back yet.

The speculation along the way was disturbing, although it was expected, but when the guess came true, she still couldn't help being disappointed, sad, and wronged. She knew that Qi Yan was going to send the other woman back first, or go somewhere else for "something" with her, and it was even very possible...

She didn't dare to think about it any further.

After parking the car, Lu Zhiqiao led her daughter up the elevator and went home. Knowing that there was no one at 902, she still took a deep look before closing the door, as if the door would open in a second.

The mother and daughter each took a bath, and Lu Zhiqiao separated the changed clothes from the newly bought clothes, put the former in the washing machine, and put the latter in a basin, and rinsed them.

She needed something to do, so as not to think about it.

The style of clothes chosen by her daughter is more mature, but it is not the style of adults. It is less plain and more trendy. Lu Zhiqiao can't describe what she feels like, as if she is dreaming, and is out of touch with the world when she wakes up.

After washing the clothes and drying them, she had nothing to do.

"Mom, didn't you say you'll buy me comic books last time?" Her daughter ran over after brushing her teeth and asked cautiously.

In this mid-term exam, she scored 75 points in mathematics. Although the score was not high, she finally passed, which is a great improvement compared to the previous semester.  The Chinese and English scores are still stable, and her ranking has also risen. It is good overall.

The world of children is very small, and they can be happy for a long time with a little encouragement. Lu Zhiqiao has always taught her daughter that "hard work will pay off", so naturally she must keep her word.

She nodded with a smile, patted her daughter on the shoulder, and said, "Yes, we will go shopping after the holiday."

"I want to buy it myself."

Lu Zhiqiao was startled and hesitated.

It is a good thing for her daughter to have her own opinions, but after all, she is not an adult, she has too much autonomy and too much money at her disposal. What if she compares herself with her classmates, loses her restraint, and her mind turns completely crooked? It's not that she doesn't trust her daughter, it's just that she is worried that she won't be able to pay attention when she is busy, which will cause disaster in the end.

In the past, she was too "relaxed" to be a mother, as long as she took care of food and drink, and clothed her child, she didn't need to worry about the rest.

Only now did she realize that the difficult test was just the beginning.

She was as confused as a headless a chicken.

If it was Qi Yan, maybe she would know what to do? The figure of that person flashed in her mind, and when she thought of the scene in the parking lot, her throat suddenly became a little congested.

"I promise I won't spend money recklessly~" Lu Wei took her mother's hand and acted like a baby in a low voice.

How embarrassing.

None of the other classmates would act like a baby with their mother, only her...sigh. But she couldn't control it, what could she do?

In fact, her mom is quite nice to talk to.

As long as she acts like a baby.

Heh-heh.

Lu Zhiqiao's thoughts were interrupted, and she turned her head to see her daughter pouted, her heart softened, and she replied with a smile: "Okay, you can buy it yourself." After speaking, she went to get her bag, and took out the credit card she had swiped earlier and handed it to her daughter, "You use this card to buy clothes, and plan how to spend it yourself. Don't max it out, or I will take it back. I will give you cash later when you buy books."

"Yeah." The little girl took the card away with a whimper, and nodded sharply.

"Also, you need to keep accounts, how much each expenditure is, write it down in a notebook, and I will check it every month. No false reports or omissions are allowed. If I find out, there will be no more pocket money."

"Okay."

Lu Wei happily jumped back to the room with the card in hand.

It is better for a child to ask her family for money than to borrow from her classmates. She hopes that her daughter can get a sense of security from her. No matter what happens, the first thing that should come to mind should be the mother and her family, not fear or other negative emotions, and go to others for help.

She stood there, thought for a moment, and concluded.

There was a faint "ding" sound from the elevator in the corridor, which seemed abrupt in the quiet environment at the moment. Lu Zhiqiao paused and quickly walked to the door, gently pawing on the peephole and looking out, her heartbeat instantly accelerated.

The light reflected Qi Yan's figure coming out of the elevator, she walked straight to 902 without even looking this way, opened the door, entered the room, and then closed the door.

--boom

Lu Zhiqiao's heart shook suddenly with the sound of the closing  door, and then fell rapidly. She tightened her grip on the handle, her palms became wet with thin sweat, slippery, and fell uncontrollably to her side.

There was an indescribable loss in her heart, as if something that should belong to her was snatched away without a warning.

Maybe she was wrong, it didn't belong to her.

Seeing that tall woman in the parking lot, she had an inexplicable intuition that the relationship between her and Qi Yan was unusual. Although the woman was wearing a mask and couldn't see her face clearly, she gave her a strong sense of oppression at first glance. Judging from her years of experience in reading countless people, it was not due to her height, but due to her pure temperament, in other words, her aura.

She trusted her instincts, so she couldn't convince herself that the two were just friends.

Uneasy and at the same time blaming herself, she kept saying that she trusted Qi Yan, but in the end she just saw a scene that didn't make any sense, and couldn't help but think wildly and speculate. If the two were really just friends, would Qi Yan be sad and disappointed knowing that she didn't trust her so much?

She dare not ask.

All the things she saw in the parking lot, the voices she heard, what did the two of them say? Were they laughing? Were they intimate? She couldn't remember clearly, the only thing she remembered clearly and profoundly was the sense of powerlessness that collapsed in her heart.

It repeated over and over again, repeated over and over again. She kept reminiscing, as if she was holding a knife and stabbing herself without knowing the pain.

Enough.

Don't ask, don't mention it, save some dignity for yourself, they are still neighbors.

Lu Zhiqiao breathed a sigh, and stepped back, her pale paper face getting darker, she turned around, and was about to turn off the lights and go back to the bedroom, when there was a slight movement in the corridor, and the next second, the doorbell rang.

She was startled, with her heart hanging in her throat, and hurriedly turned to open the door.

There was no one in the slowly widening door, Lu Zhiqiao couldn't react in time, and was startled by Qi Yan who suddenly jumped out from behind the door, exclaimed and took half a step back, the woman reached out and hugged her to her heart's content.

The light scent of shampoo entered her nose, Lu Zhiqiao was in a trance, subconsciously hugged Qi Yan's waist, and then suddenly remembered the scene in the parking lot, feeling sour, she struggled to push her away, and lowered her eyes.

Qi Yan thought she was shy and ignored her resistance. She lifted the paper bag in her hand and said with a smile, "Didn't you say you finished drinking the scented tea last time? I brought a lot of it home. My parents don't drink it, it's a waste to give them good stuff, you can have enough if you like." She sounded relieved, and her voice remained gentle and soft.

With that said, she took Lu Zhiqiao's hand.

Lu Zhiqiao lowered her head, pulled her hand away calmly, took the paper bag and put it on the cabinet next to her, and twitched the corner of her mouth: "Okay, I'm tired, you should go to bed early too, good night."

Her other hand hidden behind her back was clenched into a fist, and her nails, fiercely digging at her palm. She tried her best to resist the urge to ask, and she didn't dare to look up at Qi Yan, afraid that once she took a glance, she wouldn't be able to resist her bitterness and break the shackles of logic.

What right does she have to ask? The consequence of being unable to control her temper may be to freeze the relationship between them. It is not worth it for an unfounded thing.

Qi Yan lets go quickly.

Stopped dangling in front of her eyes.

Without waiting for the woman to leave, she couldn't wait to turn around, fleeing as fast as she could to go back to her room and close the door.

Qi Yan was stunned for a moment, her face changed slightly, a bad inkling arose in her heart, she hurriedly closed the door with her backhand, took off her shoes and rushed into Lu Zhiqiao's room. The tiled floor was a bit cold, and the coldness poured into her heart from the soles of her feet. She was impatient, she didn't bother to knock on the door, so she pushed it open and entered.

It was not locked.

Lu Zhiqiao was leaning against the window, with her back to the door, and turned around in panic when she heard the sound, and was caught off guard by Qi Yan's gaze, her expression dull.

"What's wrong?" Qi Yan frowned, stepped forward and hugged her, "Did I say something wrong..."

"Qiao Qiao?"

The warm breath fell on the side Lu Zhiqiao's ear, accompanied by the intimate call, and she trembled all over, her heart flew up from the cold valley, her tense nerves broke, and the bitterness that was desperately restrained poured out like a flood, and her impulse went crazy. She softened in Qi Yan's arms and asked in a low voice, "Where did you go this afternoon?"

"I just had to deal with something." Qi Yan said in a daze.

"What something?"

Qi Yan paused: "...something about work."

Lu Zhiqiao's heart turned cold for a moment.

Still lying to her.

"Let go." She frowned and struggled, her eyes flushed unconsciously.

There's no need to ask any more questions. Instead of listening to the lies fabricated by this person, it's better to save some face for herself. Isn't this already embarrassing enough?

The more she thought about it, the sadder she became, but Qi Yan didn't let go, her arms were clamped around her like iron clamps, she had no strength left, so she had no choice but to give up.

Qi Yan stared at her reddish eyes, her heart ached, and she vaguely had a guess.

How can there be such a coincidence?

"Qiao Qiao."

Lu Zhiqiao buried her face in her shoulder and said nothing.

"A modelling agency wanted to cooperate with me and asked me to be their official photographer. I went to inquire this afternoon and found that the boss is an acquaintance of mine..." Qi Yan explained softly, kissing her hair as she spoke .

An acquaintance, someone very familiar with her before.

To her, Jiang Yu is just an acquaintance. But she's not mentally prepared to tell directly that she is her first love, and she didn't know how Lu Zhiqiao would react.

Will she be angry? Or be calm?

She doesn't know her bottom line and can't dare to speculate.

The person in her arms froze and didn't speak for a long time. After a while, a muffled voice came from her shoulder: "Is she tall, female, wearing a black mask..."

Qi Yan frowned, slowly closed her eyes, and let out a soft breath.

Really.

"Did you see us?"

"Yeah." Lu Zhiqiao gently grabbed her hair, "In the parking lot."

A trace of guilt welled up in her heart, Lu Zhiqiao was ashamed, she misunderstood Qi Yan. Like a slap in the face, the burning pain seemed to be questioning her why she didn't trust Qi Yan. Now Qi Yan knows that she doesn't trust her.

"Qiao Qiao, there is something—"

"Sorry."

"Huh?"

Lu Zhiqiao stopped talking again, rubbed her cheek against her hair, and kept digging into her neck, as if embarrassed.

Qi Yan froze for a moment, and suddenly understood, but her heart became more and more nervous, she swallowed the words that came to her mouth, and hesitated repeatedly.

She is the one who should say sorry.

She didn't plan to hide it from Lu Zhiqiao. She wouldn't hide a word about anything, time, place, details, including psychology, but she didn't expect such a coincidence that she was seen by Lu Zhiqiao, and she started thinking wildly. Under such circumstances, her confession seemed feeble no matter what, and she even suspected that she chose to speak out because she got caught.

That was really unfair of her.

"What did you just say?" Lu Zhiqiao rubbed her hair for a while, then raised her head.

Qi Yan choked on her throat, raised her hand to caress her face, and said softly: "I promise, everything I'm going to say next is the truth, and you promise too, calm down and listen to me."

"Okay."

The bedroom window was left open, and a cool breeze blew in, brushing the messy hair on her forehead.

Qi Yan opened her mouth, her thin lips moved, and explained everything clearly. Her heart was beating faster and her throat was getting dry.

Her hair was grabbed more and more tightly, and was pulled to the scalp several times.

--hiss

It was very painful.

"Do you still like her?" Lu Zhiqiao buried her face and asked in a muffled voice. Thankfully, this thick hair can give herself a sense of security from being seen in her wretched state at the moment.

She told herself she was not qualified to mind, not qualified to question, Qi Yan confessed to her, so she should be satisfied.

But how can she not mind?

Her first love is Qi Yan, but Qi Yan's first love was not her.

No, they haven't "loved" yet, no one owes anyone, no one should be sorry to anyone.

Fair enough.

"I don't like her anymore." Qi Yan said honestly.

Lu Zhiqiao didn't speak any more.

She still has a lot of questions to ask. Every time a sentence came to her lips, she immediately lose her courage. She had never hated herself so much as now, hated herself for being so emotionally coward, hated herself for not being able to ask questions confidently, hated herself for not being able to let Qi Yan say the words "I have a girlfriend" with a straight face, hated herself because she deserved it.

She has no serious love experience, and she doesn't understand what the so-called reappearance of old love means, but at this moment she has no choice, she should trust Qi Yan.

If she says she doesn't like her anymore, she doesn't like her.

"Then you still let her take the passenger..." Lu Zhiqiao blurted out, not holding back for a moment.

She regretted it after she finished speaking, but it was too late to take it back.

Qi Yan tilted her  head and kissed her ear, "I originally asked her to sit in the back, but she got motion sickness and wanted to vomit, so... there's nothing I can do about it." She couldn't help but coax, "I'll disinfect the car tomorrow to make sure there wouldn't be any smell."

In the past, if she saw Lu Zhiqiao jealous, she will be too happy, but at this moment, she is only full of sadness, powerlessness, and heartache.

"That...was not what I meant."

"Mm?"

She pursed her lips and blushed a little.

Qi Yan held her face carefully, put her soft lips on it, and kissed her lightly as if coaxing, it slowly crawled from the corner of her mouth to the mole at the end of her eyes, she couldn't control herself for a while, and her breathing became more and more rapid.

The surroundings were silent and the half-hidden door was slowly pushed, opening a small gap...




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