Hello, Comrade. I'm Here to Marry You!

Chapter 32: Chapter 32: A Suspicious Gaze

At this thought, Zhou Chengguo couldn’t help but ask, "Qiaoqi, how did you meet this young lady? And Camp Commander Xie."

For a moment, Wen Xiaoqi didn’t know how to answer.

Su Zhaozhao spoke up. "She was about to jump off a building to kill herself when I found her. I stopped her."

Jump off a building!

Zhou Chengguo’s eyes narrowed. He never imagined Wen Xiaoqi would have tried something like that.

"You... Why would you do something like that?" Zhou Chengguo felt a jolt in his chest.

He didn’t know why Wen Xiaoqi would do such a thing. ’Was it because of me?’

"You can’t possibly think this would make me like you, can you? Wen Xiaoqi, you shouldn’t have tried to pressure me." Zhou Chengguo put his bowl and chopsticks down on the table and stood up.

It was clear that Zhou Chengguo was furious.

Wen Xiaoqi, like a child who had done something wrong, stood up as well.

"It’s not like that, Chengguo. You refused to see me, so I had no other choice. I thought that no matter what, I had to be with you... even if it meant dying by your side."

’Thinking about it now,’ Wen Xiaoqi admitted to herself, ’my actions were far too extreme.’

But she had been so overwhelmed with emotion at the time that she couldn’t think straight.

Thankfully, Su Zhaozhao had talked her down. Otherwise, she wouldn’t be here today.

"You still shouldn’t have done it! You would have killed yourself, and what’s more, you would have ruined me!" Zhou Chengguo said. "We’ve met now. You’ve seen me, and you know how I feel. So, you can go back now, right?"

"I..."

"I’m in love with someone else now, Qiaoqi. I’ll probably marry her. As for you... I’m very sorry. If you ever need my help with anything in the future, I’ll do my best for you."

Wen Xiaoqi’s eyes filled with tears again, but more than anything, she felt disappointed.

’Is this really the boy I’ve loved for so many years? To think this is what he’s really like.’

A wave of sadness washed over Wen Xiaoqi at the thought.

’So, promises can be broken in an instant.’

’And I couldn’t hold on to the man I love.’

Just then, Su Zhaozhao cut in. "Well, in that case, since you’re splitting up, you should pay back all the money the Wen Family sponsored you with, shouldn’t you?"

Zhou Chengguo froze, his head snapping toward Wen Xiaoqi. "How could you tell someone else about that?"

His voice was laced with insecurity, as if his pride was being dragged through the mud.

Su Zhaozhao couldn’t help but laugh. "What’s the matter? It’s the truth, isn’t it? Am I not allowed to talk about it?"

"Don’t take it too far."

"The Wen Family has given you a lot of money over the years, haven’t they? Listen, mister, if you want to part on good terms, I suggest you pay it all back."

Su Zhaozhao had heard from Wen Xiaoqi that The Zhou Family was very poor. Zhou Chengguo’s father had died long ago, leaving just him and his widowed mother.

’Zhou Chengguo’s a teacher. No matter how good the pay is, how much money could he possibly have?’

Zhou Chengguo looked at Wen Xiaoqi. "Is this what you want, too? You want me to pay you back?"

Wen Xiaoqi bit her lip, her face pale, but in the end, she nodded.

Su Zhaozhao breathed a sigh of relief. ’Looks like all that brainwashing wasn’t for nothing.’

’The girl really knows how to take advice.’

"Fine! The money! I’ll pay you back!" Zhou Chengguo shot to his feet and stormed out.

After he left, Wen Xiaoqi could no longer hold it in and burst into tears, wailing loudly.

The other patrons in the restaurant immediately turned to look.

Su Zhaozhao quickly pulled Wen Xiaoqi outside to comfort her, calling over her shoulder to Xie Huaizheng, "Go ahead and eat. We’ll be back in a little while."

’Otherwise, with so many people staring, who knows what kind of rumors would start.’

Watching Su Zhaozhao lead Wen Xiaoqi away, Xie Huaizheng felt the corner of his mouth twitch.

’Since when was Su Zhaozhao so warm-hearted? Helping a girl through heartbreak?’

After a while, Su Zhaozhao returned and sat down across from Xie Huaizheng to eat.

Not seeing Wen Xiaoqi, Xie Huaizheng raised an eyebrow. "And her?"

"She didn’t want to come back inside. She said she’ll stay out there for a bit."

"Aren’t you worried something might happen to her?"

Su Zhaozhao shook her head. "She won’t. Patients I’ve consoled tend to recover quickly."

Su Zhaozhao was starving.

She had barely touched her chopsticks during dinner.

But upon hearing Su Zhaozhao’s choice of words, Xie Huaizheng’s brow furrowed. His dark eyes were as sharp as blades.

"’Patient?’ That’s a strange term to use."

Su Zhaozhao instantly realized her mistake. ’Crap, a slip of the tongue.’

But she recovered quickly, calmly correcting herself. "That’s right. She’s sick. It’s a mental illness, so she’s a patient."

"You seem to know a lot about the subject," Xie Huaizheng said with a soft chuckle.

"Of course. When I have free time, I read books on all sorts of subjects. So my knowledge is quite broad."

But Xie Huaizheng felt that Su Zhaozhao was talking nonsense.

’If her stepmother is as cruel to her as she claims, how would she have had the opportunity to read so much?’

’If she truly had that many chances to study, it would mean her family was actually quite enlightened.’

Su Zhaozhao focused on her food, her head lowered. "Look at all this food," she said. "They barely ate. What a waste. Should we get it packed to go?"

She could feel Xie Huaizheng’s probing gaze still fixed on her, but it didn’t matter. ’Even if he stares a hole through me, he’ll never be able to uncover my secret.’

’After all, a man like Xie Huaizheng is definitely an atheist.’

’He would never believe in other worlds, and he would never discover that this world is just a book.’

’Of course, according to standard novel tropes, the male lead can’t be allowed to discover that his world is just a book.’

’If that were to happen, they say the world would collapse.’

She looked up, her eyes meeting Xie Huaizheng’s. Su Zhaozhao immediately broke into a smile. "Xie Huaizheng, do you like me that much? You’re not even eating, just staring at me."

Xie Huaizheng was once again shocked by her shamelessness. He stood up. "You eat. I’m going out for a smoke."

If this kept up, Xie Huaizheng was going to start wondering if he really was as in love with Su Zhaozhao as she claimed.

Watching Xie Huaizheng’s retreating back, Su Zhaozhao let out a sigh of relief.

Xie Huaizheng walked to the restaurant entrance and saw Wen Xiaoqi huddled in a corner.

She was curled up by herself in the shadows, as if trying to melt into the darkness.

Xie Huaizheng walked over and stood beside her.

Wen Xiaoqi sensed someone was there and looked up. Seeing it was Xie Huaizheng, she froze for a second before instinctively shuffling a little further away.

Seeing that Wen Xiaoqi seemed a little afraid of him, Xie Huaizheng narrowed his eyes.

’What a completely different personality from Su Zhaozhao.’

Still, he couldn’t stop himself from saying, "That man... he’s not worth it. Forget him."

Wen Xiaoqi froze, stunned that Xie Huaizheng would say something like that to her.

"Camp Commander Xie... You think so, too?"

"Yes. From a man’s perspective, he’s weak and spineless. There’s no reason to hold on."

Wen Xiaoqi couldn’t help but let out a small smile. "You and Zhaozhao think the same way."

’They really are well-matched.’ Thinking about her own situation, then about Su Zhaozhao and Xie Huaizheng, Wen Xiaoqi couldn’t resist asking, "Camp Commander Xie, in that case... do you like Zhaozhao?"