QKYJ - 10

They went home.

For a while, Shen He only referred to this place as their “house,” not their “home.” Shen Zhi thought he was just being difficult, but instinctively unwilling to back down, she also started using the term “house.”

The origin was a story from a middle school politics textbook.

A wealthy merchant was stumbling drunk, and the police sent him home. Yet, he insisted on denying it, saying that the luxurious castle was not his “home,” but merely his “house.”

However, constantly correcting their wording and emphasizing it wasn’t a home became too troublesome. Soon, Shen He got tired of it, and began casually saying, “Are you home?”, “I’m home,” and “There’s a smell at home.”

Shen Zhi mocked him a few times, then naturally accepted it, replying as usual, “I’m home,” “Are you home?”, and “The air freshener has been changed at home.”

They went home.

Shen He carried things, Shen He entered the fingerprint lock. The two walked in. Shen He had a habit of opening the refrigerator to find food as soon as he got home, while Shen Zhi went upstairs to wash her face and then opened the express delivery she had picked up from the company in the living room.

By the time they both sat down calmly on the sofa, a long time had passed, yet neither had forgotten what they wanted to say.

They spoke at the same time, their “that” and “actually” colliding. Shen He said, “You first.”

“You go first,” Shen Zhi declined.

Shen He sat sprawled, fingers intertwined, completely sinking into the sofa as if pondering something. Finally, he spoke, “You go first after all.”

Shen Zhi thought, perhaps she had to state her position first.

But she didn’t want to give up the initiative.

What do you think about divorce?

This sentence was simple, but the answer was heavy. Shen Zhi felt uneasy about the pressure she was about to bear.

She gathered her courage, determined to face the issue head-on.

However, the person beside her suddenly interjected.

“Was that Sun Mengjia just now?” Shen He said.

His gaze was blank, and he truly seemed to be asking casually.

“Hmm?” Shen Zhi thought for a moment and replied, “You still remember her?”

“After all, people like that are rare,” he scoffed.

During university, Sun Mengjia openly looked for boyfriends who would give her pocket money. There were many such people, not enough to be particularly memorable.

The crucial point was her enthusiasm for building connections, even wanting to introduce sugar daddies to other classmates. Shen Zhi, being pretty with an ordinary family background, was a prime target. Shen He probably heard about it.

To avoid misunderstanding, Shen Zhi still defended her a bit: “She’s quite straightforward, and she can’t hurt me now.”

“Of course,” Shen He replied in his usual tone, “Who doesn’t know how impressive Teacher Shen Zhi is, who doesn’t know you’re my wife.”

They used to joke about their marriage occasionally.

Both sides thought nothing of it.

However, times were different now.

Both Shen He and Shen Zhi were uniformly enveloped by silence.

The stalemate couldn’t continue. Shen Zhi cleared her throat. Her tone was light: “Do you know who you just sprayed exhaust fumes at?”

Unexpectedly, Shen He answered frankly, and correctly at that: “The one surnamed Qin. Their family was originally overseas and only returned this year. Right?”

“You know that and you still offended them,” Shen Zhi glared at him.

Shen He’s attitude was casual: “It’s not that bad.”

It wasn’t that he couldn’t assess risk; on the contrary, he always had a measuring stick in his heart. It was just much more accurate than the pessimist he had married.

After a lecture and some awkwardness, the atmosphere actually relaxed.

He asked, “What do you want to say?”

Shen Zhi was choked up again, just hesitating over whether she truly understood him. After a long pause, she finally said, “I… want to ask you about the curtain color.”

“What?” he said, clearly having heard her, but habitually pausing for a moment, “I like that tart-purple color.”

She chuckled and countered, “Tarts aren’t purple.”

“Are they not?” he didn’t care.

“You mean yellow, right.”

“Then yellow it is. Speaking of which,” Shen He got up on his own accord, “I’m hungry. I’m going to cook.”

Their cooking skills were similar, but their tastes differed, taking a few years to adapt to each other.

“I’ll buy blue ones,” Shen Zhi said lazily, leaning on the sofa, clearly stating her preference, and contentedly waiting for the dinner Shen He would make. “Are you off tomorrow?”

He said, “Yeah.”

________________________________________

At 6:45 AM, Ouyang Sheng was awakened by the doorbell. Sleepy-eyed and in her pajamas, she knew at this hour, if it wasn’t work-related, only one person would show up.

However, even that person was a remarkably rare visitor.

Shen Zhi entered, took off her mask and hat, and walked straight in.

Ouyang Sheng, uncharacteristically flustered, tried to block her every step of the way but ultimately failed to stop the woman behind her, who was only wearing underwear and clutching her upper body.

However, even upon seeing her, Shen Zhi showed no panic, simply nodding a greeting and getting it over with.

To avoid misunderstanding, she even considerately added, “I’m just a friend.”

Barging into someone else’s house early in the morning, one should at least show some sincerity.

Ouyang Sheng changed her clothes, brought out the steeped black tea, and watched Shen Zhi calmly sip it. She held the tea tray and couldn’t help but ask, “When did you know?”

“I told you,” Shen Zhi replied unhurriedly, “Everyone is my friend.”

“Not about that.”

Ouyang Sheng leaned against the wall. Behind her, the girl had already changed and was ready to leave, shyly saying goodbye.

Shen Zhi looked puzzled: “What then?”

“I didn’t mean to not tell you, it’s just that you never talk to me about it. Actually, I’m bisexual,” Ouyang Sheng confessed, forcing a smile.

“I know. We’ve been friends for so long, after all,” Shen Zhi’s words were completely unconvincing. “I hope it won’t affect your relationship with your girlfriend.”

“It won’t. Don’t underestimate your and your husband’s popularity!”

Ouyang Sheng, whose secret was exposed, simply collapsed.

Hearing a specific topic, Shen Zhi suddenly fell silent.

Ouyang Sheng said, “By the way, why did you actively come to find me today?”

This was quite rare.

Shen Zhi, however, wasn’t going to reveal her and Shen He’s secret.

She purposely left home on her husband’s day off and came to a friend’s house, not even a particularly close friend, purely to escape the dilemma of choosing between marriage and divorce.

“I want to…” Shen Zhi smiled, “go out and play?”

She blinked.

Ouyang Sheng sighed deeply and replied, “Then how about playing some tennis?”

Shen Zhi had no objection.

But Shen Zhi, who had no interest in the sport at all, was no match for Ouyang Sheng, who practiced regularly.

Even so, Shen Zhi was distracted.

So they switched to anti-gravity yoga.

Then the two women hung upside down in mid-air like bats.

During their break, Ouyang Sheng looked at Shen Zhi’s profile and couldn’t help but smile, “You really have the best life.”

Shen Zhi tucked stray hairs into her coiled bun, her neck fair and long, not like a swan, but like an egret.

She let out a monosyllable: “Hmm?”

“When we were in school, you were the most beautiful. My friend met you once at the preliminary audition, and he remembered you instantly. He wasn’t the only one. And your major was good too. Later, you married Shen He, and both of you are successful in your careers, and your relationship is good…” Ouyang Sheng said, “There shouldn’t be anyone who doesn’t envy you, right?”

Shen Zhi smiled subtly.

“Have you been out of the loop for too long?” she said.

“I know you think I’m naive, but besides Shen He, I’m probably the closest person to you,” Ouyang Sheng said. “Whether it’s acting or not, I can still tell.”

Shen Zhi was silent for a while.

Her gaze was blank, but her phone subtly vibrated. Shen Zhi saw Lan Qiao’s name flashing on the screen. She stood up and left the room to answer the call.

Lan Qiao seemed to be trembling.

Shen Zhi didn’t know what had happened, and she didn’t want to know.

“Can you lend me some money?” Lan Qiao asked her.

A few seconds of silence.

Shen Zhi said, “How much do you need?”

________________________________________

When Shen Zhi returned, they went to a French restaurant for dinner because Ouyang Sheng wanted to eat escargot. Shen Zhi was used to home-cooked meals, and for these high-end dishes, her taste only went as far as finding them “decent.” However, she didn’t refuse.

The restaurant was famous for its good view and privacy, and it was very difficult to get a reservation.

While taking a bite of the incredibly expensive food, Ouyang Sheng couldn’t help but ask, “What do you usually like to eat?”

“Spicy kimchi pork rice?” Shen Zhi replied unhurriedly. “Wouldn’t it be better if you booked this place and came with your girlfriend?”

Ouyang Sheng sighed.

She seemed a bit emotional: “I don’t think she loves me, maybe it’s better if we just remain sex friends.”

Shen Zhi stared at the foie gras on her plate.

Ouyang Sheng asked, “What about you?”

Shen Zhi retorted, “What?”

“I thought we could talk about girl-talk stuff, like bedroom activities, married life, and all that,” Ouyang Sheng confessed. “Are you two perhaps sexless…”

Shen Zhi was amused and nodded along with her: “No.”

“Is Shen He very good at that?”

Ouyang Sheng immediately became interested.

Shen Zhi thought carefully, unaware that her hesitation only added to the mystery in the eyes of others.

She said, “It’s quite tiring.”

During university, the younger students pestered Shen He to help them with their assignments.

Shen He originally didn’t want to go.

He often immediately judged whether he was interested in something. The more the junior students pestered him, the more resolute Shen He became—that was just his difficult personality.

In the end, it was the graduate students who stepped in, and it seemed they even used Zhang Qingyue as leverage. The protective teacher, annoyed, just let Shen He go.

What they didn’t expect was that calling on Shen He was a complete miscalculation.

It wasn’t enough that he was strict with himself; he also habitually demanded the highest standards from those around him. During rehearsals, he wouldn’t sleep for three days and three nights, his stamina crushing everyone else’s, his energy so abundant that they simply couldn’t keep up with his pace.

A current ran up her spine, and Ouyang Sheng couldn’t help but sit up straight, excitedly egging her on like a kitten scratching, “You’re too much—”

Saying “too much,” but her reaction was more like “absolutely thrilled.”

Shen Zhi smiled ambiguously, and as she turned her face away, she secretly reflected on whether she had said a bit too much.

But on second thought, Shen He would never know anyway.

________________________________________

Suddenly, looking up again, she saw Ouyang Sheng’s gaze pass over her shoulder and fall behind her.

The man gestured to the waiter that there was no need to approach, and his public status with Shen Zhi was enough for the waiter to comply. Shen He arrived at their table, wearing a flawless mask. Shen Zhi didn’t have time to think deeply, already looking up with an equally perfect smile. They looked at each other like the most loving couple in the world.

“Are you talking about me?” he said.