"You motherf*cker, I was on a winning streak, and you come here looking for trouble?! Get back inside! You're a disgrace!" Liu Lufeng cursed.
Zhao Sufang couldn't get up for a long time. The people from the mahjong parlor seemed used to it, just watching the show without intervening.
My heart was still pounding. I quickly left with Ginny Deng.
Leo Li was waiting for us in the car. Seeing my pale face, he switched back to his considerate mode. "Madam, are you not feeling well?"
"I'm fine. Let's head back to City A," I said, touching my neck. Ginny Deng leaned over to check.
She frowned. "She actually left a red mark on your neck. That woman is vicious!"
"What did she mean by what she said?" I was thinking about something else. "Who paid off Liu Lufeng?"
"I don't know either. That Liu Lufeng is a gambler, so he must have been deep in debt. Someone probably paid it off for him on the condition that he get his wife back. Indeed, it takes a villain to deal with a villain," Ginny Deng lamented.
"But who was that person?" I couldn't figure it out. "The detective I hired also tried to find Liu Lufeng, and Liu Lufeng didn't seem to care about his wife's affair at all. Thinking about it now, maybe the couple had a plan all along. Zhao Sufang was responsible for hooking up with rich men to squeeze some money out of them for Liu Lufeng's gambling debts. But she also wanted to use this opportunity to divorce Liu Lufeng."
Ginny Deng thought for a few seconds, her eyes gradually widening. "Could it be... Hugh Pei?? Didn't you see those photos at his place?"
My heart skipped a beat. I murmured, "Could he have gotten the photos from there?"
Then those must be the negatives! I knew him well. He was thorough and efficient. If he paid for something, he would get the most out of it. If they weren't the negatives, what use would they be to him?
All I had to do was sign the divorce papers and get those photos.
By the time we returned to City A, it was already dark. Ginny Deng and I found a place to eat. During the meal, she called Hugh Pei a scumbag eighteen times.
"Once you're divorced, I'll introduce you to some handsome guys. There are so many men in the world; we won't let him waste your life!" Ginny Deng comforted me. "I refuse to believe he and that Lila Wei will last. He'll regret it."
I sighed inwardly. For a moment, I had the urge to tell Ginny Deng about my rebirth.
But something like that seemed too absurd. And if it got back to Hugh Pei, who knew what would happen.
"That has nothing to do with me anymore," I said, eating my dessert and suppressing the turmoil in my heart. "But you have to remember what you just said, that you'll introduce me to a lot of handsome guys."
"Alright, I promise!" Ginny Deng said, patting her chest.
After dinner, I had Leo Li take Ginny Deng home first, then I returned to Mapleview Manor. As soon as I got home, a call came from an unknown number. I answered, and it was Yan Zijun's voice. "I finally got through. My old number got restricted again."
Hearing his helpless tone, I wanted to laugh.
"Miss Xu, could I treat you to dinner?" Yan Zijun asked quite directly.
"I just finished dinner," I replied.
"Then I'll treat you to a movie," he said, not giving up.
I rarely went to the movies. In college, I would occasionally go with Ginny Deng and the others for fun. Other than that, I would watch movies in the home theater in the basement.
Even so, I had fantasized for a whole decade about going shopping, watching movies, and having candlelit dinners with Hugh Pei.
Even the most ordinary things become special when you do them with someone you like.
Unfortunately, I had never experienced it.
I hesitated for a moment and agreed. "Alright, which theater?"
After getting the address, I had Leo Li take me to a shopping mall. The theater was on the fifth floor. Yan Zijun was already waiting for me there.
He was dressed elegantly, wearing glasses, and holding two cups of milk tea and a bag of popcorn. When he saw me, he smiled. "Miss Xu, over here!"
I walked over, and he handed me a cup of milk tea. "It's matcha flavor. I don't know if you like it. If not, I can go buy another one."
I shook my head. "No need, I like matcha."
Yan Zijun chose a romantic comedy. I had no objection. When the movie started, we found our seats, and he whispered, "Drink the milk tea while it's hot. It'll warm your stomach."
"Okay," I said, taking a sip.
The movie was actually quite good, with plenty of funny moments. I thought I would fall asleep, but I ended up laughing so hard that tears streamed down my face.
Because my phone was on silent, I only saw Hugh Pei's missed call after leaving the theater.
I called back, but the line was busy. I didn't bother trying again and followed Yan Zijun out of the mall. He said he wanted to take me for a late-night snack.
"I know a barbecue place with great food and soju. Can you drink a little?" Yan Zijun asked as we walked.
"I can, but not too much," I replied. It would be embarrassing to get drunk and make a scene again.
The wind howled outside the mall, but it was still bustling with people. The barbecue place Yan Zijun mentioned was just through an alley. We braved the cold wind, with him trying to make conversation and me chiming in here and there.
He was actually a very good conversationalist, always able to find topics that interested me, and he was a perfect gentleman.
At the barbecue place, we ate and drank, having a great time. Yan Zijun was different from Julian Qi; he was more mature, and we seemed to be on the same page about some topics.
I didn't like being indebted to people, so I excused myself to go to the restroom and went to the counter to pay.
When Yan Zijun noticed, he rushed over, took out his phone, and said, "I'll get it!"
I happened to glance at his phone screen, and my brow furrowed unconsciously.
"Alright, I'll take you home," Yan Zijun said after paying. His car was parked nearby.
"No, that's alright. A friend of mine is also eating nearby. I contacted him, and he's coming to pick me up," I declined.
"It's fine. No need to bother anyone else. It's the same if I take you," Yan Zijun said, looking at me sincerely. "Miss Xu, do you believe in love at first sight?"
I gave a faint smile. "I do. But I believe more in the treachery of the human heart."
When Yan Zijun paid just now, he opened WeChat. If I saw correctly, his most recent contact was named He Kang.
There are many people with the same name in the world, but I didn't believe the "He Kang" on Yan Zijun's phone was someone else.
I remembered what Ella Li had said. He Kang blamed me for their breakup and told me to watch out for his revenge.
I had been careless. I thought that if He Kang wanted revenge, he would come at me directly with a knife. I never expected him to find an accomplice to get close to me. What his intentions were, I had no idea.