Chapter 314: Chapter 290 Divorce
Mickey was taken aback by these words, and withdrew the hand she used to hail a cab: "Qiqi, are you sure?"
Gu Qili nodded, she was sure.
"When I stepped on that thing, it felt slippery and greasy, not like fruit or anything else we are familiar with, but when I snapped back to my senses and went to look for it, it was gone. Even the steps had been wiped clean," Gu Qili earnestly recalled the scene, "There were so many people going up the stairs at that time, why did it have to be me who stepped on it? Don’t you find that strange?"
"It is quite strange, I thought at the time that you just lost your footing."
Gu Qili couldn’t help shivering: "That person, he was hiding amongst the graduates, right under our eyes; he was waiting for the opportunity to act, so if he missed the first strike, he would certainly try a second or third time."
Mickey too felt a chill run down her spine, and she quickly clenched Gu Qili’s hand: "Qiqi, then let’s not go to the farewell dinner. That person might try something again."
"Only you and Tianyou knew about my pregnancy. The two of you would definitely not talk, and neither would Aunt Li. She couldn’t have either, as she hasn’t even left that little fishing village. So who could it be, who else knows about this?" Gu Qili was at a loss, and Mickey couldn’t figure it out either.
The two of them had no choice but to take a cab back to Perfume Bay.
"However, Qiqi, we were lucky to have Mu Shuoqian today, otherwise it could’ve really been dangerous. You say, he hates the Gu Family, why would he still save you?" As soon as they entered, Mickey threw her backpack on the sofa.
"Instinct, I guess." This was the only explanation Gu Qili could think of; she took a sip of water to calm her nerves, but was still not entirely at ease.
We are in the dark, they are in the light; it’s hard to guard against.
"Xiao Mi, I’m thinking of leaving Aus City for a while," Gu Qili thought for a long time and felt it was the best solution.
"Where can you go if you leave Aus City?" Mickey sat up from the sofa, "Where could you be safe?"
Gu Qili thought of that little fishing village, if it came to it, she would go back there.
"I’ll call Tianyou and have him think of something."
"Yeah, we can only rely on him now," Mickey sighed, then suddenly said, "Qiqi, have you ever considered getting together with Mr. Tang? He’s so good to you; you might as well be with him."
"Don’t joke, he deserves to find someone better."
Tang Tianyou deserves to find someone better and more suitable for him, not someone like her who is pregnant with a child and has such a complicated past.
As for the future, she had no definite plans, just wanted to give birth to and raise her child and revive her father’s winery. As for love, she thought her heart had withered; she had once given all her passion and love without a way back. To rekindle that life seemed a dim hope.
"I’ve made it clear to Tianyou, we can only be friends."
"That’s such a pity, I think he’s a decent guy, handsome and rich, and most importantly, he’s super nice to you," Mickey shook her head in disappointment.
As soon as Tang Tianyou heard about the incident, he immediately came over. After carefully inquiring about the situation, he also felt the same as Gu Qili, that the incident was orchestrated by someone.
"Could it be that someone who recognized you saw you when you were at the hospital for a check-up?" After much thought, Tang Tianyou could only come up with this possibility.
Speaking of running into acquaintances at the hospital, Gu Qili could only think of Hu Jiaojiao, but she did not know what she was there for. Could it be that after Hu Jiaojiao left, she went back to investigate?
She had already tried to thaw her previous enmity with Hu Jiaojiao; how could she still do such a thing.
Gu Qili picked up her phone and dialed Hu Jiaojiao’s number. Although she had been blocked by Jiaojiao, those eleven digits were already etched into her memory.
The phone rang four or five times before being answered. Hu Jiaojiao’s voice sounded very weak: "Qiqi?"
For some reason, before making the call, Gu Qili, still furious and ready to question, found the words she wanted to blurt out swallowed back down after hearing that "Qiqi".
In the past, even when they were at odds, she would feigningly call her "Qiqi," but today was different. Suddenly, she thought back to their youthful days.
They rode their bikes on the road home from school, and she would always occasionally call out, "Qiqi, watch out for the car," "Qiqi, don’t eat while riding your bike, it’s dangerous."
Whether those concerns were to please or heartfelt, human nature, at its core, is good.
"Qiqi, why aren’t you speaking?"
Gu Qili exhaled slowly: "Nothing, where are you?"
There was silence on the other side for a moment, followed by the clear sound of Hu Jiaojiao’s sobbing: "Qiqi, I’ve lost my baby. I rolled down the stairs, and the baby is gone."
When she heard such news, she was numb for a while and suddenly felt heartache, probably because they were both mothers, a feeling called empathy.
Hu Jiaojiao had fallen down the stairs, her child was gone, and today she too almost fell down the stairs, but luckily managed to escape unscathed.
"What happened, how did you suddenly lose it?"
Hu Jiaojiao wiped away a tear, though this whole affair was her own plot, and she shouldn’t have felt any injustice or sadness, but since the miscarriage, she hadn’t shed a single tear. Yet, hearing Gu Qili’s voice, she felt especially distressed, and the tears that fell were genuine.
"I told you before, this child was never meant to be saved, that’s why I used some tricks to frame Qi Meihui," Hu Jiaojiao didn’t avoid telling her, naturally revealing the truth.
Gu Qili didn’t know what to say at the moment; such an act was indeed something Hu Jiaojiao was capable of.
She would not forgive Hu Jiaojiao, but she would also not continue the fight with her. Her child was gone; she grieved for the child. As for herself, Gu Qili could only say it was self-inflicted.
"Take good care of yourself, I’m hanging up now."
After hanging up the phone, Mickey and Tang Tianyou were both staring at her.
She shook her head: "It wasn’t Hu Jiaojiao."
She had miscarried after falling down the stairs; there was no way she would have the time to scheme against her.
If it wasn’t Hu Jiaojiao, then who could it be?
"Let’s not think about this for now. Get ready, we’ll leave for City A tomorrow evening instead of going to the seaside. It’s too remote there. It’s fine for a change of pace, but the medical facilities are not up to standard."
"Then where are we going?"
"You don’t need to worry about that, I will take care of it."
"Tomorrow evening is good; I happen to have some things to take care of."
After Mickey and Tang Tianyou left, Gu Qili picked up her phone and sent a message, drank a glass of milk, and then went to bed.
The next day, she found a white dress in the wardrobe, tied her hair up casually, and stuffed her identity card and household register into her bag. Then she went downstairs and took a taxi.
When she arrived at the Civil Affairs Bureau, a Range Rover Evoque was parked there, seemingly having waited for quite a while.
She smiled bitterly in her heart; how impatient they must be.
As soon as she got out of the car, the door of the Range Rover opened, and Mu Shuoqian, dressed somewhat casually, appeared in her field of vision.
He still looked elegant and handsome, with a perpetual detachment in his eyes. She dared not recall how this man once doted on her to the bone.
But all that affection and indulgence were a nightmare; she didn’t wish to think about it for a second.
Gu Qili took a deep breath and stepped onto the stairs. Behind her, Mu Shuoqian followed a few steps away; she could feel his chilly and stern presence following her like the wind.
Without any words or eye contact, they sat in front of a window and handed over all their documents.
The clerk looked up at them, and asked in a routine manner, "Divorce?"
Seeing that Mu Shuoqian’s face was expressionless, with no intention of answering, Gu Qili had no choice but to speak: "Yes."
"Fill in the forms," the clerk pushed two forms towards them.
Gu Qili took her form and began to fill it out.
While writing her name, she remembered how she had filled out his form for their marriage registration, copying from his identity card.
Mu Shuoqian stared at the paper in front of him for a while, his hand by his side clenched into a fist. He had long anticipated this day, but when it actually arrived, he found it nearly impossible to breathe from the grief.
Gu Qili had filled out half of her form when Mu Shuoqian finally picked up the pen and began to write.
The procedures were quickly completed, and as the sound of the printing emerged, two little booklets were pushed in front of them. From now on, they had no legal ties whatsoever.
Gu Qili picked up the little red book, as if burnt by the touch; her many firsts exchanged in the end for a few pages of paper.
A wry smile tugged at her lips; she put the divorce certificate into her bag and left without any hesitation or longing.
As she stepped out of the Civil Affairs Bureau, a tear slid down from the corner of her eye, its salty taste flowing into her mouth. From then on, all her emotions had to be swallowed alone.
"Sir, is there anything else you need help with?" the clerk curiously looked at the handsome man in front of him who stood silently like a statue.
Mu Shuoqian stared at the booklet in his hand; after hearing the clerk’s words, he tucked the booklet into his pocket and walked out.
As soon as he stepped out of the Civil Affairs Bureau, he saw Gu Qili waiting for a car by the roadside. He glanced at his Range Rover parked on the side of the road, conflicted about whether to offer her a ride. A Range Rover Sport drove up from not too far away and parked precisely in front of Gu Qili.
Tang Tianyou leaned over and opened the passenger door. Gu Qili stooped to get in, and after boarding. He fastened her seatbelt for her and seemed to say something, gently ruffling her hair, and she also smiled warmly at him, but the smile at the corner of her mouth pierced his heart like a needle.
He had already given her freedom; her path from now on had nothing to do with him. It was time to learn to let go, even if releasing her meant a lifetime of solitude for him.
~
After leaving Aus City, Gu Qili flew to City A. She could never have imagined that Tang Tianyou’s arrangement would be here, which filled her with emotion yet also made her somewhat uneasy.