Mr.CEO, Please Sign the Divorce Agreement
Chapter 40 From the Beginning to Now

Chapter 40: Chapter 40 From the Beginning to Now

Fu Shinian did not make a sound, as if he had not heard their questions at all.

Qiao Yu couldn’t help but speak up:

"Are you having another conflict with Su Mu? You didn’t force her again, did you?"

Ji Nanfeng showed interest:

"What do you mean? Forcing himself on her?"

Qiao Yu ignored him, although the three of them had grown up together and shared everything, this matter concerned Su Mu’s privacy. Fu Shinian had confided in him only because Qiao Yu was a doctor; otherwise, he wouldn’t have spoken of it.

As for Ji Nanfeng, it was up to Fu Shinian to tell him if he wished.

Fu Shinian finally reacted, leaning forward from the back of his chair to pour himself a drink, and he chuckled:

"There has never been a time when we didn’t have conflicts."

From the beginning, up until now.

"Regarding this, Nanfeng and I have known for a long time, you never seemed too bothered by it before, what’s the matter today?" Qiao Yu teased as he looked at him, "If you ask me, living like you do, you might as well get a divorce. You’re someone who can let go easily, so why bother so much for a woman you married just for a business deal?"

Although Qiao Yu’s words were spot-on, Fu Shinian felt quite uncomfortable upon hearing them and couldn’t help but frown at Qiao Yu:

"Haven’t you always been on good terms with her?"

"So what? Aren’t I even closer to you? No matter who you marry, I’ll still call her sister-in-law, won’t I?"

Fu Shinian fell silent again, Ji Nanfeng watched the two of them cluelessly, unable to join the conversation, so he just sulkily drank his wine. Seeing that both of them had stopped talking, he finally spoke up to find a presence for himself:

"Shinian, what exactly is going on between you and Qin Nianwan?"

He was still confused about Su Mu, and now hearing Qin Nianwan’s name only added to Fu Shinian’s already troubled heart:

"Why bring her up out of the blue?"

"Can’t I?" Ji Nanfeng wondered: "You’re the one who established a company for her and even personally supported it publicly, weren’t you just telling everyone that Qin Nianwan’s backing was none other than you, Fu Shinian? I thought you two were almost going public, but now her name can’t even be mentioned?"

Qiao Yu looked at Ji Nanfeng:

"You know exactly what’s between Shinian and Qin Nianwan, stop meddling needlessly."

"The misdeeds of those days, we had just discovered something was off and had already completely cut off all ties with Qin Nianwan, and now you’re blatantly keeping Qin Nianwan close at hand, clearly setting a trap for her, do you think she will appear again?"

"She will." Mentioning the past events, Fu Shinian regained his usual rational demeanor and lit a cigarette for himself: "Whatever she wanted to achieve through Qin Nianwan before, she failed to do so, so she is bound to try again."

"Even if what you say is correct, I still think the chances of her choosing Qin Nianwan again are very small."

Fu Shinian took a puff of smoke and responded lightly:

"But Qin Nianwan knows some of her affairs, and now that Qin Nianwan is close to me, if we become closer, don’t you think that person would worry that Qin Nianwan might eventually tell me everything?"

Qiao Yu and Ji Nanfeng exchanged a look: "Let’s hope so."

The three sat quietly drinking for a while when the bar manager then knocked and came in, standing at the doorway and inquiring respectfully:

"Mr. Fu, Miss Qin has come to the bar looking for you."

Fu Shinian slightly furrowed his brows: "Qin Nianwan? What is she doing here?"

Qiao Yu spoke up: "Don’t see her!"

"Yes." The bar manager was about to leave after closing the door when Fu Shinian stopped him: "Let her in."

As if already anticipating this outcome, Qiao Yu showed no sign of surprise and calmly sipped his drink, while Ji Nanfeng fearlessly asked:

"Does that mean Qiao Yu and I are not needed here and can leave?"

Qin Nianwan pushed the door and entered, showing no surprise upon seeing Qiao Yu and Ji Nanfeng, and greeted them with a smile. Then, she walked over and sat next to Fu Shinian, who looked at her with a clear gaze:

"Why are you here?"

"I heard from Shiyue that you quarreled with Su Mu and drove out from the old house in the middle of the night. I was worried and thought you might come to the bar, so I started looking from one bar to another."

"Going from bar to bar?" Ji Nanfeng looked at Qin Nianwan with a smile: "You really care about Shinian, but now that you’re quite famous, aren’t you afraid of being caught by the paparazzi, and them spinning stories about you and Shinian?"

Qin Nianwan smiled slightly:

"I wore a mask, so I shouldn’t be recognized, and even if I am photographed, Shinian will handle it. I’m more worried about Shinian’s safety than those trivial matters."

Qiao Yu leaned against the back of the sofa chair and looked at Qin Nianwan:

"Every time I see you, I get the illusion that you are still the young girl in a white T-shirt and jeans, yet we have already aged."

Fu Shinian also noticed the clothes Qin Nianwan was wearing, not much different from what she wore the day she returned to the country, but he didn’t know if her purpose tonight was the same as the day she returned, reminding him of those once beautiful times.

But Qin Nianwan probably didn’t know that Fu Shinian was no longer a person who was nostalgic.

Hearing Qiao Yu say this, Qin Nianwan smiled slightly:

"Classic pairings are always right, and they’re comfortable to wear."

Qiao Yu just laughed and didn’t say anything more. A few minutes later, he stood up from the sofa:

"Since Nianwan is here, Nanfeng and I will head back first. I have a surgery tomorrow morning and don’t have time to hang around here."

Ji Nanfeng wanted to keep watching the drama unfold and had no intention of leaving, but since Qiao Yu had made it so clear, he couldn’t keep squatting without leaving. Dragging his feet, he got up from the sofa and when he reached the door, he thought of something:

"Don’t drive if you’ve been drinking. When are you leaving? Do you want me to call you a designated driver?"

He intentionally emphasized the words "designated driver." What those words represented, probably only Qin Nianwan in this room didn’t know. Ji Nanfeng saying this was simply a reminder to Fu Shinian to avoid any traps while drunk.

Fu Shinian responded:

"Don’t worry."

Ji Nanfeng didn’t have anything to worry about then and left with Qiao Yu.

For a long time, Fu Shinian did not speak, and Qin Nianwan did not make a sound either. She knew extremely well when a man needed silence and when he needed passion. At this moment, it was obviously the former for Fu Shinian—what she could do was to minimize her presence as much as possible.

"Why aren’t you speaking?" After a long while, Fu Shinian spoke softly.

Qin Nianwan looked up at him and smiled slightly:

"I thought you didn’t like being disturbed at times like this."

"If that’s what you thought, why didn’t you leave with Qiao Yu and the others earlier?"

Qin Nianwan was stunned, Fu Shinian slowly opened his eyes, eyes meeting hers, and she forced a smile, "Should I not have come?"

"You’re already here."

Qin Nianwan stood up from the sofa:

"I took it upon myself, I shouldn’t have panicked and rushed here, not caring about anything else, after receiving a call from Shiyue. I imagined countless possibilities, but I never considered that you might not need me at all."

Fu Shinian watched her, his gaze deep and silent.

Qin Nianwan steadied her breath with a self-deprecating smile:

"I’ve been immersed in the past, still thinking that even if we weren’t lovers, we were at least friends. But I have been back for more than two months now, and you’ve always been cold to me. I originally thought it was because you were still blaming me for leaving without a goodbye, but now I seem to understand that we already belong to the past and can’t go back to how we were before."

"Nianwan," Fu Shinian started softly: "What exactly is your purpose in coming back?"

Qin Nianwan was startled: "I don’t understand what you mean by that."

"Is it for fame, or for money, or, perhaps, to take me back from Su Mu?"

"I never thought of you as being in Su Mu’s possession, so how could I use the word ’take’? There’s no sentimental foundation between you two; the marriage was just for grandma."

In other words, Qin Nianwan had never seen Su Mu as a rival; in her eyes, Su Mu was not even worth considering as a competitor.

Fu Shinian smiled faintly: "You’re not wrong in saying that."

Qin Nianwan stepped closer to Fu Shinian:

"Shinian, can we really not go back to the past? Don’t you ever miss the way we used to be?"

Fu Shinian smiled softly and did not answer her question. Instead, he said:

"You’re alone in Shen City — tomorrow is Mid-Autumn Festival. Come to the old house for the holidays."

Qin Nianwan was startled, then showed overwhelming joy.

——

Su Mu hadn’t slept all night. Fortunately, grandma seemed to have no idea about Fu Shinian’s outing last night; otherwise, she really wouldn’t know how to lie about it.

Today is Mid-Autumn Festival and Fu Shinian should be coming back. It’s just that she didn’t know when, though it would be good if he could make it before grandma got up, but she knew the chances were slim.

Su Mu got up early and went downstairs before Auntie Wang woke up, entering the kitchen to make breakfast. She rarely cooked: firstly, she hadn’t had time before due to her busy job, and secondly, food should be made for someone special. Since Fu Shinian was often not home, it seemed pointless to cook, no matter how delicious it was.

By the time grandma got up, Su Mu had already set the breakfast table and cheerfully sent Auntie Wang to go upstairs and call Shiyue down for breakfast, but Su Mu stopped her: "Auntie Wang, you start eating with grandma. I’ll go call Shiyue."

Shiyue was surprised to see Su Mu at her room door: "What are you doing here? It’s really bad luck to see you first thing in the morning."

"I came to tell you to watch what you say in front of grandma later. She’s not in good health."

Su Shiyue looked at her disdainfully:

"Could you stop pretending to be noble and unworldly here? It makes me sick, and with no one else here, why are you still putting on an act?"