Chapter 87: Special Extra: Yu Qing

The auntie had especially prepared some snacks for Yu Qing. Wen Yang smiled sweetly and handed them to her. Yu Qing smiled and thanked her, took the snacks, grabbed her car keys, and headed downstairs.

“No need to walk me out,” Yu Qing said to Wen Yang.

Wen Yang smiled and nodded. Fu Xingzhou was on the phone in the living room. The house was beautifully decorated, Wen Yang was wearing loungewear, and the warm lights made the whole place feel cozy and inviting.

Yu Qing thought that Wen Yang had become even gentler — something she hadn’t seen in all her years with Cheng Yanyu.

The car hadn’t been moved to the garage the night before; it was still parked in a spot just outside the neighborhood. Yu Qing got in, started it, and pulled out — just in time to run into Jiang Yue. He had just finished delivering some documents. Their cars met at the bend in the road.

Yu Qing rolled down her window and smiled at him: “Secretary Jiang, what a coincidence.”

Jiang Yue smiled and nodded: “Miss Yu, indeed, what a coincidence. Just came from President Fu’s place?”

“Yup. You too, huh?”

“That’s right.” Jiang Yue smiled.

Yu Qing blinked. Her features were striking, and with today’s carefully applied makeup, she looked stunning — like a walking scene out of a painting. The cars ahead started moving again, and she smiled while stepping on the gas.

Jiang Yue let her go first. The red BMW drove up to the gate, which quickly opened. Before driving out, Yu Qing reached a slender hand out of the window and waved at him. Jiang Yue saw and smiled again.

Driving onto the main road, Yu Qing’s BMW went forward, while Jiang Yue made a U-turn — they each went their separate ways.

Back at the Yage residential complex, Yu Qing passed by a real estate agency and glanced at the latest prices for listings there — they hadn’t gone down much. She drove into the garage.

She was thinking of buying a two-bedroom apartment, but didn’t want to take out a mortgage — she preferred to pay in full. So she had to wait a bit longer.

After entering her apartment, she placed the snacks on the kitchen island. The boxes prepared by Wen Yang’s housekeeper were also elegantly packaged.

Yu Qing took off her blazer and went to shower. When she came out, the living room felt a bit too quiet.

She turned on the TV and played a variety show — it helped ease the sense of emptiness a bit.

She sat on the sofa, opened her laptop to check emails, but soon found the TV too noisy. So she turned it off.

With the TV off, the place felt even colder. Yu Qing looked up at the living room — maybe it was just that Wen Yang’s home had felt so cozy in comparison.

She picked up her phone and tapped on Xu Xu’s profile picture.

Out of habit, she typed: “Wanna play a game…”

But then she realized what she was doing.

Her fingers paused, and she slowly deleted the message.

She rested her face on one hand and sighed,

then turned her attention back to the computer screen. She opened the client requests Tao Li had sent earlier. One was for a newlywed home design, the other for a family home upgrade.

Yu Qing began reviewing their needs one by one.

Her phone rang.

She glanced over — it was her mother calling.

Yu Qing snapped back to her senses and quickly picked up the call.

“Hello? Mom, you’re still up?”

“Just finished taking a shower.”

Yu Qing responded, “After your shower, remember to use hand cream. Don’t slack off!”

“I won’t. I’m applying it right now,” said Chen Miaoyun, pulling open a drawer to find the cream and applying it again.

She’d spent years raising geese, so her hands were always dry. She couldn’t apply lotion during the day, only at night. Yu Qing had bought and sent her many good hand creams.

Although Chen Miaoyun wasn’t in the habit of using them, she would when her daughter reminded her. She had already gotten used to that rough, dry feeling.

After applying the hand cream, Chen Miaoyun asked, “Is Yangyang nearing her due date?”

Yu Qing replied, “Mm, probably in a week or so.”

“That’s quite soon,” Chen Miaoyun nodded.

“Yes, Mom.”

“I’ve prepared a longevity lock for the baby. I’ll mail it to you so you can give it to Yangyang.”

“Oh, okay. When did you send it?”

“This afternoon. It should arrive tomorrow or the day after.”

“Got it.”

After a moment of silence, Chen Miaoyun said,

“Yu Qing, Yangyang’s about to become a mother… what about you?”

Yu Qing froze.

She was silent for a few seconds.

Chen Miaoyun gently asked, “Still haven’t met anyone you like?”

Yu Qing gripped her phone tightly. After a few more seconds of silence, she answered, “No, not yet.”

Chen Miaoyun sighed on the other end.

It was a very soft sigh, but Yu Qing heard it clearly. Her heart tightened a little, and she gripped the phone harder.

“Mom, I’m still young. I’m not even thirty yet. People get married later nowadays, especially in Nan City. Most of the people around me are already thirty or over and still single.”

“I know.”

Chen Miaoyun sighed again, then said in a soft voice, “Yu Qing, as long as you don’t feel lonely, Mom respects your choices.”

Yu Qing’s fingers tightened again.

She looked around at the cold, quiet living room. How could she not feel lonely?

She did feel lonely — especially after the on-and-off situation with Xu Xu. At least she had someone to talk to back then.

After a moment of silence, Chen Miaoyun continued, “But Yu Qing, Mom still hopes you can be like Wen Yang — have a family. I know young people marry later nowadays,

but how late is too late?”

Yu Qing listened, but didn’t respond this time.

Chen Miaoyun went on, “If only you were in Nan’an. I could help you look around.”

Yu Qing said, “Mom, if I dated someone from Nan’an, that would be long-distance. Even Wen Yang and Cheng Yanyu were with each other, and he still cheated. Long-distance is even worse.”

Chen Miaoyun paused, then said,“That’s true.”

As for Wen Yang’s current partner, Chen Miaoyun had seen him once at the wedding — he seemed wonderful. But she also knew Wen Yang had gone through pain to meet someone like him.

She didn’t expect perfection. She just hoped Yu Qing could meet someone who loved her sincerely — someone she could love too.

Yu Qing took a sip of water, swallowed, then said, “Mom, don’t worry. Take care of yourself, and don’t skip meals. Don’t be stingy about using the stuff I send you.”

“I know. You too — if there’s anything you want to eat, tell me, and I’ll send it to you.”

“But I don’t know how to cook. I wouldn’t even know how to make what you send.”

Chen Miaoyun replied, “That’s why I hope there’ll be someone to take care of you.”

“Ah, here we go again…” Yu Qing said.

Sensing her daughter’s impatience, Chen Miaoyun quickly changed the subject: “Okay, okay, I won’t say more. Just don’t stay up too late — take care of your health and get some rest.”

“Alrighty.”

After hanging up, Yu Qing leaned back into the sofa.

She knew that once this topic came up, it would be mentioned more and more in the future.

At Wen Yang’s wedding, she caught the bridal bouquet, and her mother’s eyes had lit up with excitement. But now, almost two years had passed, and there still wasn’t even a hint of progress — of course her mother was getting anxious.

Yu Qing stared at the ceiling, feeling a wave of irritation rise.

The next day—

Yu Qing went with Tao Li to measure a new apartment. The newly engaged couple had just arrived. The bride-to-be was sweet and beautiful, her face glowing with happiness.

They had met through a matchmaker, and after dating for just two or three months, they both felt they had met “the one.”

They quickly got engaged.

At the bride’s request, the groom had bought an apartment in Nancheng. They specifically asked for Yu Qing to do the interior design.

Originally, they thought they’d have to wait in line. But they happened to catch Yu Qing right when she had no pending projects and was planning to travel, so she had time to take them on.

The bride was even happier, holding her fiancé’s arm and praising: “Designer Yu, your greenhouse design is so beautiful! I booked it for a bridal photo shoot next month!”

Yu Qing smiled and noted down the room dimensions on her tablet, saying — “Thanks for the compliment. Congratulations!” Yu Qing said with a smile.

The young woman beamed and leaned forward, asking, “Designer Yu, did you review our requirements yet? Can you design it?”

Yu Qing smiled and replied, “Yes, I can. It’s all doable.”

“That’s great!” The bride-to-be was delighted. She shared a joyful look with her husband.

Yu Qing and Tao Li headed toward the living room to continue their work. Tao Li glanced back at the couple — surrounded by a glowing aura of pink hearts — and sighed, “So sweet.”

Yu Qing looked up and glanced at them.

It really was sweet. Blissful.

After finishing the site measurement,

Yu Qing and Tao Li left the neighborhood just as the sun was setting.

The residential complex was close to the COCO Shopping Center,

so the two decided to find a place to eat there.

They walked through the outdoor plaza.

Tao Li suddenly tugged at Yu Qing and whispered, “Yu Qing-jie, look — isn’t that the handsome Lu guy?”

Yu Qing turned her head.

Sure enough, she saw Lu Zhan sitting at an outdoor table, wearing sunglasses.

There were a few others at the table with him.

He was chatting and laughing, looking dazzling and charismatic — his smile radiant, his features sharp and handsome — full of charm.

Tao Li’s eyes lit up: “He’s still so good-looking. His looks are almost too perfect.”

Yu Qing responded with a quiet, “He is.”

Tao Li nudged her: “Want to go say hi? I just remembered — at Wen Yang-jie’s wedding, didn’t you and that handsome Lu guy catch the bouquet together? Isn’t that fate?”

Yu Qing was stunned, and quickly said,

“Don’t talk nonsense.”

She pulled Tao Li away and headed toward the restaurant they were originally planning to go to.

Tao Li leaned close and said, “But I really think it’s fate! What if today’s the day it continues?”

“You should watch fewer dramas,” Yu Qing replied.

“You watch them too,” Tao Li shrugged and followed Yu Qing.

Yu Qing sighed — it was true, she did watch them. So what?

But maybe it was because of what Tao Li said that, once they sat down in the restaurant, Yu Qing instinctively glanced out the window.

From that spot, she could see the outdoor seating area and the group of people there —

Lu Zhan was among them, laughing and leaning back in his chair.

Someone offered him a cigarette, but he didn’t take it.

He was different from Xu Xu.

Xu Xu liked to smoke. Even when he wasn’t smoking, there’d often be a lighter nearby.

Yu Qing stared for a while,

then cursed herself silently — What are you thinking?

She immediately looked away.

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