Chapter 112: Quarrel

I put the phone back into my pocket and then asked Mi Cai, who was still examining the snowman, “Are you free for lunch today?”

“Do you need something?”

“A friend invited us for a meal. If you’re free, come along.”

“I don’t want to go.” To my surprise, Mi Cai refused.

I didn’t give up easily, “Come on, it’s the weekend anyway. Just consider it a way to relax.”

“For me, this kind of gathering isn’t relaxing. I don’t know them well.”

I quickly replied, “But you know Fang Yuan and Yan Yan. They aren’t strangers anymore, right?”

Mi Cai realized, “Then your ex-girlfriend will definitely be there. Are you using me as your shield again?”

I was honest, “Exactly. Whenever I’m alone with her, I feel really uncomfortable.”

“Because you haven’t gotten over her yet. I can understand how you feel, but I’m not your girlfriend. It’s awkward for me to be put in this position repeatedly,” Mi Cai gave me a serious reason for her refusal this time.

“You don’t have to go, but I want to clarify—I don’t love her anymore. The reason I feel uncomfortable… ” Suddenly, I couldn’t continue because I couldn’t find a valid reason for my discomfort.

Mi Cai looked at me and asked, “Hmm? Why do you still feel uncomfortable?”

I couldn’t answer for a while and finally said, “Not everything in this world can be clearly explained. Anyway, I don’t love her anymore… I’d rather consider her a friend now.”

“If you really can treat her as a friend, why do you still feel uncomfortable? Isn’t that contradictory?”

I impatiently waved my hand and said, “I don’t want to discuss this topic with you anymore!”

Mi Cai shrugged, showing an indifferent attitude.

I checked the time. It was almost noon, so I said to Mi Cai, “Well then, at least you can give me a ride to the hotel, right? It’s on your way. I can save on a taxi fare.”

“That’s no problem.”

…

I rode with Mi Cai toward the hotel where we had agreed to meet. We didn’t speak at all during the ride. As we approached the destination, Mi Cai asked me, “Have you finished the renovation plan for the bar yet?”

“I’ll finish it tomorrow and then discuss it with the decoration company.”

“Oh.”

I asked Mi Cai, “Will you come to the bar tonight?”

“Not sure. It depends on my mood.” Mi Cai gave me an ambiguous answer.

I sincerely told her, “If you have time, come and have fun. It’s also a way for you to relax.”

Mi Cai still didn’t give me a definite answer, maintaining her indifferent expression while driving.

Bored and mischievous, I blurted out, “You must be having your period these days, right? You kicked me yesterday and now you’re ignoring me. Your mood is really unstable!”

“Zhao Yang, will you die if you don’t do silly things or talk about silly topics?” Finally, Mi Cai was no longer calm. She glared at me with her beautiful eyes full of disgust.

“See? Your behavior just proves my guess is right. You’re just an unpredictable powder keg!”

Mi Cai slowed down the car and then pulled over to the side of the road and said to me, “Get out.”

“We still have two stops to go… I’m not getting out!”

“But I don’t want to listen to your nonsense anymore… You’re really annoying!”

I immediately got into an argumentative mood and said unhappily, “Who’s annoying? I just guessed whether you were having your period or not! If you have the guts, just don’t have it this month!”

Mi Cai glared at me with her lips tightly pressed, but she couldn’t do anything about me. After a while, she said, “You’re so rude.”

“People with manners are just well-dressed beasts. If you look beyond appearances into the essence, you’ll find that I’m actually a very simple person. Of course, when I say simple, I’m referring to my thoughts. My actions and words are not that refined!”

Mi Cai was amused but bit her lip trying not to laugh. Finally, she said, “We still have two stops to go. Can you promise me not to talk anymore? Otherwise, we can just stay here. I have time to waste with you today, and you won’t be able to go to lunch with your friends.”

Mi Cai gave me a way out, and I was too lazy to argue with her anymore. I immediately promised, “For the remaining two stops, I won’t talk.”

Mi Cai nodded and was about to start the car again when I hurriedly stopped her, saying, “Wait, let me ask one last question… How exactly did we start arguing just now?”

“Forgot.” Mi Cai only answered with two words, then started the car and drove onto the road again.

So for those two stops, I kept thinking about why we had argued. Finally, as we were about to arrive at the hotel, I remembered and muttered to myself, “It was because of whether she was having her period or not. Yes, it was exactly that issue… How ridiculous, she actually argued with me over this. Couldn’t she just tell me directly? Was it that hard to say?”

…

The two stops passed quickly. Before I got out of the car, two Audi A4s successively drove into the hotel courtyard. One of them belonged to Chen Jingming. I didn’t expect Xiang Chen to invite Chen Jingming as well. Judging from the situation now, not bringing Mi Cai to the gathering turned out to be a wise decision.

If Chen Jingming found out about my relationship with Mi Cai, he would definitely link me to the previous leak of the internal conflict at Zhuo Mei. Although I had already left Baoli, it was still better to avoid such unnecessary complications.

I unbuckled my seatbelt and said to Mi Cai, “I’m off now. Drive safely.”

Regarding my concern, Mi Cai impatiently replied, “Less talking, get out quickly.”

“Why are you always in a bad mood with me today? Honestly tell me, are you having your period? If you are, I can be considerate and tolerate you once. If not, I will definitely have more to chat with you!”

“You’re not getting out, right? Then I’ll keep driving, onto the Shanghai-Nanjing expressway.”

Remembering the night she had left me near the Shanghai-Nanjing expressway, I immediately lost my temper and quickly said, “Calm down, calm down… I’m getting out now.”

Mi Cai didn’t respond but leaned over and opened the car door for me. I got out feeling particularly awkward, while Mi Cai, clearly fed up, started the car and soon disappeared from my sight with the flow of traffic.

I turned and walked into the hotel, my mood suddenly shifting like a roller coaster. At this moment, although my body was standing in the hotel courtyard, subconsciously I somewhat disliked the upcoming gathering, yet I couldn’t escape it. Thus, I once again felt that helpless sense of having to face things head-on.

Contrasted by this helplessness, I realized how precious the moments of bantering with Mi Cai had been.

As I stood there lost in thought, Chen Jingming and Fang Yuan had already parked their cars. Chen Jingming spotted me first, called out to me, and started walking toward me.

At this moment, facing Chen Jingming, I still felt a sense of guilt. I forced a smile and walked toward him.