Shen Qingqing wasn't feeling awkward at first.
But as soon as Jiang Zhixun said that, her small, palm-sized face immediately flushed red.
Her ears turned as red as if they were about to drip blood.
The blush spread all the way to her neck, hidden beneath her scarf.
Shen Qingqing quickly lowered her head, using the scarf as cover to quietly exhale.
Trying to suppress her embarrassment.
It wasn't until Jiang Zhixun saw her deeply flushed ears that he realized what he had said.
A trace of regret flickered through his gaze.
Mixed with a hint of restless annoyance.
The hand in his pocket clenched and loosened repeatedly, but in the end, he didn't say anything and walked off to get his meal tray filled.
Their comrades were equally ill at ease.
All of them regretting coming to watch Jiang Zhixun's drama—if they had known earlier, they wouldn't have shown up.
At this moment, it felt just as awkward to stay as it did to leave.
Leaving would only make the woman even more embarrassed.
Staying… somehow felt even worse!
Lin Zhidong nudged them forward.
Laughing like he didn't have a care in the world, "Mister Shen, we'll go grab our food first—come back to chat with you later."
Before Shen Qingqing could respond, he made his escape, slipping away in pursuit of Jiang Zhixun.
Such a disloyal move.
Just about to make the woman cry, yet he bolts so quickly!
Once everyone had left, and without outsiders present, Shen Qingqing yanked her scarf aside, gasping for air in big gulps.
Only then did the simmering mortification dissipate.
She had expected Jiang Zhixun to treat her with cold indifference, but never in her wildest dreams did she imagine he'd make her lose face right in front of others.
Shen Qingqing thought she could remain unaffected.
But the truth was, her eyes felt swollen, her nose was stinging, and she was so aggrieved she wanted to cry.
Taking several deep, heavy breaths.
Shen Qingqing told herself, once she got that divorce, everything would be fine.
After that, she'd never see Jiang Zhixun again!
Seeing Shen Qingqing with her head down, pressing the corners of her eyes with her fingers, Lin Zhidong was busy fetching his food when he bumped Jiang Zhixun's shoulder.
"Do you think your 'sister' might be crying over there?"
Jiang Zhixun glanced over indifferently.
Giving an ambiguous answer, "She's not my sister."
Lin Zhidong's gaze was suddenly full of implications.
Sometimes she's a sister, other times she's not—what on earth was Jiang Zhixun playing at?
"Even if she's not your sister, you shouldn't bully her—if you ever meet someone like my wife, and spoke to her like that, you'd be kneeling on a washboard all night long."
Jiang Zhixun's gaze turned icy, "Talking nonsense again. Would food ever shut your mouth?"
Lin Zhidong didn't back down; instead, he raised the issue Jiang Zhixun had been avoiding all along.
"Did you and the lady over there ever date?"
Jiang Zhixun had been stationed in the Northwest for three years now.
He was good-looking and also an expert fighter pilot.
Women liked him so much that, if lined up holding hands, they could stretch from the Northwest to Beijing.
Mister Shen liking him wasn't abnormal either.
Over the years, they'd all seen firsthand how Jiang Zhixun rejected one woman after another.
Lin Zhidong's gut told him Jiang Zhixun's attitude toward this Shen Qingqing was oddly different.
It felt as if he deliberately raised his defenses, hurting her with spikes.
Not like deep hatred—it seemed more like some tangled mix of love and resentment.
Facing Lin Zhidong's inquisitive gaze, Jiang Zhixun's lips moved faintly, "You've got a vivid imagination."
He and Shen Qingqing had a marriage certificate, but their marriage was arranged, not born of romance.
Jiang Zhixun didn't know why Shen Qingqing had come all the way out here.
But recalling the phone call he'd received not long ago, he already had his suspicions.
His mother wanted him and Shen Qingqing to have a child.
Jiang Zhixun's face grew darker with frustration.
Every decision he'd made in his life adhered to his elders' arrangements.
The sole act of rebellion was applying for a transfer to the Northwest.
Three years later, he still hadn't figured out how to handle his marriage with Shen Qingqing.
He had thought they could just live separate lives in different places, neither interfering with the other, for the rest of their days.
But Shen Qingqing had chased after him.
The calm had been shattered, and the rebellious streak buried deep within him began creeping back out unnoticed.
Jiang Zhixun figured he had to think of a way to send Shen Qingqing back to Beijing.
Living their own lives apart was the best outcome for them.
"Wait a second."
Lin Zhidong smacked his forehead, "If she weren't your family, how did she even get in here?"
Jiang Zhixun shot him a frosty look.
And with that one glance, Lin Zhidong was sure of the truth, "So Shen Qingqing really is your family, huh?"
If not, why didn't he refute it?
Sister...
"A 'sister' like that is nothing more than a sentimental bond not tied by blood," Lin Zhidong muttered out speculatively.
Looking Shen Qingqing's way briefly again, he couldn't resist asking, "My carefree baby sister never caught your eye, yet you treat someone as beautiful and gentle as Shen Qingqing with indifference—Old Jiang, is something wrong with you?"
Jiang Zhixun shot him a cold glare, and Lin Zhidong swiftly redirected his focus away from Shen Qingqing.
Patting Jiang Zhixun's shoulder, he added, "Since she's really your family, do take better care of her. Shen Qingqing is a young woman who came all the way from Beijing—think about how much hardship she's endured."
Jiang Zhixun's mood darkened further.
"She brought that upon herself; I never asked her to come."
Lin Zhidong rolled his eyes slightly, shaking his head all the same.
"Things aren't like they used to be anymore—a woman who doesn't want to live with you might ask for a divorce. My wife brings up divorce several times a year; I don't even dare upset her. Look at how long you've been away from home, and still Shen Qingqing hasn't complained."
"But you—show her a dark face the moment you meet, no wonder she cried."
As someone who'd been through married life, Lin Zhidong could tell very clearly that the woman had genuinely felt wronged.
His tone became earnest, "We won't get involved in the matter between you and Shen Qingqing—whatever's going on, just sit down and talk it through. Women are thin-skinned, so temper yourself a little."
Having said that, he grabbed his food box and left.
Their comrades all followed too, avoiding what was now Shen Qingqing's table.
The earlier commotion hadn't escaped the attention of a large crowd.
Jiang Zhixun had always been a figure in the spotlight, and plenty of people kept an eye on him.
Now Shen Qingqing became the focus of the dining hall as well.
Under the gaze of so many, Shen Qingqing felt unbearably awkward, unable to eat her meal.
Originally intending to discuss divorce here, she now couldn't bring it up.
Rolling up her untouched steamed bun, she packed it away in her lunchbox before preparing to leave for the guest house.
Jiang Zhixun took the seat across from her.
His cold, handsome face, while calm on the surface, still exuded an even thicker sense of distance.
"Eat your food. When you're done, I'll take you to the train station."
After saying this, he focused on eating his own food.
Years of habit had honed his speed in eating.
And yet, it didn't come off as crude.
On the contrary, his exceptional looks and air of refinement made even his practicality while eating seem appealing.
During her younger, more naive years, Shen Qingqing had secretly paid attention to how Jiang Zhixun ate.
But with her gaze avoiding him now, she unconsciously fidgeted with the aluminum lid of her lunchbox.
"I have something important to discuss with you. Can you come back to the guesthouse with me after you finish?"
For them to get a divorce certificate, Jiang Zhixun would need to return with her to Beijing.
His work was unique; he couldn't leave whenever he pleased.
If he didn't go back, she'd stay here and delay him.
This time, she was determined to divorce him!