Divorce Application - Chapter 12
Chapter 12: Missing Her
The host was clearly moved by the answer and continued to press, “What is Ms. Liu’s definition of happiness?”
“Everyone’s definition of happiness is different,” Liu Sinan didn’t dwell on the question. She averted her gaze and lowered her head to look at her ring finger. There used to be a ring there, engraved with a design personally created by Li Jinping, symbolizing their lifelong promise to each other. Now, there was only a faint white mark left. “Perhaps it’s getting rich overnight, perhaps it’s achieving great success, or perhaps it’s being safe and healthy with a happy family reunion.”
Liu Sinan notably didn’t say, “spending a lifetime with a loved one.”
“But happiness is a state and a kind of power,” Liu Sinan suddenly smiled. Her already stunning features bloomed with incredible charm. She said, word by word, “Everyone, please be happy.”
The interview completely ended there. When Liu Sinan came out, Qiqi was on the phone with Lan Qi.
His cheeks were puffed out in anger, like a pufferfish. “That was the last question the production team asked. They didn’t give us any notice at all!”
“What do you mean Ms. Liu shouldn’t have answered? The audience was watching, and a lot of people were recording.”
“Exactly! They were recording, and no one from the production team stopped them. They’re just bullying Ms. Liu…”
Liu Sinan poked Qiqi’s cheek with her index finger, instantly deflating him.
Qiqi turned his head. Liu Sinan took his phone, and as she walked out, she said to Lan Qi, “Can you check if there’s an issue with my answer? I think it should be fine.”
Lan Qi’s attitude towards Liu Sinan was much more respectful now, but she still suppressed her impatience and said with frustration, “We didn’t have to answer that question at all. When she asked it, she specifically brought up your marital status. No matter what you answered, they could twist it to be ‘Liu Sinan’s first response to the truth about her divorce!'”
“I’m sorry,” Liu Sinan said, her eyes downcast, not explaining her actions.
She also didn’t know why she had answered that question.
Maybe it was because she had just met Li Jinping, or maybe it was because she had felt the empty space on her ring finger.
Maybe it was because the question was a direct hit to her heart.
Maybe it was because she had just had a realization that she couldn’t help but share.
She hoped that Li Jinping would be happy.
Li Jinping had worn her wedding ring since they got married. She hadn’t taken it off for seven years, not even for a day, until the day they divorced.
Sometimes, when Liu Sinan recalled the little moments she spent with Li Jinping, she could always remember Li Jinping’s expression in those scenes.
Li Jinping must have been happy at that time.
If Liu Sinan could no longer make Li Jinping happy, she was willing to always wish for her happiness.
Liu Sinan sniffled and took out her phone, sending a message to Li Jinping on WeChat.
“My lady, thank you for these seven years.”
“I hope you can be happy forever.”
The two sentences lay quietly in the WeChat chat box. No one replied, and Liu Sinan didn’t send anything else.
After staying in the hospital for two days, Liu Sinan finally got the doctor’s permission to go home and rest.
She didn’t actually own many properties. Especially after marrying Li Jinping, she had always been living in the hillside villa.
This large apartment was bought by Li Jinping because it was close to the airport. For a period of time, Liu Sinan was constantly flying for shoots, and Li Jinping felt bad for her.
But Liu Sinan hadn’t lived there for more than a few days. Whenever she had a little time, she would take a car back to the villa. That was the only place she considered home. Living anywhere else was no different from staying in a hotel.
That night, Liu Sinan received a call. Her childhood friend was rushing to H City to be with her.
“I saw the news. You’re so unthoughtful,” her friend teased her over the phone. “I just submitted my Ph.D. thesis, so it’s the perfect time to relax and come see you in H City.”
Her friend’s name was Wu Haoxue, which literally means “I love to learn.” True to her name, her grades had always been at the top.
Wu Haoxue came from a family of scholars. Her whole family were Ph.D. holders and academicians. She had lived next door to Liu Sinan since they were little. The two villas even had a small door opened between them so the two kids could run back and forth playing.
Liu Sinan’s parents greatly respected scholars. They would feel a little embarrassed whenever they saw Wu Haoxue’s parents, always thinking their daughter was a bad influence on “someone else’s child.”
But Wu Haoxue’s parents were very open-minded. They would smile and say, “Sinan is a lively and good kid. We all like her very much. Haoxue is too quiet and needs to go out and play more.”
When they were young, Liu Sinan was outgoing, cheerful, and lively. Wu Haoxue was shy and timid and would always hide behind others. Now, it was as if they had switched places. Liu Sinan didn’t say a word when she went abroad and was even more silent after she came back. She would only explain a few things if she was pressed hard.
Liu Sinan said, “Are you sure it’s not too much trouble?”
Wu Haoxue yelled over the phone, “Why do you care if it’s trouble for me! I’m about to board the plane. It’s an hour and a half flight, so hurry and wait for me at the airport. I’ll tell you now, I’m not eating your model bird food. I want to eat Australian beef short ribs!”
“I don’t eat bird food,” Liu Sinan sighed. She hadn’t even changed her clothes after coming in and was already grabbing her keys to go out again. “Which airport are you at? I’ll head over now.”
Wu Haoxue was dressed in three layers from top to bottom, bundled up like a white ball. When she came out of the airport, her face was red from the heat.
“H City is so cold!” Wu Haoxue didn’t have any luggage, which showed that she had suddenly decided to come.
Liu Sinan was only wearing a thin suit jacket. She silently turned on the car’s air conditioning and adjusted the temperature higher.
“Why the sudden visit?” Liu Sinan unscrewed the lid of a thermos and handed it to her.
Wu Haoxue put on her seatbelt and took a while to settle down. She stared at the thermos in her hand and said with extreme distaste, “You’re actually drinking ginseng tea in a thermos.”
Then she said, “What did you just say?”
Liu Sinan repeated herself. Wu Haoxue shook her head carelessly. “I just finished my self-seclusion. As soon as I opened my phone, wow, your news was everywhere. I didn’t even go home. I bought the most recent ticket and didn’t waste a single moment.”
Wu Haoxue raised an eyebrow. “Hurry and praise me. I’m a good friend, right?”
Liu Sinan was silent for a moment. Instead of taking her bait, she turned the steering wheel and subtly jabbed at her. “It’s already been many days.”
“You know I don’t take my phone when I’m in seclusion!” Wu Haoxue raised her voice and yelled, looking like she was about to start a fight. “Besides, it’s only been a few days. I don’t believe you’ve moved on. That wound of yours must still be fresh. It’s waiting for me to comfort it.”
Wu Haoxue’s noise was giving Liu Sinan a headache. “Alright… yes, you’re right.”
In the end, Wu Haoxue didn’t get to eat her Australian beef short ribs. She had been in the South for too long, and the temperature difference of over ten degrees made her so cold that all she wanted to do was find a place to rest.
Liu Sinan took her to her large apartment. Wu Haoxue pulled a bottle of red wine out of her small backpack and set it on the table with a “pop.”
“Are you still going to drink?” Liu Sinan looked at her with concern. “I think you have a cold.”
Wu Haoxue sneezed loudly and shook her head. “No, no, no. This is a side effect of coming out of seclusion. Don’t worry about me. A few days of eating, drinking, and having fun, and I’ll be fine!”
Wu Haoxue insisted on getting Liu Sinan drunk, based on the principle of drowning your sorrows.
“Let me tell you, these few years are all you have. Li Jinping is great, she’s rich and beautiful, and she treated you well, but when fate runs out, it runs out. We can’t force it, right?” Wu Haoxue clinked her glass against Liu Sinan’s.
The two of them sat on the floor with their legs crossed, leaning against the couch. Wu Haoxue swirled the red wine in her glass and drank half of it in a single gulp. “If you can let go, let go quickly and look forward.”
Liu Sinan silently took a small sip, her eyes unfocused. “What if I can’t let go?”
Wu Haoxue froze for a moment, then turned her head and said in disbelief, “You can’t let go?”
“I don’t know,” Liu Sinan’s eyebrows were furrowed, and her eyes were filled with sadness. “I just… can’t control myself… I miss her very much.”