Divorce Is An Absolute Must! - Chapter 22.1

Chapter 22.1: Bathroom

◎You only wore a shirt?◎

“Who’s wearing it?”

Zhu Qing didn’t want to talk about herself.

“Not a specific person. Just probabilistically, what kind of clothes are the most attractive?”

Qian Cancan’s reply was still focused on specific people.

“To whom?”

Zhu Qing got angry.

“To you, to me, to Qian Chu, to Li Lan, to everyone.”

Qian Cancan called her directly.

“I wish I knew what style Qian Chu liked. You like high-level stuff, your type is a cold, older sister type. Me? I have a loving heart and want to give every lonely girl a home.”

Zhu Qing automatically ignored Qian Cancan’s nonsense and went straight to the point. “What about Li Lan?”

Qian Cancan blurted out, “Who knows? But at her age, she probably likes younger people, like you. Whatever style you are, that’s the style she likes.”

Qian Cancan’s words, though crude, gave Zhu Qing a clue.

She likes someone young, lively, and youthful. Isn’t that a college student?

Zhu Qing got married right after she graduated. At that time, her vibe was exactly that of a college student.

But what do college students wear?

She couldn’t wear a school uniform, could she?

“What, are you going to start dressing up?”

As a true friend, Qian Cancan could basically tell what Zhu Qing was thinking. Zhu Qing didn’t hide anything and told her the truth: “Weren’t we supposed to go shopping the last time we went out? And you ate too much and couldn’t walk after just visiting two stores.”

“No, you couldn’t walk,” Qian Cancan insisted on not taking the blame. “You ate like a rich person, and I was infected and stuffed myself.”

“Anyway, I don’t have any suitable clothes,” Zhu Qing said, annoyed. “My closet is full of middle school hoodies, and I don’t even like looking at them myself.”

“What’s wrong with hoodies? They make you look younger,” Qian Cancan said with a laugh. “And shirts and jeans.”

Zhu Qing was speechless. “That’s too plain.”

“Then you could just not wear pants.”

Zhu Qing felt that Qian Cancan was being a pervert.

Not wear pants, and feel the coolness of the wind?

“No, I mean the ‘pants-less’ style,” Qian Cancan quickly added. “If you have nice legs, show them off. If you have a nice waist, show it off. What you wear isn’t the main point. What’s attractive is the figure and the charisma, and of course, the face.”

Zhu Qing was deep in thought.

Qian Cancan could tell that Zhu Qing was confused and felt a little sad. “It’s a pity. You were a perfectly good flower who was picked right after graduation before you could meet many butterflies. Now you can’t even come up with an outfit.”

Zhu Qing didn’t argue with her and humbly asked for advice. “So how should I change myself?”

The two of them left the house and went straight to a styling studio.

Qian Cancan was a regular customer at this studio. For a while, she had an irrational fear of water and had to have other people wash her hair. She washed it every two days at a cost of 500 per wash. After two months, she became a VIP at the studio and still had 100 washes left.

“Start by trimming her hair,” Qian Cancan instructed. “Don’t cut it too short. She’s used to tying it in a ponytail. Give her a nice ponytail, the kind that looks like a galloping, sunny little brown horse, and then give her a treatment.”

The owner came out to greet them personally, smiling warmly. “Okay! Should we dye it too? Her skin is very fair. She can pull off any color.”

Zhu Qing quickly raised her hand. “No, just the original color. No perm, no dye.”

Qian Cancan was disappointed. “Do as she says.”

The owner’s skills were decent. After the wash, Zhu Qing felt that her hair had regained its luster and was much smoother, looking tidier.

They even gave her a bonus princess twin ponytail hairstyle at the end.

The second stop was for a facial. Zhu Qing declined medical aesthetic procedures like hydro injections and only did a simple hydrating cleanse, but the effect was still very good. Her skin, full of moisture, looked bright and clean.

Finally, they arrived at the ultimate part: choosing clothes.

Zhu Qing stood under the bright lights of the mall, feeling a bit lost. There were a wide variety of shops and styles, but her knowledge of clothing was still stuck in her college days. She had no idea what Li Lan would like her to wear.

Qian Cancan directly pulled her into a brand store with a youthful style. A saleswoman enthusiastically came over. “What kind of clothes are you two looking for?”

Qian Cancan waved her hand. “Pick a few outfits for her that make her look young, show off her figure, and are classy, but without trying too hard to look young.”

The saleswoman sized up Zhu Qing and said with a smile, “This young lady has fair skin and a great figure. You could try an academic style or a light and sweet style. It’s innocent and sweet without looking childish.”

Zhu Qing asked in a low voice, “What’s a light and sweet style?”

Qian Cancan rubbed her chin. “It’s probably like drinking bubble tea: three-tenths sugar, light and sweet, sweet but not cloying.”

The saleswoman quickly brought over a few outfits. There were short hoodies with pleated skirts, shirt dresses with belts, and short tops with A-line skirts. At first glance, they all had a fresh and clean academic feel.

Qian Cancan rubbed her chin and commented, “Not bad, but it’s missing something.” She turned to Zhu Qing. “What do you think?”

Zhu Qing said she couldn’t tell.

That’s how it is when you buy clothes sometimes. You can’t say what’s wrong with it, but you also can’t say it’s great.

After trying on a few things, Zhu Qing still felt like something was off.

Just then, her phone rang.

Xiao Bao called to ask Zhu Qing where she was.

Zhu Qing had asked the nanny to take care of Xiao Bao at home before she left, but Xiao Bao probably hadn’t seen her for a few days and wanted to find her as soon as she woke up.

She couldn’t pick out clothes right away. Zhu Qing looked at the time. It was already nine in the evening.

“Let’s stop for today,” Zhu Qing said to Qian Cancan, then told the saleswoman to wrap up the first few outfits she had tried on.

Qian Cancan yawned. “Want to get some late-night food?”

Zhu Qing thought about it. “Why don’t you come to my place and sleep with Xiao Bao? I’ll make some sweet soup for you.”

In the end, Qian Cancan didn’t go with Zhu Qing. Someone called her to a party, saying a popular little celebrity was there. Qian Cancan liked that type of person, so she wanted to join in on the fun after dropping Zhu Qing off at home.

Zhu Qing knocked on the car window, her brow slightly furrowed. “It’s already nine. Just go for a bit and then go home.”

Qian Cancan chuckled. “It’s only nine. It’s still early.”

“It’s one of those parties again,” Zhu Qing’s lips tightened slightly. “Wasn’t that little celebrity blacklisted for beating up a staff member? Are you sure you want to go?”

Qian Cancan rested her elbow on the car window and tilted her head, winking at Zhu Qing. She looked carefree. “Don’t worry. I’m just going to watch the fun. You know me.”

Zhu Qing thought to herself that she was worried precisely because she knew her.

Qian Cancan had been holding the hands of pretty older sisters since she was five years old. She looked very flirty and unfaithful, always causing others to misunderstand her, but she was actually a very devoted and loyal person.

But she loved to get into those messy situations. Zhu Qing said helplessly, “Someone will get you one day. Be safe.”

Qian Cancan waved with one hand and drove away in her bright pink sports car.

…

After returning home, Zhu Qing pushed the door open.

“Zhu Zhu!” Xiao Bao heard the door open and ran out holding a little pig doll. She ran towards Zhu Qing, but suddenly stopped when she got to her.

Xiao Bao looked at Zhu Qing with a blank expression. Her hair was messy, and she didn’t look well.

The nanny came out after Xiao Bao. Zhu Qing asked softly, “What’s wrong, Xiao Bao?”

The nanny said helplessly, “She woke up, found out you weren’t home, and has been like this ever since. She won’t talk or eat.”

“I just went out to buy some things. You haven’t had dinner yet?” Zhu Qing crouched down and smoothed her ruffled hair.

Xiao Bao’s adorable big eyes stared at her without blinking. “Did Zhu Zhu run away because I scared you?”

Zhu Qing laughed softly. “How could I? Let’s go eat.”

Xiao Bao’s tone was dejected. “I called you ‘Mom,’ and you didn’t want me to.”

Zhu Qing squeezed Xiao Bao’s arm. It was stiff, and she was clearly holding back. She didn’t say anything, and Xiao Bao just kept staring. Zhu Qing was a little amused. She rephrased her words, trying to make them as easy to understand as possible. “If you call me ‘Mom,’ what do you call Li Lan?”

“‘Mom,'” Xiao Bao said.

Zhu Qing smiled gently. “Then when you say ‘Mom,’ how would Li Lan and I know who you’re calling? And even if we could tell the difference, you can’t call me ‘Mom.’ Only the person who gave birth to you can be called ‘Mom.'”

Zhu Qing had a roommate who had a cat. One time her boyfriend came over to see her and said, “Daddy brought you some freeze-dried treats” while petting the cat. Her roommate looked disgusted, as if she had eaten something dirty. It was even worse for a child to call someone else ‘Mom.’

It was better for Xiao Bao to call her “Auntie” or “Zhu Zhu,” or even “Stepmother,” than to use the same title as Li Lan.

Xiao Bao lowered her head in disappointment.

Zhu Qing led Xiao Bao to the dining room, heated up dinner, and watched her eat.

Xiao Bao was very well-behaved when she wasn’t angry. She had a nice appearance, with an oval face and small almond eyes. She was a cute little girl who could easily be a child model.

However, Xiao Bao and Li Lan had two completely opposite styles. One had a small frame and cute, round curves on her face, while the other had a long and slender frame with sophisticated and delicate features.

As she looked at her, Zhu Qing’s heart softened even more.

“What was Zhu Zhu doing when I was asleep?” Xiao Bao asked after dinner, not wanting to go to bed and looking for something to talk about.

Zhu Qing patiently chatted with her. “I was on a video call with your mom. She’s very busy with work and asked if you were home.”

Xiao Bao’s eyes widened by half a centimeter, then went back to normal. “Oh. Mom has never video-called me.”

“Your mom will be home tomorrow,” Zhu Qing said softly, thinking she was thinking about Li Lan. “Don’t worry.”

Xiao Bao pouted. “I’m not worried. Zhu Zhu is the one who’s worried.”

Zhu Qing smiled and stroked her hair. “Go to sleep now. I’ll make you something delicious tomorrow.”

Xiao Bao’s eyes lit up instantly. “What delicious things?”

“What do you want to eat?” Zhu Qing said. “I’ll see if I can make it.”

Xiao Bao rattled off a long list. “Cheesy baked sweet potato, cartoon rice balls, small hamburgers, pumpkin stew, cheese squares, flower ice cream, and fruit candy skewers!”

The nanny reminded her from the side, “Yanqiu, you have to go to kindergarten tomorrow. You can’t eat all that.”

Xiao Bao was instantly disappointed.

“Kindergarten tomorrow?” Zhu Qing asked. “Will you be back for lunch and dinner?”

The nanny shook her head. “Teacher Zhao will pick her up at 8 a.m. tomorrow. After kindergarten, she has other classes. She’ll be brought home at 9 p.m.”

Zhu Qing was stunned for a while after hearing this. She was completely confused. Xiao Bao was five, not fifteen. How was she going to be out from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m.?

Didn’t the Ministry of Education advocate for reduced burdens on students? Who was swimming against the current and putting their five-year-old child through so much?

“Don’t worry. Teacher Zhao won’t make her study the whole time,” the nanny explained. “Most of the time, they’re out playing.”

Zhu Qing turned to Xiao Bao for confirmation. “Is that true?”

Xiao Bao nodded obediently. “Yes. Tomorrow, the teacher is taking me to see ‘Civilisations AR.’ It has mummies, and I can even ‘take apart’ a pyramid!”

It took Zhu Qing two seconds to understand Xiao Bao’s pronunciation. It must have been a 3D projection about Egyptian civilization, with an interactive part that would let her watch the building of a pyramid.

Okay, that sounded very high-tech. And Xiao Bao seemed to be interested in mummies. Zhu Qing decided not to interrupt. Maybe this was what an elite education was like. “That’s great. Good for you. Then I’ll make you breakfast tomorrow morning.”

Knowing that she would get to eat Zhu Qing’s food, Xiao Bao cheered and jumped up, almost tripping over a chair. “Yay! Zhu Zhu’s food is super delicious!”

Xiao Bao never stopped complimenting people. She threw out all the praise she knew. “Zhu Zhu is a genius! Zhu Zhu is perfect! You’re an angel! You’re amazing! I like you so much!”

Zhu Qing’s cheeks flushed a little from the child’s innocent compliments. She cleared her throat and said, “Okay, okay. So, um, do you know what your mom likes to eat?”

Xiao Bao stopped her flailing. She wrinkled her little face and thought for a long time. “Mom doesn’t seem to like eating much.”

The nanny explained from the side, “Ms. Li really doesn’t like to eat. I rarely see her eat anything.”

Zhu Qing thought to herself that Li Lan had eaten a lot the last time they had dinner together.

“But Mom will eat Zhu Zhu’s food,” Xiao Bao suddenly remembered. “Even though Zhu Zhu rarely cooks, Mom always eats it.”

Zhu Qing continued to ask, “Do you remember what kind of food I made?”

Xiao Bao was stunned for a moment, and her cheeks suddenly puffed up. “Hmph! I don’t know! Mom always eats all of it and doesn’t save any for Xiao Bao. Mom never saves any food for Xiao Bao.”

Zhu Qing didn’t take what Xiao Bao said seriously and said with a laugh, “Then tomorrow, you eat all of it and don’t save any for her.”

After she coaxed Xiao Bao to sleep, Zhu Qing returned to the kitchen to plan what to make tomorrow.

Zhu Qing had known how to cook since she was a child. Her earliest memory was at the daycare. She was not even as tall as an adult’s leg yet when Qian Cancan woke up starving in the middle of the night and insisted on dragging Zhu Qing to find food. Zhu Qing then used an induction cooker to cook a bowl of instant noodles and even cracked two eggs into it. The eggs stuck to the pot and got burnt, but that was when Zhu Qing’s cooking skills were unlocked.

Later, when her cooking skills were discovered by the couple who ran the daycare, she had to do even more work. She had to help in the daycare kitchen and cook for all the children. She cooked so much that she got sick of it. Cooking became something she was very good at but hated doing.

However, cooking for someone she liked was different. Zhu Qing was very happy to feed Li Lan. Li Lan had really liked the food she made last time, especially the sweet and sour pork with pineapple, so she would make a similar sweet dish this time.

Models don’t eat a lot, and they have to work intensely, so they need to get enough nutrients.

Zhu Qing was still struggling with tomorrow’s menu while researching. She even went to Li Lan’s fan community page.

Unfortunately, the fans didn’t know what Li Lan liked to eat either. They all said the same thing: “Because of her strict body management, whether she eats or not is a mystery.”

The next day, Zhu Qing made cat-shaped rice balls and cheesy baked sweet potatoes for Xiao Bao, with candied strawberries for dessert. Xiao Bao looked overjoyed.

After dropping Xiao Bao off, Zhu Qing still hadn’t decided what to cook, so she could only ask directly.

“I’m going to cook tomorrow. What do you want to eat? You can make a request.”

…

After the last cover shoot was finished, Li Lan returned to the makeup room and closed her eyes to wait for the makeup to be removed.

Today’s shoot was no different from before. Every magazine liked to find a story in her face, as if it would make it seem more sophisticated.

But there was also a benefit. They wouldn’t deliberately show off her body, and she didn’t have to rely on showing skin to get attention. Although Li Lan had done a lingerie show abroad and didn’t mind how much or how little clothes she wore, she was very aware of her identity as a model. But all in all, it was still good that she didn’t have to deliberately show skin when she didn’t have to. She had more autonomy than those who had resorted to explicit work.

The woman who was in the same studio today had also done explicit work. She wanted to change that impression and wanted the audience to accept her career change and forget her past.

Li Lan watched her working hard and humbly, and she remembered the years when she had just entered society. At that time, she didn’t have many choices either, and her struggle to survive was even more pathetic than this person’s.

The door to the makeup room opened. Li Lan said with her eyes closed, “Get me a piece of candy. I’m feeling a little dizzy.”

A cup of hot drink was placed next to her hand. She picked it up and took a sip. It was a sweet soup.

“Qian Chu, get some drinks for the staff and some desserts. Remember to get some for the other young woman who was taking photos. I saw that she didn’t eat lunch.”

There was no sound next to her. Li Lan’s eyelids fluttered. Just as she was about to turn her head, a rich and gentle voice spoke.

“Her name is Wang Yi’er. She’s a glamour model. Her photos were originally supposed to be on the back page of this issue. I didn’t think it was appropriate, so I had the editor-in-chief take them out.”

Li Lan suddenly opened her eyes.

There was a mirror in front of her. The person in the mirror was wearing a luxurious, collarless satin gray suit. Her face was beautiful and dignified, and she exuded the aura of a person in a position of power, looking down at Li Lan.

Li Lan stood up. “Director Yang.”

Yang Huayi pulled the chair Li Lan had just been sitting in and sat down steadily with one hand.