Divorce Is An Absolute Must! - Chapter 7

Chapter 7: Breach of Contract

◎Six million in liquidated damages◎

The curtains in the second bedroom were tightly closed. Li Lan leaned against the headboard, her eyelids slightly drooping. Her thick eyelashes cast a small shadow of fatigue underneath her eyes. It was as if some of her spirit had been drained, and even her breathing became shallow.

Her phone was placed on the side, its screen faintly flickering.

“Ms. Lan, Director Liu still hopes that you can participate in this variety show,” Qian Chu’s voice sounded in the dim bedroom.

Li Lan’s tone was flat. “Turn it down.”

Qian Chu paused for two seconds and said in a deep voice, “Ms. Lan, please reconsider seriously. This travel variety show for married artists has already been running for two seasons, and the ratings and market feedback are very good. Your career is on the rise, and you need to open up the domestic market. This variety show is the best opportunity.”

She rarely questioned Li Lan’s decisions, but she couldn’t keep her opinion to herself this time.

Qian Chu insisted on persuading her. “When this variety show was signed, both you and Ms. Zhu agreed. There’s no reason to give up on this opportunity…”

“I said it’s not suitable,” Li Lan sat with her head down. The lines of her slender neck were not as straight as they were when she was on the runway, but her tone was still sharp and cold. “She wanted a divorce before, and now she has lost her memory. Neither state is suitable for a variety show. It’s on camera. Her every move will be filmed and edited, and the slightest abnormality will be magnified countless times by the audience.”

Li Lan’s voice was a little hoarse, with a loose texture, as if it took a little more effort for her to finish speaking.

“She has no fans, and no one will speak up for her. She might even be attacked because of me. I was irrational when I signed this variety show. How could Xiao Qing have thought of these things? She is now…”

Li Lan closed her eyes, remembering Zhu Qing’s every move after she came home.

“I don’t know how long she will be like this. Maybe she’ll regain her memory tomorrow,” Li Lan said indifferently and wearily, making a definitive statement. “A couple with relationship problems is not suitable to appear on screen.”

The bedroom was silent.

Li Lan hung up the phone. The non-stop work over the past few days had exhausted her energy. She curled up in the blanket, covered herself completely, closed her eyes, and fell into a light, hazy sleep.

…

Zhu Qing was not a homebody. She couldn’t stand being indoors and wanted to go out as soon as she was home.

“Wanna meet?”

Ten seconds after the message was sent, Qian Cancan replied.

“Picking you up downstairs in half an hour”

When Qian Cancan arrived downstairs in Zhu Qing’s flashy pink sports car, Zhu Qing had just finished applying lipstick.

She was wearing a sky-blue sleeveless long dress and rattan summer slippers. After making sure to apply sunscreen to all exposed areas, she walked out with an umbrella.

Qian Cancan’s eyes focused on her fully made-up face, and she laughed out of anger.

“You actually put on makeup secretly,” Qian Cancan patted the steering wheel. “You’re done for. You’re paying for your own meal today.”

“I’ll treat you,” Zhu Qing said with a beaming smile. “I have money now.”

Qian Cancan sneered, “With that little salary of yours… ahem, how much money can you possibly have?”

Zhu Qing kept her smiling expression and leaned closer to Qian Cancan. “That little salary? You know I’m a kindergarten teacher, right?”

Qian Cancan’s face stiffened, and then she said nonchalantly, “Is your job a secret?”

“Then why didn’t you tell me!”

Qian Cancan coughed twice to cover it up. “I just forgot by accident. Is your job that important? It’s not, is it? I just remembered that you were going to get a divorce in the afternoon. Wouldn’t you say that the divorce is a more important matter?”

Zhu Qing’s voice rose, and her emotions became increasingly agitated. “You’re lying! You’re deliberately hiding it!”

Qian Cancan drove the car at twenty miles an hour and said in a low voice, “Oh, I’m driving. Let’s talk about it at dinner. Why are you so worked up about such a small thing?”

Zhu Qing sneered. “Don’t change the subject. If you hadn’t hidden it from me, would I have heard those cold words, ‘monthly salary of three thousand,’ from Li Lan? You made me feel so ashamed!”

Qian Cancan didn’t want to take such a big blame and quickly distanced herself from it. “You found the job yourself. I tried to stop you many times!”

Zhu Qing stared at her eerily. “As I thought, none of you liked this job.”

Qian Cancan fell silent to show her agreement.

With her doubts confirmed, Zhu Qing grabbed the seat belt tightly and frowned, considering whether she should go back to the kindergarten.

To be honest, with a job that was not in her major and with a salary that was close to the minimum wage, the current Zhu Qing would be 100% unlikely to do it.

This discrepancy made her a little curious and even eager to see why “Zhu Qing” had made that choice.

She had a faint intuition that the kindergarten job was related to Li Lan, or rather, not just Li Lan, but a deeper and more important reason.

But judging from Qian Cancan’s reaction, she clearly didn’t approve of her being a kindergarten teacher and was secretly persuading her to change jobs, so she definitely didn’t know the inside story.

Qian Cancan said, “What do you want to eat?”

Zhu Qing named a restaurant they frequented.

“Oh, right, after we eat, let’s go shopping for clothes,” Zhu Qing said. “My wardrobe is full of sportswear.”

Qian Cancan let out a mocking laugh.

The atmosphere between them returned to normal. They bickered all the way to the restaurant and ordered their favorite dishes.

Their tastes were quite different. Zhu Qing had a sweet tooth, and Qian Cancan loved spicy food. The only thing they both liked was Cantonese cuisine.

The food was served: prawns fried in soy sauce, steamed spotted grouper, salt-and-pepper mantis shrimp, steamed chicken, seasonal vegetables in oyster sauce, and two servings of clay pot rice with preserved meat. Zhu Qing had a great appetite and started eating quickly, devouring the food and filling her stomach. She then ordered some sweet soups, egg tarts, and other desserts, eating and chatting.

Qian Cancan was arrogant, gesturing wildly as she described the embarrassing things that happened during Zhu Qing’s memory loss.

Zhu Qing seriously suspected she was taking the opportunity to slander her.

As Qian Cancan got into the swing of things, her eyebrows dancing and her hands flying, her eyes suddenly froze, and her laughter stopped abruptly.

“What’s wrong?” Zhu Qing asked suspiciously.

“You, be quiet,” Qian Cancan said with a faint smile.

She reached up to tuck a strand of hair behind her ear and sat up straight. Her lazy posture became tall and dignified, and her ferocious expression settled into a gentle and serene one. She instantly went from a chattering sparrow to a quiet and virtuous cat.

Zhu Qing was dumbfounded. She followed Qian Cancan’s gaze and stopped.

Qian Chu was standing at the door with a document in her hand.

She was wearing a classic, immaculate, slim-fit suit and a pair of pointed-toe high heels. She looked simple and capable as she walked towards them.

As she approached, Qian Cancan’s smile became even more flawless.

Zhu Qing’s lips twitched, and she stood up and said, “Ms. Qian Chu.”

“Hello, Ms. Zhu. Hello, Ms. Qian. May I sit here?”

Before Zhu Qing could say anything, Qian Cancan “scraped” her chair back, pulled out the chair next to her, and said politely, “Please, have a seat.”

Qian Chu nodded. “Thank you.”

Zhu Qing could only sit down as well.

Once the three of them were seated, Zhu Qing asked, “Are you here about Li Lan?”

Qian Chu unfolded the document in her hand and pushed it towards Zhu Qing with both hands. “Ms. Zhu, you can take a look at this first.”

Because of the divorce agreement, Zhu Qing was a little jumpy and almost thought Qian Chu was talking about the divorce on behalf of Li Lan again until she glanced at the content.

“A variety show?” Zhu Qing was confused. “What am I supposed to look at?”

Qian Chu crossed her hands and said calmly, “Ms. Zhu personally signed this contract half a year ago, agreeing to participate in a variety show with Li Lan as her partner. The show is about to start filming, but Ms. Lan asked me to turn it down.”

Zhu Qing knew about this variety show. It selected married celebrities and invited both partners to travel together. In this show, every couple’s dynamic, values, and life philosophy would be exposed. Loving couples would be adored by the whole internet, while couples with problems would be singled out and attacked.

She had seen many people become famous again because of this show and many others end up on the audience’s blacklist because of it.

It was a variety show with very high risks and rewards.

Qian Chu’s next words confirmed this. “Ms. Lan’s career started at the four major fashion weeks. She made a name for herself abroad as the head of East Asian models, but she is already thirty years old this year, and the peak of her modeling career is about to pass. She needs to transition to the domestic market and expand her domestic presence. This variety show is her best opportunity right now.”

“Unfortunately, Ms. Lan still wants to give it up.” Qian Chu’s extremely short-trimmed nails landed on a certain line of the contract. “The liquidated damages are six million.”

Zhu Qing’s heart sank.

“Six million?” Qian Cancan exclaimed. “Then you can’t turn it down!”

Zhu Qing also felt the pinch, but she thought one step ahead of Qian Cancan. She hesitated. “Is it because of a work conflict and she has something more important to do?”

Qian Chu shook her head. “This variety show is her most important job at this stage.”

Zhu Qing was a little uneasy. “Is it because of her health?”

Qian Chu’s eyes were sharp, but she still shook her head.

Zhu Qing’s brows furrowed deeply, and she said worriedly, “Then what is it because of?”

Qian Chu stared at her and said definitively, “Because of you.”

Zhu Qing’s wrist shook, and the contract in her hand scattered on the table in a messy pile.

“Ms. Lan has determined that Ms. Zhu’s current state is not suitable to appear on screen and would rather pay six million in liquidated damages out of her own pocket to turn down this variety show,” Qian Chu’s voice was calm and every word was clear. “I came here to hear Ms. Zhu’s opinion, since both your names are on this contract.”

Zhu Qing’s mouth opened. The shock and confusion in her eyes pulled at her, and she finally became calm.

“You’re saying that Li Lan and I signed this contract together, and I agreed to be on this show before, right?”

Qian Chu nodded. “Yes.”

Zhu Qing tapped the table with her fingertips. Her eyes quickly scanned the line about the liquidated damages again, and she paused slightly. “I understand. I’ll go talk to Li Lan about it.”

Qian Chu stared at Zhu Qing, as if she were gauging the sincerity of her words.

Zhu Qing smiled calmly. “I know what you mean. Don’t worry, since I agreed to it back then, I won’t go back on my word now.”

Qian Chu was silent for two seconds. “Ms. Lan might still insist on turning it down.”

“I’ll convince her,” Zhu Qing said with a smile in her eyes. “Don’t worry. The liquidated damages are six million. Why should we give it to the production team?” Zhu Qing said with a smile. “Is there anything else?”

Qian Chu silently shook her head and stood up. “No. I’ve interrupted your meal, so I’ll be leaving now.”

After seeing Qian Chu off, Qian Cancan said cautiously, “Are you going to be on the variety show?”

Zhu Qing picked up a piece of char siu. Just as she was about to put it in her mouth, a feeling of fullness made her frown. “Yeah, what else can I do?”

Qian Cancan hesitated. “You’re not a celebrity. Many of the couples on this show are from the industry. Can you… adapt?”

“I’ll know if I can or not by trying,” Zhu Qing said, throwing away the char siu in her hand with a relaxed tone. “I’m not willing to give up six million, anyway.”

Qian Cancan looked like she wanted to say more. For her, it would be better for Li Lan to pay the six million than for her best friend to be on a show that was highly likely to spark a lot of discussion and even attacks.

Zhu Qing scanned the QR code on the corner of the table and paid the bill.

“Hey, I said I’d treat you!” Qian Cancan didn’t manage to stop her.

Zhu Qing smiled and shook her phone. “Don’t accept free food from people you don’t know well. I have some sense of responsibility.”

Li Lan, as a former model, would definitely face a career transition. Good opportunities were fleeting, even rarer than an idol with zero negative reviews online. Zhu Qing naturally wanted Li Lan to do well.

…

On the other side, in Li Lan’s bedroom.

The phone made a “ding” sound.

Li Lan gently opened her eyes. She didn’t move immediately. The low bl00d sugar she had upon waking made her pause for a few seconds before picking up the phone.

The moment the screen lit up, her pupils slightly constricted.

“Xiao Qing has made a payment of ¥857 with the family card. Payment location: Chang’an Street Cantonese Restaurant.”

She used the family card?

Li Lan suddenly clutched the corner of the blanket.

This was the first time.

The card had been linked for a long time, but Zhu Qing had never used it. When she gave it to her, she said it was “for emergencies,” but Zhu Qing had never even used it to buy a cup of milk tea.

And now, a Cantonese restaurant on Chang’an Street, ¥857.

Li Lan’s fingertip hovered over the screen. She wanted to call but stopped.

Finally, she gently swiped away the notification, placed the phone back on the nightstand, and moved very lightly.

Sunlight leaked through the gap in the curtains and fell on the corner of her blanket. Li Lan stared at the light spot for a long time, until her eyes started to ache.

Finally, Li Lan turned over, facing away from the phone, and fell back into a deep sleep after her physical exhaustion.