The Scheming Ex-Husband's Courtship-Chapter 722 - 625 I Want to Go Home

The deep autumn in Aus City may not bring bone-chilling winds, but the air already carries a flow of cold currents.

Ye Rui, wearing only a thin coat, stands in the night wind at this moment, shivering against an old and towering tree, unsure whether it is the cold or her blood that has chilled to the extreme.

To her surprise, the doors of the Ji Family residence are tightly shut, and Leng Shaoqing stands at the doorway, apparently turned away.

Ye Rui had been blocked from view by a car and hadn’t noticed until now; rubbing her eyes, she finally sees Leng Shaoqing, dressed in a black jacket, smoking in front of the door.

The hallway lights of the Ji family are dazzling, obviously someone is home, but why is he standing outside?

Leng Shaoqing smokes another two cigarettes, his side profile appearing somewhat decadent. After a good while, a woman who looks like a maid comes out. Their voices are not loud, but Ye Rui still pricks up her ears to listen.

The maid says, "Mr. Leng, please go back. The young miss has said she doesn’t want to see you; waiting any longer would be pointless."

"Then tell Yanyan that I will keep waiting here until she agrees to see me," Leng Shaoqing says without paying further attention to the maid, but rather calls out loudly towards the slightly ajar door: "Yanyan, I won’t leave, you can test my patience."

The maid shakes her head helplessly and closes the door.

The weather grows colder, Ye Rui trembles with the chill, tightening her coat collar while staring at Leng Shaoqing’s upright figure, her eyes now blurred with tears.

She remembers a rainy day when she was still in class, only to find him standing in front of the dormitory building, soaked through as he had not used an umbrella.

She was startled when she saw him.

"Why didn’t you take shelter in the car from the rain?"

His hair, wet from the rain, clung to his full forehead. His eyes, moistened by raindrops, twinkled with mirth as he thrust the package of mung bean cakes, which he had been holding tightly, into her hands: "I didn’t know when your class would end, and your phone was off. These mung bean cakes won’t taste good once they’re cold."

She took the warm mung bean cakes, her nose tingled, and tears fell.

Those were the tastiest mung bean cakes she ever had in her life, unforgettable forever.

Yet now, the man who once waited for her with mung bean cakes in the rain lingers outside another woman’s door. The kindness he once showed her may have only been a whim of his, or perhaps, it was simply something the other person disdained to want.

The air gets chillier, and Ye Rui, unable to bear it, sneezes, she quickly covers her mouth with her hand, fearing she might attract Leng Shaoqing’s attention.

Meanwhile, Leng Shaoqing continues smoking patiently.

Another half hour passes, and finally someone comes out. Ye Rui sees a woman in cotton pajamas, with long waist-length hair and captivating, beautiful eyes, standing in front of the door, staggering the onlooker’s soul.

It’s Ji Yan.

Ji Yan opens the door, but her complexion isn’t good. Without saying a word, she turns back into the house.

A joyful expression crosses Leng Shaoqing’s face as he flicks away his cigarette and follows her inside.

Ye Rui watches as Leng Shaoqing sits on the sofa, Ji Yan hands him a cup of hot water. He holds the cup and, taking the chance, grabs her hand.

What they talk about, she can’t hear, nor does she have the courage to listen.

As the night envelops her, she feels as if an invisible giant wave of cold has slammed her to the lakebed, struggling to breathe, searching for a glimpse of daylight, but ultimately helpless.

～

Ye Rui spends a restless night lying in bed, tossing and turning.

She dreams of happy scenes: He is cycling with her on the campus paths, they line up to watch a movie at the cinema, she feeds him popcorn...

She snuggles into his embrace, shyly asking, "Shaoqing, do you love me?"

His lips descend only for him to respond with cruel indifference, "No, I don’t love you."

No, I don’t love you.

Ye Rui wakes up with a start.

"Madam, you’re finally awake."

Opening her eyes, she sees the butler’s anxious face and standing beside him, the handsome man with a tall, distinguished bearing, his hand wrapped in an IV drip.

This good-looking man is Leng Shaoqing’s close friend, Jiang Haoran, the only son of the Jiang family, a prominent medical family. He returned from the United Kingdom three years ago and is now the youngest and most promising professor specialist at Jiang Hospital.

"Doctor Jiang," Ye Rui says with a polite smile.

Jiang Haoran says, "You have a fever. I’ve prescribed some medicine for you. Take it on time, and tomorrow, I will come to give you another IV."

His words are as smooth and elegant as his demeanor, soothing as a spring breeze.

"Thank you," Ye Rui closes her eyes, still feeling uncomfortable, her bones as if they have been reset, her muscles still sore.

Getting chilled in the cold wind for so long yesterday, it’s normal to have a fever and catch a cold.

Jiang Haoran adjusts the speed of the IV drip: "Rest for now."

Jiang Haoran and the butler leave the room together, and as the door closes, he can’t help but ask, "Where’s Shaoqing?"

"The master said he had to go out for something yesterday. His phone is also switched off now; I don’t know where he is."

"Your wife is sick like this, and he still doesn’t care at all. No matter how important work is, is it more important than people?" Jiang Haoran said as he picked up his phone, "I’ll give him a call and try."

Unexpectedly, Jiang Haoran’s call went through.

"Shaoqing, where are you at?"

"The company."

"Your wife is sick. She had a fever of 40 degrees yesterday and nearly fainted from it."

Leng Shaoqing paused for a moment, "I’m heading back now."

Jiang Haoran had just hung up the phone when the door behind him was pushed open. Startled, he turned around and saw a weakened Ye Rui leaning against the door. Her already fair face looked even more flushed due to the fever. Although confused from the fever, her eyes were as bright and pure as snow under the moonlight, glowing.

She said, "I want to go home."

The butler hurriedly shook his head upon hearing this, "Madam, how can you go home in your current condition? It’s crucial that you recover from your illness first."

Ye Rui didn’t say a word, grabbed the car keys, and started walking downstairs. Her steps were a bit unsteady, and she was still in a dazed state.

She thought Leng Shaoqing would come back yesterday. She waited for him all night, and what was the result? Without offering a single word of explanation for his broken promise yesterday, he went straight back to the office. What exactly did she mean to him?

Dispensable, how ridiculous.

If that’s the case, then there’s no point for her to stay in this house any longer. She needs time to calm down and seriously consider how to continue dealing with their relationship.

"What, what should we do?" The butler, unable to persuade Ye Rui, was anxiously pacing.

Jiang Haoran frowned slightly, the frail yet stubborn figure in front of him looked as though it could collapse at any moment, but she was determinedly leaving without looking back.

Jiang Haoran said to the butler, "I’ll take her," and he quickly followed her.

Just as Ye Rui’s hand touched the car door, someone pushed her aside from behind, "You sit in the passenger seat, I’ll drive you there."

Ye Rui was stunned; she didn’t expect Jiang Haoran to help her, but she obediently walked around to the other side of the car. She was very aware of her own physical condition; it was uncertain whether she could drive back to the Ye Family’s home on her own.

"Thank you." Ye Rui settled down and pulled at the seat belt, but she lacked the strength due to her illness, unsuccessfully tugging at it a few times.

Jiang Haoran leaned over, first looked at her, then stretched out his arm to fasten her seat belt, noting how she was so thin, the seat belt seemed loose on her.

"Thank you." Ye Rui nodded gratefully at him.

Jiang Haoran, without a word, slowly started the car.

"You set up the GPS," he said as the car left the Leng Family’s complex.

Ye Rui leaned over and entered the address for the Ye Family into the GPS.

She had a faint scent on her, her hair pinned up, revealing a snow-white and graceful neck. She focused on her task with a particular intensity, her delicate features all converging into a serious expression.

Jiang Haoran had treated Ye Rui’s illness a few times before, including the last instance when she fainted because of a blood draw and he came over to conduct a physical examination on her.

In his memory, Ye Rui was like the delicate flowers and plants she nurtured, fragile and always kept in a warm conservatory.

"All set," Ye Rui straightened up, "Just follow the GPS from here."

"Mm." Jiang Haoran withdrew his gaze from her and kept his eyes fixed on the road ahead.

"Did you have breakfast this morning? There’s a morning tea shop up ahead with a pretty good taste," Jiang Haoran’s car drove very slowly, cruising through the morning streets of Aus City.

"I’m not hungry." Ye Rui had no appetite, and moreover, she knew Jiang Haoran’s intent, "I don’t want to see Leng Shaoqing right now."

He was just deliberately delaying time, waiting for Leng Shaoqing’s call. They were good friends, of course, he would side with him.

But she hadn’t yet decided how to face him, so now was not the best time to meet.

Jiang Haoran pulled at the corner of his mouth helplessly: "Did you two have a fight?"

A fight?

It seems that she and Leng Shaoqing have never really had a formal argument. When they were dating, he would always be gentlemanly and accommodate her, even her occasional temper couldn’t flare up under his tender and gentle words. After getting married, he became busy with work so frequently, barely meeting her at late nights, who would have the mind to argue then?

Ye Rui didn’t want to answer the question and knew Jiang Haoran was trying to mediate. She simply closed her eyes and leaned back in her seat, pretending to sleep.

The traffic light at the intersection turned red, and Jiang Haoran slowly brought the car to a stop, his eyes turning to look at the dignified and beautiful woman beside him, exquisite in features, resembling a piece of fine jade. 𝘧𝑟𝑒𝑒𝘸𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝓁.𝘤𝘰𝓂

The way she rested with her eyes closed reminded him of the shy lotus leaves in the pond, half-open and half-closed, charming in every way.

Beep beep!

The impatient honking of a horn came from behind. He quickly shifted his gaze back to the road, cursing himself silently. He had actually gotten lost staring at his friend’s wife; it was a mistake.

As they were about to reach the direction indicated by the GPS, Ye Rui’s phone suddenly rang.

It was the ringtone specifically set for Leng Shaoqing.

Ye Rui opened her eyes. Without looking, she threw the phone out the window. A passing car ran over it, the wheel crushed the phone, shattering it.