Chapter 46 – Encounter
Novel Title: 我们已经分手了 (We Have Broken Up)
Author：御小凡 (Yu Xiaofan)
Translator: K (@kin0monogatari)
Protagonists: 刘帆 (Liu Fan -MC), 陈谦 (Chen Qian -ML)
*Please read at Novels Space.space, the original site of translation. TQ*
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“What happened afterwards?”
Liu Fan sighed, “There wasn’t much to say after that. In short, I haven’t seen Chen Chong trying to get in touch. Mom seems very downcast. They say that old couples are meant to keep each other company in their later years, and I think it’s been hard on Mom.”
“I understand,” Liu Mengjiao said, flicking her hair. The notification sound from her phone on the table caught her eye. But she just glanced at it and pursed her lips, showing no intention of responding.
“Let me guess.” Liu Fan looked from the phone to her. “Definitely not a delivery.”
Liu Mengjiao rolled her eyes. “It’s Zhou Chi.”
“Oh right.” Liu Fan raised an eyebrow. “So how are things going between you two? You haven’t reported back to me yet.”
“It’s going fine, actually. He’s a really nice guy,” Liu Mengjiao clicked her tongue. “He’s bought a lot of stuff for Jiaojiao.”
Liu Fan nodded, “Seems like his strategy is working well.”
Liu Mengjiao counted on her fingers, “Good at cooking, great at housework, good-looking, earns more than I do, has a house and a car, and his younger sister isn’t annoying at all and is actually a good friend of mine.”
Liu Fan added, “Your meeting was quite dramatic too. Wow, if you wrote it out, it would be such a cute love story.”
Liu Mengjiao chuckled, “Speaking of which, after he found out what I like, he sent me several gigabytes of yaoi novels and manga… I have no idea where he got them. He even organised them into folders. Of course, I can’t vouch for the quality of the content. But just imagining his poker face while searching for this stuff cracks me up.”
Liu Fan tapped his fingers on the table a few times, “So? Why isn’t he your boyfriend yet?”
“Well, we’re still in the ambiguous stage, I guess. He has a big problem,” Liu Mengjiao said, supporting her head as if she had a headache. “He’s too controlling. He tells me what to eat and how to eat it, when to sleep and when to get up. Sometimes I feel like I’ve gained another mother… That text just now was asking where I went after work. This isn’t just a one-time thing. He does it four times a day, right on schedule. We haven’t even defined our relationship yet, and he wants to know my whereabouts. If we did become a couple, would he want me to share my location on WeChat in real-time?”
As a typical free-spirited Sagittarius, Liu Mengjiao summed it up herself: even my parents can’t control me, so what makes you think you can?
Liu Fan looked up at the sky.
He pondered for a while, “I think Zhou Chi’s habit might be because he has a younger sister who’s easily deceived…”
Liu Mengjiao nodded in agreement.
“Regarding relationships, there’s not much I can say.” Having been Liu Mengjiao’s confidant for so long, Liu Fan understood her temper well. She hated people interfering too much in her life. “I just feel that Zhou Chi’s personality makes me feel a special sense of familiarity.”
Liu Mengjiao was curious, “What do you mean?”
“Because Chen Qian is pretty much the same.” Liu Fan shrugged, “Now he’s busy with his own things, so it’s not as serious. But years ago, he was incredibly clingy.”
Liu Mengjiao squinted her eyes, “Can you stop showing off your relationship every chance you get?”
Waving his hand, Liu Fan continued, “You know me, I’m not that sensitive and I really hate trouble. Sometimes I can’t stand him managing everything.”
Liu Mengjiao responded with an understanding “oh,” realising Liu Fan was using his own experience to illustrate his point. “So, how do you balance it?”
After thinking for a while, Liu Fan replied helplessly, “Actually, I don’t really have a way to balance it. I know he does this because he loves me, and maybe he can’t even control himself. Sometimes it’s heartwarming. But other times it’s annoying. But you can’t have all the good without any bad. You can’t accept his love and reject his flaws.”
Liu Mengjiao was silent for a moment before saying, “You always see the bright side of things.”
“Peace of mind leads to a healthy body. Don’t be too jealous of me.” Liu Fan felt that the conversation had reached its end. He noticed that when Liu Mengjiao talked about Zhou Chi, her demeanour clearly indicated she liked him. Considering her personality, if it were someone she didn’t like, she would have already blown up instead of slowly dealing with it. Liu Fan hadn’t forgotten a previous incident where a guy got dumped just for buying self-help books.
People are like that. The more they care, the more cautious and hesitant they become. Liu Fan propped his chin up and looked at the thoughtful Liu Mengjiao. His friend was beautiful, cheerful, humorous, from a good family, and not at all spoiled, making her naturally popular. In love, she had always had smooth sailing. Perhaps for her, this feeling of being able to gain or lose something was a first.
And that’s not necessarily a bad thing.
This time, Liu Fan’s phone rang, with Chen Qian’s name flashing incessantly. Liu Fan couldn’t help but smile. He showed Liu Mengjiao the phone, implying that they’re all the same.
“Yes, I’m not home. I went out with Mengjiao to have some dessert.” Liu Fan’s eyes lit up as he listened to the call, “Really? That’s great!”
It was rare for Liu Mengjiao to see him so excited. So she tilted her head to watch him.
Liu Fan said, “Okay… So will we handle the formalities tomorrow? Should I come find you now? Oh, just the two of us. Got it. I’ll ask her. But she should be able to come. See you soon.”
Hanging up the phone with a smile, Liu Fan turned to Liu Mengjiao, “The loan was approved.”
“Oh, that’s really great!” Liu Mengjiao was thrilled, knowing a bit about Chen Qian’s company’s situation from Liu Fan. She banged the table in excitement, “We must celebrate! Dinner tonight?”
“Dinner might not work; he’s still with the client manager and will probably have dinner with them. Let’s eat first and then gather later tonight.” Liu Fan suddenly suggested, “Why not invite Zhou Chi too?”
“Huh?” Liu Mengjiao was initially stunned. But after a moment of contemplation, she seemed to make a quick decision and smiled, “Sure, let’s do that.”
***
Zhou Chi was the last to arrive. Seeing the three of them, he draped his jacket over his arm. His expression was slightly serious as he gave them a brief nod. “Sorry. Work held me up.”
“No problem at all,” Liu Fan quickly dismissed any interest in Zhou Chi’s work and urged Liu Mengjiao, “Hurry up and introduce him.”
“This is Zhou Xiang’s brother, Zhou Chi,” Liu Mengjiao said, glancing at Zhou Chi. Their eyes met, and Zhou Chi raised his eyebrows slightly in confusion. Liu Mengjiao then confidently linked her arm with his. “He’s my boyfriend.”
Zhou Chi was visibly surprised. His usually tight lips slightly parted. Liu Fan wasn’t surprised. Liu Mengjiao wasn’t the type to beat around the bush. If it worked, she’d go for it. If it didn’t, she’d move on. She had been hesitant for a while. But bringing Zhou Chi tonight was an acknowledgment of his status.
Chen Qian didn’t understand what was going on but didn’t mind. He introduced himself, then draped an arm around Liu Fan’s shoulder as the four of them entered the bar.
The bar was Liu Mengjiao’s choice, different from the last one. It was an old, well-established place with a good environment and genuine drinks. The high prices filtered out unwanted customers, and the security was excellent. Liu Mengjiao didn’t want a repeat of the last incident.
They settled into a reserved booth. All four were in high spirits, each for different reasons, but all had the urge to drink more. Liu Mengjiao started talking about a new copywriter, who was a cute little daisy, though not as good-looking as Liu Fan.
Liu Fan agreed, “Yeah, yeah, I single-handedly raised the company’s overall attractiveness level. It’s not easy to surpass me.”
Chen Qian laughed, watching Liu Fan with his drink in hand.
Liu Mengjiao then brought up Tang Guangfeng being messed with by Feng Jing.
“Why did he cross Feng Jing?” Liu Fan was curious. Feng Jing had been with the company for a long time and was well-respected, maintaining many of the company’s old clients. He was generally quite reasonable.
“Well, Tang Guangfeng tapped into his client resources and then asked Boss Wu for a commission,” Liu Mengjiao chuckled. “You know Feng Jing, a typical salesman. Messing with his clients is like messing with his lifeline.”
Liu Fan didn’t know much about sales and wasn’t particularly interested. But hearing Liu Mengjiao’s story, he thought Tang Guangfeng was too bold. He wasn’t even a salesman and wanted a commission from using someone else’s resources. What a dreamer.
“That’s why there’s always someone to deal with jerks,” Liu Mengjiao, still holding a grudge against Tang Guangfeng because of Liu Fan, laughed heartily while leaning on Zhou Chi.
Zhou Chi, typically quiet, maintained his cold demeanour even after finishing a glass of whiskey. But his gaze softened whenever he looked at Liu Mengjiao. Despite their outwardly different personalities, they seemed a perfect match when sitting together.
Liu Fan reflected on this, concluding it was because they both were so good-looking.
“I need to use the restroom,” Liu Mengjiao said, standing up. Zhou Chi was about to get up to accompany her. But Chen Qian also needed to go, so they went together.
This left Liu Fan and Zhou Chi alone. Not being very familiar with each other and Zhou Chi not seeming keen on chatting, they silently toasted each other.
Over at the restroom, as Liu Mengjiao was coming out, she suddenly exclaimed. Chen Qian looked at her and saw she was glaring at someone with a very displeased expression.
Following her gaze, Chen Qian didn’t see anyone particularly noteworthy.
“Even out drinking, I run into scumbags,” Liu Mengjiao grumbled.
Her words were harsh. Chen Qian hadn’t had time to think about it before she continued, “Look over there. That’s Zheng Nian, the one who accused Liu Fan of messing around.”
Chen Qian’s eyes narrowed, the traces of his earlier drunkenness vanishing instantly. “What do you mean?”
“Huh? Liu Fan didn’t tell you? Remember last time, when I asked you to comfort him properly?” Liu Mengjiao pointed, “Damn it, that guy was deceiving Xiang Xiang about marriage while fooling around with other men. We had a huge fight that day.”
Chen Qian remained silent. He was stunned and confused.
Oblivious to Chen Qian’s reaction, Liu Mengjiao continued, “Later, he resigned. Before he left, he slandered Liu Fan, claiming in the company chat that Liu Fan was gay and saying he saw Liu Fan going to a hotel with two men. Damn it, I should have beaten that scumbag more.”
Chen Qian looked again, “The one in the black T-shirt?”
“Yes, that’s him. Disgusting. Completely ruined my appetite,” Liu Mengjiao said.
Chen Qian patted her shoulder, “I’ll handle this. You go back first.”
Seeing Zheng Nian and the other man heading towards the door, Chen Qian gave Liu Mengjiao a quick nod and followed them out alone.
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*Translator’s Note: Zheng Nian is getting what he deserved!!! Hell yeah!!! -K
Next update: In the next five minuets
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