Chapter 20

Jin Nian rarely drank alcohol, and after a few glasses of wine, she was already dizzy. She felt a little uncomfortable and waved her hand. “I feel like vomiting. I’ll go back and sit for a while.” Jiang Qingchi nodded and said nothing.

When they returned to their table, Tan Siyun grabbed Jin Nian’s arm. “Have you talked to Jiang Qingchi about what that person said just now?”

Jin Nian had a splitting headache, “He said that the other party framed him.”

Tan Siyun frowned slightly, “I feel like he’s not in the right state. He seems to be hiding something from us.” Jin Nian saw that Jiang Qingchi’s phone was still on his chair. The screen lit up. Someone had sent him a text message. In order to avoid being disturbed when Jiang Qingchi was composing, his phone was always on silent mode. If anyone wanted to contact him, they could only contact his assistant first. Jin Nian listened to her mother’s chatter and nodded from time to time.

Tan Siyun could tell that Jin Nian was distracted. She sighed and said, “I’m going to the toilet.” Jin Nian saw from the corner of her eye that Jiang Qingchi’s phone screen, which had just dimmed, lit up again. She had never flipped through Jiang Qingchi’s phone before, but this time, she picked it up.

There were two unread messages on the screen from Xu Tian: “Congratulations, I wish you a happy marriage.”

“Please don’t contact me in the future. I’ve blocked your number.”

Xu Tian. Jin Nian could not help but think about it. She felt as if she had fallen into an ice cellar and felt a chill from her heart to her toes.

Jiang Qingchi was drinking with his relatives and friends not far away. His face was flushed red from drinking. If it was in the past, Jin Nian would feel a heartache and feel that he was tired from socializing too much. But she did not have time to think about anything now. Her fingertips quickly tapped on the screen. The six-digit lock screen password, Jin Nian quickly typed in Jiang Qingchi’s birth date, and the system notified her that the password was wrong. After a pause, she entered his birth date again, but the system still gave her an error.

Qiao Ranran leaned over and asked Jin Nian what she was doing. Jin Nian was shocked and almost threw the phone on the ground. Qiao Ranran was confused, “Why are you sneaking around?” Jin Nian shook her head, signaling her to shut up. With only one chance left, Xu Tian’s birth date suddenly popped up in her mind. She entered in 199612, and successfully unlocked the phone.

Jin Nian wondered why she remembered Xu Tian’s birthday. She had attended her birthday party seven years ago and still could not forget it. Jin Nian’s movements stopped and her mind went blank. She opened Xu Tian’s chat box like a zombie and saw their chat history. Xu Tian’s two replies were messages from Jiang Qingchi: “Please tell me, how can I stop thinking about you?” It was sent at 6:30 this morning. Jin Nian thought about what she was doing at this time. Right, she was waiting for Jiang Qingchi to reply to her message. She had not slept well the whole night. Yet, he was sending such a message to his first love.

Jin Nian felt a chill from head to toe. Her hand that was holding the phone trembled uncontrollably. Jiang Qingchi said: “Are you alright over there alone?”

“It snowed heavily in Binhai today, just like the day we first met,” said Jiang Qingchi.

“I’m so tired. I can’t hold on anymore. I miss you so much. If I were to fly to Canada to find you, would you still be willing to be with me?” Jiang Qingchi asked.

“Did you see that? The anime I made was nominated for the Asian Film Festival. I finally did it. Are you willing to return to my side?” Jiang Qingchi asked.

…

Jiang Qingchi had bought this phone two years ago, and the chat records of the past two years were kept in the phone. What about two years ago? How many times had he contacted Xu Tian? Jin Nian silently swiped the screen. It was all Jiang Qingchi’s one-man show. Every reply he received was a red exclamation mark without exception. It was not until half a year ago that Jiang Qingchi’s comments no longer had an exclamation mark, which meant that Xu Tian had finally agreed to his friend request.

Half a year ago. “Did you go to the cinema to watch a movie?” Jiang Qingchi asked.

“You inspired me.”

Three months ago. “Can I give you a call?” Jiang Qingchi asked.

Thirty days ago. “I can’t wait for you for long. Are you really not coming back?” Jiang Qingchi asked.

“As long as you say you won’t come back, I’ll propose immediately.” said Jiang Qingchi.

“I proposed to her.”

Every word was like a needle pricking Jin Nian’s heart. Her mind replayed everything that had happened in the six years she had been with Jiang Qingchi. The words of love that came out of his mouth made her feel disgusted. Jin Nian could not figure out how Jiang Qingchi could be so loving with her while being reluctant to part with his ex-girlfriend. Or perhaps, the so-called love was just an illusion.