Chapter 6: Love Is Only a Small Part of Life

The atmosphere had turned a little awkward. Even Chen Linye, who seldom spoke, kept glancing back and forth between Yu Hui and Xu Shujian.

Pan Yun immediately gave Yu Hui a thumbs-up. “Big brother, you’re really something. I think I’m starting to understand why Lingling has such a strong opinion of you.”

What was this sanctimonious nonsense supposed to mean? On the surface he was taking a jab at his own wife, but under the table wasn’t he really talking about Xu Shujian?

He wanted everything at once. Once you thought about it a little, it was obvious: Xu Shujian had chosen to marry into wealth, so what now? Was he not supposed to keep his own house in order?

Zhang Qidong chuckled smugly, very pleased with the way things were going, as though everything was unfolding under his guidance.

Perhaps because Xu Shujian had earlier asked Lin Xiaoxian to say a few words, she added, “That’s not really how it is, and it’s not our normal state either. Actually, you can see that Shujian is in particularly good shape, and he’s only in his early thirties. He’s not incapable of working outside the home. In his view, he chose family of his own accord, because he thinks family matters more than career.”

Seeing his wife back him up, Zhang Qidong laughed. “Why do I feel like you’re talking about me?”

Lin Xiaoxian shot him a huge eye-roll.

From beginning to end, Pan Yun and Chen Linye had made no judgment on Song Yue and Xu Shujian. Both of them were practical; the reason they had backed Lin Xiaoxian earlier was that Zhang Qidong had been the one doing all the talking, while Lin Xiaoxian had stayed silent, and Lin Xiaoxian herself had once stood at the summit of the entertainment world.

In the public eye, Song Yue’s status was higher than Zhang Qidong’s. Her family’s company was one of the representative enterprises in Hua Nation’s food industry, and even now it was thriving. Among its brands was a snack line aimed at young people, which Song Yue had built up with her own hands.

As for Zhang Qidong? Though he was high-profile, anyone who knew the least bit about it understood what was really going on.

He had not simply switched careers. His family business had been in decline for years; it was a move of necessity. And his transition had been driven almost entirely by Lin Xiaoxian’s fame.

Pan Yun talked a lot, but she knew where the line was. Deep down, she respected Song Yue more than Zhang Qidong. Xu Shujian had truly been popular back then, too. From her perspective, if Song Yue had not really spent money and effort to help Xu Shujian terminate his contract, Xu Shujian’s fans would have torn Song Yue apart.

In Pan Yun’s eyes, Song Yue had money, talent, and decisiveness. As for Xu Shujian, he had fans; an iconic idol like that could disappear for ten years and still, who knew, there might be deranged fanatics left.

Toward the two of them, Pan Yun’s current thought was simply to remain respectful.

If Song Yue herself had not said anything bad about Xu Shujian, Pan Yun would not say it either, and Chen Linye certainly would not.

Looking at the whole scene, Chen Linye found himself a little envious of Yu Hui’s personality. That guy really was a rock musician through and through, saying whatever he pleased.

As for Song Yue, she kept looking at Yu Hui several times and tried to speak more than once, only to be held back by Xu Shujian.

The first group gathering came to an end.

Before they knew it, the sky had also darkened. Chen Linye and Yu Hui went to fetch their guitars, and the group sat together playing and singing; it really did begin to feel like a shared trip.

Lin Xiaoxian felt a little cold and got up to fetch a coat. Zhang Qidong sat unmoved, occasionally offering his opinions on the songs Chen Linye and Yu Hui sang, and when the mood struck him, he even picked a couple of songs for them to perform.

Song Yue leaned toward Xu Shujian. “Don’t you usually practice vocals and write songs? Not going to sing one?”

Not far away, Huang Lingling heard her and immediately looked over. “Yeah, Shujian, sing one. I haven’t heard you sing in ages. If I hadn’t left my phone behind, I’d still have the old stage videos of yours saved.”

Xu Shujian smiled. “I’ve eaten too much. My throat’s not comfortable. Let them sing; they sound pretty good.”

Huang Lingling got up and walked to the other side of the table, directly opposite Xu Shujian. Bending down, she said in a low voice, “Don’t mind him. Yu Hui’s just like that. He can take issue with anything under heaven.”

Xu Shujian smiled faintly. “I don’t mind. I’m not that petty. Your husband is pretty honest.”

Huang Lingling snorted twice. “Honest my foot. As long as you don’t mind.”

After Huang Lingling left, Song Yue let out a soft sigh.

Xu Shujian leaned closer. “I know what’s what. It’s one thing for you to bully me all the time, but how could I let someone else bully me?”

Song Yue gave a light hum. “I don’t bully you that much. At most, I ignore you.”

Xu Shujian leaned back in his chair. Across from them, many of the production crew had already gone, and the blurred expanse of Qionghai could be seen in the distance, cool and refreshing.

He rather liked the current state of things with Song Yue. This kind of mutual consideration did not mean their feelings had come back from the dead; Song Yue was indeed, as she had said, a woman for whom love now carried less weight in her world.

There had been real conflicts between them in private as well. Even Xu Shujian now could still remember several heart-wrenching things.

They were merely preserving decorum. In the end, both of them truly wanted the other to do well.

As for that rock musician, Xu Shujian had taken offense. He wanted to hit precisely. If his memory was correct, the program had a segment coming up called the zero-point moment of marriage.

He and Song Yue were on the same page, with no openings to exploit, but what about Yu Hui and Huang Lingling?

And Zhang Qidong, that old fossil—none of them were getting away.

...

The next day, November second.

The moment Xu Shujian opened his eyes, he heard the sound of waves. After a moment of dazedness, he got out of bed and dressed.

Glancing at the bed beside him, he saw that Zhang Qidong was still fast asleep.

Xu Shujian remembered going to bed around eleven the night before. At some point in the middle of the night, Zhang Qidong had come in and woken him once with the noise; when he checked the time, it was already past two in the morning.

That old fossil really was treating this divorce trip like a vacation.

Xu Shujian was the youngest in the group, just turned thirty-two. Song Yue was a year older than him, Huang Lingling seemed about the same age, more or less close to Song Yue, while the rest all appeared to be around forty.

No, Zhang Qidong was almost fifty, he just looked to be in his forties.

After washing up, Xu Shujian had only just stepped out of the bedroom when he saw Tang Mingyue carrying a pile of bags. Xu Shujian quickened his pace a little.

“Even breakfast is being delivered by you?”

Tang Mingyue stopped. “It’s fine, it isn’t heavy, and I had time anyway, so I brought it over on the way. You’re up this early?”

“I went to bed early.”

Though she said it wasn’t necessary, Xu Shujian still took several of the bags from her.

“Perfect timing, then. After the others finished their post-recording interviews last night, they came looking for you. They said you were asleep. Should we eat first, or...?”

“Then let’s finish the work first.”

The interview room was in the neighboring courtyard, in a small house.

It seemed that this program required a follow-up interview after every recording session. It had been the same after yesterday’s test.

Though called a follow-up interview, it felt a bit like an interview. There were many cameras set up in the room, though Tang Mingyue did not appear on camera.

Leaning against the wall, Tang Mingyue asked the first question: “You’ve interacted with everyone yesterday. Compared with them, what are your impressions?”

“Every family has its own troubles.”

“I see that you and Sister Yue seem to understand each other quite well. After this trip, do you hope the final outcome will be separation, or do you hope that, after better understanding and mutual comprehension, you can keep going?”

“How should I put it... I think we already understand each other well enough. You’re still a little afraid to ask directly. Our situation may be different from theirs. Right now, both of us still want to separate. As for right and wrong, in the face of that result, it isn’t so important anymore. This explanation is for your production team to hear, so don’t think we’re unwilling to examine our relationship or that we’re disrespecting the program’s process.”

“Is this a kind of despair?”

Xu Shujian shook his head. “Not really. I think what she said is quite right. Love is only a small part of life.”