Chapter 9: Baby, Happy Breakup

What is the reason that you must break up?

Jiang Yuan pursed her lips and fell silent.

Fu Jinxing gazed at her, his eyes focused, quietly waiting for her answer.

Jiang Yuan looked up to meet the man’s probing gaze. She struggled internally, desperately wanting to tell him the truth, yet she felt a sense of difficulty and powerlessness that made it impossible to speak, as if something were preventing her from saying it.

She tried several times, but failed each time. In the end, she only breathed out a few words: "I just want to break up."

This time, it was Fu Jinxing’s turn to be silent.

Jiang Yuan lowered her head to eat.

He watched the girl’s lowered brows and eyes, weighing things in his heart.

In terms of looks, Jiang Yuan was beautiful enough, and her figure was slender and tall.

But when they were together, Fu Jinxing could never find that feeling he had five years ago.

Jiang Yuan wiped her mouth, her tone sincere: "Since you agree to break up, then let’s never meet again."

After saying this, she ignored his reaction and got up to leave on her own.

Fu Jinxing’s gaze fell on her, and he only then noticed that her attire today was like a different person compared to the past.

Down jacket, hoodie, jeans, and sneakers.

He had never seen Jiang Yuan wear such casual clothes. Even on snowy days, she would only wear a thin dress with a coat, and she never went anywhere without high heels.

What was wrong with her today?

Walking out of the private room, Jiang Yuan let out a long breath. The heavy stone that had been pressing on her heart had finally fallen halfway.

Standing in the elevator, her slender, white fingers typed rapidly on her phone screen, impatient to share this good news with Fu Xiaoxiao.

Light snow began to fall from the sky, the white flakes drifting down. Jiang Yuan jogged to get into a ride-hailing car just as Fu Xiaoxiao’s call came through.

"Baby, happy breakup to you!!!"

The corners of Jiang Yuan’s mouth turned up. "I’m finally liberated!"

"Then let’s go to the hot springs to celebrate. You left early on Christmas and didn't get to soak," Fu Xiaoxiao suggested. "The weather is perfect for hot springs right now."

Jiang Yuan smiled and agreed: "Sure, my treat."

"You little thing," Fu Xiaoxiao said, displeased. "Why are we splitting who pays? If I don't spend my money on you, should I save it for some deadbeat?"

Jiang Yuan laughed, feeling a thousand emotions in her heart.

She had a little rich girl right by her side, yet she hadn't cared before and had gone to such lengths to hook up with Fu Jinxing?

Was she possessed or just blinded by stupidity?

**

At ten in the morning, a red BMW stopped in front of a cake shop.

Jiang Yuan got out and walked into the shop, carefully picking out cakes.

She wanted to do her best to make it up to the twins. The childhood trauma brought by a wicked aunt might accompany the children for their whole lives, but she couldn't just do nothing.

Jiang Yuan chose two small cakes: one was a pink lamb, and the other was a yellow bear.

When she was checking out, a mother and daughter were in line behind her. The daughter was about the same age as Momo.

Jiang Yuan heard the little girl asking her mother for chicken wings and made a mental note of it.

She put the cakes in the car and looked for a shop selling chicken wings along the roadside.

There were mostly milk tea shops nearby. After walking for a while, she finally saw a fried food shop called "Old Wang’s Fried Foods." The counter looked neat and clean, and the oil in the fryer seemed clear enough.

"Beauty, what would you like?" The owner was a middle-aged man wearing a hat and a mask.

Jiang Yuan thought it seemed hygienic, so she looked at the menu and ordered fried chicken wings and crispy pork.

The owner smiled cheerfully: "That’ll be sixty-eight yuan, beauty. It’ll take about twenty minutes; everything is fried to order."

"That’s fine." Jiang Yuan ordered a milk tea at the shop next door, warming herself by the heater while she waited.

Music was playing in the shop. As Jiang Yuan listened, she suddenly heard a strange conversation.

"You heartless thing, so what if I ate an extra piece of meat? How dare you nag at me about it?"

"Wife, I didn't! It’s only right that you eat more!"

"Hmph, that’s more like it!"

"Heaven and earth are vast, but a wife is the greatest!"

"You’d better not learn from that stinky old man. It’s wrong of him to fry his wife in a pot of oil!"

Jiang Yuan had been listening with interest while drinking her milk tea, but when she heard the end, she suddenly felt something was wrong.

Who was that stinky old man?

She put down her milk tea and got up to find the two mice that had just been talking.

In the eyes of the mice, humans were like giants.

Jiang Yuan’s appearance scared the mouse couple into scurrying in all directions.

"Mr. Mouse, Mrs. Mouse, don't be afraid," she said quickly. "I just have something to ask you; I won't hurt you."

The mouse couple hid in the green belt along the street.

Hearing her voice, Mrs. Mouse was shocked: "You... you can understand us?"

"I can." Jiang Yuan squatted down by the green belt and whispered, "Just answer a few questions for me, and I’ll buy you food."

Mrs. Mouse was bolder and slowly poked her head out.

Mr. Mouse was worried and tried to stop her: "Wife, be careful. These humans hate us mice; she might be tricking us! Don't fall for it, I don't want to be a widower at such a young age!"

Jiang Yuan: "..."

These mice were quite guarded.

Jiang Yuan decided not to make them come out and asked directly: "I just heard you say that a stinky old man fried his wife in a pot of oil. Who is this stinky old man? Is he a mouse too?"

"What! You human, don't talk nonsense!" Mrs. Mouse said angrily. "We mice would never do such a thing! Only you humans are so cruel!"

Jiang Yuan frowned, her expression growing grave. "You mean, this stinky old man is a human?"

Mrs. Mouse: "That’s right! It’s that owner who sells fried chicken wings. He’s so fierce!"

Mr. Mouse immediately chimed in: "The stinky old man is so fierce. Once, I went inside to find food for my wife and was almost beaten to death by him!"

Mrs. Mouse: "I still feel so heartbroken thinking about it. My husband’s tail was chopped off by a whole section!"

Mr. Mouse also sighed with emotion: "My long tail that I was so proud of will never come back..."

Although the mouse couple was quite funny, Jiang Yuan’s mind was entirely on the fried food owner frying his wife.

She was just about to ask for more details when someone tapped her on the shoulder.

Jiang Yuan turned around and was caught off guard by a human face.

The owner had taken off his mask, revealing a mouthful of yellow teeth as he smiled at her: "Beauty, your fried food is ready."

Jiang Yuan’s back stiffened. Smelling the foul odor coming from him as he spoke, she suddenly felt a bit nauseous.

She pursed her lips and said calmly: "Thank you."

The owner handed her the packed bag, his eyes squinting into slits: "Enjoy the food, beauty, come back again."

Jiang Yuan suddenly felt that smile was a bit creepy.

"Okay, I will." She reached out and took the bag.

The owner went back into the shop and put his mask back on.

Jiang Yuan felt this wasn't a good place to talk. After promising them repeatedly, she finally got the mouse couple to agree to move to a different spot to chat.

She let the two mice crawl into the packaging bag.

Mr. Mouse said excitedly: "It smells so good!"

Jiang Yuan walked as she spoke: "Do you like it? You can have it."