The Scheming Ex-Husband's Courtship-Chapter 469 - 418 Happiness Is So Simple

Chapter 469: Chapter 418 Happiness Is So Simple
Qiao San saw Zhuo Yuqing coming down from upstairs with a suitcase early in the morning and wondered, "Aren’t you leaving on the seventh?"
"Bai Chengxi is returning to Aus City today. I’m going with him." Zhuo Yuqing looked around and realized Zhuo Yao wasn’t home; he had said yesterday that he was going out to sea with Uncle Zhang Qian early this morning to ice fish.
"Look at you, girl. Following your husband the moment he leaves, not the least bit shy." Qiao San cast a playful glance at her, though in reality, she was reluctant to see her daughter leave. Once she went back, who knows when she would return.
Zhuo Yuqing clearly understood her true feelings. She set down her suitcase and comforted Qiao San by wrapping her arms around her neck: "The Lantern Festival is soon. I’ll definitely rush back then."
"The first Lantern Festival after getting married should be spent with your in-laws. It’s unthinkable for you to come back. Don’t give the Bai Family an excuse to complain. If I miss you, I can always ask you to come back; it’s just a three-hour flight," Qiao San softened, her words tinged with a faint sadness. Her daughter was grown up, married, and she could no longer keep her by her side like in the past. But that’s the price of growing up, and it’s the goal she ultimately had to fulfill: to marry her daughter off to a good family, then watch her lead a happy life, bear children, and keep on being happy forever.
"Mom," Zhuo Yuqing’s voice choked up. She couldn’t help but hug her tightly, "Whenever I have time, I’ll come back to stay with you and dad."
"Silly girl, we have your brother. That kid is enough to keep us busy. You should focus on your work and family. Now that you’re married, you’re not a child anymore. Certain matters require you to think of the bigger picture and not to give the Bai Family any reason to laugh at us. If anything upsets you, just call home. With mom and dad here, no one can bully you, understand?" Qiao San patted her daughter’s back, holding back the tears that welled up in her eyes, "We will always be your strong support."
"Yeah, thanks mom."
The mother and daughter shared a moment of emotion until Zhuo Yuqing’s phone rang.
Intuitively guessing who it was, Qiao San tidied up her coat’s zipper, "All right, off you go, don’t keep Chengxi waiting outside too long. Call me when you get to Aus City."
"Then I’m off." Zhuo Yuqing kissed her face, "Goodbye, mom."
The moment Zhuo Yuqing stepped out the door, she saw Bai Chengxi standing by the car, smoking. She never really liked men who smoked, feeling the scent too irritating. Zhuo Yao smoked too, but he would do it on the balcony and wasn’t a heavy smoker. In contrast, Bai Chengxi smoked fiercely, going through two packs a day with ease.
Perhaps love turned bias, now she found his smoking demeanor incredibly cool and overpowering, giving off a vibe like those male models in street photos.
Moreover, the scent of tobacco on him wasn’t very strong, it was mild and enchantingly fragrant.
Spotting her from afar, Bai Chengxi stubbed out his cigarette, glancing at the car’s rearview mirror to check his disheveled hair. He casually straightened it up before walking over to greet her.
"Have you been waiting long?" Seeing him made Zhuo Yuqing recall last night’s event. She was so embarrassed she dared not meet his eyes and looked down at the tips of her shoes instead.
"No, I just got here." Bai Chengxi took her suitcase while his assistant had already opened the trunk of the taxi, "Did your mom agree to let you go back?"
"She agreed. I’ll come back when I have the time to accompany her."
He was delighted she could accompany him back to Aus City without hesitation, pleased that she now liked to follow him everywhere, as if his silent longing had been answered. This feeling was indescribably beautiful.
The flight ticket had already been booked last night. Upon arriving at the airport, the three entered the VIP lounge. Knowing Zhuo Yuqing had gotten up early and probably hadn’t eaten, Bai Chengxi asked his assistant to order breakfast.
Zhuo Yuqing was eating while he sat aside, drinking coffee and reading the newspaper. Outside the floor-to-ceiling glass window, people bustled in and out of the airport, yet the atmosphere at their small round table was quietly serene.
"Eat the egg," Bai Chengxi glanced at her from his newspaper, reminding her without neglect.
Zhuo Yuqing didn’t feel like eating eggs that day. After hearing his words, she picked up the quartered egg with a fork and brought it to his mouth, "I don’t want it, you eat."
"You should learn not to be picky with food. As an adult, don’t act like a child. You’re likely to suffer from nutritional deficiencies," Bai Chengxi lectured her like an elder, yet opened his mouth to eat the egg she fed him.
"You’re as nagging as my dad," Zhuo Yuqing pouted, then pushed all the remaining three pieces of egg into Bai Chengxi’s mouth.
"Bai Chengxi." Zhuo Yuqing suddenly remembered what Tang Tianyou had said to her the other night, purely out of curiosity. After putting down her bowl and chopsticks, she asked him, "Did you build up Xingdong from scratch?"
Bai Chengxi looked up from the newspaper, nodding, "Yes."
"Was it very hard when you first started your business?" Zhuo Yuqing felt a sudden pang of sympathy. He did it without relying on family connections, relying solely on his own abilities. He must’ve been hands-on with everything, surely encountering failures and setbacks along the way.
"Not too bad, I borrowed the initial capital from my father, and it was all lost within a month, and then, I mortgaged a villa I owned to the bank for a loan," Bai Chengxi spoke calmly as if it was someone else’s story.
"What about that house?"
"Lost it too." He signaled a waiter who promptly came over to clear the finished dishes. "Lost three times, almost to the point of losing everything. Back then,"
With the newspaper folded in his hands, Bai Chengxi’s gaze became deep. After that? He didn’t want to mention the memories that followed right now.
Just then, Bai Chengxi’s phone suddenly rang. He glanced at the caller ID and immediately rejected the call.
"Why aren’t you answering your phone?" Zhuo Yuqing pointed at his mobile phone, which had lit up again, indicating that there must be some urgent matter, otherwise the calls wouldn’t keep coming in one after another.
Bai Chengxi seemed to be annoyed by the phone calls, and finally he just turned off his phone: "We’ve passed the security check."
Zhuo Yuqing just uttered "oh", not understanding why he didn’t answer the call, but if he didn’t want to, he must have his reasons, so she didn’t press with curious questions. Instead, she grinned and said to him: "After we go in, I want to visit the specialty supermarket to buy some local products for grandma and the others."
"It’s nice of you to think of that, grandma will definitely be happy."
"What does grandma like to eat?"
"She’ll like anything you buy."
Zhuo Yuqing: "..."
After passing through security, Zhuo Yuqing and Bai Chengxi entered a specialty store. She had almost bought one of each specialty from Aus City, and the assistant carrying the shopping was nearly overwhelmed by the gifts.
Back in the waiting area, Zhuo Yuqing was still checking to see if they had forgotten to buy anything when her assistant’s phone suddenly rang. After answering and listening to a few sentences, the assistant looked towards Bai Chengxi.
Bai Chengxi was sitting side by side with Zhuo Yuqing, peering into something in her hand, apparently finding something interesting. He smiled as he caught sight of it, and Zhuo Yuqing smiled back at him, whispering a few words in his ear.
Seeing the two of them so affectionate with each other, the assistant hesitated for a moment, but because it was a matter of life and death, he still approached with the phone in hand.
"Mr. Bai," the assistant lowered his voice, "Miss Su’s assistant called saying that Miss Su accidentally fell while doing wire stunts on set, and she’s now in the hospital."
Bai Chengxi’s expression froze for a moment, but he quickly regained his composure, "Does it have anything to do with me?"
The assistant was also taken aback, but he soon understood what Bai Chengxi meant. Mr. Bai intended to stay out of the issue.
The assistant had been with Bai Chengxi since he started Starlight and could be considered the one who knew him best. Naturally, he had also witnessed the entirety of his relationship with Su Yingluo from start to finish.
"Then I know what to do," said the assistant as he walked away with the phone.
Zhuo Yuqing was still counting the spoils of her shopping when she suddenly slapped her forehead, "I forgot to buy Liu Lian’s favorite durian cookies, wait for me, I’ll go buy a couple of packs."
Zhuo Yuqing put down her things and took her wallet to the specialty supermarket.
Bai Chengxi watched her figure disappear into the distance, the warmth in his smile like sunlight that couldn’t quite melt away. A little while after she walked out, she suddenly turned around and waved at him, mouthing that she would be right back.
Bai Chengxi chuckled and nodded his head.
Planes were rising and falling outside the window. A long time ago, Bai Chengxi stood at the airport seeing off his past love. It was from that day that he decided to forget the past.
To him, Zhuo Yuqing was like a rebirth, reviving the river of emotions that had been still for ten years.
The heart which he thought had withered was resuscitated by her presence. He was never one to be fickle, once resolved upon a path, committed to a person, he would see it through without looking back.
Call him heartless or cold-blooded, the past people and things should remain as memories, he no longer wanted to carry the past into the present. For him it was pain, for her, it would be unfair.
Bai Chengxi didn’t turn on his phone again; he quietly closed his eyes to rest. Not long after, his nose felt a gentle poke from soft fingers. Opening his eyes, he saw Zhuo Yuqing leaning over him, her bright, sparkling eyes brimming with clear laughter.
She smiled and looked at him: "Did you fall asleep?"
He took the opportunity to pull her head down and kiss her, "Even if I was asleep, you woke me up."
Being kissed in front of others, Zhuo Yuqing immediately looked around, fortunately, no one noticed,
"I’m reminding you that it’s almost time to board the plane."
"Hmm, let’s go," Bai Chengxi took her hand, "Let’s go home."
"Home," the simple two words seemed to instantly shorten the distance between them. Zhuo Yuqing looked at their intertwined fingers, a satisfied smile spreading across her face.
For her, happiness was just that simple.