Three Turrets
Han Chen let out a cold grunt, then restarted the car and pressed down on the accelerator. Once the car reached the main road, it didn’t turn towards East Jiang University but continued straight ahead.
“Where are you taking me?” Zhou Mo panicked.
“Don’t you want to meet my mom?”
“Who said I wanted to meet Auntie Liang?” Zhou Mo was both speechless and annoyed.
“She wants to meet you.”
“...”
“She’s been urging me ever since we bumped into you downstairs, asking why I haven’t been in contact. She even reminded me that you and your ex had broken up.”
“Why does she bring up those things?” Zhou Mo wondered.
“What do you think?”
Zhou Mo felt awkward and embarrassed. She hadn’t told Zhou Zheng or Liu Xiangru about her relationship with Han Chen during their university days, but Liang Xiyun knew.
Gripping the seatbelt, Zhou Mo was torn. “Han Chen, I really can’t go meet Auntie Liang. If I do, it will be even harder to get a divorce.”
“What if we don’t tell her we’re married? Just pretend we’re neighbors like before. Would that work?”
Zhou Mo hesitated for a moment.
Han Chen took the opportunity to accelerate.
When Zhou Mo realized what was happening, the car had already arrived at the entrance of Century Garden. The license plate was recognized by the camera, and the barrier quickly lifted, allowing the car to enter the residential area.
As they passed the security booth at the entrance, the security guard warmly greeted Han Chen, “Dr. Han.”
He then noticed the beautiful girl sitting in the passenger seat and asked with a smile, “Is this your girlfriend?”
“... ” Han Chen hesitated for a moment, then glanced at Zhou Mo and replied lightly, “Yes.“
Zhou Mo stared at Han Chen as if she had seen a ghost, her eyes filled with terror.
Ignoring Zhou Mo, Han Chen parked the car in a parking space in front of Building D.
Zhou Mo pushed the door open and looked at the high-rise building in front of her. “Where is this? Your house?”
“Yes,” Han Chen responded briefly and locked the car before leading the way.
Entering through the glass door on the first floor, they were faced with an elevator. Han Chen pressed the elevator button, and Zhou Mo looked at him skeptically before stepping inside.
“I’m not a bad person, why are you looking at me like that?” Han Chen pressed the door close button.
“It’s because you’re an acquaintance and an old classmate that I came with you. Otherwise, I would have called the police long ago.”
Han Chen shook his head in silence.
The two of them arrived on the third floor. Han Chen took out his keys and opened the door, while Zhou Mo said from behind, “The third floor is nice. It’s not too high.”
“My mom chose it,” Han Chen opened the door. “Come in.”
Zhou Mo peeked into the house and exclaimed in surprise, “Did you clean up by yourself?”
“Instead, who else?” Han Chen bent down and handed Zhou Mo a pair of new women’s slippers from the shoe cabinet.
“Not bad. After a few years, you’ve become quite capable. Living alone is no problem for you now.” Zhou Mo changed her shoes and confidently walked into the living room.
The gray fabric sofa was square and neat, the style Zhou Mo liked. She sat down and found it unexpectedly soft and comfortable, which pleased her.
Directly opposite was a 60-inch ultra-thin LCD TV embedded in the wall, which saved a lot of space in the living room. The TV’s background wall was simply decorated with warm-colored wallpaper, giving it a cozy and comfortable feel.
There was a row of flower racks on the balcony, but only a few pots of green plants and cacti were placed, making it look somewhat monotonous and empty.
Zhou Mo carefully surveyed the place. “You could set up an artistic flower rack, one with multiple levels. It doesn’t take up much space and looks beautiful.”
“I don’t have time to do that,” Han Chen entered the kitchen to boil water for tea.
Hearing the sound of the kettle, Zhou Mo hurried to the kitchen and discovered Han Chen washing something. Unable to resist, she glanced into the basin and saw red dates, longan, goji berries, and raisins.
“What are you doing?”
“It’s for making tea,” Han Chen poured water into the glass teapot and added the washed dried fruits. “Have you heard of Three Turrets?”
Zhou Mo shook her head.
Han Chen added jasmine tea and poured the hot water, then explained, “It’s something a patient from the northwest region taught me.”
Zhou Mo’s eyes sparkled. “It seems being a doctor has changed you a lot.”
“Not all of it is because of being a doctor.”
“What else is it?”
“Various reasons,” Zhou Mo nodded understandingly.
Han Chen finished brewing the tea and said, “Let’s wait for a moment. This tea needs some time to steep.”
“Okay.”
“What do you think of my place?” Han Chen looked around the kitchen and glanced at the dining area behind him. “Three bedrooms and two living rooms, a decent size. The decoration is simple and warm, pleasing to the eye. Not bad.”
“Does it meet your requirements?”
Zhou Mo didn’t understand, “What requirements?”
“The level of cleanliness, is it up to your threshold for cleanliness obsession?”
“...” Zhou Mo was taken aback. “Why do you always bring up cleanliness obsession?”
“Because your cleanliness obsession annoys people.”
“...”
Zhou Mo felt a bit lacking in confidence and uneasiness.
“Are you still angry about our breakup and my comment about not being able to tolerate your cleanliness?”
Han Chen didn’t say anything. He walked to the living room with the glass teapot and picked up a white porcelain cup from the table to pour the tea.
Zhou Mo followed him. “I’m sorry. If I knew you cared so much, I would have definitely come up with a better reason back then.”
“What other reason do you want to find?” Han Chen asked softly.
“...”
Han Chen handed the teacup to Zhou Mo. “Tell me, what was the real reason for breaking up back then?”
“So, you do care,” Zhou Mo took the teacup, but it was scalding hot, so she quickly placed it on the table and blew on her fingers, exclaiming, “Hurt, hurt, hurt...”
Han Chen seemed to be intentionally enjoying the scene, wearing an expression as if watching a show.
Zhou Mo glared at Han Chen with a touch of grievance. “That was so many years ago. Can’t we just let it go?”
“I can’t.”
“Do you really have to know?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“A knot in my heart, I’m unable to understand.”
Zhou Mo scoffed, “You still haven’t gotten over me?”
Han Chen’s gaze swept coldly over her. “The confusion from the past has nothing to do with my current feelings. I just don’t like being denied.”
Zhou Mo instantly suppressed her smile.
Han Chen’s meaning was clear.
Her rejection had hurt the pride of this exceptional individual, and it had nothing to do with whether he had feelings for her or not.
Zhou Mo pondered for a moment, trying hard to recall those gradually fading memories.
“I can’t remember clearly. Maybe it was because I was about to take the college entrance examination, and the pressure of getting into a good university was high. The college entrance examination is everything for students. Who would dare to be distracted?“
“Your mock exam scores improved steadily four times. Didn’t being in a relationship affect your studies?” Han Chen asked coldly. “To be honest, what was the real reason?”
“I really can’t remember,” Zhou Mo actually remembered, but she didn’t want to say it.
Seeing Han Chen’s unpleasant expression, Zhou Mo became intrigued. “Is it because you were deeply in love with me back then and still haven’t gotten over it?”
Han Chen sneered in response, “And what about you? Weren’t you serious at that time?”