RMM – Chapter 76 A Chance Encounter with a Scumbag

The “old place” Su Ruo referred to was the café owned by Wang Xuan.

By the time she arrived, He Wen was already there, sipping coffee in a corner.

“Ruoruo, over here!” He Wen called out as soon as Su Ruo walked in.

“Vivi’s not here yet?” Su Ruo asked as she sat down.

“Nope, looks like we’ll have to wait. No idea what’s up with that girl—she’s been totally MIA these past few days,” He Wen said with a frown. Could it be because of Mo Qi?

“What happened to her? Is she okay?”

Just as Su Ruo asked, He Wen said, “Well, speak of the devil—there she is. Ask her yourself, see if you can get anything out of her.”

Su Ruo rolled her eyes at He Wen’s grinning face and turned around to see Duan Wei approaching. She looked perfectly fine—spirited, even. No signs of anything being wrong. Probably nothing serious?

“Vivi, Miss Su here wants to know why you’ve been missing in action lately,” He Wen said as soon as Duan Wei sat down, her face brimming with curiosity.

Su Ruo nearly choked. She glared at He Wen, who was waggling her eyebrows at her. What a shameless woman.

Duan Wei shot He Wen a sideways glance, leaned back against the cushion, and let out a satisfied sigh before saying, “This lady’s been cultivating her inner peace. How could I allow you mere mortals to disturb me?”

Su Ruo looked surprised. “Tsk, Vivi, are you becoming a hermit now? Reading classics by candlelight or something?”

“Pfft—cough cough…” He Wen nearly spat out her coffee, clearly choked by the comment. Reading classics by candlelight? Sounds like Vivi is halfway to becoming a Buddhist nun.

Su Ruo blinked, confused by the strong reaction to what she thought was just a joke, and turned to look at Duan Wei.

“Ignore her—she’s just a lunatic,” Duan Wei said, casting a scornful glance at the still-coughing He Wen.

She didn’t mention anything about Mo Qi. She had already decided to let it go. No point in bringing it up again.

Su Ruo could tell Duan Wei was hiding something. But since she didn’t want to talk, she didn’t press. If Vivi didn’t want to say it, she wouldn’t pry.

At that moment, the waitress came over with two cups of coffee. Since the trio were regulars, the staff had memorized their usual orders and always brought them without needing to ask.

“Where’s your boss? Wang Xuan’s not here today?” Su Ruo asked curiously, noticing she hadn’t seen him since arriving.

“He just stepped out. He should be back soon. Want me to call him for you?”

The waitress was a sweet-looking girl with a nice temper, always smiling.

“No need, I was just asking.” Su Ruo waved it off. She wasn’t on some inspection visit—if he wasn’t around, he wasn’t around.

“Alright then, enjoy your drinks, Sister Du, I won’t bother you anymore.” With a smile, the girl went off to tend to other customers.

“So,” He Wen turned back to Su Ruo, “tell us—why aren’t you spending more time with your dear commander? What brings you back so soon?”

“He’s busy, and I was bored staying at home by myself, so I came back. Plus, there’s this weirdo neighbor over there—I got sick of dealing with her.”

“Weirdo neighbor? How weird are we talking? Weird enough to make you flee?” Duan Wei asked, intrigued.

He Wen also looked interested, eyes practically sparkling.

“She started off digging into my entire family history, then had the audacity to warn me to watch out for my man cheating on me. Said no matter how pretty I am, wildflowers are more fragrant.” Su Ruo’s face twisted in indignation. “Seriously, who says stuff like that? Has nothing better to do!”

As soon as she finished, both He Wen and Duan Wei choked at the same time, sputtering with laughter and coughing uncontrollably.

Su Ruo scooted her chair away in disgust. “Ugh, you two…”

“Hahaha, I’m dying,” He Wen finally caught her breath and started laughing again.

“Right? Isn’t that ridiculous? That woman’s nuts,” Su Ruo continued, ignoring their laughter.

“Commander Xi cheating… why does that sound so implausible?” Duan Wei said through her laughter.

“Exactly! I mean, Ruoruo, your man is basically a walking ice cube. Does he even know how to cheat?” He Wen added, then leaned in. “Seriously, how do you two get along? Doesn’t he freeze you out?”

“Ugh, what nonsense. You guys just don’t get it—my man’s wonderful, alright? You’ll never understand.” Su Ruo rolled her eyes. Why do they always act like he’s some kind of robot? He’s perfectly easy to get along with!

He Wen and Duan Wei exchanged a look and burst into knowing laughter—though it looked more like wicked grins.

“Come on, tell us—what’s so special about Commander Xi that’s got you completely hooked?” Duan Wei leaned closer, voice low and teasing.

“Pah! You two got dirty minds! Quit talking nonsense,” Su Ruo scolded, her cheeks tinged with pink.

“Ohoho, someone’s blushing. Sounds like your life is very harmonious,” He Wen said with a mischievous grin. “Given the commander’s stamina, seven or eight times a night should be no problem, huh?”

“Scram! Filthy minds, the both of you. I’m not wasting my breath on this.”

“Hey, sex might seem pervy, but it’s the most serious business in the world,” Duan Wei joked with a laugh.

“Ahem—anyway, having a healthy relationship is great. So Ruoruo, when are you planning to have kids?” He Wen changed the subject, worried Su Ruo might actually get mad.

Kids? The word wasn’t unfamiliar to Su Ruo. Her mother and mother-in-law had both brought it up before. But she had never seriously thought about it—it always felt too soon, too surreal.

But now that it was mentioned, she suddenly remembered that she and Xi Yuechen hadn’t used any protection recently. She hadn’t been thinking about it at the time, and he hadn’t mentioned it either.

“Kids? I guess… we’ll let fate decide,” Su Ruo said, then paused. But what does Xi Yuechen think about kids? He’s never said. Does he even like them?

They’d never taken any precautions—what if she really did get pregnant? Who would the baby resemble? If it looked like him… would it be a little old man?

The thought made Su Ruo laugh out loud. Actually, having a kid didn’t sound so bad. At least she’d have something to do—it wouldn’t be so boring.

He Wen and Duan Wei gave her confused looks. What’s so funny all of a sudden?

After sitting around for a while, Duan Wei insisted on taking Su Ruo to the hospital to check on her injured hand. It still looked bad, and if it scarred, it’d be awful.

Su Ruo agreed. Just as the three stepped out of the café, they ran into Wang Xuan returning.

He looked surprised. “Leaving already? Stay a bit longer—I’ll make you my signature dessert.”

“Nah, we’ve been here a while. You go do your thing—we’re heading somewhere else,” Su Ruo replied with a smile, not mentioning the hospital. No need to drag out an old incident.

Seeing they were really leaving, Wang Xuan didn’t push it.

He Wen didn’t let Su Ruo drive her own car—she loaded everyone into hers and headed for the hospital.

The place wasn’t crowded, and He Wen immediately led them upstairs. Her uncle was the deputy director, so they didn’t need to register or wait.

Since the elevator was packed and the destination was only the fourth floor, they decided to take the stairs.

Halfway between the third and fourth floors, Duan Wei suddenly stopped. Su Ruo walked ahead a few steps before noticing and turned to call her—only to see Duan Wei frozen, eyes locked on something ahead.

He Wen noticed too. Frowning, she followed Duan Wei’s gaze—and was also stunned.

What the hell… why is he here?

Su Ruo saw their expressions change and grew curious. Following their gaze, the first thing she saw was a sign: Obstetrics & Gynecology. Then, she spotted a couple standing there, chatting and laughing.

Her first impression? The man was handsome, the woman sweet and clingy. They looked like a good match. But what’s up with these two?

“Vivi, let’s go upstairs and check Ruoruo’s hand. If it scars, that’d be awful. Come on, or the doctors will be off duty soon,” He Wen quickly snapped back to her senses, pulling Duan Wei upstairs. Damn it. Why didn’t we take the elevator? Now look what happened…

But still… what were those two doing in OB-GYN? Could she be pregnant?!

She snuck a glance at Duan Wei’s face—expressionless, giving nothing away. But her dim, lifeless gaze was heartbreaking.

Poor girl… what kind of sins did Vivi commit in her past life to deserve a scumbag like that in this one?

Duan Wei let herself be pulled to the fourth floor without a word. The air was heavy with unspoken emotions.

Su Ruo started to wonder—was that man someone from Duan Wei’s past? Even she could feel the sadness in the air. Just who is he, to make Vivi this upset?

She kept quiet and simply followed them.

On the fourth floor, Duan Wei suddenly said, “I’m feeling a bit tired. You two go ahead, I’ll sit here for a while.”

Su Ruo understood and nodded. She knew Duan Wei was in no mood right now.

He Wen was more worried. That scumbag and his girl were clearly there for pregnancy—how could Duan Wei not realize? Leaving her here alone didn’t seem right.

She wasn’t afraid Duan Wei would rush down to start a fight, but emotional pain like this was worse than confrontation.

“I’m fine. Don’t worry. You two go—I just want some quiet,” Duan Wei reassured them, and He Wen had no choice but to leave her with a few words of caution.

Once they were alone, Su Ruo turned to He Wen. “Who was that man on the third floor?”

“The guy Vivi’s been in love with since childhood. But she was blind—he’s a scumbag,” He Wen said through gritted teeth.

Since childhood?!

“He’s married?” Su Ruo asked. That much seemed obvious—he and the girl had looked very close, and they were in OB-GYN. Likely even expecting.

“Yep, married earlier this year. And now there’s a bun in the oven,” He Wen said angrily, sitting down heavily on a bench in the hallway.

Su Ruo sat beside her, waiting for her to go on.

“His name is Mo Qi. I don’t know how Vivi met him as a kid, but she’s been hung up on him half her life. You’ve scolded her before too, remember? You guys even fought over it. It was like she was cursed—he was awful, but she just wouldn’t give up. Always trailing after him, claiming she’d marry him someday. And what did he do? Married his junior schoolmate and is now happily playing house. Ugh!”

He Wen spat in disgust and continued, “That jerk’s hated rich people since forever—no idea what childhood trauma he had, but he always looked down on us. Never missed a chance to say how much he loathes the wealthy. Pfft! More like jealous!”

He Wen was getting worked up, and Su Ruo had the general idea by now. It was the classic story: unrequited love—Duan Wei’s deep feelings for a man named Mo Qi, who ultimately married someone else.

Love… like drinking water—only the one drinking knows if it’s hot or cold. No matter how clear things seem to outsiders, what can they really do?