Ordinary World: Starting with a divorce from Tian Runye

the next day.

The cultural center was unusually quiet.

The cicadas chirping in the old locust tree made people drowsy, and the sun bleached the yellow soil in the yard until it turned white.

Du Lili, unusually, didn't bother Li Xiangqian. After picking him up for work in the morning, she said she had something to do and went out.

Li Xiangqian was overjoyed.

"What's up? Good. Good."

He leaned back in his chair, a copy of the Huangyuan Daily covering his face, and closed his eyes to rest.

Xiao Zhao was intently sharpening pencils across the table, one by one, as if he were doing some kind of precision engineering. Old Yang was buried in his head, flipping through materials, his sour face remaining motionless.

The studio was quiet.

Two o'clock in the afternoon.

A furtive figure appeared at the entrance to the studio.

Sister Sun.

She tiptoed in. Sister Sun, who never left the office except to eat, fetch water, or go to the toilet, actually came over today.

Xiao Zhao was the first to notice and was about to open his mouth to say hello.

Sister Sun quickly made a shushing gesture, putting one finger in front of her lips and her eyes darting around.

She lowered her voice.

"The curator just came back."

Upon hearing this, Old Yang looked up. Du Zhengxian, who always arrived at get off work on time, hadn't come this morning.

Sister Sun continued to lower her voice and leaned forward a little.

"She doesn't look well. I casually asked Lili this morning, and she said Director Ma had called her over."

"Of course it won't be good."

Li Xiangqian's voice drifted out from under the newspaper, muffled.

Everyone turned to look at Li Xiangqian.

He pulled the newspaper off his face, revealing half of it.

"He probably got called in by his boss for a reprimand. No wonder he looked so happy."

Sister Sun nodded vigorously.

"The curator had a sullen face and locked himself in his office as soon as he got back. I didn't feel comfortable asking him anything."

She then became puzzled again.

"Why criticize the curator for no reason?"

Xiao Zhao looked up at Li Xiangqian, and remembering what Li Xiangqian had said when he left yesterday, "The situation is not very good," he spoke up.

"It's probably related to the exhibition."

"exhibition?"

Sister Sun's eyes widened.

"The exhibition is going really well! When we were preparing for this, Lili told me that the county leaders even praised our cultural center."

Xiao Zhao didn't say anything, and looked at Li Xiangqian again.

Old Yang was also puzzled. He rarely looked up from his documents, and his gaze fell on Li Xiangqian.

Li Xiangqian put the newspaper back on his face.

"Why are you looking at me? I was just guessing. But I don't think it's a big problem. I'll just get a scolding, and that'll be the end of it."

Upon hearing this, Sister Sun realized there was indeed some juicy gossip.

Excitement gleamed in his eyes.

"Xiangqian, explain in detail. Tell me more. What were you guessing?"

Xiao Zhao and Lao Yang also looked at Li Xiangqian. Li Xiangqian had read the original work and roughly knew the ins and outs of the matter. These people in front of him only saw the surface and did not know the inside story, so they naturally did not understand.

Li Xiangqian glanced at Sister Sun from under the newspaper.

Humanoid Broadcasting Station.

If I open my mouth to her, the whole of Yuanxi City will probably know by tomorrow.

"It's nothing. Perhaps our exhibition materials didn't meet the leadership's expectations."

Xiao Zhao and Lao Yang exchanged a glance, still looking puzzled.

Sister Sun scratched her head.

"That's it? I thought there was more to it than met the eye."

After saying that, he left the studio dejectedly.

The atmosphere at the cultural center was eerie.

The quietness turned into a deliberate silence.

In the reading room, Old Wu dared not doze off at the table anymore. He sat upright with his enamel mug in hand, staring at a copy of the People's Daily for the entire afternoon.

In the studio, Xiao Zhao went through the sketches he had drawn that day three times, measuring the edges of each one with a ruler to align them to the millimeter. Old Yang lowered his head even further, his bitter face almost touching the table.

In the business room, Sister Sun held her breath and glanced at Du Zhengxian's office every now and then.

Li Xiangqian, however, remained the same as always.

He leaned back in his chair, his face covered with a copy of the Huangyuan Daily, his legs stretched out on the edge of the table, and his breathing even.

Everyone is just waiting for time to pass.

Xiao Zhao kept glancing at the clock on the wall. The hands seemed to be held still, refusing to move.

4:30.

4:40.

4:42.

4:42.

Has this broken clock stopped?

Xiao Zhao raised his hand and waved it under the clock, trying to see if the hands were stuck by something.

Finally, it's 5:30. Time to leave work.

People at the cultural center began to leave one after another. Old Wu was the first to leave, carrying an enamel mug, his steps twice as fast as usual. Old Yang packed his things slowly, but also faster than usual. Little Zhao put his sketches into a file bag, slung his bag over his shoulder, and as he walked to the door of the studio, he suddenly turned back and saw Li Xiangqian lingering there.

"Aren't you leaving yet?" Xiao Zhao asked in a low voice.

"I'm different from you. I have a personal driver."

Li Xiangqian's voice came from under the newspaper.

Xiao Zhao glanced at the sky outside.

"I heard from Sister Sun at lunch that Lili seems to have gone to Huangyuan. She might not be back tonight."

"ha?"

Li Xiangqian sat up abruptly from his chair, tearing the newspaper off his face with a whoosh.

"How dare you keep something so important from me? How despicable!"

Xiao Zhao shrugged.

"I heard about it too. I'm leaving now."

Xiao Zhao left. Li Xiangqian was left alone in the studio.

Li Xiangqian strolled to the door of the studio, hunched over, and peeked outside.

The scorching sun still hung over the western mountain ridge, and the leaves of the old locust tree curled and wilted from the heat. The courtyard was quiet yet blazing.

In this weather, should we walk back?

Li Xiangqian weighed his legs. It was about five li (about 2.5 kilometers) from the cultural center to the transportation department's residential compound. In this weather, he figured he'd collapse halfway there.

He sighed, walked to the shade of the old locust tree, and refused to take another step.

Get ready to sit down and wait for the heat to subside a little before moving on.

This woman is completely unreliable.

Li Xiangqian inwardly complained about Du Lili. She hadn't even said a word when he picked her up in the morning, and she hadn't even informed him when she went to Huangyuan.

Just as he was about to squat down under the tree, he suddenly caught a glimpse of a head peeking out of the courtyard gate.

Li Xiangqian focused his pupils and looked up.

Moistening leaves?

The two locked eyes.

Runye's face instantly turned red with embarrassment. She quickly pulled her head back, hopped on her bicycle, and was about to ride away.

"Runye!"

Li Xiangqian hurriedly got up and ran towards the courtyard gate.

Runye didn't even look back, she just picked up her bicycle and rode away.

Li Xiangqian chased after him out of the hospital gate.

"Runye!"

He shouted.

Runye remained silent, focusing solely on riding hard, her legs pedaling at breakneck speed.

Li Xiangqian chased after him, the ground steaming with heat. He hadn't gone more than ten meters before he started panting, his knees buckling under his weight.

"What a heartless woman... We're already here... and she didn't even think to take me back on the way."

Li Xiangqian muttered to himself as he panted.

Damn it, you ride fast!

Li Xiangqian straightened up, ready to accept his fate.

Just as I looked up, a bicycle suddenly appeared in front of me.

Runye stopped beside him at some point, one foot on the ground, her face turned away, looking elsewhere, not at him.

"Get in the car."

The voice was cold.