Jiang Zihan wasn't sure whether she still deeply loved her "ex-husband". Their beginning was due to a "one-night stand". Then everything afterward was smooth sailing, just unbelievably. But, is that really all she desired? Jiang Zihan later pondered, the only difference between her relationship with Zhao Mosheng was just a missing 'I love you'."
When Jiang Zihan and Zhao Moshe walked out of the Civil Affairs Bureau, each of them holding a green booklet in their hands, they walked to the Bentley and planned to part ways.
Zhao Moshe turned his head and looked at the ever-indifferent woman, "I will move my stuff out of our home as soon as possible, probably next week. I have to go on a business trip this afternoon."
Jiang Zihan also turned her head, nodding, "Okay. Goodbye."
"Mm, goodbye."
Without further words, Jiang Zihan turned around and left, leaving a helpless smile on Zhao Moshe's face.
After getting in the car, Jiang Zihan felt less happy than she had imagined. They were married for a year, and then they divorced in peace. She was nonchalant, and he was straightforward, giving her his house in the city center as well as some assets. But Jiang Zihan didn't want anything. She knew that with Zhao Moshe's wealth, these things are insignificant to him. But to her, they meant everything. From the day they were married, everyone had ridiculed her for marrying into a wealthy family after a one-night stand.
After getting home, Jiang Zihan flung herself onto the soft couch, feeling hollow inside. The house still held the breath of Zhao Moshe; his study room, the small garden on the balcony, even the pillow in the bedroom. For the first time, Jiang Zihan missed him deeply.
Suddenly, her cell phone rang, interrupting her melancholy. Upon answering, she was met with the roaring voice of her mother.
"Jiang Zihan, you said in the text message that you divorced Zhao Moshe? Are you out of your mind? You're making me incredibly upset. Come home right now and explain yourself. You better have a good reason, or I swear I'll take care of you myself."
Jiang Zihan frowned, fatigue apparent in her voice, "Mom, it's just as you see it. Zhao Mo She and I are incompatible and we've agreed to a divorce. It's as simple as that. There's nothing to explain, really. We have reached the end of the road."
"Okay, okay, you're really getting good at this. Ever since you decided on your own to go to city C to study three years ago, then got into a shotgun marriage after less than a year of working, and now a divorce, you always inform me after you've done it. Did you ever consider how I, your mother, feel about it? Lastly, in what aspect was Zhao Moshe not good enough for you? He's the chief neurosurgeon, from the famous Zhao family corporation, he's tall, handsome... tell me, what part of him is not good enough for you?"
Jiang Zihan was silent for a moment before responding softly, "Mom, I can assure you that we took our marriage seriously. After a year, we realized we were not suitable for each other, and that's why we ended things. This is us being responsible. Better to divorce peacefully now than to fight and become enemies later. So, I don't regret anything."
"Right, you keep saying you have no regrets. But didn't you go to city C sneakily, leaving behind your finance degree to become a nurse, all for Zhao Moshe? You've always been level-headed and even now, going through a divorce, you're able to calmly reason with me. How then could you have made such a foolish decision as a shotgun marriage? If you say that you don't love Zhao Moshe, I won't believe it."
"And what if I do?" Jiang Zihan could not help but interrupt her mother's questioning, continuing with, "I can admit to you right now that I still love him. There...I said it."
Jiang Zihan could vaguely hear his mother's scolding over the phone, but he wasn't paying attention and was completely immersed in the realization that he still loved him.
After he hung up the phone, a missed call notification popped up on his phone screen, and it was from his husband. Jiang Zihan scoffed at himself before calling back.
"Your department head informed me that you submitted your resignation?" Zhao Mosheng was straightforward.
Jiang Zihan glanced at the clock hanging on the wall above him. It was eight in the evening; Zhao Mosheng must have just come out of the operating room. After a moment's hesitation, he said, "Yes, I’ve been pondering for a long time. I think It's best for both of us. After all, we're divorced. It's better not to see each other every day."
"You don't have to leave. In another two months, I will transfer to the General Hospital of City C. You are about to be promoted to Head Nurse and I suggest you not make decisions lightly."
Jiang Zihan was momentarily taken aback before he asked, "Did you request the transfer yourself?"
"Yes, I filed the application before our divorce. I haven't had the chance to tell you."
"..."
The phone call left Jiang Zihan feeling even worse. He didn't want to continue the conversation. After muttering an acknowledgment, he hung up the phone and sank into the sofa, not moving for a long time.
Meanwhile, Zhao Mosheng was furrowing his brows as he looked at his phone. Was Jiang Zihan so eager to break all ties with him after their divorce that he didn't even want to exchange words? His friend and fellow orthopedic doctor, Zhou Zijian walked in with a cup of coffee. Seeing a hint of bewilderment on his face, he asked curiously, "What's wrong? What could possibly bother the legendary Dr. Zhao in the medical field?"
Zhao Mosheng merely gave him a glance without responding.
"Judging by your expression, I'm guessing it has something to do with Nurse Jiang? Did you two have a spat?"
"We divorced this morning," said Zhao Mosheng very calmly, as if the matter had nothing to do with him.
Zhou Zijian was momentarily stunned before he exclaimed in surprise, "What? You're saying you and Nurse Jiang got a divorce?"
"Was I not clear enough or do you think I have time to joke around?" Zhao Mosheng did not lift his head.
Zhou Zijian, "..."
Seeing that Zhao Mosheng remained calm, Zhou Zijian couldn't help but vent, "Living a 28-year life without a history of romance, you'd directly married in a flash, people didn’t even believe when I told them that you were getting married. Who doesn't know how cold-hearted Zhao Mosheng from the medical school is? Okay, everyone thinks that the person who could make you impulsively get married must be someone you deeply love. But after only a year, you told me you're getting divorced! Are you sure this isn't a joke?"
"We are indeed divorced, that is the truth. However, it's not that I don't love her anymore. On the contrary, I still love her. It's just that perhaps I'm not good at managing a marriage with care, disagreements arise that I don’t understand how to resolve, so the ultimate solution was a peaceful divorce."
"You love her? You still love her? How about Jiang Zihan then? Did she love you? Back then, she confessed her feelings to you with a love letter in school. You, who mostly ignored others, surprisingly accepted her love letter. We all thought you two would be together, but then you went for employment and that girl didn’t contact you, until the flash marriage, when you claimed she was the one, I couldn’t believe it." Zhou Zijian's tone reflected his feeling of casting pearls before swine as he looked at him.
Zhao Mosheng gave a grunt as if to think, then said, "Perhaps she still loves me. Like me, she probably didn't know how to move forward and thus made this choice."
"So weird. You love her, she loves you, but you still divorce. That’s unheard-of."
"..."
The next day, Jiang Zihan woke up on the sofa, rubbing her sore and aching back. She felt a moment of sympathy for herself, then washed, dressed, and when she was ready to go out, it was just seven o'clock. There was plenty of time for breakfast, but Jiang Zihan glanced at the empty kitchen and decided against preparing something because she was used to seeing his tall figure in the kitchen at this time. Not wanting to get sentimental, she changed her clothes and decided to eat outside.
Once she arrived at the hospital, the first thing was to do ward rounds with the attending physician. This was one of the reasons why Jiang Zihan was in such a rush to submit her resignation after the divorce because she was assigned to Zhao Mosheng's group. When they used to be together, it didn’t matter but now it seemed that even the air could become awkward.
After changing into her nurse uniform, she noticed that a group of new, pretty nurses had started their internships. Their large eyes and good figures suggested an abundant curiosity in this unfamiliar environment. They greeted Jiang Zihan warmly as “senior sister”. Their tender voices surprised even Jiang Zihan.
After the head nurse's roll call, everyone waited for the attending physician to guide them for the ward rounds. Jiang Zihan was an old hand in the job. She could have skipped this with fresh blood in the team. But the head nurse had assigned her a few interns in the morning meeting, so she had to join them this time.
Finally, Zhao Mosheng appeared. Today, as always, he was wearing a perfectly tailored white coat. The light plaid collar of his shirt neatly peeped from beneath his coat, each button meticulously done up. With his sharp facial features, his height, and handsomeness, he headed towards them. Jiang Zihan even heard small gasps from the surrounding novice nurses.
Only when Zhao Mosheng stopped in front of them could she faintly hear the rookie nurses applauding him, praising "Doctor Zhao is so handsome," "How lucky we are to be assigned to this group!" If this was the past, Jiang Zihan would have been elated, but at this point, she could only look for a chance to slip away.
The team followed to a patient's room where a surgery had just been completed. Zhao Mosheng firstly asked the patient's family about the condition kindly, then the novice nurses took notes one after another. Everyone was busy noting down while Jiang Zihan stood somewhat spellbound in the back.
What she loved the most before was doing ward rounds with Zhao Mosheng. Standing in the crowd, Zhao Mosheng radiated light like a beacon, conversing with patients in his deep voice, that occasional smile made her heart flutter. This seemed to be the reason why she disregarded her mother's objections and came to City C three years ago. All she wanted was to watch him quietly in this crowd, dazzling like a star.
"Nurse Jiang, could you please conduct a test on this patient..."
Lost in thoughts, Jiang Zihan seemed to hear her name being called. She looked up to find that she had unknowingly become the center of everyone's focus, including a deep gaze from Zhao Mosheng.
A nurse whispered, pointing ahead, "Dr. Zhao is calling for you."
"..."
Caught off guard, but Jiang Zihan still walked over to Zhao Mosheng, stood beside him, looking puzzled, "Yes?"
Such puzzled expression on her face startled Zhao Mosheng a little. Whenever Jiang Zihan was uncertain about something, she used to look at him with that expression, and wait for him to explain. Ever since she had contemplated divorce, she has seldom expressed her emotions in front of him, let alone show a sense of uncertainty. He smiled, "It's nothing. I saw you drifting off and thought maybe you were unsure about something. That's why I called you over."
"..."
Everyone was taken aback. Where was the cold and merciless Dr. Zhao they knew – the one who was tough and demanding at work, those who hindered him in any way were sure to get scolded by him? What was going on with Dr. Zhao now? Was there a mistake in the information they had? At the least, there was something unusual about his behaviour towards Jiang, who was known for her beauty and tall figure.