later story

Chapter 23

The restaurant Mr. Fu booked is in a small alley, and the car can barely drive in.A typical small home-cooked restaurant, hidden in a deep alley, with seven or eight square tables in the hall, and the old man was not seen as far as the eye could see.The boss greeted them, said "inside please", and led them to the backyard.Mr. Fu sat alone at a table for one person, and several dishes were already on the table.

The old man waved: "Sit down, talk while eating."

Shang Bining and Chi Zao took their seats respectively.The old man's expression was a little serious, and the two looked at each other, both of them had some thoughts, but if the old man didn't open his mouth, it was difficult for them to ask first.

After a while, the old man said, "Do you know why I'm looking for you?"

The old man has many opportunities to come to Beijing to carry out work, but he rarely meets them.Received a call from him today, clearly requesting to meet both of them, Shang Bining knew that this evening was not an ordinary gathering of relatives in other places.

Shang Bining asked back: "This meeting, the matter has something to do with us?"

The old man nodded: "That's right, we are discussing proposals that have been submitted in succession over the past few years."

Hearing this, Shang Bining and Chi Zao understood.

Shang Bining said: "Is there anything new?"

The old man said with emotion: "The road to progress is tortuous."

In other words, it's not going well right now.Chi Zao glanced at Shang Bining, he didn't look surprised.

The old man said: "This is the third time we have submitted this proposal, and the social response has been very enthusiastic. The previous situation seemed to be very positive, and there is hope to promote legislation. However, during this period of time, the disputes have become serious. In the afternoon, I will study and discuss with the working group After that, there may be a short-term rebound in the belief that things will take a lot of struggle to reach the desired outcome."

Chi Zao asked: "Will the crackdown be severe?"

The old man said: "It depends on the impact."

Chi Zao looked thoughtfully at Shang Bining again.The latter felt his gaze, turned his head, and smiled slightly.

Shang Bining said, "Don't worry."

The old man raised his eyes to look at him, and chuckled lightly: "You have been cautious since you were careful, and you have a long-term vision. Did you prepare for it?"

Shang Bining said: "It's always very dark before dawn, so I can't talk about any preparations, just a little worried."

You still call it "I can't talk about any preparations"?Chi Zao scoffed in his heart.At this point, there are clues to many doubts before.The suspension of "The Whole World" and the script of "White Tiger" among the many couples invited, the divorce without the slightest hesitation... More or less, I am afraid that it is inevitably related to this.

However, it's not easy to discuss these things in front of the old man, so Chi Zao decided to settle the score after dinner.

Hearing Shang Bining's words, the old man said: "I know your character well. I was not afraid that you would bring trouble on me, but I heard from Xiaoxi that something happened to you recently?" After a short pause, he continued, "Today The group discussed social public opinion, and you were also mentioned, the voice on the Internet is very loud."

The incident started with the turmoil of visiting the class. Chi Zao felt a little guilty, and took the initiative to explain: "Grandpa, this is my responsibility, I am too impulsive."

The old man looked at him, looking out from behind the lens, a bit like an adult frightening a child: "Well, you shouldn't admit it." Then he said to Shang Bining, "But you went too far."

It seems that the old man is well aware of the ins and outs of the incident and the main plot.Chi Zao wanted to say something more, but Shang Bining touched his knee under the table, and the two of them silently closed their mouths, allowing the old man to criticize and advise, without retaliation or justification.

This meal was originally for lectures, and when the old man finished his lectures, the meal was also finished.

After sending the old man back to his residence, it was already past nine o'clock, and Shang Bining and Chi Zao had a lot of messages on their mobile phones.Chi Zao lowered his head and finished answering He Anna's furious message, then looked up again, and Shang Bining was waiting for him after a long time.

Chi Zao thought about it and said, "Take me home."

Shang Bining looked resigned.

Chi Zao took the car keys from him and said, "You talk, I'll drive."

After getting into the car, Chi Zao said, "Let's talk."

But this seemed to be a difficult request, and Shang Bining remained silent for a long time without opening his mouth.Chi Zao glanced at him from the rearview mirror, only to see that his brows were slightly wrinkled with embarrassment, his eyes met, and he showed hesitant to speak.

Chi Zao took a step back with understanding, and said, "I don't know where to start? Well, let me find a starting point for you. When did you first think about divorce?"

This is a question that has a rough answer in Chi Zao's mind.

Far-sightedness is Shang Bining's talent. He is good at judging the environment and situation, as well as himself and others.For so many years, he has been far superior to his peers, not only because of business ability, willpower, hard work, but also because of his outstanding intelligence - Chi Zao can only use "intelligence" to summarize this talent.

Based on Shang Bining's cleverness, Chi Zao would not be surprised if he said that he had foreseen the "darkness before dawn" and made the layout.He was just annoyed that he didn't have insight into this. Whether it was the cancellation of "The World" or the divorce, he clearly felt the violation, but he was still stuck in doubt.Now that I think about it, it's an intellectual insult.

During the silent time just now, he scanned his life and work from last September to the present in his mind, and found a possible time point from it, as if to save his own intelligence.

However, Shang Bining easily shattered this respect-defending reasoning.

Shang Bining said: "I intend to restrain myself, but I didn't put the divorce plan in the 'reinforcement'."

The answer surprised Chi Zao, and he was momentarily at a loss: "...Really?"

Shang Bining looked at him and said seriously: "No external force will make me give up my relationship with you."

Chi Zao slowed down the car: "Then you promised so simply that day... Do you think I really want a divorce?!"

At this time, the car came to a corner of the road.Chi Zao intended to talk in detail, and directly drove the car into the parking space on the side of the road.Be fast and accurate, stop in three seconds.

Chi Zao stared at Shang Bining: "So, you agreed to divorce because you think I really don't want to be with you?"

There was a smile on Shang Bining's face, a very embarrassed smile, so embarrassed that he didn't even dare to give an affirmative answer.After all, answering in the affirmative sounds silly, at least in this moment.

Chi Zao understood, dumb but helpless.

The Shang Bining in front of him is like a child being criticized, but when he thinks about it carefully, he didn't do anything wrong, he was just stupid enough to think that his partner didn't want to live with him.Why does a guy who is so smart in other things have such a low level of emotional judgment?

But Shang Bining was not the only one who lost his level, he himself also lost his mind.All the speculation, analysis, and puzzlement about Shang Bining these days, all of which have no answers but refuse to ask or communicate.

How difficult love is, it is mostly self-inflicted.

The two were relatively silent for a long time, and Chi Zao asked: "Is that how I make you feel insecure? Your confidence in me seems to have always been low. Do you remember what happened after we came back from Italy?"

Shang Bining listened, his eyes flickered slightly, he was extremely restrained and depressed, and he tried his best to keep normal.That was the reaction to being stabbed.Not only did he remember, he remembered very, very clearly.

After returning from Italy that year, the clean, clear and powerful marriage proposal on the Bridge of Sighs and the non-belief vows in the Catholic Church were all put aside by Chi Zao as a whim of a joke or a dream.

The group disbanded. According to Shang Bining's plan for himself and Xinghuo's plan for Chi Zao, they didn't even have the chance to work together. Chi Zao was not optimistic about how long their relationship would last.

The longest time at that time, they didn't see each other for two whole months.Half of the time, Chi Zao participated in the closed shooting of a military simulation variety show and rarely communicated with the outside world.So after two months, they only made three phone calls, and the chat records did not exceed twenty sentences.

It's hard to tell whether it's blackmail or hype. During the recording period, rumors that Chi Zao was picked up by the boss of the program's investor were all over the place.He himself didn't know anything about it until the day he left the group, when Shang Bining left his job and came to pick him up, and said with a dark face that he would go through the legal procedures of the marriage, and he dug out the clues of the scandal from him.

Shang Bining was also like a child that day, a child who desperately wanted to defend what he owned.It was also at that moment that Chi Zao realized that what Shang Bining wanted to get married was a real marriage.

That was a real shock.They are all men, or idols who should be damned if they are in a relationship, are they seriously considering getting married?Listening to Shang Bining's words, Chi Zao didn't know whether to laugh or hide, and could only answer "Stop making trouble" over and over again.

Shang Bining said, "I didn't make trouble, would you like it?"

Chi Zao didn't know.

Shang Bining kept asking, are you willing?Chi Zao, will you marry me?

Maybe it was because he had asked too many times, or maybe it was because this proposal was really exciting and everyone was obsessed with excitement, so Chi Zao finally nodded.Later, when he really won the consent of his family and got the help of Mr. Fu to get rid of the legal procedures, Chi Zao asked Shang Bining why he had to really get married.

Shang Bining said, "In this way, you won't be able to escape."

Chi Zao said: "At that time, I thought you were talking about love to make me happy. You look so sweet, I didn't think much about it."

Shang Bining lowered his eyes and said softly, "I'm really afraid that you will run away."

Chi Zao asked: "Has it always been like this? On the night you returned from the river, you gave me earrings and said that no matter how far I walked, I would come back to you. Ningning, where do you think I will be?" Abandon you?"

The embarrassment on Shang Bining's face has not completely receded. After hearing this, he pursed his lips and covered it with a smile, tried to relax his tone, and said, "Don't think too much, you haven't done anything to make me feel insecure. It's my own problem. I'm always going to be, afraid..."

After saying a word or two, before he touched his heart three inches deep, his ears turned red with embarrassment.He is really not a person who is good at expressing deep and soft emotions in the way of speaking.Love, dependence, distressed... These feelings, he would rather express them in a performance and disguised way such as love words and acting like a baby, rather than express them seriously.

After a short pause, he really didn't take his heart out anymore, and ended the topic: "I can't explain this clearly, let's stop talking about this, okay? I apologize to you, it was indeed my haste to agree to a divorce. I regret it."

Chi Zao didn't want to embarrass him, so he continued: "At that time, as long as you come back, I will regret it immediately."

Shang Bining said: "But you have ignored me for a long time. You even forgot to send me a message about my birthday last year. You haven't asked me about my job once since September. Your fans know better than you Where am I doing..."

Chi Zao's expression gradually mocked: "Didn't you just say that I didn't do anything to make you feel insecure?"

Shang Bining: "..."

Chi Zao: "On your birthday, I was filming the mystery film you connected to me in the deep mountains and old forests. There was no signal at all."

Shang Bining: "..."

Chi Zao: "You still have the nerve to say that I don't care about your work. Ask Sister Yue why she resigned. Has someone meddled in your affairs? You should reflect on yourself. Listen to the development from yourself to the company in the past two years. Who did it? If I hadn’t fully signed with you, you would have taken away my autonomy—don’t refute, just say "The World", was it your painstaking effort alone, you Stop talking, have you ever communicated with me about your motives and your judgment? Do you feel that I have a lower level of intelligence, and I don't understand it, or do you enjoy the pleasure of being arbitrary, Mr. Ning?"

Shang Bining: "..."

Chi Zao: "Also, don't you think your own strategy has changed too quickly after getting divorced and making so much mess? Who did you communicate with before the change? If you don't tell, who knows your intentions what is it?"

This time Shang Bining replied very quickly: "You will know."

Chi Zao: "I know shit!"

Shang Bining smiled: "If you didn't know, you wouldn't admit it boldly that day."

Chi Zao: "..."

Bickering is never a standard way to solve problems rationally, it is just an outlet for them to vent their anger and an opportunity to speak freely.People who are close and have been with each other for too long seem to go to the abyss where they can't speak well, and they have to quarrel to pour out all the words in their hearts.Before the divorce, they hadn't had more than one fight for more than half a year.

For the current quarrel, Shang Bining lets him in. He knows it, and feels much more comfortable, so let's call it a truce.

They were silent with each other for half a minute, and they both came out of the bickering exchange. Chi Zao restrained his emotions and corrected his attitude, and said seriously: "No matter what problems we get along with in our lives, you should tell me if you have such an important plan. Clear. Even if you don’t want to discuss it, please inform the head office? This time, I didn’t understand your intention from the beginning. If you didn’t drop three domestic tour cities in a row on the phone that night, I might not be able to figure it out. The determination to turn to overseas markets may not necessarily dare to accompany you to close your eyes and act recklessly."

Shang Bining: "I will still find a way to make you bold."

When Chi heard this, his eyes widened: "Don't deceive people too much."

Shang Bining smiled, with a consoling meaning: "I believe you will understand me. It is dangerous to be a crab eater, but if you succeed in eating crabs, you will get rich rewards. Since this relationship will survive or die Become our weakness, why not throw it out and give it a try. I used to back down, but that made me lose you, I don't want to really lose you, so I take this bet. Anyway, the worst result is just a few years , but I am still prepared to support enough to survive these few years of retreat."

Chi Zao rolled his eyes: "Are you so confident that you can open up overseas markets?"

Shang Bining said: "Even if I fail in singing, you won't fail in acting—you don't know how good you are now, you should really watch your tidbits more."

Chi Zao: "..."

What a love story caught off guard, what a hopeless heart, it feels soft and comfortable, and the long-term grievance is slowly released.Chi Zao knew that they had never left each other, and the past grievances and pennies were no longer so important.

well.Chi Zao sighed and said, "Mr. Ning, the road ahead is not easy."

Shang Bining turned sideways, stretched out his hand to hold the steering wheel in front of Chi Zao, and said, "We've already walked this difficult road together. With you by my side, I'm not afraid of anything."