After the Divorce, My Wife and I Were Both Reborn

Chapter 96: Chapter 96: She Missed Him

The weather grew hotter and hotter. For the next few days, Jiang Xia stayed home, enjoying the air conditioning while focusing on his drawing, editing, and production.

On Friday, June 19th, the voice-over for the eleventh episode of Cat and Mouse was successfully completed. At the same time, the key animation for the twelfth episode was also nearing its final stages.

Lin Yanwan sent the complete voice-over files to Jiang Xia, stretched lazily, then rested her cheek in her hand as she gazed out the window.

Thinking about how she hadn’t seen that infuriating face of his in the past few days, she realized she actually kind of missed it. She even found herself zoning out more often than usual.

Although they talked on the phone every day, it wasn’t nearly enough affection for a girl deep in the throes of love.

Besides, the results of the college entrance exams were being released tomorrow, and she felt inexplicably nervous.

It wasn’t that she was afraid of having done poorly. ’What if we both did really well? Will we end up being separated by distance?’

She wasn’t asking for them to get into the same university, or even the same class.

It would be perfect if their schools were right across from each other, just like in their past life.

At the very least, being in the same city would be fine. It might take some time to see each other, but it was still better than a long-distance relationship.

After spending the last few months together, Lin Yanwan discovered that she was the one who couldn’t bear to be without Jiang Xia. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have let him push his luck so much that even kissing had become a daily routine—one that she often initiated herself.

The promise they made at the beginning to not touch each other seemed utterly foolish now. Those two infinitely extending parallel lines were on the verge of becoming an intertwined double helix.

’It makes sense, though,’ she mused. ’With a bond that spans two lifetimes, and us seeing each other all the time, how could we possibly sever ties just like that?’

In the end, she was just messed up by the failed marriage from her past life.

Gazing at the clouds in the sky, the lovesick girl let out a soft sigh. She had no idea what that guy was thinking.

’Does he really want to rekindle our past connection?’

They say men turn bad once they get rich. When Cat and Mouse takes off, he’ll surely become one of the most famous animation producers out there. There will be no shortage of adoring women around him then, so what would she be to him?

The flower at home may be fragrant, but smelling the same scent every day can become bland. Wildflowers are pretty, they offer a different flavor, and they’re the most tempting of all.

’Hmph, if he ever dares to chase skirts, be fickle, or go philandering, I’ll just force him to ’exercise’ until his legs go weak at the mere sight of a pretty woman!’ Lin Yanwan thought viciously.

A soft, sweet meow suddenly interrupted her chaotic thoughts. Yuyuan padded into her room and gently rubbed its adorable little head against her leg.

Lin Yanwan bent down, scooped the cat into her arms, and scratched its chin, whispering, "Yuyuan, you think so too, right?"

Meanwhile, Jiang Xia, who was completely absorbed in drawing key frames, suddenly let out a huge sneeze.

"My dear wife must be thinking of me again," he declared with absolute certainty.

◇

At 3:00 PM, Lin Yanwan went to pick up Xiao Man from Nanshan Primary School by herself. Seeing that her brother-in-law wasn’t there again, the little sister-in-law pouted unhappily.

Her favorite thing was walking between her sister and brother-in-law, her little hands held by both of them. Sometimes, they would even lift her up with a tug and swing her forward like a swing.

"Big Sis, did you and Brother Jiang Xia have a fight?" Xiao Man asked, her lips pursed.

Xia Shanshan pretended to be nonchalantly greeting other parents, but she was carefully eavesdropping. ’The little couple usually gets along so well, surely they didn’t actually have a fight, did they?’

"What makes you say that?"

"Brother Jiang Xia hasn’t come to see Xiao Man in a long time. If you two didn’t fight, why wouldn’t he come see me?"

Lin Yanwan carefully retied her sister’s loosened hair bow and said with a smile, "No, that’s not it. He’s just been very busy lately with a lot of work to do. Actually, Brother Jiang Xia misses you a lot too."

"But isn’t he on break already?"

"Well, do you have homework during your break?" Lin Yanwan asked, gently pinching her cheek.

"Yes! Lots of it," Xiao Man said, her cheeks puffed out indignantly. "Poor Brother Jiang Xia. Big Sis doesn’t have any homework at all, but he still has to do his."

Lin Yanwan’s breath hitched.

"Well then, Xiao Man, do you want to go see your Brother Jiang Xia?" Xia Shanshan asked, blinking.

"Eh?!"

Lin Xiaoman looked up at Teacher Xia, then turned her head to her sister. "C-Can I?"

"Of course you can," Xia Shanshan said with a gentle smile. "Yanwan, you should come along too, right?"

"Ah? I, I, I, um..."

Seeing her mother-in-law’s beaming smile, she stammered, her face instantly turning red. "Aunt Xia, please don’t get the wrong idea. I’m just... worried about leaving Xiao Man alone."

"Mhm, I know."

Xia Shanshan said with a grin, "Then just wait for me a little while. Once I’ve seen all the children off, we can go home together."

’Go home...’

Lin Yanwan’s expression grew dazed as ripples spread through her heart. She repeated the words to herself twice more in silence.

"Goodbye, Teacher Xia~"

"Goodbye, everyone. Be good and listen to your parents at home, okay~"

Xia Shanshan smiled as she handed the children off to their parents one by one, then turned to look at Lin Xiaoman.

"Alright, let’s go. Our personal chauffeur should be here by now."

She took Xiao Man’s hand, and Lin Yanwan followed silently behind them, her expression a little complicated.

Jiang Wende, who had been waiting by the roadside, had already turned down several potential fares. He looked at the little girl his wife was holding hands with, then glanced at his daughter-in-law trailing behind, and was momentarily stunned.

’What’s going on today?’

Seeing her father-in-law’s taxi, Lin Yanwan instantly understood what her mother-in-law had meant by "personal chauffeur."

Without Jiang Xia by her side, facing her parents-in-law at the same time made her feel a little nervous.

"Hello, Uncle Jiang," she said reservedly.

"Hello, Yanwan. Hello, Xiao Man." Jiang Wende chuckled, but his gaze shifted to his wife, silently asking what was going on.

Xia Shanshan simply smiled without a word.

"So, I’m taking them home first, right?" Jiang Wende asked hesitantly.

"No, we’re going straight home."

"Huh?"

"Xiao Man wants to come over and play, and Yanwan is coming along to look after her sister."

"Oh, oh, oh!"

After so many years of marriage, Jiang Wende understood instantly. Glancing in the rearview mirror at his daughter-in-law’s slightly blushing face, how could he not realize his wife was setting their son up for a score?

The car started up slowly and quickly headed toward their own neighborhood.

A little while later, Xiao Man, with her backpack on, skipped happily into the residential complex alongside Xia Shanshan. Lin Yanwan walked silently behind them, and as she looked at the familiar surroundings, she inexplicably felt herself fall into a daze.

In all the time since her rebirth, this was the first time she had set foot here.

’So nostalgic.’

"Brother Jiang Xia!" The moment the door opened, Lin Xiaoman couldn’t wait to shout into the apartment.

Jiang Xia froze for a second, then immediately ran barefoot out of his bedroom. When he saw his wife standing behind his little sister-in-law, his face was a mask of surprise.

"What are you doing here?"