Before and After Divorce

When Xia Tingwan rushed over, Xing Le was eating at a relatively hidden Chongqing hot pot restaurant outside his high-end community.

Over the years, Xing Le has always loved this bite.

He doesn't seem to pay much attention to the time when he eats hot pot, and some fans have taken photos of him running to the hot pot restaurant at eleven o'clock to wait for the door to open for the first meal.

Xia Tingwan waited for less than 5 minutes before seeing Xing Le walking out of the store wearing sunglasses.

A man who looked like the owner of a hot pot restaurant followed him and sent him out. He couldn't see his face clearly against the light, but he was tall and strong. He stood there until Xing Le went away before returning to the shop.

"Go upstairs and talk."

Xing Le walked up to Xia Tingwan with a deadpan expression.

Xia Tingwan replied and followed Xing Le to the residential area.

He didn't let Zhao Nanshu follow him, but waited outside in the parking lot.Send him a message every 10 minutes, and if he doesn't respond, call someone.

"Sit. I'll pour you a glass of juice."

After Xing Le got home, he took off his sunglasses. Although his face was still handsome, he was more haggard and tired than when he was in Thailand.

Xia Tingwan sat on the sofa and took a look at the house. The black and white minimalist decoration style does not look luxurious.

Xing Le has been popular for the past few years, and he has indeed made a lot of money, but his residence in H City is not very ostentatious.

The community is very high-end and private. He only bought an ordinary apartment with three bedrooms and one living room with a balcony on the top floor. When the new home was just furnished, Xing Le asked Xia Tingwan if he wanted to come and see it. Xia Tingwan was with Su Yan at that time. It's not convenient to play overseas, so I just ordered a set of high-end kitchen utensils for Xing Le, counting it as a housewarming celebration.

"I came to you to talk to you about Ye Bingwen."

Xia Tingwan didn't want to recall too much, and directly entered the topic: "I know his relationship with you."

"Oh?"

Xing Le sat opposite Xia Tingwan holding the glass, raised his eyebrows: "What do you think you know?"

There was a slight sarcasm in his expression.

This kind of Xing Le is rare, but it is actually much more real than the fake intimacy during the reality show period.

Xia Tingwan looked at Xing Le and said softly, "Lele."

"I know you are not M, Ye Bingwen forced you."

When it comes to the last few words, even I feel extremely sad.

Thinking of the content in that video, he felt that the face of the young man in front of him was gradually blurring, as if he had returned to the familiar appearance when they hugged and laughed together in high school.

"Who told you that I was forced?" Xing Le didn't show too much surprise when he heard that, he looked at Xia Tingwan and smiled faintly: "I know, you saw the injuries on my body during the reality show Yes, but that's really nothing, I have what I want, and it has nothing to do with you."

"non of my business?"

Xia Tingwan repeated, suddenly stabbed in the heart by these four words.

He took out his mobile phone to open the video, then put the mobile phone on the wooden coffee table between the two of them, and clicked the play button.

"Young Master Ye, Young Master Ye... Please, let me go, I really can't do it."

Xing Le choked up the sound of begging for mercy, and accompanied by the sound of the whip waving in the video, it rang harshly in the quiet room. In the video, he was quickly blocked by Ye Bingwen with his lower body, and he could only utter from his throat. A muffled sound like retching.

"Don't let it go!"

It's just that after listening for less than half a minute, Xing Le's face turned livid. He sat up abruptly and reached out to grab the phone, but Xia Tingwan snatched it back and turned off the video.

"Aren't you forced?" Xia Tingwan's voice couldn't help but raise his voice: "Lele, tell me, are you in this video willing?"

Xing Le's chest heaved violently, he stared at Xia Tingwan, his rapid breathing gradually slowed down, his originally excited expression flashed past, and he returned to his original calm appearance.

"Yes, I am willing." He said indifferently: "I voluntarily slept with Ye Bingwen, he gave me resources, and I played for him—he can play however he wants. Are you satisfied?"

The afternoon sun shone in at this moment, and the spots of light danced several times on the coffee table between the two of them.

Xing Le said: "To be honest, I actually don't know why you came here to tell me these things. What about me and Ye Bingwen, what does it have to do with you? You don't think the performances of those good brothers on reality shows are real, do you?" , we are no longer friends, but you and I know it well. Also, where did this video come from? Did Ye Bingwen give it to you?"

"You don't have to worry about where it came from."

Xia Tingwan tried hard to suppress the feeling of suffocation in his chest, he looked at the man in front of him who mentioned the relationship between them mockingly, and changed his address: "Xing Le, since you want to say that, good, I'll come to you With my purpose, I don't care if you were forced or not. But now, Ye Bingwen has Su Yan's handle in his hand to threaten Su Yan, so no matter what, I need you to be forced.

"I need you to be willing to testify that Ye Bingwen persecuted you and sexually abused you. I need him to be afraid of this matter, so afraid that he dare not touch Su Yan."

Xing Le suddenly smiled: "Xia Tingwan, you are so fucking funny. What about Su Yan is none of my business, why should I listen to you?"

Xia Tingwan didn't speak, he took out his lighter and lit a cigarette, then slowly raised his head and said, "Aren't you willing to be beaten to death by Ye Bingwen for the sake of resources? Since you care so much about your career, then you have to listen to me. "

"Oh?"

"Think about this video in my hand, Xing Le—a total of 38 minutes and [-] seconds, a large-scale same-sex SM, your face and Ye Bingwen's face are not coded."

Xia Tingwan took a puff of cigarette, and said coldly: "Think again about who you rely on to set yourself up in the entertainment circle. You are a popular niche, positive energy, friendly, and sunny. Once I upload this video on the Internet, You had to bite back at Ye Bingwen and admit that you were coerced—because once you are not a victim of coercion, you are at the top of the unspoken rules. Which one do you think sounds better to you? You can stand this kind of scandal impact?"

As Xing Le listened, the sarcasm on his face gradually faded, and he stood up abruptly: "You won't do that."

"You think I won't?"

Xia Tingwan also stood up slowly, and looked at Xing Le.

"No, Xia Tingwan, you don't understand. Once you spread that video, it will be useless for me to explain and choose any explanation after the fact."

Xing Le's face was extremely pale, and there was a trace of fear in his eyes at that moment, but his expression did not weaken completely:, he murmured: "When the video goes out, my character design will collapse overnight. .My opponent won't let me go, my fans will be disillusioned - as soon as you let it out, my whole body will be ruined, I will become a joke in the entertainment industry, and I have no choice but to quit. You won't do that Do it, you won't, Xia Tingwan."

"Xing Le, you don't understand me."

Xia Tingwan looked at Xing Le, and a hint of sadness suddenly flashed in his eyes: "For Su Yan, I can do anything."

When the words came out, he knew it was indeed true.

But precisely because of the truth from the heart, he felt uncontrollable pain and confusion.

If Su Yan needs his protection, he can become cold for it, and become something he doesn't like.

Xia Tingwan hated the fact that he was persecuting Xing Le. He and Xing Le had been strangers for a long time, and even Xing Le actually plotted against him on the reality show.

Although Xing Le provocatively claimed that he in the video did it voluntarily, but Xia Tingwan couldn't see it that way.

He thought of Wen Zichen, who was seriously injured when he got up, and of Xing Le crying and being blindfolded in the video. No matter what, he couldn't ignore the fact that he was also hurting Xing Le.

"Xia Tingwan, actually... you love Su Yan, right?"

Xing Le took a sip of the orange juice, the corners of his mouth curled up, his expression became depressed for some reason, but he also lost interest in the important topic before, and sat back on the sofa wearily.

"When you first got married, you and I once mentioned it very coldly—anyway, that's the thing, it doesn't matter if you marry anyone. If it's Su Yan, there's nothing wrong with it. For a while, I always thought you Being with Su Yan is not happy. I feel sorry for you, but the strange thing is, knowing that you are not such a perfect and happy colleague, I actually..."

"I actually feel faintly satisfied."

Xing Le turned his head and looked out. The afternoon sun shone on his face through the floor-to-ceiling windows, but it seemed to be the color of sunset suddenly: "I think, I probably hate you a little. I hate you for taking away "Whale Language" " opportunity, even if that opportunity didn't belong to me. So when Ye Bingwen asked me to find an opportunity to trip you up in a reality show, I didn't hesitate much. I think I wanted to see you fall down, fall down. The more miserable the better."

His voice became softer and softer: "Ting Wan, do you still remember? The year when you won the Best Actor award, mixed-race and deep-style facial features were very popular in the industry. Every time I looked in the mirror, I felt inferior, so I went to Japan to give my nose I put an L-shaped prosthesis, and raised the bridge of the nose and the root of the mountain. It is not an exaggeration. In fact, many fans still don’t know that I had my nose tampered with during that time. I feel very satisfied after recovering from the operation, so I put Send the photos to you by email. You reply me and say, Lele was so handsome before, but she doesn’t need to be so perfectionistic.”

"At that time, I suddenly felt very sad."

Xing Le's long eyelashes were covered with a faint golden light under the sun, he turned his head, his eyes were full of confusion.

"You never seem to wander like me. You like yourself at any time. You don't care if your roots are not high enough, and you don't care what those people think of you. I'm really jealous of you, whether it's about the actor or not, and Many others, I can't tell myself... Sometimes I wonder if I shouldn't be in this circle with you, every day you stand in front of me, I feel tormented, I don't know my motivation Should it surpass you, or something else."

Xia Tingwan looked at Xing Le in a daze, they hadn't spoken so seriously for many years.

In the past, Xing Le always seemed to be sunny and gentle, but at this time, there was a kind of lethargy that was unwilling to pretend even if he tried his best.

He leaned back on the back of the sofa, with a self-deprecating arc on the corner of his mouth: "I got a good resource for a costume drama the year before last, but the mixed-race feeling was not popular at that time, and the shape of my late Yamane It's not very natural either, so I thought about it, and flew to Japan to take out the prosthesis again, I thought I was stupid, I sent you an email that time, but you didn't reply, I think you are I didn’t see it. But the strange thing is that after the show aired, no one noticed the change in the nose, fans were all knocking on the CP in the show, and no one actually cared what I acted in. Do you think it’s funny or not?”

"Lele..." Xia Tingwan couldn't laugh at all.

"Send it if you want—"

Xing Le stood up: "I said that video."

"These years... I have been tossing and tossing around in a daze, and sometimes I really don't know why. In the past, I will be 26. In four or five years, a new batch of traffic niches will come in, and soon this circle There is no place for me anymore, and there is no difference between posting or not.”

He straightened his clothes, his expression was very calm, it was obvious that he meant to see off the guests.

It's just that when he asked Xia Ting to post the video late, there was a hint of relief in his tone.

Looking at Xing Le's handsome and tired face, Xia Tingwan suddenly felt a deep sadness in his heart.

Before he went out, he turned his head abruptly and asked, "Lele, can we... can't be friends anymore?"

"It can't be done."

Xing Le smiled slightly: "Actually, I'm sorry for you first, Xiao Wan."

His smile came to the bottom of his eyes, faint tears melted, and he said softly: "You didn't do anything wrong, I just really don't want to face you anymore, seeing you makes me feel painful, maybe I just Can’t face myself, can’t admit my failure and insignificance. Let’s just be strangers from now on.”

Xia Tingwan could no longer face all this, turned around and left the house.

The hasty footsteps are like running away, and with each step, the memory of youth is blurred.

They once lay together on the basketball court looking up at the vast starry sky. On the way home, he sat on the back seat of Xing Le’s car and opened his arms against the wind like a bird. They used to sit in a dark movie theater drinking a bottle of greasy Pineapple soda.

In those hot summers, white shirts fluttering in the wind, Jay Chou humming in the earphones.

The moonlight of his boyhood fell into the river, and the reflections were broken into pieces.

Years go nowhere, time does not turn back.

……

Driving back to the intersection in Xiangshan, Zhao Nanshu suddenly stepped on the brakes urgently. Fortunately, Xia Tingwan and he were both wearing seat belts, but they bounced suddenly, and no one was injured.

"Damn, what are you doing?"

Zhao Nanshu was so angry that he untied his seat belt and rushed down: "Can't you see the red light?"

Xia Tingwan came back to his senses and found that although it was a red light, there was still a woman rushing across the road with a little girl. Only then did he understand why Zhao Nanshu suddenly became so angry.

The woman was so frightened that she couldn't speak.

The little girl wearing a Christmas hat fell down on the road and cried loudly. The light stick she was holding in her hand also fell on the cold road. Fortunately, she was dressed thickly in winter, so it didn’t get bumped .

But the tearful look of that pair of innocent big eyes made people feel anxious.

Xia Tingwan stared blankly for a few seconds, then suddenly opened the window and got out of the car. He walked to the middle of the road covered by a thin layer of snow, squatted down, and helped the little girl up.

"Does it hurt from the fall?"

He stroked the little girl's flushed face from the cold, and asked softly.

The little girl looked at his face in a daze, and after a while, she lowered her head shyly and whispered, "It doesn't hurt."

The woman was also stunned, and stuttered: "Xia, Xia Tingwan...?"

Xia Tingwan raised his head and smiled at the woman, then picked up the blue fluorescent stick from the road, and saw the words "Ji Zhan! Come on" flashing on it.

He smiled and handed the light stick to the little girl: "Are you going to Ji Zhan's concert?"

"Hmm!" Probably because of the mention of Ji Zhan, the little girl nodded vigorously excitedly.

"We wanted to line up outside the stadium to buy aids, and we were in a hurry...I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry." The woman also hurriedly explained.

"Go quickly." Xia Tingwan stood up straight, with a gentle look in his eyes, and said softly: "Be careful, don't do this again."

The woman led the little girl and continued to walk forward. Before taking two steps, the little girl turned her head and shook the light stick at Xia Tingwan: "Merry Christmas!"

The little red Santa hat on her head is very cute, and with the bouncing steps, she trembled and left the field of vision.

"Merry Christmas."

Xia Tingwan's voice was very soft, he stood in the falling snow, as if he was only whispering to himself: "I'm sorry."

The color of snow reflected in his eyes, giving off a soft light.

It's like traveling through time, looking back apologetically at the distant past.

……

When returning to Xiangshan, Secretary Lu came again.

Xia Ting was not surprised to see him appear late, and asked softly, "Is Su Yan still unwilling to see me?"

"Sir asked me to bring you a letter."

Secretary Lu avoided that question, lowered his head, took out a snow-white envelope from the leather briefcase, and handed it over.

Xia Tingwan didn't pick it up immediately.

Looking at the envelope, he couldn't help thinking of the worst possible outcome. Countless terrifying possibilities flashed through his mind, even the suicide note.

He subconsciously put his fingertips on the envelope, but when he looked up, he was so frightened that he almost couldn't help crying: "Secretary Lu, Su Yan, did something happen to him...?"

"No, no, don't think about it." Secretary Lu hurriedly shook his head and comforted him: "Sir, he has been writing this letter for a long time, and he just wrote it last night. Everything he wanted to say to you is in it."

"What's more," Secretary Lu said, "what you mean is that it's not a problem for Mr. Wen to live here. You won't feel at ease, and it's inconvenient for him to recover from his injuries. Mr. Wen will send someone to take Wen away later." Send him to the ward of a private hospital, sir, please don't worry, Ye Bingwen won't let him find him."

He was right, as long as Wen Zichen was not found by Ye Bingwen, it would be better to stay in the hospital.

"Sir, you don't need to pay attention to Ye Bingwen's threats. The drunk driving incident...has passed. He has confessed to Hengtai internally and reached an agreement. He voluntarily resigned. Hengtai can guarantee that Ye Bingwen will never dare to disclose any news. In addition, he left some things for you in the safe in the upstairs study, you can go up and have a look after you finish reading the letter."

Xia Tingwan subconsciously nodded.

He took the envelope with trembling fingers, and held it carefully in his hand. This light, thin envelope carried too much.

After several days and nights of tireless pursuit, it seems that it is finally about to reach the end.

The fog that shrouded the distance between him and Su Yan was finally about to be cleared away, but he suddenly felt so weak that he almost fell to the ground.