After Divorce: Why My Aloof Ex Starts Chasing Me?-Chapter 69 Driven Out

After much effort, Shen Qingqing finally managed to wash her hair.

With only one usable hand, she couldn’t wrap her hair up and was worried water might drip onto her wound.

Unless she called someone for help, her only option was to use a towel to dry it off.

After hesitating in the bathroom for a while, Shen Qingqing ultimately decided to handle it herself.

It took her nearly ten minutes to get her hair to the point where it wasn’t dripping anymore, so she could proceed to the next step.

Jiang Zhixun was walking upstairs when he noticed the bathroom door was closed and immediately knew Shen Qingqing was inside.

The occasional sound of water indicated she was probably washing something.

He had the urge to ask her if she needed help but feared that Shen Qingqing might take it the wrong way.

Suppressing the impulse to knock, he busied himself with making the bed instead.

After waiting a few minutes, the bathroom went silent. The water had stopped running, but Shen Qingqing still hadn’t come out.

This made Jiang Zhixun restless.

After a moment’s hesitation, he decided to knock and check if everything was okay.

Shen Qingqing was still, technically, his wife. If anything happened to her, he imagined the elders’ scolding would drown him in spit.

Her cold attitude the past few days had left a psychological shadow on Jiang Zhixun.

Even for such a small matter, he had to summon his courage before taking action.

"Knock knock knock."

The door was knocked on just as Shen Qingqing was undressing.

With her left hand immobilized, she was wearing a one-piece dress for convenience.

A simple pull of the zipper was all it took to slip it off effortlessly.

The coat she’d been wearing was warm enough that, even with only the dress underneath, Shen Qingqing hadn’t felt cold.

But after spending some time in the bathroom, she did begin to feel a chilly bite in the air.

The cold made her movements less agile.

Hearing the knock, she thought Jiang Zhixun needed to use the bathroom.

In her fluster, the dress slipped to the ground and got wet.

She let out a reflexive gasp.

Jiang Zhixun, with his sharp hearing, assumed Shen Qingqing had aggravated her wound.

Without thinking, he pushed the door open.

Shen Qingqing had been about to pick up her dress. Hearing the sound of the door opening, her mind went completely blank for a moment.

Her body moved faster than her mind could keep up. Before she even processed what was happening, she had already lunged toward the door, trying to block it.

But she tripped over the dress.

Jiang Zhixun, being a trained pilot, had quick reflexes. Even on his days off, he kept a habit of running, so his reaction speed was naturally sharp.

As Shen Qingqing lunged toward the door, he instinctively caught her and skillfully avoided her injured side.

When making the bed earlier, Jiang Zhixun had taken off his coat for easier movement.

Now, he could distinctly feel something soft pressing against him.

The skin under his hand was warm and smooth. Her waist was slim and soft... Realizing Shen Qingqing’s current state, Jiang Zhixun’s palms instantly burned.

He dared not let his gaze fall on Shen Qingqing, but the fleeting details his eyes had caught were etched deeply into his mind.

He couldn’t shake them off no matter how hard he tried.

His Adam’s apple bobbed as he forcefully suppressed the surge of heat flooding over him. Jiang Zhixun gripped Shen Qingqing’s right hand.

It was still the same—silky smooth, like the finest satin, but radiating warmth.

Holding his breath, he carefully stepped back, trying hard not to let Shen Qingqing notice anything unusual about him.

"Are you okay?"

The man’s voice was uncharacteristically husky, unlike his usual tone.

Shen Qingqing, overwhelmed by the sudden situation, didn’t pick up on the strangeness in his voice.

To avoid touching her wound and for convenience, she hadn’t put on a vest underneath the dress.

The cotton dress had a floral pattern and was quite thick.

Pairing it with the coat, it looked no different from her regular outfit.

As long as she felt okay with it, she didn’t have to worry about being overexposed.

But now, with the dress off, her upper body was completely bare.

And she was in Jiang Zhixun’s arms...

Shen Qingqing wanted to vanish into thin air.

The shame sent a rush of heat straight to her head.

Her face, neck, and ears felt like they’d been set on fire, burning bright red.

"Get out."

Jiang Zhixun wanted to leave too. Back at the hospital, despite the few awkwardly intimate moments while caring for Shen Qingqing, there had always been a blanket acting as a barrier. Nothing inappropriate had been exposed then.

Even that time at the guesthouse, when he helped her change clothes, she had been wearing a vest underneath, and he hadn’t seen anything he shouldn’t have.

But this time was different.

Even though the moment was fleeting, he had seen everything clearly.

His eyes fell on the nightgown she’d been wearing. He knew Shen Qingqing wanted to freshen up.

Stumbling over his words, Jiang Zhixun said, "I’ll call Mom up to help you. Don’t try to do it yourself."

She already had a broken bone. If she fell again, the consequences could be severe.

Suppressing his body’s involuntary reactions as much as he could, Jiang Zhixun grabbed Shen Qingqing’s arm and guided her to a safe spot.

He turned his head to the side, deliberately avoiding looking at her, though Shen Qingqing still couldn’t accept it.

She crossed her right arm over her chest to cover herself as much as possible.

In a low voice, she snapped, "Can you please get out already?!"

Jiang Zhixun, visibly tense, let out an "oh" and awkwardly left the bathroom, closing the door behind him.

He was so nervous that sweat beaded on his forehead. The warmth lingering in his palm where he’d touched Shen Qingqing was almost unbearable.

His expression showed embarrassment.

He silently cursed himself for being so hopeless. It was just a brief moment of helping Shen Qingqing. Why was he making such a big deal out of it?

He exhaled heavily several times, barely managing to calm his racing heart.

His entire body stiff, Jiang Zhixun quickly went downstairs.

Seeing his serious expression, Madam Jiang assumed the couple had had another argument.

She immediately felt a headache coming on.

Rubbing her temples, she said, "If it’s really not working out, don’t stay home for the New Year. Just go back to the Northwest already."

Jiang Zhixun: "..."

Before he’d come back, the family had called him every ten days or so.

Without fail, it was either to urge him to return to Beijing or to suggest he apply for housing so Shen Qingqing could join the military camp.

Now that he was home, why were they suddenly so eager to send him away?

"Qingqing wants to freshen up. You should go help her," he said.

Madam Jiang’s eyes twinkled mischievously. "My hands hurt. You go help her clean up."

To make her excuse more convincing, Madam Jiang even started rubbing her wrist.

Jiang Zhixun felt his head throb.

Ignoring his embarrassment, he quickly blurted out, "I just got kicked out."

With that, he hurried out the front door, afraid his mother might force him to help Shen Qingqing bathe.

He planned to stay outside for a few minutes and come back only when he thought it was safe to do so.

Madam Jiang stared blankly for a few seconds before understanding the meaning behind his words.

She cursed him for being useless.

Couldn’t he say something nice and smooth things over with Qingqing first?

Then she realized he had gone out without putting on his coat.

Scolding, she muttered, "Not a single one of them is trouble-free. If he gets sick, it’ll ruin the New Year..."

Worried about Shen Qingqing being alone in the bathroom and potentially injuring herself further, Madam Jiang quickly went upstairs.

By the time Madam Jiang reached the top of the stairs, Shen Qingqing already recognized her footsteps.

She called toward the door, "Mom, I can handle it myself."

Her overly polite tone made Madam Jiang’s heart ache.

"The weather is so cold—what if you catch a chill? Besides, it’s hard to wring a towel with one hand. If water gets on your wound, it might get infected. In severe cases, it could even fester, and then you’d be in serious trouble."

"Or maybe you’re planning to divorce Zhixun? You don’t even acknowledge us as your elders anymore?"