The divorce comeback system arrived right after I was born.

Pei Ningxue cleaned up the mess in the kitchen, while Chen Zhi assisted her.

Neither of them said anything sentimental. They quietly wiped the countertop clean, washed the dishes and chopsticks, and put the flour away in the cupboard.

1:17 AM.

Pei Ningxue came out of the bathroom with her hair still half-wet, wearing a white T-shirt by Chen Zhi, the hem of which barely covered her upper thighs.

She climbed into bed and lay down with her back to Chen Zhi.

Don't touch me tonight.

Why?

"I'm tired." Pei Ningxue pulled the blanket up a little. "I've been kneading dough for four days, and my arms are so sore I can't lift them."

Chen Zhi pressed himself against her from behind, wrapping his arms around her waist.

"Shall I rub it for you?"

"roll."

Chen Zhishi tactfully withdrew his hand and obediently lay down beside him.

About ten seconds later, Pei Ningxue turned over and buried her face in his chest.

"Knead it."

The voice was muffled.

Chen Zhi suppressed a laugh and gently massaged her arms and shoulders. Pei Ningxue's breathing quickly became long and even.

Fell asleep.

Chen Zhi, however, felt no sleepiness whatsoever.

He had one arm around Pei Ningxue, and with the other hand he pulled out his phone from under the pillow and turned the screen brightness to the lowest setting.

1:42 AM.

Pei Ningxue has been dealt with. She's eaten the noodles, received the gift, and confessed her feelings. She's safely passed this hurdle.

But the problem is-

Two more people are waiting to celebrate his birthday today.

Pei Ningxue will likely have more plans when she wakes up in the morning.

Conservatively speaking, I'll have to stay until nine in the morning.

Li Zhiyi is at Renmin University, less than half an hour from Wanliu Academy. The question is how to escape from Pei Ningxue's sight.

Where is Lin Wanwan? She said yesterday that she was recording a variety show in Hangzhou, but given how love-struck she is, she'll definitely cause trouble today.

He secretly sent Su Man a WeChat message.

[Sister Man, what's Wanwan's schedule today?]

It was almost 2 a.m., and he thought no one would reply, but Su Man replied instantly.

What, have you suddenly had a change of heart?

I'm just asking.

She had no work scheduled for the whole day, so I canceled some for her. As for why I canceled them, you can figure that out yourself.

Chen Zhi's heart skipped a beat.

Did you cancel all your schedule for the day?

Doesn't that mean—

The phone vibrated again. Su Man added a message.

Lin Wanwan landed at Beijing Capital International Airport at 3 PM today.

It’s over.

Lin Wanwan arrived in Beijing at 3 PM.

The biggest problem is not time.

That is the reason.

He had to come up with three perfect reasons to explain why he had to leave halfway through his birthday.

Chen Zhi stared at the ceiling, thinking for a full twenty minutes.

Then he opened Dai Dama's dialog box.

[Boss? Why aren't you asleep yet?]

I need your help with something.

You said...

Chen Zhi typed a long message.

The gist of it is: Call me at 9:30 tomorrow morning and tell me about a critical bug that I must personally handle. Your tone should be tense and genuine.

Dai Dama remained silent for a while.

[Boss, Moss is no longer buggy.]

I knew it was impossible for him to appear. I made you act in it.

"Are you going to sneak away to find another girlfriend again?"

Chen Zhi did not answer the question.

[Bonus doubled.]

[To be willing to go through fire and water for the boss.]

The first reason is settled.

Next is the reason for getting away from Li Zhiyi in the afternoon.

Chen Zhi thought for a moment and then sent a message to Guo Yang.

【Yoko, call me tomorrow at 2 PM and tell me your advisor needs to speak with me urgently.】

Guo Yang replied five minutes later.

【You're asking me to be your shill in the middle of the night instead of sleeping?】

I'll treat you to breakfast for a month.

What time did you call?

Get it done.

Chen Zhi stuffed his phone back under his pillow and let out a long sigh.

Pei Ningxue stirred in his arms, groggily nuzzling his chin.

Are you using your phone?

"No." Chen Zhi quickly hid his hands under the blanket.

"You're lying." Pei Ningxue's voice was muffled. "I felt the light."

"dream."

"Chen Zhi".

"Um?"

You are not allowed to go anywhere tomorrow.

Chen Zhi's heart skipped a beat.

Did you hear that?

"What?"

"It's nothing." Chen Zhi relaxed. "Whatever you say, I'm not going anywhere."

Pei Ningxue snorted, changed her position, and continued to sleep peacefully.

Chen Zhi lay in the darkness, his eyes wide open.

Not going anywhere?

Impossible, Mr. Pei.

Your boyfriend is about to complete an unprecedented challenge in human history: a seamless birthday celebration between three girlfriends.

This level of difficulty is roughly equivalent to getting Doubao to take the college entrance examination and get into a 985 university.

The difference is that bean buns can do that.

He might not.

At 7:15 a.m., Chen Zhi was awakened by a fragrant aroma.

He opened his eyes and found half of the bed empty; Pei Ningxue was no longer there.

The aroma of toasted bread and fried eggs wafted from the living room, mixed with the scent of coffee.

Chen Zhi put on his slippers and went outside.

On the coffee table in the living room was a two-tiered cream cake with a candle in the center and a bouquet of flowers beside it.

Pei Ningxue stood beside the dining table, wearing a new, clean, off-white apron.

Breakfast for two was laid out on the table: French toast, bacon and fried eggs, a small bowl of fruit salad, and two cups of hand-drip coffee.

"Come over after you've finished washing up." Pei Ningxue set the table without looking up.

After Chen Zhi finished brushing his teeth and washing his face, he sat down. Pei Ningxue brought the cake to him and lit the candles with a lighter.

Make a wish.

"What are you promising?"

"Aren't you very talkative? Why are you asking me?"

Chen Zhi smiled and closed his eyes.

Open your eyes after three seconds and blow out the air.

"What was promised?"

"You can't say it, or it won't work."

Pei Ningxue cut a piece of cake and handed it to him, and cut a small piece for herself as well. The two of them ate breakfast quietly.

Sunlight streamed in through the floor-to-ceiling windows, illuminating Pei Ningxue's profile.

She wasn't wearing makeup today, just a bare face, with a strand of hair tucked behind her ear, and she was focused on cutting toast.

good looking.

Chen Zhi lowered his head and took a bite of the cake; it was matcha flavored.

How did you know I like matcha?

"I don't know." Pei Ningxue picked up a piece of fruit with her fork. "I just picked it randomly."

"Then you're quite lucky."

"I've always been lucky."

After finishing breakfast, Pei Ningxue put the dishes and chopsticks in the dishwasher and sat down on the sofa.

"Today is your birthday, is there anything you'd like to do?"

Chen Zhi was calculating the time rapidly in his mind.

It's 8:03 now.

Dai Dama's call was at 9:30.

There's still almost an hour and a half left.

"Want to watch a movie?"

Pei Ningxue nodded, picked up the remote control, and turned on the projector.

The two leaned against the sofa, Chen Zhi had one arm around her, while his other hand restlessly fumbled for his phone in his pocket.

Halfway through the movie, Chen Zhi couldn't concentrate at all. His mind was filled with rehearsing what expression and tone he should use to act after receiving the phone call.

Until 9:30

The phone didn't ring.

Chen Zhi frowned slightly.

9:31.

Still no sound.

Nine thirty-two.

Dai Da-ma, what the hell are you doing?!

At 9:35, my phone finally vibrated.

But not by phone.

It's WeChat.

Dai Da-mai: [Boss, I'm sorry, I went to the bathroom and forgot. Is it too late to call now?]

Chen Zhi was furious.

He replied with a single word in a flash.

【quick!!!!】

Three seconds later, the phone rang.

"Feed?" Chen Zhi answered the phone, turned on speakerphone, and switched to a serious expression.

"Mr. Chen! Something terrible has happened!" Dai Dai's voice came through the receiver. He even added breathing sounds to create a tense atmosphere—quite dedicated. "Moss's autonomous driving model has detected a serious anomaly during stress testing! The reaction time threshold fluctuation exceeds the limit by a percentage—"

"How much?" Chen Zhi frowned in agreement.

"Ten percent! According to the technical white paper we submitted with NIO, this volatility exceeds the safety margin! Our engineers have been looking at it for a long time but can't find the cause. Could you come and take a look?"

Not bad.

Chen Zhi gave Dai Dama's acting a score of 80. The 20 points were deducted because the guy was five minutes late.

"I'll be right there." Chen Zhi hung up the phone and turned to look at Pei Ningxue.

Pei Ningxue hugged the pillow and tilted her head to look at him.

"Something came up at the company." Chen Zhi stood up, his tone apologetic. "There's a bug in the autonomous driving system that Dai Dadong can't fix, so I have to go there."

Pei Ningxue remained silent.

She stared at Chen Zhi for three seconds.

"Go ahead." She turned back to continue watching the movie.

Chen Zhi breathed a sigh of relief and strode towards the dressing room.

"Chen Zhi".

Pei Ningxue's voice came from behind.

Chen Zhi's hand stopped on the wardrobe handle.

Today is your birthday.

"I know."

"If you stay at the company for more than two hours, you can forget about sleeping in this bed tonight."

"Understood!" Chen Zhi quickly changed his clothes, kissed Pei Ningxue on the forehead, and rushed out.

The moment he stepped out of the gates of Wanliu Academy, he took out his phone and sent a message to Li Zhiyi.

[Zhiyi, are you free today? I'd like to see you.]

The reply came much faster than he had expected.

I'm free. What time would you like to meet?

Just as Chen Zhi was about to type, his phone vibrated again.

It's Lin Wanwan.

[Honey!!! Happy birthday!!! I have a super, super, super big surprise for you today!!! Will you wait for me at the airport at 3 pm this afternoon!!!]

It was followed by seventeen exclamation marks and a whole row of kissing emojis.

Chen Zhi typed in two dialog boxes simultaneously with both hands.

To Li Zhiyi: [Meet me at the east gate of Renmin University at 10:30.]

To Lin Wanwan: [Okay, honey! I'll pick you up at 3 o'clock!]

After sending those two messages, he stood by the roadside, watching the flow of traffic.

The next twelve hours would be the most dangerous twelve hours of his two lives combined.

Not a single mistake can be made.