After three years of misplaced affection, Mrs. Yu is no longer willing to pretend to be obedient.

"Thank you so much, Brother Ze'an," Jian Ailing replied immediately with a smile.

"Tch, okay. I'll go with Ali then." Zhu Yan said, taking her boyfriend's arm and leaning her head on his shoulder.

"Okay, okay, you two drink slowly." Jian Ailing glared at Zhu Yan with annoyance, then looked at Qiu Lixin. "Zhu Yan can be quite crazy when she's drunk, you have to be careful."

"Hey, Jane Ailing, what nonsense are you talking about! Can't you give me a little face?" Zhu Yan immediately sat up straight and rolled her eyes at her.

Jane Ailing curled the corners of her mouth and made a face at her.

The group parted ways at the door. Jian Ailing followed Zhou Ze'an to the parking lot, while Zhu Yan went with Qiu Lixin to continue drinking.

"Where do you live now?" Zhou Zean asked, adjusting the navigation.

"Yanshan Prefecture".

"Why did you move there?"

"Oh, Zhu Yan happens to have a vacant house, so I'll move in temporarily."

The car started slowly and soon drove out of the parking lot.

"Ailing, do Jensen and your aunt and uncle know about this?"

"I don't know, don't tell them yet!" Jane immediately shook her head.

After all, she and Yu Yunting are still in the cooling-off period for their divorce, and many things are still unresolved. At this time, the fewer people who know, the safer it is.

"I want to tell them after everything is officially settled."

"Okay, I won't tell them." Zhou Ze'an raised the corner of his mouth. "It's our secret."

"Mm." Jane Ailing nodded.

"Are you getting used to living there alone? I don't think you've ever tried living alone like this before, have you?"

"It's alright... I plan to learn to cook for myself in the future, I can't eat takeout every meal." After returning from her trip, Jian Ailing is about to start a new life on her own, but she is full of enthusiasm and is already thinking about how to learn to cook.

"Okay." Zhou Zean smiled. "Remember to invite me to your home for dinner next time."

"Definitely, definitely. I'll invite you to try it after I've finished learning."

Yanshan Mansion is not far from Jinsha Square. The road was smooth at night, and Zhou Zean pulled over to the side of the road.

"Ailing." He turned his head and looked at Jane Ailing, who was looking down at her seatbelt and preparing to push open the door and leave.

"What's wrong?" Jane looked up at him, puzzled.

"...It's nothing." Zhou Ze'an adjusted his glasses and smiled gently. "My home isn't too far from here, only about ten or twenty minutes by car. If you're not used to being alone, or if you encounter any problems, you can always ask me for help."

"It's alright, it's alright." Jian Ailing waved her hand. "I'm not a child anymore, I can handle anything myself."

"If anything happens, I will definitely contact you." Seeing that Zhou Zean's expression seemed to change, she immediately added.

"Well then, Brother Ze'an, I'll head back now. Be careful on your way home."

"Wait..." Jian Ailing turned around, wanting to open the car door and get out, but was stopped by Zhou Ze'an again.

"What's wrong? Why are you hesitating?"

"There's an art exhibition next weekend, and a friend gave me two tickets. Are you free?"

Jane Ailing paused, unsure how to respond.

What did Zhou Ze'an mean...? Was it what she thought he meant?

But she had already explained it to him clearly beforehand, and he had agreed readily.

Am I overthinking things, or being too narcissistic? Maybe they didn't mean it that way at all, and were just trying to help their friend transition smoothly into a new life after becoming single again.

"I'm not sure what my work schedule is next weekend, so I can't agree right away. Why don't you see if there are any other friends you could go with?" Jian Ailing smiled slightly. "Goodnight, Ze'an."

"Okay, goodnight. Tell me when you get home."

"I'm almost home... You should tell me when you get home."

Jane Ailing jumped out of the car, waved to Zhou Ze'an, and then turned and walked through the gate.

Zhou Ze'an turned his head and silently watched her retreating figure. Only after she disappeared from sight did he start the car again and drive away.

Jane Ailing actually divorced Yu Yunting.

This was something he never dared to even dream of.

When Zhou Ze'an heard the news from Zhu Yan and Qiu Lixin, he thought for a moment that he was dreaming.

Reality told him that it was all true.

He could stand openly beside her again, without having to worry about anyone else.

-

And so, Jane Eyling began her life living alone.

She bought groceries at the supermarket and tried out the cooking methods taught in the short videos, little by little.

At first, the results weren't great; it took her two or three hours to cook a meal, and she was always making the same few dishes. But as she did it more often, she became more skilled.

Jane also met a mother and daughter who lived next door; she was a young single mother raising her daughter alone.

She introduced herself as a recent divorcee, which quickly evoked empathy from the single mother, and the two soon became closer.

Qingqing, who just started elementary school, is also very well-behaved. Sometimes when her mother, Fan Yue, is busy, she sends Qingqing to Jian Ailing's house so that she can help look after her.

Sometimes, when Fan Yue cooked, she would invite Jian Ailing to eat together. Jian Ailing would take the opportunity to ask her how to cook. Over time, her cooking skills began to improve rapidly.

Although doing housework can be quite troublesome at times, overall, Jane Ailing is adapting well to her new life and quite likes her current state.

"Hey? Zhao Zitong, why are you calling me so late?" One evening, Jian Ailing had just finished dinner at the Fan family's house and returned home when she received a call from Zhao Zitong.

"Ailing, I need your help with something." Zhao Zitong's voice sounded a little anxious. "My dad has some health problems. He was admitted to the hospital today and might need surgery in a couple of days."

"Is it that serious? Is Uncle alright?"

"He tripped and fell, breaking a bone. If the surgery goes well, it shouldn't be a big problem. It just means I'll be busy taking care of things for the next few days and won't be able to focus on work."

"It's alright, I've rested enough. Leave your work to me, I can help."

"Okay, I'll organize the materials and send them to you. Actually, there's not much. It's just that I'm doing wedding photography this weekend, and next week I'm going to Tianheng Group to shoot some materials for their company brochure."

Why is it Tianheng Group again?

Jane couldn't help but frown.

"You don't want to go to that Tianheng Group project, right? I'll put other people on the list and see if Lao Qin and Xiao Zhu are available, sigh..."

"It's okay, I'll go... They have their own jobs too, I'm free."

Now that things have come to this, it seems she can no longer refuse this job.