It was late March. A gentle wind rustled through the willows on the riverbank where the car was parked under an ancient banyan tree. From here, one could see the antique pavilions and towers within the old campus.
That was where the two of them had their first date.
Yan Xixi vaguely rembered that she was only eighteen back then, on her first date with a boy. Like a pair of silly kids, they had simply walked along the riverbank over and over until they beca famished. Only then did Huang Xiaojue clumsily ask, "Xixi, are you hungry?" Afterward, he bought two large chicken legs and two large chicken wings from a barbecue stall at the night market.
That was the first ti she had spent a man’s money. She was so hungry that she ate an entire chicken leg and two wings all by herself, while he just watched her eat. Ever since then, he had always taken care of her, always letting her have the best of everything.
Years later, the barbecue stall was surprisingly still there.
But now, she had no desire to eat barbecue at all. She just lowered her head, lightly kicking the pebbles at her feet. One small stone flew into the water, stirring up shimring ripples. A few startled birds were roused, and with a rustle of wings, they flew up into the sky.
Huang Xiaojue reached out and hugged her. She leaned against him in the darkness, motionless, her heart filled with a desolate chill.
He was supposed to return in three days, but after working overti and late into the night the previous day, he had finally rushed back tonight. The journey had left him exhausted and looking very haggard.
Even his voice was slightly hoarse as he asked, "Xixi, why are you saying such foolish things?"
Her face rested on his chest. She could feel his strong, powerful heartbeat, and her own heart pounded in response. She felt a slight, unexpected sense of relief. She had thought it would be like before—that at his mother’s command, Huang Xiaojue would cease to be hers. To her surprise, he had hung up the phone only to travel day and night to return to her as quickly as possible.
"Xixi, you mustn’t say such foolish things anymore!"
Tears welled in her eyes. "Xiaojue, I’m scared..."
"What are you scared of?"
"My past... you know..."
Huang Xiaojue closed his eyes slightly. The past! Wan Donglin! He didn’t dare tell her that he had always been jealous, always afraid. If Wan Donglin were just toying with her like other tycoons, there would be nothing to worry about. But he knew that wasn’t the case. Wan Donglin had dared to break off his engagent with Zhou Ting and to alarm Liu Daqing. He had even dared to refrain from retaliating after she injured him. What did all these actions signify? That was why hearing the words ’Xiaojue, let’s break up’ again had felt like a knife to his heart.
He said slowly, "Xixi, you should understand . If I truly cared about those trivial things, I wouldn’t love you anymore."
He might not care now, but what about the future? He himself might not mind, but what about his mother’s constant instigation?
"But your mother cares a lot!"
"Your mother doesn’t like at all." She finally said in a rush, "Since the Spring Festival, your mother has contacted several tis. She refuses to believe that I’ve completely broken things off with Wan Donglin and constantly suspects of improper behavior. She even said..."
"What did she say?"
"She ordered to leave you. She said that if I stayed with you, there would be no guarantee that any children we had would actually be yours..."
Huang Xiaojue couldn’t believe it.
Heaven knew how terrified and bewildered he had been when he heard her say "breakup." What on earth had he done wrong? So, it turned out his mother had said such outrageous things to her.
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