I’ll go pick you up
Lin Xian’s heart felt like it was being cut by a knife as she turned her head to look at her lover, who looked embarrassed and disheveled, resembling a wilted leaf in the wind. Gritting her teeth, she stubbornly insisted, “I’m not leaving.”
She supported Zhou Qin, who seemed weak and teary-eyed, with worry in her eyes. Despite her reluctance, she tried to remain calm, saying, “Mom, at this point, going back with you won’t solve anything. Please calm down, let’s sit down and talk things out.”
“How can I calm down! Lin Xian, you’ve disappointed me so much.” Zhou Qin shouted. She forcefully pushed away Lin Xian’s hand, swaying unsteadily. Perhaps due to lack of sleep for the past few days, staying up all night yesterday, not drinking water for over ten hours, feeling excessively tired, or possibly low blood sugar, her head felt heavy and her body weak.
With red eyes, she looked at her daughter and friend in front of her, who seemed steadfast and unyielding. Suddenly, she laughed softly, tinged with self-mockery. “Forget it then, I can’t control anything, right? Lin Xian, consider the past fifteen years of raising you as a waste. From now on, fend for yourself.” Tears streamed down her face in a disregard for elegance, resolutely turning to leave.
Xiao Wanqing and Lin Xian both clearly understood Zhou Qin’s words.
Standing behind Zhou Qin, Lin Xian watched her mother’s figure, clenching her fists tightly as tears fell silently. She wanted to express sorrow and persuade her mother to stay, reaching out to stop her from saying such harsh words. However, as she choked with sobs, all she could manage was a quiet, choked “Mom.” Her outstretched hand never touched Zhou Qin and slowly retracted.
She believed that her mother’s words were spoken in anger, and with love running deep, once they both calmed down, they could find forgiveness. Despite her mother’s strictness, Lin Xian knew deep down the love and indulgence she received throughout her life.
Seeing Zhou Qin in such a distressed state for the first time, she felt as if her heart was being pricked with needles, drowning in self-blame and guilt.
Having been abandoned once before, Xiao Panpan couldn’t bear to be abandoned again. How could she let herself be the one left to leave her in such a decisive moment?
Concerned about Zhou Qin’s well-being, Lin Xian couldn’t bear to let her go back alone. Sobbing, she wanted to tell Zhou Qin, who was now at the door, to wait and let her father come pick her up.
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But before she could speak, Xiao Wanqing grabbed her hand.
Lin Xian lowered her head and saw her beloved kneeling behind her, looking up at her with shimmering tears in her moist eyes, a gentle smile playing on her lips.
Tears that Lin Xian had been holding back suddenly streamed down her face again. She gently lifted her hands, cradling Xiao Panpan’s injured cheek, using her thumbs to wipe away her tears, trembling lips choking out, “I’m sorry, Xiao Panpan, I didn’t protect you. I didn’t fulfill my promise, I’m sorry…”
Xiao Wanqing sniffed, mustering up her strength to hold back tears, shaking her head and comforting her, “It’s alright, Xianxian.” She slowly wrapped her arms around Lin Xian, cherishing and holding onto her like a precious treasure she was about to lose. Pressing the uninjured side of her face against Lin Xian’s heart, she listened to the heartbeat of her lover, tears slowly wetting Lin Xian’s shirt. She whispered, “It’s okay now, Lin Xian. Thank you for being so firm, thank you for loving me so deeply, thank you for showing me that I didn’t make the wrong choice.”
Lin Xian hugged her back, tears falling onto her silky hair. She thought, sorry, sorry mom, I really couldn’t, couldn’t let her go.
But Xiao Wanqing slowly lifted her head, releasing Lin Xian, her eyes showing gentle consideration as she insisted, “Xianxian, let’s take your mother back first.”
Lin Xian looked down at Xiao Wanqing, her expression showing pain and struggle. In the end, she turned her head away, her voice hoarse as she said coldly, “Forget it, Panpan.”
She said, “Panpan, perhaps after this compromise, there will be more compromises to come. We can’t give up.”
Xiao Wanqing gazed at her young and determined lover, her eyes soft. She shook her head and softly said in a hoarse voice, “Xianxian, our parents are not our enemies, compromise is not surrender, it’s a form of expressing mutual love. Love and understanding go both ways, maybe this tug of war will take a bit longer, but time will eventually resolve everything. Let’s not act recklessly.” She looked at Lin Xian’s determination, seeing a reflection of her own past self who once acted without hesitation. She felt both heartache, warmth, and fear.
In life, there are many things you can never anticipate. Just like back then, she never thought that the day she left home with her luggage, that turn would truly be a goodbye.
As if history was repeating itself, she listened to Zhou Qin’s determined words, watched Lin Xian’s stubborn insistence for her, and her heart trembled.
She half-closed her eyes and earnestly promised, “Xianxian, I am fine, don’t worry about me. Today, you should take your mother back first. Don’t be afraid, once we all calmed down a bit, I will come to pick you up.”
Lin Xian bit her lip, her eyes red as she looked at her, but she remained silent.
“Xianxian, if something were to happen to your mother today, I would never find peace in my heart for the rest of my life, you’re afraid too, aren’t you?” Xiao Wanqing said sadly. “Xianxian, promise me, ease up a bit, and communicate well with them.”
Lin Xian’s throat tightened, her fists gradually clenched.
With tears in her eyes, Xiao Wanqing flashed a big smile, leaned in to kiss Lin Xian’s lips, got off the bed, picked up the coat hanging by the bed, draped it over Lin Xian, and held her hand, ready to lead her outside.
Lin Xian still stood in place, her eyes brimming with tears, watching her motionlessly.
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As she bid farewell to her beloved and embarked on an unknown future, Xiao Wanqing felt like her heart was being torn to shreds, bleeding profusely. But how could she allow herself to selfishly hold on, how could she heartlessly let Lin Xian possibly regret.
Overwhelmed with emotions, her voice trembling with suppressed tears, she still pleaded earnestly, “Xianxian, please, don’t let there be regrets like mine. Otherwise, I will never forgive myself.”
“Xiao Panpan…” Lin Xian called out with a heavy nasal tone.
“Let’s go.” Xiao Wanqing clenched one hand into a fist and firmly held Lin Xian’s hand with the other, coaxing her, “Lin Xian, I believe you can give me a blessed love, do you believe that too? So let’s fight for it.”
After a tense standoff with Xiao Wanqing, Lin Xian saw the determined resolution in her eyes. Finally, as if she had made up her mind, she wiped away the tears on her face, strode decisively towards Xiao Wanqing, pulled her into a tight hug, and whispered in her ear, “I believe, and you must always believe in me too. Xiao Panpan, I will never back down, and you must promise never to either. Remember to use an ice pack on your face, don’t be so silly next time.”
The ear that heard Lin Xian’s whisper had been slapped twice, still ringing, and Xiao Wanqing actually didn’t catch what Lin Xian said. She just gently rubbed her cheek based on instinct, nodded slightly in response to Lin Xian’s anticipation.
She escorted Lin Xian out, listened to Lin Xian’s promise to wait for her return, and waved with a smile.
As Lin Xian took steps away, looking back three times, her figure gradually disappeared from Xiao Wanqing’s sight. The light in Xiao Wanqing’s eyes dimmed as the girl’s figure moved farther away. She stood alone in the empty corridor for a long time, then suddenly seemed to collapse, her body giving way and falling to the ground. Feeling wronged, hopeless, guilty, afraid, humiliated, a myriad of emotions overwhelmed her battered heart. Xiao Wanqing hung her head, embraced herself with her hands, tears streaming down her face like rain.
Every year has its today, every year has its present day.
Just last night, they were still laughing and playing, still planning for the future, as if happiness was within reach with every step, easily attainable. But in the blink of an eye, everything turned upside down, all expectations and dreams seemed to be shattered.
Is it fate? Or punishment for her greed? Destined from the start, in her life, happiness always seemed so close yet always out of reach, just a step away but unreachable?
In the Shi Family mansion, Shi Man woke up with a splitting headache from a deep slumber. For a moment, she was bewildered, but in the next instant, she turned her body to look at the seat beside her.
Where is Zhijin?!
The memories after getting drunk were very fragmented, but she still vaguely remembered that Zhijin had come back, and then they seemed to have an argument? After that… she couldn’t remember anything else.
She sat up and saw the luggage by the door, confirming that it wasn’t a dream, and her memory was not wrong. But there were no traces of Zhijin having slept beside her…
Shi Man didn’t bother with putting on a robe or slippers, she quickly got out of bed and ran towards the bedroom door, softly calling out Xia Zhijin’s name as she ran. But after searching through the rooms on the first floor from the second floor, there was no sign of Xia Zhijin anywhere.
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Shi Man suddenly felt anxious. Did she say something she shouldn’t have said when she was drunk yesterday?
She hurriedly ran back to her room, patting her way towards her phone. Upon touching the phone and seeing the screen that wouldn’t respond, she frustratedly remembered that her phone had run out of battery long ago. She quickly connected it to the charger, impatiently waiting to call Xia Zhijin using the landline.
As she descended the stairs, the front door was pushed open from outside. She heard the sound before seeing the person, and Shi Man instinctively called out with anticipation, “Zhijin!”
However, a gentle female voice shattered her fantasy, responding, “It’s me.” Shi Jinglan carried a bag, calmly pushing the door open.
Seeing Shi Man only in a thin nightshirt, barefoot, Shi Jinglan furrowed her brows slightly, somewhat displeased, “Why are you dressed like this?”
Shi Man sighed dejectedly, not concealing her disappointment, “It’s you.” Half a second later, almost without hope, she asked Shi Jinglan, “Mom, did you just come back? Have you seen Zhijin? She came back last night, but now she’s nowhere to be found.”
Shi Jinglan’s expression briefly became complex, looking at the clueless Shi Man, a flash of heartache passing through her eyes. “Zhijin is at the hospital,” Shi Jinglan calmly replied. “Her grandmother had an accident, and the situation is not good.”
Shi Man’s heart skipped a beat, her eyes instantly reddening. Her voice trembled with tears as she urgently asked, “What happened? How is she? Last time I went to see Grandma, she was still healthy. Zhiqi, Zhijin, are they at the hospital? Which hospital?” She cared for Zhijin’s family as if they were her own, even though she never explicitly said so. Besides, feeling her pain, she imagined how terrified Xia Zhijin must be, and her heart ached as if it had been cut with a knife.
“Suddenly had a brain hemorrhage, at their county hospital. We’ve arranged everything, once things stabilize a bit today or tomorrow, they’ll be transferred to our city hospital.” As soon as she finished speaking, Shi Man had already turned and quickly ran upstairs.
Without needing to think much, Shi Jinglan could guess that Shi Man was getting changed to hurry over. She felt a bit sad for the earnestness in Shi Man’s love, and for Xia Zhijin’s unfulfilled aspirations.
Stuck in their respective dead ends, consuming each other’s emotions and passion, they were bound to grow tired of each other eventually. Stepping back, experiencing and growing on their own, perhaps in the future, there will be endless possibilities.
She didn’t know if many years later, Shi Man would blame her for the conversation with Zhijin, but at least, in this moment, she believed that she had made the most appropriate decision for them.
LP: I just want fluff…