Chapter 353 I swear, I didn't!

The end of a long-distance relationship is either a breakup or a reunion of lovers, but the end of a relationship is not necessarily marriage.

Marriage is different from dating; marriage represents responsibility. Huo Huai Sui always felt that she was still young, still a baby, and that getting married now was a bit too early. She wasn't sure if she could shoulder this responsibility.

Xie Qinglan raised an eyebrow. "How could you think I don't want to?"

Huo Huaisui said, "I guess it's just a feeling."

She couldn't quite put her finger on where the feeling came from, but that's just how she felt.

If I had to pinpoint a reason, I would simply attribute it to a woman's sixth sense.

Xie Qinglan smiled enigmatically, "You seem to trust your instincts quite a bit."

Just because someone is lucky doesn't mean all their "feelings" are correct. For example, once when the two went to a maze, Xie Qinglan believed Huo Huaisui's ghostly intuition and followed her, resulting in them being stuck in the maze for nearly four hours. Another time, after watching a movie, they played a mystery game on an arcade machine outside the theater. Even a five-year-old could pass through it, but the two of them were out in five minutes. Xie Qinglan still remembers the disdainful looks from the two kids at the next machine.

Take the present as an example. Xie Qinglan doesn't not want to marry her; he just prefers to let things take their natural course, whether it's dating or marriage.

He doesn't date just for the sake of dating; otherwise, those hundred or so ex-girlfriends wouldn't have ended up as mere financial transactions. He only dates when he finds someone he wants to be with. Similarly, he doesn't want to get married just because it's "time to get married"; he prefers for the marriage to happen naturally and spontaneously between two people.

The current development feels somewhat forced upon us by our elders, which inevitably makes us feel uncomfortable.

Ms. Ji was not a strict mother. She had no demands on him from childhood to adulthood. She didn't need him to be good at his studies, outstanding, or obedient to adults. He could do whatever he wanted, and Ms. Ji would like him as long as he was happy.

Marriage and having children were Ms. Ji's only expectations of him.

He couldn't refuse Ms. Ji, and when he heard his girlfriend say she didn't want to either, to be honest, he did feel relieved.

Huo Huai Sui pretended not to hear the sarcasm in her boyfriend's words and said earnestly, "Look at you, you just finished your studies and you're getting married right away, how rushed! Even going to a market isn't this rushed. I think we can take it slow and let things happen naturally, what do you say?"

“That makes sense,” Xie Qinglan agreed. “Then let’s wait until you’ve thought it through before we talk about it.”

Huo Huai Sui's eyes brightened slightly. She waved his hand away and gave him a high five. "It's a deal!"

"..."

Xie Qinglan lowered her hand, narrowed her eyes, and sized her up. "What, you don't want to marry me?"

Huo Huai Sui rolled her eyes and glared at him. "Hey, what nonsense are you talking about? I'm just not ready yet."

Xie Qinglan: "Are you really not planning to start something and then abandon it?"

Huo Huai Sui held up four fingers: "I'm pronouncing four, I didn't!"

Xie Qinglan chuckled, grabbed her fourth hand, and led her forward, saying, "Since you don't want to go back, let's wander around."

"You don't have anything else to do today, right? I'll take you to the food street. We didn't finish exploring it last time."

"Can you still eat?"

"How can I not eat? I barely ate anything."

It would be strange if she had no appetite when her brother stared at her like a criminal.

The two spent the afternoon strolling through the food street, eating quite a lot and buying many odds and ends. Fortunately, Huo Huai Sui now had his own house, so he didn't have to stuff everything into his room. He could put things wherever he wanted in the huge house.

As darkness fell, the two took a shortcut out. Huo Huai Sui walked in front, admiring a small trinket he had just bought. Xie Qing Lan carried something in one hand and was replying to messages on her phone in the other.

[Xie Qingxi: My older brother has disappeared; he's not answering his phone.]

[Xie Qinglan: Oh]

[Xie Qingxi: Xing-ge has set up a ski resort in the suburbs. Let's go skiing together tonight!]

[Xie Qinglan: No time, I'm with my girlfriend.]

[Xie Qingxi: That's easy, bring your second sister-in-law along too]

Xie Qinglan originally intended to refuse outright, but upon glancing at a certain word, she immediately changed her mind.

[Xie Qinglan: Let me ask.]

Huo Huai Sui, who was walking ahead, suddenly stopped.

Xie Qinglan also stopped, "How..."

As soon as she uttered a syllable, Xie Qinglan was pulled back a few steps by Huo Huaisui.

Xie Qinglan looked up and saw the couple passionately kissing in front of her, and her eyebrows lifted slightly.

Taking advantage of the fact that the two people weren't paying attention, Huo Huaisui pulled Xie Qinglan back to the corner and excitedly whispered, "Xie Qinglan."

Huo Huai Sui didn't know what kind of constitution she had. She could run into acquaintances wherever she went and always encounter some unexpected things.

Xie Qinglan shoved her phone into her pocket, leaned closer to her, and asked, "Want to kiss me?"

Huo Huaisui: "?"

Silence means she's thinking of you. Xie Qinglan lowered her head and kissed those small lips.

"..."

Huo Huaisui gave it two symbolic pushes, but when it didn't budge, it stopped moving.

The alley was very quiet.

All that reached my ears was the sound of breathing so close to my face.

Then a familiar female voice came from not far away: "Xie Qingtang, why are you running? Wait for me!"

Then came a series of footsteps that gradually faded into the distance.

Only when he could no longer hear anything did Huo Huai Sui nudge the person in front of him.

Xie Qinglan hissed, "Don't touch me like that."

He paused, then added, "I'll touch it again when we get back."

"..." Who wants to touch you?

Xie Qinglan released her, licked her lips with lingering pleasure, and thought to herself, "Why am I skiing? I'd rather use that energy in bed."

Huo Huai Sui leaned against the wall, catching his breath. Thinking about what he had just witnessed, he couldn't help but ask, "Was that your older brother?"

Xie Qinglan: "Didn't you hear that?"

Huo Huai Sui heard it, but he couldn't quite believe it.

The three Xie brothers are all incredibly charming. One of them is so flamboyant that even roast duck would pale in comparison. Another has such a social butterfly syndrome that everyone he meets is like a brother or sister. Xie Qingtang is like a noble young master who doesn't care about worldly affairs. He gives off a cool and aloof vibe, someone you can only admire from afar and not touch. Huo Huaisui really couldn't believe that her "breast" friend actually went to grope Xie Qingtang.

"Let's go back." Xie Qinglan took Huo Huaisui's hand and walked out of the alley.

Once in the car, Huo Huaisui couldn't wait to take out his phone and send a message to Zhang Qin.

[Year after year: Knock knock—]

[Zhang Qin: ?]

[SuiSui: I saw it]

[Zhang Qin: ?]

[Sui Sui: In the alley of the snack street]

[Zhang Qin: ...]

Xie Qinglan put down her phone, started the car, and asked, "Qingxi asked if you want to go skiing together."

Huo Huai Sui said without looking up, "I'm not going."

She had no interest in skiing right now; her mind was filled with gossip about Zhang Qin.

Xie Qinglan: "Okay."

Huo Huaisui continued to send messages to Zhang Qin.

[SuiSui: Did you really get him?]

[Zhang Qin: Now that you've seen it, I won't hide it from you.]

[Zhang Qin: No]

[Zhang Qin: He ran away after kissing me, like a virgin, and even blocked me.]

[Zhang Qin: Quick, help me think of a way to get him to add me back. I haven't had enough kisses yet!]

[Sui Sui: ...]

Huo Huaisui had no choice.

She didn't have Xie Qingtang's contact information and wasn't familiar with him.

Back in Lanjiang New City, the two took the elevator upstairs. As soon as they got off the elevator, they saw a delivery guy wearing a uniform from a food delivery platform knocking on the door.

The deliveryman turned around when he heard the noise and asked, "Mr. Xie, whose license plate ends in 7094?"

Xie Qinglan: "Yes, that's me."

The deliveryman handed the bag to Xie Qinglan, saying, "Hello, here's your takeout."

Xie Qinglan calmly accepted it, saying, "Thank you."

"What is it?" Huo Huai Sui asked as he opened the door.

Xie Qinglan simply handed the bag to her and let her see for herself.

Huo Huaisui changed his shoes, opened the bag, and glanced inside. "!!!"