Chapter 35: I've been waiting for you to come back

The call was connected.

At that moment, Liu Chengxu felt like he was about to stop breathing, and his first thought was to hang up the phone.

Panicked and helpless, its heart began to pound in its chest, something it hadn't done in a long time.

The sound came from the other end first.

Su Zhiluo asked, "What are you doing?"

Liu Chengxu was originally sitting on the bed, but slowly walked to the bay window. The floor was high up, so he could see the city's night view.

She said, "I just finished work."

Su Zhiluo's voice was just as slow as hers, "Have you eaten?"

"Yes, I called Meng Zhenyue."

Liu Chengxu slowly added, "She's getting married."

"Marriage?" Su Zhiluo asked in surprise, "Where and when will the wedding be held?"

Liu Chengxu said, "It should be in Taipei, currently scheduled for October."

I don't know what they were thinking, but suddenly they said, "Give me an address."

Liu Chengxu chuckled, a hint of mockery in his voice, his rebellious spirit barely contained, and blurted out, "Is there any point in asking this?"

He regretted it as soon as he opened his mouth and stared intently at the screen.

Liu Chengxu thought she would follow up with "It's pointless, forget it," but after waiting for a long time, he suddenly heard suppressed breathing on the other end of the line, heavy and slow. She said, "I'll send you something."

Liu Cheng asked, "Why did you block me that day?"

Su Zhiluo said, "You will transfer the money over."

She added, "I'm saving all this money I've earned."

Liu Cheng explained, "It was earned from the fund."

A long silence fell on the other end of the phone. Su Zhiluo didn't respond with her usual sharp retorts; instead, she exuded a calm that had come from reflection.

Su Zhiluo said, "Isn't the capital of the fund also earned by you working hard all night?"

Liu Chengxu turned on his computer. Yes.

When she first arrived, she was eager to prove herself, working overtime and running around doing sales, working like crazy. They didn't contact each other, but a sum of money would be deposited into her bank account regularly, with Su Zhiluo noting: "Rent".

She remained the same, like a tree, silently spreading her branches to shelter her from the wind and rain. Knowing the rent was a burden here, I regularly gave her money to pay it.

Every time Liu Chengxu turned back, his words would be very harsh: I don't need you.

I've been working until the early hours of the morning; it's time to sleep.

As they were about to hang up, one of them said, "You have a really unpleasant way of speaking."

In that instant, the things that bound her began to peel away.

Being overly polite is a sign of concern or estrangement; the current barbed conversation still carries threads of affection.

That night, both of them tossed and turned, unable to sleep.

Later, Su Zhi returned to Taipei.

Su Zhiluo bought the house, and the landlord contacted her to sell it to her at half price. The previous buyer couldn't agree on the price, and later the landlord had a conflict with his children and couldn't go to Australia, so he now has to go to a nursing home.

It happened to be Su Zhiluo's birthday, her thirtieth birthday. She had money now, so buying something out of obsession wasn't unforgivable.

At that time, Chang Ru-yin wanted to buy her own house in Taipei, believing that having a house would give her confidence.

Su Zhiluo also had her eye on one of the apartments. She proactively called Liu Chengxu, wanting her to come back so that both apartments would be registered under both names. Unfortunately…

She carefully tidied up and decorated the small house. In her spare time, she accompanied Chang Ruyin to the building materials market, watching Chang Ruyin and Yang Jie slowly transform a bare house into a cozy place. They planned to visit their parents after the renovation was completed.

Yang Jie asked, "When will you have a new home?"

Su Zhiluo said, "Cheng Xu will be back soon."

This is a bit hard to understand. Does it mean that Liu Chengxu is coming back and she can't have a new home with someone else, or that she can have a new home once Chengxu comes back?

Regardless of the type, they all revolve around Liu Chengxu.

Yang Jie asked, "Are you sure?"

Su Zhiluo didn't nod, and said, "We'll ask her for the address later."

Su Zhiluo added a lot of things for winter, thinking that she would go and look at the house when Liu Chengxu returned and had some free time.

In October, Chang Ruyin called Su Zhiluo to ask.

Su Zhiluo said, "It will be soon."

In October, Liu Chengxu did not return. She had to handle the work-related matters herself, so she sent a message to Meng Zhenyue to apologize.

Meng Zhenyue also posted in the group: "[It's okay, it's not true love anyway, we'll get together after the wedding.]"

A few days later, she tagged Meng Zhenyue, saying she was still busy and couldn't come back to Taipei to have dinner together.

Meng Zhenyue tagged everyone again in the reply: "My wife has passed away, so we can't get together anymore; it's inconvenient."

Liu Chengxu: [???]

She checked the message repeatedly, making sure her eyes weren't blind: "That's too fast! Is the rich woman you married 38 or 83?"

Meng Zhenyue didn't reply; she's probably busy.

Liu Chengxu contacted Cha Baomei, who replied: "I already said it was a scam. Please report it to the police and check if her location is still within China."

Liu Chengxu had no choice but to call her two other friends who had attended the wedding. Her friends told her that he was really dead, murdered, and even sent her information about a wealthy women's group.

Liu Chengxu quickly sold a few stocks and asked, "Are we going to a funeral?"

Meng Zhenyue: [The situation is complicated. I'm currently with my stepdaughter.]

Liu Chengxu continued checking his stock market profile: "[Will this work? Isn't remarrying too soon? Won't her family object to you two being together?]"

Meng Zhenyue didn't reply to her, so her plan to return to Taipei was put on hold.

In December, Cha Baomei returned from Africa. She was still working overtime in S City, held back by her work.

With the Lunar New Year fast approaching, Meng Zhenyue invited her to relax. Liu Chengxu finished get off work that day and rushed to catch a flight without even changing her clothes.

During this trip, she met Meng Zhenyue's stepdaughter. She thought she was just a child, at most about the same age as herself back then, but when she saw her, she was shocked to find that she was 18 years old!

This is the age when people like to mess with the people around them.

At her age, she steals kisses from her sister-in-law every day.

The stepdaughter seemed well-behaved, following Meng Zhenyue everywhere, and even trying to hold Meng Zhenyue's hand. Meng Zhenyue seriously told her that her stepdaughter had a crush on someone, someone who was a scumbag, and that she had a bit of a mother complex since she was young, having lost her mother early and treating Meng Zhenyue like her own mother. There was absolutely no way they could be together...

She really wanted to pat Meng Zhenyue on the shoulder and say, "Your stepdaughter might be trying to mess with you; wear more clothes tonight." This is definitely a distorted form of love.

She softened her tone and said, "Nothing is impossible. Well, I didn't tell you that I want to sleep with my sister-in-law."

The moment she said it, everyone looked at her in surprise. Liu Chengxu suddenly felt very happy. Her feelings for him were no longer a secret, and she no longer needed to mute her sadness.

She felt ironic; she herself had advised Meng Zhenyue to be careful, yet Meng Zhenyue had the nerve to keep clinging to Su Zhiluo?

After his trip, Liu Chengxu did not return to S City, but went back to Beishi.

Meng Zhenyue drove her there, and when they arrived downstairs, she saw the lights inside the building.

Liu Chengxu hesitated for a long time before saying, "She has been living here all this time, probably reminiscing about my sister every day."

At this point, she spoke with a mixture of helplessness and sarcasm, laughing at her own foolishness—still unable to forget her, her love for her only growing stronger. She also laughed at Su Zhiluo's stupidity—after all these years, she was still stuck in that dilapidated house thinking of her sister; she was the most corrupt person in the world.

Liu Chengxu was covered in thorns, and he pulled them all out one by one before going to see Su Zhiluo.

Meng Zhenyue then realized that all her previous emotions stemmed from her sister-in-law.

It's been more than two years since Liu Chengxu last mentioned his sister-in-law.

When Liu Chengxu reached the door, he still hesitated.

It was already past midnight, and there was a loud knocking on the door. Su Zhiluo didn't dare to open it and remained silent for a long time. With the New Year approaching, all sorts of strange and supernatural things were out in force. She asked warily, "Who is it?"

The sounds outside the door grew increasingly urgent, so Su Zhiluo grabbed a knife, preparing to call the police.

Liu Chengxu said, "Sister-in-law, open the door. It's me, my sister."

The door was not opened.

Liu Chengxu had no choice but to speak again, guessing that Su Zhiluo wouldn't want to open the door for her if she heard it was her.

She whispered, "It's me, Liu Chengxu."

Inside the door, Su Zhiluo's heart suddenly raced, and her breathing became rapid. The scene she had fantasized about countless times suddenly came true, and she almost blurted out: Are you imitating Liu Chengxu's voice?

When she was little, her third older sister told her a story about a monster that would mimic the voice of the person you miss most in the middle of the night and then eat you up.

She stood there stunned for a long time.

Outside, Meng Zhenyue chimed in, "Please open the door. If you don't, she might freeze to death right there. She's not wearing anything but a sweater."

Su Zhiluo spotted Liu Chengxu through the crack in the door.

She now has permed her hair, giving her a sexy, mature look, completely different from the college student she used to be.

She thought, "I knew it."

It's not a dirty little dog anymore.

Liu Chengxu is taking off his own clothes to cover up his lie; how stupid of him.

Su Zhilu felt a lump in her throat and couldn't bear it. She quickly put down the knife in her hand, gritted her teeth, pushed open the door, and said, "Don't open it. Let her die outside."

Liu Chengxu said, "Heartless."

The moment the door opened, warm light poured into the room. Su Zhiluo stood in the doorway; two years had passed since they last met, and neither of them had changed much in appearance.

Liu Chengxu stood there, stunned, staring at the familiar outline drawn by the light and shadow, which made her feel as if she had returned to that summer that changed everything.

Many words are stuck in my throat.

Su Zhiluo said gently, "The food is ready, let's go in and eat."

Meng Zhenyue smiled and replied, "Thank you, I'm not hungry."

Liu Chengxu smelled the aroma of the food and couldn't help but wonder, "Was it made for me?"

She was afraid that she was just imagining things.

Liu Cheng said, "Sister-in-law, I'm hungry."

Su Zhiluo's gaze fell on her, and she pushed the door open to let her in.

Meng Zhenyue did not stay long.

Liu Chengxu entered the room, the layout of which felt both familiar and unfamiliar. Finally, she looked at the table and said, "Why are there so many things? Are some guests coming over?"

Su Zhiluo dragged her suitcase over. Liu Chengxu habitually disliked letting his sister-in-law carry heavy things, so he reached out to take it. When their hands touched, her fingers were icy cold, and Su Zhiluo shuddered violently. The suitcase fell to the ground with a hollow echo in the quiet room.

The suitcase landed on Su Zhiluo's foot, and Liu Chengxu immediately reached over to smooth it over, asking, "Are you alright?"

She didn't hear what Su Zhiluo said, so she immediately asked, "Does it hurt a lot?"

Su Zhiluo's throat was sore and dry. She spoke again, "I said, there were no customers. It was all made for you."

Liu Chengxu was stunned.

Su Zhiluo said, "I've been waiting for you to come back."

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Sweet, sweet! [Rainbow fart][Rainbow fart][Rainbow fart]

This story picks up where "Mother's Legacy" left off, but it won't follow the same major plot points. So, the events that happened there won't be repeated here. Instead, it will follow the key moments in their lives.

Regarding this house, my late mother's side was demolished and they were allocated a house. Those who have read it should know that when I wrote about my late mother, I didn't really think that much. But while writing this, I suddenly had a sense of destiny, which was quite magical.

Thank you all for praising me! I love you all so much! It makes me feel so accomplished to have written this short story. Love you all! [crying emoji]