Chapter 34 - He could control his instincts for you...

On the way home, Lin Xi kept her head down, staring at the house purchase contract on her lap, and remained silent for a long time.

Fu Qingli could guess what she was thinking, so she reached out and took her small hand in hers, comforting her: "This is a token of Aunt Yao's and the others' goodwill, so don't worry about it. When Zhou Leyan gets married, we'll give him a big gift in return."

"Mmm." Lin Xi kept her head down, her voice muffled and nasal.

After a long pause, she spoke again, this time with a clear sob in her voice, "But I still feel so sorry for them. They've been with me all these years. Even though Aunt Yao went back to Nanqing with Brother Leyan, they always come back to Jiangcheng to see me during long holidays, afraid I'll be too lonely spending the holidays alone. But I was so caught up in my own emotions, letting them come and go as they pleased, and I never went back to Nanqing to see them. Aunt Yao said they treat me like family, but I kept rejecting them, feeling sorry for myself and thinking I was all alone in the world. How could I be so heartless..."

Lin Xi choked up completely, the sadness in her nose and chest making it impossible for her to continue speaking.

This road is congested, and there's no suitable parking spot.

Fu Qingli could only take advantage of the red light to grab a few tissues and carefully wipe away her tears, patiently saying, "Relatives don't care about who gave more or less. Aunt Yao won't blame you. What they want most is for you to move on from your past sadness and live a good life. Besides, we can visit her in Nanqing more often in the future, or take her to Beicheng."

Three days after Lin Fengyuan left, Lin Xi was diagnosed with acute stress disorder and was rushed to the hospital for treatment. However, the initial conservative treatment plan was not ideal, and after two weeks of self-isolation, she officially developed a moderate depression.

She has been struggling with her emotions for years, but fortunately, her strong will to live has enabled her to maintain a normal life. At the beginning of last year, according to the diagnosis of her attending physician, Dr. Han, her condition began to improve. She no longer exhibited extreme behavior when faced with memories and steadily entered the period of discontinuing medication.

However, she has an unconscious fear of the experience of Lin Fengyuan's death, which makes her approach to the situation somewhat slow.

Now that she can face her closed-off past, feel the kindness of others, and no longer be self-isolated, it means she has the courage to face that dark past.

As Lin Xi's sobs subsided, Fu Qingli tried to distract her: "Didn't you say you and He Xiaduo hadn't seen each other since you met at the train station last year? We're leaving tomorrow, so why don't you ask her out this afternoon to see how Nanqing has changed?"

In fact, over the years, Lin Xi has longed for the company of her family and friends, but she is also afraid that she will not have enough energy and will cause trouble for others.

The person accompanying her needs to make her feel safe enough for her to truly relax.

He Xiaduo was clearly the right choice; the two girls used to spend a lot of time chatting together whenever they had free time.

Perhaps being with her best friend and talking to her would make Lin Xi feel better.

This suggestion really appealed to Lin Xi. Things had developed so quickly these past two days, and she really wanted to talk to someone.

Around 1 or 2 PM, considering He Xiaduo might be taking a nap, Lin Xi didn't call, but sent a message: 【Are you busy this afternoon?】

Less than a minute after the message was sent, He Xiaduo's video call came through.

Lin Xi looked at Fu Qingli questioningly, and seeing that he didn't mind, she thought for a moment and then switched the video to a phone call before answering.

As soon as the call connected, He Xiaduo's energetic voice came through: "Xiaoxi, you know I've been lying at home these past few days, I'm so bored! What's up? Want to chat? Don't you have to go to work?"

Lin Xi was infected by her smile and said with a smile, "No, I was asking if you have time to go out? I'm back in Nanqing."

"What? You're back in Nanqing?!" He Xiaduo's voice suddenly became louder and more excited. "Where are you now? At the airport or the high-speed rail station? I'll come pick you up! Hehe, you know I just got my driver's license earlier this year, so I can drive to pick you up!"

A barrage of questions left Lin Xi no room to breathe.

Lin Xi could only wait for her to finish speaking before replying with a wry smile, "No need, I'm already in the city."

She looked out the window and searched for the landmark building. "It seems to be near the broadcasting station now."

“There’s a Yongxin Plaza nearby, a shopping mall that’s been built in the last couple of years. The facilities are pretty good. How about we meet there? We can go see a movie and have some barbecue.” He Xiaduo was very excited; you could already hear her running around on the ground. “It’s very close by. Wait for me, okay? I’ll be there in ten minutes, no, twenty minutes, I’m not very good at parking!”

Hearing this, Fu Qingli finally couldn't help but speak up: "Have her take a taxi over. Once it's over, I'll come pick you up."

Lin Xi had the speakerphone on, and he didn't muffle his voice, so He Xiaduo could hear him.

The other end immediately fell silent. The familiar voice momentarily stunned He Xiaduo. After a long pause, she asked in a daze, "Xiaoxi, who is the man next to you? Is he the young master?"

This nickname is really something I haven't heard in a long time, Fu Qingli couldn't help but chuckle.

This made Lin Xi feel a little awkward: "Yes, I came back with him."

To prevent He Xiaduo from saying anything else outrageous, she preemptively said, "I've put it on speakerphone."

He Xiaduo immediately became very well-behaved and greeted Fu Qingli with timidity: "Hello, Fu Qingli, it's been a long time."

The official tone didn't match her boisterous personality, and Lin Xi couldn't help but laugh out loud: "Why aren't you calling me young master anymore?"

Knowing that Fu Qingli was there, He Xiaduo didn't dare to confront her and just chuckled awkwardly.

Fu Qingli reached out and affectionately pinched Lin Xi's delicate face, then greeted He Xiaduo: "Long time no see. Thank you for coming out to keep Lin Xi company. Today's expenses are on me. Have a good time."

This familiar extravagant spending instantly brought He Xiaduo back to the days in high school when she could freeload off Lin Xi. Ignoring that Fu Qingli could hear her, she couldn't help but exclaim, "Young Master is indeed Young Master! Sister, I can finally ride on your coattails and live the life of a rich woman again!"

*

It was a gathering of close friends, and Fu Qingli naturally didn't want to disturb them.

He Xiaduo met up with Lin Xi, and after a brief greeting, he drove home first.

The two stood by the roadside watching Fu Qingli drive away on the main road with one hand on the steering wheel.

He Xiaduo couldn't help but click her tongue in admiration: "Sister, first of all, let me state that I have absolutely no ulterior motives towards your young master. What follows is only from the perspective of appreciating beauty. Your young master's looks are exceptionally good, even among male celebrities. Look at those girls around him, they were all secretly taking pictures of him with their phones. If it weren't for you being with him, they probably would have gone to ask for his number this morning."

Lin Xi couldn't help but laugh, feeling a sense of relief that she hadn't felt this way in a long time. It was always like this before; every time she saw a handsome young man, she would use the same familiar lines.

"Let's go get some milk tea!"

He Xiaduo took Lin Xi's arm and led her to a nearby milk tea shop. "But to be honest, I think the young master is still the same as before, still doting on you. Even after being apart for such a short time, he's still worried about you! By the way, didn't you ask me last time if I felt he only saw you as a younger sister? I don't think so. There's a more accurate word to describe how good he is to you."

Lin Xi's curiosity was piqued: "What?"

"Your boyfriend is like a father figure. He treats you like a daughter, afraid that you might get hurt."

"..."

He Xiaduo suddenly leaned close to Lin Xi's ear mysteriously and whispered, "Didn't you say you couldn't tell if his feelings for you were like siblings or romantic love? Why don't you learn from those heroines in novels and just go for it? If he likes you, he definitely won't be able to resist your initiative!"

"..."

He Xiaduo's ambiguous gaze made Lin Xi blush instantly, and she pinched He Xiaduo's arm in embarrassment and annoyance, "What are you saying!"

He Xiaduo slightly dodged her movement: "No, I'm serious! With how much the young master dotes on you, he definitely puts your feelings first. He's so careful around you, and you're conflicted about his feelings for you. If neither of you takes the initiative to break through that barrier, when will you ever make up?"

When she mentioned this, Lin Xi stopped moving and her gaze became somewhat evasive.

Based on their years of interaction, He Xiaduo immediately saw through the deception: "Aww, Lin Xiaoxi! You're hiding something from me! Tell me! Have things progressed between you and the young master? What, did he confess to you?"

Lin Xi nodded, then shook her head, and hesitated before saying, "We... got our marriage certificate yesterday."

"What?! They got their marriage certificate! My favorite couple's relationship has come true!"

He Xiaduo screamed excitedly, attracting the attention of the surrounding crowd. Lin Xi covered her mouth, embarrassed. "But it's not what you think. Calm down and let me tell you."

Afterwards, Lin Xi told her about what happened yesterday, but skipped the specific details of Su Yi'an provoking her.

"Actually, I don't know if he said he loved me just to comfort me. He seemed very detached to me. I always felt that his affection had nothing to do with sexual desire between men and women. Otherwise, why would he let me sleep in a gauze dress all night?"

何夏朵无语地扶了扶额：“说真的，你要不是我好朋友，知道你是真的很苦恼，我铁定姚揍你一顿！这恩爱秀得真是无话可说！少爷要只是把你当妹妹，给你钱，保你一生衣食无忧，就足以报答林叔对他母亲的恩情了，何必委屈自己娶一个不爱的人呢！”

“I think you’re trapped in the logic that woman told you. You lack self-confidence and feel that you’re not worthy of the young master’s love, which is why you’re getting hung up on these little things. Like you said, he didn’t change your clothes. I have another explanation. Do you want to hear it?”

"think."

“When he removed your makeup and wiped your face, it’s impossible that he didn’t notice the dress you were wearing. Actually, if he were holding you while you were wearing a dress, he would feel more uncomfortable. I think that at that time, he didn’t want to wake you up; and given your relationship, he couldn’t ask Aunt Yao for help; and if he did it himself, he felt that it would be too abrupt to change your clothes while you were asleep since you had just reconciled. After weighing the options, he could only choose to let you make do for one night.”

"It's true that attraction between men and women is inevitable, but the fact that he controlled his instincts for you shows just how deep his feelings for you are."

After listening to her words, Lin Xi felt a sense of sudden enlightenment.

Indeed, before hearing Su Yi'an say those words, she had never doubted Fu Qingli's feelings for her, but after that, she had always viewed their interactions as those of "brother and sister".

As a result, she found herself in a dead end, subconsciously feeling that Fu Qingli's concern for her had nothing to do with gender.