Chapter 9. Bai Xiao had an unusual insomnia that night.
In the music room, the sounds of the piano and flute intertwined and echoed each other. One could feel the perfect harmony between the two instruments. Only those who were of one mind could create such beautiful and harmonious music.
Despite the pleasant and melodious sound, Bai Xiao became increasingly irritated.
But he didn't understand why he was so agitated—just as he didn't understand why he had come all this way to deliver food to Song Huai.
Perhaps it's because that person has been coming home late more and more often late at night; perhaps it's because that person's body is getting thinner and thinner; or perhaps it's because that person can barely touch their rice bowl each time.
Or perhaps it was because Bai Xiao simply couldn't bear the loneliness of having only himself at the dinner table. So, after receiving the news again today that Song Huai hadn't come back for dinner, he rushed to a restaurant to buy food. It was a Cantonese restaurant, and Bai Xiao noticed that Song Huai usually cooked light and simple dishes, so he figured Song Huai would like this place.
After what seemed like an eternity, so long that Bai Xiao had almost finished her work for the next day on her phone, the music finally stopped. She saw Song Huai and Qiu Wu walking down the stairs side by side, laughing about something intimately. Bai Xiao found this sight incredibly irritating.
Song Huai saw Qiu Wu to the door, and the two hugged as usual before Qiu Wu went home first. Later, Song Huai returned and was startled to see Bai Xiao still sitting upright in the living room waiting for him: "Bai Xiao, you... why haven't you gone home yet?"
Bai Xiao couldn't answer his question. After hesitating for a long time, he finally said in a muffled voice, "Let's go home, it's late."
Home. Song Huai pondered the word "home" several times in his heart. So, in Bai Xiao's eyes, that place was their home? His heart pounded. But then he thought about it and mocked himself for being presumptuous. Bai Xiao was just saying it casually. They had clearly agreed before that they were only married in name. How could Bai Xiao really consider that place their home?
Song Huai forced a smile: "Okay, wait for me a moment."
Bai Xiao thought Song Huai had some important business to attend to, but to his surprise, he simply went to the kitchen to carefully pack the beef noodles that Qiu Wu had just brought into a bag, intending to take them home.
Bai Xiao frowned: "It's all cold, how can we eat it?"
Song Huai hugged the bag tightly to his chest, as if it were a precious treasure. "I can heat it up and eat it in a bit. There's always a long queue at this shop, so we can't waste it."
--
After returning home with Song Huai, Bai Xiao suffered from insomnia that night, which was unusual for her.
Bai Xiao was wide awake, staring blankly at the ceiling, her mind filled with images of Song Huai.
Song Huai looked at himself with despair in his eyes and wept. Song Huai played the piano with his back to him. Song Huai cooked for him. Song Huai flirted with his friends. Song Huai, Song Huai, Song Huai…
Bai Xiao's mouth grew drier and drier as she thought about it. Finally, she couldn't bear it any longer and suddenly sat up, deciding to go downstairs to get a glass of cold water.
Upon entering the living room, Bai Xiao noticed a faint light coming from the kitchen. Intrigued, he walked over...
Song Huai had originally planned to eat this bowl of beef noodles for breakfast the next day, but tonight, because he was frightened by Bai Xiao, he had no appetite and was now starving. Normally, Song Huai would have simply ignored it and gone to sleep, but tonight, the bowl of noodles in the refrigerator seemed to have a magical power, constantly tugging at Song Huai's heart and making him yearn for it. Finally, Song Huai couldn't stay in bed any longer and decided to go downstairs to heat up the noodles and eat them.
So, in the dead of night, in the kitchen, Bai Xiao and Song Huai unexpectedly locked eyes.
Song Huai realized that eating alone in the middle of the night seemed a bit excessive, so he finally broke the silence and pointed to the noodles in front of him, asking, "Do...do you want some?"
Bai Xiao looked at the red oil and chili flakes floating on the bowl of noodles and his heart trembled—he had always had a bland palate and couldn't handle any spice, but the words of refusal rolled around on his lips before he swallowed them back: "Okay."
--
Looking at Bai Xiao, whose face was flushed red from the spiciness and whose eyes were filled with tears, Song Huai poured her a glass of iced milk while suppressing a laugh: "Tell me, why are you showing off when you can't handle spicy food?"
Bai Xiao picked up the milk and drank it all in one gulp, having no time to answer Song Huai's question.
After panting for a long time, the spiciness in Bai Xiao's mouth slowly subsided. He asked in puzzlement, "Don't you usually have a pretty mild palate? Why are you eating something so spicy now?"
Song Huai's cooking suited Bai Xiao's taste perfectly. He made dishes that Bai Xiao liked for every meal. In the past, Bai Xiao was secretly glad that the two of them had similar tastes, but now it seems that this is not the case.
Song Huai was stunned. At first, he cooked bland food because he was recovering from a serious illness and had no appetite. Later, Bai Xiao started eating with him every day, so he completely catered to Bai Xiao's tastes when cooking. In fact, Song Huai took after his mother and had a strong palate. He couldn't live without spicy food. Even though eating too much spicy food was bad for his stomach, Song Huai often couldn't control himself. Even at the risk of stomach pain, he had to satisfy his taste buds. In the past, Song Boyu could never do anything about his willful older brother. Whenever Song Huai ate spicy food, he couldn't help but say a few words to his brother. But before he could say anything, his brother would give him a knowing look. No matter how much he complained, he could only swallow his anger.
Song Huai didn't know how to answer Bai Xiao's question. Could he say that he liked to see Bai Xiao's satisfied look when she ate the food he made, so he always made the food that Bai Xiao liked, completely forgetting his own preferences?
His tongue seemed to be tied in knots, and he couldn't speak; his cheeks turned bright red.
After a long pause, Song Huaicai stammered, "Ah...actually I don't...I actually quite like spicy food..."
Song Huai looked shy, his cheeks flushed red from the spiciness, like a plump, juicy peach. His lips were also full and bright red, and his amber eyes seemed to be misty.
Unconsciously, Bai Xiao's gaze was fixed on Song Huai. She was stunned. The person in front of her was just eating spicy beef noodles, but he looked so pitiful, as if she had done something to offend him.
Bai Xiao felt even thirstier.
"I'm going back to sleep. You should go to sleep early too." With that, Bai Xiao turned and hurriedly ran away. At that moment, all he wanted was to get Song Huai out of his sight as quickly as possible—otherwise, he couldn't guarantee that something out of control might happen.
"Bai Xiao!" But Bai Xiao hadn't taken two steps when Song Huai called out to her. His eyes were full of expectation. "How about we go eat at this beef noodle shop sometime? They also have clear broth beef noodles, not spicy."
Bai Xiao instinctively wanted to agree, but for some reason he felt inexplicably guilty. He paused for a moment and only replied, "We'll see."
The light in Song Huai's eyes dimmed, but the next second, he smiled again: "Okay, then go to sleep, goodnight!"
"……good evening."
--
During the time Song Huai spent living with Bai Xiao, he felt that time flew by, and in the blink of an eye, it was already late autumn.
Bai Xiao's father, Bai Jingzhong, is about to turn sixty.
These days, Bai Jingzhong has been bedridden, but his condition finally showed some improvement after Bai Xiao and Song Huai got married. In order to bring good luck to the ailing current head of the Bai family, the Bai family naturally had to hold a grand celebration for the old master's sixtieth birthday.
The night before Old Master Bai's birthday banquet, Song Huai was extremely nervous—this was the first time he and Bai Xiao had officially appeared in front of outsiders after their marriage, and it was also the first time he had met Bai Xiao's parents after their marriage. Even Song Huai, a musician who had seen many grand occasions, couldn't help but feel weak in the knees.
"Bai Xiao, do you think this is too formal?" Song Huai asked Bai Xiao again, looking himself up and down in the mirror.
Bai Xiao's answer was almost identical to the previous ones: "No, it looks pretty good."
Dissatisfied with Bai Xiao's perfunctory answer, Song Huai glanced at Bai Xiao, slipped on his slippers, and ran back to his room, intending to change his clothes.
Bai Xiao was quite helpless. He genuinely thought that Song Huai looked good in all these clothes and didn't understand what Song Huai was struggling with.
These days, Song Huai and Bai Xiao's relationship appears to be getting along better and better. They treat each other as tacit and compatible roommates living under the same roof, and their unpleasant past seems to have disappeared.
The next day, at the Bai family's old residence.
After the black Cullinan drove into the old house gate, it meandered through a bamboo forest and stopped in front of the main building after a while.
This is a magnificent and weathered brick-red Western-style building. Legend has it that the building was built during the Republic of China period and has been renovated several times, which is why it has survived to this day.
Upon seeing the car, the attendant quickly and skillfully stepped forward to open the door, respectfully saying, "Young Master."
Song Huai stared in disbelief, like a country bumpkin visiting a grand garden. The servants moved about bustling about, seemingly chaotic yet perfectly organized—a stark contrast to the almost deserted villa where he and Bai Xiao usually lived. Song Huai secretly marveled at how excessively low-key Bai Xiao was, to the point that he had almost forgotten her illustrious family background.
Song Huai straightened his collar one last time before taking Bai Xiao's arm and entering the banquet hall.
Upon entering, they instantly became the center of attention. Many people curiously scrutinized Song Huai, whispering amongst themselves, eager to know who was so fortunate as to become the Bai family's daughter-in-law.
Song Huai had no time to pay attention to these gazes; he was only focused on playing the role of a harmonious newlywed couple with Bai Xiao, afraid that he might give himself away at some point.
Noticing the man beside her, who was clearly uneasy but trying to remain calm, Bai Xiao wanted to comfort him. She subconsciously squeezed Song Huai's hand and whispered, "Don't be afraid, I'm here."
When Bai Xiao touched his hand, Song Huai, who was already nervous, felt his heart jump into his throat. But the next second, Song Huai realized that Bai Xiao was probably putting on an act for outsiders, and he calmed down a little. "Ah... okay... I'm not afraid... I'm not afraid at all."
Seeing that Song Huai was still being stubborn, Bai Xiao chuckled to himself.
Song Huai was displeased: "What are you laughing at? I'm really not afraid!"
Bai Xiao replied dismissively, "Yeah, you're not afraid."
Just as Song Huai was about to continue his rebuttal, a servant walked up to them and said, "Young Master, Young Madam, the Master wants you to go to the study."
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