Chapter 76 As long as she looks back, she can see him
"The night of July 5, 2025"
Plead/
"Heng, Grandpa has already begged for you. Can you tell me why?"
I didn't hide this love that I had never expressed in words, but I declared it under the night sky: "Grandpa, I've loved Xiaoye since I was 21."
Because the other person is you.
Therefore, the courage and cherishment required to mention it are no less than suppressing it in your heart.
I told Grandpa:
The brokenness in your eyes when we first met made me feel pity. I comforted you but I didn’t know if there was also a piece missing from your heart. How would I put that piece back together in the future?
This worry lasted so long that I have never forgotten it since then.
The next time they met was on Shi Qing's birthday.
You congratulated him a day in advance due to your schedule, and your brother said you had just finished celebrating.
But when I arrived, you were already in the driver's car.
Shi Qing said you should go back to the apartment where you live alone.
This world is noisy, but the quiet smile in your eyes is not stained by any dust, still clear, but still seems lonely.
And I don’t want you to be alone anymore.
"Grandpa, this marriage is selfish and possessive on my part, but I don't want to end up with no future and never see each other again. Eight years is too long. I want to see her every day from now on."
July 6, 2025
"I wish"/
The shoes you wear today fit you well and don't rub your feet anymore.
You ask me if I am willing?
I asked for this engagement, Xiaoye, so why wouldn't I want it?
The moment you nodded, I felt that I could die without regrets in this life.
If you become my wife, I will protect your dignity and safety for the rest of your life!
I am lucky to have it.
August 1, 2025
Wedding Night/
When I first met you in Jiangnan at the age of 21, I thought my worry was simply my concern for you due to similar experiences, but it wasn't until later that I realized I had fallen in love with you.
Today, I am twenty-nine years old.
You marry me.
We will be together until we are old and never separate!
After eight years, I finally got what I wanted. But I know I have to be calm and restrained, otherwise I will scare you.
And I've already made a step forward, so I should be content, right?
August 9, 2025
Push open/
People are always unsatisfied. I am even unreasonable. You are sensible and considerate enough. You are polite to me and let me focus on work... but what I want is your heart.
You are not wrong. It is me who wants more. I have lost completely.
But Xiaoye, can you at least not push me away?
Can you try to trust me, rely on me or bother me?
Need me more.
…
There are other fragments.
"Shi Qing arrived a little late to the party today. He said he was taking his sister to the mall, so he was stuck in traffic. Chu Yanli said he was too much of a "sister complex," but I was even more concerned because I could hear news about you."
"The more I think about when I fell in love with you, the more I feel like an asshole, because the time was the first time we met. It turns out that the word "love" in this world is truly eternal."
"Qingping has many high mountains. It's also located at the junction of the Qinling Mountains and the Huai River, so the mountains are lush green. The distant view of the mountains covered in green is sure to be vibrant and full of life in spring, but nothing like your features. Xiaoye, how have you been lately?"
"The transfer from Zhangzhou came too quickly. They said the timeline was tight and the mission was heavy. I know it's arduous, but I'm just sorry that my original plan to return to Beijing will be ruined. See you next time. I wish you all the best."
"I think the coming-of-age ceremony is over. Did you like the gift? You're probably at home relaxing and having fun right now. It rained so hard in Zhangzhou, but the moon finally appeared tonight and the sky is starting to clear up. The moonlight is beautiful, and I miss you too."
"Xiao Ye, I'm back in Beijing. I used to think a man could travel the world, but because of you, I want to stay here permanently. At least there's a chance we'll meet again, right?"
"The snow in Kyoto is so heavy, but it actually makes the New Year atmosphere even more intense. However, I didn't see you at Ningfang Garden when I visited your grandfather. Shi Qing said that the weather in the north is cold, so since the year you came back, he and his mother would go to Jiangnan for a short stay every year at this time. Although I missed you, I still hope you stay healthy."
"I didn't see you at the birthday party. Shi Qing said you were sick again. I'm sorry, but I'm more worried. I hope you get well soon."
“…”
I have lost count of how many plane tickets there are to Kyoto.
Different starting points, all heading to the same direction.
From Qingping to Kyoto, from Zhangzhou to Kyoto, from Xiangjiang to Kyoto...
The total time span is eight years.
But the time between the flights was not even more than one day.
He was too busy and ran back and forth just to see her.
But it seems that it always fails.
Then there was the cycle he still persisted in.
Tears were already welling up in Shi Ye's eyes. Just by flipping through the book, she could feel the difficulty of the journey Zhou Junheng had walked alone all those years.
Before she nodded in agreement to the engagement, Zhou Junheng's rainy season had lasted for eight years since Cheng Yan's death, and there would even be another eight years.
Her heart ached uncontrollably, deep and dull, continuously.
The mist in her eyes seemed to blur her vision, and Zhou Junheng remained silent.
But the eyes of a lover can speak.
She ignored all the times he looked at her with loving eyes in the wedding photos.
"So...it turns out that the person in front of the bed was you...it turned out to be you."
Also, the clothes and toiletries he prepared for her after they got married, his worry and guilt when she first fell ill, and how he paid more attention to the temperature after autumn, asking her to put on more clothes and turning up the room temperature at home...
It was thoughtful, but only for her.
He may have practiced those seemingly familiar skills many times in the past eight years.
All of this is him.
What is proved behind all this is his deep and far-reaching love, which has never stopped, and everything can be connected.
He had liked her for so long and so much, but she hadn't noticed.
If she just turned around or stopped for a moment, she would be able to see it.
But she had been wondering if Zhou Junheng was like this to any of his arranged marriage partners. He treated her well only because she was his wife, and anyone else was fine. It wasn't love.
Where does this put his eight years of sincerity?
Her voice was hoarse and choked with sobs.
"...I'm sorry, I didn't see you at that time." Tokiya apologized again and again.
Zhou Junheng just wiped the tears from her face and shook his head.
The burning pain in Tokiya's heart could not be suppressed, "I missed you for a long, long time."
"I'm sorry...for these eight years. I'm sorry."
Zhou Junheng didn't want the girl to cry, and she didn't need to apologize in these eight years. This was his choice.
He hugged the girl tightly in his arms, and the tears that gushed out soaked his clothes and also reached his heart.
He saw her heartache, how could he not feel bad?
"Xiaoye, you don't have to apologize."
"...You didn't do anything wrong, so how could I blame you? We just missed each other in time."
"But these eight years...eight years." Shi Ye just said that he felt his breathing trembling.
He patted her back gently, his voice firm and clear: "Xiao Ye, there is no such thing as equality in love."
"How could all these eight years of liking you be filled with apologies? You've supported me so much. And now, it's enough. The first person you see when you look back is me. Your present and future will have my participation and companionship. It's been eight long, long years."
"I said, I'm lucky to have it."
I lost my life, and he——
Not lost, that’s enough!
Regarding the past years, Shi Ye always felt that there were too many regrets: the death of her adoptive brother, her adoptive parents' hair turning white overnight, and the look in her parents' eyes that were worried about her health after she returned to Beijing...all of them were dejected.
She doesn't want to look back, even if it's buried in her memory.
Memories of the past cannot even be changed, so why not just enjoy the present instead of adding to your troubles?
But now she wanted to look back and trace back very much. She thought that if she turned around, she would probably see Zhou Junheng behind her.
She wanted to see him at that time.
"Eleven, the explanation I got from my father-in-law and mother-in-law for this name is: All things are one, and all things return to one. You are their little daughter who they love for their entire lives."
"But '1' is also a new starting point in terms of numbers, and the overlapping of the two characters also implies a fresh start."
This time, we love each other.
No longer a long and lonely rainy season.
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