Chapter 43: Men with Their Own Concerns
"Well, I'm sorry, I have no evidence."
Xia Cheng stood up with the help of the floor and slowly straightened her back. Tears still remained on her face, like a rose soaked in rain, its sharp thorns softened.
"I'm sorry, Mom and Dad, I shouldn't have hit my sister."
As she spoke, she hugged her arms helplessly, revealing the teeth marks on her arms.
The drops of blood that oozed out from where the teeth had sunk were wiped away by the palm of the hand, leaving behind a bloody stain.
Xun Youdong's eyes flashed.
He approached Xia Cheng, held her arm, and saw her head lowered in guilt. He suddenly remembered that decades ago, he had also grabbed a shy girl in the same way.
The girl also had long hair and said she wanted to sell it to raise money for tuition. Xun Youdong liked her flowing long hair and took the initiative to run to the edge of the field to catch loaches, which raised the money for the girl's tuition and saved her hair.
Thirty years seems like a long time ago.
Xun Youdong suddenly touched Xia Cheng's head lovingly. He liked obedient people. The girl obeyed and didn't sell her hair. Xia Cheng obeyed and apologized to her sister.
His fingers missed, and Xun Youdong looked down and saw that Xia Cheng's hair was broken. Her hair, which had originally reached her waist, now only reached her collarbone and shoulders.
"What's going on?"
Xia Cheng took out the hair from her bag and lied.
"When I was fighting with Momo, I accidentally got some gum stuck on the ground, so I cut it off."
In fact, she felt that long hair was too troublesome. She used to want to keep it and sell it for money, but now it doesn’t matter whether she has it or not. It is also troublesome to blow it. No matter what it is, it will only be a burden if it is too long.
Xun Mo leaned on He Qing's legs and hummed softly.
He Qing covered her mouth and shook his head to stop her.
"Momo, don't do this."
He Qing then said, "Since Chengcheng isn't with Jingyuan, it's all a misunderstanding. You two sisters are fighting, and I won't distinguish between right and wrong. Let's just put the matter aside and apologize to each other."
"You first." Xun Mo never gave in.
Xia Cheng pulled her hand away and stopped Xun Youdong from looking at her wound. She picked up the bag on the sofa and turned to walk towards the stairs.
"I'm sorry." She said to the air.
Xun Mo didn't say anything.
Xia Cheng didn't care at all.
She stepped on the floor barefoot and realized that no one cared. She simply hugged her bag tightly, squeezing the transparent plastic bag inside until it made a crackling sound.
Slowly went up the stairs.
“I’m sorry… I’m sorry…”
Xia Cheng muttered to herself, tears quietly sliding down her collar.
Next, she would really do something to let them down.
*
Yu Jingyuan was dragged by Xun Sheng to the back garden, which had just been watered in the evening. The soil was so wet that Xun Sheng's slippers sank into it.
Xun Sheng and Yu Jingyuan were about the same height. Under the light of the street light, he looked from Yu Jingyuan's scratched face to his neck and then to the back of his hand. It was not serious, just a bruise. It was a bit unbearable to look at it.
"You like Xia Cheng? Han Wenya just called and said that you took someone away from the box and said Xia Cheng was yours. When did that happen?"
Yu Jingyuan's muscles were tense. He had just promised Xia Cheng not to tell anyone, so facing Xun Sheng's questioning, he just remained silent.
Xun Sheng saw that he was silent, and the corners of his mouth were cold and stiff.
"What about Xun Mo? She has liked you for a long time."
Yu Jingyuan shrugged his shoulders and sighed.
"You know, for so many years, I only treated her as a sister."
"Of course I know, but you used Xun Mo to help ward off trouble for so long, don't you need to give an explanation? You should have made it clear earlier, otherwise, nothing would have happened tonight."
"What do you mean? The conflict between Xun Mo and Xia Cheng is entirely because of me?" Sweat beads kept oozing out of Yu Jingyuan's forehead, and he was breathing rapidly because his chest was too stuffy.
"Xun Sheng, you and your family are the real culprits! Do you treat Xia Cheng as a family member? Every time I come, she just sits in one place and doesn't even touch the TV remote control. If she hadn't been injured, you wouldn't have shifted your attention from Xun Mo to Xia Cheng!"
"What nonsense!" Xun Sheng stopped him unhappily. If Yu Jingyuan hadn't hit the mark, he would have had no emotional fluctuations.
Is this really the case?
"Whether I'm talking nonsense or not, think about it carefully. I'll find a way to make things clear with Xun Mo, but you are the least qualified person to accuse me from a moral high ground. You've never been soft-hearted when it comes to taking advantage of Han Wenya."
Xun Sheng was speechless for a moment. If he wanted to retort, he could bring up a lot of things from the past. He didn't speak, not because he was indifferent or anxious, but because he was attracted by the color of Yu Jingyuan's lips and was a little distracted.
His right hand was clenched into a fist.
"The topic has changed. What we are talking about now is the matter between the three of you."
"Then let me tell you clearly, Xia Cheng and I are not together, but that may not happen in the future. As for Xun Mo and I, there is absolutely no possibility."
The air stagnated as the two men stared at each other, like wild cats with fur on their backs, rummaging through a trash can one moment and tearing each other apart over a fishbone the next. They were both sharpening their claws and using threatening voices to defend their position.
Seeing that Xun Sheng stopped talking, Yu Jingyuan looked towards the living room. It was not appropriate for him to go in as it was someone else's family affair, so he could only leave and squeeze past Xun Sheng.
The road was so wide, but Yu Jingyuan chose to bump into Xun Sheng's shoulder and leave, leaving Xun Sheng silent.
Xun Sheng's mouth corners sank, and he turned around to look at Yu Jingyuan's back. This was not the first time they had quarreled, but it was the first time that he felt a little helpless.
"Indeed, I have no right to say anything to you. But..." Xun Sheng thought of Xia Cheng. The meaning of Yu Jingyuan's words clearly showed that he liked Xia Cheng. Even if he was slow to feel things, he could still feel it.
Will Xia Cheng like Yu Jingyuan?
He returned to the living room, and Xia Cheng was still kneeling there. Was she as docile and timid as Yu Jingyuan said? Was she throwing herself on him again and again, exposing herself to him, intentional or unintentional?
He walked closer and saw the missing lip gloss on Xia Cheng's lips, which was exactly in the same place as the one on Yu Jingyuan's lips. He seemed to have suddenly been drained of all his strength, and even forgot to change his slippers as he walked straight towards Xia Cheng.
"Whatever it is, evidence is needed."
Xun Sheng stared at Xia Cheng. The missing lipstick was too glaring, making the original lip color more prominent.
He was like a leopard staring at its prey, completely unaware that there were mountains of swords and seas of fire between them.
But for some reason, he felt a little lost, as if someone had added a weight to the scale that was originally tilted in his favor, making him too stressed.
*
Xiao Lai slowly emerged from the bushes.
He didn't hide here on purpose. He was secretly watching what was happening in the living room. Just as he saw the two people kneeling down, he heard some movement beside him and subconsciously hid in the flowers that he usually never dared to step on.
The peonies were in full bloom, with lush branches and leaves, and at night, he was perfectly hidden among them.
After listening to the entire conversation between Yu Jingyuan and Xun Sheng, he slowly emerged from the bushes and continued to watch what was happening in the living room.
There were people he cared about there, and he couldn't help but want to care about them.
He saw Xia Cheng slowly going upstairs with her bag. Xun Mo was obviously in a more miserable state, leaning on He Qing's legs and crying.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
