38
Ji Shengsheng listened to the sounds from the bathroom, sat on the edge of the bed and waited, still feeling somewhat uneasy.
Xu Yu was taking a cold shower.
After showering for a long time, she saw Xu Yu come out of the bathroom: "...Are you feeling better?"
She could tell that it didn't seem to be getting any better.
"...Or should we go back to the hotel now?"
Xu Yu didn't speak, but his gaze lingered on her.
Ji Shengsheng had no idea what he was thinking.
Just as she was about to approach, Xu Yu spoke up: "Ji Shengsheng, put your clothes on."
Ji Shengsheng looked down at herself.
Except for the fact that the top buttons of her pajamas weren't fully fastened, she was dressed very well...
"Where are you not dressed properly?" Ji Shengsheng asked, puzzled.
Xu Yu didn't answer anymore, but walked up to her, bent down and kissed her.
When she was out of breath, Xu Yu let go of her and pulled her into his arms: "Tomorrow is New Year's Eve."
"Yes!" She had been thinking about it. "I'll talk to my mom about it again tomorrow."
“Actually, after Meiyan came last time, my mother asked me about your company and your involvement in support and relief efforts.” This incident, to some extent, corrected her mother’s prejudice against Xu Yu.
In fact, Ji Shengsheng always felt that what Du Meiyan said that day was something Xu Yu had hinted at. In her impression, Meiyan wasn't such a talkative person.
"Um?"
"So I think she'll change her opinion of you." Ji Shengsheng snuggled against Xu Yu reassuringly.
"Do you want to spend New Year's Eve with me tomorrow?" Xu Yu seemed to be thinking about something else.
"Yes, I do!" Ji Shengsheng nodded vigorously.
"Then I'll wait for you downstairs after we finish our New Year's Eve dinner." Xu Yu wasn't in a difficult position. "Come down whenever it's convenient for you."
Ji Shengsheng looked up at Xu Yu.
He seemed to have tacitly agreed to spend New Year's Eve alone.
“…I don’t want it to be like this.” Ji Shengsheng held Xu Yu’s hand. “Don’t think about it so seriously.”
"It's okay. I'm used to it."
He was used to spending the New Year alone.
Xu Yu recalled the first New Year's Day when he met Ji Shengsheng.
There was a campus party that day, which also happened to be the school's anniversary week. They watched the fireworks together at school.
Then, Ji Shengsheng told him that she hoped they could watch fireworks together every New Year's Eve.
"In the future, we might be in two different cities, two different countries." He had expectations, but lacked trust, so he casually used this example to refuse.
“No matter where I am in the future, as long as you want to spend New Year’s Eve together, I will come to find you immediately.” That was Ji Shengsheng’s reply to him at the time.
Therefore, he had expectations and he trusted.
On New Year's Eve that year, he sent a greeting message, but Ji Shengsheng didn't reply until the morning of New Year's Day.
Ji Shengsheng broke her promise.
As in previous years, he prepared a meal for one and planned a trip for one.
He no longer looks forward to holidays.
"Xu Yu".
"If all goes well, we can definitely spend New Year's Eve together," Ji Shengsheng assured him. "If not, I will definitely come to find you."
"I can do it, you believe me."
"I trust you."
In the early hours of the morning, Xu Yu erased all traces of himself from Ji Shengsheng's house. He didn't let Ji Shengsheng come downstairs to see him off, and drove alone to a fireworks factory in the suburbs.
Early on New Year's Eve, Xu Yu received an apology message from Qi Jue.
It was a very long page, and Xu Yu didn't read it.
He wasn't as kind and tolerant as Ji Shengsheng.
So easy to forgive others.
Moreover, once Qi Jue is given some leeway, he has no control over how he will spread the news about Ji Shengsheng.
The best way is to threaten to break off the friendship, making him be careful to shut up.
When Ji Shengsheng woke up in the morning, her parents were already home.
Seeing her mother's suspicious gaze and the lack of evidence at the scene, Ji Shengsheng felt a little guilty but believed she could still hide it.
While having breakfast, Ji's mother planned out the day for Ji's father. All the things needed for the New Year had been bought in advance. Ji Shengsheng was in charge of putting up Spring Festival couplets and window decorations, while Ji's father was in charge of preparing the ingredients for the New Year's Eve dinner in advance.
"Mom..." After receiving the task, Ji Shengsheng found a break to go and talk to her mother about bringing Xu Yu back for the Spring Festival.
He was rejected by his mother.
I need to go out for a bit.
"Okay," Ji said pitifully, "Come back soon..."
Ji's mother drove to the restaurant downstairs from the hotel where Xu Yu was staying.
She got Xu Yu's phone number when she was alone with him in the car that day.
Although she didn't want Xu Yu and Ji Shengsheng to be together, she didn't actually dislike the child.
Especially after hearing that he was conscientious and responsible at work, and that he was very dedicated to saving people, Ji's mother was somewhat moved.
Xu Yu's parents are divorced. If it's due to some understandable objective reasons, then she's willing to give them a chance to observe further.
She was a mother, and she didn't want to see Xu Yu spending New Year's Eve alone in Taoyuan.
After greeting him, Xu Yu sat down opposite Ji's mother.
"How's your trip to Taoyuan lately?" Ji's mother glanced at the scars on Xu Yu's hands. "Is the injury on your hands much better?"
"I saw some friends." Xu Yu followed Ji's mother's gaze to the back of her hand. "It's all better now."
Only two scars are noticeable.
"That's good." Mother Ji said gently. "Sheng Sheng really wanted to invite you to spend New Year's Eve with us, you know that, right?"
Xu Yu nodded.
"What are your thoughts?" Ji's mother asked, watching Xu Yu rinse her cup and pour her tea. "Do you think it's inappropriate for you to spend New Year's Eve with us at this time?"
Ji Shengsheng doesn't resemble her mother much. Perhaps it's because they have different professions.
She wasn't roundabout, nor did she discourage people; she was direct, as if she had never been influenced by the human world.
Perhaps it was her innocence and purity that made her fall in love with someone like herself without any choice.
"I will do my best to fulfill Sheng Sheng's wishes and ideas." Xu Yu no longer beat around the bush, "Personally, I do not expect to spend this New Year's Eve together at your home."
Ji's mother was surprised by Xu Yu's answer and found it difficult to say what she had prepared in advance.
“You can explain your thoughts to Shengsheng beforehand,” Mother Ji said gently and gracefully. “Shengsheng has been trying to persuade us about this, and she’s in a difficult position. She’ll be sad if we refuse.”
“If I refuse,” Xu Yu said bluntly, “she will be sad.”
If she didn't spend New Year's Eve with him, Ji Shengsheng would feel sorry for him being lonely; if she did, her parents would be unhappy. So Ji Shengsheng was caught in a dilemma, and they both knew that if either side refused, it would lead to the same result, so they both hoped that the other would refuse.
Ji's mother was surprised by Xu Yu's attitude.
Last time, she could sense that Xu Yu really wanted their support, but this time, he didn't seem to care about their opinions.
"Why are you being so frank and direct today?" If he had any backbone, Ji's mother would have looked at him with new respect.
"Because I've tried to gain your approval, but it doesn't seem to have worked. Right now, the only thing I care about in this matter is that Sheng Sheng won't be unhappy because of it."
It won't feel as uncomfortable as a sandwich cookie.
Rather than agreeing with him, affirming him, or loving him as much as he loved Ji Shengsheng, he would much rather that Ji Shengsheng's parents constantly scrutinize and criticize him.
He carries his father's bad genes, and it might be a good thing that someone is watching him.
“I will not treat Sheng Sheng badly because you don’t like me, nor will I put her in a difficult position, nor will I make her try to do something to get you to accept me. I hope you will do the same. As for your opinions on me, I accept them all.”
Ji's mother sighed.
She had never seen a child like this before.
"Actually, your uncle and I don't dislike you. It's just that you haven't been together long, and it's too hasty to celebrate the holidays together."
"understand."
"And I was relieved to find out that you didn't want to either. I can tell you're a good kid, and I was afraid that I would hurt you by refusing you."
"Won't."
“Then let’s reach a consensus. I’ll explain to Shengsheng why it’s inappropriate, and you can also find a reason to persuade Shengsheng.” Ji’s mother glanced at her watch. “She’ll be at home on New Year’s Eve. After New Year’s Eve, we won’t interfere if it doesn’t go too far.”
"Aunt Ji." Seeing that the other party was about to leave, Xu Yu paused, "This will probably be the case every year from now on."
Ji's mother paused in her steps.
That was the last thing she wanted to see.
“I can maintain this ‘consensus’ indefinitely.”
The implication is that they hope the same way.
"Let's talk about the future later." Ji's mother took out a red envelope from her bag. "No matter how old she is, I will give Shengsheng a red envelope every year during the Spring Festival. You are her friend, so you can each receive one. Just accept it."
After saying that, Ji's mother hurried home to check on Ji's father and Ji Shengsheng's "task" completion, and then left in a hurry.
Just a short while after Ji's mother left, Ji Shengsheng called.
"Did my mother go to see you?" Ji Shengsheng looked at the vehicle location on her phone app. "How did she end up near your hotel?"
"Yes." Xu Yu didn't want to hide anything.
"Did she say anything?" Ji Shengsheng asked nervously. "What did you talk about? Can you tell me?"
"Sheng Sheng." Xu Yu looked at the empty teapot in front of him. "Happy New Year's Eve."
Ji Shengsheng thought he was going to say something, and was stunned for a moment when she heard those four words.
"Don't worry about me spending the New Year alone," Xu Yu reassured her. "I'm used to it and I'm not afraid of being alone."
Besides, he has her now.
Even if she's not always by his side, it's enough to put his mind at ease.
Seeing that Ji Shengsheng remained silent, Xu Yu laughed at her: "Shengsheng, not everything can be as you wish or perfect."
Ji's parents have their reasons for not accepting him, and there's no need to force them.
He didn't really want to have "parents" or a family with "parents"; he had already grown tired of families with "parents" during his teenage years.
In his life, he could accept nothing more than Ji Shengsheng.
"But I want to spend the New Year with you." If Xu Yu said this, then there was probably no room for negotiation. Ji Shengsheng felt very sad.
"If you want to see me, I will come to see you." Xu Yu checked the time; the fireworks should have arrived by now.
"I'll wait for you downstairs. Come find me after you've spent time with your parents."
"I don't want this to happen..."
“Sheng Sheng,” Xu Yu paused, “do you love me?”
I love you.
"Don't be sad." It was a rare opportunity to talk, and he wanted to hear something he wanted to hear. "Say it again."
"say what?"
"Say you love me."
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