"I'm asking you, how's your relationship with Qingqing going?"
"Ever since this little girl had a fight with us last time, she hasn't been answering the phone or going home, which has made her mother so worried that she can't sleep at night."
Jiang's father asked Chen Shi in a complaining tone.
The reason he didn't ask directly was because Jiang's father discovered that this young man was usually quite respectful to him, but whenever his daughter's affairs were mentioned, he was like a completely different person, showing absolutely no respect.
Jiang's father felt very guilty about forcing his daughter into an arranged marriage, so he could understand Shen Shi's resentment.
Jiang's father still loved his only child, and Jiang Qing was partly responsible for his trust in Shen Shi.
The thought of his daughter, who so admired her parents, not even wanting to go home, made Jiang Xianzong a miserable old father.
"Please tell Qingqing that what happened before was wrong of her mother and me. We were blinded by greed and we are sorry to our daughter."
"The Jiang family will always be her home. Her parents miss her very much. Please come home this weekend," the Jiang family, longing for their daughter, told Shen Shi.
"I will convey it, but the specifics will depend on Qingqing's wishes," Shen Shi replied in a cold tone.
Whenever he thought about their pressure on Qingqing, Shen Shi couldn't force himself to be enthusiastic.
However, Jiang's father was already used to it and didn't care much about his attitude. He just repeatedly told him, "Be sure to tell her, don't forget."
After Shen agreed, their half-hour-long phone call finally ended.
As soon as the phone call with Jiang's father ended, Jiang Qing's messages kept popping up. Before Chen Shi could reply and explain, her phone rang.
A sense of impending doom rose in Shen Shi's heart. Sure enough, as soon as the call connected, Jiang Qing asked bluntly, "Why didn't you reply to my messages? Who were you talking to just now? And why did it take so long?"
"Don't panic, listen to me..."
Shen Shi had barely begun to speak when Jiang Qing interrupted him: "I don't want to hear it! I don't want to hear it! You must have fallen for someone else and don't love me anymore."
Faced with his girlfriend's unreasonable behavior, Shen Shi sighed and said, "I was just on the phone with your dad."
"Huh?" Jiang Qing could hardly believe her ears after hearing Shen Shi's answer.
Shen Shi was on the phone with her dad? How did those two get in touch?
"You're not lying to me, are you?" Jiang Qing still couldn't believe it. Even if Shen Shi had said he was taking a shower, it would have been a more convincing reason than this.
"How could I possibly lie to you?" Seeing that Jiang Qing didn't believe him, Chen Shi immediately took a screenshot of the call and sent it via WeChat.
When Jiang Qing received it and opened it, it really was her father's phone number.
How did you come to be in contact with my dad?
"Qingqing, this is a long story, but let me tell you the short one."
In the following ten minutes, Shen Shi briefly recounted his connection with Jiang's father, from how they met to the crisis at the Jiang family, and even told him everything about the Chen family.
Shen Shi's words completely overturned Jiang Qing's understanding.
"You mean, my uncle made a big mistake that implicated the Jiang family, and my parents want to get the Qi family's help through a marriage alliance to help the Jiang family overcome the crisis."
“Yes,” Shen Shi replied.
"I'm a little unsure what to say," Jiang Qing said, her mind a complete mess, closing her eyes.
Jiang Qing's sadness and helplessness reached his ears through the phone, turning Shen Shi's heart into a tangled mess.
At this moment, words are pale and powerless. Not knowing how to comfort Chen Shi, he could only utter a dry, "Don't be sad."
"I'm not sad, really, I just feel empty."
"It's like being alone on a beautiful grassland. Although there is an endless view of the scenery, you inevitably feel small in the middle of it."
"Compared to my parents' sudden change in temperament, it's easier to accept the reason of the Jiang family. I'm not sad at all; I should be happy instead."
Jiang Qing replied in a flat tone, just as she said, her expression remained unchanged, and her tone was even somewhat relaxed.
Perhaps it was to persuade Shen Shi, but more so to persuade himself.
"What nonsense are you talking about? Dishonest little girl, your nose will grow long~" Shen Shi easily saw through her disguise.
Jiang Qing finally managed to hold back her tears, and they flowed down her cheeks.
The girl's sorrowful sobs, when heard by Shen Shi, felt like a burn on his heart.
Shen Shi listened to the phone call while sitting on a campus bench, occasionally offering gentle words of comfort, the summer night breeze caressing his cheeks.
Jiang Qing cried herself to sleep until the early hours of the morning, but the phone call was still on.
The next day at noon, Shen Shi saw Jiang Qing, whose eyes were swollen.
The two sat together on the green grass of the playground. Jiang Qing's head rested on Shen Shi's shoulder, her hair casually falling down, and Shen Shi's nostrils were filled with the fragrance of crabapple blossoms.
He gently stroked Jiang Qing's hair back and forth, patting her back repeatedly as if coaxing a child.
Jiang Qing held him tightly around the waist. The two of them remained silent, not talking about the Jiang family, but enjoying the gentle breeze and sunshine together.
A vibrant young man, holding his beloved girl in his arms, is so engrossed in this moment that he doesn't want to think about anything else, only wishing that time could stand still forever.
After sitting quietly for half an hour, Jiang Qing spoke first, asking, "Did my dad say that I can go home this Sunday?"
Shen Shi nodded and then said, "It's okay if you don't want to go back. It's your own home anyway, so it doesn't matter when you go back. You can take your time."
"Everything is based on your preference; do whatever makes you comfortable."
Shen Shi was afraid that Jiang Qing might have even the slightest unease, so he tried his best to comfort her.
Seeing her lover's anxiety, Jiang Qing smiled and said, "Look how nervous you are. I'm not that fragile."
Shen Shi scratched his head: "I'm not nervous, I'm just afraid you'll push yourself too hard."
Shen Shi's greatest wish in life is to let Jiang Qing live as she pleases. He doesn't want his beloved girl to suffer even the slightest grievance, even if the other party is her parents.
Jiang Qing gently rubbed his furrowed brows and said softly, "Don't be upset. It's just going back to your own home. It's nothing. You're acting like the sky is falling."
Seeing that Jiang Qing wasn't lying, Chen Shi sat up straight and asked, "Are you really planning to go back?"
Jiang Qing nodded affirmatively.
Even though she knew in her heart that she still hadn't let go and still harbored resentment about the arranged marriage, she still had to go back.
At the very least, ask: Why?
Sensing the worried look in Shen Shi's eyes, Jiang Qing invited, "Come with me, accompany me home."
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