Chapter 42 Orange (5) I just want to tell you that I have been waiting...
As night falls, thousands of houses light up.
Lin Xia was so worried that she couldn't sleep and couldn't help but send a message to He Chuan:
【Are you asleep?】
There was no point in waiting, the other party replied:
【No. 】
Lin Xia hesitated for a moment and typed:
I want to see you.
Then he added:
【Now. 】
She knew she was being willful again. She thought he would reject her, but he didn't. He said to her:
【Come to the balcony.】
So Lin Xia got out of bed, pushed open the glass sliding door of the room, and came to the small open-air balcony. The cold wind of the winter night was not particularly cold, but she still shivered subconsciously.
There was a sound of wind chimes. She looked in the direction of the sound and found that the window on the first floor at the lower corner of the small balcony was open. The person standing by the window was wearing a white shirt, clean and upright, looking at her deeply. It was He Chuan.
Several days had passed since they secretly watched the sunrise on the first morning of the new year. Although they lived in the same house, they could not find time to meet alone. Every day when they met at dinner or in the living room, they passed by each other and their eyes met. They were so close, yet so far away.
She suddenly missed him so much, even more than when they were thousands of miles apart.
At this moment, they were so close, looking at each other, but they didn't dare to speak, because Lin Xia's parents' room was next door, and the lights in their room were still on, and the slightest noise would alarm them.
So, they could only look at each other's faces and continue to chat via text messages.
We are leaving tomorrow.
【when? 】
6 o'clock.
Don't oversleep.
I hope I overslept.
Lin Xia paused and continued:
[He Chuan, I feel bad.]
She could clearly see that after He Chuan received her message, he lowered his head and looked at the screen in silence for a long time, then slowly typed a reply:
[Xia Xia, I'm sorry.]
Lin Xia felt even more upset:
What are you apologizing for?
What did all this have to do with him? What did it have to do with herself? Whether it was Lin Haisheng, Lin Xuedong, or He Ping, they were all adults, responsible for their own choices and actions. No one could force them. But why should the mess between them affect her and He Chuan?
If he apologized to her, would she also have to apologize to him?
Lin Xia told him word by word:
I just hate it when people at home quarrel.
He Chuan replied:
【Me too. 】
Lin Xia was a little surprised:
[Do my grandfather and your mother also quarrel? ]
They seemed to have a very good relationship, which Lin Xia couldn't imagine.
【no. 】
He Chuan typed something, deleted it, and after repeating this several times, he finally replied:
When I was very young, my parents would argue.
That is, He Ping and her ex-husband. Lin Xia has always vaguely known that He Chuan's parents have a bad relationship, and he must have had a difficult childhood.
It is difficult for a judge to judge family affairs. There is never right or wrong in family disputes. Once they happen, everyone in the family will be hurt.
Lin Xia sighed:
What should I do next?
He comforted her:
[There is no overnight hatred between father and son. They will reconcile.]
【Then, what about my father and your mother? 】
How to resolve the conflict between them?
There was no answer from the other side for a long time. Lin Xia looked up at He Chuan, only to see that He Chuan was also looking at her. His eyes were very gentle and complicated, which made Lin Xia feel an indescribable sadness in her heart for a moment.
Then she saw a new message from He Chuan:
【Xia Xia】
【I want to hug you. 】
Lin Xia's heart skipped a beat. After hesitating for a moment, she nodded at him.
She thought they might sneak out and find a place where there was no one, but after she nodded, He Chuan stepped on the windowsill and went out of the window. Then she didn't even see how he moved, but she saw him climb up to the balcony in a few seconds, climb over the railing, land lightly, and come in front of her.
He reached out and held her in his arms. After being exposed to the cold wind outside for a long time, his shirt was icy cold. As soon as their skin touched, Lin Xia shivered subconsciously.
Her heart was pounding, she felt shy and scared, she couldn't help but grab his clothes and whispered:
"Come in, come in quickly——"
If she continued to hold him, she was really afraid of being discovered.
So the two of them hugged each other and returned to the room. They closed the sliding door and drew the curtains, isolating themselves from the darkness and cold outside. Lin Xia's violently beating heart finally calmed down a bit. She smiled bitterly:
"This time it really is Romeo and Juliet."
"Xia Xia."
He Chuan whispered in her ear:
"The conflict between them will not be resolved."
In fact, Lin Xia also understood this principle, but when she heard He Chuan say it, she still felt a sinking feeling in her heart.
The root of all the problems ultimately lies with Lin Haisheng alone. She doesn't know what her grandfather is thinking, and perhaps no one knows what he is thinking. But judging from the current trend, all contradictions will only intensify and will never be resolved.
"Don't care about those things, don't think about those things, okay? They are them, and we are us."
Lin Xia nodded in He Chuan's arms:
"Well, they are them and we are us."
This has been her firm belief since she first met him, fell in love with him, and decided to be with him, and it will remain so in the future.
The love between them has nothing to do with anyone.
Young people are always full of impulse and courage to fight against the whole world. The more they are forbidden and the more bumpy the road ahead, the more they want to be together. In the country of illusion, they are Romeo and Juliet, Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai. They may commit suicide for love or turn into butterflies, but their love will always be vigorous and last until death.
The two of them hugged each other quietly for a while, and He Chuan said:
"Xia Xia, have you ever considered going abroad in the future?"
Lin Xia was stunned for a moment:
"Out of the country?"
"Well, let's get out of here together."
He Chuan said slowly:
"The world's top-ranked art academy is the Accademia di Belle Arti in Florence, Italy. Its history dates back to 1339, and it's a witness to the development of European civilization. The oil painting program at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Paris is world-renowned, and many renowned Chinese artists, including Xu Beihong, Wu Guanzhong, and Lin Fengmian, graduated from there. There's also the Berlin University of the Arts and the Zurich Academy of Fine Arts—these are all world-class art institutions. Xia Xia, don't you want to study there?"
"It will take me a year to study for the LLM, a year for the practical course, and then I will get the internship training contract. After three years, when you go abroad, I can apply for a license and start practicing. I will then cover your tuition fees."
"Whether it's Berlin, Paris, Rome, Florence, or any other country or city, as long as you want, I will be with you."
As He Chuan described, it was as if a map of Europe slowly unfolded before Lin Xia's eyes, making her heart pound. This was a future she had never imagined. The picture he described was so beautiful that she almost fell in love with it.
"But--"
"No need to answer now."
He Chuan interrupted her softly,
"Xia Xia, I won't force you. You don't need to give an answer right now. Just continue to follow your own pace and your own path, and just treat it as an option, a possibility for the future. I know it's too early to talk about the future now. You are different from me, you don't have to worry about these things. What you need to do now is to enjoy your college life. I just want to tell you that I have been waiting for you."
.
The next day, Lin Xia, Lin Xuedong and Zhao Qianyi left Beidaihe. Under the watchful eyes of the public, He Chuan could not say goodbye to her face to face, but after leaving the door, Lin Xia looked back and saw He Chuan standing by the window, watching her walk very far away.
They had originally planned to leave on the eighth day of the Lunar New Year, but had to change their schedule at the last minute because it was the Spring Festival travel rush and tickets were in short supply. In the end, they could only buy hard seats on a slow train, and the family of three had to travel in separate carriages.
After getting on the bus, Zhao Qianyi first helped Lin Xia find a seat, settled her down, and then said to her:
"I'm going to check on your dad. He's got a stubborn temper and won't listen. If you have any questions, call me."
Lin Xia's seat was next to the window. After Zhao Qianyi left, she rested her chin on one hand and stared blankly out the window.
The temperature in Hebei is higher than in the Northeast, and there has been no snowfall recently. The mountains and trees along the way outside the window are all bare and gray, which is particularly ugly.
Lin Xia's mood was also in a mess. She was thinking about the complicated relationship that had arisen from the few simple people in her family, Lin Haisheng's health and his upcoming tour, how she was so unlucky that she didn't get any peanuts or coins with the dumplings for the New Year's Eve dinner this year, and... what He Chuan said to her last night.
She had always known that He Chuan had a clear and long-term plan for his life, and that he possessed exceptional diligence and self-discipline, completing his plans step by step, without making a sound, and not caring about anyone's voice or gaze. Because of this, he always possessed a calmness and composure beyond his peers, which, to some extent, was also what attracted Lin Xia so much.
From the moment she first met He Chuan, she knew that his dream was to go abroad, but she always thought that he just wanted to study abroad. However, what he said last night was actually a subtle way of telling her that he not only wanted to study abroad, but also wanted to work and even settle down abroad. This was completely beyond Lin Xia's expectations and plans.
She knew that he was not forcing her. As he said, he just wanted to plan their future together. He was sharing his life with her. He wanted to find the best way out and the optimal solution for their relationship.
She was very touched and heartbroken. She really wanted to be with He Chuan forever, but now, she couldn't give him an answer.
She needs to think about it, think about it carefully.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
