0058 Birthday (7)
How many fifteen-year periods are there in a lifetime? Xu Cheng and his sister haven't seen each other for fifteen years.
Perhaps all younger brothers would hate their brother-in-law for no reason—the one who took their sister away from them.
So, ever since Xu Cheng was a child, he had disliked that person from the Wanqi family.
His father told him to call him Sixth Brother, but he just raised his eyebrows at the man and wouldn't say a word. His father kicked him. He was still stubborn and wouldn't call him that.
Wan Qibo didn't seem to mind at all and cheerfully put his arm around his shoulder.
At that time, he was studying at a military academy in the south and had not yet graduated. Wan Qibo and Xu Yi were deeply in love. He couldn't understand why his sister would fall in love with this man who looked even rougher than him, especially his face, which looked like that of a scholar who couldn't lead troops or fight battles.
Later, when Xu Cheng joined the army, he met Wan Qibo in the military, and the two really sparred. He saw Wan Qibo's bare-chested, spirited demeanor on the training ground and the "medals" on his body from real gunfire. It was also during that time that Xu Cheng called Wan Qibo "brother" for the first time, but still refused to call him "brother-in-law".
A grown man, yet he felt an inexplicable awkwardness about this matter. Looking back on his life, even after Xu Yizhen married into the Wanqi family, he had never properly called her "brother-in-law," but ultimately, his sister belonged to that man—
On Xu Yi's tombstone, in gold-embossed regular script, it reads "Wife of Wan Qibo," not "Sister of Xu Cheng."
He lost his sister forever.
Who brought this misfortune upon us?
He never married and had no children of his own, raising his sister's children as his own. His sister's family all doted on the youngest, taking turns showering him with affection. He disapproved, feeling that boys would be spoiled. He loved A-Zhan the most; that child was quiet and reserved from a young age, a little military enthusiast. He resembled him most, and Xu Cheng was willing to raise him. His sister knew his feelings, and during holidays she would send little A-Zhan to him.
He didn't believe in ghosts or gods, nor in retribution. But even if he did believe in these things, he boasted that neither he nor his sister had ever done anything wrong in their lives.
But the sister who would slap him on the head without hesitation, the sister who would apply medicine to him with red eyes after their father whipped him with a rattan cane and left marks on his body, the sister who would put a wedding ring on Wan Qibo's finger while wearing a pure white wedding dress...
How could the ocean take their lives?
Along with A-Zhan, the image of that child squatting beside me, fiddling with a model warship, seems still vivid in my mind. It was clearly summer vacation, and he had told me with a gleam in his eyes, "Uncle, I want to take the military academy entrance exam."
The boy's voice lingered in his heart, like a younger version of himself, and in an instant, he was swept away by the waves.
The three went to the beach, but only Xiao Yao survived, though she was seriously injured.
He went straight to where Wan Qibo was, only to find him completely drunk. He grabbed Wan Qibo by the collar and punched him hard.
It's not his fault. He knows.
So who's to blame?
The hot-blooded young man's punch drew blood instantly, the sound of flesh and blood cracking as his fist struck bone. Wan Qibo remained silent, his eyes filled with an unyielding gloom.
He squatted down on the ground and burst into tears.
He lost his sister forever, and his two sons. Now... is he going to lose even his sister's beloved youngest son?
He slammed his fist on the table, and finally someone lifted the curtain.
Before the man could even finish his salute, he heard Xu Cheng's extremely penetrating voice.
"explain!"
"Report! The two have been found, unharmed!"
The rain had lessened a bit, but the tent was still damp and cold.
-
Wanqi Fuze carried the confused Lingling down the mountain, and he could feel the person on his back trembling.
I had no choice but to call her name again and again.
At first, she would occasionally respond when I called her name.
The rain fell like a curtain, obscuring his vision. He dared not relax for a moment, fearing that he might slip and hurt her.
“Lingling”.
"Um."
“Lingling…”
"Um……"
“Lingling…”
"Wan Fuze, aren't you annoying me...?"
They kept calling out to her relentlessly, determined not to let her faint at this moment, but at least to hold on until the rescue team found them.
“Lingling…”
"..."
She stopped replying to him. He felt uneasy.
I called out a few more times, but the person on my back seemed to have fallen into a deep sleep.
He gently pulled her downhill body and quickened his pace slightly.
Yet he couldn't control his panicked heart. He was afraid of losing his composure, but he didn't know how to resolve the situation. If the knife were cutting his own body, he could endure the pain in silence, but he couldn't bear to see her suffer even a little bit. To him, that would be true hell.
They had no choice but to keep trying to call her, until they lost all hope, and then said, with a hint of grievance, "Lingling, you haven't made a birthday wish yet..."
Amidst the endless rain and the darkness of night, he carried her on his back.
He wanted to spend this birthday with her properly. It was the last birthday he could spend with her, so how could it not be a precious moment for him?
He used despicable means to keep her by his side, which gave him the opportunity to witness all her beautiful appearances from age fifteen to twenty-five.
This is the tenth birthday he has spent with her.
He had spent the past nine years thinking about her birthday wish.
Whatever it is, as long as it's what she wants, he will do everything he can to satisfy her.
But she said that wishes won't come true if you say them out loud.
"Lingling, if you don't make a wish soon, your birthday will be over..." He wiped the rain from his eyes with his hand. He didn't stop walking.
There was still no response, and he was almost in despair.
The sound of rain, the slippery surface, the danger, and the chill.
His murmurs had become soliloquy; it was as if he were talking to himself.
"Let me make a wish for you, okay, Lingling..."
No. But she didn't have the strength to answer. Wishes cannot be spoken aloud.
"I know that wishes won't come true if I say them out loud..."
You knew that, yet you still said it. Wan Fuze, you're still so annoying.
"But it's okay if it's me too..."
"Are you a god from heaven?" she cursed him in her heart.
"May our Lingling be safe and happy every day from now on..."
Such a simple wish, but why are the corners of your mouth curving up?
"Lingling, please don't sleep, okay?"
Is it okay? Wan Fuze, are you being coquettish?
Under the setting sun, on the rooftop, the hearts of the young boy and girl sparkled as beautifully as diamonds.
—What did you wish for?
—Idiot, it won't work if you say it out loud.
—Oh…but is it really impossible to say?
--cannot!
—…Please tell me, okay?
She burst out laughing, staring at his dazed expression. She asked Chen Yixu, "Are you being coquettish?"
The person's face was as red as an apple; they were incredibly cute.
It's you.
My wish is for you.
I hope that Chen Yixu can always stay by my side.
P.S.: *crying*
The End of "Birthday".
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