20.
The next morning, Mi Xi and Wu You woke up almost at the same time. They looked at each other and their gazes simultaneously turned to the bed opposite them.
Chu Qingling has already gotten up.
He had his back to them, silently adjusting his training clothes. His champagne-blond, wolf-tail hair was a little disheveled, and his back still looked thin, yet he stood straight, as if the person crying silently in the darkness last night was just an illusion.
He didn't look back or say hello. After he finished tidying up, he walked straight to the bathroom and closed the door.
Wuyou mouthed to Mixi, "Is he okay?"
Mi Xi shook her head slightly. How could she be fine? She just suppressed all her emotions and wrapped herself in a thicker layer of ice.
When the three of them arrived at the practice room, they found Ruan Xu and three other team members already there, quietly discussing their moves, the atmosphere somewhat cautious. When they saw Chu Qingling come in, the discussion immediately stopped, and everyone looked at him with some concern.
Chu Qingling seemed not to notice these gazes. He walked straight to the corner and began to warm up and stretch alone. His expression was as indifferent as usual, but the bruises under his eyes and his overly pale face revealed his condition.
"Let's start practicing." Mi Xi clapped her hands, drawing everyone's attention back. "We can't stop working on 'Swordsman'."
The music started, and the chivalrous melody filled the practice room once again. But today, everyone seemed a little more hesitant, less excited than they had been yesterday when they first got a glimpse of the new world.
Chu Qingling's movements remained standard, even more precise than yesterday. Every pause, every swing of his arm, was tinged with a harshness bordering on self-torture. But the aura he emanated was no longer that of a cold, aloof knight, but rather... a kind of resolute loneliness, as if he had truly become a solitary wanderer, cut off from the world.
"Stop." Mi Xi pressed the pause button again. He walked up to Chu Qingling and looked into his bloodshot but calm eyes.
"Qingling," Mi Xi's voice was calm, "Your movements are fine, but your emotions are wrong. The knight in "Swordsman" may be lonely, but his sword heart is warm, he has something to protect and something to pursue. Your sword is too cold, so cold that it has no warmth."
This hits the nail on the head.
Chu Qingling's body stiffened imperceptibly, his hands curling slightly at his sides. He knew it all too well, but his heart was a frozen field at that moment. How could he ignite the fire of chivalry?
Wuyou also came over, rarely making sarcastic remarks. She folded her arms and looked at him. "Hey, Ice Face, I know you're feeling bad. But the stage is the stage. If you bring your personal emotions into it, it won't just ruin you, it'll ruin our entire group."
His words were direct and even a little harsh, but they were the truth.
Ruan Xu also mustered up the courage and whispered, "Teacher Qingling, we all hope that the stage performance can be done well...Senior Shen must also want to see a wonderful performance..."
Chu Qingling closed her lips tightly, her long eyelashes drooping, hiding the emotions surging in her eyes.
At this moment, Mi Xi suddenly made a move that surprised everyone. He stretched out his hand, not to touch Chu Qingling, but to point at the seven of them in the mirror.
"Look at us." Mi Xi's voice was clear and powerful. "We are now a temporary 'jianghu'. Perhaps we come from different places, have different circumstances, and even have things weighing on our hearts. But since we have chosen 'Swordsman' and stepped onto this stage, we are fellow travelers."
His eyes swept over everyone, finally landing on Chu Qingling's face reflected in the mirror.
"Your sword is cold, but it's okay. Here," he pointed at Wuyou, "we have fire." Then he pointed at Ruan Xu and the others, "we have light and heat. Let our 'Chi' carry you and help you temper that 'cold' into the toughest edge of this sword."
He did not offer empty comfort, but instead provided a feasible direction - relying on the team.
Chu Qingling suddenly raised his head and looked in the mirror. It reflected Mi Xi's calm yet determined eyes, Wu You's awkward yet serious face, Ruan Xu's trusting gaze, and the hard-working expressions of the other team members.
It was as if a tiny stone was thrown into the frozen lake of his heart, causing barely perceptible ripples to appear.
"...I'll try." He heard his own dry voice.
The atmosphere during the following practice remained tense, but something was quietly changing. Wuyou would use his unique way of provoking Chu Qingling when he faltered in a movement, forcing him to focus. Ruanxu would clumsily offer him water during his breaks. And Mixi, at the crucial moment, would pull him out of his emotional slump with a glance or a word of advice.
The power of the team, like a trickle of water, began to slowly and steadily penetrate the layer of ice.
When the evening sun shone through the window into the practice room, and the seven of them practiced together again, the biting coldness in Chu Qingling's sword dance seemed to have faded a little, and there was an imperceptible bond with the sword energy of his companions.
Although it is still far from perfect, at least they are back on the journey.
And out of sight of everyone, Chu Qingling's phone, which was in her bag, lit up. It was a message from Xie Sui, with only three words:
【Xie Sui: I’m sorry.】
Chu Qingling took a look and didn't reply. He just turned off the phone screen and devoted himself more to practicing the next move.
Some cracks take time to heal, and some roads can only be walked forward step by step.
But the light of dawn has already dimly shone into this practice room filled with sweat and perseverance.
————
The days of intense training flew by, and in the blink of an eye, it was day nine. News about Shen Qingrang and LYRA trickled in. During the lunch break that day, Sister He called, her tone much more relaxed, and told Chu Qingling, "Qingrang is awake and stable, and out of danger! The company is also stable, and as for the Fu family... President Xie has handled it, and everything is fine."
After days of worry, I could finally let go. LYRA was saved, and Xie Sui...had survived the crisis.
However, when Chu Qingling heard the news, he felt calm inside, and even had a hint of cold self-mockery.
It's okay.
Everything is back on track.
What about him? Did Xie Sui's icicle-like words that night, the phrase "they're just pawns," just get brushed aside so lightly?
Shen Qingrang can't get hurt, so what about me? ...I can get hurt too, right?
This thought, like a poisonous ivy, grew wildly in his heart. What a bullshit childhood sweetheart, what a bond they had since childhood. In the face of enormous interests and pressure, it turned out to be so vulnerable.
He hated Xie Sui's careless words, and hated himself even more for being upset because of that person's "I'm sorry".
During the afternoon training, Chu Qingling was more silent than ever, and the aura around him was three times colder than when he tried to play the role of a lonely knight before. It was a kind of alienation and disappointment that came from the bottom of his heart.
After the training, he somehow went to the hospital.
Standing at the door of the ward, he hesitated for a moment before gently pushing the door open.
The ward was quiet, the afterglow of the setting sun casting a warm golden hue on the pristine white room. Shen Qingrang half-leaned on the bed, his face still pale, but seemingly in good spirits. The man sitting beside the bed, with a tall and straight figure and a cold, hard profile, was none other than Fu Xiuming.
However, what shocked Chu Qingling the most was that Fu Xiuming was holding a little girl in his arms.
The little girl, about three or four years old, had two cute pigtails, fair skin, and big, twinkling eyes. Her features were the exact same as Shen Qingrang's on the hospital bed, delicate as a doll. She nestled obediently in Fu Xiuming's arms, clutching a toy in her little hands.
Hearing the door open, the three of them looked over.
When Shen Qingrang saw Chu Qingling, he smiled softly and weakly: "Qingling is here."
Fu Xiuming also nodded slightly to him as a greeting. Although his eyes were still deep and unfathomable, there was no hostility in them.
At this time, the little girl in Fu Xiuming's arms turned her head and looked curiously at Chu Qingling standing at the door. Then, she said clearly in a soft and tender voice:
"Dad, who is that handsome brother?" she asked Fu Xiuming.
Then, she turned to Shen Qingrang lying on the hospital bed and pointed at Chu Qingling with her little finger: "Daddy, he's so handsome!"
Daddy... Daddy...
Chu Qingling froze in place, her mind blank for a moment. Shen Qingrang and Fu Xiuming… they actually had a child? And it looked this big already? So Shen Qingrang had suddenly disappeared for half a year at the peak of his career because…
He looked at the happy scene of the "family of three" in front of him (although Fu Xiuming still didn't show much expression, his movements of holding the child were very natural and skillful), and then thought of the torment he had endured in the past few days because of the two people in front of him and the fierce quarrel with Xie Sui, an indescribable sense of absurdity and pain swept over him.
They live a peaceful and happy life here and have a happy family.
And what about him? What is he?
Shen Qingrang cannot be hurt because he is the treasure of the Shen and Fu families, the apple of Fu Xiuming's eye, and the father of their daughter.
What about Chu Qingling? Just because he was hurt and sad, could Xie Sui abandon him and slander him so easily?
A huge sense of grievance and unwillingness surged into his heart like a tide, making it almost impossible for him to breathe.
He suppressed the sourness in his nose, forced a very forced smile, and said to Shen Qingrang: "Senior Shen, I'm relieved to see that you are okay. I won't disturb your rest. I'll leave first."
After saying that, he almost ran away without even looking at the cute little girl, nor did he respond to Fu Xiuming's gaze.
After hurriedly leaving the hospital and getting into the car, Chu Qingling looked at the street scene rapidly receding outside the window, and finally couldn't help but burst into tears.
He thought he was calm and strong enough.
But it turns out that my heart still hurts.
It turns out that in Xie Sui's heart, he is ultimately the "sister" who can be weighed and abandoned at any time.
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