Chapter 7: His Love Was Like a Single Thread
Liang Huaixu was touched all over, his abdomen slowly gliding across her cool fingertips, sending a tingling, itchy sensation through him, causing his muscles to involuntarily contract—
He woke up with a start and grabbed her hand.
Zhuang Fuyao didn't struggle; she squinted as if she were asleep.
Not long after, he heard long, even breaths coming from beside his ear, and Liang Huaixu finally breathed a sigh of relief.
I have no idea how much they drank.
Knowing Zhuang Fuyao's habit of having to remove her makeup before bed, he got up to get the makeup remover.
When they first got married, they went on their honeymoon. She was so tired from all the fun that she fell asleep as soon as she got back to the hotel. He saw that she was asleep, so he didn't wake her.
The next morning, she scolded him, saying how could he let her go to sleep without removing her makeup?
From then on, whenever she was too lazy to move, he would help her remove her makeup.
Thinking of this, Liang Huaixu's expression softened considerably.
I've seen her these past few days, and she's in such a much better state than she was five years ago. She's no longer the gloomy, negative, and silent person she used to be. She can laugh, get angry, and even yell at him. It's like her parched life has been revitalized.
This is all something he's happy to see.
He loves her, so he is more willing to let her have her way.
As long as she can be happy, it doesn't matter whether she starts a new relationship or enjoys herself like today.
All he needs to do is protect and safeguard her happiness from behind.
After removing her makeup, Liang Huaixu quietly closed the door for her and then went to take a shower and rest.
As the warm water poured down, he thought of her long-lost "husband" for a moment, and then, inappropriately, of her slightly disdainful remark, "Where did your abs go?"
He wiped his face helplessly and sighed softly.
After turning thirty, he noticed that his physical functions were not as good as before, he was prone to gaining weight, and he needed to put in twice the effort to maintain and control his weight.
Many of his peers around him have shown signs of weight gain, but fortunately he has a habit of exercising regularly and knows how to control himself.
As for the abdominal muscles…
He stopped maintaining this aesthetically pleasing physique after their divorce.
The next day, after being awakened by his biological clock, he did his usual morning exercise.
He now has a very healthy lifestyle. He has given up coffee and alcohol, and practices a set of Tai Chi every day without fail. After finishing the set, he will also add some other exercises, such as gymnastics and running.
These exercises can be done outdoors, but today Liang Huaixu surprisingly went to the gym and did a few sets of cable crunches.
Soon after, I started sweating, and my breathing became heavy.
This is seriously inconsistent with his physical strength when he was young.
Perhaps out of a sense of unwillingness to admit defeat, he increased the frequency and played the rap several more times.
However, he overlooked the fact that his arm muscles, which hadn't been exercised in a long time, couldn't withstand this intensity.
A sharp, throbbing pain shot through him, and he gasped for breath, half-squatting on the ground.
I strained my muscle.
An hour later, the family doctor came to his home, wrapped a ligament fixation bandage around his neck, and instructed him to take good care of himself for the next ten to fifteen days.
Zhuang Fuyao woke up from her hangover and came downstairs. Seeing him like this, she asked curiously, "What happened to you?"
Liang Huaixu looked unwell. "I got injured while exercising this morning."
Zhuang Fuyao breathed a sigh of relief. "Then you should rest well. If you need any help, just call me."
She thought that he had gotten drunk and was angry that he had found someone else, so she beat him up like this.
She drank way too much yesterday. Even though she was usually able to hold her liquor, her memory became hazy.
She remembered that Song Qing and Bagel were completely drunk, and she couldn't carry them by herself, so she contacted Liang Huaixu.
She couldn't remember much after that...
Zhuang Fuyao took another closer look.
I thought to myself, this is a bit crispier than when I was younger.
-
On Friday, Liang Huaixu went to Jiangda University for class.
Chen Lian was strolling around near the architecture department when she saw him come out. She greeted him warmly as "Senior Brother" and then followed him. "What happened to your hand?"
"I got injured while exercising."
"How could you be so careless?" Shen Lian frowned with worry, then relaxed her brow as if remembering something. "It must be a ligament sprain. I know a master doctor who is particularly good at this. He cured my mother's ligament sprain a few months ago. Senior brother, I have an unopened bottle of ointment here. I'll get it for you tomorrow."
She pressed her advantage and asked, "Are you free tomorrow? I haven't thanked you yet for staying on campus last time. I'd like to treat you to a meal and bring the ointment over while I'm at it."
"You don't need any ointment or meals. It's just a minor injury. The doctor said you'll recover after a period of rest," he said calmly. "Your decision to stay at the university is due to your own outstanding abilities; it has little to do with me."
"But..." Shen Lian wanted to say something, but He Zongqin suddenly appeared, "Old Liang, come quick, I've been waiting for you for a long time!"
Seeing Shen Lian there, He Zongqin greeted her warmly, "Little Shen, do you have classes this morning too?"
"No." Shen Lian paused for a moment, a hint of hesitation and embarrassment in her voice. "I was looking for Teacher Deng here when I ran into Senior Brother Liang."
"Oh, oh." He Zongqin laughed. "Then I'll borrow your Senior Brother Liang first, I need to talk to him about something."
Upon arriving at the office, Liang Huaixu corrected him with a slightly cold expression, "What do you mean by calling me Senior Brother Liang? This is a school, be mindful of your behavior."
He Zongqin poured him a cup of tea with a grin, "Have you seen Teacher Shen's video?"
"What video?"
"She even trended on social media recently when students posted videos of her classes online, and she was voted the most beautiful college teacher by netizens."
Liang Huaixu tapped the table and drank tea. "I've never seen it. I don't have that much free time to go online."
“You know what, Ms. Shen is really a great person. She was able to become the top liberal arts student in the province and be admitted to our school despite coming from a small county. In terms of education, appearance, and hard work, she is at the very top of the pyramid.” He Zongqin looked at his friend meaningfully. “And, I heard that she has never been in a relationship.”
Liang Huaixu glanced at him. "What are you trying to say with a hidden meaning in your words?" He emphasized, "Old He, you are a married man."
He Zongqin almost choked. "What do you mean I'm a married man? Lao Liang, what are you thinking!"
He scoffed, "I was clearly talking about you."
Liang Huaixu glanced at him and said, "What does this have to do with me?"
He Zongqin leaned closer mysteriously and whispered, "Everyone's saying that Teacher Shen isn't looking for a boyfriend because of you."
Liang Huaixu frowned and said sternly, "Nonsense!"
He Zongqin was startled, narrowing his eyes suspiciously, somewhat puzzled, "You and your fellow disciples, didn't you notice her...?"
Liang Huaixu interrupted him coldly, "We can't be together." Then, in a way that seemed to kill him, he added, "If you ask me, if you stop gossiping, there would be far fewer rumors circulating in the school."
His relationship with Shen Lian was completely innocent, and he never imagined that their relationship would be speculated about in this way.
"Why?" He Zongqin was genuinely curious. He and Liang Huaixu were old friends who had known each other for many years, and he had seen Liang Huaixu looking distraught because of his previous marriage.
But five years have passed. Anyone else would have already blossomed and borne fruit long ago.
Liang Huaixu: "There's no reason why, I've never even considered it."
Before being found by the Liang family, he lived an extremely difficult life, relying on his grandmother for support. In such an environment, the feeling of being moved as a young man was a luxury, and he himself thought that he could never be someone who would be obsessed with love.
Until he met Zhuang Fuyao, everything impossible became possible. He would always remember Zhuang Fuyao's fearless rescue of him from the school bullies, her youthful and invincible appearance with her high ponytail.
His love was like a single thread; he never thought about anyone other than Zhuang Fuyao.
“I hadn’t thought about it before, but it’s not too late to think about it now.” He Zongqin is a few years older than Liang Huaixu, and speaking from his own experience, he said, “When people get old, they still want to have a companion.”
"I'll pass." Liang Huaixu wasn't a greenhorn in his early twenties; he wouldn't blurt out his thoughts to He Zongqin all at once. He simply smiled and declined, "I'm twelve years older than Chen Lian, which isn't suitable. What would it look like if I found someone so much younger than me? Since we're fellow disciples, we should avoid any appearance of impropriety."
He Zongqin was speechless; he really couldn't refute those words.
In the eyes of Jiang's teachers and students, Liang Huaixu was the most upright and virtuous. They had discussed it privately and all felt that he might find a dignified woman of similar age and not particularly outstanding in appearance.
He Zongqin thought he was too concerned about his reputation and sighed, "You just have too much of a moral burden."
Liang Huaixu didn't bring up the topic again, calmly sipping his tea, and casually asked, "Old He, I heard you talking about Qin Zhenglin last time. Are you very familiar with him?"
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