Xin Ying's next sentence directly answered her question.
"They have been married for many years."
Lin Leyao suddenly remembered that there had been rumors in the industry that Bai Xin was secretly married. She didn't expect it to be true, and she didn't expect that her secret husband was actually a same-sex person.
"However, they had a serious argument recently, and it seems they're getting a divorce." Xin Ying pinched her brow, showing how much this usually calm person was worried about them.
"I don't know how far things have progressed between the two of them. I was quite surprised to see Sister Bai here today. She and Xu Hong run this guesthouse together. I thought she wouldn't come here at this stage."
Lin Leyao nodded without saying anything. Even Xin Ying, who had grown up with them, didn't know how to react; Lin Leyao, an outsider, was even less likely to know.
Just then, Xin Ying's phone rang.
Xin Ying answered the call, said a few words, and then hung up.
Xin Ying looked up and said, "Sister Bai told us to come downstairs for dinner."
Lin Leyao nodded, "Okay."
Downstairs in the restaurant, only Xiao Liang was there. After sitting down, Xin Ying asked, "Where's Sister Bai?"
Xiao Liang: "Sister Bai ate before you came to the guesthouse and is now back in her room resting."
Xin Ying nodded without saying anything.
Lin Leyao ate the simple meal prepared by the kitchen. Presumably, this guesthouse frequently hosts celebrities, as the kitchen mainly prepares low-fat foods.
Suddenly, darkness fell beside her, and a figure stood next to her. Lin Leyao looked up and saw Xiao Liang blinking her bright eyes at her.
Lin Leyao blinked blankly and asked, "What's wrong?"
Xiao Liang asked quietly, "Teacher Le Yao, are you staying here tomorrow too?"
"Yes, didn't we book rooms for the next two days? Also, you don't need to call me teacher, I'm older than you, just call me sister."
Xiao Liang scratched the back of her head, chuckled twice, and said, "I just wanted to confirm something else. Sister Le Yao, can I take a picture with you after you finish eating?"
Lin Leyao smiled and said, "No problem."
Xin Ying, who had been silent until now, finally spoke up: "You can release the photos after we leave the guesthouse."
"Mmm." Xiao Liang nodded repeatedly.
The meal ended quietly, and Bai Xin did not reappear until the two returned to their room on the third floor.
This time, the two of them would stay here for two whole days. The next morning, a light rain began to fall outside, and Lin Leyao and Xin Ying sat in the lobby having breakfast.
The view of the courtyard was reflected in the glass and saw the two people inside. Lin Leyao carefully looked at the various flowers, shrubs and trees that had been carefully planted in the courtyard and said, "It's autumn now, but the courtyard is still lush and green, with flowers in full bloom. There is no sense of decay at all."
Xin Ying followed her gaze and said, "Xu Hong studied fashion design in college and often audited her roommate's landscape design classes, so she is very knowledgeable about these landscapes. When she was designing, she specifically chose evergreen trees and shrubs and flowers that would bloom in different seasons to ensure that the scenery in the yard would never fade in any season."
Lin Leyao nodded, took a deep breath, and seemed to feel the fresh scent of the green plants in the yard. She exclaimed, "It's so nice."
As the two chatted, Lin Leyao turned to the person sitting behind the counter and asked, "Xiao Liang, isn't Sister Bai coming down for breakfast yet?"
Xiao Liang was engrossed in reading a novel when she heard this and replied, "Sister Bai went back to the city this morning. She said the new movie is about to start filming and she has to go back to prepare."
Xin Ying said, "Sister Bai hasn't had a break all year, has she?"
"Mmm." Xiao Liang nodded. "Sister Bai is very busy this year. In the past, she would stay here for a few months every year, but this year she has been filming and hasn't come over much. Sister Xu hasn't come either."
Hearing this, Xin Ying and Lin Leyao exchanged a glance and remained silent.
A little while later, the coffee machine behind the counter beeped. Xiao Liang jumped up and quickly made two cups of coffee and brought them out. "Sister Xin Ying, Sister Le Yao, your coffee is ready!"
Lin Leyao took the coffee, took a sip, and frowned slightly.
Xin Ying noticed her expression and asked, "Is the coffee too sweet?"
Lin Leyao put down her cup, smiled, and said, "I'm used to drinking black coffee."
"Drink mine, mine isn't sweet." With that, Xin Ying moved her hands and switched the two cups.
Before Lin Leyao could stop her, Xin Ying had already taken a sip from the cup Lin Leyao had just drunk from.
Hearing their conversation, Xiao Liang slapped her head hard: "It's my fault! I made the coffee according to Sister Bai's and Sister Xu's tastes, and I forgot to ask your preferences! I'm sorry, Sister Le Yao." Xiao Liang looked at Lin Le Yao with a face full of apology.
Lin Leyao shook her head and said, "It's nothing."
Recalling what had just happened, Xiao Liang sighed, "But Sister Xin Ying is so good to Sister Le Yao. She can tell at a glance that Sister Le Yao's coffee doesn't suit her taste."
Lin Leyao stared blankly at the coffee on the table. Yes, Xin Ying was indeed very good to her.
From the details of these interactions, it's clear that although she appears aloof on the surface, she is a very polite and gentle person in private, and she is aware of subtle differences and feelings about herself.
But why is she so good to me?
Unaware of Lin Leyao's question, Xin Ying replied to Xiao Liang's words, "When has your sister Xin Ying ever treated anyone badly?"
Xiao Liang said, "That's good too." But Xin Ying's way of being kind to Lin Leyao was different from how she treated others. It was like taking care of a child. If the child frowned, she would immediately try to solve the problem. She was very attentive and caring, but it also revealed a sense of responsibility, as if being kind to her was an obligation.
Thinking about all this, Xiao Liang shook her head: "Never mind, I can't really explain it. Sister Le Yao, how about I make you another cup?"
Lin Leyao held the coffee cup in her hands and said with a smile, "No need for that, this cup is fine."
Author's Note:
Bai Xin and Xu Hong are the main characters in my next novel, "Collecting Obsessive Romance." If you're interested, please visit my author page and add it to your favorites!
Thank you to all the little angels who voted for me or watered my plants with nutrient solution between 00:00:00 and 23:55:00 on February 6, 2022!
Thank you to the little angel who threw the landmine: 55157345 (1 landmine);
Thank you to the little angels who watered the nutrient solution: Cabbage (3 bottles); Mo Han is my wife (1 bottle);
Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!
Chapter 18
Around nine o'clock, the light drizzle outside gradually stopped.
Lin Leyao and Xin Ying left the guesthouse and strolled along the surrounding paths.
This tourist village is very well developed. The main area is full of residences and guesthouses, while the peripheral areas are filled with various commercial shops, selling exquisite jewelry, various local delicacies and specialties, as well as various restaurants.
Both women were wearing masks and casual clothes, without any elaborate makeup or grooming. To passersby, they could only be seen as two slender women strolling through a tourist area; no one would notice that one of them was a popular young actress in the entertainment industry, and the other was the female president of a well-known domestic group.
A couple was taking pictures not far away. First, the man took pictures of his girlfriend, and then the two of them stood together and took a selfie with a selfie stick. Perhaps feeling that the photos weren't good, the woman frowned as she looked at the pictures on her phone.
Suddenly, the woman's gaze fell on Lin Leyao and Xin Ying.
Noticing the way the girl was looking at her, Lin Leyao gradually stopped in her tracks, unsure whether the girl recognized her.
The girl said a few words to her boyfriend, and soon the boy came over.
The young man, probably a college student, walked over shyly, holding his phone, and asked, "Hi, could you take a picture for us?"
Lin Leyao blinked in surprise, a smile appearing in her eyes that weren't hidden by the mask. She nodded and said, "Okay."
The girl and the boy posed in various ways in front of the old house, and Lin Leyao patiently took several photos for them.
Perhaps feeling that she had taken up Lin Leyao's time, the girl took the phone and asked, "How about I take some photos of you too?" The girl was referring to Lin Leyao and Xin Ying.
The girl then said, "When we travel together, shouldn't we take some group photos?"
Xin Ying, who had been standing silently to the side, finally spoke up: "Okay, we'll film it. Thank you."
The voice coming from the exit was soft, but it was clearly a woman's voice. The girl was surprised for a moment; she had thought the person dressed in all black, standing silently to the side, was a long-haired, slender boy!
The girl quickly realized what she meant and said, "No need to thank me. This beautiful lady helped us take pictures for so long; I should be thanking you! Where would you like to take the pictures? What angle would you like?"
Instead of going anywhere else, Lin Leyao and Xin Ying stood under the thousand-year-old ginkgo tree at the entrance of the ancient house.
The girl taking the photo stood at a distance, looked at her phone for a while to find the right angle, and then shouted, "Stand closer, best friends, be more intimate!"
Listening to the girl's words, Lin Leyao couldn't help but tilt her head to see the expression on Xin Ying's face.
Her gaze fell on the same pure black mask as her own. She finally realized this and wanted to look away, but Xin Ying next to her suddenly made a move. She stretched out her right arm across Lin Leyao's back and gently placed her palm on Lin Leyao's right shoulder.
The girl took several photos, capturing this moment.
After taking a few more photos in different poses, the girl handed the phone back to Xin Ying.
The boy smiled and said goodbye to the two of them, saying, "Have a great trip, and hope you find your significant other soon. Come with your boyfriends next time."
The girl next to him heard her boyfriend say that and slapped him hard on the back of the head.
The boy immediately retorted angrily, "Why did you hit me?"
The two walked further and further apart, and the girl grabbed the boy's ear and scolded, "Are you really that blind? Her 'boyfriend' is right here!"
"Boyfriend? What guy?" After saying that, the boy suddenly realized and muttered, "Are they lesbians?"
The girl's voice hardened, "So what if I'm gay?"
The boy immediately softened his voice and said, "It's nothing, the national law already allows same-sex marriage! I'm a good boy who supports Dad's policies!"
The girl gave a soft hum, and their voices faded into the distance.
Xin Ying looked through the photos she had taken on her phone.
In the first picture, two people stand under an ancient tree. One wears a white jacket, tilting his head back, his gaze fixed on the face of the person next to him. The other wears a black trench coat, leaning slightly forward, his arm gently around the woman beside him, his cool phoenix eyes, visible through his mask, revealing a hint of tenderness. A gentle breeze stirs their hair, bringing them closer together.
Xin Ying's gaze swept over every inch of the photo. A warm body leaned closer, and Lin Leyao asked, "Is it beautiful?"
The soft sound traveled through the breeze into her ears, penetrated her mind, and sent a jolt of electricity through her skin and limbs. Xin Ying's hand holding the phone went slightly numb.
Seeing that Xin Ying's face was a little stiff, Lin Leyao asked in confusion, "What's wrong?"
Xin Ying shook her head, rubbed her face hard under the mask, and said, "It's okay, the photos are great."
"Mm." Lin Leyao nodded.
Xin Ying quickly put the unexpected situation aside and said, "I'll send you the photos. Do you want to buy some local specialties to take back as gifts?"
"Let's go browse in the store."
Back at the guesthouse, Xiao Liang immediately came out to greet us, "Sister Xin Ying, Sister Le Yao, are we eating now? Are you going out again this afternoon?"
"Let's eat now."
Soon, lunch was served in the kitchen. Xiao Liang rummaged through the counter and quickly pulled out a Polaroid camera.