It is said that at the time, Secretary Fang Yuan and Old Master Luo did not have a good relationship, and many of the Luo family's resources were not open to this daughter-in-law. However, after Xu Xingyan had an accident at the Luo family's banquet, Old Master Luo felt guilty and his relationship with his daughter-in-law improved a lot.
Before long, Secretary Fang Yuan received all the resources allocated to her by the Luo family, and used this as a springboard to obtain a very important position, becoming the biggest beneficiary of the matter. As a result, Secretary Fang Yuan cherished this niece very much and treated her as her own daughter.
Thinking of this, Tao Jie shook her head.
How could that be? Given how much the Fang family dotes on their little princess, who would dare take that risk?
It must be because Dad is too much of a conspiracy theorist.
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Author's Note:
Tao Jie: Oh, this world is all about girls sticking together!
Chapter 25 Canlhaveakiss?
"Where you go, I will go; where you stay, I will stay; your people will be my people, and your God my God; where you die, I will die..."
When Xu Xingyan heard Tao Yu quote this passage from the Bible during the ceremony, she knew that Meng Yue had lost yet another round in terms of cultural literacy.
With red-rimmed eyes and dressed in a pure white wedding gown, Meng Yue probably understood this as well. Her hand holding the speech trembled slightly, and in addition to the emotion and excitement of hearing her lover's vows, there was also regret for not studying hard back then, resulting in her being empty-headed at her own wedding.
When it was finally her turn, she read her recitation of "remembering the glorious past" in a halting and stumbling manner, as if it had been ghostwritten. She had only seen the manuscript for the first time today.
Xu Xingyan suppressed the urge to sigh and turned her head away, unable to bear the sight. But she saw Tao Yu's delicate face filled with "Wow, she's so cute!"
Xu Xingyan: "..."
Well, she exclaimed once again that the two of them were a perfect match made in heaven!
"...Today is January 1st, New Year's Day. You asked me before why I chose this day, and I said it was for a fresh start in the new year, but that was a lie. My real thought is that I want you to be with me as my wife and dearest relative for the entire year to come..."
Upon hearing this, Xu Xingyan immediately sat up straight. Whether it was because she was emotionally invested or determined to win back the score, Meng Xinniang suddenly started improvising and adding her own lines.
Meng Yue was completely unaware of the inner turmoil her friend was going through in the audience, which was enough to make her want to vomit blood. She only looked at the person in front of her, her heart softening, and she couldn't form a coherent sentence: "From now on, even if the rest of our lives are still very long, we can sit side by side on the carpet at home, basking in the sun and waiting quietly..."
And then, as the vow says, until death do us part.
Tao Yu wanted to turn her head to compose herself, but she couldn't bear to look away from her bride, so she had to abandon her image and wipe away her tears with her nose red. "Don't cry. Didn't you say you wanted to be the most beautiful bride? We're going to take pictures later."
Meng Yue was crying so hard she was almost hiccuping, but she still couldn't resist shifting the blame, snuggling into her arms and whispering, "You were the one who started crying first, which made me cry... You have to take responsibility!"
Tao Yu was immediately amused by her and very proactively bent down to take on the responsibility.
Below the stage, in the guest seating area.
Sitting next to them, Tao Jie said, "I never thought that someone like my cousin would like someone so much that she would insist on marrying her."
Looking at the two figures leaning on each other on the stage, Lin Shengmiao asked in return, "Is it so rare to meet the right person?"
Tao Jie stretched out her body and glanced at Xu Xingyan, who was leaning against her shoulder, and chuckled, "It's not surprising at all."
Even Lin Shengmiao, who exudes an aura of loneliness, can have a sweet romance, so what's so surprising about that?
...
While Lin Shengmiao went to get the small cake, Xu Xingyan started chatting with the girls in the wedding band.
A little girl playing the guzheng said with a smile, "Since you can play the guzheng too, why don't you play a piece?"
The people around them chimed in, "Yeah, let's sing one!"
"Ugh," Xu Xingyan couldn't stand being pestered anymore and had no choice but to raise her hands in surrender, "Let's make this clear first, I really haven't touched the guzheng for many years, so you're not allowed to laugh if I don't play well."
Everyone swore in unison.
When Lin Shengmiao returned with the cake, she saw this scene and immediately stopped to watch.
Xu Xingyan sat in front of the guzheng stand, her eyes lowered as she played with her nails. Without saying a word, she exuded a gentle and refined aura, a result of years of exposure to literature and art.
She tested the sound first, then smiled and said, "Then let's sing 'A Perfect Match'."
It was clear that she hadn't practiced in a long time, but Xu Xingyan quickly got used to it. Before long, her piano playing went from awkward to fluent, prompting everyone to start singing along.
Even if it's a match made in heaven
There will also be hardships.
Don't worry too much about right or wrong.
Making concessions for love is not losing.
Hold your hand and walk through my days and nights…
Lin Shengmiao quietly watched the girl bathed in sunlight, her face gilded. Some people, no matter when or where, can make the whole world just a backdrop if they want to shine.
Xu Xingyan saw her, and after finishing the piece, she left everyone behind and ran over.
"Where did you go just now?" Before the words were finished, I saw the small cake in her hand, each with a very fresh strawberry on it, the kind she loved the most. Her almond-shaped eyes immediately curved into a smile. "Oh, there are still some left. I thought they had all been snatched up."
Lin Shengmiao handed her the cake with a hint of self-satisfaction, saying, "I got it from the kitchen."
Xu Xingyan smiled and ate a strawberry covered in sweet cream. She then noticed that another strawberry had been placed on the previously empty top of the cake. She looked up at the generous lady, only to hear her cough lightly and say, trying to cover up her misunderstanding, "I don't really like cream cakes."
“The wedding banquet is still six hours away,” Xu Xingyan suddenly said.
Lin Shengmiao's heart suddenly pounded violently, as if an apple had fallen and hit Newton, and an unprecedentedly strong premonition surged into his heart.
She clutched the ring box in her pocket, mustered her courage, and said, "Xingyan, I..."
Unfortunately, her initiative had already been taken away by Miss Xu because of her procrastination.
"Shh..." Xu Xingyan put her slender, fair fingers to her lips, approached her, and looked into her eyes: "I asked Sister Meng Yue for permission to leave temporarily to do something very important. Do you want to come with me?"
Lin Shengmiao never had the ability to say no to her.
...
They arrived at the foot of a large building.
Xu Xingyan took her hand and said softly, "Before we go up, I have one more question that I need you to answer."
Lin Shengmiao looked at her.
“From the time you went to Kyoto, a full ten years, I’ve seen a total of 1,206 posts on your WeChat Moments. But whether it’s Luo Jing or Zhao You, your Moments are always empty. So… is it only visible to me? Why?”
“Because…” Lin Shengmiao blinked her sore eyes, “I’m always worried about you, and I’m afraid you’re worried about me too, so I wanted to tell you that I’m doing well.”
My dear girl, how could liking you be hard? It's such a happy thing! Worrying about your health, worrying about your mood, worrying about whether you're doing well—that's what's truly hard.
Xu Xingyan's eyes instantly reddened. Although she had guessed it before, she still couldn't help but burst into tears when she heard it from this person's mouth.
Lin Shengmiao raised his hand to tidy her long hair, then closed his eyes and gently kissed her forehead, silently expressing the feelings he had carried for so many years.
At first, I did this just to let her know I was safe. But gradually, whenever I achieved something, I couldn't help but share it with her in this way, as if those difficult years, which seemed so simple in retrospect, were really spent together.
Xu Xingyan rubbed her eyes, somewhat flustered, and said, "Alright, alright, calm down. Let's leave some things to say upstairs. I've been preparing for this for a long time, and I can't let it go to waste."
...
What kind of meticulous preparations did Miss Xu make?
Lin Shengmiao, alone, followed the smiling guidance of the staff up the stairs leading to the top floor of the building. On both sides of the stairs were a dozen pairs of BJD dolls, each facing another, encased in patterned glass...
That was designed based on the two of them.
On the left is Xu Xingyan, who is still preparing for the college entrance examination, and on the right is Lin Shengmiao in a university classroom.
Step onto the first step of the stairs.
On the left is Xu Xingyan looking at paintings in the studio, and on the right is Lin Shengmiao participating in a debate.
Then climb one more step.
On the left is Xu Xingyan, who is participating in an art exhibition for the first time, and on the right is Lin Shengmiao, who is standing at the gate of a foreign school.
Take one more step forward.
On the left is Xu Xingyan, quietly reading a book, and on the right is Lin Shengmiao, who is participating in translation work for the first time.
...
In the very end.
On the left is Xu Xingyan, surrounded by flowers, and on the right is Lin Shengmiao, who has received numerous honors.
This is the ten-year journey they have each completed.
...
At the end of the stairs, on the handle of the top-floor door, hangs a light-colored card.
Lin Shengmiao reached out and peeled it off; there was only one line of text on it: "There is no time difference between us."
And this is exactly the point that Lin Shengmiao agrees with.
With unprecedented excitement and anticipation, Lin Shengmiao turned the doorknob on the top floor.
The first thing you see is a vast expanse of red roses, blooming freely and beautifully.
On the closest cluster of roses, a silk scarf was tied with a thin thread, bearing the most classic passage from "The Little Prince" written in the official script: "There may be five thousand flowers in the world that look exactly like you, but you alone are my one and only rose."
Now, surrounded by five thousand roses, Lin Shengmiao is carefully walking step by step toward the beautiful figure sitting in front of the white piano.
A melodious piano tune began to play, the most familiar piece being "Jasmine Flower".
On the high school playground, there was once a girl who taught another girl, line by line, to sing this simple and beautiful song in the dialect of Nancheng.
"I'm learning piano on the spot, I hope it's not too bad," Xu Xingyan said softly as she turned to look at her.
Lin Shengmiao came to her, an invisible sweetness leaping in her heart, attracting butterflies with trembling wings, and sighed, "You are always oblivious to your own excellence."
"Really?" Xu Xingyan lowered her head and chuckled, then took a white rose from the piano stand.
"Take it, or I'll cry."
Lin Shengmiao was well aware of Miss Xu's tendency to become less emotional when she was nervous, so he didn't dare to tease her at all and simply took the white rose into her hand.
Xu Xingyan took a deep breath, looked at her and said, "Actually, over the years, I've sometimes thought, how wonderful it would have been if we had been together back then..."
Even if you're in a long-distance relationship, it doesn't matter. You don't need gifts for every holiday. As long as you both live your own lives well, remember the best restaurants, and take each other out to eat when you meet, or secretly learn a new dish to surprise her, it doesn't have to be a fancy meal. As long as you're with the person you love, even something as simple as a roujiamo (Chinese hamburger) or roasted sweet potato will taste especially delicious.
"But I'm also glad that we can meet again in better form."