Chapter 75: Such Sweet Tears, Chu Wantang.
“Chu, Wan, Tang!”
The moment Chu Wantang heard her friend call her name, she moved her phone a little further away and put it on speaker.
Wan Yi came to a relatively quiet place and suddenly raised her voice. “Hehe, guess why I’ve been in so many relationships but have never had a scandal? That’s because I have a bottom line. If I had any relevant experience, the five words ‘Wan Yi is a third party’ would have been on the hot search long ago!”
“Mm, I know. I apologize to the principled Teacher Wan,” she said, her tone sounding very sincere.
Hearing her say this, Wan Yi’s anger immediately dissipated. She then asked curiously, “Does Xingxing have a new love?”
“She doesn’t,” she answered, but with no confidence at all. Besides, in Huai Xing’s eyes, she wasn’t even an “old love.”
“If she didn’t, you wouldn’t have come to me in desperation,” Wan Yi said slowly, saying a name. “Lu Zhenyue? You wouldn’t have searched her encyclopedia for no reason.”
Chu Wantang’s long lashes drooped, and she emphasized to herself again, her voice a little low, “They don’t.”
“Alright, alright. If you say they don’t, then they don’t.”
Wan Yi cleared her throat twice and teased, “But, I don’t have any experience being a third party, but you might have a natural talent for it?”
“…”
“As a friend, I can only advise you to remember not to get caught. I don’t want to see your name in the industry gossip groups. After all, you’re a big star in this circle with a reputation no less than mine.”
Chu Wantang very decisively ended the call there. It was obvious that Wan Yi still wasn’t satisfied. She sent her some more copy about being a third party on WeChat, things like “I used to look down on people who were third parties, now I look down on myself for not being able to be one.” These remarks made her temples throb. She simply put her phone face down on the sofa, blocking out everything.
But her mind was out of control, repeatedly playing the hug, the flowers, and the conversations between Huai Xing and Lu Zhenyue. She had no credibility with Huai Xing now, but Lu Zhenyue could get Huai Xing’s “I believe you”…
After a long while, she rubbed her brow and stood up to take a shower.
She picked up her phone to charge it and then saw that there were several WeChat notifications on the screen. She guessed that they were still the copy from Wan Yi. She was too lazy to open them for the time being and went into the bathroom with her pajamas.
As the night grew thicker, she came back to the living room with a face mask on. The main lights in the room were not on, and the reading lamp was enough, illuminating her thin figure.
Only then did she casually pick up her phone and unlock it.
Her guess was wrong. It wasn’t just Wan Yi. It turned out that Huai Xing had sent a message before she had taken a shower.
Huai Xing: [Did you not drink at noon and at night?]
The short line of words made Chu Wantang’s breath catch. She quickly took a glass of warm water from the hotel, drank half a glass, and then placed it on the coffee table, carefully choosing an angle to take a picture and send it. Her fingertips trembled slightly as she typed, saying: [I did.]
This was the first time in these days that Huai Xing had sent her a message outside of work.
Her eyes were burning, and all her attention was on this, for fear that she would see it half a second late.
But one minute, two minutes, five minutes, a quarter of an hour passed, and Huai Xing’s message did not come again.
Was it because she had made Huai Xing wait too long? Chu Wantang’s brows were pressed down, and she was not sure. The glass of water on the table had already been finished during this period. In order to relieve her nervousness, and for fear of saying too much and making a mistake, she went to the bathroom to wash off her face mask, applied her skincare products, and then came out.
The chat box was still empty, and no new white bubbles that would surprise her appeared.
She lowered her long lashes, her fingertips caressing Huai Xing’s question, and a slight curve slowly appeared on her lips. No matter what, Huai Xing had responded, and had clearly told her that she was not annoyed by her daily water photos. This was already an unexpected joy.
Her breathing gradually became even, and she lay down on the bed with her phone.
She really wanted to send a message to Huai Xing again, and she really wanted to ask what the relationship between Huai Xing and Lu Zhenyue was now. But she could only endure and wait. At this stage, she could only move forward steadily.
At nearly ten-thirty, the screen finally moved.
Huai Xing: [Mm.]
It was like she was grading a paper.
Chu Wantang could even imagine Huai Xing wearing glasses and grading papers in her mind. Thinking of this scene, her eyes curved, and she sat up and leaned against the head of the bed, typing very solemnly: [Thank you, President Huai, for supervising me.]
This time, it didn’t take long for Huai Xing’s reply to come before her eyes.
Huai Xing: [I’m going to sleep.]
She was too lazy to even say “good night,” ending their conversation for the night.
Chu Wantang stared at the two words, let out a faint sigh, and said softly, “Good night, Xingxing.”
She typed at the same time: [Good night, Huai Xing.]
…
The next day of the Dragon Boat Festival, the passenger flow in Yuncheng did not decrease in the slightest.
Huai Xing woke up earlier than yesterday. After adjusting to the light for a while, she came out of the guest room to wash up first.
After wiping her face, Lu Xianyue also happened to wake up and came out of the other guest room.
She greeted her, “Good morning, Xiao Xing.”
“Good morning,” Huai Xing said. Before she passed her, she pressed her shoulder and stared at her lips, asking with amusement, “What happened to your mouth?”
“Uh…” The remaining bit of confusion in Lu Xianyue was driven away. Her long lashes trembled wildly, and she didn’t dare to look at her friend’s eyes. “It’s just… I was bitten by a mosquito. There are a lot of mosquitoes now.”
“Which ‘wen’?”
“…I’m not talking to you anymore,” Lu Xianyue said, slapping her wrist, her ears particularly red.
Seeing this, Huai Xing shook her head and chuckled lightly. As a bystander, she only found it very interesting to watch Lu Xianyue and Wen Shiwei in a relationship.
Wen Ruyu had gone out to play mahjong and had left them breakfast.
After Huai Xing had had breakfast, she took the car keys from the entryway. Before she left, she saw that Wen Shiwei had also just woken up slowly, with the same broken lips as Lu Xianyue. The two of them looked at each other and were both stunned.
“…” Huai Xing couldn’t help but think back. When she had kissed Chu Wantang before, had it been like this?
She quickly pulled her thoughts back and called out, “Sister Shiwei, Xianyue, I’m leaving.”
“Be careful, Xingxing,” Wen Shiwei said, her gaze moving from Lu Xianyue’s cheek, and she reminded.
Lu Xianyue also looked at Huai Xing and said seriously, “Remember to message me if anything happens.”
“Okay.” And the moment the door closed, Huai Xing saw Wen Shiwei wrap her arms around Lu Xianyue’s waist and pull her into her embrace.
The corners of Huai Xing’s lips couldn’t be suppressed. She had never shipped a CP before, but it should be this feeling, right?
It wasn’t until she had driven the car out of the underground garage and was in the sun today that her smile faded a little. While waiting at a red light, she looked at the car’s navigation, and on it was clearly the name of the Junling Hotel.
After a while, just before she reached the Junling Hotel, her reason returned, and she changed the destination to the cemetery.
There were many places selling flowers outside the cemetery. She picked a bouquet of white chrysanthemums and walked in.
The scenery here was still very good. Wild roses were poking out thorny vines in the corner, and rows of lush green trees were swaying gently in the wind.
This year was the eleventh anniversary of Huai Zhao’s death. Huai Xing’s longing for her mother had not diminished in the slightest. Even though she had been to the cemetery so many times, she would still be immersed in a sad mood.
After walking for a while, she came to a familiar place.
She could see a handful of mugwort placed in front of the tombstone at a glance. It was not very withered, but it was not very fresh either.
The surroundings were also cleaned up, and her mother’s photo looked very clear.
Huai Xing knelt down, placed the white chrysanthemums and mugwort together, and then looked up and smiled at Huai Zhao. “She came yesterday. Did she say anything to you, Mom?” She simply sat down on the ground, her posture very comfortable. “According to my understanding of her, she would definitely tell you about my current life. Really, I’m doing really well now. You don’t have to worry about me.”
The gentle breeze blew, and Huai Xing’s lips held a smile. “Happy Dragon Boat Festival, Mom. The zongzi that Auntie Wen made is delicious.”
She paused and then said, “Sister Shiwei and Xianyue are together. Mm… although I don’t know when they’ll tell me this open secret, I’ll leak the news to you in advance.” She reached out to stroke Huai Zhao’s photo. “Mom, then are you and Auntie Chu together in heaven? Don’t be afraid. No one will besiege you anymore…”
Since she had guessed the past relationship between her mother and Auntie Chu, Huai Xing would feel sad for this.
Her voice was muffled. Before the next sentence came out, a long shadow was getting closer and closer until the person was standing beside her.
Huai Xing did not turn her head to look, and Chu Wantang bent down, offered another bouquet of sunflowers to Huai Zhao, and sat down beside Huai Xing, with a distance of more than ten centimeters between them.
The gentle breeze quietly roamed over them, exchanging the fragrance on their bodies.
No one spoke, and the atmosphere was silent.
After a long while, Chu Wantang turned her head slightly and said gently, “Unfortunately, this season, Yuncheng doesn’t have Auntie Huai’s favorite begonias.”
Huai Xing looked straight ahead and replied, “She likes all kinds of flowers.” The ends of her hair were swaying, and she recalled in detail, “When she was still alive, she would often buy flowers to put in the house and the law firm. Sometimes she would buy roses, sometimes peonies, and also baby’s breath, but begonias never appeared… It wasn’t until a few years ago that I found out that her favorite flower was the begonia.”
Chu Wantang quietly looked at Huai Xing’s profile. The weather was just right, and the distance was close. She seemed to be able to see Huai Xing’s delicate skin.
And a small leaf had appeared on Huai Xing’s head at some point.
She tentatively reached out her hand. Sensing that Huai Xing had no intention of dodging, she picked off the leaf and handed it to Huai Xing.
Huai Xing’s gaze slowly moved, first fixed on the leaf, and then along Chu Wantang’s fingertips, bit by bit, along her arm, and landed on the woman’s face.
She took the leaf and placed it in her palm, no longer hesitating to get straight to the point. She asked, “Why did you come to Yuncheng?”
“You had Assistant Ding tell me,” Chu Wantang said, going with the flow. “Apart from the cemetery, I can’t think of any other place for us to meet.”
She pondered for two seconds and said seriously, “You want to know about their past, right?”
“Mm.” This was the main reason Huai Xing had asked Chu Wantang to come here. She couldn’t deny that she cared about Chu Wantang, nor could she deny that she was actually curious about the details of Huai Zhao and Chu Lingyi’s past.
She understood that Wen Ruyu and Lu Xuerong would not know less, but she was not willing to go to these two aunties, lest she would make them sad by bringing up this matter.
Wen Ruyu had just barely recovered from the grief of her best friend’s death, and so had Lu Xuerong.
Asking Chu Wantang was the best choice.
Chu Wantang sorted out what Xu Congyun and Wen Ruyu had said and expressed the cause and effect of Huai Zhao and Chu Lingyi in a concise manner.
The childhood friends had become a pair, but they had ended up like this.
Hearing this, Huai Xing’s eyes reddened. She had not expected the related details to be so cruel.
At the age of their early twenties, they had faced so many malicious words, and the only way to break the deadlock was to get married.
“Huai Xing…” Chu Wantang’s lips moved. “When you were a little over one, I was seven. We had met then.”
“You were hiding behind Auntie Huai and calling me Jiejie. That was our first meeting. Later, I would fly to Yuncheng with my mother every year. The coffee shop opposite the law firm has already closed down, but at that time, it was the place that hid my mother and me.”
“Wen Shiwei was actually right. I watched you grow up with my own eyes, and I still had the heart to hurt you. How ridiculous I am.”
At this point, Chu Wantang’s tears fell. The tears were crystal clear in the sunlight, and her nasal voice became thick again as she said, “I’m sorry.”
She looked at Huai Xing and said sincerely again, “In front of Auntie Huai’s grave, I can promise that I will absolutely not treat you like I did before. Can you give me another chance…”
“No,” Huai Xing said, gripping the leaf tightly, her voice heavy. “I have no chance to give you, Chu Wantang.”
The expected answer also filled Chu Wantang’s heart with bitterness.
Cries came from other places. Huai Xing listened for about ten seconds before turning her head to look at Chu Wantang’s tear-streaked face.
The area around her eyes and the tip of her nose were red, and her tears were streaming down.
On this face, she saw her former self.
The self who had shed tears for Chu Wantang countless times in the past.
In fact, Huai Xing knew best herself. So what if she still cared about Chu Wantang? It was just that she hadn’t been given enough time. After all, she had liked Chu Wantang for more than six years in the past.
The person who had made her heart flutter at sixteen and had led her to taste the bitter taste of love, it was only natural that she would not forget so quickly.
She faced her feelings and allowed herself to care.
At the same time, she would also give herself time and opportunity. Now that she had learned about her mothers’ past from Chu Wantang and had heard Chu Wantang’s apology, she felt that she could finally say goodbye to that past.
“But today, in front of my mother’s grave, I don’t have to deny that I liked you before,” Huai Xing’s long lashes trembled slightly, and her throat felt a little difficult. “It’s true that my heart was on you in the past. It’s true that I hurt my body because I heard you call me a little pet. It’s also true that I naively wanted to continue with you in that abnormal relationship…”
“Xingxing…” Chu Wantang’s tears fell in large drops. She couldn’t help but grab Huai Xing’s wrist. “Can it not be ‘before’ and not ‘in the past’…”
Huai Xing did not struggle. Seeing her like this, she couldn’t help but say, “You don’t have to show such a posture, because I am a person. I will not go back to being your little pet. Do you understand?”
“I didn’t think so anymore,” Chu Wantang’s posture had already changed to kneeling. She knelt in front of Huai Xing again.
The dimples were deeply hidden at this moment, and she choked a little. “I haven’t thought so for a long time. It was I who was deceiving myself…”
At this point, the rest of her words were stuck in her throat in the next moment.
Even though her vision was distorted and hazy, her other senses were very clear. She felt Huai Xing’s free hand on her neck.
The young woman, in front of her late mother, leaned closer, and her warm lips landed on her eyelid.
Then, a light sigh sounded—
“Such sweet tears, Chu Wantang.”
“On the day I was in front of the tombstone five years ago, worried that you would know my feelings for you, did you also want to taste my tears?”
