Her crying made it seem as if something terrible had actually happened to him.
The atmosphere around them was particularly oppressive, with constant sobbing and wailing, and the heart-wrenching sounds made the situation even more stifling.
However, hearing her voice and her words, Xufang’s bad mood inexplicably dissipated a bit. He lowered his eyes and lightly chuckled, “Have you ever seen the world? Crying over such a small matter.”
Lin Xiche sniffled and whispered, “You didn’t call me, and when I called you, you didn’t answer. I called during my free time.”
“There’s no free time here,” Xufang sighed lightly. “I won’t be able to call you every day from now on, but whenever I find a chance, I’ll call you. Don’t cry.”
Lin Xiche hesitated for a moment and gradually stopped sobbing. “Is your head injury serious?”
“It’s really nothing,” he replied. Then he suddenly asked, “By the way, why did you confess to me?”
Thinking about what Lin Xiche had just said, Xufang couldn’t help but laugh. He touched the wound on his forehead, and his eyebrows involuntarily furrowed. “What’s this about taking care of me for a lifetime and always being good to me?”
Lin Xiche didn’t seem embarrassed at all and stood up slowly. She took a tissue from her pocket to wipe away her tears. “You also said ‘I love you’ to me, so I need to reciprocate.”
“…” Xufang coughed awkwardly.
“Ap, from now on, I won’t worry about you anymore,” Lin Xiche said, her voice still tinged with redness in her eyes. “You said you’ll be fine, so I won’t worry. Just don’t lie to me.”
“Okay, I’ll hang up now,” Xufang said from the other side. His speech quickened a bit. “You stay at home and celebrate with your grandfather and Lin Xigeng. Eat something you like and do things you enjoy. And then, in a little while, I’ll be back.”
He suddenly smiled. “I’ll come back completely unharmed. That’s my promise to you.”
“The promises I’ve made to you, I’ve never broken a single one.”
“It was true in the past, and it will be true in the future.”
The rescue operation lasted for nearly a week, and it was only after ensuring the safe evacuation of all the residents that the army’s support troops returned to their base.
Xufang’s leave was approved in mid-March, and his wedding report had been submitted in early January. According to the military’s regulations, the leave for visiting parents and getting married was combined, totaling 30 days.
While this period of time wasn’t exceptionally long, it was longer than Lin Xiche had expected.
It was quite a pleasant surprise.
Lin Xiche had originally thought that they would have at most a week together. She had planned when to register their marriage, whether to hastily arrange a wedding reception during that week, and then spend a few more days moving to a new place.
But unexpectedly, they had a whole month together.
On the day Xufang returned, Lin Xiche went to find Uncle and Auntie Xu first and accompanied them to the high-speed railway station to welcome him back.
The sudden disaster in County A and Xufang’s unexpected text message had shocked both sets of parents. It wasn’t until they received Xufang’s call and heard that he was safe that they gradually let go of their worries.
The three of them waited at the station.
It didn’t take long before Xufang walked out from among the arriving passengers.
Lin Xiche was the first to notice him and quickly waved to him.
Xufang had a large backpack on his back and walked toward them. He greeted each of them with a hug, and Lin Xiche was the last in line.
When Xufang hugged his parents, it lasted only a second before he separated from them.
When it was Lin Xiche’s turn, Xufang leaned down to hug her. She thought he would also give a quick hug and then let go, but to her surprise, he held her in his arms and didn’t move.
She was taken aback and didn’t react at first, allowing him to hold her.
“That kid is really cheesy. It’s like he’s afraid of missing out if he doesn’t hug you properly when he’s home,” Xufang’s father commented, breaking the silence.
Xufang’s mother glanced at him. “You’re getting older and don’t understand romance. Why don’t you give the young people a bit of romance?”
“…”
That night, the two of them stayed at the Xu family’s house.
Previously, both families had already met, including Xufang’s parents and Lin Xiche’s grandfather, and they were aware of the impending wedding. Xufang’s parents had always treated Lin Xiche like a daughter, and now they fully considered her as part of their family.
The two elder couples chatted for a long time. During their conversation, they scolded Lin Xiche’s parents at one point but quickly changed the subject, patting Lin Xiche’s back with affection and saying, “Good child.”
Lin Xiche found it a bit amusing and heartwarming.
After a while, the two elder couples retired to their rooms to sleep, and Lin Xiche followed Xufang to his room.
As soon as they entered, Lin Xiche closed the door and immediately began to remove Xufang’s clothes. Her expression was serious, without any romantic intentions.
Xufang didn’t resist and lazily smiled. “Are you in such a hurry?”
Hearing this, Lin Xiche looked up at him and said, “I just want to see if you’re injured.”
“I’m not.” Xufang voluntarily lifted the hem of his shirt to show her. “I had a wound on my head. They stitched it up, but it’s mostly healed now.”
Upon seeing this, Lin Xiche reached out and gently touched the wound.
“It’s healed,” she noted, but there was still a scar.
She asked, “How did you get injured?”
Xufang didn’t hide anything and told her about the situation at the time.
“Oh, you saved a child,” Lin Xiche blinked and suddenly laughed. “So, it’s an honorable wound.”
Her laughter made Xufang inexplicably smile as well. He used his fingertip to touch the corner of her eye and suggested, “Let’s go tomorrow, tomorrow. It’s too late now.”
Changing the subject abruptly, Lin Xiche didn’t understand. “Go where?”
Without answering her question, Xufang directly picked her up and placed her on the bed. He bent down, pressed his lips against hers, and used his tongue to tease her. His hands eagerly explored under her clothes, with a sense of urgency and roughness that matched his earlier comment about being in a hurry.
After a while, he mumbled unclearly, “Civil Affairs Bureau.”
Because of their upcoming marriage, Lin Xiche’s grandfather had already helped her obtain her household registration book.
Early the next morning, the two of them returned to Lin Xiche’s rented apartment, brought their respective identification documents, and, after confirming everything was in order, headed to the Civil Affairs Bureau to complete the marriage registration.
Finally, when they held two small red booklets in their hands as proof of their marriage, Lin Xiche’s first thought was that all the difficult times in the past seemed insignificant.
Lin Xiche smiled and walked ahead, repeatedly looking at the two small red booklets.
Xufang followed behind her, in a good mood. He was just about to put the marriage certificate away when Lin Xiche suddenly stopped and turned to him, asking, “A-Pi, should we tear these two things apart?”
Xufang’s expression froze, and he quickly snatched the certificates from her hand, looking displeased. “Tear them? Do you want me to tear you apart first?”
Lin Xiche innocently withdrew her hand and muttered, “I was just thinking.”
Xufang grabbed her hand and continued walking, not bothering to look at her. “I don’t want to hear it.”
“Exactly,” Lin Xiche continued, “The law protects military marriages, right? It says that if the spouse of an active-duty serviceman requests a divorce, the serviceman must agree.”
“I said I don’t want to hear it.”
“I feel like it’s unfair to me.”
“…”
“And I checked online before, to apply for a divorce certificate, you need to bring the marriage certificate. So, if we tear up the marriage certificate, we won’t be able to get a divorce, right?”
“… You and your twisted logic.”
Xufang stuffed the marriage certificate into his pocket and remained silent, looking distant.
After a while, he took the initiative to ask, “Should I go meet your parents?”
“…” Lin Xiche’s good mood instantly vanished, and she hesitated before replying, “There’s no need.”
Xufang looked at her but didn’t say anything.
“Now that we’re married, I can transfer my household registration to yours, and I won’t be part of the Lin family anymore. I’ll be a member of the Xu family…” Lin Xiche trailed off, feeling disheartened. “I don’t want you to meet them.”
Xufang thought for a moment and told her, “They called me and apologized.”
Upon hearing this, Lin Xiche suddenly lifted her head, speaking earnestly, “Apologizing with just three words ‘I am sorry’ is something anyone can do.”
“…”
“I used to think that way. If it weren’t for them adopting me, I might not have been able to live as well as I do now,” Lin Xiche pursed her lips and said softly, “But that’s not the case. They adopted me, whether there’s a blood connection or not, I am their child. I shouldn’t place myself in a lower position.”
“I respect them, and they should respect me and my spouse,” Lin Xiche looked at Xufang. “But they don’t.”
She had moved out of her family’s home when she was fifteen, and now it had been over ten years since then. These ten years had gradually eroded the deep affection she once had for them.
Time could change everything.
The past years had taught Lin Xiche that feelings like resentment, reproach, and hatred, even though they seemed to be filled with hostility, were not as terrifying as being ignored.
“So, there’s no need to meet them,” Lin Xiche casually said, “When we have the wedding banquet, they should come. You’ll meet them then.”
Xufang dropped the subject and changed the topic, “When should we have the wedding banquet? How about April 7th?”
Lin Xiche’s attention was immediately diverted to this topic. “What’s special about that date?”
“It’s an auspicious day, suitable for weddings.”
“…” Lin Xiche’s expression turned strange. “Do you actually believe in that?”
Xufang didn’t feel uncomfortable. “Yes, I had someone check it for a long time.”
“…”
“And one more thing.”
“What else?”
“In a while, I will submit a job transfer application form, transferring to the Xicheng Military Region Headquarters and applying for family accompaniment.”
Lin Xiche was taken aback. “Xicheng?”
“Yes.” Xufang touched the back of his head, guessing, “I might need to contact them. If the transfer is successful, I won’t be as busy as I am at the grassroots level.”
“For example?”
“After applying for family accompaniment, if our home is in a military garrison, I can come home every day.”
Seeing Lin Xiche’s stunned expression, Xufang added, “But it’s not guaranteed to be successful. The working hours at the military region headquarters are generally more regular than at the grassroots level…”
Lin Xiche suddenly hugged him excitedly, almost wanting to jump for joy. Her eyes curved into a small crescent moon.
“Really?”
Xufang paused and also smiled, not elaborating further.
“Yes, really.”
Lin Xiche had always imagined that if she received this news, she would be so moved that she might cry. But she didn’t. She was overjoyed, and at this moment, she just wanted to scream and use her small body to lift Xufang up and spin him around.
She suddenly felt that if you put in effort, there would be rewards, and the things she had given would not be like stones thrown into the sea, silent and unnoticed. All the waiting would surely pay off.
It had to.
Lin Xiche’s current rental contract was about to expire. The landlord wanted to sell the property, so he didn’t renew the contract with her. Their newly purchased apartment had only been renovated for a month and was still not ready for occupancy.
Since Lin Xiche’s workplace was nearby, Xufang simply rented another apartment in the same neighborhood. It was slightly larger, with two bedrooms and a living room, and it was fully furnished, so the rent was relatively higher.
On this day…
The two of them began packing their luggage. Lin Xiche had been living here for over a year, so her belongings were scattered around. Since Xufang returned to Xicheng, most of his time was spent here, so he had quite a few things as well.
They each started packing their own items. Xufang was swift in his packing, putting what he needed into the suitcase and discarding what he didn’t. It didn’t take him long to tidy up the entire living room. Then, he went into the kitchen for a moment, taking out the appliances Lin Xiche had bought and placing them in the box.
He noticed that Lin Xiche was still packing her room.
Xufang simply went into the bathroom, taking out their toiletries.
Lin Xiche, however, wasn’t done yet.
After washing his hands, Xufang walked in to help her.
At the moment, Lin Xiche was sitting on the floor in her room, folding clothes one by one and placing them in the suitcase. She looked very serious, but her movements were slow.
Xufang pulled her up and tilted her chin, gesturing for her to organize the items on the dressing table. Then he squatted down and helped her fold the clothes.
Lin Xiche went to the dressing table, put all the makeup items on the table into her makeup bag one by one, and then rummaged through the drawers, taking out everything inside.
There were several boxes under the dressing table, and Lin Xiche sat down, flipped through them, and then emptied everything inside.
At this moment, Xufang had also helped her fold the clothes and walked over to squat beside her.
The floor was a mess, scattered with various small items, most of which were missing some part or another due to the passage of time. There were headphone cords, pen caps, watch straps, small fans…
And a few notebooks.
Xufang’s gaze was drawn to the top notebook, and he picked it up and flipped open the first page.
—”PP Plan for Capturing.”
Lin Xiche’s gaze subconsciously turned towards him, noticing what he was holding. She suddenly froze for a moment, then immediately pounced on him, saying, “No, this is my secret, you’re not allowed to look!”
Xufang held the notebook high, confidently stating, “Where did you get a secret from?”
Hearing this, Lin Xiche’s movements stopped, and she looked thoughtful for a moment. “It seems like it.”
Xufang’s hand remained raised, and he continued flipping through, reading what she had written.
Soon, Lin Xiche pounced on him again, as if she had realized something, “But I don’t want you to see it!”
Xufang had already seen the part where she wrote “Give a box of water.” He twitched his mouth and coldly commented, “Who taught you to strategize like this.”
Lin Xiche’s attention was shifted again, and she proudly said, “Isn’t it right? I still succeeded in capturing you.”
Xufang glanced at her without saying anything and continued to flip through the pages.
Lin Xiche didn’t mind him reading it, and she snuggled into his embrace, looking at it together.
When they turned to one of the pages, Xufang’s movements paused for a moment, and then he continued flipping through several more pages.
Then he saw her hand-holding and kissing plan.
“By the end of this year, we’ll hold hands, and within ten years, we’ll share a kiss,” she had written.
Xu Fang, with a bemused expression, carefully read those lines over and over again. He couldn’t help but notice the “three years” and “five years” crossed out beside them.
“Did you write this when you were eighteen?” he asked, peering down at her.
Lin Xi Chi nodded in confirmation.
“After writing something like this, can you still say I’m conservative?” he mused.
She remained silent.
Xu Fang finished reading the entire notebook and came to a conclusion, his tone playful yet affectionate, “If it weren’t for the fact that I like you, you would have had me friend-zoned on the very first day.”
Lin Xi Chi was taken aback, “Is it that serious?”
Xu Fang had initially intended to continue his banter, but when he saw her expression, he couldn’t help but laugh and gently planted a kiss on her cheek.
“Silly.”
Lin Xi Chi had thought Xu Fang would continue helping her pack, but instead, he reopened the notebook and turned to the page he had paused at earlier. He placed it in front of her to read:
“When we were going down the stairs, Xu Fang secretly kissed my hand. It was definite, absolutely not my imagination.”
Lin Xi Chi felt an unexpected flush of embarrassment and hastily closed the notebook, her words a bit mumbled, “Don’t read it, let’s continue packing… everything…”
In the next moment, Xu Fang held her hand, and his lips pressed a kiss onto the back of her hand. He then raised his gaze, his dark eyes locking onto hers, a hint of a playful smile dancing on his lips.
“It seems like it really wasn’t your imagination.”
After all this time, Lin Xi Chi couldn’t recall exactly how she had felt at that moment. She licked her lips and suddenly grew curious, “Pi Pi, when did you start liking me?”
Xu Fang lowered his eyelids, deep in thought, before raising his eyes again and replying, “I don’t remember.”
“Well, it’s been a long time,” she said with a smile.
Indeed, it had been a long time.
His eyes were deep and bright, yet crystal clear, encompassing her entirely. He was like a pool of ink, swirling with memories and emotions, gradually drawing her into its depths.
A silent crush, inconspicuous yet leaving traces everywhere.
It was waiting silently beneath her window on New Year’s Eve, reminding her of the time without uttering a word.
It was the subtle collision of their shoulders when she mentioned her dislikes, the interruption of her conversations when the topic wasn’t to her liking, and the expectation of her reproach.
It was doing everything for her, suppressing his temper for her sake, repeatedly concealing his boundaries for her.
It was that one time when she woke up from a nap in class and found him gazing at her, a gaze she couldn’t decipher.
Those memories, unnoticed at the time, now held significant meaning. Looking back, every moment, every second, every interaction, all seemed sweeter than the taste of cream.
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