Chapter 46: Never Been in Love, Suddenly Infatuated

  "The story is so good, it's too beautiful!" After a while, Liu Yinger murmured.

  Xue Xiang almost fell off the car, this is too much of a blow, the package hasn't even started shaking yet, are you satisfied? If I take out those entwining and sentimental stories of Aunt Qiong Yao's, wouldn't your tears flow like a river?

  Xue Xiang thought it was necessary to raise Liu Ying'er's level of appreciation, otherwise how could he show off his extensive knowledge, chivalrous and delicate feelings, and heroic emotions. Xue Xiang cleared his throat and said, "You don't think the story is over yet, do you?"

  Liu Ying'er exclaimed in surprise: "Is there more? Are you going to continue talking about their romance, marriage and having children?"

  Xue Xiang was thoroughly conquered. The story must have a beginning, middle and end, with ups and downs. This kind of flat narrative, without any twists or turns, can it even be called a story? Xue Xiang had to save her: "What I said is not just a story, but more accurately, a joke."

  "Why does such a beautiful story have to be told as a joke and ridiculed?"

  "It's a smile, it's fun, not ridicule." Xue Xiang couldn't hold back the fire in his heart, telling a joke that almost made himself die of laughter, which was rare.

  "Alright, you speak and I'll listen." Liu Yinger sensed a change in his tone and decided to go along with him this time.

  "Oh my god, I'm glad I didn't ask," Xue let out a sigh of relief and continued with the story: "The girl finished reading the note, started packing up her books, stood up, turned around and asked him 'I'm leaving, do you want to come with me?' Next, the boy said something that might be the most unforgettable thing he's ever said. Guess what it was?"

  Liu Ying'er furrowed her brow, her left thumb and index finger tightly pinching Xue Xiang's collar, as if she had his skin in her grasp. Telling a story is so annoying, always keeping people in suspense, it's like saying "to be continued" and expecting me to reward you for it. The story was originally quite beautiful, but you have to turn it into a joke, I don't believe it can be funny at all.

  "Can't guess, love to say or not."

  You, forget it. You're just pretending to be mysterious, or you'll choke yourself to death. Xue said self-deprecatingly and continued: "As soon as the girl's words fell, the boy said: 'You go first, I still have a few pages of books left to read.'"

  "Hahaha... I'm dying of laughter, this is the funniest joke I've ever heard...... Hmm, why aren't you laughing?" Xue said with a grin, thinking he had just come up with the most hilarious line, and was already laughing uncontrollably himself. But to his surprise, Liu Ying'er didn't react at all. Was her sense of humor broken or something? He hadn't even seen her laugh before.

  "Is that it? Is it funny? Ruining a beautiful love, is it interesting?" Liu Yinger was very dissatisfied with this ending.

  Speechless, completely speechless! Xue didn't say anything else, driving with a scowl on his face, several times not looking at the road, almost crashing into a tree.

  The silent journey finally came to an end at the terminus of the shaded path.

  "Where's your home? I'll take you there." Xue stopped the car and turned to ask Liu Ying'er.

  Liu Ying'er got off the car: "No need, it's just a few steps away from here, I'll walk over."

  Xue stared at her beautiful eyes and asked: "Is the story I told really that unbearable?"

  "Now that I think about it, that boy was really foolish." Liu Ying'er smiled, and with this smile, the entire world lit up. In this moment, a thousand flowers bloomed, and ten thousand frozen plains thawed. Xue Xiang had never seen such an intoxicating smile before, and he was completely entranced by it. Liu Ying'er felt a bit embarrassed being stared at like that, so she stretched out her slender jade-like hand in front of Xue Xiang's eyes and waved it back and forth, snapping him back to reality.

  Xue Xiangxin said, no wonder she doesn't smile normally, this one smile, all those praises like "a smile that can charm a hundred beauties" should be thrown into the trash. Fortunately, he witnessed such a smile, and only then did he understand why Zhou Youwang was willing to start a war to get a beautiful woman's smile, and also understood Wu Sangui's rage for the sake of a beauty. Such a beauty, wherever she goes, is the root of trouble, placed in a big place, it is the source of chaos.

  Xue Xiang didn't speak, he greedily gazed at this most breathtaking scenery, slowly until the moon hid behind clouds and the beautiful view was gone. "You're so beautiful!"

  Liu Ying'er was deeply embarrassed, how could this person be so bold? Liu Ying'er also knew that in her daily work at the hospital, many patients and doctors would secretly glance at her and discuss her. She of course knew she looked better than most girls, but never had a man praise her openly to her face. After all, it was 1976, not 2006, and girls' faces were thin-skinned, while boys rarely dared to be so direct.

  Liu Ying'er's pretty face turned slightly red, she turned her head to leave, but was called back by Xue Xiang: "Which hospital do you work at? I'll come visit you when I have time."

  "Stop right there. I'm a nurse at Central Hospital's surgical department. Don't come looking for me unless it's absolutely necessary, others might see us and it wouldn't be good. I have to go, goodbye."

  "Hey, do you have a boyfriend?" Xue asked with a hopeful face, asking the question that had been hidden in her heart for a long time.

  "I don't have a boyfriend, but... I have... a fiancé!" Liu Ying'er lowered her head and looked at her toes, the wind blowing through the forest ruffled her bangs.

  Sweltering summer days, Xue Xiuru fell into the ice cellar, although he had long been mentally prepared. Such a beautiful girl wouldn't be without suitors, would she? Was her existence specially arranged by heaven to wait for him? The greatest love tragedy in human history isn't "You were born before I was, and you're old when I'm born", but rather "Returning the bright pearl with tears streaming down, regretting not meeting before marriage". Age sometimes isn't a boundary that constrains love, but marriage often makes a third person's love stop in its tracks, let alone in such a serious and repressive era.

  Xue Xiang's hand, which was holding onto the car, trembled slightly, and he almost couldn't stand upright. He leaned against the car at an angle, barely managing to stay on his feet. It was unclear whether it was him holding onto the car or the car supporting him that kept him from falling over.

  Two people stood silently, the cool breeze rustling through the forest. The birds in the trees had also fallen silent, occasionally a few phoenix tree leaves fell down, blown by the wind to drift far, far away.

  "Thank you for sending me here, goodbye." Yinger leaned against the paulownia tree, moving forward slowly. A gust of wind blew by, and another shower of paulownia leaves fell from the sky, covering her shoulders with pale green leaves. The green lily was radiant when it came, but desolate when it left. Goodbye, Xue Xiang, or perhaps never see each other again.

  "I wanted to say everything to you, but it's all written on the paper slips in the story. If you answer me like the girl in the story, I'll make your heart's wish come true, no matter what." Xue shouted at her slender and sorrowful back.

  Liu Ying'er's slender body suddenly stumbled, then continued forward, her head not turning back: "Save those words for another girl." She quickened her pace, then broke into a run, as if fleeing from something. If one looked closely, they would discover that beneath every Chinese parasol tree she brushed past, a single teardrop was hidden.

  The wind has stopped, and people have gone mad.

  Never been infatuated with love, a piece of affection has already been devoted.

  Xue Xiangping's body, which normally had the strength of a thousand pounds, was now soft and weak, struggling to push the cart forward step by step...

  …………

  The moonlight crept quietly onto the treetops, and Xue Xiang lay motionless in bed, his body weak. After a sleep, he woke up to find that his body still had no strength, with a burning fire stuck in his chest, scorching his heart.

  "Big brother, you're awake! Everyone has come to see you several times. At dinner time, second sister didn't let me call you, saying that your body wasn't feeling well and that you should sleep a bit more. Big brother, what's wrong with you?" The little guy pushed open the door, his small face full of tension, and ran to the bedside, his two small feet kicking back, and his red slippers flying far away. The little guy stretched out his soft small hand to touch Xue Xiang's forehead, then touched his own, furrowing his brow and muttering to himself: "You're not feverish? Big brother, where are you uncomfortable, tell me quickly, I'm worried!"

  Xue Xiang was touched by the little guy's soft and chubby hands, which made him feel itchy. He felt much better now, so he hugged the little guy into his arms and laughed: "Little treasure, as soon as you came, big brother's body is all better now! What time is it now? What did you eat for dinner tonight?"

  Little guy wrapped his arms around Xue Xiang's neck, kissed him on the cheek and said: "Big lazy worm, it's already seven o'clock. See how you sleep tonight. At that time, don't ask me to tell you a story to coax you to sleep, okay? Tonight's dinner is tomato scrambled eggs, loofah soup, and braised carp, all warmed up by Second Sister. Everyone wants to eat?" Since Xue Xiang told the little guy his first fairy tale, it has become an unshakeable task for him to tell at least one story every night to coax her to sleep. The little guy not only loves listening to stories but also likes to be a teacher and makes up her own stories. Her stories are often childish and ridiculous, with the beginning not matching the end, but she always forces Xue Xiang to listen to them. At first, Xue Xiang really couldn't bear to listen and fell asleep. But he would always be woken up by the little guy pinching his nose in anger. Since then, whenever the little guy tells a story, Xue Xiang pretends to listen with great interest, occasionally asking questions and gaining insights from the story, satisfying the little guy's sense of honor, so that she can sleep well at night. From then on, the little guy thought her stories were fantastic, and every night she would pretend to be reserved and refuse to tell a story, but Xue Xiang knew her thoughts and pretended not to listen, saying "I won't sleep if you don't tell me a story", begging her repeatedly until she reluctantly told a simple story like buying an ice cream.

  Xue Xiang hadn't eaten properly for a whole day, and now his stomach was really a bit hungry. He knew he couldn't get out of bed to go to the kitchen to serve himself, as it was Xiao Zhu's special privilege to bring him food, and no one else was allowed to take over this task easily. Xue Xiang looked at Xiao Zhu with a smile and said, "I'm hungry, little treasure, can you bring me a bowl of rice?"

  The little guy heard that the moon was curved, and with a whoosh, he crawled out of Xue's arms, his two short legs sliding backwards quickly, and slid down along the bed. He put on his own adorable slippers, and ran to the kitchen, shouting: "Second sister, the big lazy worm is awake, it's time to eat. You help me serve it, I'll take it to the big lazy worm."

  Do you want to eat rice? Xue heard the little guy's voice from a distance, why does this sentence sound so awkward?

  "Oh, oh, everyone, dinner's here! Wait for me to come up before eating!" The little guy held a large ocean bowl with his hands, and the top layer of the bowl was piled high with shiny dishes.

  Xue Xiang took the bowl and placed it on the bedside table. The little guy climbed up, quickly snuggling into Xue Xiang's arms, twisting his head to say: "Turn the electric fan this way a bit, I'm not feeling any wind."

  On the bedside table was a Watson brand electric fan produced by Mingzhu City, this green aluminum fan was still donated by the old factory director of Watson Electric Appliance Factory in 70 years to the military district when he came to Beijing to run relations. At that time, Xue Anyuan was the number one leader of the military district, and naturally also got a few fans. This old-fashioned electric fan has been used for six or seven years, still with strong wind power, five gears have never been opened at the highest gear, and a summer has passed easily with it.

  Seeing the little guy protesting, Xue Xiang had to adjust the electric fan to face the little guy and said: "Little treasure, on such a hot day, you still want to snuggle into my arms, be careful not to get prickly heat."

  "Hmph, with such a big wind, I'm still cold. Look at you, sweating profusely and not even covering yourself with a blanket." The little guy stuck out his tongue, slanted his eyes, and made a face. Who knows who shouted that it was hot just now and wanted to turn on the fan.

  Xue Xiang quickly picked up his bowl to eat, but didn't dare provoke Little Auntie again, otherwise he would have to cover himself with a quilt to eat in the middle of summer.

  "Put the bowl down a bit, nobody can see the food in it. Feed me that big egg yolk in the middle." The little one lay in Xue Xiang's arms, unbuttoned her small flower-patterned shirt, revealing her small belly, and while fanning herself with her small hands, she opened her mouth, waiting for Xue Xiang to feed her. No wonder she loved serving Xue Xiang meals, this enjoyment was absolutely at the level of an old lady.

  Xue Xiang somewhat regretted his past actions, not expecting the little guy to be spoiled by him to such an extent that he had become his own little emperor. It was too late to educate him now; with just one scolding, the little guy would pout and shout "mommy", and Xue Xiang's heart would immediately soften. Fortunately, the little guy was only spoiled a bit and still had a kind heart. Xue Xiang had long made up his mind that he would never let the little guy suffer any grievances in this lifetime; so be it if he remained a little emperor.

  Xue Xiangzheng was eating, no, attending to the little guy, when Zhu Shijun suddenly rushed in. He was covered in sweat, his clothes were full of dust and holes, he hadn't caught his breath yet, and shouted: "Third Brother, Ma Lei and Xiao Kang are in trouble."