Chapter 60 (Epilogue/Short Story 1)
Within the first week of A University starting, it seemed that almost all the female students, from fourth year seniors to first year freshmen, had one name on their lips.
Rong Si.
Guess there will always be some people who are born to be busier than others.
Li Erqin was leisurely leaning on the side of the desk that was under the bunk bed in the hostel, her left hand tapping a new textbook.
She had not been able to catch even a glimpse of Rong Si since Uni had begun, and while she had been missing him, at the same time, she was also feeling rather disgruntled.
What? Just when they had started, he was already helping to *do some dubbing? And only just two weeks ago he was even matched up with some girl.
(TN: this is literally what the chinese says, and it is unclear if he decided to do dubbing when he started Uni or if there is some other meaning to this that we don’t know!)
The dorm room doors opened, and a new dorm mate sauntered in carrying some snacks and milk tea that she had bought from the roadside stalls. Upon her entry, she was filled with elation as she made jolly banter. “Everyone guess who I just happened to see on the main road!”
“WHO?”
“It was Rong Si!”
Li Erqin instinctively turned and looked over.
Xue Er directed a ‘cheers’/‘bottoms up’ gesture towards Li Erqin. “Wow, with just the mention of Rong Si, even our Deity Li Erqin would seem to have her heart stirred.”
Li Erqin had nothing to conceal about her liking for Rong Si so she stated honestly, “I’ve liked him for a long time already.”
Xue Er seemed to come to an understanding, and patting her shoulder, she sat down beside her. “I heard that you were high school classmates?”
Li Erqin nodded.
“Did you know him then?”
“Yes.”
Xue Er’s interest was suddenly piqued. “Then do you have any gossip to share? Such as if he has a girlfriend?”
“Yes, he does.”
Someone else in the dorm room interrupted and asked, “He has a girlfriend? Who?”
Li Erqin’s face was all composed. “Me.”
(Minodayz : LOL , just tell them gorgeous!!! In your face!)
At the same time, inside a male dorm room, Rong Si had just returned and was finally able to sit down after being tied up for the better part of the day. He took out his phone ready to send Li Erqin a text message.
Suddenly a male student rushed in. “Hey, hey, hey! Rong Si!”
Rong Si turned.
“Some of my friends have begged me to ask you. Are you from the same hometown as Li Erqin from our class?”
Rong Si nodded.
“Let me tell you…”
“She is my girlfriend.”
The male student was stunned. “HUH?”
“Li Erqin is my girlfriend,” said Rong Si impassively. “Is there something else you wanted to say?”
“No….Nothing more.”
(Minodayz: OMG – RS takes the cake! It’s like let’s send a flare up declaring this!)
Rong Si lowered his head to continue drafting his text, but after typing for some time, he deleted every word he had entered and chose instead to directly give her a call.
Li Erqin was currently surrounded by silence, as her dorm mates were staring at her with baffled and stunned looks.
When her phone rang, she glanced at her phone and accepted the call. “Finished with all your stuff?”
“Yup.”
“Tired?”
“Tired.”
“Hungry?”
“Hungry.”
“Want to eat?”
“I’ll go fetch you.”
“OK.”
With that, their “old, married couple” dialogue had concluded.
(Minodayz: their monosyllabic chatter! LOL class act!)
“Was that a call from Rong Si?”
Finally someone spoke up to ask.
“Yes.”
“Really?”
Li Erqin smiled.
This was the first time that Li Erqin and Rong Si went public with their relationship at Uni, and afterwards, they once again became known by all their classmates as the model couple that was a ‘match made in heaven’.
It was just that no matter how good-natured most people were about it, there would always be those who like to break a couple apart and pursue one or the other. After all, the neighbouring Art and Drama institute had some girls who were rather innocent and naive and then some who were not so innocent or naive and who seemed to have nothing better to do than to create trouble.
However, what no one could have guessed was that Li Erqin would be the one who was being pursued by someone.
After more than half of the semester had passed, Rong Si was still just as busy. Whether it concerned student council, faculty or classmates, it was as if he had three heads and six arms. As long as someone had a request, he would agree to it.
(Minodayz :Ahhh RS – you just need to learn to say NO!!! Seriously….)
Therefore, it was very natural that an idle Li Erqin would have a lot of alone time.
When Rong Si caught wind of the news, it was after it had widely spread to most of the people in the university. After he had finished with his tasks for that afternoon, he immediately made a call to Li Erqin without waiting for his break.
No one answered.
Rong Si propped his elbows on his knees and drank a mouthful of water from a bottle that he had lifted from the table. He noticed that recently, he often could not reach Li Erqin on the phone. He faced the dull ceiling and spaced out for a while, before putting his water bottle down to send a message to her.
His roommate suddenly spoke. “Are you looking for Li Erqin?”
Rong Si raised his head. After wearing himself out with overwork, his eyes did not have any vigor to them. They looked clouded over. “Yeah.”
“That…” His roommate hesitated. “There’s something that I don’t know if I should tell you or not.”
“What?”
“It’s all over the school that you and Li Erqin broke up,” his roommate answered. “That’s why you’ve been working as if your life’s depended on it these days.”
Rong Si was caught off guard.
“You… really broke up?” his roommate probed.
Rong Si thought about it and answered, “Nope.”
Originally, his roommate was lying in bed. As soon as he heard this, he immediately climbed out of it. “Then lately, do you feel as if you’ve been seeing green (aka, the green eyed monster) a lot?”
Rong Si’s eyebrows furrowed.
When Rong Si found Li Erqin with the aid of many kind-hearted individuals, she was taking a breather in the art classroom at the School of Design. An immaculate guy sat facing the sunlight, leaning against the wall and helping her to block most of the direct sunlight. He was also sleeping.
An easel was erected not far away from the both of them. Fragments of sunlight filtered through the seams of the blackout curtains, its rays clinging onto the half-painted canvas.
Bright white light juxtaposed against grey skies and distant mountains.
Actually, the scene was rather beautiful.
Rong Si coughed.
The guy leaning against the side of the window woke up first, and he squinted his eyes at Rong Si before chuckling slightly.
Rong Si did not spare him a glance. He walked straight in front of Li Erqin and patted her shoulder.
Li Erqin moved for a bit, before waking up. As soon as she saw Rong Si, she immediately smiled. “How did you know I was here?”
Rong Si did not answer. He pointed at the phone that she had placed on the table. “No one answered when I called your phone.”
Li Erqin shot him an apologetic look. “I didn’t notice it.”
Rong Si frowned without saying a word.
(Minodayz : ooooo greenie RS is surfacing! Hee hee hee!!!)
He was unhappy.
This was the first message she read from Rong Si’s expression. As she was perceptive, she immediately introduced the person beside her to Rong Si so that they would be acquainted with each other. “This is…”
“I’m hungry,” Rong Si interrupted her.
Perplexed, Li Erqin blinked. Why didn’t he let her explain herself?
“What do you want to eat?” Rong Si asked again.
“He…”
Rong Si stared at her quietly.
Li Erqin held her tongue obediently and then trailed after Rong Si meekly as they headed out. As she secretly turned around and waved at the guy to say goodbye, the sudden phrase “keep up” from Rong Si shocked her into withdrawing her hand.
She followed Rong Si to the supermarket. On the way, she pondered a question earnestly — don’t tell me that Rong Si was jealous?
Even Rong Si was capable of feeling jealous?
They were in a quiet stadium.
Rong Si rested against the railing, a bottle of water that was exuding cold air in his hand.
By his side, Li Erqin held a cup of oden with both her hands.
No one spoke.
“Li Erqin.” After a long time, Rong Si suddenly opened his mouth.
Li Erqin turned around with a large meatball stuffed in her mouth. A side of her face was bulging from the meatball, as if it was about to burst. Her expression was quite comical. “Yeah?”
“Who was that guy?”
Li Erqin laughed. In the end, he still could not restrain himself from asking.
“My brother.”
“Your brother?”
“My uncle’s son. He’s just a few months younger than I am. I just found out a while ago that he was also studying in this university.”
Rong Si touched his nose.
Li Erqin swallowed her meatball. With an evil glint, her eyes drifted up and down Rong Si on purpose. “Were you jealous?”
“Yep.”
His reply was too forthright, too quick. Instead, Li Erqin was stunned. “You also know how to feel jealous?”
Rong Si answered her question with his own. “Why not?”
Li Erqin grumbled, “I still haven’t felt any jealousy yet.”
Rong Si smiled, imitating her tone. “You also know how to feel jealous?”
(Minodayz : these 2 – I’m speechless!!! Lol but love it!!!)
“Why not?” She placed the cup that contained the oden down and poked at Rong Si’s shoulder. “That vice president of our university. Si something.”
“Yang Zhensi.”
Li Erqin was furious. “I won’t allow you to mention her name in such a gentle manner.” Speaking of names, sadness tinged her anger. “Do you think the name Li Erqin sounds too unpleasant?”
Rong Si shook his head.
“I don’t think it’s that bad either. Why does everyone have to make fun of it?”
Rong Si caressed her head. He could not contain his smile when he saw her picking the oden up and continue eating.
Someone had forgotten what she originally wanted to say again. He thought that she would really feel jealous, but it seemed that it was merely on a whim. But it did not matter to him if she was simple-minded. As long as he was attentive enough, he would be able to complement her.
(Minodayz : YUP RS, you got it!!!! Not so sweet calling that SI character!!!)
＊＊＊
In many people’s eyes, some couples were together because they were a good match, like Rong Si and Li Erqin. And some couples were together out of habit, like Rong Si and Li Erqin.
There were very few people who thought that Rong Si and Li Erqin were together because of genuine love and affection. It could be that the two of them looked like their brains were 90% occupied with reason and logic, almost as if emotions were purely ornamental and an accessory. The two of them just seemed so rational that it was easy for others to come away with the misconception that they had no emotions. Their relationship did not have the slightest ripple of disturbance and was so serene that it almost did not seem like a relationship between a man and a woman. It was unclear if the two of them simply had full confidence in the other or if they just didn’t care enough, but they had never had an argument before.
Does this kind of love really even count as love?
This is what many people wondered about in private.
Four years of university passed like clockwork.
The night before graduation, the class got together for a communal meal, and the atmosphere was loud and raucous.
Rong Si had been pulled aside by someone and had only let Li Erqin out of sight for merely a few minutes. However, when he turned around again, he saw that Li Erqin was sitting in her seat, wiping tears that were coming down her face.
Before this moment, not one person in school, not even the dorm mates who were with Rong Si morning and night, had ever seen any kind of atypical expression from Rong Si. In this instance though, everyone saw Rong Si, who had been faintly smiling just a second before, suddenly turn color, cast aside the people he was talking with and run to Li Erqin’s side. He used his body to shield her from everybody’s view and protected her within a small space.
No one dared approach them.
This was because of the vibe Rong Si was emanating.
Of course, no one could hear what Rong Si was saying to Li Erqin, and it was even further impossible to see their expressions.
Rong Si was so worried that he wiped Li Erqin’s tears for her as he gently asked, “What is it?”
Li Erqin sniffled. “Nothing.”
Rong Si was even more anxious. “What happened?”
“Absolutely nothing.”
Rong Si frowned and silently looked at Li Erqin.
Behind them, the entire class was staring blankly at them, but Rong Si ignored them all.
Luckily, Rong Si quickly sniffed out the root cause.
Those with a low alcohol tolerance cannot help but reek of alcohol after just a tiny drop.
Rong Si naturally smelled it and furrowed his brows. “How much have you had?”
Li Erqin held out one finger.
Rong Si turned around and saw the now empty burgundy wine glass.
His brows knitted even tighter as he asked, “Red or white?”
“White,” came the honest reply.
Rong Si stood up and turned around.
All the classmates behind them were staring at him, and finally someone explained, “It was just one glass. I didn’t know she would be such a lightweight…”
Rong Si’s lips pulled into a smile, but it wasn’t a very natural one. “Erlan doesn’t really drink.”
“I’m sor….”
Rong Si sorted out his expression and put back on his Mr. Nice Guy face. “Don’t worry about it. It’s not your fault.” He smiled at the guy and then said to everyone else, “I’m going to send Li Erqin home. You guys have fun!”
“Where’s the fun if you two leave?”
Rong Si pointed at a still-crying Li Erqin. “It’s probably not fun if she keeps on crying like this, right?”
“Alright, well send her home and then you come back, ok?”
Rong Si smiled but did not say anything.
White wine is like this, quick to get to the head and with big effects later. By the time Rong Si had carried Li Erqin out of the bar, Li Erqin’s cries had progressed to full out sobs.
The male student who had poured Li Erqin a glass for fun had thought nothing of it. Li Erqin was the ice queen who almost seemed to emit frost. She had suddenly displayed such a completely different side.
They were all standing at the side of the road waiting for a taxi.
Rong Si’s forehead was already covered with a light sheen of sweat.
The student who had accompanied Rong Si looked at him and tried to console him with, “You know, when people drink, some people just turn into criers when they get drunk.”
Rong Si’s face showed no expression.
The other boy shut his mouth.
At long last, a taxi arrived, and Rong Si helped Li Erqin in. The other student had originally wanted to help support her inside, but whether it was by coincidence or on purpose, Rong Si had lightly maneuvered Li Erqin such that the student could not grab even the hem of Li Erqin’s clothes.
(Minodayz: RS, just shield that girl of yours!!! Too sweet!)
He didn’t know whether to laugh or cry, and he slapped Rong Si on the shoulder. “I think this counts as crossing the line to being overprotective, mate! Be careful or else Li Erqin won’t be able to stand it!”
Rong Si smiled faintly and said nothing.
There was another girl who had accompanied them, and she jeered at the other guy. “Do you know why you’re still single?”
“What?”
She spread out her hand. “It’s because you’re obtuse.”
While the two of them were bickering, they saw the taxi with Rong Si and Li Erqin depart.
The girl stared in the direction of the taxi for a while in a daze. Then she muttered to herself, “Rong Si is a bit too worked up.”
“What?” said the other boy.
“I used to think that Rong Si was probably the kind of person who didn’t really care about anything.”
“And that’s not the case?”
“Nope.” The girl took a deep breath. The summer night was cool around them. “We’ve all asked Li Erqin before. Dating such an outstanding guy, was she really not afraid that he’d be snatched away by someone?”
“And then?”
The girl shrugged. “Li Erqin countered us with another question.”
“What question?”
“Why?”
“Huh?”
“Li Erqin asked us back, ‘Why?’”
The boy couldn’t help but laugh.
The girl laughed along too. “Now I think I understand a little.”
Li Erqin sat with Rong Si in the taxi.
She had exhausted herself with all the crying and could do nothing more but hold on tight to Rong Si’s neck, her eyes settled near the skin behind his ears.
Her cries rendered Rong Si rather aggrieved.
He knew it was the effects of the alcohol, but still he was rather overwrought with concern. In a gentle voice he asked, “What’s the matter?”
Li Erqin had cried until her voice was rough, yet softly she called out his name, “Rong Si…”
“I’m here.”
“My tummy isn’t feeling too good….”
Rong Si sighed. “Why did you drink so fast?”
Li Erqin, without preamble, snorted.
Rong Si couldn’t resist laughing.
Then he heard her say, “My throat doesn’t feel too good either.”
“Bear with it just a little longer. I’ll buy you some water when we alight.”
“I can’t bear it any longer…”
Li Erqin’s voice seemed to be infused with the sweet taste of wine. Rong Si was so heated by that voice that his throat began to itch. The cab driver kept glancing at them through the rearview mirror with an inquisitive gaze.
He helplessly smiled bitterly and said softly, “You aren’t the only one who can’t take it anymore.”
Li Erqin pouted and began to whisper, “My head also hurts.”
Rong Si reached out with his hand and gently kneaded her temples. “Does it feel a little better?”
Li Erqin burrowed herself even deeper into his neck.
Rong Si amusedly patted her back and just hugged her so that she pressed into his neck.
Everything became silent for a moment.
He suddenly found that his neck was wet.
“What’s wrong?”
Li Erqin soundlessly cried. Only after a long moment had passed did she weakly say, “I’m afraid.”
“What are you afraid of?”
“I’m afraid you’ll leave me.”
Rong Si silently laughed. She was drunk, ah.
He couldn’t help but secretly kiss her, while he whispered into her ear at the same time, “I won’t.”
Li Erqin crawled out of his embrace and stared at him with her two misty eyes. “Really?”
“Really.”
“For a lifetime?”
“If you want to reserve my next lifetime too, that’s fine.”
“Then can I reserve it?”
(Minodayz : can’t one of us have a turn LEQ??? ╮(‵▽′)╭)
Rong Si smiled.
Li Erqin mulled over it for a moment, but because she was drunk, her brain was dizzy. In any case, she felt something was up.
Rong Si looked at her with an indescribable expression.
Li Erqin finally thought of what she wanted to say, and her tears gushed out again. “They all say that a couple in this lifetime becomes siblings in the next lifetime!”
Rong Si was rendered speechless.
(Minodayz : me too – I’ve not heard of that before!!! 「(°ヘ°)
Chapter 60 (Epilogue/Short Story 1)
Within the first week of A University starting, it seemed that almost all the female students, from fourth year seniors to first year freshmen, had one name on their lips.
Rong Si.
Guess there will always be some people who are born to be busier than others.
Li Erqin was leisurely leaning on the side of the desk that was under the bunk bed in the hostel, her left hand tapping a new textbook.
She had not been able to catch even a glimpse of Rong Si since Uni had begun, and while she had been missing him, at the same time, she was also feeling rather disgruntled.
What? Just when they had started, he was already helping to *do some dubbing? And only just two weeks ago he was even matched up with some girl.
(TN: this is literally what the chinese says, and it is unclear if he decided to do dubbing when he started Uni or if there is some other meaning to this that we don’t know!)
The dorm room doors opened, and a new dorm mate sauntered in carrying some snacks and milk tea that she had bought from the roadside stalls. Upon her entry, she was filled with elation as she made jolly banter. “Everyone guess who I just happened to see on the main road!”
“WHO?”
“It was Rong Si!”
Li Erqin instinctively turned and looked over.
Xue Er directed a ‘cheers’/‘bottoms up’ gesture towards Li Erqin. “Wow, with just the mention of Rong Si, even our Deity Li Erqin would seem to have her heart stirred.”
Li Erqin had nothing to conceal about her liking for Rong Si so she stated honestly, “I’ve liked him for a long time already.”
Xue Er seemed to come to an understanding, and patting her shoulder, she sat down beside her. “I heard that you were high school classmates?”
Li Erqin nodded.
“Did you know him then?”
“Yes.”
Xue Er’s interest was suddenly piqued. “Then do you have any gossip to share? Such as if he has a girlfriend?”
“Yes, he does.”
Someone else in the dorm room interrupted and asked, “He has a girlfriend? Who?”
Li Erqin’s face was all composed. “Me.”
(Minodayz : LOL , just tell them gorgeous!!! In your face!)
At the same time, inside a male dorm room, Rong Si had just returned and was finally able to sit down after being tied up for the better part of the day. He took out his phone ready to send Li Erqin a text message.
Suddenly a male student rushed in. “Hey, hey, hey! Rong Si!”
Rong Si turned.
“Some of my friends have begged me to ask you. Are you from the same hometown as Li Erqin from our class?”
Rong Si nodded.
“Let me tell you…”
“She is my girlfriend.”
The male student was stunned. “HUH?”
“Li Erqin is my girlfriend,” said Rong Si impassively. “Is there something else you wanted to say?”
“No….Nothing more.”
(Minodayz: OMG – RS takes the cake! It’s like let’s send a flare up declaring this!)
Rong Si lowered his head to continue drafting his text, but after typing for some time, he deleted every word he had entered and chose instead to directly give her a call.
Li Erqin was currently surrounded by silence, as her dorm mates were staring at her with baffled and stunned looks.
When her phone rang, she glanced at her phone and accepted the call. “Finished with all your stuff?”
“Yup.”
“Tired?”
“Tired.”
“Hungry?”
“Hungry.”
“Want to eat?”
“I’ll go fetch you.”
“OK.”
With that, their “old, married couple” dialogue had concluded.
(Minodayz: their monosyllabic chatter! LOL class act!)
“Was that a call from Rong Si?”
Finally someone spoke up to ask.
“Yes.”
“Really?”
Li Erqin smiled.
This was the first time that Li Erqin and Rong Si went public with their relationship at Uni, and afterwards, they once again became known by all their classmates as the model couple that was a ‘match made in heaven’.
It was just that no matter how good-natured most people were about it, there would always be those who like to break a couple apart and pursue one or the other. After all, the neighbouring Art and Drama institute had some girls who were rather innocent and naive and then some who were not so innocent or naive and who seemed to have nothing better to do than to create trouble.
However, what no one could have guessed was that Li Erqin would be the one who was being pursued by someone.
After more than half of the semester had passed, Rong Si was still just as busy. Whether it concerned student council, faculty or classmates, it was as if he had three heads and six arms. As long as someone had a request, he would agree to it.
(Minodayz :Ahhh RS – you just need to learn to say NO!!! Seriously….)
Therefore, it was very natural that an idle Li Erqin would have a lot of alone time.
When Rong Si caught wind of the news, it was after it had widely spread to most of the people in the university. After he had finished with his tasks for that afternoon, he immediately made a call to Li Erqin without waiting for his break.
No one answered.
Rong Si propped his elbows on his knees and drank a mouthful of water from a bottle that he had lifted from the table. He noticed that recently, he often could not reach Li Erqin on the phone. He faced the dull ceiling and spaced out for a while, before putting his water bottle down to send a message to her.
His roommate suddenly spoke. “Are you looking for Li Erqin?”
Rong Si raised his head. After wearing himself out with overwork, his eyes did not have any vigor to them. They looked clouded over. “Yeah.”
“That…” His roommate hesitated. “There’s something that I don’t know if I should tell you or not.”
“What?”
“It’s all over the school that you and Li Erqin broke up,” his roommate answered. “That’s why you’ve been working as if your life’s depended on it these days.”
Rong Si was caught off guard.
“You… really broke up?” his roommate probed.
Rong Si thought about it and answered, “Nope.”
Originally, his roommate was lying in bed. As soon as he heard this, he immediately climbed out of it. “Then lately, do you feel as if you’ve been seeing green (aka, the green eyed monster) a lot?”
Rong Si’s eyebrows furrowed.
When Rong Si found Li Erqin with the aid of many kind-hearted individuals, she was taking a breather in the art classroom at the School of Design. An immaculate guy sat facing the sunlight, leaning against the wall and helping her to block most of the direct sunlight. He was also sleeping.
An easel was erected not far away from the both of them. Fragments of sunlight filtered through the seams of the blackout curtains, its rays clinging onto the half-painted canvas.
Bright white light juxtaposed against grey skies and distant mountains.
Actually, the scene was rather beautiful.
Rong Si coughed.
The guy leaning against the side of the window woke up first, and he squinted his eyes at Rong Si before chuckling slightly.
Rong Si did not spare him a glance. He walked straight in front of Li Erqin and patted her shoulder.
Li Erqin moved for a bit, before waking up. As soon as she saw Rong Si, she immediately smiled. “How did you know I was here?”
Rong Si did not answer. He pointed at the phone that she had placed on the table. “No one answered when I called your phone.”
Li Erqin shot him an apologetic look. “I didn’t notice it.”
Rong Si frowned without saying a word.
(Minodayz : ooooo greenie RS is surfacing! Hee hee hee!!!)
He was unhappy.
This was the first message she read from Rong Si’s expression. As she was perceptive, she immediately introduced the person beside her to Rong Si so that they would be acquainted with each other. “This is…”
“I’m hungry,” Rong Si interrupted her.
Perplexed, Li Erqin blinked. Why didn’t he let her explain herself?
“What do you want to eat?” Rong Si asked again.
“He…”
Rong Si stared at her quietly.
Li Erqin held her tongue obediently and then trailed after Rong Si meekly as they headed out. As she secretly turned around and waved at the guy to say goodbye, the sudden phrase “keep up” from Rong Si shocked her into withdrawing her hand.
She followed Rong Si to the supermarket. On the way, she pondered a question earnestly — don’t tell me that Rong Si was jealous?
Even Rong Si was capable of feeling jealous?
They were in a quiet stadium.
Rong Si rested against the railing, a bottle of water that was exuding cold air in his hand.
By his side, Li Erqin held a cup of oden with both her hands.
No one spoke.
“Li Erqin.” After a long time, Rong Si suddenly opened his mouth.
Li Erqin turned around with a large meatball stuffed in her mouth. A side of her face was bulging from the meatball, as if it was about to burst. Her expression was quite comical. “Yeah?”
“Who was that guy?”
Li Erqin laughed. In the end, he still could not restrain himself from asking.
“My brother.”
“Your brother?”
“My uncle’s son. He’s just a few months younger than I am. I just found out a while ago that he was also studying in this university.”
Rong Si touched his nose.
Li Erqin swallowed her meatball. With an evil glint, her eyes drifted up and down Rong Si on purpose. “Were you jealous?”
“Yep.”
His reply was too forthright, too quick. Instead, Li Erqin was stunned. “You also know how to feel jealous?”
Rong Si answered her question with his own. “Why not?”
Li Erqin grumbled, “I still haven’t felt any jealousy yet.”
Rong Si smiled, imitating her tone. “You also know how to feel jealous?”
(Minodayz : these 2 – I’m speechless!!! Lol but love it!!!)
“Why not?” She placed the cup that contained the oden down and poked at Rong Si’s shoulder. “That vice president of our university. Si something.”
“Yang Zhensi.”
Li Erqin was furious. “I won’t allow you to mention her name in such a gentle manner.” Speaking of names, sadness tinged her anger. “Do you think the name Li Erqin sounds too unpleasant?”
Rong Si shook his head.
“I don’t think it’s that bad either. Why does everyone have to make fun of it?”
Rong Si caressed her head. He could not contain his smile when he saw her picking the oden up and continue eating.
Someone had forgotten what she originally wanted to say again. He thought that she would really feel jealous, but it seemed that it was merely on a whim. But it did not matter to him if she was simple-minded. As long as he was attentive enough, he would be able to complement her.
(Minodayz : YUP RS, you got it!!!! Not so sweet calling that SI character!!!)
＊＊＊
In many people’s eyes, some couples were together because they were a good match, like Rong Si and Li Erqin. And some couples were together out of habit, like Rong Si and Li Erqin.
There were very few people who thought that Rong Si and Li Erqin were together because of genuine love and affection. It could be that the two of them looked like their brains were 90% occupied with reason and logic, almost as if emotions were purely ornamental and an accessory. The two of them just seemed so rational that it was easy for others to come away with the misconception that they had no emotions. Their relationship did not have the slightest ripple of disturbance and was so serene that it almost did not seem like a relationship between a man and a woman. It was unclear if the two of them simply had full confidence in the other or if they just didn’t care enough, but they had never had an argument before.
Does this kind of love really even count as love?
This is what many people wondered about in private.
Four years of university passed like clockwork.
The night before graduation, the class got together for a communal meal, and the atmosphere was loud and raucous.
Rong Si had been pulled aside by someone and had only let Li Erqin out of sight for merely a few minutes. However, when he turned around again, he saw that Li Erqin was sitting in her seat, wiping tears that were coming down her face.
Before this moment, not one person in school, not even the dorm mates who were with Rong Si morning and night, had ever seen any kind of atypical expression from Rong Si. In this instance though, everyone saw Rong Si, who had been faintly smiling just a second before, suddenly turn color, cast aside the people he was talking with and run to Li Erqin’s side. He used his body to shield her from everybody’s view and protected her within a small space.
No one dared approach them.
This was because of the vibe Rong Si was emanating.
Of course, no one could hear what Rong Si was saying to Li Erqin, and it was even further impossible to see their expressions.
Rong Si was so worried that he wiped Li Erqin’s tears for her as he gently asked, “What is it?”
Li Erqin sniffled. “Nothing.”
Rong Si was even more anxious. “What happened?”
“Absolutely nothing.”
Rong Si frowned and silently looked at Li Erqin.
Behind them, the entire class was staring blankly at them, but Rong Si ignored them all.
Luckily, Rong Si quickly sniffed out the root cause.
Those with a low alcohol tolerance cannot help but reek of alcohol after just a tiny drop.
Rong Si naturally smelled it and furrowed his brows. “How much have you had?”
Li Erqin held out one finger.
Rong Si turned around and saw the now empty burgundy wine glass.
His brows knitted even tighter as he asked, “Red or white?”
“White,” came the honest reply.
Rong Si stood up and turned around.
All the classmates behind them were staring at him, and finally someone explained, “It was just one glass. I didn’t know she would be such a lightweight…”
Rong Si’s lips pulled into a smile, but it wasn’t a very natural one. “Erlan doesn’t really drink.”
“I’m sor….”
Rong Si sorted out his expression and put back on his Mr. Nice Guy face. “Don’t worry about it. It’s not your fault.” He smiled at the guy and then said to everyone else, “I’m going to send Li Erqin home. You guys have fun!”
“Where’s the fun if you two leave?”
Rong Si pointed at a still-crying Li Erqin. “It’s probably not fun if she keeps on crying like this, right?”
“Alright, well send her home and then you come back, ok?”
Rong Si smiled but did not say anything.
White wine is like this, quick to get to the head and with big effects later. By the time Rong Si had carried Li Erqin out of the bar, Li Erqin’s cries had progressed to full out sobs.
The male student who had poured Li Erqin a glass for fun had thought nothing of it. Li Erqin was the ice queen who almost seemed to emit frost. She had suddenly displayed such a completely different side.
They were all standing at the side of the road waiting for a taxi.
Rong Si’s forehead was already covered with a light sheen of sweat.
The student who had accompanied Rong Si looked at him and tried to console him with, “You know, when people drink, some people just turn into criers when they get drunk.”
Rong Si’s face showed no expression.
The other boy shut his mouth.
At long last, a taxi arrived, and Rong Si helped Li Erqin in. The other student had originally wanted to help support her inside, but whether it was by coincidence or on purpose, Rong Si had lightly maneuvered Li Erqin such that the student could not grab even the hem of Li Erqin’s clothes.
(Minodayz: RS, just shield that girl of yours!!! Too sweet!)
He didn’t know whether to laugh or cry, and he slapped Rong Si on the shoulder. “I think this counts as crossing the line to being overprotective, mate! Be careful or else Li Erqin won’t be able to stand it!”
Rong Si smiled faintly and said nothing.
There was another girl who had accompanied them, and she jeered at the other guy. “Do you know why you’re still single?”
“What?”
She spread out her hand. “It’s because you’re obtuse.”
While the two of them were bickering, they saw the taxi with Rong Si and Li Erqin depart.
The girl stared in the direction of the taxi for a while in a daze. Then she muttered to herself, “Rong Si is a bit too worked up.”
“What?” said the other boy.
“I used to think that Rong Si was probably the kind of person who didn’t really care about anything.”
“And that’s not the case?”
“Nope.” The girl took a deep breath. The summer night was cool around them. “We’ve all asked Li Erqin before. Dating such an outstanding guy, was she really not afraid that he’d be snatched away by someone?”
“And then?”
The girl shrugged. “Li Erqin countered us with another question.”
“What question?”
“Why?”
“Huh?”
“Li Erqin asked us back, ‘Why?’”
The boy couldn’t help but laugh.
The girl laughed along too. “Now I think I understand a little.”
Li Erqin sat with Rong Si in the taxi.
She had exhausted herself with all the crying and could do nothing more but hold on tight to Rong Si’s neck, her eyes settled near the skin behind his ears.
Her cries rendered Rong Si rather aggrieved.
He knew it was the effects of the alcohol, but still he was rather overwrought with concern. In a gentle voice he asked, “What’s the matter?”
Li Erqin had cried until her voice was rough, yet softly she called out his name, “Rong Si…”
“I’m here.”
“My tummy isn’t feeling too good….”
Rong Si sighed. “Why did you drink so fast?”
Li Erqin, without preamble, snorted.
Rong Si couldn’t resist laughing.
Then he heard her say, “My throat doesn’t feel too good either.”
“Bear with it just a little longer. I’ll buy you some water when we alight.”
“I can’t bear it any longer…”
Li Erqin’s voice seemed to be infused with the sweet taste of wine. Rong Si was so heated by that voice that his throat began to itch. The cab driver kept glancing at them through the rearview mirror with an inquisitive gaze.
He helplessly smiled bitterly and said softly, “You aren’t the only one who can’t take it anymore.”
Li Erqin pouted and began to whisper, “My head also hurts.”
Rong Si reached out with his hand and gently kneaded her temples. “Does it feel a little better?”
Li Erqin burrowed herself even deeper into his neck.
Rong Si amusedly patted her back and just hugged her so that she pressed into his neck.
Everything became silent for a moment.
He suddenly found that his neck was wet.
“What’s wrong?”
Li Erqin soundlessly cried. Only after a long moment had passed did she weakly say, “I’m afraid.”
“What are you afraid of?”
“I’m afraid you’ll leave me.”
Rong Si silently laughed. She was drunk, ah.
He couldn’t help but secretly kiss her, while he whispered into her ear at the same time, “I won’t.”
Li Erqin crawled out of his embrace and stared at him with her two misty eyes. “Really?”
“Really.”
“For a lifetime?”
“If you want to reserve my next lifetime too, that’s fine.”
“Then can I reserve it?”
(Minodayz : can’t one of us have a turn LEQ??? ╮(‵▽′)╭)
Rong Si smiled.
Li Erqin mulled over it for a moment, but because she was drunk, her brain was dizzy. In any case, she felt something was up.
Rong Si looked at her with an indescribable expression.
Li Erqin finally thought of what she wanted to say, and her tears gushed out again. “They all say that a couple in this lifetime becomes siblings in the next lifetime!”
Rong Si was rendered speechless.
(Minodayz : me too – I’ve not heard of that before!!! 「(°ヘ°)
