Chapter 83

Chapter 83

Jiang Baichuan stayed overnight in the guest bedroom next door.

But when he woke up at seven the next morning and opened the door to Yun Li’s room, he found that Yun Li was already gone.

How could someone with a hangover possibly get up that early?

A seed of suspicion took root in his heart, but Jiang Baichuan did not pursue it.

Yun Li needed time.

And he needed to give Yun Li time.

But after that day, Yun Li seemed to have forgotten that entire memory. When she saw him, she looked at him as if he were a stranger.

After enduring it for several days, Jiang Baichuan had no choice but to come asking for help.

Xia Wanzhi opened the door and looked at Jiang Baichuan, who had an antique in his left hand and fruit in his right. Helplessly, she pointed across the hall. “Go sit at Jealous King Xie’s place. If I let another man into my home, he’ll lose it.”

Jiang Baichuan: “…”

It felt as if someone had stabbed him hard in the heart.

“Why don’t you two just move in together already?” Jiang Baichuan suggested with utmost sincerity.

Xia Wanzhi opened the door. As it happened, Xie Qiyan inside heard this clearly and immediately chimed in, “That’s a good idea. Help me ask my girlfriend if she’s willing.”

Jiang Baichuan couldn’t be bothered with him.

Xia Wanzhi cleared her throat and laughed awkwardly, changing the subject. “You could’ve just come. Why bring such expensive gifts?”

“Compared to Yun Li, they’re nothing,” Jiang Baichuan said, getting straight to the point.

“The Jiang family isn’t short on money. No need to feel bad for him.” Xie Qiyan came over to take the things from him and, in a rare show of humanity, invited him in.

As if she had already known he would come to her, Xia Wanzhi showed not the slightest surprise. Like the hostess of the house, she welcomed him in and had him sit, then handed Jiang Baichuan a cup of tea. She also said bluntly, “I don’t know what happened between you two that night, but Yun Li told me that if you came looking for me, I should tell you directly not to look for her again.”

Jiang Baichuan had heard the same words from Yun Li. His expression tightened slightly, and he sighed inwardly that the video recording from that night had been for nothing.

“I came to ask you a question.” Asking over WeChat didn’t feel sincere enough, so he had come in person.

If he asked Yun Li, Yun Li would lie.

But if he asked Xia Wanzhi, perhaps he would get the answer he wanted.

Xia Wanzhi looked puzzled. “Go ahead. I’ll tell you everything I know, without-”

“Does Yun Li like me too?”

“…holding anything back.” The air seemed to freeze for a few seconds. After Xia Wanzhi weakly finished the last few words, her heart gave two anxious thumps.

How was she supposed to answer that?

He had probably asked the wrong person.

The two sat facing each other. Jiang Baichuan looked straight at her with urgent eyes, while Xia Wanzhi still seemed hesitant.

With a clack, Xie Qiyan took out the antique Jiang Baichuan had brought and set it on the coffee table, making a sound. He did not look at Jiang Baichuan, but there was warning in his tone. “Is President Jiang interrogating my girlfriend?”

Jiang Baichuan pinched the bridge of his nose. “Sorry, I…”

“I don’t know. You should ask her that question,” Xia Wanzhi said honestly.

Jiang Baichuan’s heart sank.

“But she doesn’t like Liang Jing,” Xia Wanzhi continued. “I think you should know these things, so unless you break this deadlock, your question will never have an answer.”

That night, when she had begged him to help save Yun Li, she had hoped he could pull Yun Li out of her misery.

But it was hard.

She knew it was hard.

Yun Li knew it too.

That was why Yun Li had given up long ago.

But Xia Wanzhi did not want to watch Yun Li give up just like that.

She knew Jiang Baichuan was the only person who could break the deadlock.

–

In the blink of an eye, National Day arrived. Autumn had gradually deepened, and the nights carried a faint chill. Xia Wanzhi had set up an easel before the floor-to-ceiling window at home. She stood there completely still, staring at a Polaroid photo in deep thought.

Around her were three other easels, each holding a painting that looked exactly the same.

But through a painter’s eyes, the facial features of the people in these paintings were not entirely identical.

Bottles and jars of paint were scattered across the floor. Her hair was tied high, a palette in her left hand and a brush in her right. After comparing the photo to the other paintings, she added two more strokes to the new piece.

It was a tedious process.

One wrong stroke, and she would have to start over.

This was the fourth painting.

It depicted the thirty-year-old Madam Yao Qin she had imagined and painted based on the comparisons among the previous three paintings.

There was not a huge difference between twenty-seven and thirty, but Xia Wanzhi kept feeling that something was off.

When the feeling was off, she couldn’t bring herself to make the next stroke. She could only stop for the moment.

There was movement at the door. Xia Wanzhi stepped back and turned to look.

She knew it was Xie Qiyan coming over.

Xie Qiyan came in with a cup of heated milk and set it on the table. Then he walked straight up to Xia Wanzhi and untied the apron she was wearing, making no attempt to hide the distress in his eyes. “It’s late.”

Xia Wanzhi blinked. “I was just about to call it a day.”

As soon as she finished speaking, Xie Qiyan pulled her into his arms.

She struggled a little. “Careful of the paint. It’ll stain your clothes.”

Xie Qiyan did not let go. His voice was low. “Then let them get stained.”

“Don’t. Those clothes cost tens of thousands.” Xia Wanzhi laughed and teased him, bumping her head lightly against his chest as she ordered, “Hurry up and let go. Let me put these things down, then you can hug me.”

Xie Qiyan released her and took the palette and brush from her hands, placing them aside. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of the four almost identical paintings, and his body involuntarily tensed.

Xia Wanzhi tilted her head, then took the initiative to walk up to him and wrap both arms around his waist. Smiling, she lifted her face to look at him. “Wait a little longer. There aren’t any obvious differences yet, but I’ll be able to paint them soon.”

Xie Qiyan shook his head. That was not what he was thinking about.

“Don’t force yourself. Even if you can’t paint it, I’ll accept that.” Lowering his head until his forehead touched Xia Wanzhi’s, his heart ached for her. “I just don’t want you to wear yourself out.”

“The words ‘force myself’ don’t exist in Xia Wanzhi’s dictionary. When it comes to painting, I can hit a bottleneck, but no one can say I can’t do it.” Xia Wanzhi shook her head. The tip of her nose brushed lightly against his, so she raised her chin slightly and kissed his lips.

Xie Qiyan’s breathing deepened. He closed his eyes, his voice tender and lingering. “Okay.”

Outside the window, countless homes glowed with light. They held each other, standing amid the four paintings.

In the paintings, Yao Qin smiled gently, as if she were watching over them with tender eyes.