Chapter 170: Promised this marriage

Xie Qingcheng took a leave of absence and wanted to rest at home for two days.

He'd been lying on his bed almost the entire time, not moving a muscle, the monitoring data on his cell phone set to alert him if the thresholds exceeded safe limits for an extended period of time.

But the alarm never went off - He Yu didn't want to disappoint Xie Qingcheng, so he tried to restrain himself, thought of everything, and didn't let himself get sick.

The next afternoon, Xie Qingcheng woke up from a fuzzy, light sleep and realized that there was a man sitting in front of him.

Thinking it was Li Miaoqing, he told her, "Auntie Li, you go about your business, I'm fine ......."

"Brother."

A light call full of sadness and worry brought Xie Qingcheng back to his senses, and he fixed his eyes to see that the person sitting beside his bed was not Li Miaoqing, but Xie Xue.

"......"

He and Xie Xue hadn't gotten along for a long time, and ever since Xie Xue's affair with Wei Dongheng became public, Xie Qingcheng hadn't been very kind to his sister. Xie Xue is still a bit scared to face him, but because he is obviously sick, she can't help but be concerned.

Multiple emotions were intertwined on her face, making her expression look even a little comical.

Xie Qingcheng : "...... What are you doing back here? No class this afternoon?"

"Auntie Lai said you weren't feeling well, so I took the day off to accompany you." Xie Xue Fu Xie Qingcheng sat up and took a duck down pillow for him to lean against.

Xie Qingcheng had already changed into clean clothes. There were no lights in the room, and the light was dim, so Xie Xue couldn't see the hickey on Xie Qingcheng's skin.

She held his hand worriedly, whispering softly and slowly: "Brother, how are you, did you go to the hospital?"

Xie Qingcheng was already in a bad mood, and after examining her for a moment, he felt even worse, so he turned his face away without a word.

Xie Xue realized the interest and stopped asking.

She sat with Xie Qingcheng for a while, then suddenly thought of something and said, "Brother, wait a little."

The little girl went to the dining room table and pounded something, and a few moments later she went and returned, and it turned out that she had opened a can of yellow peaches.

"You see, when I was unwell as a child, you coaxed me with this kind of canned food, so that I would obediently take my medicine, and then I would have yellow peach candy water to eat." Xie Xue scooped a spoonful and handed the fruit that was sweet to the heart at first sight to Xie Qingcheng, "I was coaxed by you, and for a while I thought that the canned yellow peaches were medicine from the hospital, and I wondered what kind of medicine was so tasty, and it was so happy to be able to eat this kind of medicine when I was sick."

Xie Qingcheng took the spoon and ate two bites without expression.

Then finally spoke, "That's because you weren't raised smart and gullible."

Xie Xue : "......"

"So is growing up."

Xie Xue knew that he was talking about Wei Dongheng again and could not help but feel a little sad.

Xie Qingcheng slowly finished the canned yellow peaches, and Xie Xue didn't say another word in the process.

He put the empty glass jar aside, more or less regained some strength, and it was then that he noticed that Xie Xue carried home those things, there are bird's nest ginseng propolis cordyceps tianpi fengduo - in a word, all of these supplements eaten either death or disability.

It's just too much, the person who gave the gift looks like he has no medical common sense at all, he just caught an opportunity to curry favor, and was close to bringing the entire Medicinal Cuisine National Medical Center to show his sincerity.

Xie Qingcheng was silent for a moment, "Wei Dongheng brought you here?"

Xie Xue hesitated, but nodded.

Xie Qingcheng: "Where is he?"

"He dropped me off here and left, he was afraid you'd see him angry ......"

Xie Qingcheng gave an icy laugh, "That little white hair still has a time to be afraid?"

Xie Xue eyes showed some sadness, "Brother, don t be like this ...... I know that you are for my good. You are worried that I will be deceived, you are afraid that he will bully me, afraid that he will not learn. I know that since I was a child, I was brought up, afraid that I bumped into, always hope that I can live a safe and smooth. That's why you're so wary of him."

Xie Qingcheng : "......"

Xie Xue : "I know all about it."

"But ...... but there are times when you can't trust me a little bit too?" Xie Xue whispered.

Maybe it is because Xie Qingcheng is sick and does not have much strength to argue with her, or maybe it is because He Yu's matter has broken him too much, Xie Qingcheng's inner depths of heart, but also finally a little shaken, thinking that the matter of feelings sometimes even the parties involved can not figure out, let alone the outsiders.

Anyway, this time, Xie Qingcheng leaned back on the pillow with a pale face, but did not speak.

Xie Xue saw the situation, gathered enough courage to say down, "Brother, I told you before, I have been dating Wei Dongheng for more than a year, perhaps in the eyes of outsiders, this one year is not a long time, but the two of us know clearly, every day we don't see each other, we miss each other, when he was in the northwest, he wrote me a lot of letters, and you also know that he was originally a person who didn't like writing much ......"

Xie Qingcheng cold face.

It looked like he was eager to comment on Wei Dongheng's uneducated behavior.

Xie Xue pulled his hand and said, "Wei Dongheng This person, from childhood to adulthood has not let his parents save his heart, he skipped school, blowing up the street, pranks ...... these I know, I used to hate him, because he always bullied me, I felt that his heart of heart was particularly bad at that time. Until high school one year at Christmas time, I came home from school, in the alley to see him wandering around - I was very afraid at that time, worried that he saw me, and will pull out my braid, so I hid. Brother, do you know what I saw?"

"......"

"I saw him come out from the convenience store, holding a bunch of snacks and drinks in his hands, there are many homeless people lying on both sides of that alley, he took advantage of their sleep, quietly put those things beside them, and then rode on the car and quickly ran away, probably because he this person thinks it's not cool to do a good deed, for fear of being found out by his group of little brothers laughed at him, he rode the bike especially fast, just like escaping. like, as a result, at the mouth of the alley wheel a skid, he even people with the car fell down to the side of the road."

Xie Xue was caught up in the memories and couldn't help but smile.

"He stumbled up on the ice, looked nervously left and right, smoothed out his hair, and pretended that nothing had happened as he straddled the bike again and rode off crookedly."

"......"

"That's when I thought that maybe he wasn't as bad as people were saying."

Xie Xue saw that Xie Qingcheng was willing to listen to her, so she slowly told him all the things that she had been suppressing in her heart.

"Brother, when I was a child you taught me to look at people with my own eyes and not to trust other people's judgment completely. I have watched Wei Dongheng for more than ten years, he is not an obedient and understanding person, but I am able to determine that he is kind and responsible at heart. During these more than ten years, I have seen him more than once sending stray kittens and puppies to pet rescue stations, giving food and drink to beggars, and you know what ...... he would even look at a wildflower blooming by the side of the road for half a day and then giggle. He has a heart that can find the humble and the beautiful." Xie Xue said, "It's just that he never wanted anyone to know."

Xie Qingcheng raised his eyebrows, "Why doesn't he want anyone to know?"

"Because everyone scolded him, satirized him, and compared him to He Yu, he resisted in his heart, and became more and more reluctant to be like He Yu, a nobleman praised by everyone. He has a lot of self-esteem in his bones, which is similar to He Yu." Xie Xue said, "He has a lot of self-esteem in his bones, which is similar to He Yu. Xie Xue said, "I and he after dating, I asked him, why never let others see only his bad side, but to hide his goodness and softness, he face half a day refused to say, and then could not help me keep asking, and then yelled in a bad temper, who wants to be the same as He Yu."

"He says Wei Dongheng is Wei Dongheng, why should it be another He Yu, and that it is only right for a child to be good at everything and polite and discreet like He Yu? He doesn't want to."

"In fact, I have observed both of them, and I know that Wei Dongheng's nature is actually much simpler than He Yu's. He writes badness on his face, but inside he is very soft."

Xie Qingcheng : "......"

"Brother, I really like Wei Dongheng."

Xie Qingcheng seemed to look weary, "How much do you like it?"

Xie Xue thought for a moment and said, "It's irreplaceable."

Xie Qingcheng did not expect her to say such an answer, his heart violently trembled and he opened his eyes to look at her.

The same thing He Yu said to himself - I love you, I want to be with you every second, you can't be replaced by anyone or anything.

Xie Xue said, "Brother, I've liked him for ten years. I know that I'll never even like another person as much as I like him again."

Xie Qingcheng suddenly turned his face away.

"I have a diary with a lot of things from the past that I think you'd understand him better if you read it ......"

"That's your privacy, I'm not going to look."

"......"

Xie Xue Then she was silent for a while, and a little afraid to speak, stumbling, and finally she said, "Then forget it, brother, if you really don't want to talk about it, I won't talk about it, and I'll tell you stories and jokes to cheer you up, okay?"

She grabbed his hand and shook it once, sitting very slightly uncomfortably in a crouch on the edge of the bed, looking up at him, "It's been a long time since we've had a proper conversation. Brother, are you really still mad at me?"

Xie Qingcheng was quiet for a while and finally said, "I'm not angry with you, I just blame you for doing things too impulsively."

"What?"

Xie Qingcheng said, "You are a girl, you have to contact him, you should also learn to protect yourselves, but you ......"

He didn't go on, but Xie Xue stiffened for a moment, understood, and suddenly her face turned red.

Xie Qingcheng coughed and hated it, "Say you, do you look like you're acting like you're acting like you're acting like you're acting like you're acting like you're acting like you're acting like a man?"

Xie Xue know themselves and big brother of this old-fashioned premarital sex is a waste of time, before Li Ruoqiu also complained with her, said Xie Qingcheng and her love, not even the initiative to kiss, to talk about a relationship discreetly in fact is good, but so engaged in too little passion, completely like in accordance with the operating instructions to complete some kind of work like.

Xie Xue only had to say, "Speaking of this ...... brother ...... there is actually one more thing that I have been wanting to talk to you about."

"What?"

Xie Xue stammered again.

"......" Xie Qingcheng said, "Don't tell me that the two of you have already discussed getting married."

Xie Xue froze and froze, "How did you know?"

Xie Qingcheng stiff for a long time, and then expressionless, his voice did not ripple, "...... you go to bring me the cigarettes on the table."

Although Xie Xue didn't want Xie Qingcheng to smoke, but now under this kind of pressure, how could she dare to say no to Xie Qingcheng? She obediently brought the cigarettes to Xie Qingcheng.

Xie Qingcheng did not even bother to care whether Xie Xue was next to him or not, lit a cigarette and smoked half of it without speaking.

Inside the room is very silent, the light outside the window with the curtains swinging and flashing one by one, the light shines on Xie Xue face, Xie Qingcheng looked at the face of the rouge color has not gone down.

Finally Xie Qingcheng asked, "When did you have the idea."

"He ...... before he went to the Northwest half a year ago ......" Xie Xue stuttered, "his family big brother you also know, is the military family, but his personality is really not suitable for the army, his parents are intended to slowly help him in the future to do business, but before that, they said that they want him to go to the Northwest to exercise, he promised to promise, just mention a request ......"

"What a request." Xie Qingcheng's knuckles curled, tapping softly on the ashes of his cigarette.

Xie Xue's cheeks have reddened: "He and his parents said that he wanted to wait for the exercise to come back and graduate, so ...... he married me."

When she finished speaking, she immediately buried her face even lower, as if she was afraid that Xie Qingcheng would directly smash the mug in her hand onto her head the next moment and tell her to get out.

She didn't realize that she had waited for half a day and nothing had moved.

It was a long time before she heard a soft click, which sounded broken in the silence of the bedroom.

She smelled the faint odor of tobacco, Xie Qingcheng one cigarette is finished, and then smoked another.

"Brother ......" Thank you for gathering courage, terrified, bewildered, lifted his face, and met Xie Qingcheng's face, which was shrouded in a heavy green mist, unable to see his eyebrows.

Xie Qingcheng quietly smoked this cigarette without looking at Xie Xue, who leaned against the back of the bed, his long fingers holding the end of the cigarette, his eyes looking a little lost, cast in the center of the snow-white ceiling.

When he didn't speak, Xie Xue didn't dare to say anything else, clutching her skirt and waiting with a tense body.

That one cigarette is finished too.

Xie Qingcheng dusted off the ashes of his cigarette and discarded the last butts in the ashtray next to him as he opened his mouth, his voice a little hoarse probably from smoking too many cigarettes.

"So what do you think of yourself."

Xie Xue froze again.

She was already prepared to be scolded by Xie Qingcheng, but she didn't expect Xie Qingcheng to ask her this.

Xie's big brother has always been a dictator, he gave Xie Xue strong protection, but never cared too much about what she thought. So when he actually asked Xie Xue "what do you think", Xie Xue's first reaction was that she couldn't react.

"Since you've been frank with me today, let's lay it all out." After being extremely disheartened, Xie Qingcheng was now able to be considered calm, and he raised his peach blossom eyes to look at his sister, "Do you also want to marry him?"

"I ......"

Xie Xue's face was so red that it looked like it could drip blood, but there was an inexplicable light in her eyes. That kind of light was familiar, Xie Qingcheng seemed to have seen it somewhere, but he just couldn't remember for a moment.

"Brother ...... I really like him ...... I ......"

"You know marriage is not child's play. It's not the same as if you were simply in a relationship. That's a responsibility and a contract to another person. Do you think you're right for him."

"......"

"I know you think he's kind and loyal. But he's younger than you after all, and has a restless nature, and is notoriously capricious in all he does, so you'll get tired of being with him. Xie Xue."

"These places, he, he's changed a lot ...... you guys don't know him ......"

"And how much do you know about him?" Xie Qingcheng coughed lightly, "You don't need to tell me that you've been observing him for ten years - that's just a person's past, not to mention that what you've seen is only part of it."

"......"

"Do you know what kind of plans his family has for his life? And do you know what his plans for his future look like? You just said he wants to graduate, marry you, and go into business. That's business, Xie Xue, that's not school. How old are you?"

"Twenty-five."

"What about him?"

"...... twenty-three."

"He's only twenty-three, and it took ten years before he was the age your brother and I are today. How much confidence can you have in ten years that he will always like you? The business world is full of young and good looking girls, and to be in his family's position he would still be hanging out with people from the entertainment industry, you yourself are a teacher at an art school, how much do you know what the entertainment industry is like. How much temptation and intrigue there is."

"But he won't, he's been raised--"

"He's only twenty-three this year, Xie Xue. when I was twenty-three, I could never have imagined that I'd be like this today." Xie Qingcheng paused for a moment as he thought of He Yu -- when he was twenty-three years old, He Yu was just a ten year old kid, who would have thought that something crazy like that would happen between the two of them?

"Xie Xue, Wei Dongheng His life is just beginning, and a lot of things can't be said."

Xie Qingcheng lit another cigarette, smoking, some slight cough.

He didn't finish this one before he pressed the cigarette out.

"Just take a step back, even if he really won't take the initiative how about it. With his position, he's not short of throwing his weight around and socializing. Can you bear it?"

"He told me he wouldn't."

Xie Xue was very determined, and there was a certain kind of light in her eyes. Xie Qingcheng felt that that kind of light was very familiar, as if she had seen it somewhere, but she couldn't remember.

Xie Qingcheng quiet for a while, the big thing to this point, but he will not be angry, he only very deep cold asked: "This world is a lot of good and loyal people, Wei Dongheng is not the only one, what do you really like him?"

"I don't know, like this kind of thing ...... it's ...... hard to explain ...... I just see him I'm happy, he's the same, when we're together we have a lot to talk about, and when you're apart you miss it."

"My time with him has always been happy and reassuring, I don't think he'll hurt me, that security is the same as when I'm with you brother."

"Brother ...... can you understand?"

Xie Qingcheng was silent.

If Xie Xue from a year ago had said these things to him, he might not have understood how she felt.

But at this moment, he listened to her description of those things, deep inside a string was gently touched - there was another person also played on this string, just that person, Xie Qingcheng is never able to give a response.

Xie Qingcheng was quiet for a while and said, "You have no regrets even if your head is broken?"

"I'm not going to break my head."

"I asked if you regretted it."

"If my head really breaks, I have no regrets." Xie Xue's voice trembled slightly as she said the last.

Xie Qingcheng no longer answers.

He narrowed his eyes through the undissolved smoke, his lips slightly opened, inexplicably, as if looking at Zhu Chengbi, saw the day of the confession, pulling his hand can not stop falling tears He Yu.

He suddenly remembered that light in Xie Xue's eyes, where he had seen it before.

It's when He Yu cuts his heart out and finally tells him the love in his heart.

-- "I'm the one who has to break my head and moth the light ...... I don't think it's right either, but I still love you."

"Because I'm truly insane, and I'm going to walk a black line to the end when I fucking know it's going to end. So fucked up and bruised, and would still want to hug you."

"I'm in the mud and dust, yet I still love the snow in the sky, I did it wrong, not you ......"

"It hurts to love you, Xie Qingcheng, it hurts to love you so much that I can't get ...... I know I have to let go, yet I'm still ...... still loving you day by day... ..."

Xie Qingcheng felt that a certain place in his chest seemed to have collapsed.

He slowly closed his eyes.

For a moment, he looked as if he had aged many, many years.

"Xie Xue."

"Brother."

"What if I persist in my refusal."

"...... I ......" This time it wasn't the voice that was trembling, Xie Xue's entire body was trembling slightly, and pain and suffering visible to the naked eye floated over her, the "If you ...... you insist on refusing ......"

"What are you going to do if I persist in my refusal?"

Xie Xue sat on her knees in front of his bed, almost breaking down a little, her eyes quickly pooling with tears, and after a long time, she stammered, "...... I ...... will listen to you. Because I love you. I love you the most. It is you who raised me, how much you suffered who knows, even I think there are a lot of things even I do not know. If you really don't like him, and you're really adamant that you don't want me to be with him, I'll listen to you."

"But brother, I'll never be happy."

"......"

Xie Qingcheng opened his eyes, and for a long time, did not even resume his speech.

He bowed his head at last, as if holding back for a moment some emotion that swept through his eyes that shouldn't have belonged to him, an emotion he rarely had.

Then he got up-he was lying clothed, and getting out of bed was naturally easy.

At this moment, he no longer wanted to stay inside the house. He felt bad inside, and the cramped space only made it more impossible for him to breathe.

"Brother--"

Xie Qingcheng did not lower his head or look back when he walked past Xie Xue, he just reached out and covered the top of her hair with a great deal of force, the same as in the old days when she cried and came back to him every time she was in trouble.

Xie Xue tilted her head, but could not see Xie Qingcheng's unturned face.

She only saw a tall side profile of him, and then heard him say, "Then you go. ...... You remember, the road is your own choice, I hope you don't regret it."

"Brother ......" Xie Xue trembled even more.

"But if you really regret it later, you feel that you made the wrong choice. You should not feel ashamed, people come to this world for the first time, and make many choices with no experience, all for the first time. No one can predict whether it will be wrong or right. If it's really wrong, you just have to remember that as long as I'm alive, anytime, anywhere, you still have a home."

"I will take care of you and will be your support until the day I die."

Xie Xue tears came out of her eyes, she did not expect, she had been afraid to talk to Xie Qingcheng about this matter, in her eyes her big brother is strong, powerful, but say one thing, dictatorial and domineering.

How could she not have imagined that he would give himself such an answer when she actually - out of her heart and soul and honestly - told him her decision?

She could no longer hold back, wow cry, she got up, a hug Xie Qingcheng's waist, put his cheek against his back, since childhood to how many times, is this broad straight back, carrying play tired, injured, tired of her home ......

Obviously so happy, Xie Xue went so far as to lose his voice and cried bitterly, saying nothing, refused to let him go: "Brother! Brother ......"

"Crying for what." Xie Qingcheng still did not turn around, who knows what kind of look he has at this moment, his voice is still calm, "You have to grow up on your own in the future, Xie Xue, although I will always help you, but ......"

He didn't say any more.

At this point in the conversation, he paused.

Finally he patted Xie Xue's hand, "Let go, how old are you?"

"Shameless."

"Get loose."

"I'm shameless."

"......"

"Hold me, brother, I love you so much."

"...... You're not fucking awake?"

"I'm shameless."

"......"

The cold light in the room seemed to become gentle at that moment, and Xie Xue's voice, choked with sobs and laughter, came faintly out of the window--

"Brother, I'm going to Wei Dongheng's house for dinner next week ...... what do you think I'm going to wear ......"

"The skirt can't be below the knee."

"...... Ah ...... how did this happen again ......"

The words drifted away, becoming flat and cozy.

Outside the house.

He Yu, who is not worried about Xie Qingcheng, has actually been there all along.

He leaned against the cold wall, listening to the conversation in the house behind him, straightened up, dusted off the ash that had rubbed off on the wall before the siblings could come out of it, and walked away slowly, alone.