She and Yi Zhuo had a special marriage—they quickly got the certificate, without even a wedding.
A wedding gown...
She wondered if she'd ever have a chance to wear one.
Maybe she could go to a photo studio, wear one, and take some pictures. That would be nice.
Thinking about it, she sniffled, lay flat, and continued to sleep.
Her hearing was naturally more sensitive than average, especially when she closed her eyes. It felt like all her attention was on her ears.
She faintly heard the conversation between the man and her aunt outside the door. Words like "divorce," "illness," and "memory" entered her heart through her ears.
Although she couldn't hear exactly what was said, she was puzzled: how did Yi Zhuo come to know her aunt?
After a while, Yi Zhuo came back.
Chang Xuyu sat up again. Since her hand couldn't move, she didn't thrash around much. She straightened up and looked at him, like a little rabbit.
"Yi Zhuo, how do you know my aunt?" She thought for a moment, then said as if anticipating his answer: "Don't brush me off with something like 'we're married.' I haven't met any of your relatives. Why are you allowed to get acquainted with my aunt?"
Her almond eyes were misty, clear and bright like a rippling lake. Her face was flushed with anger, a light pink spreading over her puffed cheeks, like two lovely peach blossoms.
Yi Zhuo was taken aback, then the corners of his lips curved slightly, almost imperceptibly.
Catching the hint of a smile in his eyes, Chang Xuyu lowered her gaze and thought for a few seconds about what she had just said. Realizing, she blushed even more.
"That's not what I meant..."
"Oh?"
She bit her lip, trying to explain, but the more she explained, the more confused it became.
"I don't mean I want to meet your family. I mean, you can't just get to know my aunt without my permission. Well, that's not right either... It's just that you're not allowed to know my family..."
"Why?"
The man frowned.
Chang Xuyu clutched a corner of the quilt, feeling as if steam was rising from the top of her head.
Her incoherent words had turned a lie into truth.
She wished she could find a hole to crawl into, only to sneak back out for air after the steam had dissipated.
Yi Zhuo stood up, holding the fruit plate, and looked at her in silence.
Suddenly, he said flatly: "Xuyu, I don't have a family."
Chang Xuyu froze.
"My parents divorced long ago. Later, my mother passed away. My father was always out carousing until he remarried a woman from the business world," his eyes were very dark. He paused, "We haven't been in contact for many years, so they don't count as family."
He looked up, meeting Chang Xuyu's stunned gaze, and his tone softened: "It's not that I'm unwilling to take you to meet them."
The man thought for a moment, then added: "If you want to, anytime. I can take you to my mother's grave."
She was the only person he cared about in this life. He wanted to take her to meet his mother. She was gentle and kind; he believed his mother would like her too. But Xuyu didn't want anything more to do with him, so he wouldn't force it.
Seeing the faint melancholy in his eyes, Chang Xuyu pursed her lips and suddenly reached out to take his hand.
Her hand wasn't warm, even a bit cold, but when she held his, she was amazed at the warmth of his palm.
She had heard back in school that sculptors had to be able to carry dozens of pounds of clay and handle welding torches and saws well—it was a heavy, physically demanding profession. And he was so good at it...
He must be physically stronger than her.
Actually, just looking at the muscles on his body was enough. But he had a great physique and good fashion sense; he looked like a clothes hanger in anything, so his muscles weren't very obvious.
Still, she knew exactly what his body looked like...
Yi Zhuo took the opportunity to kneel on one knee beside her.
"I had business dealings with your aunt before," he explained slowly. "The reason I was able to go on a blind date with you back then was thanks to your aunt's introduction."
Actually, he had initiated it. Chang Shengnan thought he was a good catch, so she helped him mention it to Chang Xuyu's mother. As for her mother, she needed no further explanation—once she saw he had money, she immediately agreed.
Chang Xuyu was stunned.
She hadn't expected there to be such a connection between her aunt and him.
She lowered her gaze, thinking about the way he had gently rubbed the top of her head earlier, which evoked a memory.
Yesterday, she seemed to have told Yuan Zixu that Yi Zhuo treated her as a substitute.
Her memory was really getting worse. She was only in her twenties, why was she so forgetful...
She whispered comfortingly: "Don't be too sad. I won't go see your mother, after all..." I'm not the one in your heart.
She held back the second half of the sentence. She just felt that since they weren't truly in love, and since he regarded her as some kind of substitute, then she might as well not want him either.
The room was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.
The beating, scorching heart in his chest seemed to be doused with cold water, losing its original warmth.
"Mm."
"If you don't want to see her, then don't."