Xie Qian had always been tolerant towards Wen Ying.
Even before he had fallen for her, he treated her better than he treated others.
He had adjusted his principles time and again for her sake.
Now, with his heart and eyes full of Wen Ying, he was even less able to refuse her.
Xie Qian could offer everything he possessed to Wen Ying on a platter: custom jewellery, riverside apartments, old mansions, investment opportunities in prime projects, even the logistics company he founded, Jiaxin Films, and shares in “Jinhu”.
As long as Wen Ying wanted it, as long as Xie Qian had it, he would give it!
Yet at this moment, Xie Qian gripped Wen Ying’s hand tightly. With a firmness that went against her own wishes, he insisted she repeat her earlier words.
Right now, Xie Qian absolutely would not allow Wen Ying to play ostrich again.
She could not keep teasing and then running away!
Having said those five words, did she not have to take responsibility for them?
Xie Qian’s gaze burned intensely.
Wen Ying’s hand was held firmly by Xie Qian. A fire spread from her hand to her heart.
Xie Qian seemed to be restricting her freedom, but if she truly wanted to struggle, how could she fail to break free?
Wen Ying could not bring herself to struggle.
Xie Qian holding her hand left her entire being in a daze.
“What did you say…”
“You know what I said.”
Xie Qian gently pinched the centre of Wen Ying’s palm. “I want you to say it again. This time, look into my eyes and say it.”
Heh, say “I like you too” again?
Wen Ying clamped her mouth shut tightly.
Her courage had been completely expended just now. How could she possibly bring herself to say it a second time in such a short while?
Though it was evening, it was not yet bedtime for students. People were still coming and going through the school gate, heading out for food or returning from outside.
Both Wen Ying and Xie Qian were celebrities at Zhendan. The commotion between them had long attracted attention.
Wen Ying could feel numerous gazes upon them.
She stammered, “I… I only said it once. If you did not hear it, you cannot blame me!”
Xie Qian pulled Wen Ying forward. If she had not braced herself with her other hand on the wheelchair armrest, she would have solidly tumbled into his embrace.
Wen Ying’s eyes widened. “Are you mad? I almost crushed your leg!”
Xie Qian looked at her seriously. “If it gets crushed, so be it. I am not made of glass. I will not shatter so easily. Do not change the subject. You would not happen to lack the courage for a second time, would you?”
Xie Qian’s tone was full of doubt.
Wen Ying’s blood surged. In a heat of the moment, she retorted, “Me, lack courage?!”
Do you have the courage, then?
Why dare you not say it?
The streetlamp illuminated Xie Qian’s face. The young man’s features were so beautifully sculpted. The Creator must have been particularly attentive when shaping his face.
So handsome, yet so infuriating!
Was saying it once not enough?
Why must he bully her like this!
Wen Ying glared fiercely around them. “What are you all looking at? Never seen a girl confess before?”
After glaring down all the passers-by, she turned back, still fierce.
She opened her mouth, but her throat felt as heavy as a thousand catties.
The words “I like you” were casual for some, but for Wen Ying, they carried immense weight.
I have liked you for a very long time. Did you know?
Xie Qian met Wen Ying’s gaze.
The girl’s eyes were so captivating they made Xie Qian’s heart tremble.
Those feelings that arose from who knew where and were destined for who knew where had drifted through two entire lifetimes.
In this moment, Wen Ying finally acknowledged her true heart.
Wen Ying had always believed that in her previous life, she had merely seen Xie Qian as a “male god”. She was willing to be the little admin of his Tieba forum, willing to be his little fangirl.
Was she truly willing?
In truth, she was not.
It was just that Xie Qian was too perfect.
So perfect that she felt unworthy of liking him.
Wen Ying had hidden her feelings away. She was a fangirl, the little admin of Xie Qian’s Tieba.
In her previous life, Wen Ying had entered university like other girls.
She learned to lose weight. She gradually transformed, becoming more and more outstanding.
She had many suitors.
Like her peers, she clumsily began dating.
She told herself to forget Xie Qian.
That boy who had dazzled all the girls at the provincial key high school—his sky was so vast and high. He would never return to Rongcheng.
When news of Xie Qian’s death arrived, Wen Ying could no longer deceive herself.
The summer of 2019—a dark memory Wen Ying never wanted to revisit.
When people suffer major trauma, they selectively forget certain things.
Wen Ying had never delved into why she had been reborn.
Early in her rebirth, she had still harboured resentment over He Zhen and his first-love senior.
She blamed the rebirth deity for losing her boyfriend.
But was that really the case?
No.
As Wen Ying locked eyes with Xie Qian, gazing at this Xie Qian she had liked for two lifetimes, those selectively forgotten memories suddenly flooded back.
…
In her previous life, when news of Xie Qian’s death reached her, Wen Ying was utterly numb.
She and He Zhen had been dating for so long. Naturally, He Zhen noticed something was wrong with her state. Under his questioning, Wen Ying mentioned “Xie Qian” for the first time.
He Zhen was not surprised.
He had long sensed that Wen Ying harboured someone in her heart. He did not mind, because He Zhen himself had regrets from his youth.
He Zhen asked what Wen Ying planned to do. After thinking for a long time, Wen Ying apologised.
The person called “Xie Qian” was dead. Wen Ying could no longer lie to herself. She could not forget Xie Qian. Her efforts to transform over more than a decade had all been in pursuit of that light.
With the light extinguished, where would she go from here?
Wen Ying proposed breaking up with He Zhen.
He Zhen agreed.
When they were dating, they never discussed their pasts. After breaking up, they could talk about them.
He Zhen took the initiative to speak of his first girlfriend Rebecca, asking Wen Ying what she liked about Xie Qian.
He Zhen could not forget Rebecca because she was his first love. Their breakup was not his wish. He was full of regrets about his first love.
Then why could Wen Ying not forget Xie Qian?
As far as He Zhen knew, Wen Ying had never even dated Xie Qian!
Even if there were feelings, it was only one-sided crush. What had sustained Wen Ying’s pursuit for over a decade?
In that conversation, Wen Ying did not tell He Zhen about her “history” with Xie Qian.
A crush lasting over a decade was not merely because Xie Qian was handsome.
In Wen Ying’s previous life, she had been far less confident.
Failing the high school entrance exam, her aunt’s marriage falling apart, her parents’ high expectations.
When Wen Ying first entered the provincial key school, she could not keep up with the studies.
The harder she tried to excel, the worse she did. It was a vicious cycle.
For a time, Wen Ying’s aversion to studying was severe. She could not absorb anything the teachers said in class.
Opening a book made her tremble all over. She could not understand it.
She feared exams too.
Those problems she should have been able to solve, yet her mind was blank. She could not recall how to approach them.
She felt she was ill.
But no one cared about her illness.
Her aunt Chen Li was overwhelmed by her own marital breakdown. Chen Ru and Wen Dongrong were disappointed in her for failing to live up to expectations. Because of her introversion, she naturally had no close friends at the provincial key school to confide in.
One day, Wen Ying lingered on the school rooftop. Only one thought occupied her mind: Jump. Jump and it would all be over.
One foot had already stepped over the edge. She closed her eyes, about to experience free fall.
A hand reached from behind, pulling her back.
“If you die, you will have nothing left.”
A clear, cold voice like a rainbow over snowy mountains.
Their height difference allowed the boy to look down at Wen Ying.
His voice was so cold. He gripped her arm, struggling to restrain his anger. “If you die, you will have nothing left, do you understand? If you are not even afraid of death, why are you afraid of living!”
…
In her previous life, that hand had pulled Wen Ying back, questioned her, scolded her, told her that if she was not afraid of death, why fear living.
And then Wen Ying had lived on.
In this life, it was still that hand holding Wen Ying tightly, only wanting to hear her say “like” once more.
Wen Ying no longer avoided Xie Qian’s gaze. She shouted at him, “Xie Qian, I like you! I have liked you for a very long time!”
