Her words left a strange taste in He Su Ye’s mouth. His thoughts twisted in circles. So the man in that letter really was her ex. That poor, heartbroken look of hers the other day—it was for him. And now, even her conversation revolves around him. He sent her gifts? What is he trying to do—buy his way back into her life?
But then, relief. At least the little girl stood her ground and refused to accept him again. She’s still on the right side of the revolution.
He Su Ye, who rarely harbored ill will toward anyone, found himself disliking her ex.
Wait. What was he doing? Why was he thinking about such irrelevant things?
The meal was tasteless for He Su Ye, while Shen Xi Fan gleefully stretched her chopsticks to steal his tofu skin, seemingly unbothered by her earlier complaints.
When she finished eating, she sighed dramatically. “Ugh, I’m so conflicted, Su Ye! My inner fire is raging! I may look happy now, but I’m actually dying of frustration inside. What do I do?”
He felt like sending her straight to the emergency room for a sedative, then to neurology for further evaluation. She didn’t even make sense, asking him for solutions without giving him the full story.
“Bitter tea. It’ll help with your inner fire,” he replied flatly. To bolster his point, he added, “I’ve been drinking it lately myself.”
Shen Xi Fan gasped in mock surprise. “He Su Ye, bitter tea? Are you trying to lose weight?”
Exasperated and defeated, He Su Ye felt a headache coming on. “Lotus leaves can help with weight loss too, but they’re also great for relieving heat, lifting yang energy, and cooling blood to stop bleeding.”
No sooner had he finished than Shen Xi Fan burst into laughter. “Su Ye… lotus leaves. You’re like a walking encyclopedia of health benefits!”
On the way home, the two walked in silence, each lost in their own thoughts. Finally, Shen Xi Fan couldn’t hold back any longer.
“He Su Ye, I think forgetting isn’t as easy as people say. Take my ex-boyfriend, for example. Rationally, I know it’s impossible, but I still can’t help thinking about him. It’s hard to describe. Maybe it’s because I loved him too deeply before and was hurt too badly. Even if I want to forget, I just can’t.”
“How long were you two together? I mean, your ex-boyfriend?”
“Two years. To be exact, 764 days…”
“I see… Has your phone been fixed yet?”
“I bought a new one. So annoying! By the way, did you send me a message?”
“Yeah, it was nothing important. Just wanted to see what you were up to.”
“Sorry about that…”
* * *
At home, He Su Ye brewed a cup of bitter tea and picked up the letter again. Under the soft glow of the lamp, the blue paper exuded a faint melancholy. Her words, her heartbreak—he could feel it all.
Looking at it again, he realized it wasn’t just a sour feeling; it was something deeper. He felt a pang of tenderness and pain for her. So the little girl was still carrying scars from her youth—scars that appeared healed but were, in reality, embedded deeply in her bones. A small misstep could cause unbearable pain.
It dawned on him that her long-standing singleness wasn’t because she couldn’t find someone but because she didn’t dare. She was afraid to love again, to risk being hurt once more. A girl like her—so sensitive and fragile—awakened in him an almost overwhelming urge to protect.
He took a sip of his tea and winced. It was bitter, unbearably bitter. And somewhere deep in his heart, there was an ache—a soft, lingering pain that tugged at him.
I’ve fallen for her, haven’t I?
He replayed the evidence in his mind: the way he couldn’t stop thinking about her, how he loved seeing her every expression, even the way she pouted or frowned with a hint of childishness. How he missed her after just a few days, worried about her, and felt inexplicably jealous of her ex.
All of it pointed to one undeniable truth—he liked her.
Joy and helplessness gripped him at the same time. There was an endless void in her heart, and he didn’t know how to fill it. She refused to move forward, and he couldn’t force her to.
But how could he bring light to this girl who made his heart ache and feel responsible for her? How could he make her radiate sunshine, laughing with pure happiness and joy?
Just making her happy would be enough, he thought.
He was willing to stand by her side quietly and wait.
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