Chapter 1016 - That Was You?
Iris gave her husband an incredulous look. "I don't think so, darling. Some of my past life's memories might be becoming hazy as time passes by but I have quite a good memory. Unless you looked different when you were younger, I'll surely remember it if I met my own husband before."
"Hmmm." Jin Liwei's forehead wrinkled.
Was he mistaken? Maybe the stunning woman he saw years ago at his university library wasn't his wife. After all, he only caught a glimpse of the woman back then. The memory, however, only became more prominent in his mind. It was bothering him so much that he might not be able to fall asleep tonight if he didn't get a clear answer about his hunch once and for all.
"Wife."
"Hm?"
"I want to tell you a story. Will you listen to your husband?"
"Of course. What is it?"
He took her hands and started massaging her soft palms. His eyes continued staring at her face to observe her reaction.
"It was summer time when I just graduated and received my bachelor's degree. Instead of returning home to see my family here in China, I decided to stay in Boston and take some advance classes to finish my accelerated MBA degree early. I was studying everyday and spending a lot of time in the least crowded library at the university."
Iris was not sure where his story was headed but she could sense that telling it was important to him. She had no idea why, though. However, she still nodded to encourage him to continue speaking.
"One day, I forgot to bring one textbook from my required reading list so I decided to borrow it from the library instead of wasting time getting it all the way from my apartment. The librarian instructed me to get the book from the upper floors. There weren't many students who frequented that particular library so I thought that I would be the only one upstairs."
His eyes staring at her became sharper and…expectant, making her feel even more confused.
"On the floor where the textbook that I needed was located, I heard someone singing. At first, I was annoyed that someone would have the audacity to make noise inside a library that was supposed to be a quiet place for everyone. But as I walked nearer to the source of the singing, my attitude changed. Why? Because the person's singing voice was the most beautiful that I've ever heard in my entire life."
Iris couldn't stop herself from curling her lips. He always told her that her singing voice was the most beautiful that he had ever heard in his entire life. Although she wasn't conceited to believe that her voice was the very best in the world, she still felt pleased that her own husband believed her to be the very best. Yet now he was telling her that there was someone who was better than her in his heart?
She attempted to snatch her hands out of his hold but he didn't allow her. On the contrary, he held her hands even tighter. She snorted and turned her head away, refusing to look at him. His face looked very annoying to her at the moment. She became even more annoyed after hearing his light chuckle. She turned her head to face him again and glared at her annoying husband's laughing face.
"The song the woman sang sounded exquisite."
Her eyes narrowed and became dangerous. "Oh? So it was a woman?"
"En."
She clenched her jaw hard. "Was she beautiful?"
"En."
"Jin. Li. Wei," she growled each syllable low in her throat. "Were you attracted to that woman?"
"Hmm."
"What 'hmm'? What does that mean? Does it mean 'hmm, yes' or 'hmm, maybe'?!"
Jin Liwei's expression was serious, but in Iris' anger, she failed to see the amusement twinkling in his eyes. She didn't even know exactly why she was getting angry right now.
It shouldn't be a big deal if deep inside he thought that there was someone else who had a more beautiful singing voice than her. But did he have to tell it to her right now? Especially when he had been telling her all this time that she was the best singer in his heart. And now he was telling her that the person was a beautiful woman, even answering in such a vague manner when she asked him if he felt attracted to the woman.
Her nostrils flared and her muscles quivered as the urge to beat up someone filled her. She wasn't usually a violent person, but right now, she felt like a wild beast whose territory was being invaded by stray vermin.
Jin Liwei leaned forward, intending to pacify her with a kiss, but she evaded him.
"Calm down, love."
"Calm down?! You're telling me to calm down?! Tell me, Jin Liwei, Liam Jin, Evelina's husband, father to all my children, and sperm provider to my ovaries. Tell me clearly—and don't you dare lie to me—if you were attracted to that beautiful woman you met in Boston!"
Despite her fit of temper, he maintained his composure. He even had the nerve to drawl his answer as if what they were talking about was nothing.
"At that time, I didn't think that I was attracted to that woman because I only caught a glimpse of her. But thinking back to it now…."
"Jin Liwei, I'm telling you that if you dare—"
"Thinking back to it now, I realize that, yes, I was indeed attracted to that beautiful woman with an exquisite, heavenly singing voice. No, I am still very much attracted to her."
Iris' mouth fell open, her breath hitched, and then her eyes turned red. Then she let out a series of furious Russian expletives.
Jin Liwei only understood a few phrases and even he couldn't help but wince. His wife rarely cursed. But when she did, it meant that she was truly angered. It appeared that he had gone too far this time.
"Love—"
"Jin Liwei, you dolt! Even if you feel that way, do you really need to say it to my face?! What do you hope to accomplish by telling me this?! Don't tell me that you're hoping to reunite with that woman! You liar! You told me that you've never been attracted to anyone before me! That you've never had sex with anyone besides me! And that I'm the first and only one you've ever fallen in love with! If you dare to chase after her—"
He pulled her into a tight hug and refused to release her even when she began struggling in earnest to escape from his embrace. He felt a sharp pain on his shoulder where she bit him hard, but he still didn't loosen his arms around her. She was free to vent her anger on him this time.
Then he rubbed her back with a soothing pressure and started humming the melody of his now favourite Italian aria. His voice might not be the best but he could at least hold a tune without embarrassing himself especially if it was just simple humming. After all, his own flesh and blood brother, Jin Chonglin, was a superstar musician.
The Italian aria's melody and his tender ministrations proved to be effective in calming his wife. She softened in his arms but he could sense that she was still pissed off at him.
"Evelina."
"Hmph."
He continued massaging her back, reminding him of when he had to pet a grumpy Ice Cream. "Did you know that the beautiful woman sang this Italian aria in the library? I don't speak or understand much Italian but I felt the emotions through her voice."
This time, the anger and jealousy overwhelming her started subsiding a little, replaced by curiosity. This particular Italian aria that he liked so much that he often requested that she sing it for him wasn't that popular in the classical music world. People who knew the aria were few and far between so she was interested in the woman that her husband was talking about, even though she wanted to pull the woman's hair out for seducing her husband.
"After the song ended, the woman told me that I was rude for eavesdropping. I remember that she had a very classy British accent."
Iris frowned and pushed Jin Liwei's chest to create some space between them so that she could take a proper look at his face. Her head was tilted to the side as her curiosity grew.
"I told her that it's rude to make a noise inside the library."
"Huh?" Her brows furrowed as something flickered in her mind—a similar memory.
He smiled upon seeing her expression. "She asked me if her singing was so horrible that I treat it as noise."
She gasped. Her eyes widened. She looked at him in astonishment. "You…."
"Guess what I said?"
Her lips trembled. "You said to her…'You misunderstand. You sang well.'" She clutched the front of his shirt and shook it. "Am I right?"
His smile widened. "En. You're 100% right."
A shaky breath escaped from her slack mouth. Her anger and jealousy disappeared in an instant. They were now replaced by a great sense of wonder, amazement, and disbelief. Her eyes watered and her heart pounded.
"Liwei…."
He touched her face, stroking it. "Evelina, that woman back then was you…right?"
She bit her lip before nodding. "Yes, I think so. I remember it now."
"Then this means that we've really met before."
He was ready to wipe her tears if needed but they didn't fall. What fell instead was a hard smack on his chest. His eyes widened in surprise at her unexpected reaction.
"So you were that rude jerk who called my singing noise! That was you?! Hmph!"