Chapter 425: The Secret About the Past (43)
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
Ling Ciye came out of the kitchen, only to realize that Song Yan was no longer in the living room.
He walked towards the bedroom to find that it was empty.
She was not in the bathroom.
Ling Ciye proceeded to search the other rooms but still could not find her. Thus, he deduced that she must have gone out.
He then hurriedly went outside to look for her.
The car was still outside, and the rain was still pouring heavily. The dim road lamps stood in the rain.
He looked around his surroundings outside and found that she was nowhere in sight.
Ling Ciye returned to the bedroom upstairs. To his astonishment, Song Yan was sitting in front of the dressing table and removing her makeup.
Staring at her, he said, “I thought you went out.”
“I was trying to mislead you on purpose,” said Song Yan, gently removing her eye makeup with a cotton pad.
“Song Yan, you’re still as capricious and willful as ever.”
“I’m only willful in front of my man. In front of other male actors, I’m a tough and independent woman, understand?” Song Yan stood up and continued, “That’s enough, let’s stop arguing over such trivial matters and making ourselves unhappy like this at this hour. Okay?”
Ling Ciye stopped arguing with her, considering the fact that she was pregnant.
While they were laying down on the bed, Song Yan picked up her phone and began scrolling through Weibo again. “Young teenagers nowadays are getting more and more childish,” she remarked all of a sudden.
“How so?” he asked.
“Look at this comment left on my page by this person under the handle of ‘Flower of the Village.’ She said, ‘Song Yan, let me tell you something really horrifying. A female celebrity who constantly uploads narcissistic photos of herself every day. As a fan of yours, I’ve decided to stop supporting you.’” Song Yan then turned her head sideways and sneered, “It must be a kid who didn’t even graduate from elementary school.”
“Are there many haters who criticize you on Weibo?”
“There are so many of them who criticize me in every way you can possibly think of. But then again, these are just anonymous keyboard warriors. Like what they always say, the more cynical and mean-spirited these people are online, the more weak and cowardly they are in real life. I’ve gotten used to all that hate and criticism, actually. Sometimes I don’t feel anything at all when I come across their snide and malicious remarks. I think I’ve grown numb to it.”
“Let’s talk about something else.”
“If you’re thinking of talking to me about work again, I don’t wish to discuss about it. I have a strong love and passion for my career. Even though I’m pregnant, I don’t wish to leave this industry completely,” Song Yan reiterated.
“I wasn’t thinking of talking to you about that, because it irks me everytime we discuss that topic. I want to talk to you about getting married.”
If it were not for the sake of their unborn child, Ling Ciye would have never wanted to marry.
However, he could not bring himself to shirk the responsibility and get her to abort the child. Besides, an abortion would be detrimental to her health.
Since they had decided to reconcile, they ought to give their child a complete family.
Thus, after some thorough consideration, he decided to marry her before her baby bump became too obvious.
“Marriage… how about we just register our marriage without holding a wedding?” Song Yan said hesitantly, as usual.
“Without a wedding?” Ling Ciye asked in surprise.
“Yes. We’ll hold a wedding after the child is born. What do you think?”
“I don’t have any comments since that’s what you want.”
Pleased to hear that he had agreed, Song Yan leaned forward to kiss him on his cheek. “Ciye, I promise you, once I finish filming for this variety program, I won’t take on any more similar programs. I might just release another album or film some commercials, I won’t be accepting other kinds of offers.”
“Song Yan, the kind of wife I want is one who prioritizes her family over her career, not one who’s overly career-minded. Do you understand?” Ling Ciye reiterated.
“I know, but I’ve already gotten used to it. I wouldn’t be willing to give it all up now. Ciye, can you give me some time to adjust and reduce my workload gradually?”
“It’s good to be independent, but you’ll become overbearing if it’s excessive. Song Yan, I hope you’re not just compromising temporarily. If this goes on for long, I won’t be able to tolerate it in the long run.”
“Or do you not love me enough? When a man loves a woman deeply, he’ll be willing to compromise and give in to her endlessly. He’d dote on her, be understanding towards her, and accept all her flaws and shortcomings. But all you do is get impatient with me and lose your temper easily.”
“I’ve been accommodating to you for almost six years, but have you ever given in to me? A man will only give in to a woman, dote on her, and be understanding towards her when she does the same for him. It can’t be one-sided on my part,” Ling Ciye retorted.
“I don’t want to talk anymore. Let’s go to bed.” Song Yan reached out to switch off the lights and turned to face away from him.
Ling Ciye laid down quietly, filled with overwhelming frustration. Apart from the initial honeymoon phase after which she allowed her true colors to show, she had been extremely inconsiderate towards him throughout the rest of their relationship.
He did not know how much longer he could tolerate her.
He was genuinely sick and tired of everything.
—
It began pouring heavily the night before in A City, followed by N Nation the next morning.
An Xiaoning had initially planned to leave the place and search elsewhere since she still could not find him.
However, she decided to wait another day because of the heavy rain.
The thundery showers lasted throughout the entire morning. It finally stopped in the afternoon, and a rainbow formed in the sky.
After the heavy rain, the hot and humid weather turned cool and breezy.
An Xiaoning wore a white skirt, which ended below her knees, coupled with a sun hat and proceeded to have lunch outside.
There was a small restaurant near the inn where she would go to have her meals every day.
Although the dishes were rather pricey, they tasted delicious and the hygiene conditions of the restaurant were sanitary.
Just as An Xiaoning was about to leave after having a bowl of noodles, she suddenly overheard two women chatting enthusiastically at the table beside hers.
“When I came down from the mountains today, I saw a really handsome guy. He was seriously so dashing, though I only saw his eyes,” said Woman A.
“You only saw his eyes, though. Is he really that handsome?” Woman B asked.
“Yes, his eyes were long and narrow, yet alluring. It’s a shame he was wearing a surgical mask. I’d really like to know what he looks like,” Woman A emphasized.
Woman B chuckled and teased Woman A, “You’re being man-crazy again.”
An Xiaoning decided to approach them. “May I ask, where did you see that man?” she asked.
“That mountain over there. I happened to chance upon him,” said Woman A, pointing in a certain direction.
“Was he alone?”
“No, he was with a girl. They were wearing raincoats and carrying baskets on their shoulders. It seemed like they were gathering medicinal herbs.”
“When did you see them?”
“In the morning.”
“Got it, thank you,” said an agitated An Xiaoning.
Watching as An Xiaoning zoomed out of the door quickly, Woman A remarked, “See, she’s more man-crazy than I am. She’s so eager to look for him as soon as she heard about the existence of a handsome lad.”
Woman B shook her head indifferently and said, “You two are peas in a pod. Have you guys never seen a man before? I’m seriously speechless.”
An Xiaoning had a strong feeling that Jin Qingyan was the man whom the woman stumbled across.
Just like the man she described, Jin Qingyan indeed had long and narrow eyes that were absolutely charming and alluring.
However, she was not too sure and could only verify if it was really him after taking a look herself.
She began walking along the route towards the mountains.
Yet, she did not see anyone in sight despite having walked a distance.
To her disappointment, she still did not see any handsome man as described by the woman in the restaurant, even until she had reached the peak of the mountain.