Chapter 93

The sky was already getting late when Xu Junran entered the room. Lin Yuqing was in the small kitchen cooking. She had no place to live, so the commune arranged for her to stay in a house not far from where Xu Junran lived, making them neighbors.

"What are you cooking?" When Xu Junran entered, he could only see a slender figure bustling in the kitchen, and he couldn't help but ask.

"You're back. Rest for a while; the dishes will be ready soon." When Cao Junwei returned from the capital, he privately gave Lin Yuqing a lot of food and meat coupons, and even 500 yuan, calling it a gift. Lin Yuqing originally intended to refuse, but then she thought that Xu Junran had no extra income and needed money for daily expenses, so she accepted it. The food she was cooking now was bought from the supply cooperative just now.

Xu Junran smiled, walked straight to the bed, threw his clothes on it, and sat down. He smelled the fragrant aroma of the dishes and looked at the beautiful woman in the kitchen preparing food for him.

"This kind of life is really comfortable," Xu Junran shook his head and smiled.

After dinner, it wasn't late, but Xu Junran showed no sign of leaving. Lin Yuqing blushed and said softly, "You should go back."

Xu Junran lay comfortably on the bed, as if he hadn't heard Lin Yuqing's words, just silently looking at her face. Since there were no electric lights, they could only use oil lamps, and under the flickering light, the woman had a hazy beauty.

"Why should I go back?" Xu Junran smiled and suddenly said something that made Lin Yuqing's heart race.

Lin Yuqing looked at Xu Junran helplessly, seriously examining the man in front of her, and finally said, "Of course you should go back, because I'm going to sleep."

"Sleep, I'll sleep here too." The man's voice had a hint of stubbornness.

"That's not right."

"What's not right?"

"Have you thought about it? My reputation isn't good. It's fine outside, but if people in the commune find out we're together, your reputation will be ruined."

"Reputation is sometimes like a brothel in ancient times. They do business, but they pretend to be refined. I won't do something like being a prostitute and setting up a memorial archway."

"Can you not be so crude? You're an educated person."

"An educated person is still a person, who needs to eat, drink, and have emotions."

Xu Junran suddenly paused, looked at Lin Yuqing, and asked, "Do you think being with me will hurt someone?"

He asked this because Xu Junran felt that Lin Yuqing seemed to think there was something between him and Yuan Xiaoyue. This was evident from her behavior in the capital, where she would occasionally say good things about Yuan Xiaoyue, as if she were trying to matchmake them.

Sitting not far from Xu Junran, Lin Yuqing hesitated a bit but still nodded honestly, "I'm not a very smart woman, but I feel that if being with me hurts someone, it's not right. Besides, do you think we're a good match?"

Xu Junran answered quickly, "Why not? What's not a good match?"

Lin Yuqing felt she was about to go crazy. Why had Xu Junran suddenly become so stubborn?

"Junran, listen to me. We've been intimate, but that doesn't mean I have to marry you. I won't have any other man in my life except you, but for your future, you absolutely cannot be with me." Lin Yuqing looked at Xu Junran, speaking each word clearly, clearly having made a big decision after much thought.

To her surprise, Xu Junran just nodded, looked at Lin Yuqing, and said, "I'm sorry, I refuse."

At first, Lin Yuqing didn't understand Xu Junran's words. Although they were both stubborn, it didn't mean she could understand his thoughts. So she asked, "Don't you know that if we're together, people will talk?"

This had been her dilemma for a whole week.

Xu Junran sat up straight, looked into Lin Yuqing's eyes, and nodded under her puzzled gaze.

Seeing his attitude, Lin Yuqing was at a loss. Compared to girls her age, she was more mature, but she knew little about men. To her, Xu Junran was like a fun and attractive toy. She thought their relationship was just a brief intersection, and as long as she could suppress her possessiveness, the feelings would fade away. After all, Xu Junran would surely rise to prominence, and he might even forget who she was.

However, it seemed that things were not as she had expected. Xu Junran was different.

Lin Yuqing was a bit dazed, looking at Xu Junran in confusion.

Xu Junran smiled and said calmly, "You should know that my return from the capital was not pleasant. My girlfriend of three years left me for someone who could give her the life she wanted. That person had a powerful background, one that could affect my future. Although I could have asked my brother for help, I gave up that opportunity out of pride and self-respect, and fled back to Wude like a stray dog, hoping to hide in the mountains and lick my wounds."

"But sitting on the train, watching the mountains pass by, I gradually began to reflect on my actions over the past few years."

Xu Junran muttered, as if speaking to Lin Yuqing or to himself, "I was so focused on one thing that I ignored the beautiful scenery around me. When I had the chance to stop, I realized I had nothing. That's when I told myself to seize every happiness I can."

He smiled lightly, his voice carrying a hint of ease, "Later, I returned to the county and started working. I wanted to do something for the villagers, so I thought about starting a project, which led me to meet you. I took you to the capital because you, like me, had no ties. I hoped you would be my representative in Pengfei City, but after being with you, I felt I should give you happiness."

"Thank you for believing in me."

Thinking of this, Lin Yuqing remembered that morning when she woke up and Xu Junran said those words to her.

She said softly, "I didn't expect it to turn out this way. If I had known, I wouldn't have gone to the capital with you. It's unfair to Xiaoyue."

Hearing her mention Yuan Xiaoyue, Xu Junran was taken aback, then said, "You don't need to feel guilty. Xiaoyue and I have nothing."

Lin Yuqing shook her head, "You can't fool me. The way you look at her tells me you care about her. She likes you too!"

Xu Junran was silent. Women's intuition was sometimes terrifying, able to see through the surface to the core.

But he couldn't tell Lin Yuqing that his feelings for Yuan Xiaoyue stemmed from a debt from his past life.

"I'm sorry."

For the first time, Xu Junran found it hard to say these three words.

Lin Yuqing smiled and walked to Xu Junran's side, saying softly, "Don't say sorry to me. You're my man, and I chose you. For us women, this is fate. No matter what happens, I'll be by your side as long as you don't reject me. I'll follow you for life."

Xu Junran was stunned. He thought Lin Yuqing would use the typical woman's tactics of crying, making a scene, or threatening to commit suicide. But she didn't cry or make a fuss; instead, she comforted him. This unexpected change left Xu Junran at a loss, even shocked.

Lin Yuqing's eyes were like water, reflecting the moonlight, making her look especially alluring. "No matter what, you're my first man. Even if you don't want me, I'll follow you. This life, you're stuck with me, the fox spirit. I'll follow you wherever you go, unless I die!"

Xu Junran smiled bitterly. When women got emotional, they were truly incomprehensible. Didn't Lin Yuqing know that love wasn't something to be given up easily?

Before he could speak, Lin Yuqing huffed, "Go over there, I'll lay out a bedsheet."

Xu Junran was taken aback, then noticed Lin Yuqing's blushing face and her voice getting softer, "Actually... I've always liked you... I liked you the first time I saw you... I'm not a good woman... My reputation is bad, and I've brought death to my family... Thank you for letting me work at the commune... I've always wanted to repay you... Don't consider me... Just do what you want..."

Xu Junran smiled bitterly, realizing he had underestimated Lin Yuqing. This woman had deep thoughts, and he had thought she was forced into this, but she had long harbored feelings for him.

"Why are you doing this to yourself?" Xu Junran sighed, feeling helpless.

Lin Yuqing blushed and said softly, "When I was little, my mother told me that if I met a man who would fight for me, I should follow him, even if he had a family. Because a man who would fight for me is worth following for life."

Xu Junran then remembered that he had heard from Yuan Xiaoyue or someone else that Lin Yuqing's biological mother was unmarried and pregnant, and before she died of illness, she entrusted Lin Yuqing to her relatives, who arranged her marriage.

His face showed a hint of discomfort, and he said softly, "Sister Yuqing, I'm not worth it."

Lin Yuqing leaned gently on Xu Junran's shoulder, as if talking to herself, "At least once in life, one should forget oneself for someone. Not for a result, not for companionship; not for possession, not even for love. Just to meet you in my best years."

PS: The last sentence is actually a poem by Xi Murong, which I really like, so I used it here. Sometimes, we really do meet someone who is willing to give everything for us. They might become our spouse, or just a close friend, but no matter the outcome, it's worth cherishing and remembering.