Chapter 19

This posture made Fan Xing feel uncomfortable, and the pinkish, delicate lobes of his ears turned slightly red. He gently shook his head and said, “No, didn’t we use your card to buy clothes earlier? But for this meal, I’m treating you, and when I say I’ll treat, I mean it!”

In reality, he didn’t intend to split expenses with He Qingmo so clearly, especially now that they had their marriage certificate. If they made everything too clear-cut, He Qingmo might suspect that Fan Xing wanted a divorce.

So as long as the expenses weren’t unacceptably high, He Qingmo could spend as he pleased, and Fan Xing wouldn’t refuse.

But today was different. He had said he would treat, and he couldn’t back out just because the price was too high.

He Qingmo’s eyes landed on Fan Xing’s earlobes, and he slightly furrowed his brows before a mischievous smile crossed his face. “Alright, but I’ll charge you interest.”

Fan Xing asked, “Ah? How much?” He didn’t expect He Qingmo to take this so seriously, and his clear eyes stared at the man with surprise.

The man released his grip on Fan Xing’s chin and lightly pinched his pink earlobe, raising an eyebrow. “We’ll talk about it when you have the money to repay me.”

Without giving Fan Xing a chance to object, he let go and pulled him out of the restaurant.

Fan Xing’s earlobes were burning hot from the touch, and he realized that this was definitely a trap. This man was setting a trap for him to fall into.

Shouldn’t he just return the money now? That way, he wouldn’t have to pay interest and wouldn’t fall into the trap.

But… he only had 8,000 yuan.

Although he had received a scholarship from Tsinghua University, he had other expenses to consider. It was a bit risky to return the money without ensuring a source of income first.

Sigh…

Why did it feel like he was aware it was a trap but still had to jump into it?

With a whirlwind of thoughts in his mind, Fan Xing was already pulled out of the restaurant and into the car by He Qingmo.

It was now past 8 p.m., and it would take a long time to drive back to He Qingmo’s house from here.

Fan Xing had been out all day and was a bit tired. The car was driving smoothly, and he was starting to doze off.

Just as he was about to fall asleep, a phone call came in.

He groggily took out his phone without looking at the caller ID and answered it. A stream of English words entered his ears.

He instantly woke up, clutching the phone in his hand unconsciously. “Uh…”

Without waiting for him to finish, the caller, Dana, interrupted him eagerly. “Did you really give up on H University and choose to go back to your home country for college? You’re not coming back?”

Fan Xing, now a bit more composed, couldn’t help but glance at the man beside him. He felt somewhat guilty for no apparent reason, and his voice unconsciously lowered as he replied, “Yes, I’ve received the admission notice from Tsinghua University here, and they even gave me a scholarship.”

Since the conversation was in English, Fan Xing automatically switched to English mode, which made his speech much smoother than in Chinese.

He Qingmo, who was driving, cast a couple of glances at him.

“Are you crazy? Even if domestic universities are good, can they compare to H University? Do you not know how many people worldwide would kill for the opportunity to attend H University? You’re giving up this chance to go to Tsinghua University? Besides, you haven’t been back for so many years, why are you suddenly returning now? Is something wrong? Tell me, I can help you.”

Fan Xing couldn’t see the caller’s current expression, but he could sense that the person on the other end was anxious and impatient.

His chest felt a bit stuffy, but he quickly dismissed the feeling. He chuckled softly and said, “Didn’t I tell you? My mom is in my home country. This time, by coming back, I won’t be so far away from her. I think it’s worth it. Besides, I feel that Tsinghua University…”

“So, you really don’t plan to come back, huh?” Dana’s voice was somewhat subdued, and his emotions were hard to discern.

Fan Xing’s knuckles turned white as he clutched his phone. He responded softly, “Yes.”

Before he could finish his sentence, the caller hung up!

Fan Xing stared at the disconnected phone in a daze, feeling like a needle had gently pricked his heart, withdrawn, and then pricked again. It didn’t hurt much, but it did hurt a bit.

He didn’t notice that the car had slowly pulled over to the side of the road until someone grabbed his hand, gently prying it open. A warm thumb began to caress his palm, and he realized that he had pinched his palm again.

He looked up at He Qingmo, feeling both grateful and a bit guilty. He explained involuntarily, “It’s a friend of mine. We had planned to go to university together.”

The man didn’t look at him but lowered his head to carefully inspect Fan Xing’s palm. “Is this friend very important to you?”

Fan Xing bit his lip and nodded, “Yes.” Then he apologized meekly, “I’m sorry, I…”

Before he could finish, the man grabbed his hand and pulled him into his embrace, holding him gently.

The man’s voice came from above Fan Xing’s head, gentle and uncharacteristically tender. “I’m tired from driving. Let me hold you for a while.”

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2 Responses

  1. Stephanie says:

    Thanks for the update

  2. Blood says:

    Thanks for the update

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