Chapter 28 Part 2

So much so that now, even after learning Lin Qingye's secret—that he had known her for so long and had even beaten up Su Zheng for bullying her—

she still found it hard to understand what kind of feelings Lin Qingye had for her back then.

But no matter how tangled the previous misunderstandings were, they were already separated now.

"Why did you come here, really?"

"To say thank you," Lin Qingye tilted his head. "For the video clarification."

"No need. It was related to my father's case too. I would have helped clarify for anyone."

The current Xu Zhinan was different from before. With every sentence, she tried her best to distance herself from him.

Lin Qingye sat on the low sofa. The shop's lighting made his pupils appear lighter, a faint amber color. He looked up at Xu Zhinan for a moment. "Ah Nan."

Xu Zhinan didn't answer, just looked at him.

"What will it take for you to forgive me?" His voice was very soft.

"Is it important to you whether I forgive you or not?"

"It is." His smile was a bit lonely. For the first time, he confessed the secret he had buried for so long. "I like you so much."

"..."

Xu Zhinan lowered her head and continued to organize her backpack. After a while, she said, "But I don't want to like you anymore."

Because his pride had been hurt by Xu Zhinan's unintentional words in the past, Lin Qingye had never been able to understand his feelings for her.

And later, although it seemed to others that Xu Zhinan was the one whose feelings were being played with, in Lin Qingye's heart, he had an indescribable desire to conquer her. It was probably because when he first saw her, it was like looking up at her; she was like a charity bestowed from on high. No matter how their relationship changed afterward, that first glance was deeply ingrained in his heart.

But now, Xu Zhinan calmly said, "But I don't want to like you anymore."

Besides panic, what he felt more was heartache.

He struggled with his own obsession, never once seriously considering Xu Zhinan's feelings.

"Besides, I never felt that you particularly liked me," Xu Zhinan said.

"Ah Nan," he called out in a low voice. "The first time I saw you, I was 17."

The 17-year-old Lin Qingye had just formed his band a year ago. He hadn't won the Golden Melody Award yet and was still unknown. He was studying at the notoriously chaotic No. 7 Middle School, had a terrible relationship with his parents, and apart from his face, he really had nothing to boast about at the time.

And what about Xu Zhinan at that time?

She attended the best high school in the province, No. 1 Middle School, had excellent grades, a gentle personality, many outstanding friends, was serious about everything she did, and seemed to be eternally carefree.

Lin Qingye had once heard her talking to a friend about her goals. She said she wanted to get into Pingchuan University.

He had also seen her father pick her up from school. Xu Zhinan would link arms with her father, talking and laughing.

"17 years old."

Xu Zhinan repeated softly, calculating in her head. She was 16 then, in her first year of high school.

"Where did you see me?"

"On the commercial pedestrian street, by the 7-Eleven."

Lin Qingye only briefly told her about that day.

But for Xu Zhinan, that day was just an ordinary day, and she had no impression of it whatsoever.

Lin Qingye didn't say more, as that day hadn't been a pleasant one for him.

"Because of my relationship with my parents, maybe I've never known how to treat someone well my whole life."

Xu Zhinan remembered what Ji Yan had mentioned to her before, that Lin Qingye's relationship with his parents seemed to be very bad.

"You and your parents... what happened?" After a pause, she added, "It's okay if you don't want to talk about it."

"Then let's not talk about it." He answered quickly, smiling. "I'm afraid you'll think I'm playing the victim."

"..."

Xu Zhinan knew Lin Qingye's family was very powerful and thought it might be some kind of wealthy family drama that was hard for her world to comprehend. She would occasionally hear Gu Congwang mention some gossip and secrets about his uncles' families.

She lowered her head and suddenly saw the corner of something sticking out from Lin Qingye's pant leg. It was wrapped in kraft paper, and there seemed to be writing on it.

Lin Qingye noticed her gaze, looked down as well, and furrowed his brows slightly—it was what that female charlatan had given him last time. He had forgotten to take it out.

He reached out to stuff it back in, but the moment he moved, the small paper packet fell out with a very soft "pat," hitting the ground.

Xu Zhinan's gaze followed it down. Thinking it was some kind of medicinal powder, she asked, "What's this?"

Lin Qingye had just picked it up. He paused at her words but ended up handing it over.

A line of characters was written on it: Take with warm water, all at once. The inner demon will be severed, and a fateful marriage will come swiftly. Heavens and Earth, be my witness.

Xu Zhinan: "..."

Such mystical words were completely out of character for Lin Qingye, so much so that she immediately glanced up at him. His expression was normal, however, as if he didn't find it embarrassing at all.

She lowered her gaze and scanned the twenty characters again.

Because she was a tattoo artist, Xu Zhinan was more sensitive to this kind of handwriting than the average person. She soon found it somewhat familiar.

She was stunned for a moment, then remembered. "This—was it given to you by an old woman on Nanqian Small Road?"

Lin Qingye didn't expect her to actually know her. It figured the "little nun" and the old one would have things to talk about. He raised an eyebrow and gave a soft "mm."

Xu Zhinan furrowed her brow slightly and opened the kraft paper packet. Inside was some white powder with the smell of Chinese herbs.

She folded it back up neatly and asked, "How much did she sell it to you for?"

"A thousand."

Ah.

A thousand yuan.

Xu Zhinan opened her mouth, made no sound, and then closed it again.

For just one packet of this stuff, it was so expensive.

Lin Qingye was different from Xu Zhinan. He was a pure atheist with no religious beliefs. In the past, seeing Xu Zhinan holding Buddhist scriptures just struck him as absurd and interesting.

Now that she had discovered he'd spent a thousand yuan on such useless junk, Lin Qingye felt a bit awkward.

After a pause, he added, "She said only by treating people with sincerity can one achieve their goal, that I had to be sincere towards my fated partner. She also said I have an inner demon, and this thing in your hand is for getting rid of it."

Xu Zhinan asked, "Do you believe it?"

Lin Qingye naturally didn't believe it, which was why the paper packet was still in his pocket, uneaten.

But the reasons he'd paid this thousand-yuan "idiot tax" for the packet were hard to explain.

Perhaps it was because Xu Zhinan had rejected him again that night, and the thought of 'trying a long shot' flashed through his mind. Or perhaps it was because he thought of Xu Zhinan while talking to the charlatan, and their exchange of "That's highly disrespectful."

But Xu Zhinan was a devout believer, so Lin Qingye couldn't just say he didn't believe it.

Just as he was hesitating, Xu Zhinan's eyes widened in disbelief. She said, "You didn't actually believe it, did you?"

"..." Lin Qingye's Adam's apple bobbed. "No."

The denial was crisp.

But Xu Zhinan no longer believed him. She looked at him with pity, as if he'd been scammed. "I don't know if that old woman's fortune-telling is accurate, but the other things she sells for luck and warding off evil are all scams. I know a man who got his fortune told by her, and after eating what she gave him, he had diarrhea and vomited for days. When he went to confront her, she refused to admit anything. And she sells everything at very high prices."

"You absolutely must not eat it," she urged again.

"..."

Lin Qingye never would have thought that during their time apart, while Xu Zhinan had been avoiding him and not speaking to him, her first long speech to him would be to persuade him not to be scammed by a charlatan.

Perhaps afraid he would overreact to being scammed, Xu Zhinan comforted him, "But that old lady is raising her little grandson by herself. He's only in elementary school. Maybe she needs to earn his tuition fees."

"Just think of it as doing a good deed," Xu Zhinan said. "Good deeds need not be seen by man, for they are known to heaven."

Hearing her say these formal, scholarly words again, Lin Qingye let out a low chuckle.

His laugh finally made Xu Zhinan recall their current relationship.

She pressed her lips together, grew quiet again, and picked up her bag. "Are you leaving? I'm closing the shop."

"Yeah." Lin Qingye stood up.

The young man was tall with long legs and an unrestrained bearing. The hair at his temples was shaved very short, his face sharply angled. Under the incandescent light, his expression seemed to shift between light and shadow, exquisitely cut by the light.

He just stood there, watching Xu Zhinan for a moment, then stepped forward.

He walked in front of her and bent down, assuming the posture of a hug.

But Xu Zhinan suddenly remembered the time he came to her shop drunk. She subconsciously stepped back, dodging his embrace.

Lin Qingye's movement paused. He didn't force it, instead just bracing his hands on his knees and bending down, bringing his gaze level with hers. "Ah Nan."

"Hm?" she responded very softly.

"Let me like you one more time."

Lin Qingye said.