Forced into a romantic relationship

The following night, Han Zhou waited outside the school gate, watching Zhong Yin walk out. Under the streetlights, the girl's shadow was stretched long and thin, standing out conspicuously amidst the crowd of students leaving school.

Zhong Yin ignored the curious stares of her classmates behind her, jogged over to his side, her ponytail flying behind her, and asked in a low voice, "Did my mom ask you about what happened last night?"

"not yet."

Han Zhou shook his head. "I guess they want to ask us together when both of us are here."

"Why do you have to wait for me to be there..."

Zhong Yin turned her face away, her ears turning slightly red. "If she doesn't ask, won't you take the initiative to explain?"

She knew perfectly well that what happened last night was just a misunderstanding, but all day long, the image kept popping into her mind, making her feel embarrassed and ashamed. Even though she felt completely at ease, she didn't really want to bring it up in front of her parents.

"I would like to explain, but I can't find the opportunity."

"How could you not find an opportunity?"

“Your parents have been together almost the whole day. I’m not sure if your aunt told your uncle about what happened last night. He was there, so I can’t bring it up.”

Han Zhou glanced at the girl, his tone helpless, "You don't want your dad to know about this, do you?"

Zhong Yin was speechless for a moment, and after several seconds, she said dejectedly, "Well... if my mom asks later, remember to explain it to her clearly."

"I know."

After a pause, Han Zhou hesitated and said tentatively, "But... do we have to explain everything clearly?"

"What do you mean?"

"You kissed me last night—"

Zhong Yin's cheeks flushed red, and she quickly covered his mouth, her eyes filled with panic: "You absolutely mustn't tell my parents about this!"

Clearly, Uncle Zhong and Aunt Ye are unaware of what happened at last night's concert, or at least not the whole story.

Han Zhou pulled the girl's hand away and chuckled, "Why are you panicking? I won't say anything."

His reaction was much calmer than expected, which should have been a good thing, but Zhong Yin felt a pang of sadness for no reason. She glared at him fiercely first, and then quickly added, "You're not allowed to pretend nothing happened!"

She froze after she finished speaking.

What is this all about? He's not allowed to mention it, yet he's not allowed to forget it.

Han Zhou, however, seemed unconcerned, and simply said softly, "I will keep it in mind."

In fact, it's not that he doesn't care, but rather that he doesn't need to care.

After all, once she returns to the future, Sister Yin probably won't remember anything that happened during that time.

But... what if?
What if Sister Yin doesn't forget, or what if she remembers one day? How will they face each other then?

Xiao Yixia said he should give Sister Yin an explanation.

In a sense, Xiao Yixia's words can be equated with the words of the future Yixia.

And the Jong Eun in front of us will one day become the Eun-jie of the future.

Therefore, it's better to leave everything for the future.

If such a "what if" really exists, then he should give Yin Jie a proper explanation in the future.

Along the way, the two planned ahead and spent a lot of time coordinating their statements so that they could withstand any questioning.

Back home, I thought that even if I didn't have to face a serious family meeting, I would at least be pulled aside by Ye Xiaorou for a talk. However, strangely, she seemed to have completely forgotten about it. From the time the two of us entered the house until we went back to our room to rest, she didn't mention it at all.

Since Han Zhou didn't have a cell phone, Zhong Yin couldn't send him a message to ask for his opinion. Left with no other choice, Zhong Yin had to sneak into Han Zhou's room in the middle of the night to discuss countermeasures together.

To avoid repeating the same mistake, she specially changed into a tight-fitting plush nightgown tonight, fastening every button tightly to prevent any accidental exposure like last night.

"Why do you think my mom never asks us about this?"

Han Zhou considered for a moment: "Is Auntie's memory not very good?"

"Your memory is bad."

Zhong Yin rolled her eyes at him. "My mom remembers even the day I wet the bed when I was little. How could she forget something like this?"

Seeing Han Zhou looking at her thoughtfully, she blushed, realizing she shouldn't have used such an example. She immediately glared at him and said, "I'm not going to tell you when I wet the bed!"

"I didn't mean to ask that."

Han Zhou touched his nose and pondered, "Since Auntie couldn't possibly have forgotten, and hasn't asked us about it, could she be waiting for us to come over and confess?"

Zhong Yin shook her head: "If that were the case, she wouldn't have gone back to her bedroom so early."

On the bed, Xiao Lengqiu was still awake and didn't interrupt, just quietly watching the two puzzled people.

"Then... how about we just pretend nothing happened?"

After a brief moment of thought, Zhong Yin made this suggestion.

She felt that her mother didn't ask because she was concerned about her own feelings, and that she might find time to talk to her alone.

"This is the only way."

Han Zhou nodded. Aunt Ye didn't ask, so she must have her own reasons. Since Sister Yin had said so, he didn't need to think too much about it.

After Zhong Yin left, Han Zhou lay back down on the bed. Xiao Lengqiu gently hugged his arm and whispered, "What happened last night?"

"There was a small misunderstanding." Han Zhou smiled.

"You and Sister Zhong Yin?" The girl tilted her head, her long hair scattered messily on the pillow.

"That's it."

To be honest, even though they had been sharing a bed for several days, Han Zhou still felt a strange sensation looking at this girl who seemed to have shrunk down to her exact size from the future.

"Has the misunderstanding been cleared up now?"

"It will be untied."

Xiao Lengqiu stopped talking about it. She didn't even ask what the misunderstanding was. It seemed that as long as Han Zhou didn't care, there was nothing to care about.

She then asked, "We're going back now, aren't we?"

"Correct."

Han Zhou patted her head. "Your grandfather said on the phone that the floods over there have been mostly dealt with, and work and school can resume soon."

Xiao Lengqiu gave a soft "hmm," and after a long while, she said in a very soft voice:
"I like it here."

Han Zhou was taken aback for a moment, then smiled and said, "If you like it, you can come and play often in the future. Your uncles, aunts, and Sister Zhong Yin will all welcome you."

"May I?"

"Of course you can. Study hard, and you might even be able to study in this city in the future."

"But my parents might not agree..."

Xiao Lengqiu tugged at his sleeve, "They hope I can go to school in the city where they work in the future. Grandpa's health is not good, and it's too hard for him to support my schooling."

She didn't finish her sentence, but considering the nature of those parents, Han Zhou easily understood what she meant—if she didn't obediently go to school in the city where those two worked, she might not be able to get their support in the future.

Han Zhou felt as if he had been stabbed in the heart.

He suddenly remembered that when he was chatting with Grandpa Wang, the other party mentioned that Xiao Lengqiu had started working part-time to support herself from a very young age. She would give half of every penny of her scholarship to him as a filial son, and carefully save the other half, never spending it.

It wasn't until she entered high school that she spent two hundred yuan to buy her first mobile phone.

It was only at this moment that Han Zhou truly realized that the girl had endured far more hardship than he had imagined in order to come to Lincheng and see him again.

But she never mentioned these things.

Even when treated coldly or verbally abused, he never mentioned it once.

"It's okay, I'll figure something out."

Han Zhou took a deep breath, gently pulled the girl into his arms, and whispered, "If you like someone, you can go for it."

"Really?" Xiao Lengqiu looked up and met his eyes.

Han Zhou thought she was referring to the statement that he would find a way, so he nodded seriously and chuckled, "Of course it's true, I'm an omnipotent alien."

Xiao Lengqiu didn't speak again, but silently buried her face in his chest. Her warm breath seeped through his clothes, soothing his skin, gradually becoming even and long, as if she had fallen asleep.

Han Zhou sighed inwardly and turned off the warm yellow bedside lamp. The room was completely enveloped in darkness, with only a few scattered, unknown glimmers of light seeping in from outside the window.

Just as Han Zhou's consciousness began to fade, he heard a very soft yet exceptionally clear sound from his arms, like a small pebble being thrown into a calm, deep pool:
I like you too.

"what?"

Han Zhou was startled, instantly losing all sleepiness. He thought he had misheard, or that he was having a half-awake, half-asleep illusion.

I like you too.

In the darkness, the girl, who should have been asleep, repeated herself without hesitation, pronouncing each word clearly. Her voice was innocent and naive, yet it carried a seriousness that was beyond her years.

Han Zhou's fingers twitched, as if he wanted to turn the light back on to see the other person's expression, but he ultimately held back.

really...

Is it because I only dare to confess my feelings to children that I am now being confessed to by a child?

He was silent for a moment, then asked in a sigh-like tone, "Do you know what 'like' means?"

"do not know."

Xiao Lengqiu shook her head honestly. Of course she knew what liking was, but she also understood that a child's liking was different from an adult's.

"But I want to try my best."

She paused for a moment, then continued, "Just like Sister Zhong Yin."

It seems that Sister Yin bears at least half the responsibility for how this child will turn out...

Han Zhou opened his mouth, and after a long while, he asked, "Do you remember what I told you yesterday?"

"remember."

Xiao Lengqiu nodded, her cheek rubbing against his chest. "We'll definitely see each other again someday."

"I said so much, and this is all you remembered?" Han Zhou smiled wryly.

"Ok?"

The girl made a nasal sound, as if wondering what else she should remember.

"When we meet again in the future, I will forget you."

Han Zhou had already said this yesterday, but he chose to repeat it again at this time.

"It's alright," Xiao Lengqiu said softly.

“I will scold you, yell at you, and think you are abnormal.”

"It's okay."

Seemingly sensing Han Zhou's emotions, Xiao Lengqiu crawled out of the covers and, just like yesterday, pressed his head into her thin arms.

“Someone like me doesn’t deserve your affection at all,” Han Zhou continued.

"worth it."

Xiao Lengqiu didn't say anything to comfort him; she simply responded to Han Zhou's every word with the gentlest tone, patiently and gently.

Han Zhou gritted his teeth: "I will be two-timing you in the future..."

"Playing both sides... what does that mean?" The girl tilted her head.

"It's like liking two different girls at the same time, wanting to be with both of them, get married together, and live together in the future... In short, I'm not a loyal person."

As if afraid that Xiao Lengqiu wouldn't understand how hateful he was as a scumbag, Han Zhou earnestly recounted his sinful thoughts.

"That……"

Xiao Lengqiu fell silent for a few seconds before tentatively asking, "Will you marry me in the future?"

Han Zhou paused, stunned: "You probably still don't understand what I mean..."

No… she understood.

If she really didn't understand, she wouldn't have foolishly waited for him for so long.

But I'm clearly just a greedy bastard...

"Senior Wang Lengqiu..."

Han Zhou felt a tightness in his chest and almost unconsciously uttered this title that belonged to the future.

But Xiao Lengqiu didn't care. She just gave a soft "hmm" and waited quietly for him to continue.

"I'm sorry," Han Zhou suddenly said.

Xiao Lengqiu didn't know why the aliens were apologizing again, but no matter how many times they said it, she would always reply the same way:
"It's ok."

In the darkness, a long silence spread. Han Zhou could feel the warmth of the girl's breath, falling evenly on the side of his neck.

After a long silence, he spoke again, "Thank you."

"You can only say 'thank you' and 'sorry' once," Xiao Lengqiu reminded her.

Han Zhou paused for a moment, then chuckled, a laugh tinged with a mixture of unease and relief: "Alright, then I'll choose 'I'm sorry' this time. This should be the second to last time I'll apologize to you."

"The second to last?"

"Yes, the second to last."

Xiao Lengqiu didn't ask when the next apology would be, but simply asked softly, "Will you have remembered me by then?"

"Yes." Han Zhou smiled, his voice softening, "The kind of memory I'll never forget."

"That……"

The girl's fingers unconsciously clenched his sleeve; in the darkness, her tension was almost palpable.

"When that time comes... can we get married?"

"..."

Han Zhou exhaled a long, slow breath, as if trying to empty all the pent-up emotions from his chest.

Senior Wang Lengqiu.

He repeated the name in his mind, and suddenly felt a soreness and softness in a certain part of his chest, as if something was gently gripping it.

If you continue like this...

I think I might actually be falling for you.

“If you’re willing,” he said.

Just as Xiao Yixia said, he should give an explanation for everyone's liking.

He could leave the explanation for Sister Yin to the future, but for this girl, he had to leave the explanation for the present.

He knew that regardless of such an agreement, Xiao Lengqiu would wait until the day she truly understood what love was.

That was nearly ten years ago, yet he still couldn't change the other person's feelings.

If it was truly my fault that I imprisoned her, then I should release her myself and spend an even longer period of time atoning for this ten-year "imprisonment."

...Although this is somewhat different from what I initially thought.

"I really am a complete scumbag."

Han Zhou inwardly mocked himself.

He came to the past originally to win over Wang Lengqiu, but unexpectedly he was won over by this little girl instead.

That's incredibly embarrassing.

Most importantly... starting today, he will have more boats at his feet.

But that's something to consider later. As he just said, if you like something, you should try your best to achieve it.

Without waiting for Xiao Lengqiu's response, he suddenly spoke, his voice exceptionally clear in the silent darkness.

"Before we leave Lincheng, let's take a group photo together." (End of Chapter)