You're my wife, don't doubt it!

The dim light shone through the leaves, casting dappled shadows.

“It looks great,” Xiao Yao said.

"Mmm." Yu Luying nodded, letting Xiao Yao hold her arm.

How are we going to get back?

"I'm tired, let's take a taxi, it's not far anyway."

"Let's take the No. 6 trolleybus. I want to ride the trolleybus with you. It feels so good."

"up to you."

Chapter 194 Your daughter, Xiao Jie, is still a girl.

2023-05-17

Xiao Yao and Yu Luying took the No. 6 trolleybus home together.

As dusk fell, the streetlights came on, illuminating the entire city.

This dilapidated No. 6 trolleybus, with its two thick, long black trolleys trailing behind it, moved slowly down the street, emitting a low hum.

Just looking at this tram, one can't help but wonder if it just came from the 90s, traveling through a time tunnel. There weren't many people on the tram; most had chosen other modes of transportation. Xiao Yao and Yu Luying sat in the back row by the window, where they could see the night outside and the flickering streetlights.

The lights inside the tram are off; they are only turned on when the tram stops to pick up or drop off passengers.

The atmosphere in the car was somewhat somber. Xiao Yao was looking down at his phone, but Shen Jie still hadn't appeared.

Yu Luying sat beside him, leaning slightly outward, deliberately not wanting to talk to him.

Her face was expressionless, but her eyes revealed a hint of fatigue.

"Little Apple".

……

"Yu Luying".

"Hmm." Yu Luying turned her body back a little.

"Do me a favor," Xiao Yao said wearily.

"What kind of help?" Yu Luying asked.

“Your sister has been out of contact for a whole day, and I’m about to explode with frustration,” Xiao Yao said, rubbing his forehead. “If you keep acting up at a time like this, I feel like I’m about to sink into a sea of ​​despair.”

Yu Luying: "..."

"And how should I put it," Xiao Yao told Yu Luying, "this is our first date since we became boyfriend and girlfriend, and I hope it will have a pleasant ending that people will remember. Do you understand what I mean?"

Yu Luying stretched out her slender arm, took Xiao Yao's arm, and rested her head on his shoulder.

"Thank you, thank you," Xiao Yao said. "Thank you, thank you so much."

"Can't you still get in touch with your sister?" Yu Luying asked.

"Hmm." Xiao Yao nodded. "I'm thinking of contacting Zhou Xiaoying, getting her home address, and then—"

"Don't be impulsive," Yu Luying said, taking out her phone and dialing Shen Jie's number again.

"Hello, the number you dialed is currently switched off."

"It's off," Yu Luying said to Xiao Yao.

"Hiss—" Xiao Yao gasped.

“Don’t be so impulsive. Don’t go to someone’s house to complain over a disagreement,” Yu Luying said. “Don’t make things worse by causing trouble when there was nothing wrong.”

“I know,” Xiao Yao said softly, “I don’t want to do anything reckless either, but just waiting like this and doing nothing makes me feel really uncomfortable.”

“I understand,” Yu Luying said to Xiao Yao, “but for a man to succeed, he needs to be able to keep his composure, right?”

“…Hmm,” Xiao Yao said.

"Big Rabbit, I have something to tell you." Yu Luying was silent for a while before speaking earnestly to Xiao Yao.

"Okay, go ahead and say it." Xiao Yao gently stroked the girl's arm.

“As for me, I won’t interfere in your and your sister’s affairs anymore,” Yu Luying carefully chose her words. “What is right and what is wrong, I don’t need to explain, you understand the principles. What you two did and didn’t do is your business with God, and I really shouldn’t interfere.”

Hearing these ambiguous words, Xiao Yao kept his mouth shut, waiting for her to continue.

“But I always hope that my friend,” Yu Luying said, “is a responsible man.”

“I have it,” Xiao Yao declared.

“Regardless of what you have done or haven’t done in the past,” Yu Luying said softly, “and regardless of what you will do in the future, I have only one requirement for you: you must have a basic bottom line.”

"What you mean by 'bottom line' is..." Xiao Yao cautiously confirmed with the other person, "I know that premarital sex is against the commandment..."

“The bottom line means, at the very least, to put it another way, no matter if you’re with Shen Jie or with… anyone else, you have to take precautions,” Yu Luying said, her eyes fixed on the back of the chair in front of her. “It’s about being responsible for the girl. That kind of thing can be very harmful to a girl’s body and could very well ruin her life, or even her future.”

“…I know,” Xiao Yao said.

“If my father back then—that man back then—had had even the basic principles, instead of only caring about himself,” Yu Luying said softly, “then I wouldn’t exist in this world, and my mother’s life wouldn’t have been like this, completely dragged down. She should have had a better life; she could have had her own life.”

It's better without you? Are you serious?

“But I don’t think you’re a burden,” Xiao Yao said. “I don’t think your presence is a bad thing either.”

Xiao Yao noticed that Yu Luying's expression was not good, so he added, "However, I understand what you mean."

So that's what bothers you, Xiao Yao thought to himself.

“Yes, this is it.” Yu Luying nodded and said.

Xiao Yao gripped her hand tightly, and continued to gently stroke her arm with his other hand: "You have my word."

"Mm," Yu Luying nodded.

“So, we are cool now?” Xiao Yao squeezed Yu Luying’s hand.

“Cool,” Yu Luying said.

Xiao Yao went to Yu Luying's house for dinner. Yu Luying wanted to take him to Madier Cafe to practice his math problems, but Xiao Yao refused, saying he was too tired.

“Being tired is one thing,” Xiao Yao said, waving his phone at Yu Luying. “Not being able to concentrate is another.”

"Xiao Yao," Yu Luying glanced at the door her mother had just left through and lowered her voice, "You need to learn to regulate your emotions, otherwise do you want to revolve your whole life around her? As soon as she ignores you or you have a fight, you get so anxious that you neglect your responsibilities?"

“If you ignore me or we have a fight, I won’t be able to concentrate on my studies.” Xiao Yao forced a smile and gently pinched Yu Luying’s cheek.

Xiao Yao wanted to go home to rest and wait, but Yu Luying refused to leave him alone no matter what.

“I have to keep an eye on you, otherwise what if you go to someone’s house and cause trouble?” Yu Luying said.

"I assure you, I won't—not tonight," Xiao Yao said confidently.

“I don’t believe you,” Yu Luying insisted, “and I have to be with you at a time like this.”

“But right now I’d rather be alone,” Xiao Yao said with a wry smile. “You’ve had a long day, and I want you to get some rest—this puts a lot of pressure on me.”

Yu Luying was very stubborn, but Xiao Yao was even more stubborn. In the end, he persuaded her to stay at his home with her mother.

“We keep in touch via QQ,” Xiao Yao said.

As Yu Luying saw Xiao Yao off, Xiao Yao noticed a faint, darker stain on the white sock where the lake water had soaked the right side of her foot. The unwetted part of the sock appeared even purer white, while the wet and then dried part showed a slight yellow tinge. The stain created a gradient effect, shimmering slightly under the light.

This clearly demonstrates that the lake in War Park is not as clean as it appears.

However, Xiao Yao had no time to think about this.

On his way back to his alley, Xiao Yao used the public phone at the corner store to make three calls to Shen Jie.

Both are turned off.

Xiao Yao clearly remembers that his last meeting with Shen Jie was right here.

After returning home, Xiao Yao went to his daughter's room, but no one was there.

Since he couldn't receive the signal from here in 2034, Xiao Yao went back to his room to wait.

He didn't turn on the light; he just sat in complete darkness on the hard sofa in the room, tapping the lid of the sewing box with his fingertips.

Waiting for someone is like drinking alcohol.

It's like drinking a glass of ice-cold water, and then, over a very long time, each drop condenses into a hot tear.

Xiao Yao felt as if he were trapped in a mysterious vortex, unable to extricate himself.

The boy tried to distract himself by listening to music, reading, and chatting with Yu Luying, but he could not concentrate.

He kept thinking about Shen Jie, who had gone missing.

He began to feel that his life had become meaningless because Shen Jie had become the most important part of his life, and he could not imagine what life would be like without Shen Jie.

The boy didn't know how to manage his emotions; anxiety, like a swarm of termites, was consuming his very bones. He recalled the happy times he had spent with Shen Jie—memories that only intensified his worries and anxiety.

Xiao Yao waited all night for news from Shen Jie, but received nothing. He felt abandoned, completely lost and without direction or purpose.

Even with Yu Luying, it's the same.

Extreme anxiety made him want to release some pressure.

Xiao Yao submitted his application to Yu Luying via QQ.