Song Yanzheng’s thoughts stalled for a few seconds before he confirmed again in a tone laced with disbelief.
“Yanyan, what did you say? Who is he?”
“I’m Lin Yan’s boyfriend.” This time, Xing Yu took over the conversation, naturally extending his right hand toward Song Yanzheng. “Hello. Xing Yu.”
Song Yanzheng stiffly offered his hand. “Hello, I’m Song Yanzheng.”
Xing Yu withdrew his hand and casually placed it on Lin Yan’s shoulder, pulling her gently toward him.
“Mmm, I’ve heard a lot about you. Yanyan has mentioned you before. She said…” Xing Yu smiled silently. “You’re her brother.”
For some reason, a layer of bitterness that couldn’t be scraped away spread across Song Yanzheng’s heart.
He drew in a breath and looked at Lin Yan again, making one final attempt at confirmation.
“Yanyan, you’re messing with me, right? You just got back to your hometown—there’s no way you’d have a boyfriend this quickly. And all these years, there hasn’t been a single man by your side other than me. You wouldn’t be so careless with your feelings. Are you doing this just to make me angry, so…”
“Brother Yanzheng.” Lin Yan cut him off decisively. “You’re overthinking it. I’m not that immature. Xing Yu and I met through a blind date a few days ago, and we got together because we felt we were a good match. I genuinely think he’s a great guy and want to keep seeing him. It has nothing to do with anyone, anything, or you.”
Song Yanzheng stared into Lin Yan’s eyes, trying to dig up traces of a lie from her gaze.
But he didn’t catch what he was hoping to see.
After a long moment, he furrowed his brow slightly and spoke with extreme seriousness. “Yanyan, feelings aren’t a game. I’m not against you dating, but ask yourself honestly—do you really know him? Do you love him?”
“People can be understood slowly, and feelings can be cultivated over time. As long as I’m willing, none of that matters.”
Song Yanzheng was momentarily at a loss for words.
Lin Yan had liked him for so many years, yet she had never once revealed her feelings in front of him.
Now, suddenly hearing her speak with such certainty, he felt an inexplicable tightness in his chest.
But then he reconsidered—he was about to start a family of his own, and Lin Yan deserved to have her own life too.
If she could find happiness, shouldn’t he be glad?
With that thought, he had no choice but to let out a resigned sigh.
“Yanyan, I was overthinking things. Regardless, as long as you’re happy, that’s what matters. I… will always be your brother.”
He then turned to Xing Yu and warned him seriously, “Mr. Xing, Yanyan is a good girl. She’s never been in a relationship before. I hope you’ll treat her with sincerity.”
“Don’t worry.” Xing Yu said. “What I’m best at is taking care of women.”
“Alright, I’ll be going then. My fiancée is still waiting for me back in Jingbei.” Song Yanzheng habitually tapped Lin Yan on the forehead, his voice softening a few notches. “Yanyan, let’s keep in touch. Next month at the wedding, you have to be there as my sister, okay?”
Lin Yan sneered inwardly but didn’t show it on her face. “Got it.”
“Remember to come with Mr. Xing.”
“Okay.”
Watching Song Yanzheng leave once again, Lin Yan stood in place, dazed for a long time.
A cold wind brushed across her cheeks, suddenly snapping her back to reality.
It wasn’t like she’d never been abandoned before—why was she still feeling sentimental?
Life was already hard enough; there was no need to let a man affect her mood.
Figuring out how to get through the days ahead was what really mattered…
“Still staring off into the distance?” Xing Yu suddenly spoke.
Her thoughts snapping back, Lin Yan steadied herself and turned to look at him.
“About what just happened—sorry.”
One thing at a time. She didn’t have any particular fondness for Xing Yu, but using someone so casually was still pretty low of her.
Xing Yu studied her for a dozen or so seconds, then raised an eyebrow. “Being used as a knife isn’t so bad.”
“What?”
“How you want to use me, where you want to use me, on whom you want to use me.” Xing Yu paused, then half-jokingly added, “As long as you want, I’m yours to use.”
His words were a mix of truth and jest, leaving Lin Yan unsure how to respond.
She simply changed the subject. “You said you had something to discuss with me. What is it?”
“Breakfast.”
This time, Lin Yan didn’t refuse. She had just used him, so it wouldn’t be right to turn her back on him now.
“Fine, my treat.”
At Xing Yu’s request, they went to a small noodle shop.
The shop wasn’t big, but business was booming.
A middle-aged owner in an apron greeted Xing Yu familiarly. “Coach Xing, you’re here? Beef noodles as usual?”
“Yeah, the usual.” Xing Yu asked Lin Yan, “What do you want?”
“Plain noodles.”
The owner noticed a woman beside Xing Yu for the first time ever, and his eyes went wide. “Coach Xing, is this your girlfriend?”
“No.” Lin Yan quickly denied it. “Just a friend.”
“Oh, don’t be shy, I get it!” The owner looked at them knowingly. “Coach Xing is the most eligible bachelor in our town—famous for it. I’ve never seen a woman by his side, let alone him bringing one here for noodles. Coach Xing is in high demand! I dream of making him my son-in-law!”
Lin Yan gave an awkward but polite smile and walked into the shop first.
Xing Yu sat down across from her, using a napkin to wipe the greasy-looking table in front of her.
“Did you hear that?”
Lin Yan was completely confused. “Hear what?”
Xing Yu grinned roguishly. “I’m in high demand!”
“…” Lin Yan shot him a look. “I prefer men who don’t talk.”
Xing Yu refused to shut up and continued, “Grandma did introduce me to a mute woman from the neighboring village who was much older than me. I saw the photo—she looked so weathered, like she’d been standing in the cold wind waiting for me for half a lifetime, just like my great-grandmother.”
Lin Yan was amused and couldn’t help but twitch the corner of her mouth.
…
After finishing the noodles, Lin Yan was about to pay when she realized Xing Yu had already settled the bill.
“Wasn’t I the one treating you?” Lin Yan asked.
“Next time,” Xing Yu said half-jokingly. “I suddenly feel like a bowl of noodles is too cheap a deal. When we get to the county town, you can treat me to a big meal.”
“That’s fine,” Lin Yan added, “but only within two hundred yuan.”
Xing Yu clicked his tongue. “Tsk, quite the frugal one.”
“I’m poor.”
Just as she finished speaking, her phone rang.
Lin Yan answered, and Zhou Feiyue’s furious voice thundered through the receiver.
“Lin Yan! Get your ass back here right now! Mom and Dad are fighting because of you! I’m taking your brother-in-law out for a walk first—I finally brought him home for a visit, and we run into this kind of crap!”
After hanging up, Lin Yan asked Xing Yu to drive her home.
The town was small, so they arrived in less than ten minutes.
When she got home, the living room was a mess—cups, bowls, and chopsticks had been smashed on the floor, with shards scattered everywhere.
Zhou Gang’s forehead was bleeding from being hit by something. He sat on the sofa in silence, pressing a tissue to the wound, while An Chunfang stood nearby with red eyes, tears streaming down her face.
Seeing Lin Yan return, An Chunfang, who had been holding in a bellyful of anger with nowhere to vent, charged forward with a fierce glare and slapped her hard across the face.
“Lin Yan! You ungrateful wretch! We don’t have any money in this family, and Zhou Gang secretly gave you two thousand yuan! You’re almost thirty years old, and you still dare to take our hard-earned money? You have no shame!”