Chapter 96: Qin Yichi, I’m sticking with you!

Ji Xian lay helplessly on the floor, feeling as though a gigantic hand had clamped tightly around his heart, sealing off every breath and squeezing the strength out of him until nothing remained.

His eyes were vacant, his throat parched, and the last taut thread in his mind snapped with a sharp, final crack.

Those words kept echoing in his ears, again and again:

“Qiao Zhen is my girlfriend.”

“If you had just made the slightest move toward her, I would never have had a chance.”

“But you gave me that chance!”

Thinking of the more than two years in this life, and then the full seven years before that, Ji Xian’s face grew paler and paler, drained of all color.

Yes. Yes...

For all these years, if only he had turned back a little sooner, if only he had treated Qiao Zhen a little better, if only he had not been so cold to her, how could Qin Yichi ever have had a chance?

Back then, Qiao Zhen had filled his world completely. She had loved only him, and kept her distance from Qin Yichi.

Qiao Zhen had run toward him, having already walked ninety-nine steps with all her heart; he only needed to take one more step toward her. But he had stood there, motionless.

No one could keep reaching out forever.

Ji Xian stood frozen, and in his mind kept surfacing the image of Qiao Zhen smiling at him, as if offering him the sweetest honey in the world, warm as spring.

After a long while, he finally broke down and covered his face, sitting on the ground in utter helplessness and loneliness.

Inside his chest, a flood of tangled emotions surged up all at once—bitterness, remorse, guilt, pain, torment... all of it knotted together like an invisible iron chain, binding him fast.

Ji Xian lowered his head and kept muttering to himself in a hoarse voice:

“I have to find Qiao Zhen. I have to explain everything to her! She’s so softhearted; she’ll definitely agree...”

On Saturday, Qin Yichi asked Qiao Zhen to go out with him.

The moment he saw her, Qin Yichi’s automatic clinginess kicked in. His shoulder pressed against hers, and at the same time he slipped a small, delicate bouquet of white lisianthus into her hands.

It meant: unwavering love belongs only to you.

—Of all the world, I am guarded against everything, but in front of you I am willing to cast aside every defense and hold you close.

Qiao Zhen took the flowers in delight, her eyes brightening as a shallow smile curved her lips.

“They’re so pretty.”

Every time they met, even if they were only going out for a meal, Qin Yichi would always bring her a little gift.

Sometimes it was a box of chocolates, sometimes a tiny bouquet, and sometimes a cute little charm...

Their home and dorm room were already so full of them they could hardly fit any more.

It was as if seeing him automatically triggered a “surprise gift” function.

Qiao Zhen was beaming with happiness, but after a moment she lowered her head slightly and felt that she ought to prepare a gift in return too.

Qin Yichi saw through her thoughts at a glance. Naturally, he took her hand, their fingers interlacing.

“I’m in charge of preparing gifts for little Qiao Zhen,” he said.

Then he turned his head, his voice lazy and unhurried, yet the words he spoke were the most heart-stirring of all:

“And you’re in charge of happily accepting them. That’s enough.”

As soon as he finished speaking, Qiao Zhen bit her lip. Her fingers tightening unconsciously around the bouquet, she could feel her heartbeat speeding up beyond her control.

The little deer in her heart was already so excited it was running in circles, bouncing all over the place, with pink heart-shaped bubbles floating everywhere.

Their date was at Duskglow Mountain, and they took a high-speed train for more than forty minutes to get there.

At the foot of the mountain, everything was lush and green, the scenery in front of them like a living landscape painting.

Qiao Zhen tilted her little face up and looked at the pleasant view. “Why did you suddenly want to come hiking?”

Spring sunlight rested on Qin Yichi’s face, casting a faint glow that traced the sharp lines of his features.

He turned to her and said, “Before, you climbed White Mist Mountain for me and asked for a peace charm. So I thought I should bring you to climb one too.”

Back then, after Qiao Zhen fainted, Qin Yichi contacted her roommates and received messages from them:

“Zhenzhen hasn’t slept well these past few days. Yesterday she looked truly exhausted, but she still insisted on going up in the pouring rain to ask for a peace charm for you. Everyone else was heading back down, but she was the only one climbing up...”

Thinking of those words, Qin Yichi’s heart ached again.

He did not know what kind of feelings Qiao Zhen had carried that day as she climbed step by step under her umbrella.

She was clearly the sort of girl who would be left gasping after running eight hundred meters, clearly so fragile she looked as if a gust of wind might knock her down.

And yet beneath that fragility, she was so strong, so decisive, so brave and independent.

Qin Yichi paused, then added, “Besides, they say if a couple climbs this mountain together, they’ll stay together forever.”

The scenery on the mountain was beautiful too. Orchids were in bloom, releasing a faint and exquisite fragrance. In the evening, purple clouds would gather around the peaks, making the whole place especially lovely and romantic.

Girls would probably like that.

So he wanted to bring Qiao Zhen here to see it.

Qiao Zhen allowed herself to be led by the hand, obedient and gentle. “Even if we don’t climb, we can still last forever.”

She also told him everything about Yun Yue’s divination, saying that they would be together in their past life, this life, and all lives to come, never to be separated.

Qin Yichi’s eyes suddenly lit up. “Really?”

Qiao Zhen’s tone carried a little pride, her voice sweet and clear.

“Of course. She also figured out that we’re destined for each other, a perfect match made by heaven.”

As Qin Yichi listened, the corners of his mouth lifted higher and higher. He could not help covering his lips with one hand, his voice low and deliberately drawn out at the end.

“Is that so?”

Qiao Zhen frowned and nodded hard, saying very solemnly, “It’s true! Tru-e! She’s really accurate at divination!”

Qin Yichi pressed his lips together in restraint, secretly delighted and thoroughly pleased with himself.

“Ohhh.”

Qiao Zhen seemed to want to say something, but it took her quite a while to finally make up her mind. She suddenly pinched his index finger and leaned close to his ear.

“Qin Yichi, I’m sticking to you for good. The kind you can’t shake off no matter how hard you try.”

Her voice was pleasant and soft, sweet as if soaked in honey, like a breeze brushing over blossoms just beginning to open.

The moment Qin Yichi heard it, he went completely still. It was as if something had lightly plucked at his heart, sending a tingling current through his entire body.

His whole face slowly turned red...

It was Saturday, and the scenic area was packed with people, most of them couples all chasing the so-called promise of “forever.”

Qiao Zhen went to the restroom near the attraction and, when she came back, saw Qin Yichi holding up a sugar painting.

“Eat up, little rabbit.” Qin Yichi patted her head.

It was a sugar painting in the shape of a tiny rabbit, lively and vivid, full of springy charm.

Qiao Zhen’s eyes lit up. She ate it with complete satisfaction, her steps turning lighter, and silently made up her mind:

She would be twice as good to Qin Yichi too!

After she finished the sugar painting and was about to start up the mountain, Qin Yichi suddenly crouched down in front of her.

“Come on. I’ll carry you.”

Even crouching, he was still very large, and his back looked reassuringly solid.

Qiao Zhen blinked in confusion, her eyes widening in surprise.

“You’re going to carry me up the mountain?”

Qin Yichi gave a soft hum, as if it were only natural.

“There’s something I need to do tonight. I can’t let you wear yourself out.”

Qiao Zhen stared blankly. “What thing?”

The next second, Qin Yichi turned slightly while still crouching and looked at her with deep black eyes. A wicked smile curved at the corner of his lips, and his voice turned thick with desire.

“Tonight, I’ll teach you how to kiss.”