“Is this how you wait for me?” Lin Yiran asked softly.

Qiu Xing blocked her from moving, holding her hands against the edge of the table, preventing her from grabbing her clothes or hat.

“It’s not what you think,” Qiu Xing said, looking at her. “I can explain everything.”

“How will you explain?” Lin Yiran asked, her chin tense as she looked up at him.

Qiu Xing said, “I don’t know her, I only know her father.”

Lin Yiran pressed her lips together and nodded, “Right, you’re her father’s son-in-law.”

“That’s not true,” Qiu Xing said. “He was drunk and talking nonsense.”

Lin Yiran looked at Qiu Xing in disbelief, surprised, “People claim relatives when they’re drunk?”

“I didn’t claim anything.” Qiu Xing was making things worse, saying seriously, “I don’t know her.”

“You even dropped your car keys in her car…” Lin Yiran disagreed, “Weren’t you in her car last night?”

Qiu Xing quickly said, “I didn’t drive. They were heading the same way and gave me a ride back.”

“The same way?” Lin Yiran raised her hand, pointing her index finger downward, and asked incredulously, “All the way here? Are you sure?”

This was on the outskirts, almost outside the city. Every sentence Qiu Xing said was hard to believe.

Lin Yiran had been calm initially, but now Qiu Xing’s explanations had her furrowing her brow. She pushed him back, getting down from the table, not wanting to hear more.

Qiu Xing quickly grabbed her arm, completely bewildered, “You don’t believe me?”

From the moment she heard the word “son-in-law,” Lin Yiran had been speaking softly and slowly, without being particularly agitated or furious, remaining gentle throughout. Although she had been refuting Qiu Xing, she hadn’t shown any signs of crying.

But now, because of this sentence from Qiu Xing, her eyes instantly reddened.

Rather than doubting Qiu Xing, Lin Yiran was just feeling a little upset. She certainly knew Qiu Xing wasn’t that kind of person. If he truly were so casual, they wouldn’t still be at their current stage after all this time.

She was just a bit unhappy. Even the most even-tempered girl has moments of pettiness, simply wanting to be comforted.

However, with each of Qiu Xing’s explanations, Lin Yiran truly began to feel less secure.

Ultimately, she had no status to question Qiu Xing. Even if Qiu Xing had truly gotten involved with someone else, become someone’s son-in-law, it would be appropriate, and he wouldn’t need to explain to anyone.

“I believe you,” Lin Yiran said, and tears fell as soon as she finished speaking.

Lin Yiran’s voice was muffled, “I’m listening to your explanation… but you haven’t explained it well.”

Her crying made Qiu Xing even more flustered. He wiped away her tears, “Why are you crying?”

“I trust you the most,” Lin Yiran sniffled, speaking with a heavy nasal tone, “But you don’t need to explain anything to me; you’re free.”

Qiu Xing frowned, “What’s this about being free? What are you talking about?”

“I’ve never been able to figure you out. You’re good to me, I feel like you like me, but you don’t want to be with me,” Lin Yiran said, lowering her head as tears fell directly onto the floor. “Maybe you think someone else is suitable.”

Once emotions surfaced, all those buried feelings of sadness, loss, and insecurity came rushing up.

Lin Yiran raised her eyes to look at Qiu Xing and said to him, “Last time I came here, I brought a ring.”

She spoke of this with tears in her eyes, clenching Qiu Xing’s heart.

Qiu Xing wiped her tears, but Lin Yiran’s tears kept falling.

Since they parted in the summer, Lin Yiran had appeared composed. She had gone alone to that distant mountain, and later Qiu Xing came to find her, saying he would wait for her to return.

Almost from the moment Qiu Xing said those words, Lin Yiran had forgiven him.

Qiu Xing was irreplaceable in her life; to her, Qiu Xing represented so many things. It wasn’t just because of everything Qiu Xing had done for her, beyond the time they had experienced together, there was also love.

As she had grown up, Lin Yiran could directly feel the love in her heart.

So when Qiu Xing spoke of their future, although Lin Yiran didn’t immediately agree, she had already accepted it in her heart.

But that didn’t mean the previous hurt didn’t exist. Every time Lin Yiran thought of Qiu Xing’s repeated rejections, she still felt sad.

Last time, Lin Yiran had desperately brought a ring, only to take it back untouched.

Now all these emotions were stirred up again.

“I spent all the money you gave me,” Lin Yiran said.

“Spend it,” Qiu Xing turned to look for his phone, one hand still gripping Lin Yiran’s arm. He picked up the phone from the bed, opened his banking app, “I’ll transfer more now.”

Lin Yiran pushed Qiu Xing’s phone away, not letting him transfer, shaking her head, “I don’t want it anymore.”

Qiu Xing ignored her attempt to stop him and transferred all the money from his account, leaving only a small amount, sending the whole sum to her card.

“And my father… the money Lin Weizhen owed, I got it all back,” Lin Yiran said as tears fell, “I didn’t give it to you, I spent it all.”

“Fine,” Qiu Xing threw the phone back on the bed, “No problem.”

“I bought a house,” Lin Yiran said.

Qiu Xing nodded, offering no objection.

“I used to want to return all the money you gave me. I didn’t want your money.”

Lin Yiran sniffled and continued, “But later I didn’t want to return it. I spent everything you gave me and what my mother left me… Now I’ll have a home.”

No matter what she said, Qiu Xing had no objections.

“The little home that you and my mother gave me together, I want to live in it,” Lin Yiran said.

Qiu Xing still nodded, saying, “Live there.”

“With the little money I had left, I bought that pair of rings,” Lin Yiran continued.

Qiu Xing closed his eyes briefly.

“You didn’t put it on me,” Lin Yiran took a deep breath, saying through tears, “I told you I would marry you if you put it on… but you wouldn’t put it on me.”

Qiu Xing’s heart was burning a hole from her tears.

“I was wrong.”

“You weren’t wrong,” Lin Yiran said, “You’re free.”

Qiu Xing repeated once more, “I was wrong.”

“So if you become someone else’s son-in-law, that’s fine too,” Lin Yiran said, catching her breath, “You didn’t put the ring on me.”

Qiu Xing let go of her and turned around, going off to do something.

Lin Yiran rarely cried like this. Today, for some reason, all the grievances from more than half a year ago came rushing back, and she couldn’t suppress them.

“I even thought about never coming back, just staying in the mountains… like my senior colleague,” she said, head lowered, not seeing Qiu Xing walk back. She said, “Just wandering out there.”

A cool metal band slipped onto her middle finger. Lin Yiran’s breath caught, and she looked over in surprise.

“Don’t wander,” Qiu Xing held the ring on her hand, turning it slightly, “I was wrong.”

Lin Yiran stared for a moment before asking, “…What does this mean?”

Qiu Xing said, “The ring is on, no need to get married. But whenever you want to get married, just say the word and we’ll do it immediately.”

Lin Yiran lowered her head, lightly touching the ring with the index finger of her other hand, “Where did this come from?”

“I bought it,” Qiu Xing said, “If you don’t like it, we can buy another.”

Lin Yiran looked at the ring for a while, then shed another tear.

Qiu Xing’s heart skipped, and he said, “Stop crying, I’m sweating now.”

“Who told you to put it on? I didn’t agree…” Lin Yiran raised her head while hiding her hand behind her back, small droplets hanging on her eyelashes in clusters, “You wouldn’t put it on then, putting it on now doesn’t count.”

Qiu Xing didn’t say he would take it off; he just wiped away all her tears and then held her in his arms.

“Say whatever you want, just don’t cry,” Qiu Xing’s lips touched her face, “I was out of my mind back then, don’t hold it against me.”

Lin Yiran buried her face in Qiu Xing’s shoulder, her hand still hidden behind her back, her thumb lightly brushing against her ring.

Time passed quietly, and outside, snow had begun to fall without their noticing.

The grievances flowed out with her tears, and Lin Yiran’s mood gradually calmed. Only occasionally did she still hiccup.

Qiu Xing opened a package of facial tissues she had left here before, dampened one to wipe her face, then had her change into pajamas before tucking her into bed.

Lin Yiran hadn’t slept all night, and her emotions had fluctuated wildly. Lying in Qiu Xing’s bed, she looked quite drained.

Qiu Xing held her from behind. The panic from earlier hadn’t completely subsided, but holding her like this made him feel at ease.

“Let me hear your explanation one more time,” Lin Yiran said slowly, facing away from him. “This time, explain it properly.”

“Mm,” Qiu Xing held her hand, placing it on her stomach, and kissed her neck.

“That girl’s father is an uncle of mine who’s been good to me,” Qiu Xing said.

Lin Yiran made a sound of acknowledgment.

“Last night he was drunk when he mentioned this,” he added.

Lin Yiran asked him, “What did you say?”

“I didn’t agree,” Qiu Xing said, “I told him I was about to start a family.”

Lin Yiran first said “oh,” then after a short while added, “Good.”

Qiu Xing said, “Go to sleep.”

Outside, snowflakes fell haphazardly, quickly melting when they touched the ground.

Inside, it was warm and dry, the pillow soft, the bed covered with the slippery blanket that Lin Yiran liked.

She curled up in Qiu Xing’s embrace, feeling his body heat against her back.

“The house is still empty; I don’t have money for renovations,” Lin Yiran said.

“You do,” Qiu Xing said, “I’ll earn it.”

Lin Yiran’s fingers unconsciously traced patterns on the edge of the pillow, the ring flashing before her eyes.

“I have money too. Once my manuscript fee arrives, I’ll start renovating,” Lin Yiran said. “Then I’ll bring Aunt Fang over to live with me.”

“What about me?” Qiu Xing asked.

Lin Yiran closed her eyes, her voice tiny, “If you don’t behave well, I’ll kick you out.”