"Don't look at your mother, she's even angrier than I am. You're not even 18 yet, and you're driving. What if your sister had an accident today too? Would you take her college entrance exams?" Zheng Wei was truly angry this time, but his temper always died down easily in front of Shen Xiaoyan.
"You're not allowed to touch a car again before your college entrance exams are over. Reflect on this incident. If you still haven't figured it out, Mommy won't mind sending you to a boarding school. You know how strict the boarding system at First High School is." Shen Xiaoyan picked up where Zheng Wei left off. Now it was Zheng Wei's turn to try and persuade Shen Xiaoyan not to be angry.
Seeing his parents go back and forth like this, Zheng Dazhuang was utterly speechless and flopped onto the sofa.
He came to be lectured, but instead he had to eat dog food.
...
Time flies, especially during the college entrance exam season. On the day of the exams, the entire Zheng and Lu families, young and old, showed up in full force. Even the usually calm Shen Xiaoyan was a little nervous, while Zheng Ping'an seemed the most relaxed.
"Mom, don't worry," Zheng Ping'an comforted Shen Xiaoyan before entering the examination hall.
"My darling, don't be nervous." Seeing so many students and parents outside, Shen Xiaoyan herself felt increasingly anxious.
"Zheng Ping'an, go for it!" Just as a group of people were surrounding Zheng Ping'an, a loud shout suddenly came from behind. Several people turned their heads curiously and saw Lou Xiaoming enthusiastically looking at them, holding something. His slightly narrowed eyes sparkled with a faint joy, but his appearance surprised the Zheng family greatly.
"Who is he?" Zheng Wei asked, his alertness piqued.
Zheng Dazhuang said indignantly, "He was the one who blocked us last time."
"It's Lou Xiaoming from the Lou family. He seems to always want to pester our darling," Lu Yun'an, who never gossiped, also commented.
After he spoke, Zheng Wei became even more disdainful of Lou Xiaoming.
Lou Xiaoming, who hadn't had a chance to do anything, was thus unfairly accused: "..." When did I ever pester anyone?
...
While waiting outside, Mrs. Lu lamented, "Once our darling finishes her college entrance exams, she'll go to university. She might not come back for half a year. What are we going to do?" Mrs. Lu felt more and more distressed. They were getting on in years, and naturally, they hoped to see their juniors more often!
"She doesn't want to study abroad, so university will definitely be in Di Jing. If her classes aren't too demanding, she can come back every day!" Shen Xiaoyan comforted her. Actually, she herself felt a bit teary.
Time really flew by. In the blink of an eye, their daughter was about to go to university.
So quickly, their daughter would be leaving their side.
"The university must be in Di Jing. I suddenly thought, it would be great if our darling ended up with that Yun'an boy. After all, he's close to home, and they know each other well. We won't have to worry too much," Zheng Wei suddenly brought up the topic.
Although no one had explicitly mentioned it, everyone had already accepted it in their hearts. The development was too obvious. That Yun'an boy was clearly going after their darling.
Shen Xiaoyan had always been satisfied with Lu Yun'an. This child was very steady. Although he was a bit younger than their daughter, he took good care of people. If the two children could end up together in the future, it would be a good thing, and she wouldn't have to worry about having a difficult mother-in-law.
As for Lou Xiaoming, after appearing outside on the first day, he never showed up again. However, on the evening the college entrance exams ended, Lu Yun'an returned with several scratches on his face.
Seeing Lu Yun'an like this, Na Muzhong exclaimed in surprise, "Son, what happened to you? Did you get into a fight? Did you win?"
Lu Taobao, who was sitting on the sofa typing on his laptop, looked back at his wife's unreliable words with a speechless expression and said to his son, "Who did you fight with? That Lou family kid?"
Seeing that Lu Taobao had guessed it immediately, Lu Yun'an didn't show any change in his expression. He hummed and nodded.
"So, did you win?" Na Muzhong was now eager to know the answer.
"I won," Lu Yun'an turned to his mother.
"Ah, I knew it! My son is definitely amazing!" Na Muzhong said happily.
Lu Taobao: "..." He had gotten used to it over the years. His wife was always so eccentric.
"Go back and rest. I've arranged with your Uncle Jiang for our two families to go on a trip the day after tomorrow. The place is already booked. You can go see our darling tomorrow!" Lu Taobao, though quiet, knew everything. How could he not know what this brat Lu Yun'an was thinking? He had deliberately arranged this opportunity. What happened next depended on this brat's luck.
"Thank you, Dad!" It really didn't take much effort to talk to a smart person. Lu Yun'an naturally understood his father's intentions. He rarely thanked anyone.
"Oh my." After Lu Yun'an went upstairs, Na Muzhong couldn't help but exclaim.
"Alright, you shouldn't stay up too late tonight. Get some rest early." Lu Taobao sometimes felt he was similar to Zheng Wei. Both of them supervised their wives like daughters. Na Muzhong, on her rare leave, had become addicted to binge-watching dramas and always stayed up very late. Lu Taobao had to remind her almost every night.
"Got it, got it." Na Muzhong waved her hand.
...
On the day the results were released, the two families had just returned from a trip. Perhaps it was the stress of three years of high school, but even Zheng Ping'an felt unusually relaxed. After the trip, her complexion looked very good.
"Ah, darling, don't move around. Go check your results quickly." The whole family sat on the sofa like ripe fruit, waiting to check the scores.
Zheng Ping'an chuckled and handed her phone to everyone.
"I already checked when you were packing." She looked very calm, with a smile in her usually cool eyes, possessing both Shen Xiaoyan's temperament and Zheng Wei's coolness. Zheng Wei only glanced at the phone and then looked at his daughter's face.
Every time he saw his daughter's face, his heart warmed. This was his child with Shen Xiaoyan, flesh and blood from both of them, the crystallization of their love.
"Sister, you're not going to get the top score this year?" Her scores were terrifyingly high. Only a few points deducted in each subject. This was beastly!
"Darling, what do you want? Shall Grandpa buy you a car? How about the new Hummer? You don't have to stay in a dormitory when you go to university, you can live at home. Our place isn't far from Jing University anyway, so you can drive to school, right?" Old Mr. Zheng said with great kindness. Thanks to their excellent mindset, the couple was now very well-maintained and lived very happily.
"Darling, Grandma will give you some handbags. You're a young lady now going to university!"
The elderly couple looked at Zheng Ping'an with tender affection.
Shen Xiaoyan was about to say something when she heard the man sitting beside her say happily, "Darling, whatever you want, Dad will buy it for you!"
"Dad, do you have to smile so kindly? Why aren't you this nice to me?" Zheng Dazhuang felt despair. Why did he have such an unreasonable sister?
"Our Zheng Dazhuang also studied hard. When you get into Jing University too, Grandpa will buy you one," Old Mr. Zheng said kindly.
Their old Zheng family was powerful. After so many boys, they finally had such a precious daughter, and she was this remarkable?
Zheng Dazhuang, who had been slumped on the sofa, looked up when he heard his phone chime. His expression was one of utter despair: "My sister isn't going to be the top scorer this year. The top scorer is that Yun'an boy! He got one more point than my sister. Seriously, what were you all thinking?"
Actually, if he didn't compare himself to Yun'an and Zheng Ping'an, Zheng Dazhuang considered himself quite intelligent. But when compared to the two of them, he seemed a bit... well... insignificant.
Zheng Dazhuang was still grumbling, while Old Mr. and Mrs. Zheng were talking with Zheng Ping'an. Zheng Wei suddenly held Shen Xiaoyan's hand. Shen Xiaoyan looked at him, and they smiled at each other, a warm smile.
"Xiaoyan, your appearance hasn't changed much, has it?" Zheng Wei reached out and touched Shen Xiaoyan's face. Her face seemed frozen in time, always appearing as if they had just met.
"Really?" Shen Xiaoyan hadn't noticed her own appearance. She shook her head and chuckled, "How could that be? If I didn't age, wouldn't I be a monster?"
Zheng Wei also felt it was a bit strange, but he couldn't find any other explanation.
Shen Xiaoyan didn't pay it much mind. She leaned her head on Zheng Wei's shoulder and murmured, "If time were faster, perhaps in a few more years, our darling will be getting married. By then, we'll be old too."
They had walked hand in hand for so many years. It felt like it happened just yesterday...
Zheng Ping'an and Lu Yun'an did end up together.
Their wedding was ten years later. By then, Zheng Wei and Shen Xiaoyan were another 10 years older.
But Zheng Wei still felt that Shen Xiaoyan's appearance hadn't changed much. She still looked so young. This seemed to defy the natural order of things... He was quite sure it wasn't just the filter of a lover's eyes, but that she was genuinely young. He even had a bold thought: their darling was 28 this year, but standing with her mother, he could barely tell their ages apart.
"So many years have passed, Mrs. Zong, you've maintained yourself so well!" Na Muzhong, who was greeting guests on the side, also sighed, "I'll have to ask you later how you maintain yourself. Why do you look like you've been preserved with preservatives?"
Hearing Na Muzhong's words, Zheng Wei's heart sank again. Yes, Shen Xiaoyan really looked like she had been preserved with preservatives. How could this be?
He had always been afraid to voice his inner fears. Shen Xiaoyan looked so young, which made him feel a sense of dread. He was afraid he wouldn't be able to grow old with her.
Growing old with her was his lifelong wish!
But later, what he feared never happened. He did grow old with Shen Xiaoyan. It was just that Shen Xiaoyan's aging process was extremely slow. Even when they lay side by side on their sickbeds, Zheng Wei's eyesight was somewhat blurry, but in his vision, Shen Xiaoyan still looked like her original self.
"Xiaoyan, are you scared?" On the sickbed, Zheng Wei clutched Shen Xiaoyan's hand. Shen Xiaoyan looked at him and smiled, "With you here, how could I be scared?"
"Shall we be husband and wife again in the next life?" Tears welled up in Zheng Wei's eyes. He wanted to turn and hug her, but his body was too frail now to do so.
"I'll hold you," Shen Xiaoyan managed to turn her body and reached out to embrace the man who had been gazing at her.
"Zheng Wei, what should I do if I'm sleepy?" Shen Xiaoyan murmured, hugging him.
"If you're sleepy, just sleep. I'll always, always stay by your side." Zheng Wei tried to move closer to her. They nestled together, and so it was for a lifetime.
...
Bailu Temple.
Recently, Chang'an had a heavy snowfall. The white snow covered the mountaintops, but even so, it didn't deter people from coming to offer incense. The incense here had always been strong, and you could smell the sandalwood from far below the mountain.
And in the backyard of Bailu Temple, in a very quiet courtyard, a man in black opened his eyes amidst the sandalwood incense.
As his red eyes opened, a tear suddenly streamed down from the corner of his eye.
Beside him, the old abbot, whose beard had turned white, looked at him calmly.
"The benefactor has awakened?" the abbot asked with no joy or sorrow on his face.
Zheng Wei sat up from the mat. He wiped the tear from the corner of his eye, his expression a little bewildered.
His demeanor was sharp, like a sword, but at this moment, just looking at a figure, the atmosphere around him was so oppressive that one felt like crying.
"Abbot, is that my past life? Or my next life? Where am I now? And in which life am I?" Zheng Wei sat there, his red eyes filled with grief as he looked at the abbot sitting in front of him. Through the smoke, he asked in a hoarse voice.
"The benefactor can understand it however they wish," the abbot replied.
"What do you mean, 'however I wish'? Did those things really happen?" Zheng Wei grabbed the abbot's sleeve.
"What regrets does the benefactor have in this life?" the abbot asked in a gentle tone, not pushing him away.
"Yes, her health isn't very good. I'll find the best doctors to treat her. We might have a beautiful daughter, and she and our daughter will both be my treasures. I will always treat her well, better than she treats me. If possible, I hope to grow old with her. My biggest regret in this life is missing that woman."