Chapter 47 Heart-to-Heart

The moment Xia Xinyu finished her phone call, she frowned at Chen Yuan, who was sitting on the chair, and gave him a fierce look to express her dissatisfaction.

Chen Yuan could only raise both hands in a French military salute, indicating his innocence.

Honestly, this was Xia Xinyu's fault.

If she hadn't urged him to make the call, insisted on staring at him, and personally coached him on what to say, his mother wouldn't have caught her.

All he could say was, Xinyu, you're on your own.

"Hello, Xinyu."

Then, a tenderness and love that Old Chen had never experienced, or perhaps would never experience in his life, came from the other end of the line.

Thunder and rain were all imperial grace.

But she was basically thunder in the Chen household, rarely bestowing gentle rain.

"Mmm-hmm," Xia Xinyu responded actively.

"How old is Xinyu this year?" the voice asked.

"Auntie, I'm seventeen."

"Already seventeen? When's your birthday?"

Xia Xinyu didn't know what she was getting at, but her high emotional intelligence told her that she might be planning to give her a gift, so she quickly said, "It was last month… with Chen Yuan."

What did that mean?

Xinyu's move was reckless.

Chen Yuan only heard her declaring her sovereignty.

But to his surprise, his mother seemed delighted and said with a smile, "Did you have a good time? My son can be a bit oblivious; I hope he at least got you a cake."

"No, no, Chen Yuan is very good. He bought me a cake and… and made a whole table of dishes." Xia Xinyu replied with a smile.

Yikes, wasn't that exposing their frequent visits?

This Xinyu…

He didn't understand, not at all.

If it were in other areas, Chen Yuan could maintain his high emotional intelligence, but these two women were no pushovers.

Moreover, given their current relationship, Chen Yuan basically couldn't guess what either of them were thinking.

Xia Xinyu could at least cheat.

But what was his mother thinking?

What was the point of this phone call?

"That's good, as long as he didn't neglect you." His mother said with relief, "Actually, this kid is really sensible. He always prepares surprises for my birthday and orders the cake in advance. He's not a dull person."

"Yes, he's very reliable."

"Then Xinyu, tell Chen Yuan to go downstairs for a walk."

Hearing this, Xia Xinyu covered the receiver with her hand, looked at Chen Yuan, turned her gaze towards the door, and said seriously, "Go on."

Seriously?

Alright then.

Since that was the case, Chen Yuan didn't continue to linger in the room. He grabbed his spare old phone, opened the door, walked out, and closed the door behind him.

He originally wanted to eavesdrop, but ultimately decided against it.

He went downstairs, walked all the way to the yard, and looked at the cushion tied to the tree that the old man downstairs used to sit on. His mood was rather subtle.

He seemed to gradually understand that the reason the two of them weren't at each other's throats was that there was no conflict between them in the first place.

The reason his mother would praise him in front of Xinyu, and Xinyu would praise him in front of his mother, was a matter of identity.

If the order was reversed, it would be wrong.

For example, if he praised Xinyu excessively in front of his mother, or praised his mother excessively in front of Xinyu, that would be inappropriate.

And the reason he was being praised was because his mother liked hearing good impressions of her son, while Xinyu could learn about a Chen Yuan with a real personality from his mother.

Of course, these were all just guesses, with no basis.

If there really were any verbal battles, he hadn't heard any of it.

But what would they say?

While waiting, Chen Yuan opened his phone and started scrolling through TikTok out of boredom.

A video titled 'Making Roast Chicken Is Really Hard' caught Chen Yuan's eye.

On the screen was a plump woman wearing a round-necked coffee-colored sweater, talking about her journey to making roast chicken.

Then, she began to teach everyone how to make roast chicken step by step.

First, pluck the feathers from the local chicken and wash it clean…

Chen Yuan casually tapped 'Report'.

"What a vulgar video; a righteous person couldn't help but step in."

Chen Yuan hated these kind of borderline content creators the most.

Then, he continued to scroll.

He came across a video of a fire.

The general reason was that the old residential area had aging circuits that hadn't been repaired for a long time, causing a short circuit that sparked a fire, resulting in considerable losses. Several households were burned beyond recognition.

There had been news like this often lately.

Of course, the reason was normal. Some old residential areas in Xia Hai were built around the same time, similar to resettlement houses, and the installed equipment was also purchased uniformly. When they reached their maximum lifespan, they would naturally break down all at once.

Thinking of this, Chen Yuan was also a little worried. After all, the Sunshine Community apartment where he lived was a standard old residential area.

After scrolling for about ten minutes, when Chen Yuan's legs were about to go numb from squatting, Xia Xinyu sent him a message.

Xia Xinyu: All done.

Where was the emoticon, the ingot swallowing?

At the very least, she could have added a cat picture after those three words.

In this era, pure text without interjections was already considered offensive. Xia Xinyu understood human relationships very well, so every conversation made people feel... or rather, made *him* feel very comfortable.

He even felt that those cute emoticons were her themselves, making him want to bite them to death.

Chen Yuan: I'm coming.

Perhaps they really discussed something that made her mood heavy.

Or, absorbed.

Just like that, Chen Yuan went upstairs. Just as he was about to knock on the door, Xia Xinyu opened the door in advance to greet him.

Standing in front of him was a girl with tears streaming down her face, tear stains wetting the hair at her temples.

After Xia Xinyu closed the door, she grabbed Chen Yuan's hand, led him into the room, and then arranged for him to sit on the bed.

Suddenly, she knelt on the floor, buried her head in Chen Yuan's lap, and burst into tears.

She looked so heartbreaking.

Chen Yuan had been dumbfounded since just now, and this scene made him even more confused. So, he quickly helped Xia Xinyu up and made her sit next to him. Then, he buried her head in his lap for a knee pillow.

"Waaah..."

Her crying continued, and the tears continued to flow.

Logically speaking, Chen Yuan should comfort her.

But she didn't seem to have suffered any blow.

So, while stroking her head and gently soothing her, he asked with a smile, "What's wrong? Did Mom say something bad?"

Xia Xinyu shook her head, denying it with a sob: "No, no."

"Did she tell you to go back to He Xiang to study?"

"No, it's not that."

"Then, did she bully you?"

Hearing this, Xia Xinyu sat up, threw herself into Chen Yuan's arms, hugged him tightly, and said intermittently, "You have to... to be good to Mom... to be good to Mom."

As soon as those words came out, Chen Yuan knew what caused Xia Xinyu to cry like this—感动 (gandong, moved/touched).

But the Mrs. Yang Junlian he remembered wasn't the kind of person who would say emotional things.

So, in order for Xia Xinyu to be so moved, the two of them must have used true feelings.

"We... we all have to be good to Mom... to be good to Mom."

Xia Xinyu sat up, looked at Chen Yuan, wiped away her tears with her hand, and spoke with difficulty, her eyes red.

But at this moment, she also wanted to express herself.

Which was enough to show that she was extremely serious.

"You'll get puffy eyes from crying like this."

Chen Yuan took a tissue and proactively wiped away the tears from the corner of Xia Xinyu's eyes.

And Xia Xinyu also tried to restrain her sobs, wanting to calm her mood.

But her chest was still rising and falling in trembling waves.

Before this, she had always been worried about meeting Chen Yuan's parents too early.

Because she was afraid of being seen as an undisciplined girl who not only had an early relationship but also 'lived' with a boy.

If possible, Xia Xinyu even hoped to wait until after college before contacting his parents and talking about some future that wasn't so far away.

That was the rational thing to do, and most people did it that way.

But that phone call just now made Xia Xinyu realize that even talking about the future now wasn't far away.

The future was next weekend, the next holiday, and this year's New Year.

Chen Yuan had a very good mother.

This auntie gave her warmth that was almost maternal love.

Letting her gradually regain everything after losing everything.

Starting from getting to know Chen Yuan...

Slowly, I am also someone with a family.

"Can you talk to me about it now?"

Chen Yuan was as curious as if ants were crawling on his body: "Otherwise, when you meet again, I won't know how to act as the middleman."

Although he could use the way of listening to her heart.

But for her, Chen Yuan preferred to hear the words from her mouth.

If there was any unbearable or deep inferiority in her heart, not peeking at it was the real way to love.

"We talked about a lot..." After wiping away her tears, completely stopping sobbing, and being able to speak without stuttering, Xia Xinyu looked at Chen Yuan and said, "She praised you a lot, but she also said some of your bad habits."

"She actually talks behind my back?" Chen Yuan said in surprise, "Damn, she actually backstabbed me!"

"Liking to joke is one aspect."

"..."

"Suddenly becoming silent while talking is also one."

"So I'm wrong no matter what I do?"

"Just kidding, to lighten the mood." Xia Xinyu smiled, smiled sweetly, and then proactively brought up, "By the way, do you know why I was saying good things about you just now?"

"Maybe it's to make Mom think we're doing well here, so she doesn't have to worry?"

"That's one aspect, and the other is..."

Xia Xinyu lowered her head slightly, her eyes showing tenderness and shyness, and muttered in a low voice, "Since you said I'm your whatchamacallit, then there's no point in arguing. So, I wanted to let her know that our relationship is very good, very stable, and our compatibility... is also very good."

The soul compatibility was indeed not bad.

But the degree of physical compatibility couldn't be seen yet.

Of course, I'm talking about the first kiss... not anything more erotic!

"So that's how it is." Chen Yuan acted like he understood.

Xia Xinyu was right.

Since she had already been arrested, being stubborn would only make her seem hypocritical.

It was better to let Mom know that the two of them had a good relationship and not worry.

"What else?" Chen Yuan asked anxiously, "What did you guys say when I wasn't around?"

Mentioning this, Xia Xinyu's eyes showed deep emotion.

Stretching out her hands, she held one of Chen Yuan's hands and asked seriously, "Are you really brave enough to listen?"

………

"Xinyu, I want to ask, when did your parents pass away?"

After the pleasantries, the auntie on the other end asked.

Hearing this, Xia Xinyu was a little resistant and wanted to avoid the topic. But thinking that this was a matter for two families, she forcibly endured the pain of stirring up sad memories and said, "They encountered a mudslide while going down the mountain. They passed away last month."

"Xinyu, you must miss your mom and dad a lot, right?"

Chen Yuan's mother on the other end asked carefully.

Hearing this, her emotions gushed out like a spring.

Recently, she had been busy with all kinds of things, and Chen Yuan had been by her side, so her heart wasn't always empty, always filled with satisfaction and joy.

But that didn't mean she was heartless.

As long as someone opened this gap, her sad emotions would flood out and be difficult to control.

A line of tears had already slid down her cheek.

But she still acted optimistically and said, "I miss them a lot, but they've turned into stars in the sky and are always watching me. They want me to be happy, so I..."

"Auntie isn't good at talking, but when I think about what Xinyu has gone through, I still feel so heartbroken."

Gradually, affection was revealed, and listening to the tone, it felt like the auntie was about to shed tears as well.

*Pa ta, pa ta.*

Tears hit the floor, the sound was so clear.

But at this moment, she was still locking that final gate, not being defeated by emotions, maintaining a restrained posture, squeezing out a smile and saying, "Thank you, Auntie."

Her voice already had a sob.

After the other party heard it, they quickly apologized: "I'm sorry, Auntie really doesn't know how to talk. Don't cry."

"Mmm-hmm, I'm okay..."

"Xinyu, you're a particularly good girl. Please rest assured, we all like you very much."

Yang Junlian seemed to cheer up and suddenly spoke in a promising tone, saying a long, long sincere words, "Chen Yuan is a very responsible child towards girls. I remember there was a girl in junior high school who chased him. She was quite pretty, and even came to our door. At that time, Chen Yuan actually pretended to be sick and didn't go out. I asked him why, and he said that he really didn't like this girl and had already rejected her, but she kept pursuing him, so he could only be so ruthless. Otherwise, if he gave her even a little bit of room, she would continue to chase him. That's a little too cruel."

"Actually, he's always had a good rapport with girls, but he rejected them all. I asked him why, and he said something like, I don't even have enough time to play games, where do I have time to waste on women. Actually, I know he just hadn't met someone he truly liked, otherwise, he would be very firm. But this time, I saw his determination. Auntie won't hide it from you; I thought about bringing him back to He Xiang for school, but he told me that he wouldn't go back. I asked why, and he said, because of Xinyu."

"Haha, I'm not lying, you can ask him. He really likes you very much; he's never liked a girl this much before. So, you have to believe that he will be good to you."

"Auntie also likes you; I think you're so pretty, so sensible, so obedient. But every time I think about how young you are and that you have to shoulder so many things alone, and if my son isn't around, you don't even have someone to confide in, I feel sad and want to cry."

"If you don't mind, ah... maybe I'm just being wishful. But, I really want to treat you like a daughter."

"Xinyu, are you still there?"

"...Yes, I'm here."

Here, she was already crying loudly.

On the other end, she was also sobbing as she spoke: "If you need anything, just find Auntie. If Chen Yuan is bad to you, tell me too. In short, Yang Junlian, and his dad Chen Jianye, have already treated you as our daughter."

"Th-thank...you...waaah, thank you, thank you Uncle."

This was how it felt to be valued.

So, this was how it felt.

Someone cried for me, felt sorry for me, and cared for me. It was so wonderful...

"There's more."

Yang Junlian suddenly became hesitant as she spoke. And even when she was hesitant, she was extremely serious and solemnly said, "I will try my best to control my son's behavior, but if I can't control him, and he does something bad, I will definitely tell him that I am very persistent about one thing—we only recognize Xinyu."

"They only recognize Xinyu..."

Hearing this, Chen Yuan felt embarrassed.

What was Yang Junlian talking about!

He hadn't even officially established a girlfriend yet, and she was already talking about engagement; wasn't she a bit awkward, President Yang!

"That's right, I'm not lying to you." Xia Xinyu drew circles on the bed with her fingers and muttered in a low voice, "This isn't what I said; don't say I'm kidnapping you. If you want to argue, you go find your mom..."

"What's there to argue about." Chen Yuan smiled, held a strand of Xia Xinyu's drooping hair with his hand, and said, "Just like you said, we've all been exposed."

How crazy would I have to be to think that I could say no to such a good girl like Xia Xinyu?

In this world, was there anyone better than Xin Bao?

The answer was: No.

"I'll believe you for now."

Xia Xinyu held out her little finger.

"You're still doing a pinky swear after believing me?"

"Just leaving evidence."

"Alright."

Chen Yuan just did a pinky swear with Xia Xinyu like that. After doing this, he asked quite curiously, "But, you guys talked for so long, did you only say these things?"

"Uh-huh."

Xia Xinyu concealed some things, such as not mentioning that her mother said she would treat her like a daughter.

This was our secret.

However, there were still some other things she could talk about: "She told me that there was a girl who chased you in junior high school, and she even came to your door, and then you pretended to be sick and didn't go out, right?"

"Sigh, she's really boring. Junior high school was when we were still kids, these words..."

"In that case, you're really not the kind of person who would agree to a pretty girl taking the initiative, huh?" Xia Xinyu joked.

"Looks are one aspect; personality and compatibility are also important..." Chen Yuan didn't want to talk about this, after all, it was about another girl, so he waved his hand and said, "Junior high school basically doesn't count as a man, that's just a little boy. Everything that happened during that time can be explained by puberty. Therefore, I don't accept any slander from Yang [Junlian]."

"I don't think it's slander."

"Then what is it?"

"I like listening to stories about others liking you, but you not liking them."

"Why?"

Weird, shouldn't she be jealous?

"Because..."

Xia Xinyu pinched both sides of Chen Yuan's face and said, "The fact that they like you means I have good taste. The fact that you don't like them means..."

"Means..."

Chen Yuan looked puzzled.

Xia Xinyu smiled softly and said with joy in her eyes, "It means that no matter when I appear, you will resolutely choose me."

(End of Chapter)