Chapter 407: The Wedding (Part 2)
“I do not detest you!” Ning Ning said as he turned away and avoided her face. By avoiding her face, his heart would not ache and he would not so desperately hope she was Nuo Nuo. The despondent feelings of Nuo Nuo never to return would also not bind itself around his heart.
He closed his eyes for a moment to hide the despondence in his eyes and calm his mind. When he opened his eyes, he still saw the world and nothing had changed, albeit feeling even lonelier.
It was especially so during this joyous occasion.
Zhang Wanyan could see that there was something off with him, and her bias against him was not as deep as before. When Xu Xing heard that he did not detest her, he pa.s.sionately held Ning Ning’s hand and said, “In that case, could we be friends?”
The young kid frowned and his gaze became several hints colder. When he was about to shake free of her hand, he heard her sadly remark. “I do not have friends. Even if you are the only person who does not treat me like a princess, I will not feel this distant.”
As he looked at her holding onto his hand, he almost rejected her but swallowed those words back. He instead said, “Your sister had nothing.”
‘And how you, in comparison, are doted on by many.’
Zhang Wanyan looked at the young kid, aghast. How did he know that the Xu family had another daughter? Xu Xing said, “I have no sister.”
Ning Ning’s gaze became stern as he looked at Xu Xing maliciously and insidiously. He wrestled his hand free from Xu Xing’s hand. There was deep anger that seared within him, and he was not the young kid who had not seen the world. While he was able to keep his cool come the larger issues, he could not hold it in whenever Xu Nuo was involved.
As he looked at Xu Xing’s innocent face, the anger in him burned even more brightly. While he knew that he ought not to s.h.i.+ft the focus of the anger whenever something related to Xu Xing came up, hearing her ‘I have no sister’ reply in such righteousness ignited his anger.
For the seven years that Xu Nuo was alive, just how many people would remember her?
Nuo Nuo was abandoned by her parents, forgotten by her only sister, painfully beaten by her master, and eventually died. It was afraid that he was the only person who remembered her as her kin would not even remember her. Why did his Nuo Nuo have to endure all those hurt?
“Ning Ning, why did you get angry again? Did I say something wrong?” Xu Xing sounded aggrieved. He seemingly became angry for no rhyme or reason. Xu Xing was used to calling the shots since young. Who would dare to show her a sour face? She had a temper of her own, and she did not need to patronize the feelings of others. Ever since she threw away Ning Ning’s jade pendant, she always felt a little guilty in front of him and subconsciously avoided recalling that incident.
Ning Ning might not have known that this was Xu Xing’s very first time humbling herself in conversation. He was the only person she apologized to.
“You made no mistake. Your only mistake is not knowing where you went wrong,” Ning Ning coldly replied. When Ning Ning said that, Zhang Wanyan grabbed Ning Ning’s elbow. Ning Ning coldly laughed as he looked at her and ordered. “Let me go!”
His eyes were exceptionally cold. Zhang Wanyan was utterly shocked. A child should not have such a look and an indomitable presence. As someone experienced in the world, her legs did not jellify from the shock.
“Younger Master Ye, how did you know about it?” Zhang Wanyan asked.
“I said, let me go!” Ning Ning punctuated his words.
Xu Xing tugged at Zhang Wanyan’s sleeves worriedly, her face filled with shock. “Auntie…”
Zhang Wanyan looked at Xu Xing and then let Ning Ning go. Ning Ning curled his lips into a mocking smile and said, “Were you thinking of asking me not whether I know her, but where she is?”
“Younger Master Ye, you have misunderstood me. I am indeed very curious. Where is she?” Zhang Wanyan was about to say something, but she held her words back. Since those were matters of the Xu family, she was better off not raising them.
She was also extremely curious. Where did said girl end up? Since she most likely resembled Xing Xing, she could guess that Ning Ning was angry at Xing Xing because of said person.
Ning Ning broke into a sinister smile and said, “What are you going to do even if you know where she is? You have abandoned her for so many years, only to suddenly recall her now? Do you want to know whether she is living well? Or, are you thinking of abandoning her once again?”
Zhang Wanyan was unable to bear his armor-piercing words. She looked at a panicking Xu Xing perplexedly and then at Ning Ning fiercely. She was speechless. She was also against abandoning the child, and in favor of sending the child to be raised in a family they trusted.
She had tried to convince Lisa not to be this cruel as Xu Nuo was, after all, her flesh and blood. Xu Nuo could be sent to a foster family. The Zhang family could even raise Xu Nuo in the name of her mother’s nephew. Xu Xing’s mother, however, said that the deep ties between the Xu and the Zhang families meant that the children meeting each other was inevitable. How could that be explained? As Xu Xing and Xu Nuo were almost carbon copies of each other, she saw how the three-year-old Xu Nuo looked like. Xu Nuo’s eyes were dreamier as compared to the liveliness in Xu Xing’s eyes.
When she abandoned the child back then, she felt it was an immense pity. There was no news about the child. Even Xu Xing’s mother also regretted and had people search for her. A one-year-long search yielded no result.
This was an off-limits topic in the Xu family. Xu Xing had no idea about it and also had no memory of when she was three.
“Ning Ning, auntie, what are you talking about?” Xu Xing was panicking even more as she did not understand what they were talking about. She could only see that her auntie did not have the best of looks, and Ning Ning’s looks were even worse.
Ning Ning looked at Xu Xing and coldly laughed. He pointed to Xu Xing and said, “Go back and tell them that having her around is enough. They might treat Xu Nuo as some broken shoe to be thrown, but there will be people who treat her as a treasure. I want what they do not want.”
When he finished saying, he took a few steps and stopped. He suddenly turned around and laughed elegantly. “Oh, yes, I forgot to have you convey this message. Tell them that they can sleep in peace and don’t have to worry about Xu Nuo harming them anymore. Xu Nuo died a grisly death.”
As he looked at Zhang Wanyan’s whitened face, he had that exhilaration from getting his revenge. Ye Ningyuan, at that moment, had a demon within him that wished to devour all the darkness so that the world would be as dark as him.
Ning Ning, with a glum face, became vexed at the sight of people. He went to the back of the church and sat on the railings glumly.
Xu Xing supported Zhang Wanyan, who was about to fall and asked, “Auntie, who is Xu Nuo?”
Zhang Wanyan was speechless.
In the bridal lounge, Third Young Master Ye looked at his bride mesmerizingly and made no effort to conceal the shock and joy in his eyes. She had a stunning beauty that intoxicated people. She was finally going to be wholly his.
Marriage took on a wholly different significance. She was his legally-recognized wife, and he, her legally-recognized husband. He was elated at the thought of this. If it weren’t for the makeup on her face, he would have given her a really good kiss.
“What brings you over here? The wedding is about to begin in a moment.” Cheng Anya felt her face warm, but n.o.body could tell since she had put on extensive makeup.
“No worries. There are people outside,” Third Young Master Ye said. “I just want to hang around with you for a moment more.”
“When people got married in the past, the newlyweds were not allowed to see each other for the first three days.”
“Dear wifey, it’s already the 21st century.”
Cheng Anya laughed and held Third Young Master Ye’s hand tightly. Today was their marriage, the beginning of their happiness. From today onward, she would become even happier with each day.
“Are you nervous?” Third Young Master Ye asked. Cheng Anya was not afraid of being embarra.s.sed and nodded. She was slightly nervous, and her palms became sweaty. How could she not be nervous? “I recalled my first poetry recital in third grade. I was so nervous that I wetted my pants.”
Third Young Master Ye teasingly asked, “Really?”
Cheng Anya nodded seriously. “With my cla.s.smates and teachers below, and given how our especially stern princ.i.p.al took center stage, my legs were wobbling when I was on stage and facing him. How could I not wet my pants?”
“To think you’d wet your pants in third grade, that’s really embarra.s.sing.” Third Young Master Ye leaned forward while laughing. When she recalled that scene, she became embarra.s.sed. To think that Miss Cheng had such a tragic past.
“Seriously! As it was winter, I wore a lot of clothes and ended up wetting my cotton pants and shoes. When I returned home, Daddy asked me why my pants and shoes were wet. I told him that I got myself wet because the teacher punished me to clean the toilet due to my negligence in cleaning up the cla.s.sroom well.”
“Haha… Dear Anya, to think that you were already this funny when you were young!”
“Tell me something interesting as well.” Cheng Anya pinched his ear and ordered him. Third Young Master Ye smartly shook his head. No, he would not do it. “How could I have something this awkward to share? I have been an absolute bada.s.s since young.”
“Cut the boast.” Cheng Anya laughed and pursued the question. As they talked, she did not feel nervous anymore. She prayed that her daddy would not be nervous later.
As the two of them talked, there was a knock on the door. Ye Wei and Eleven entered.
Ye Wei said, “Brother, so you are still there. Time to prepare.” She whistled and said, “Third sister-in-law, you’re looking gorgeous.”
“What brings you here?”
“Hehe, we want to tell you something. Haven’t you been wondering how the girl who won Ning Ning’s heart looks like? Look at the flower girl next to him.” Ye Wei blinked. She did not expect Xu Xing to appear at the wedding.
Cheng Anya could not help but become suspicious. “Wasn’t the girl dead?”
“She is Nuo Nuo’s twin sister.”
Third Young Master Ye and Cheng Anya looked each other in the eye and said nothing else.
A moment later, the door to the bridal lounge opened. Third Young Master Ye, Ye Wei, and Eleven walked out. Third Young Master Ye instructed the guards, “Watch closely and do not slip up.”
“Yes, Third Young Master.” The four of them nodded simultaneously.
Eleven and Ye Wei returned to their earlier positions. With men from the Dragon Gate around the perimeter of the church, some inside and some outside, they steadfastly guarded the peace at the wedding. Third Young Master Ye asked a person, “Where’s the younger master?”
The person shook his head. Third Young Master Ye ordered. “Quickly search for him! The wedding is about to begin.”
“Yes!” The person who just received his orders rushed down and Long Fei brought a few people to search for him inside and outside the church. The young kid was sitting alone at the back of the church and looked up at the sky in a daze.
He seemed a little lonely.
He even felt that he was somewhat silly to be unable to keep his cool. While he had taken great pains to bury Nuo Nuo in the depths of his heart, he lost his cool when he saw Xu Xing. He held his hand tightly. He couldn’t afford to be like that.
He couldn’t be like that.
Once the enemy knew his weakness, it would become his most fatal flaw. Since he was unable to act against somebody who resembled Nuo Nuo, his enemy would exploit a person like Nuo Nuo against him.
He must remain calm.
He could not allow this to happen and had to learn how to tame the demons in his heart so as not to lose control. If he could look at Xu Xing someday and treat her as some random pa.s.serby, he had achieved it. If not…
Nevertheless, he could not believe that Nuo Nuo died like this. He wanted to wait for her, and he was willing to wait for her his entire life without the slightest regret.
“Younger master, so there you are. The wedding is about to begin, and Third Young Master is looking high and low for you,” Long Fei rushed over to him and said. The young kid nodded and stood up. Long Fei asked worryingly, “Younger master, are you in a bad mood?”
“Is it so evident?” the young kid asked without holding back. Long Fei nodded and said, “Unfortunately, yes.”
The young kid smiled elegantly and said, “Since this is a joyous occasion, I ought to look a little happier.”
Long Fei did not say much and the two of them walked forward. Xu Xing had changed into her gown and stood with Ning Ning. The two of them were extremely complementary like a golden couple. Third Young Master Ye looked at them. They indeed resembled each other.
The guests in the church praised the flower boy and girl effusively. Xu Xing pulled the young kid’s sleeve and asked, “Ning Ning, are you still angry?”
“I am not,” Ning Ning calmly replied.
“You sure have a bad temper,” Xu Xing said as a matter-of-factly. “My mommy used to say that I have a bad temper. It seems like your temper is worse than mine.”
“You are not the first to say that I have a bad temper,” Ning Ning calmly replied.
“Is it?” Xu Xing pouted. “You look like your daddy.”
“Yes.”
“Uh, Ning Ning, could I ask you a question? Who is Xu Nuo?”
“My wife.”
“What do you mean?”
He smiled without answering. Xu Xing was slightly disappointed that he did not answer. However, she quickly regained her happiness and found other topics to talk to him about.
In the bridal lounge, Cheng Anya heard people call ‘Third Young Master Ye’ outside. As she stood up, she saw Third Young Master Ye push open the door and enter. She was befuddled. “Ah Chen, what are you doing here again?”
He walked over with a gentle smile and hooked around her waist. She was baffled despite his gentle smile. “Wedding? Anya, there will not be any wedding.”
“You…”
Just as she was about to speak, the man covered her nose with a handkerchief. Her eyes suddenly grew big and she fainted.
Although the guy broke into a pleasing smile, he had a cold look on his face.