Chapter 1124: The Story of Ling and Heng (387)
“I don’t, I was really just saying that carelessly. I never had any feelings for Vice-Drillmaster Qiao,” after being forced into a corner, Feng Ling suddenly said these words.
Li Nanheng glanced at her coldly and did not answer.
“Although my relations.h.i.+p with Miss Wen is not bad, and I truly do see her as a friend, I’m not very comfortable with sharing my feelings and thoughts with people. When she asked me those questions, I simply wanted to sound more open-minded, and not as if it had to be you…”
Although the man did not speak, he lifted his brows ever so slightly.
“I-I thought you wouldn’t hear it, and so I joked a bit with Miss Wen. I didn’t actually mean it that way. All of the men in the base are just brothers to me. With the way I was back then, I would never have responded unless I met someone who really moved my heart. Be it Qiao Fei, that martial arts club coach, or even Chen Beiqing, I really treated them normally. I didn’t have the slightest interest in them! You’re the only one! I… It’s because I care for you that I’m afraid. I’m afraid that, because I like you too much, I’ll be hurt. That’s why I backed away. But I didn’t have the slightest intention of settling. You’re the only one. I wasn’t settling…”
After saying so much, Feng Ling also lost sight of what exactly she was trying to convey. She felt that the words she had said earlier were too easily misunderstood and she disliked misunderstandings. She hated the current situation even more because the misunderstanding had been caused by her words. She had rushed to explain herself and failed to recognize that she had accidentally spilled all of her honest thoughts.
The man’s eyes did not reveal any emotions and Feng Ling became genuinely fl.u.s.tered. She was not sure why exactly she was fl.u.s.tered, but in the end, all she could say was: “Boss…”
Li Nanheng: “I got it.”
“…”
Although he said so, from his att.i.tude, it was clear he did not intend on accepting this explanation. Feng Ling felt as though smoke was about to escape the top of her head.
She stood there without moving and continued watching him. Li Nanheng glanced at her: “I’m going to change my pants. Do you plan on standing there to watch?”
Feng Ling’s expression faltered. A strange burning sensation in her heart caused her eyes to ache. When he s.h.i.+fted his hands directly to his belt, she felt the ache worsen. She turned around. “I won’t look. Go ahead.”
“You’re not leaving?”
“No. I’ll leave after the misunderstanding is cleared up.”
The man watched her back view mildly and lifted one corner of his lips. He directly began to change his pants.
Although Feng Ling was not facing him, she caught the clinking of his belt and the noise of fabric s.h.i.+fting around. Eventually, she heard the sound of his belt being fastened again. However, she deliberated over it and decided not to turn around until he said he was done, just in case she saw something she wasn’t supposed to.
Back in the base, men would often attend training without s.h.i.+rts on. Thus, she could somewhat accept seeing him bare-chested; She could still tolerate it. However, the lower body was a separate issue…
Seeing that she was still standing there stiffly, Li Nanheng casually took off his watch and placed it on the bedside table. He spoke up: “You understand the pain and misery of being misunderstood, trying all sorts of methods to explain it, and still being unable to clarify the misunderstanding. In the past three years, you spent two whole years hiding from me and when I finally found you, you loudly declared your rejection of everything that happened between us. No matter how strong a man is, his heart isn’t made of stone. You’ve smashed my heart onto the ground so many times. How do you think I feel?”
Feng Ling knitted her brows. She turned to look at him.
“Even the words that you say with your own mouth can at times go against how you truly feel. How trustworthy do you think the media really is?” The man looked her in the eye as he spoke: “Although they say there’s no smoke without fire, and that if there were no reasons behind it, the media would never have made such a report, but have you ever given me the opportunity to explain myself?”
“Right now, I’m standing right in front of you. You ask me to listen to your explanation; you won’t even leave the room before clearing things up. You also understand how grievance can make you feel stifled and fl.u.s.tered. How do you think I’ve been living for the past three years, en?”
Feng Ling: “…”
“Have I never explained myself to you? Did you believe in me?”
“…”
“I didn’t marry anyone else. From the beginning, Feng Ling, you were my only one. Do you believe in me?”
“…”
Li Nanheng watched as she stood there stiffly. She was silent, as though that insurmountable wall in her heart had suddenly crumbled. As a large crack appeared in the determination in her eyes, Li Nanheng couldn’t tell if he was angry at her, or if his heart was aching for her: “Come here.”
Feng Ling stood there without moving. She watched him silently.
The man lifted his brows. “Are you still unwilling to take a step in my direction?”
Feng Ling faltered. She lifted her feet slowly and gradually took one step towards him. It was a small step and there were still two meters of distance between them. With her eyes fixed on him, she took another step and eventually stopped right in front of him.
Li Nanheng watched the woman who was finally willing to come towards him. Her eyes contained the grievance and anxiety she had stubbornly endured for three whole years. They were reddened yet she refused to allow the tears to fall. She only continued watching him.
“Look at your aggrieved appearance.” Li Nanheng looked at her from his height and reached up to caress her head: “I’m not that lacking in self-confidence. Be it Qiao Fei or anyone else, as long as I’m there, you would never settle. Your only option is to drown in love for me. Otherwise, would you have become frightened to this state?”
Feng Ling: “Why are you so shameless?”
Li Nanheng chuckled: “If I wasn’t shameless, how would I catch my wife?”
Feng Ling spoke in frustration with reddened eyes: “Earlier, were you intentionally…”
Li Nanheng lifted his brows and she immediately lost the ability to continue speaking.
Regardless of whether he had done it intentionally, the problem had started with her. If she hadn’t been stubborn, and if she hadn’t rushed into an explanation, she wouldn’t have made things so awkward for herself. She had nearly become like him and had wanted to dig her own heart out for him to see.
The man rubbed her head before holding the back of it. He lowered his gaze to watch her reddened eyes: “Yo, are you crying?”
Feng Ling: “No.”
Li Nanheng smiled. He lifted her chin with his long, slightly cold fingers and lowered his head to lean close to her. He stared into her eyes: “You’re clearly crying. Crying indicates that one of the things you said earlier was honest.”
“What?”
“The line about me being your only one.”
Feng Ling: “…” The anger caused the tear that was about to roll down to shrink back into her eye.
She was about to speak when the man smiled and opened both his arms to bring her into his embrace. He leaned down and kissed her forehead. “All right, I’ll allow you to cry this once. I won’t make you cry again in the future.”