Lin Xinyan opened the box and found a round-shaped fish tank made of glass inside. There was a plastic bag pumped with oxygen inside of which two fishes of vibrant colors were swimming inside. The fishes were rare and not commonly seen on the market.
They were different from those she received from Bai Yinning at his place last time. Yet, the sight of the fishes still couldn’t help but remind Lin Xinyan of the incident that had taken place in Baicheng back then.
Meanwhile, Zong Jinghao unbuttoned his shirt and made his way to the bathroom. This time, his prediction turned out to be wrong. He supposed the gift was from Zhou Chunchun as she was the only one who could think of sending fishes as a wedding gift.
It was unbeknownst to him that the fishes were actually from Bai Yinning.
Just like Su Zhan, Bai Yinning stayed low profile throughout the wedding ceremony too.
Lin Xinyan cast a glance at Zong Jinghao, then let out a sigh of relief.
At first, she was worried that the gift might upset him. However, it seemed like he couldn’t tell the gift was from Bai Yinning, or he would have been jealous of him again.
She opened the plastic packaging and poured everything into the fish tank.
When she threw the packaging and the box into the dustbin, a card fell off from the box. She picked it up and opened it to find Bai Yinning’s handwriting on it. Although we don’t get to see each other every day, that doesn’t mean we’ll start to forget each other. We may live in two different cities, that doesn’t mean we’ll stop missing each other. Nothing will come between us as long as our bond is strong. You have my best wishes, and I hope your life will be full of happiness.
Keeping her eyes fixed on the card, Lin Xinyan’s eyelashes fluttered slightly to fight off the tears that were threatening to fall from her eyes. At the same time, a faint smile emerged on her face. Although Bai Yinning did not write much on the letter, it embodied his feelings as well as his wishes for her. It was a sign that he had started to move on and let everything go.
She genuinely hoped that he could lead a happy life together with Zhou Chunchun.
At last, she closed up the card and put it back on the coffee table, thinking that Zong Jinghao wouldn’t be able to notice its existence among the pile of gifts. Then, she spotted Wen Qing’s gift in the middle of the pile. Reaching for it, she unpacked it to find a photo album inside.
After some hesitation, she flicked it open and was greeted by a family photo affixed on the first page. There was a couple whom she had never met before in the photo – her grandfather and grandmother. They were sitting on chairs while Wen Qing and Wen Xian stood behind them. Both Wen Qing and Wen Xian looked very young in the photo.
She continued the flip through the album, which mainly consisted of Wen Xian’s photos – some of them were her portraits while some of them were taken together with Wen Qing. They were casual snapshots of their daily lives which were so vivid that she could almost feel their emotions through them.
Wen Xian and Wen Qing were the only two children of their parents. As their parents loved each other very much, their affection influenced their kids deeply and was the main reason behind their close relationship. In the photos, Wen Qing was sometimes caught staring at his younger sister with his eyes brimming with caring love.
There was a time Wen Qing had been having a hard time trying to move on after Wen Xian’s death. As he loved her too much, he was so devastated that he started doing a string of outrageous stuff.
Lin Xinyan let out a forlorn sight and closed the album. Leaning against the sofa, she was glad now that things were finally going in the right direction.
Zong Jinghao was still taking a shower. Suddenly, a wave of fatigue hit her as she had never taken a proper rest the entire day. Feeling too tired to move her ass off the sofa, she decided to close her eyes and rest while waiting for Zong Jinghao to come out from the bathroom. Little did she know, she dozed off very quickly.
Zong Jinghao saw her snoozing on the sofa when he was done. When he made his way over to carry her to the bedroom, he spotted the album she was holding. He flipped it open and took a glance at the photos inside. He was familiar with the people in the photos because they were a bunch of people who used to shower him with much love back then.
He had enjoyed everything that was supposed to belong to Lin Xinyan. Calmly, he closed the album. The moment he decided to forgive them, he had pledged not to dwell on the things in the past. Now, all he wanted was to lead a simple life.
Then, he placed one arm below Lin Xinyan’s waist and legs to carry her to the bedroom.
Gently, he placed her onto the bed. Zong Jinghao decided to help her peel the wedding gown off, thinking it would be uncomfortable for her to sleep in that outfit. Firstly, he flipped her body to reveal her back to him, then reached for the zip which he pulled all the way down. Although he had tried his best to be gentle, he still failed to avoid waking her up as her body started writhing uncomfortably. She opened her eyes and was stunned to find Zong Jinghao trying to strip the dress off her. In no time, she came to her senses and shoved him away. “I’m too tired for this.”
Zong Jinghao did not move his hands away from her. “I know.”
Biting her lips, she tried to wiggle her body away from his hands. “Why’re you still doing this then?”
Zong Jinghao’s hands froze at once. Slowly, he moved his eyes to her face and asked, “What nasty idea are you actually thinking?”
Her expression looked like she was desperate for him to pounce on her right away.
Zong Jinghao clapped a hand to his forehead and chuckled, “Indeed, I should be doing something to you as this is our first night of marriage. But then again, I just can’t make myself do anything to you, seeing how drained you are.”
Lin Xinyan beamed at him in response and pleaded in a coquettish tone, “Please help me change into my pajamas then.”
“Is this piece okay?”
There was an exquisite-looking gift box placed on the bedside table. It was a gift from Qin Ya and inside of the box was an alluring, black-colored lace nightdress.
Lin Xinyan shook her head decisively after taking one glance at the nightdress. “Not that one.”
“So, you prefer to be naked?”
Lin Xinyan was speechless.
“Just because I don’t want to wear that piece doesn’t mean I want to be naked.” She glared at him, she was not amused.
Zong Jinghao pinched her cheeks playfully. “Aren’t you going to at least remove your makeup?”
He reckoned it would be uncomfortable to sleep with makeup on her face.
Lying on the bed, Lin Xinyan answered in a lazy voice, “I don’t feel like moving.”
She did not feel like doing anything as she was too exhausted.
“Let me help you remove your makeup.” Zong Jinghao removed the gown from her and tossed it on the ottoman chair. Then, he pulled the blanket over her. “I’m going to fill up the bathtub with warm water so that you can take a bath before you sleep. I bet you’ll feel a lot better after that.”
Lin Xinyan grunted her acknowledgment. Beautiful patterns were embroidered on the bright red blanket which was made of silk. She wrapped herself in the blanket like a cocoon, revealing only her head as she watched Zong Jinghao filling up the bathtub for her.
After a while, Zong Jinghao made it back and pulled the blanket away from her. As she was wearing nothing except her underwear, she flinched a little, not ready to fully expose herself to him.
“You aren’t allowed to peek or laugh at me.”
Zong Jing was at a loss for words.
“That’s simply too demanding of me. Mind you, you’re legally my wife now and you belong to me. As your husband, I have the right to peek as much as I want.”
Lin Xinyan was left stumped.
Making use of her distraction, Zong Jinghao carried her to the bathroom. The round-shaped bathtub was filled with warm water with pink rose petals scattered on the surface. Lin Xinyan turned to look at Zong Jinghao and wondered since when he became such a romantic man.
While unhooking her bra, Zong Jinghao asked, “Why’re you staring at me like that?”
“Did you prepare the petals?” Lin Xinyan wondered.
In response, Zong Jinghao pointed at the various bottles placed on the wall shelves. They consisted of all sorts of personal care products and there was a glass jar filled with flower petals.
“The staff here are certainly very thoughtful.” As soon as she sensed that her chest was bare, she instinctively wrapped both arms around herself protectively to shield the tempting sight from Zong Jinghao’s vision.
“Get out now. I can handle the rest on my own,” she said while trying to avoid his eyes.
However, he offered in a very gentle voice, “Let me help you with the bath.”
“No way.” She turned him down.
