After waking up, Xu Qingqing sat alone on the bed, lost in thought.
Xu Qingqing gave Xie Lianqing a call, and he answered quickly. Xie Lianqing looked somewhat weary, but his voice was as gentle as he could manage for his girlfriend.
Whether it was the matters concerning the Lin family or the System, he was the one responsible for tying up the loose ends. And at this stage, he couldn't afford to be the slightest bit careless.
He glanced at the time; for Xu Qingqing, it was the middle of the night. He rose from his chair and asked, "Can't sleep?"
Xu Qingqing hugged her knees, her voice soft as she said, "I had a nightmare. I missed you a little."
In the end, Xu Qingqing didn't tell Xie Lianqing the content of her dream. She thought that Xie Lianqing must have been in great pain back then, and she didn't want him to remember it again.
They had a new life now.
On the other end of the phone, Xie Lianqing chuckled, a low, warm sound. He walked to the floor-to-ceiling window, looking down at the city, and asked gently, "What kind of nightmare?"
Xu Qingqing said, "I dreamed the sky was raining."
...
Xu Qingqing's days at her new school were fulfilling. With the threat of the System gone, her life got back on track. Le Jiaojiao also came to the school, so Xu Qingqing finally had a familiar friend in a foreign land. They attended classes together and would make plans to go shopping on weekends and holidays.
After Xie Lianqing finished dealing with the affairs of the Lin family and the System, he kept his previous promise and would sometimes visit Xu Qingqing during holidays. They could see each other about twice a month.
On weekends, they would go to the beach to sunbathe or stroll hand in hand along the streets. Because Xie Lianqing had to take a flight of over ten hours each time he came to see her, and with work being busy sometimes, there were occasions when Xu Qingqing and he would do nothing at all, just lie in bed or on the sofa together, lost in thought.
When Xie Lianqing closed his eyes to catch up on sleep, Xu Qingqing would lie in his arms watching silent TV.
Spring turned to autumn, and the cherry blossoms falling outside the window turned into red leaves, then into fluttering snowflakes. The atmosphere inside the room remained quiet and warm.
Xu Qingqing thought that if Xie Lianqing proposed to her now, she would definitely never refuse again.
On Xu Qingqing's birthday, Xie Lianqing couldn't make it due to work and had a custom cake delivered to her. Xu Qingqing stayed home alone, eating each bite very carefully.
After finishing the cake, she opened the large refrigerator, searching among the huge bouquet of roses she had signed for, looking for any trace of a ring.
But by the end, she hadn't found it.
Xu Qingqing sat on the floor, arms wrapped around herself, her expression one of disbelief, suspecting she might have accidentally swallowed it!
Eventually, she had to admit that Xie Lianqing seemed to have forgotten about the proposal altogether.
After feeling like she had made a fool of herself, Xu Qingqing, embarrassed and angry, furiously blocked her boyfriend.
Xie Lianqing, who had just finished his official duties and was about to message his girlfriend: ...?
Xu Qingqing would make time every day to video call her family, chatting about things at school and in life. Spring turned to autumn, and a year passed quickly. Xu Qingqing once again set foot on the soil of City A.
With the System dealt with, Xu Qingqing could have actually returned much earlier. It was just that she was busy with her studies at the new school, and any holidays she had were spent alone in the foreign country. It wasn't until now that she had time to return home.
After arriving home, Xu Qingqing chatted with her grandparents and heard about a major recent event. Xu Changshan was getting a divorce from Bai Yaxiu, but the latter refused to agree, leaving the household in complete chaos.
Grandma Xu shook her head, speaking gravely, "We advised him back then not to do wrong. His eyes were only for Bai Yaxiu, constantly saying she was his true love. Now over a decade has passed, and he's crying and wailing about how sorry he is to Jiangxue. What's the use now that she's gone? It's truly a sin..."
Xu Qingqing didn't know what to say. She guessed that perhaps Bai Youlan had used a nightmare-inducing tool on Xu Changshan similar to the one used against her, but ultimately, it could only be blamed on Xu Changshan's weak will.
No matter how regretful and anguished he appeared now, it couldn't undo the past or change the wrongs he had committed.
Xu Qingqing didn't even want to mention this person.
Seeing her granddaughter didn't like it, Grandma Xu just complained casually, then said to Xu Qingqing, "Since you're back this year, shouldn't you go visit your mother?"
Xu Qingqing had been away from home for over a year this time, and it was only right to pay respects to her mother upon returning.
Thinking about the news of Xu Changshan she had just learned, Xu Qingqing also felt she should personally tell her mother about the enemy's downfall and retribution.
The day Xu Qingqing went to the cemetery was overcast, with Xie Lianqing by her side. When they arrived at the memorial park, Xu Qingqing noticed someone seemed to be furtively watching them.
Xu Qingqing was a bit puzzled and planned to ask the person in charge after paying her respects.
Several bouquets of fresh flowers were placed before Lin Jiangxue's stone tablet. Two of them were sent periodically by the Xu family, and Xu Qingqing could probably guess who the owners of the other bouquets were.
This was Xie Lianqing's first time accompanying Xu Qingqing to pay respects to her mother. His expression was solemn as he respectfully placed the lilies in his hands before Lin Jiangxue's grave. Then he stepped aside, giving the time and space to his girlfriend.
It had been a long time since Xu Qingqing last visited, and for a moment, she didn't know what to say. Unwilling to disturb his girlfriend's private conversation, Xie Lianqing tactfully moved away, walking a few meters into the distance.
Xu Qingqing squatted on the ground, watching his retreating back, and suddenly smiled. She turned her head, looked at the photo of the gentle woman on the tombstone, and said with a smile, "Mom, look, that's my boyfriend."
"You probably don't know yet, but that scumbag Xu Changshan got his comeuppance. He was kicked out of the Xu family by Grandpa and Grandma. And Bai Yaxiu, I heard she's busy fighting with Xu Changshan lately and also visiting Bai Youlan, who became a vegetable..."
Unconsciously, Xu Qingqing rambled on by herself for a long time. She had squatted for too long, and her legs were numb, so she simply found a spot to sit beside the tombstone, leaning her head against it.
Xu Qingqing looked up at the sky and murmured, "Xu Changshan came to see you, right? Constantly saying he regrets it. If he were truly devoted, he should have gone to see you sooner."
Xu Qingqing didn't know how long she had been talking, maybe half an hour, maybe over an hour. Throughout it all, Xie Lianqing stood not far away, waiting quietly for her.
Because many people rested here, Xie Lianqing, to show respect, didn't take out his phone to play or pass the time, even if he might be bored alone.
Xu Qingqing finally finished telling her mother about recent events. She didn't mention the Lin family. She knew her mother was a kind and soft-hearted person; otherwise, she wouldn't have stayed in the Xu family back then due to the Lin family's persuasion and her lingering feelings for Xu Changshan.
Even though the Lin family had abandoned her mother and her, hearing that her relatives weren't doing well, Xu Qingqing felt her mother probably wouldn't be happy either.
She bid farewell to Lin Jiangxue, then stood up, about to call Xie Lianqing to leave together, when hurried footsteps echoed through the quiet cemetery.
Xu Qingqing suddenly turned around and saw the Lin family arriving in haste.
Her grandmother and eldest uncle were there, and even Lin Donghan had come. Xu Qingqing suddenly realized that the furtive person earlier was probably a scout hired by the Lin family.
In fact, things were just as she had thought. Xu Qingqing had blocked all the contact information of the Lin family members. When she was abroad, they couldn't get in touch with her.
It was not until Xu Qingqing returned to China with great difficulty. By now, the Lin family was at the end of its rope. They went to the Xu family to see her again and again, hoping that she would plead with Xie Lianqing on their behalf, but she always refused to see them.
Since the Lin family members couldn't see Xu Qingqing at the Xu family, they guessed that she would come to pay homage to Lin Jiangxue after she got home. So they hired someone to stand guard outside the cemetery. As soon as they saw Xu Qingqing, they were supposed to send a message to the Lin family immediately.
"Qingqing, you can't just stand by and watch us die!" Aunt Lin shouted first.
