Epilogue 9: Xin Li & Xie Yuran
The person ringing the doorbell was the delivery man. Xin Li thanked them as she opened the door and took the breakfast before returning inside.
She placed the breakfast directly on the coffee table and sat on the sofa before eating.
From the time she woke up until now, she hadn’t said a word to Xie Yuran. She had only ordered breakfast for herself, treating him as if he were invisible.
In contrast to her calmness, Xie Yuran felt increasingly uneasy. He stood there watching her for a while before finally sitting down beside her.
“Xiao Li.”
He called her name.
Xin Li stopped in her movement, a flicker flashed through her eyes.
She looked up. “Why haven’t you left yet?”
Remembering her words from before, Xie Yuran looked into her eyes and said, “Let’s give it a try.”
Give it a try?
Xin Li was momentarily stunned. After confirming she didn’t hear it wrong, she raised an eyebrow. “What, are you trying to take responsibility?”
Her indifference made Xie Yuran frown.
Before he could speak, Xin Li added, “If you’re taking responsibility for me, what about Zhang Muqing?”
Xie Yuran was taken aback, surprised that she knew about him and Zhang Muqing.
Xin Li caught his reaction, and she felt like a sharp blade had been thrust into her heart.
Initially, she held a glimmer of hope, thinking perhaps the rumors were wrong. But now, it seemed like her friend didn’t lie to her; he did have feelings for Zhang Muqing.
Unable to continue eating breakfast, Xin Li threw the remaining food into the trash and stood up, saying, “We both drank too much last night; there’s nothing to take responsibility for. You can leave.”
Xie Yuran grabbed her wrist, frowning. “You…”
Before he could say another word, his phone suddenly rang.
He picked up his phone and glanced at the caller ID before answering the call.
After picking up the call, Xie Yuran’s expression gradually became solemn. Without delay, Xin Li broke free from him and headed to her room.
After a brief exchange on the phone, Xie Yuran hung up the call and said to her retreating figure, “I have an urgent matter to tend to. I’ll come over tonight, and we can talk things through.”
Xin Li acted as if she didn’t hear him and just entered her room.
Soon, the sound of footsteps faded away, and Xie Yuran left her condo.
Hearing the door opening and closing Xin Li paused for a moment and looked back.
She walked to the side of the bed and angrily lifted the disheveled sheets, muttering, “Who cares if you take responsibility!”
Her head was still throbbing. She changed the bedsheets and got back into bed, deciding to catch up on some sleep.
In the midst of her nap, her phone on the nightstand started ringing and vibrating incessantly.
At first, Xin Li ignored it, but after a while of pestering, she reluctantly reached out to grab her phone.
It was a call from Xin Yu.
“Hey, bro.”
Wrapped in the blanket, she uttered hoarsely.
“Still not up? Mom’s not feeling well; she’s asking you to come home.”
Upon hearing this, Xin Li instantly woke up and sat up, asking, “What happened?”
Xin Yu replied, “Nothing serious, just caught a chill. Mom wants you to come home and keep her company.”
Xin Li breathed a sigh of relief and said, “I’ll go back this afternoon.”
Uncharacteristically compliant of her, Xin Yu asked, “Do you want me to pick you up?”
Xin Li replied, “No need, I have to stop by the studio later.”
After hanging up the call, Xin Li went back to lying in bed for a while before finally getting up and leaving the condo.
She first drove to the studio, and around 5:00 p.m., she headed back to the Xin family residence.
Upon seeing Xin Li, Xu Wanqin started to nag at her out of habit. Perhaps fearing that Xin Li might leave again in anger, she didn’t bring up Xin Li’s important life matter and only had her move back home for a while.
Xin Li, not particularly eager to face Xie Yuran, agreed.
That night, sure enough, Xie Yuran called her.
Having just finished dinner and chatting with Xu Wanqin, Xin Li hesitated briefly when she saw the incoming call before deciding to hang up directly.
Not even two minutes later, Xie Yuran called again.
Xin Li continued to reject his call, her expression somewhat peculiar.
Xu Wanqin glanced at Xin Li’s phone screen and asked curiously, “Whose call is it? Why aren’t you answering?”
Xin Li replied, “Nobody important, just someone I don’t like.”
Xu Wanqin: “Why not block them then?”
Xin Li hesitated for a moment then said, “I’ll do it later.”
Blocking needs the right timing?
Xu Wanqin sensed something was amiss and looked at her suspiciously, “Xiao Li, are you secretly dating someone?”
Xin Li instinctively denied, “No.”
However, Xu Wanqin wasn’t entirely convinced. Before she could dig deeper, Xin Li yawned and said, “Mom, I’m a bit tired today. I’m going to bed.”
With that, she went upstairs with her phone.
Xu Wanqin: “…….”
Back in her room, Xin Li sat on her bed, and a new unread message appeared on her phone. Xie Yuran had switched to sending a message on WeChat.
Xie Yuran: “I’m outside your door; can you open it?”
Xin Li: “I’m not at my condo, go back.”
Xie Yuran: “Where are you? I’ll come over.”
Holding her phone, Xin Li paused for a moment before replying, “I’ve returned home.”
She didn’t believe that he would dare to come find her at the Xin family residence.
As expected, the other end went silent for a few seconds before he sent over another message, “Answer the phone.”
Xin Li typed, “I already made it clear this morning. I drank too much last night. You don’t need to take responsibility.”
She liked him, but it wasn’t to the extent of resorting to such tactics. Who knew if he would regret it once he calmed down in a couple of days?
Xie Yuran stood outside her condo, looking at the messages on his phone, frowning. He couldn’t understand the change in her attitude. Just recently, she seemed entirely focused on pursuing him.
After a while, just when Xin Li thought he had given up, a new message was sent over, “Didn’t you say that we won’t know if we’re suitable until we give it a try before? Let’s give it a try.”
Seeing this message, Xin Li felt inexplicably irked. Give it a try, not giving it a try; did he think everything revolved around him?
What did he take me for?
She looked down and quickly typed a message.
A moment later, Xie Yuran received two messages…
Xin Li: “We already tried last night, and we’re not suitable.”
Xin Li: “Your skills are just too poor!”
Xie Yuran: “……..”
Xie Yuran’s expression immediately darkened, and the veins on his forehead twitched.
He clenched his phone tightly, choosing not to reply, and briskly went downstairs.
Meanwhile, Xin Li imagined his furious reaction and couldn’t help but laugh while lying back on the bed.
……
Perhaps the impact of Xin Li’s final words was so strong that in the following few days, Xie Yuran didn’t contact her again.
Xin Li also didn’t reach out to him, obediently staying at home to accompany Xu Wanqin.
As the season changed to winter, the weather grew colder day by day.
Not long after, there was breaking news from the Xie family… Xie Shuo regained his vision!
Xin Li heard this news from her dad, Xin Yuanhong.
The news was breaking, coming out of nowhere, and like everyone else, Xin Li found it a bit hard to believe.
She instinctively took out her phone and opened Xie Yuran’s WeChat, wanting to confirm if the news was true or not. However, upon seeing their last conversation, she hastily restrained herself.
Everything had been made clear in their previous conversation. It would be awkward to reach out to him at a time like this.
While lost in thought, Xin Yu knocked on her door. “Ready to go yet?”
Xin Li snapped out of her thoughts, saying, “Wait a sec.”
She grabbed a purse from her closet and hastily went outside. “Let’s go.”
These past few days, her stomach hadn’t been feeling well, so she planned to go to the hospital for a checkup.
They went downstairs, and Xin Yu drove her to the hospital.
On the way, Xin Li curiously asked, “Ge, is it true that Xie Shuo regained his vision?”
Xin Yu glanced at her. “Why are you suddenly so interested in him?”
Xin Li smiled. “Just curious.”
Xin Yu retracted his gaze, focusing on the road ahead, and said insipidly, “It should be true.”
Xin Li then asked, “Is the news about the Zhang family also true?”
Simultaneously with the news about Xie Shuo regaining his vision, there was another breaking news… The Vice Chairman of the Xie Group, Zhang Junfeng, who was also Zhang Muqing’s foster father, was arrested on charges of embezzlement, leaking trade secrets, and hiring someone to cause a car accident.
Due to this, the Zhang family collapsed and disappeared from the list of elite families in the city.
Xin Yu glanced at her again and replied, “En.”
Xin Li felt a bit perplexed, so she didn’t continue asking further.
The Zhang family had fallen, and because of such serious charges. Was there still even a chance for Zhang Muqing and Xie Yuran?
Lost in her thoughts, Xin Li arrived at the hospital and did a check-up. After getting her results, she walked toward the waiting area when she suddenly spotted a familiar figure.
Xie Yuran was standing not far away, gazing at her. He looked weary, and his expression wasn’t great.
Xin Li was taken aback, involuntarily stopping in her tracks.
In the hospital corridor, people hurried back and forth. Every person’s face carried an expression of sorrow, joy, or indifference, all different from one another.
The two stood a distance apart, silently locking eyes for a few seconds.
In the end, Xin Li looked away first, turning to go in another direction.
Xie Yuran stared at her retreating figure and the medical report in her hand, his expression inscrutable.
For some reason, he suddenly quickened his pace and grabbed her wrist.
Xin Li turned back, seeing Xie Yuran’s displeased expression.
“What are you doing?”
The warmth of the wrist in his hand felt warm, a little too slender. In less than a month, she seemed to have lost a lot of weight.
Xie Yuran loosened his grip slightly and asked, “What happened to you?”
What happened?
Seeing the concern on his face, Xin Li suddenly felt a burst of anger. Since that day, he hadn’t reached out to her at all.
She had told him he didn’t need to take responsibility, and he really didn’t even try to press on further.
If he really cared, why hadn’t he done something sooner?
She raised her chin slightly and said mockingly, “What happened to me? What does it have to do with you?”
Curious glances from the people around prompted Xie Yuran to frown and pull her into a nearby emergency exit.
“Are you not feeling well?”
He glanced at the medical report in her hand, focusing on her abdomen, his expression peculiar.
“I told you, it’s none of your business…”
Xin Li twisted her wrist, trying to free herself from his grasp. Inadvertently catching his gaze, she suddenly realized what he might be thinking. She widened her eyes, looking at him in shock. “You don’t think I’m pregnant with your child, do you?”
Seeing her surprised expression, Xie Yuran felt like she might say, “With your skills, how is that even possible?” any second. His face soured slightly.
Xin Li couldn’t help laughing, as if she had just heard a hilarious joke.
“You’re really good at letting your imagination run wild, huh?”
Xie Yuran’s expression became even more glum.
“My stomach isn’t feeling well, so I came to do a check-up. It has nothing to do with me being pregnant.”
Xin Li suppressed her laughter and glanced at him speechlessly. “Can I go now?”
However, Xie Yuran continued to hold her wrist tightly, unwilling to let go.
Thinking that he didn’t believe her, Xin Li directly handed the medical report to him, saying, “It’s true. If you don’t believe me, take a look yourself.”
Taking the report, Xie Yuran skimmed through it, and indeed, it was just a regular gastrointestinal examination unrelated to pregnancy.
“I told you not to overthink…”
Taking the report back from his hands, Xin Li looked at him once more, then turned around and left without hesitation, as if she had truly detached herself from her feelings, without a trace of attachment for him.
Xie Yuran stood still for a long time, unmoving.
Xin Li turned around the corner, walking to the waiting area. Her long eyelashes drooped slightly, and the fingers that pinched the medical report turned pale.
A few steps away, Xin Yu had his back to her, answering a call.
Sensing her approach, Xin Yu said a few more words to the other end before hanging up the call, smiling lovingly at her.
“Done with the check-up?”
Xin Li nodded and handed him the report.
After Xin Yu carefully examined the report and found no major issues, he sternly reprimanded her and reminded her to eat meals on time.
Xin Li rolled her eyes. “Got it.”
They then walked to the elevator, waiting for the doors to open along with others.
Suddenly, Xin Li’s phone in her purse rang. Checking it, she saw the familiar nickname on the screen.
She paused for a moment before declining the call.
As if sensing something, she turned around and saw Xie Yuran standing at the corner of the corridor, looking at her while holding his phone.
Xin Li pursed her lips, her heart wavering a little.
She shifted slightly, attempting to block Xin Yu’s line of sight.
However, this move seemed to be counterproductive as when Xin Yu looked up, he also spotted Xie Yuran.
Turning to Xin Li, he frowned. “You’re still in contact with him?”
Xin Li shook her head hurriedly, feeling a bit guilty. “No, today was just a coincidence, meeting by chance.”
Xin Yu relaxed a bit. “If you want to end it, end it cleanly. Don’t muddy the waters.”
Amid their conversation, the elevator doors opened, and Xin Yu wrapped his arm around her shoulder, guiding her into the elevator.
Xin Li couldn’t resist his strength and could only cast one last glance at Xie Yuran before the elevator doors blocked their view.
Xie Yuran watched her leave, standing still for a while, not pursuing after her. He then turned around and headed to Xie Baiyan’s hospital room.
