Previous | Table of Contents | Next

Shao Cixin hesitated, then said honestly, “I thought you would blush.”

There was a time when just being close to Shao Cixin would turn the tips of Wen Zhihan’s ears pink with the soft hue of cherry blossoms. But not anymore. Now, her ears didn’t redden in the slightest. Instead, she was even wilder than Shao Cixin—so wild that it left her stunned, unable to respond.

Wen Zhihan curled her lips into a smile. “Because I’m used to it.”

Back then, she had too little contact with Shao Cixin, so her heart would race uncontrollably whenever she came close, the tips of her ears betraying her with a telling shade of pink. But as Shao Cixin granted her more privileges and the gap between them closed, Wen Zhihan got used to her crush’s advances. She no longer blushed as easily.

Now even when Shao Cixin teased her, Wen Zhihan could take it in stride.

It was normal to be bold when it came to adult topics, just like it was normal to have a lively exchange in conversation.

Besides, she couldn’t resist Shao Cixin’s intimacy.

Shao Cixin raised her eyebrows. “Okay.”

Then she retreated to the other end of the sofa and turned on the TV to watch a show.

The two of them leaned on separate ends of the sofa in silence.

The atmosphere in the living room became quiet again, with only the sound of the TV lingering between them. Like this, they coexisted in peace and harmony.

After a while, Wen Zhihan quietly turned her head and looked at Shao Cixin.

She saw that Shao Cixin’s exposed ankles were white and slender, looking as if they could be firmly grasped with just one hand.

Her eyes moved upward and stopped on Shao Cixin’s beautiful face—on Shao Cixin’s enchanting delicate eyebrows, rosy lips, and autumn-lit eyes.

Their gazes met in the air.

Shao Cixin raised her lips and smiled. “You’re peeking at me.”

Wen Zhihan returned the smile magnanimously. “Cixin, I’m looking honestly.”

Shao Cixin’s thoughts changed, and she suddenly crawled to Wen Zhihan’s side on her hands and knees.

“Then come and take a closer look.” She gazed up at her. “You’re welcome to appreciate my beauty up close.”

There was indeed a difference between seeing the person you liked so close at hand and seeing them from far away. But once they were so close, your desires could lose control and spread like weeds.

Wen Zhihan smiled tenderly and gently said, “Cixin can get closer.”

Shao Cixin moved closer to her.

“A little bit closer.”

Shao Cixin came closer again.

“Closer.”

Shao Cixin moved forward without any precaution. Then Wen Zhihan hugged her waist and pulled her into her arms.

“Like this is very good.”

Wen Zhihan raised her fingers and stroked Shao Cixin’s black hair, a sly smile flashing through her eyes.

Shao Cixin leaned against Wen Zhihan’s chest, falling stunned.

When she came back to her senses, she suddenly lost the courage to leave Wen Zhihan’s embrace. Wen Zhihan’s arms were soft and fragrant, there was a sense of security to them that made people feel physically and mentally calm.  As if there was no need to worry about anything else in the world.

But most importantly, Shao Cixin heard her own heartbeat.

The heart hidden under her chest was beating hard.

It was shy, and excited, saying—it liked Wen Zhihan.

Shao Cixin had never felt this way when she was in the arms of another actor during filming. She didn’t feel this way with her friends or her parents. Her heart only raced like this now.

Because Wen Zhihan was different. She was special.

When Shao Cixin thought about what Wen Zhihan said about being “used” to her, she suddenly had an epiphany.

What if she didn’t feel any excitement seeing Wen Zhihan, just because she was “used” to her too? She got used to Wen Zhihan’s existence, got used to being around her, got used to her looks, and got used to her kindness.

But when Wen Zhihan left, Shao Cixin wasn’t “used” to it.

If Wen Zhihan did something outside of their usual intimacy, Shao Cixin’s heart would start beating rapidly and she didn’t even have the will to resist.

—Wasn’t this just love?

Shao Cixin didn’t want Wen Zhihan to like anyone else. She wanted to monopolize Wen Zhihan’s hugs, monopolize her whole person.

This was love.

More than a little “like.”

After Shao Cixin understood this, she hugged Wen Zhihan’s waist with both hands and raised her gaze to look at her.  Her clear eyes were full of waves, and every emotion revealed was the most touching lovesickness after a sudden realization.

It turned out that she had always loved her, but she found out too late…

They faced each other.

Their shortened distance suddenly gave rise to a hint of warmth.

Their eyes were entangled in the ambiguity of this warmth, lingering and inseparable.

“Jiejie,” Shao Cixin said softly, “you are so beautiful.”

Wen Zhihan lowered her gaze and smiled softly.

She asked, “How beautiful?”

Shao Cixin thought for a moment.

“If you were a gem, I would spend all my money to have you.”

Wen Zhihan stared at Shao Cixin. Then she whispered in her ear in a serious and gentle tone, “As long as Cixin wants it, I will be yours. I will always be yours.”

Shao Cixin gazed at her with a glimmer in her eyes.

She wanted it.

The fog had cleared. She never wanted Wen Zhihan more than she did now.

Everything in her body screamed that she liked her, wanted her.

When she remembered that the person she liked returned her feelings, her heart couldn’t help but beat faster. Under this fierce beating, her love slowly bloomed again—for Wen Zhihan.

Maybe this was the reason why the heavens kept her here with the rain. To understand her feelings. 

Shao Cixin’s eyes couldn’t help but fall on Wen Zhihan’s beautiful lips. She was straightforward, and she didn’t bother to hide her desires.

She wanted to kiss Wen Zhihan. To kiss her as her girlfriend.

The next second, Wen Zhihan looked away. She gently pressed Shao Cixin further into her arms and hugged her with unspoken adoration. Then she breathed a long sigh of relief, as if she had been holding back her helplessness for a long time.

“What’s wrong?” Shao Cixin asked.

Wen Zhihan hugged her tightly, her cheek pressed against black hair. Her eyes had blossomed in darkness.

“Cixin, don’t look at me like that. I can’t help but want to kiss you.”

She wanted to kiss Shao Cixin all the time.

She could usually endure her feelings, but not at this moment, not under Shao Cixin’s burning gaze. It was a torturous temptation.

She wanted it badly, but she had nowhere to relieve it.

She wanted to obey her heart, but she was afraid of making a big mistake.

Wen Zhihan didn’t want to make Shao Cixin unhappy because of her own selfish desires.

Then she heard Shao Cixin laugh softly.

“Then let’s kiss,” Shao Cixin said.

Wen Zhihan couldn’t help but startle. For a moment, she began to wonder if there was something wrong with her ears.

What did Shao Cixin just say?

“Jiejie, you can kiss me if you want.”

Shao Cixin lifted her body and looked into Wen Zhihan’s eyes, her eyes as gentle as water.

“After all, it’s not illegal to kiss your girlfriend.”

“What did you just say?” Wen Zhihan slightly widened her beautiful eyes.

Shao Cixin curved her eyes into a smile and took Wen Zhihan’s hand.

“Zhihan, I just realized something,” she said. “In fact, I have always liked you. I’ve always liked you very, very much. I let you hold me, let you hug me, and let you be different from others in my world, all because I have liked you for a long time.

“It’s just that I didn’t discover my heart…”

She sighed in relief.

“Fortunately, I finally found out. Fortunately, it’s not too late.”

Shao Cixin clutched onto this true love and solemnly responded to Wen Zhihan’s feelings.

“Wen Zhihan, I like you. I am willing to be your girlfriend. Willing to be with you and never leave.”

Wen Zhihan looked at the person before her, a moving light in her eyes.

She no longer knew how long she had been waiting for this day. She once thought that it would never arrive. But now it seemed that the heavens were still very kind to her.

She could finally reach out her hands and cherish the love that had lasted since her youth. She closed her eyes and buried her face in Shao Cixin’s neck, her heart filled with joy.

“Okay, never leave…”

Shao Cixin stroked Wen Zhihan’s long hair.

Only when she was held in Wen Zhihan’s arms, did she truly feel the warmth of love—this was the person who liked her.

Wen Zhihan sincerely loved her. Wen Zhihan wouldn’t make her leave her favorite career like Wen Yu. She wouldn’t make her feel lonely and helpless like Wen Yu. The love she gave was never out of grievance.

—They were destined for each other.

They happily embraced each other with gentle smiles playing between their eyebrows.

“Now I can sincerely do something to you,” Shao Cixin said with a cheeky smile.

Wen Zhihan heard this and pressed her forehead against Shao Cixin’s, smiling along with her.

“For example?”

“For example…”

Shao Cixin’s eyes slowly fell on Wen Zhihan’s lips. Then she kissed her without hesitation.

The kiss landed lightly on the lips.

When they briefly separated, Shao Cixin looked into Wen Zhihan’s eyes. After confirming that there was no displeasure, she boldly kissed her again.

This time, she kissed even more passionately.

They tangled together under the rainy night. Just like the storm outside, their kisses were fierce and unstoppable. Shao Cixin recklessly snatched away Wen Zhihan’s breath, as if she couldn’t bear to waste another second of opportunity to spend time with her.

Wen Zhihan hugged Shao Cixin tightly, raising her head and letting her have whatever she wanted. Their breaths became messy, their lips tightly bound, and their hearts clung to each other. They seemed to blend into each other, becoming one in their heated love, unable to separate from then on.

Their passionate kiss gradually subsided.

Their breaths slowly adjusted as their chests rose and fell.

Shao Cixin gazed at Wen Zhihan’s lips, which were red from her kiss, and a smile suddenly appeared in her eyes. She hugged Wen Zhihan, saying that she liked her over and over again into her ear.

It was meant for this adult Wen Zhihan, but also for the high school Wen Zhihan who secretly had a crush on her.

—Many years later, Shao Cixin will like you, like you very much.

—So thank you for not giving up on me, my Zhihan, my Senior Sister.

After they dated for a month, they finally gifted each other a beautiful night at Shao Cixin’s home.

Shao Cixin lay on her back in bed, her joy from just now still lingering in her mind. She couldn’t believe what she had experienced at Wen Zhihan’s hands.

Why is she so good? Is this still the pure senior sister she knew?

Shao Cixin hooked her arms around Wen Zhihan’s waist. After the other person leaned down, she stretched out her arms and put them around Wen Zhihan’s neck, intertwining her fingers behind her nape to prevent her from leaving.

“Can you explain the technique you just showed me, senior sister?”

Then she watched as Wen Zhihan’s beautiful eyes slowly curved like the crescent moon in the sky. “There’s no explanation. It’s just that a junior sister always comes to me in my dreams.”

After Wen Zhihan finished speaking, she leaned forward and kissed Shao Cixin’s lips, then used her slender fingertips to continue making sweet love.

Shao Cixin was dazed by the kiss.

The junior sister she was talking about…seemed to be her?

“Oh. It’s me~” Shao Cixin hugged Wen Zhihan with a smile on her face and spoke with a coquettish tone, “It turns out that the person in senior sister’s dreams looks like this.”

She began teasing. “Wow, senior sister looks so serious on the surface, but in her dreams, she’s like this and that. Senior sister, you’re so terrible~

“But I like it very much. Come closer. Don’t treat me like a delicate flower. Let your sweet dreams shine in reality!”

Even at a time like this, Shao Cixin couldn’t stop talking dirty!

Wen Zhihan felt amused by Shao Cixin and lovingly kissed her red lips. “Okay, I’ll give them all to you. It’s all for our Cixin.”

Shao Cixin hugged Wen Zhihan with a smile on her face, her whole body clinging to her.

Their ears and temples lingered against each other, and they made endless love.

The two of them kept going until one o’clock in the morning, before finally stopping to take a shower and rest.

After lying down, Shao Cixin kissed Wen Zhihan and said sweetly, “Good night, jiejie.”

“Good night,” Wen Zhihan responded, raising her arms.

Shao Cixin understood in an instant. She quickly nestled into Wen Zhihan’s embrace, her arms wrapping around Wen Zhihan’s waist as she clung to her with a soft sigh. Just like that, she fell asleep, a soft smile lingering on her lips.

The next day, the sky was clear, and the sun was blazing.

Shao Cixin opened her drowsy eyes in Wen Zhihan’s arms. She stretched comfortably, then nestled back into Wen Zhihan’s embrace, unwilling to get up.

The person beside her moved slightly. “Good morning.”

The corners of Shao Cixin’s lips couldn’t help but raise slightly, and her voice was soft and sweet. “Good morning, jiejie…”

Wen Zhihan’s heart was overwhelmed by Shao Cixin’s cuteness, and she couldn’t help but hug her and kiss her again and again.

“Why is my family’s Cixin so cute?”

“To please my jiejie.”

“En, I like it very much. Be good, let’s get up and have breakfast.”

“No…I want you to kiss me more…”

Shao Cixin was good at acting spoiled, and she often did it to Wen Zhihan after they got together. Since they just completed the great harmony of life the night before, Shao Cixin’s spoiled mannerisms became even more out of control.

As long as she had the opportunity, she would stick to Wen Zhihan and act sickeningly lovey-dovey with her!

Wen Zhihan liked the way Shao Cixin was spoiled around her. She liked to be relied on, and she didn’t want her to keep a distance like she did in the past. To do otherwise would be too painful. So, the two of them lingered for a while as if they weren’t tired enough from last night.

Then Lu Lan called.

Shao Cixin picked up the phone and turned on the speaker. She put it on the pillow and began playing with Wen Zhihan’s hair. “Our dearest Ms. Lu Lan, good morning.”

A compassionate voice came from the receiver, “Are you up?”

“Yup, I’m awake.”

“That’s good.”

“What’s up? Why are you calling me?”

“Nothing’s going on.”

“Oh.”

“It’s just that I’m on my way to your house right now. I bought you black-bone chicken, so I’m coming to stew it for you to drink and replenish your energy!”

“Ah?!”

Shao Cixin and Wen Zhihan looked at each other in surprise.

They weren’t ready to confess to their parents yet!

Lu Lan was frightened by this sudden sound. “You child, why are you so startled?”

 “I’m not!” Shao Cixin quickly calmed herself down. “So…Mom, where are you now?”

Lu Lan said calmly, “I’m downstairs. I’m about to get in the elevator. There’s nothing else to say, so I’ll hang up first.”

Shao Cixin: “?”

She looked down at her screen and saw that the call had ended, then turned her gaze to Wen Zhihan, “What do we do now?”

Wen Zhihan raised her hand and patted Shao Cixin’s head. “Don’t be nervous.”

Lu Lan opened the door and saw her daughter enthusiastically coming to greet her.

“Mother! I’m troubling you so much for making you come all this way. What about my father? Is he also coming^[1]?”

“Your dad has a social event today, so he couldn’t come. He said he would accompany you next time.”

“Oh, Chairman Shao has a lot to do every day. It must be so hard—just so hard.”

Shao Cixin held her mother’s arm and walked her toward the living room.

Lu Lan kept speaking as they walked. “You work very hard too. When you’re not filming, you have to replenish your nutrition. Drink more soup and eat more meat at lunch later, okay?”

As her eyes fell on another familiar face lounging on the sofa, she couldn’t help but add, “Zhihan, you should also drink more soup.”

Wen Zhihan replied, “Okay, Aunt Lu.”

“So polite, good girl.”

After the words left her mouth, Lu Lan was stunned for a moment: “?”

She came to her senses and turned back to Wen Zhihan in surprise.

“Zhihan, why are you here?!” she exclaimed. “Did you come to play with Cixin? So early?”

Shao Cixin scratched her head in embarrassment. “No, she stayed at my place overnight…”

She took a deep breath.

“Because she’s my girlfriend, and we’re together.”

Lu Lan was shocked. “Ah?!”

Her gaze shifted back to Wen Zhihan, who was now approaching Shao Cixin with a gentle stride. She watched as Wen Zhihan reached out to Shao Cixin, intertwining their fingers in a tender clasp.

Wen Zhihan was about to express her feelings when she saw Lu Lan’s expression change.

With a look of pure happiness, Lu Lan said, “Ai-ya, this is a good thing!”

Wen Zhihan: “?”

Shao Cixin: “?”

Lu Lan put down the things she was holding, her gaze softening as she looked at Shao Cixin. With a warm smile, she said, “You silly child. How can I, your mother, not see who treats you well? Zhihan is very good. Just look at how she ran this way and that when you were in the hospital. Mom believes she won’t disappoint you.

“Of course, since you have decided to be together, you must also be good to her. You must both be loyal to each other. You can peacefully break up, but you should never do bad things.”

Wen Zhihan was different from Wen Yu.

She was more responsible and mature than her younger sister. Lu Lan always had a good impression of her and liked her very much. If Wen Zhihan could be with Shao Cixin, what did she have to complain about as a mother?

But the most important thing was that her daughter was still willing to believe in love, to try to love again, and to open her heart to another person.

Shao Cixin had not completely closed herself off to others because of the suffering she endured. This was the happiest thing for Lu Lan to experience as a mother.

Shao Cixin was moved by Lu Lan’s words and ran forward to hug her. “Mom, you’re the best!”

Lu Lan smiled and patted Shao Cixin’s head, then went to pat Wen Zhihan’s head as well, her eyes full of love. “Have you two had breakfast yet? If not, I’ll make some now. Don’t be hungry.”

Wen Zhihan responded in a warm voice, “Not yet.”

Shao Cixin said happily, “Okay, I want to eat the breakfast you make!”

Lu Lan responded, “Then come and help me. I’ll make something for you so you’re not hungry.”

“Sure,” Wen Zhihan and Shao Cixin spoke in unison.

They went to join Lu Lan in the kitchen.

A beautiful day slowly bloomed.

Once Lu Lan found out that they were together, the news quickly reached Shao Heng, and soon, Wen Xingyun and his wife were also brought into the loop.

Regarding the fact that Shao Cixin and Wen Zhihan are together, the two families had an implicit understanding and expressed their full support.

Wen Xingyun and Joanna even spoke to Wen Zhihan, asking her to treat Shao Cixin well and not let her down again.

If even the eldest daughter treated Shao Cixin poorly, then the relationship between the two families would become extremely ugly.

Wen Zhihan told them to rest assured—she knew what she was doing.

Not only was she the president of Guanglan, who understood the importance of the friendship between their two families, but she was also the infatuated person who had been in love with Shao Cixin for many years.

It was already so hard for them to reconnect, so how could she be willing to separate from Shao Cixin and make her upset again?

As a result, the two families once again restored their harmonious relationship as in-laws.

This time, Shao Cixin was happier than anyone else.

Because she finally found someone who truly loved her.

From now on, she no longer had to suffer the pain of unrequited love, only the joy of a wholeheartedly reciprocated love.

Now that she had a girlfriend, her sweetness doubled. While she was filming, she would have video calls with Wen Zhihan every day. When she wasn’t filming, she would often go find her girlfriend and wait for her to finish work so they could eat and go home.

Wen Zhihan became used to this arrangement. Now, every time she didn’t see Shao Cixin right after work, she felt like something was missing from her day.

Thankfully, she could still see her when she got home.

Together, they believed they were the happiest people in the world.

As Shao Cixin’s love life sailed smoothly, so did her career.

In the third year since she returned to acting, she finally won her coveted Best Actress trophy.

When she stood on the award podium, she couldn’t help but burst into tears, thanking everyone in the world with her wet eyes.

That night, Wen Zhihan came to pick her up.

As soon as she saw the person she loved, Shao Cixin immediately picked up her dress and ran to Wen Zhihan. Then she cried again in her arms.

“I won, Zhihan…” she sobbed. “I really did it. I feel like I’m pretty awesome too, wuwuwu…”

Wen Zhihan hugged the person in her arms tighter, a smile spreading across her face as if she were holding a treasure. “Our Cixin has always been awesome and great. This is well deserved. I’m proud of you.”

Shao Cixin was even less capable of holding back her tears after she heard those words. Wen Zhihan had given her so much encouragement and support along the way, as well as the courage to firmly move forward.

Wen Zhihan was the most precious thing she had ever received in her life.

“Thank you, Zhihan…”

Shao Cixin tightened her grip and firmly hugged her precious person.

“Getting to know you is one of the best things of my life…”

“I think so too.” Wen Zhihan tenderly kissed Shao Cixin’s cheek with a charming smile. “It really is one of the best things in life.”

In the night sky, there were as many stars as the vast sea, twinkling and moving. The fragrance of summer flowers floated in the air, and the evening breeze was slightly cool.

They kissed under this night sky, openly declaring their love for one another.

Shao Cixin took Wen Zhihan’s hand and gently stroked her fingertips.

She asked softly, “Then are you willing…to marry me?

“Zhihan, I want to share the responsibility of building a family with you. I want to wear the wedding ring you picked for me, and I want to be able to proudly say, ‘This is my Mrs. Shao’ when I introduce you to others. I want you—all of you—for my whole life.

“So, are you willing to marry me?”

Her confession was full of sincerity from the heart.

Wen Zhihan was awestruck. She nodded once softly, but as if a single nod couldn’t capture the depth of her feelings, she nodded three more times. Her eyes were filled with happiness from the joy of getting one’s wish granted.

“I do,” she whispered. “I am very willing.”

Shao Cixin’s face lit up with a beaming smile. Even though the events happened on the same night, she felt much happier than when she won the title of Best Actress.

It was her honor to have Wen Zhihan’s love, an honor that overshadowed anything else.

They embraced each other.

The night, the stars, and the evening breeze as their witnesses.

She would regard her as the bright moon and the scorching sun, the most unique existence in the world.

Her love for her was like the stars in the vast sea, as long as the heavens and the earth, immortal and undying.

From that moment forward, every year stretched into the present, and every day was hers.

The translator (AmEricaNo) has something to say:

Thank you again to Yamahl for the bonus chapter!

I couldn’t do it have done it without you 🫶

Um, also a small announcement about what would’ve been my next project:

I’ve been translating 热到昏厥’s second most recent novel How Do You Still Have This Side over the last few months, but I checked today and it’s already been picked up by another wonderful (and wonderfully prolific!) translator Little Panda.

I always knew this was a risk going into translating something before uploading it to the internet, so I’m not upset about it happening, but I am a little bummed out at the thought of having all these translated chapters (all 79!) sitting in the dungeon that is my Google Drive forever.

So I was wondering if you guys would like them as a Ko-Fi reward?

Please let me know your thoughts.

The author (热到昏厥) has something to say:

[It’s not necessary right? What did I write? It just came to me in one stroke]

Happy Valentine’s Day everyone~

Okay, I’ve finished writing the extra story about a different past life.

There will be an extra chapter set in the [Main Storyline] tomorrow. It’s an extra scenario that I have not included in the main text. It is also the last extra chapter. I hope everyone can enjoy it~

To be honest, I really didn’t expect that I could write so many extra chapters. 热到昏厥 is so scary!

Anyway, after writing tomorrow’s extra chapter, it’s time for 热到昏厥 to take a big holiday.

I love you all, bobobobobo^[2]!!!

^[1] Shao Cixin is speaking in an excessively formal/polite tone.

^[2] 啵 (bō) is a character meant to emulate kissing sounds.

Previous | Table of Contents | Next