If You Could Hear My Heart

“Definitely, just wait, maybe one day I’ll push you off your perch as the number one in our grade. You just wait.”

“Okay, I’ll wait,” Lou Yanli said with a laugh.

“Liars will turn into puppies.”

“Hmm… no, that’s not right, liars are puppies.”

Xu Chaomu laughed loudly: “Look at you, with such a long reaction time. Come on, let’s pinky swear. You have to cheer me on, okay?”

Lou Yanli smiled. He extended his finger and childishly pinky swore with her.

In the sunlight, looking at the girl’s pure smile, he felt it was the most beautiful sight in this world.

After they pinky swore, Xu Chaomu sat down on a nearby chair and patted the spot next to her.

“Lou Yanli, please, take a seat.”

“Hmm? What do you want to talk about?”

“Lou Yanli, come sit here. I have something very important to tell you.”

“Alright, I’ll sit beside you. Go ahead.”

Xu Chaomu was unusually serious, her face earnest.

“Lou Yanli, do you still remember the question you asked me last time? I said I’d think about it and get back to you once I have an answer.”

“I remember. I’ve been waiting for your answer,” said Lou Yanli seriously.

He had been waiting for her answer, but he never pressed her. He would accompany her in whatever she wanted to do, and he didn’t insist on what she was reluctant to do.

“I’ve thought it through,” Xu Chaomu said solemnly. “Lou Yanli, I might not be able to be your girlfriend.”

She was seriously answering this question.

She had thought about it for a very long time, but she knew her heart hadn’t completely let go of Shen Chi.

If she agreed to Lou Yanli at this moment, it wouldn’t be fair to him.

“Chaomu, if this is the answer you’ve come to after careful consideration, then I accept,” he said.

Lou Yanli smiled faintly, always showing her the sunny side of himself, even though his heart ached quietly.

For the first time, he felt this way.

“Lou Yanli, you see, we are both still young, just like the teacher said, we should read more, study hard, and not think about dating.”

“You’re just trying to sweet-talk me,” Lou Yanli said with a smile.

“Why don’t you ask me why?”

“Would you be willing to tell me? If so, then I’ll ask one more time, why?” Lou Yanli was actually quite curious.

“Because I once liked someone, liked them very, very much,” Xu Chaomu squinted towards the sun, her little face filled with boundless sorrow.

Yes, she was the only one who knew how much she liked him.

“Since it was ‘once,’ do you still like him now?” Lou Yanli asked.

“I’m slowly forgetting him. You see, even if words are carved on a stone, they’ll eventually erode away one day. So, since it was in the past, I will forget him slowly.”

She must walk down the path of the future without him.

He was about to get married, and he would have his own happy family.

And that family had nothing to do with her.

His wife, Bai Man, would take care of him, and their future children would certainly be beautiful.

“Why not take the initiative to pursue him?” Lou Yanli asked.

Xu Chaomu laughed, her laughter tinged with a bit of bitterness: “He doesn’t like me, and I can’t force it. You’re a good student. You should know, a melon forced from the vine isn’t sweet. And besides, he’s getting married soon.”

Lou Yanli thought for a moment and seemed to realize who Xu Chaomu liked.

So, she had always harbored feelings for someone in her heart.

“Over time, you’ll forget about him,” Lou Yanli sighed.

“Yes, over time I will forget him. I just don’t know how long it will take. So, Lou Yanli, I can’t easily agree to you.”

Lou Yanli suddenly laughed, realizing that this was the reason she wouldn’t agree to him.

What a silly, silly girl.

Even if she were to deceive him, he wouldn’t mind.

“Chaomu, do you really like him that much?”

“Yes,” Xu Chaomu said, biting her lip and looking down.

She really liked him a lot.

But to be liked by her was an embarrassing thing; Shen Chi despised it.

Therefore, other than the time she was drunk, she dared not tell him “I like you” again.

She was truly afraid that he would look down on her with disdain and mockingly say, “You’re not worthy of liking me.”

In his eyes, she was no different from those other women outside. All trying to get into his bed, all hoping to cling to him, the wealthy patron.

And so, he could toy with her at will. When he wanted a woman, he would call her over for a kiss or two, to satisfy his needs.

“Since he’s getting married, you shouldn’t think too much about it.”

Lou Yanli raised his hand, wanting to pat her head, wishing to comfort her.

“I’m not thinking about him anymore; he’s not worth it. When I think about it now, what’s so good about him? He has such a bad temper, speaking to me as if I owed him money every time,” Xu Chaomu pouted.

Lou Yanli thought and indeed, her fourth brother did have a bad temper.

“Chaomu, how about we give it a try? We could show off in front of that guy, tell him that there are plenty of people who like Xu Chaomu,” Lou Yanli suggested with a smile.

“My dear idol, you’re so easygoing. Are you really willing to be used like that?” Xu Chaomu blinked her big eyes at him.

“I’m willing,” he said.

“You said it yourself, you can’t take it back,” she reminded him.

“Anyway, I don’t lose anything in this.”

“Alright then, starting from now, I’m your girlfriend,” Xu Chaomu declared.

“Mhm, Chaomu, give me a smile,” Lou Yanli teased her.

Xu Chaomu finally smiled; from now on, she would be someone with a boyfriend.

And so, from that day on, Lou Yanli truly began to fulfill his duties as a boyfriend.

He bought breakfast for Xu Chaomu, opened the water bottle for her, and helped her with her homework.

Since Xu Chaomu had started boarding at school, no one had managed her, and she was free to do as she pleased.

Sometimes, after breakfast, she went to the library to read books with Lou Yanli. It wasn’t long before the entire school knew that Xu Chaomu was Lou Yanli’s girlfriend.

Xu Chaomu put away the necklace Shen Chi had given her. She thought, if one day she truly completely forgot him, she would throw the necklace away.

Yet, ever since that day she returned from the Waterside Pavilion to the school, Shen Chi seemed to have become quite busy.

She hadn’t seen him for many days; he was probably busy with the engagement preparations with Bai Man.

After all, taking wedding photos, selecting the dress, choosing the venue, and inviting guests were all very complex matters.

To her, an outsider, she would always remain just that.

Moreover, she had just ended the adoption relationship with the Shen Family; from now on, there really wouldn’t be any connection at all.

But the news of Xu Chaomu becoming Lou Yanli’s girlfriend soon reached Shen Chi’s ears.

Shen Chi had long placed informants in the school; any movement and he would be informed.

He stood in front of the floor-to-ceiling windows of the CEO’s office, listening to the school official on the phone.

“How long have they been dating?” His voice was deep.

“Not long, it just spread in the last few days.”

“She’s quite bold. I’ve been busy for a few days, and she already has a boyfriend.”