Chapter 78: The Lover Who Had to Be Given Up

  "Xuan Xuan, are you free tonight? Want to grab dinner together?" Nan Shao saw Xuan Xuan rushing into the school gate, covered in dust.

  "Alright! Senpai is back from a business trip, I'll be the one to welcome you back then!" Xia Xuan had just finished class and was carrying materials on his way to the library.

  "What's wrong? It's just attending a meeting, the annual World History Conference! In the future, you'll be attending it too, little girl!" Nan Shao said with a humble smile.

  "Senpai, go rest first. I'll book a restaurant tonight and give you a call. French cuisine or Japanese food?" Xia Xuan smiled sweetly.

  "Xuan Xuan, is there something good happening to you recently? You're smiling so brightly, I've never seen you smile like that before!" Nan Shaoqian crossed his arms over his chest, looking at Xia Xuan with a thoughtful expression.

  "Guessed it, my master's thesis passed the standard! I thought that for three years, I was just messing around studying, but my paper could still pass so quickly. The heavens are really not treating me badly!" Xia Xian said carelessly and absent-mindedly.

  "It's unfair for you to say that, I played more than you when I was in graduate school! In the end, didn't I stay and become a teacher? As long as you know what you want, at the right time, put in three times the effort of others, you will succeed. There is no such thing as being favored or not, I believe that heaven is fair to everyone!" Nan Shaoqian said seriously.

  "My respected Senior Nan, don't lecture me every time you have a chance! How about we talk about what to eat tonight instead?" Xia Xian pleaded repeatedly.

  "How about trying some Fujian cuisine?" Nan Shaoqian suggested.

  "Great! I know a very famous Fujian cuisine restaurant, let's go and try it!" Xia Xuan said with great joy.

  "See you tonight then!" Nan Shao said with a smile.

  "See you tonight!" Xia Xuan waved his hand and hopped away to the library.

  "Wow! It's really sumptuous!" Nan Shaoqian looked at the table full of delicious food, his mouth watering so much that he almost drooled. He laughed with gleeful abandon.

  "Senior, you're from Sichuan, why do you like Fujian cuisine so much?" Xia Xian poured a glass of beer for Nan Shaoqian and asked curiously.

  Min cuisine is relatively light, Sichuan cuisine is heavy flavor, numb and spicy are its true colors, even if Nan Shaoqian has never been in Sichuan, but the place where he is located is also a northern region, which has always been heavy-tasting!

  "Because she likes it." Nan Shao said with a hint of melancholy.

  "Who is that person who can find her shadow through me?" Xia Xian forced a smile, put down his chopsticks, and waited for Nan Shaoqian's recollection.

  In the scorching June after the college entrance exam, Sichuan was unbearably hot. Nan Shaoqian and Lin Xueyin, who had been in love for a year, planned to go to Chengde to escape the heat. But all their beautiful dreams collapsed that June, everything was gone.

  Lin Xueyin's family was not perfect. Her biological mother was a strong woman who focused all her attention on her career, neglecting the harmony and happiness of the family. As her business grew bigger, so did her temper. In comparison, her simple-minded father seemed weak and timid, his position in the household clearly inferior. Her biological mother despised her father's weakness and incompetence, their conflicts accumulating until they eventually led to divorce when Lin Xueyin was 15 years old.

  At the age of 15, Lin Xueyin seemed more mature and sensible than other children. Even though the divorce agreement between her parents clearly stated that she would be raised by her mother, she still chose to stay with her father. Despite her mother's repeated pleas, she had no intention of going back.

  The father and daughter relied on each other for survival, the mother sending a considerable amount of alimony every month, but Lin Xueyin never touched it. The father worked as a laborer on the transportation line, the house was small, but the father and daughter were very satisfied, the days were tight but also comfortable.

  After the college entrance examination, Lin Xueyin obtained her father's consent and was about to go on vacation with Nan Shaoqian. However, on the eve of departure, Lin Xueyin's father had a car accident and was rushed to the military hospital for emergency treatment, while the other party involved in the accident was Nan Shaoqian's older brother, Nan Shao Lian.

  The Nan family has been a family of officials for generations. Nan Shaoqian's grandfather was a military district commander back in the day. After his grandfather passed away, his father didn't just inherit the mantle but made himself indispensable to the Ministry of Defense through his own efforts. His older brother also brought glory to the family by becoming a deputy mayor at a young age. Although Nan Shaoqian is still young, the Nan family has been intentionally cultivating him as an official and have already mapped out his future.

  It's not entirely Nan Shao Lian's fault for this car accident. Lin Xue Yin's father was driving tiredly and speeding, when he swerved to avoid Nan Shao Lian's car at a sharp turn, he crashed into the guardrail, causing the car to flip over. Nan Shao Lian immediately dialed 110 and 120, waiting for the handling of the accident.

  After being hospitalized for five days, Lin Xueyin's father was declared dead after ineffective treatment. However, Nan Shaojie was only held 20% responsible, but Lin Xueyin did not think so and believed that the Nan family had killed her father. She repeatedly sued Nan Shaojie, greatly affecting his reputation. It wasn't until Lin Xueyin's mother intervened that the matter was finally settled. At the same time, the relationship between Nan Shaojie and Lin Xueyin also came to an end.

  Lin Xueyin refused her mother's suggestion to return to her side and chose to live on her own. When choosing a major, Lin Xueyin chose law, with the intention of seeking justice for her father. With her grades, China University of Political Science and Law would have definitely accepted her, but her mother secretly altered her application, sending her to an unknown university where she studied history instead.

  Nan Shaoqian thought Lin Xueyin would choose to retake the exam, but she didn't; he thought she would study law on her own in college, but that didn't happen either. As for why, Nan Shaoqian had no idea.

  Nan Shaoqian secretly protected Lin Xueyin, although he obeyed the family's arrangement and went to military school. However, after graduating from military school, he chose to pursue a master's degree in history at this university. But Lin Xueyin silently disappeared, he had been to her university because of being expelled for fighting, Nan Shaoqian searched for half a year but still couldn't find any news about her.

  Later, Nan Shaoqian finally got in touch with Lin Xueyin's mother. Her mother told him that Lin Xueyin was now living abroad, leading a very peaceful life and didn't want to be disturbed, so she didn't tell him where Lin Xueyin was.

  And so, Lin Xueyin thoroughly disappeared from his life, but he was always waiting, waiting for her to come back.

  Nan Shaoqian liked Min cuisine because Lin Xueyin liked it. Lin Xueyin's father was a son-in-law who married into the family, to be precise, Lin Xueyin's mother was from Sichuan, but her father wasn't.

  "Is it because of Yuki that you've noticed me, Nanchaku?" Xia Xian moved his lips as if he had a lot to say, but in the end, it all melted into this one sentence.

  "Yes, I know you haven't lost your memory. You still remember Xueyin, and she was your best friend back then. There must be a reason why you're hiding the truth so desperately, and I don't want to expose it. On that day during the graduate school re-examination, I saw you, so I agreed to stay at the school's suggestion..." Nan Shaoqian's voice became softer and softer until he couldn't continue speaking.

  "You want to stay and take care of me, right? Yuki was forced to leave school because of me in the first place, so by protecting me, you're also protecting her wish, aren't you?" Xia Xian said with tears streaming down his face.

  "Yes, aching for her is the only thing I can do for her. One you, one Mo Xiao Xiao." Nan Shao Qian's voice was somewhat choked with emotion.

  "When Xiao Xiao first arrived and got lost, you went to find her without any regard for yourself, even missing your flight to the UK didn't matter to you, was it because of this?" Xia Xian was deeply moved.

  That trip to the UK was a friendly exchange between our school and two universities in Cambridge, which was very important for both the school and individuals. However, due to Mo Xuanxuan's matter, I missed the flight, and the school temporarily replaced me with someone else, which greatly affected my future prospects. Later, it was said that the person who went on the exchange returned directly from being an assistant teacher to becoming a professor.

  "Yes, although in theory, in terms of family relations, our Southern House has no obligation to Snow Sound, nor to her father, but after all it's because of my elder brother that her father passed away. Both publicly and privately I need to take care of her, and even more so because I like her." Nan Shaoqian nodded and said.

  Xia Xian didn't know what to say, and tears kept falling on the table. Nan Shaoqian handed her a tissue to wipe away her tears, and Xia Xian didn't avoid this ordinary action at all.

  But unfortunately, Wu Xinxin and Guan Meiting were having dinner at this restaurant, the two of them sat opposite each other, one gloating, the other harboring hatred.

  Xia Xuan, are you playing a love triangle? One Lu Lingfeng, one Wang Rui, and now another unknown minor character, your emotional life is indeed not ordinary! If my brother-in-law knew about this, he would definitely be glad that dumping you was a wise choice back then!

  Wu Xinxin is considering how to persuade Guan Meiting to report on this gossip, she doesn't want such good news to disappear like this.

  Guan Meiting had long made up her mind, as for Lu Lingfeng, her idea was that if she didn't want him, no one else could have him! To be honest, after abandoning Lu Lingfeng, she also regretted it, but what's the use of regret? Lu Lingfeng would never forgive her! Since that's the case, she might as well do a good job being Mrs. Qin. Seeing that Lu Lingfeng had no girlfriend all these years, she was truly delighted, Lu Lingfeng had her in his heart, he must have!

  But after Xia Xian appeared, everything seemed to have changed.

  If this revenge is not avenged, Guan Meiting will not be Guan Meiting! She and Lu Lingfeng are impossible, and she absolutely won't let others become Mrs. Lu! Guan Meiting's psychology has also reached a boiling point.

  Hateful glares, pale faces, clenched fists, all of this left Wu Xinxin bewildered. Were they harboring some deep-seated grudge?