Chapter 118: Love Fool
Xie Rong did not answer.
Wang Gege waited quietly, her eyes never leaving him as though she still held onto the faint hope that, at any moment, he would part his lips and give her the answer she had so courageously asked for.
As the silence stretched between them, filling every corner of the room until even the sound of their breathing became unbearably clear, the hope that had quietly blossomed within her heart began to wither just as silently.
Suddenly, she laughed.
"I’m joking..." She then scratched her forehead lightly, "Obviously..." The latter word came out as a whisper.
A gentle smile curved across her lips, though it looked far more fragile than she intended, as if it had been hastily stitched together merely to conceal the embarrassment threatening to overwhelm her.
"Oh... I’m sorry." She let out another light laugh, lowering her eyes to avoid looking at him. "I suppose I’m still feeling rather groggy after nearly drowning."
She drew in a quiet breath before speaking again. "Can Hus..."
The familiar form of address slipped from her lips almost instinctively. For the briefest moment, she fell silent before forcing another smile.
"Can Young Master Xie leave this wife alone for a while? I wish to rest."
Xie Rong remained silent. His hand, resting upon his knee, unconsciously tightened as the answer to Shen Taotao’s question had already surfaced within his heart long before he could suppress it. It had been so immediate, so unquestionable, that it unsettled even him.
’I would save her...’
The thought had come without reason, without hesitation, and without even the slightest consideration of anyone else. It was simply there, as though his heart had already made its choice before his mind had the opportunity to object.
His brows slowly knitted together.
’How could that be...? I once believed that no one could ever replace the person I loved. No matter how much time had passed since coming to this world, it should have been impossible for my heart to change so quickly...’
’Then why... Why was my answer so certain?’
Unable to arrive at an explanation, Xie Rong slowly rose to his feet before finally breaking the silence.
"I would save you..." His voice remained calm as always, yet the words seemed more like an answer to himself than to Shen Taotao. "Qing’er told me that Furen does not know how to swim. The answer was obvious."
"Ahh..." Wang Gege bobbed her head lightly. "This one understands... completely."
A faint smile lingered on her lips, one so gentle that it was impossible to tell whether she truly understood or was merely pretending to.
"Thank you for answering this wife’s absurd question."
She slowly lay back against the pillow before turning her face toward the bed curtains, no longer looking at him.
"Young Master Xie need not worry. This wife truly was only joking just now."
Her voice remained as soft as ever, carrying neither grievance nor disappointment, as though she had already accepted his answer without the slightest complaint.
"Please... allow this wife to rest for a while."
Just as silence settled over the room once more, a respectful voice came from outside the door.
"Young Master." Gui Lin paused briefly before continuing, "Old Madam Xie has requested your presence."
Xie Rong’s brows furrowed immediately, he instinctively turned toward the bed. Seeing that Shen Taotao had already closed her eyes and showed no intention of speaking further, he remained where he stood for a brief moment before finally replying,
"I understand." His gaze lingered on her quiet figure for another heartbeat. "Take good care of yourself."
With those words, Xie Rong turned and walked toward the door.
As the wooden door gently closed behind him, the room fell silent once again.
Only then did Wang Gege slowly open her eyes. She blinked once before letting out a long, helpless sigh.
"Why did I reveal my feelings so easily...?" she muttered under her breath, the corners of her lips curling into a bitter smile.
Turning onto her back, she quietly stared at the embroidered canopy above, allowing her thoughts to drift back to memories she had long believed were buried.
Back in college, she had once fallen hopelessly in love with someone.
Only then did Wang Gege slowly open her eyes. She blinked once before letting out a long, helpless sigh.
"Why did I reveal my feelings so easily...?" she muttered under her breath, the corners of her lips curling into a bitter smile.
Turning onto her back, she quietly stared at the embroidered canopy above, allowing her thoughts to drift back to memories she had long believed were buried.
Back in college, she had once fallen hopelessly in love with someone.
It had not happened at first sight, nor had it been the kind of passionate love often described in romance novels. Rather, it had begun with countless ordinary moments that gradually accumulated over time. A shared lecture, a brief conversation after class, an umbrella silently held over her head on a rainy afternoon, and the occasional concern that seemed insignificant to everyone else had unknowingly become the reasons her heart slowly leaned toward him.
By the time she realized she had fallen for him, there was already no turning back.
She still remembered how many nights she had spent rehearsing the words she wished to say, standing before the mirror in her tiny rented apartment, only to lose her courage the moment she imagined meeting his eyes. It had taken every ounce of determination she possessed before she finally gathered enough courage to confess.
Yet the outcome had been nothing like the countless scenarios she had imagined.
Before the eyes of her classmates, she had offered him the sincerity she treasured most, only to be met with a rejection so firm that it left her standing there in complete humiliation.
She had never asked him why. Maybe because she had been too embarrassed to ask.
Or perhaps... She had simply believed that a person who truly liked her would never have allowed her to become the laughingstock of everyone around them.
Ever since that day, she had promised herself that she would never again be the first to reveal her heart.
But somehow... Without even realizing it, she had broken that promise the moment she asked Xie Rong...
"Would Husband choose me?"
Wang Gege covered her face with both hands before letting out a muffled groan.
"Ah..." She sighed helplessly. "You really are a hopeless fool when it comes to love, Wang Gege..."