Xie Xuan saw that she didn't take it seriously and wasn't annoyed in her heart. Everything will come slowly, and the flowers will bloom under the moonlight eventually.

  He quietly took out the brocade box that had been hidden in his bosom for a long time and handed it over.

  "What's this for me?" Qin Miao was lost in thought while appreciating the scenery when she saw a box appear before her eyes, and she raised an eyebrow with a smile to ask.

  Xie Xuan nodded slightly and whispered, "Don't you want to take a look?" Although his words were light, the soft glow of the lamp fell on his enchantingly handsome face, casting a faint golden light that made Qin Miao's heart skip a beat.

  He's indeed born with a good skin!

  And the next moment when the box cover was drawn, a ripple gradually surged up in her heart. It was a jade hairpin, small and delicate, warm and lovely. What moved Qin Miao's heart most was the jasmine flower that was about to bloom.

  A faint bitterness welled up in his eyes, he knew, they all knew. This pattern was embroidered by her before she left, intentionally stitched on his robes because she couldn't bear to part with him. Yet, wanting to conceal her own thoughts, the pattern was embroidered very secretly. But he still found it, didn't he?

  Misty vapor slowly rose, shrouding those autumnal eyes. A single teardrop fell, pattering down, landing on the jasmine flower, and even more so, on Xie Yan's heart.

  Under the sunlight, a pair of slender jade hands with thin gloves couldn't help but hold up that slightly flushed face. "Do you like it?"

  After knowing him for so many years, Qin Miao felt for the first time that Xie Yan's voice was so clear and warm, no longer cold, no longer impatient, and without any anger. It was just heartache.

  Perhaps thinking of the past indifference, Qin Miao's heart still aches. On countless nights, she lay awake alone, her tears soaking through the quilt, and the weight of her thoughts was only known to the dark moon between the treetops. Maybe, in all these years, the total amount of tears she had cried wasn't as much as those shed in that one year at Xie's residence.

  At this thought, tears fell like a broken string of pearls, falling down without restraint. Qin Miao knew that she was being overly sentimental this time, having said that she didn't care and should let go, but once the pain was triggered, she couldn't help but feel melancholic. It's really pathetic!

  Just as she was clutching her hairpin, despising herself in secret. A dark shadow blocked the light in front of her eyes, followed by Xie Xun's gentle voice falling down.

  "I don't know why you're so sentimental about seeing this hairpin, but let me guess, perhaps it reminds you of our past days that are worth sighing about."

  Xie Xuan carefully held Qin Miao's small face, carefully distinguishing the emotions in her eyes, with anxiety, unease and hope, slowly opening his mouth: "An Nuan, your grievances, I, Xie Xuan, have remembered them in my heart, day after day, not daring to forget. Just ask you, don't torture yourself again, if there's anything uncomfortable, just vent it out, hit me or scold me. Don't cry like this again. It's hard for me to watch..."

  He gently held Qin Miao in his arms, her delicate body pressed against his chest. So fragile, so weak, yet so strong-willed, stubborn to the point of making him heartache.

  "You're a straightforward woman, that's why you could say those light and breezy words to me on the rooftop that night. At the time, I thought that if you really didn't want to be with me anymore and wanted to live your own life, I could understand and let you go. But as these days have passed, we both know that things aren't that simple. Because you still have feelings for me, when Xiangxiang appeared, the resentment you'd buried deep in your heart naturally came out. You don't like being a resentful woman, but emotions are such selfish things, they can't tolerate even a little bit of imperfection. Even if you didn't want to, you couldn't hold back those resentful feelings."

  He gently rocked the softly sobbing Qin Miao in his arms. The person in his arms had always been a little porcupine, never as gentle and obedient as today, making him unable to help but want to kiss again.

  "These things I never knew before, and never thought about. Missing you made me realize, feelings arose without knowing when, the fate is wonderful and can't be described. So, being able to meet you is my good fortune, looking clearly at my own heart, understanding your feelings."

  Qin Miao, you are Xie Yun's wife, forever and always.

  The mountain wind whispers, the lake light ripples. Under such a beautiful scene, the magpie on the branch shyly calls out softly. A loving couple under the tree by the lake, affectionately entwined, pouring out their hearts to each other. I wonder, is there anything more wonderful than this in the world?

  "How are you?" Xie Yun saw Qin Miao looking a bit dazed, obediently hiding in his arms, burying her small face deeply, not letting anyone see, only the small ears exposed outside were red like sunset, extremely moving.

  The petite person blushed and squirmed in his arms, complaining with a hint of coyness: "Don't make a fuss." But still refused to come out.

  Xie Xuan lovingly stroked her back, and couldn't help but chuckle: "Now you're actually getting shy. Someone used to sneak a peek at me while I was bathing."

  As soon as the words fell, the person in his arms shrank. Soon after, he bounced up again, puffed up and said: "Who peeked! That is... I accidentally..."

  Her bright red face, even with a hint of anger, couldn't hide that flirtatiousness. This made Xie Yan particularly satisfied. So he smiled and said: "Really? But I let you see mine, yet I've never seen yours. To say the least, it's not very fair."

  As expected, the little girl was quite bold in her daily life, but after all, she had not really experienced anything. As soon as she heard these unsettling words, her face turned even redder. But her mouth still stubbornly refused to back down: "Who made you neglect me? You can't blame me. Even on our wedding night..."

  Qin Miao wanted to say that even on the night of their grand wedding, Xie Yan was completely devoid of joy, ignoring and cold-shouldering her from the very beginning. To say she didn't mind would be a lie, even if Xie Yan has changed now. But every woman's greatest expectation is the day of her grand wedding. A ten-mile-long red procession, a bridal chamber filled with flowers and candles. Yet when it was finally her turn, what should have been a joyful occasion was instead met with a cold splash of water to douse her enthusiasm.

  Qin Miao suppressed the contradictions in her heart and crawled out of Xie Yan's arms. She walked alone to the lake shore, quietly gazing at the lake surface.

  Even if she had been hypocritical all along, there was one thing she hadn't said wrong. Not hatred, but regret. Time has passed, and even if the future is beautiful, that initial heart flutter will eventually be covered in dust and stained.

  Xie Xuan saw that she was reminiscing about the past, and her emotions changed on her face. She secretly scolded herself for being overly sensitive. But that delicate figure in the distance made people feel a pang of heartache.

  He quietly walked up behind her and tightly wrapped his sturdy arms around her from behind.

  "An Nuan, I'm sorry. Let's make up for the wedding night, this time I won't miss it again."

  At this moment, a bird flying from the distant mountain peak swooped down and skimmed across the lake's surface, creating ripples. The sunset cast its beautiful red glow, stretching out countless human aspirations.

  After a long time, Xie Lin finally heard that long-awaited and pleasant sound.

  "Good."