Considering Mr. Dubian’s parents were present, she cleared her throat softly and skipped over "lying and legs."
Mr. Dubian Che wasn’t thanking her for the compliment; being exceptional was just normal for him, hardly worth mentioning.
He was thanking Kiyono Lin for not saying what followed.
He remembered that for the Cultural Festival, when they went to Takao Mountain for filming, in front of Yuzao Haomei, she said, "Compared to Yuzao, my relationship with you is better, I’d feel more at ease asking you to carry my bag."
Kiyono Lin had come to Iwate Prefecture, and Mr. Dubian Che had been worried that she would be just as honest in front of his parents, telling them everything about him at school.
Thinking this, Kiyono Lin seemed to have changed a bit, not as aloof as before.
"Be thankful for me," her eyes seemed to say.
"You’re like a God! I’m filled with boundless gratitude towards you!" Mr. Dubian Che responded.
Wait, wait a second, how could Kiyono Lin know what he was thinking?
Could it be that her abilities evolved, and she was truly about to become a God?
"It’s not yet dawn and you’re getting up, braving the cold to deliver letters, earning not even enough for the return fare," Jiutiao Meiji sneered disdainfully.
Mr. Dubian Che came back to his senses and listened as she continued:
"I really admire Che’s ambition and ability to endure hardships, but that’s enough of the past; I won’t allow you to continue with such strenuous work."
"This isn’t about whether it’s strenuous or not," Kiyono Lin said, her voice calm.
"Hmm?" Jiutiao Meiji’s tone was oppressive, filled with a sense of ’what’s it to you?’
Mr. Dubian Che glanced at his parents. Their expressions were indescribable, peculiar.
This was the chaotic scene of Tokyo, something you wouldn’t see in Misezawa Village in Iwate Prefecture.
"Jiutiao, your money is your money, you can give it to Mr. Dubian, but you can’t stop him from earning his own."
"Having money of my own, yet letting my boyfriend, my future husband, do such hard work? Does that seem right?"
"He could choose not to, and comfortably use your money, but that’s his business. You can give him options, but you can’t force him to choose."
"And what if I insist?"
"That’s not love, it’s just possessiveness," Kiyono Lin said coldly.
"No matter what your love is, my love is ," Jiutiao Meiji said nonchalantly, "I’ll give him lots of money, so he develops the same spending habits as me, abandons such inefficient jobs like delivering papers, and becomes forever dependent on me."
"By doing this, Mr. Dubian will no longer be himself, you will only turn him into a wastrel."
"Kiyono," Mr. Dubian Che couldn’t help interjecting, "Wastrel is a bit much, isn’t it?"
Kiyono Lin gave him a look, meaning: shut up.
"A wastrel?" Jiutiao Meiji laughed scornfully, "Who do you think encouraged him to learn the bassoon? And when have I ever stopped him from working hard at his studies? Even if he surpasses me, I’ve never complained."
"Moving only within the boundaries you set is like a pig that’s been forced to fatten up from a young age; he isn’t free," Kiyono Lin countered.
"Kiyono," Mr. Dubian Che couldn’t hold back again, "Could you perhaps choose a different analogy?"
Kiyono Lin gave him another look, meaning: I’m deliberately being harsh, and you don’t even reflect on it?
"So you mean, it’s okay if this pig breaks out of the enclosure? Or even if it runs into someone else’s farm and gets eaten, that’s fine?" Jiutiao Meiji asked gravely.
"Not that, you two..."
"Well?!" The two of them, faces cold, turned to him simultaneously.
So, the choice begins:
The tacit, altruistic, gentle love;
The intense, possessive, dependent love;
With both being loyal, which one do you choose?