This is two Chapters merged into one. Today’s power was out for an entire morning and through noon. Could there be anyone more unfortunate than me? Back to typing.
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Whether it was Zhong Hongying or Zhang Erniu, Zhao Qiliang wasn’t familiar with either of them, so naturally, he didn’t feel comfortable voicing his opinion. Instead, he patted Luo Xiaoqiong’s back reassuringly, "Don’t worry. Your brother has changed from before. Whether he stays in the army or gets discharged when his term ends, it’s not going to be bad."
"Psh!" Luo Xiaoqiong glanced at him with displeasure, "Can you not give me these comforting official platitudes? Is that what I want to hear? How insincere are you?"
"You..." Zhao Qiliang gave a wry smile, "What else should I say then? I can’t even handle my own emotional mess, how could I interfere and offer advice to others?"
"I’m not asking you to interfere..." Luo Xiaoqiong looked at him earnestly, "I just hope that when you talk to me, you can be as straightforward as family. Look at me, when I’m happy, I’m just happy. When I’m not, I’ll tell you straight up, without beating around the bush. Why can’t you do the same?"
Zhao Qiliang thought for a moment and looked at Luo Xiaoqiong intently. "I do say what I think. I really believe your brother has changed from before."
"Fine, it’s all my fault. Let’s hurry up and go, I won’t nag you anymore." As she spoke, Luo Xiaoqiong quickened her pace.
"Xiaoqiong..." He hesitated, then Zhao Qiliang continued, "Do you still have feelings for me?"
"Huh?" Luo Xiaoqiong looked sideways at him, "What nonsense are you thinking about?"
"Think about when we first got together, think about when you wrote letters to me. Is your feeling now the same as it was then?" Zhao Qiliang sighed, "It’s commonly accepted that the man should be taller than the woman. Now, our situation is completely reversed. Even if you don’t mind, if others say something, your heart might feel uncomfortable. Then when you’re with me, you unwittingly become a bit more irritable, right?"
"Luo Xiaoqiong, do you have a boyfriend?"
"Just a soldier, but he’s a Squad Leader."
"What’s so surprising about that?"
"With such good conditions you have... Okay, okay, I’m being too conventional."
This conversation suddenly surfaced in Luo Xiaoqiong’s mind. Thinking back, it seemed that her attitude towards Zhao Qiliang had clearly changed after chatting with the vice-dean assistant Yu Xiaofan.
Had her feelings for him changed?
Before, she always looked up to him with admiration. Being with him made her feel incredibly sweet inside. Now, even though she no longer looked up to him, she felt he was as close as family.
She had never thought about being apart from him! Otherwise, she wouldn’t have come rushing to find him after receiving news from Chuxia. Could it be that their relationship had evolved from romantic love to familial love? She looked at Zhao Qiliang, puzzled, and said nothing for a long time.
"Silly girl..." Zhao Qiliang rubbed her head, "If you really don’t have feelings for me anymore, there’s no need to feel guilty. Emotions can’t be forced. The affection you had for me was just a teenage girl’s dream. Now you’ve seen more of the world and matured, so it’s natural for your feelings to change. It’s normal."
"It’s not like that," Luo Xiaoqiong shook her head. "I was just trying to figure out the root of these changes. Maybe, we have passed the stage of passionate love and elevated to a familial relationship.
Zhao Qiliang, I’ve never thought about leaving you. You must marry me in this lifetime. If you dare to go back on your word, I... I’ll die just to show you!"
"You..." Zhao Qiliang looked at her, amused, "Are you trying to put a firm spell on me because you’re afraid I won’t come back?"
"Of course not..." Luo Xiaoqiong glared at him, "I can’t be bothered to argue with you, let’s just go."
It wasn’t that she couldn’t be bothered to argue with herself, she was just unclear about the situation, wasn’t it? Zhao Qiliang chuckled to himself, picked up his pace to catch up to her, and said with a light laugh: "Don’t worry, I’m a very faithful person."
"Are you saying that I’m not faithful?" Luo Xiaoqiong pouted and glared at him, "When have I ever been unfaithful?"
"See, you’re overthinking again. I said that to give you confidence, to offer you reassurance," he said.
"..." Luo Xiaoqiong looked at him speechless, yet touched deep inside. He was indirectly telling her that even if her social status was now higher than his, he wouldn’t belittle himself nor leave her because of it. He would, listen to her decisions!
When her mother found out that she had pursued him by writing letters first, she had been worried that she would always be one step behind him and would have to tread carefully for the rest of her life. To be honest, she had been worried about the same thing. But it turned out that they were both wrong.