For a moment, it was as if time itself stood still.
Xiao Yin.
He called her Xiao Yin.
But he couldn't have possibly known that it was her, right? It was definitely impossible!
Hui Yin laughed, but it sounded strained even to her ears. "Sir, are you talking to Mrs. Lu's grave?"
He must be, it was the only believable explanation. How could he think that Huian was her? She was inside the body of another person. Lu Shen would definitely not be able to see through her disguise.
"...your eyes."
Hui Yin blinked. Ah? My eyes?
"The taste of your cooking, and your handwriting. It's definitely you."
One's an event, two's a coincidence, and three's a pattern. Lu Shen moved his eyes away from the gravestone and stood up. He looked down at the unfamiliar face staring upwards at him. He didn't know how a soul could inhabit another body, but he did not doubt his instinct. This girl...was definitely Xiao Yin.
And these eyes staring at him...were definitely hers.
His heart pounded violently inside his chest. His blood roared in his ears. He had been suppressing his urge to hold her, to kiss her, to cherish her like what he wanted to do for a very long time. But he restrained himself because he noticed it.
Her hatred.
So he could only try to explain, to tell her that he didn't mean to hurt her, for these things to turn out the way they did. Maybe if he explained...but when she said those two words, he knew. He had his chance, and he lost it. He was too late.
Hui Yin looked up at him and saw the certainty in his expression. She stood up and wiped the last remnants of her tears. She could finally meet his eyes without evading, because the hatred that was chaining her had been dissolved.
She smiled. "Hello, Lu Shen."
The hands at his sides twitched, but the corners of his lips also hooked up. "Xiao Yin, you're finally here."
"En." She tilted her head and her eyelashes lowered to cover her eyes.
Lu Shen forced himself to fix the smile on his face. "I still have one last thing to tell you before we talk about the Wen family."
Hui Yin bit her lip. "You don't have to tell me..."
"I love you."
A gentle breeze wafted over towards them, ruffling the hem of their clothes. It brought a few stray petals from the bouquet with it, along with the fresh smell of grass and the sweet floral fragrance of the flowers.
Hui Yin raised her eyes and their gazes met.
"I loved you too."
Lu Shen looked away, taking in a shuddering breath. As if it was too painful to hold onto, his smile dissolved, revealing his sadness.
"I know," he said softly. "I'm sorry."
Hui Yin hesitated, then wrapped her arms around him. She buried her face into his chest. Her voice muffled, she said, "I'm sorry too."
His body shook with her touch, but he didn't hug her back. He forced his hands to stay by his side.
"You want me to let go of you, don't you? You shouldn't hug me like this," he said hoarsely.
Hui Yin didn't let go. For a long time, she didn't speak.
"If you want to cry," she said a while later, "I promise I won't call you a crybaby."
His low laughter sounded a bit choked. "I won't cry."
"I can't believe you tricked me into showing you my handwriting."
"When you delivered the noodles, I already knew it was you. You're the only one brave enough to do that."
She shook her head. "And make you clean the toilet, right?"
Hui Yin pulled away from him.
Lu Shen lifted his hand to grab her wrist, but he slowly lowered it again. "Mmm."
He turned away from her. "We should go back. I...still have a lot of work to do. I'll try to collect all the information that I have about the Wen family."
Hui Yin nodded. "Okay."
She stayed one step behind him as they went to the parking lot. At the very last moment, Hui Yin turned back. Her gravestone stood there, filled with flowers and a basket of desserts. She felt that it wasn't only her corpse that was buried there anymore.
Quietly, she followed Lu Shen back to his car.