“Ye,” Li Qingcang replied.
He then caressed Ye Tianxin’s lips fondly with this hand.
‘I must be crazy lately,’ he thought.
‘I’ve developed a strange obsession for skinship,’ he concluded.
His hands grazed her face followed by her lips.
He felt exceptionally comforted by the mere touch of her skin.
“Ye? Why?” Ye Tianxin asked.
Li Qingcang nodded his head as he explained, “When I was young, my name wasn’t Li Qingcang. It was Li Xingye.”
“I see,” Ye Tianxin replied and found the name rather pleasant. “‘Ye’ as in the night sky?” she asked.
“Perhaps the name clashes with my horoscope, for I often fell ill. Subsequently, I had my fortunes read and changed my name from Li Xingye to Li Qingcang.”
‘Li Xingye? Li Qingcang?’ Ye Tianxin thought.
“From now on, the name ‘Li Xingye’ belongs to you,” Li Qingcang concluded.
“Li Xingye,” Ye Tianxin muttered, and she seemed strangely blissful.
In the past, she had nothing to her name. Now, she’s starting to have more and more.
Ye Tianxin knew better than anyone that she would have to cherish her great fortunes, which did not come by easily.
“Xingye,” Ye Tianxin called out hesitantly.
“Yes,” Li Qingcang replied.
It was early September and though it was barely 10 a.m, the sun was already as strong as a blazing torch, and it scorched their skin.
The couple was dressed in matching baby pink sweaters that were of thin material. It still felt warm.
Li Qingcang knew that the current weather was clearly unsuitable for a date.
“Xingye,” she murmured.
“Yes,” Li Qingcang responded.
“Tianxin,” he called out.
“Yes,” Ye Tianxin responded swiftly.
‘When you’re with someone you love, even something as simple as calling out their name would warm up your heart and make you feel comfortable and loved,’ Ye Tianxin thought.
“Let’s head home,” Li Qingcang suggested.
He then held Ye Tianxin’s hand and whispered, “You’re still weak. We’ll go for a date when you’ve recovered.”
‘A date? Wow! I’m looking forward to it. It would be our first official date,’ she thought.
“We’re also on a date now,” Ye Tianxin replied.
Leaning her head against Li Qingcang’s shoulder happily, she asked softly, “Xingye, am I right about this?”
By the time the couple returned to the hospital, the ward had already been tidied up.
Worried that the couple would be bored, Jing Zhichen delivered many items over to them.
However, little does he know that even an act of spacing out would be something interesting for an old bachelor like Li Qingcang, as long as he was doing it with the woman he liked.
“Let me embroider something for you,” Ye Tianxin proposed.
When Ye Tianxin noticed the thread that Jing Zhichen had prepared for her, she whipped out her scissors excitedly and cut off a square of silk to embroider a flower on it.
She weaved away with ease and familiarity, and every single stitch brimmed with her love for her friend.
Soon, the black square of silk fabric was transformed into a unique piece of embroidered handkerchief.
It resembled a night sky that was dotted with stars.
“Elder Brother Li…,” Ye Tianxin called out.
She had been addressing him as Elder Brother Li all along and was unaccustomed to his sudden change in name.
“It’s the wrong name,” Li Qingcang reminded sharply.
Ye Tianxin stuck out her tongue mischievously before she replied, “It takes time to change.”
“I’ll have to punish you for using the wrong name,” Li Qingcang replied.
Under the impression that Li Qingcang meant to beat her, Ye Tianxin held out her hands obediently like a little girl who had done something wrong.
However, Li Qingcang simply moved his face closer to her calmly and whispered, “Your punishment is to give me a kiss.”