As a man, He Teng’s heart wasn’t as delicate as that of Zhilan. Thus, he didn’t have much to say about Lan Li and Ding Jinshi’s current situation. However, he couldn’t help but feel a touch of regret for Lan Li, who seemed to be two different people during the years spent with Ding Jinshi and the years alone.
Zhilan’s soft voice disrupted He Teng’s thoughts. The man on the hospital bed looked up to acknowledge his wife’s smile. He hummed in consent, waiting for Zhilan to express what she was about to say.
"It’s nothing, I just wanted to call for you." Zhilan softly giggled then moved closer to He Teng, her laughing face magnified in front of his eyes.
He Teng pulled back his gaze, skeptical. Before he could question her, Zhilan addressed him again, this time by his name instead of ’brother’ — He Teng.
Zhilan’s Mandarin was impeccably precise and rounded. Even though they both grew up in the countryside, surprisingly, there wasn’t a trace of the local dialect in her speech. Thus, even after hearing his name countless times, at that moment, He Teng found it strangely satisfying when Zhilan pronounced it.
Seeing that He Teng was not blaming her for her lack of formality, Zhilan plucked up the courage to continue, "Ateng!"
When He Teng turned his gaze at her, Zhilan quickly feigned innocence and chuckled, explaining, "That’s how dad used to call you!"
"Hmm." He Teng was now quite confused. He didn’t know whether Zhilan was acting crazy all of a sudden, or had something Lan Li told her privately earlier provoked her?
She had started by calling him ’brother,’ then He Teng, and now Ateng.
He Teng had to admit that he had never heard Zhilan address him before. In the past, she would only call him by his name when they were arguing. Each time after she called him that, she would get a bit shaken.
Besides the term ’brother’ she had used since their childhood, He Teng couldn’t recall any other instance where a wife addressed her husband by his full name. Nonetheless, hearing Zhilan call him ’Ateng’, He Teng enjoys it very much!
He Teng fell silent for a moment, glancing at Zhilan, who was still beaming brightly. He finally said, "If you like it, you can call me like dad used to."
"Who said I like it?" Zhilan quickly retorted, "I am just calling, who said calling means liking? But if you enjoy hearing me call you that, I might consider it~"
"Tch~" He Teng sarcastically masked the weird feeling of disappointment in his heart. Deep down, he hoped Zhilan would keep addressing him that way, although he would never admit it out loud.
Undeniably, Ding Jinshi’s words did have some effect on Zhilan’s mood. Thinking about it, Zhilan realized just how lucky she was.
One rainy day, she fell in love with this man. She believed that she was blessed to spend the rest of her life in his embrace, but she didn’t anticipate that she would be granted another life to experience being in his world again.
"Brother, can I kiss you?"
Zhilan’s abrupt proposition caught He Teng off guard, he flustered for a few seconds before he regained his consciousness and softly scolded, "Stop it! This is a hospital!"
Though he had just reproved her, He Teng subtly turned his face to the side, consecutive pouts to be seen.
Zhilan pursed her lips, internally cursed He Teng for being a smart-ass. Then, she dipped her head down and planted a noisy kiss on the side of his face. Receiving a reproving look from He Teng, she rolled her eyes around the room, pointedly ignoring him.