Forced into a romantic relationship

Chapter 453 Silence
Han Zhou only guessed one thing correctly—

Zhong Yin didn't want to tell him the real reason because she felt embarrassed.

But apart from that, he guessed everything wrong.

Zhong Yin wanted to treat him as gently as possible. This was something she had decided long ago, but she was just too embarrassed to say it. The reason she suddenly told him this decision was not because she had fallen in love with him, but because she had witnessed that scene.

Yes, Zhong Yin saw it.

She was standing on the lawn, not far from Wang Lengqiu's track, so she kept an eye on him and noticed that the boy who had stopped her was whispering something.

The boy's mouth movements were very subtle, almost as if he wasn't speaking. But for Zhong Yin, who had lost her hearing for a period of time, such mouth movements were not easily missed. She was very sensitive to these subtle actions of deliberately controlling her mouth.

Although she didn't understand lip reading, she could roughly guess that what the boy said was definitely not something nice.

And just then...

Hearing this, Han Zhou couldn't hold back any longer and interrupted with a complicated expression, "Um... Sister Yin, you wouldn't have decided to change your attitude towards me because you thought I looked cool drifting over people in my wheelchair back then, would you...?"

He finally realized something—he seemed to have been deluding himself.

Zhong Yin frowned slightly, seemingly annoyed at being interrupted: "I just thought you were quite reassuring back then."

Okay, I guess I'm just being presumptuous... Han Zhou gave an awkward smile: "Just because of this?"

"if not?"

"That's good..." He secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

In any case, it's good that Sister Yin didn't fall for him, which means that everyone can still get along normally in the future and there's no need to deliberately keep their distance.

But where exactly do the romance quests come from...? Since Silver Sister, who is not an unlockable character, can be romanced, what about Teacher Ouyang?
Is it too late to take back what I said before?
I don't want to be treated coldly. I want to see a gentle Sister Yin!

"What do you mean by 'that's good'?"

Zhong Yin had no idea what Han Zhou was thinking. Hearing this, she raised an eyebrow slightly and said, "Why do you seem so disappointed?"

"Of course not, I mean I'm honored to make you feel at ease, Sister Yin," Han Zhou quickly explained.

"Is this how you usually talk to Guzheng and the others?"

Zhong Yin's tone turned colder, "You wouldn't be so glib with Xiao Ling, would you?"

"how come……"

Han Zhou broke out in a cold sweat. "Even if I often say nice things, they are all from the heart. For example, Sister Yin, you look very beautiful today."

Zhong Yin said coldly, "It's because you have too many emotions that you do some annoying things."

In her opinion, Han Zhou was good in every way, except for his attitude towards relationships, which she found unacceptable. She thought that scumbags never had a good ending, and why couldn't this guy understand that?

Han Zhou chuckled awkwardly and changed the subject, saying, "Speaking of which, Sister Yin, your hearing aid seemed to have been damaged quite badly during the competition. I hope it's alright now?"

"Now that something's wrong, how can I talk to you properly?" Zhong Yin replied irritably.

"makes sense."

Han Zhou smiled, glanced back at Mo Yixia and the others not far away, looking as if he wanted to say something but hesitated.

"Speak your mind." Zhong Yin noticed his expression.

"It's nothing really, I just wanted to ask when you plan to get your ear treated... You don't have to answer."

Zhong Yin paused for a moment, then asked, "Why are you suddenly asking this?"

"I'm just showing you I care about you."

"You should take better care of yourself... Tell me the truth, why are you suddenly asking this?"

Seeing that Han Zhou remained silent, she unconsciously clenched her fists and asked in a cold tone, "Do you think I looked pitiful when I panicked after my hearing aid fell to the ground?"

"No."

Han Zhou quickly denied it, knowing that Sister Yin absolutely did not need anyone's sympathy.

"what is that?"

"I, I just..."

Han Zhou struggled to find the right words, and finally hesitated before saying, "...I just feel a little heartbroken."

He knew the word wasn't quite right, but he couldn't think of a better word to capture his feelings at the time, which was indeed his most genuine feeling.

Without his hearing aid, Zhong Yin was like a knight who had lost his armor. Even though it was only for a brief moment, he still caught the fear in the other's eyes and the vulnerability hidden beneath the armor.

Han Zhou had never been deaf, but he had suffered from a terminal illness. He couldn't imagine how desperate he would feel if his status bar suddenly disappeared one day, so he could understand Zhong Yin's feelings at that time.

Perhaps because Sister Yin usually appears too strong, he had almost forgotten about her hearing loss until today.

Distressed.

Faced with this word, which was hardly better than "pitiful," Zhong Yin surprisingly didn't get angry. After a long while, she finally said, "I've already told you that you have too many emotions. I'm not as fragile as you think."

Her tone remained indifferent, but warmer than before, and her clenched fists quietly loosened.

This was the first time she had ever felt "cared for" by a boy much younger than herself. Although it was embarrassing, it felt kind of nice.

"As for when to start treatment... I've already asked, and the doctor said my surgery has a success rate of less than 30%, and the cost is very high, so I've decided to give up on the surgery. Xiaoling is graduating soon, and she'll need money to get married in the future. I can't spend all my money on myself... You're not allowed to tell Xiaoling these things, understand?"

Zhong Yin was somewhat lost in thought. By the time she realized she had spoken her true thoughts, it was too late. She quickly gave a warning and glanced back at the crowd not far behind her. Seeing that no one was looking in their direction, she felt relieved.

She had always promised Xiaoling that she would have the surgery in two years at the latest, so that she wouldn't worry and could live her life. If she found out she had been deceived, Xiaoling would definitely be sad for a long time.

"I promise I won't tell."

Han Zhou shook his head and smiled bitterly, "But why give up the surgery? If you need money, we will all help."

Zhong Yin didn't really want to talk about this with him, but since he had already brought it up, there was no point in hiding it. She replied, "I told you to take care of yourself and not to worry about me."

"Anyway, I'm already used to living with a hearing aid, and it's no different from before. Besides, the success rate of the surgery is too low, so there's no need to waste the money—remember, if these words ever reach Xiaoling's ears, I will definitely not let you off the hook."

She issued another warning.

"Have you really gotten used to it?" Han Zhou suddenly asked.

Zhong Yin froze, instinctively wanting to touch the hearing aid in her ear, but she held back.

"Although I have never worn hearing aids, I have worn headphones. I think wearing them for a long time will hurt your ears."

Han Zhou didn't turn around to look at her, and said in a joking tone, "If it were me, even if the success rate of the surgery was less than 10%, I would definitely give it a try—better to live a miserable life than to die."

“I won’t die even if I don’t have surgery,” Zhong Yin said coldly.

Han Zhou remained noncommittal: "What I mean is, since hope is there, even if it's so small that it's almost impossible to grasp, we should still try to reach out, shouldn't we?"

Zhong Yin wanted to say, "You make it sound so easy," but then she suddenly noticed the wheelchair she was pushing and remembered why Han Zhou was in a wheelchair—

"When Han Zhou came ashore, the fishing lines on your bodies were tied in a knot."

She still remembers how she felt when she first heard those words.

Even today, those words still echo clearly in her ears, especially when she takes off her hearing aids to sleep every night. She always remembers those words and how Han Zhou once risked his life to save her.

The knot in the fishing line meant that Han Zhou no longer had a chance to back out and escape. He either had to live with everyone or sink to the bottom of the lake with everyone.

The latter is clearly much more likely.

So... what kind of resolve did Han Zhou have at that time that made him risk his life to tie a knot in the fishing line on his body?

Even the smallest hope must be grasped with effort... Was that the same determination the other party had when they dragged everyone ashore?

Thinking of this, Zhong Yin glanced at Han Zhou in the wheelchair with a complicated expression, and then said nothing more.

In fact, she lied from the beginning.

When she saw Han Zhou drift past the boy in his wheelchair, she did have a fleeting thought of how "cool" he was, and her heart raced briefly.

The reason she asked Zhong Ling if her previous attitude towards Han Zhou was too harsh was not because she was incredulous at Han Zhou's amazing arm strength, but because the scene of him easily getting rid of that boy and casually leaving behind the word "trash" was deeply etched in her mind.

Her clothes fluttered in the wind, her hair danced in the breeze, her profile was illuminated by the sunlight, and she wore a confident and carefree smile…

Even now, thinking back on it, I still think he was very handsome.

Zhong Yin had always regretted that she had fallen into a coma when Han Zhou rescued her and was unable to witness that scene. But today, the way Han Zhou moved forward while biting a ping-pong paddle seemed to overlap with her imagination of struggling to swim in the cold lake water.

But of course she couldn't say these things out loud. Although Han Zhou was indeed good-looking, it would be too embarrassing to say that she thought a boy so much younger than her was handsome.

However, she wasn't lying about one thing—this guy really did give people a sense of security.

The sun gradually disappeared below the horizon, and the sky was filled with red clouds.

Just then, the two happened to pass by the basketball court. A young boy was shooting hoops under the basket. He was too weak to even get the ball level with the rim, but he kept jumping up to shoot and soon became covered in sweat.

The boys playing basketball nearby had already stopped playing and ran over to help retrieve the ball, offering encouragement and kind guidance.

Suddenly, a basketball rolled all the way to Han Zhou's feet.

"Hey buddy, throw the ball over here!" someone shouted from afar.

Before Han Zhou could make a move, Zhong Yin behind him had already bent down, picked up the basketball, and threw it back forcefully.

The boys in the distance were stunned.

Zhong Yin clapped his hands and said coldly, "Who asks a disabled person to help them retrieve a ball?"

Han Zhou smiled and said, "What's so special about this? There are even people who have disabled people guarding the gate. Besides, I'm not disabled."

"Who could be so heartless..."

Zhong Yin was about to speak when he suddenly frowned. "What are those people looking at?"

Um, I guess I was watching a game...

Han Zhou muttered to himself, not daring to say it aloud, lest he get beaten up.

Zhong Yin seemed to realize something as well, and a look of disgust appeared on her face. She suddenly looked down to check Han Zhou's expression. Seeing that the other party's expression was normal and he even hummed in confusion, her expression softened.

She nodded secretly. Although Han Zhou was a scumbag, his advantage was that he wasn't a lecher and was a decent gentleman. Every time they met, he was different from other men. He didn't look at her chest first, but looked down at her legs. This was already considered very restrained.

That's why she believed that Han Zhou truly had deep feelings for Gu Zheng and Mo Yixia, and that he wasn't just after their beauty.

Han Zhou had no idea that his habit of checking the wrench was seen by Zhong Yin as a sign of not being lecherous, and even a commendable plus; otherwise, he would have felt ashamed for two minutes.

In fact, although he was not exactly a womanizer, he could not defy the laws of nature. As we all know, the greater the mass of an object, the stronger its gravity. He was no exception. The reason he checked whether Zhong Yin had brought a wrench was to confirm in advance whether or not he wanted to defy the laws of nature.

The reason he rarely made any intimate gestures with Gu Zheng Mo Yixia wasn't to pretend to be a gentleman, but rather to prevent Gu Zheng from getting too angry when things came to a head in the future. This guy values ​​being number one so much, he must care a lot about his first kiss, but now that his first kiss has been taken by Mo Yixia, all that's left for Gu Zheng is...

No, no, Yixia won't be satisfied even if this is done. Does this mean that I can only please everyone in one night...?

But even if they agreed to let me have two relationships at the same time, they would never agree to something like that... unless it arouses Guzheng's competitive spirit... By the way, does she have a competitive spirit in this kind of thing?

Zhong Yin had no idea that the gentleman in his heart was thinking very vulgar things. He stared at the little boy shooting hoops on the basketball court for a while, then suddenly asked, "What if he fails?"

"What failure?"

Han Zhou was startled, thinking that his shameful thoughts had been seen through, but he quickly remembered that it was Zhong Yin, not Mo Yixia, standing behind him, and then he calmed down.

"Why are you panicking?" Zhong Yin frowned slightly. "I mean, what if we can't grasp hope even if we try our best to reach out?"

Oh, so that's what you were talking about...

Han Zhou secretly breathed a sigh of relief and smiled, "So what if we can't catch it? At least we tried and won't regret it in the future, right?"

"I won't regret it..."

Zhong Yin froze, and the image of that stormy night suddenly flashed through her mind.

Fire and explosions, a collapse like the destruction of the world, and cries and wails poured down with the torrential rain.

Her mood suddenly turned heavy, as if she had returned to that cold and dark night, where she could see the firelight and the torrential rain, but gradually she could no longer hear the cries and wails, until she could hear nothing at all.

The whole world was silent.

What if she keeps regretting it... she thought to herself.

"But you don't need to worry too much."

She didn't know how much time had passed when she suddenly heard a smiling voice in her ear.

"If you really can't catch me... don't you still have me?"

"Oh!"

It seemed as if thunder was about to strike.

No, it's not Thunder.

Instead, the basketball hit the rim.

After spinning countless times, the basketball, trembling, finally slipped into the net with a narrow escape.

The boys on the basketball court cheered excitedly, and the boy being held in one of their arms also smiled contentedly and clapped his hands excitedly.

"Thank you!" he shouted.

Zhong Yin stared blankly at this scene, then looked down at Han Zhou, who was in a wheelchair, smiling as he looked towards the basketball court.

His smile was confident and carefree, just like the way he had been not long ago, biting his racket as he ran down the track.

It's so captivating that it's hard to look away.

She managed to look away with difficulty, trying to lighten the mood with a joke: "Like when they picked up that little boy?"

Seemingly amused, or perhaps sensing her gaze, Han Zhou turned back and smiled.

"I'm serious, I'm not joking."

A gust of wind blew from afar, causing the boy's hair to flutter and his clothes to rustle.

Zhong Yin was stunned.

A cold wind brushed against her cheeks, and she realized she was still in that cold, dark night.

The flames still soared into the sky.

The heavy rain is still falling.

But suddenly the silent world was filled with sound, and there were no more screams and wails.

"Thank you," she said softly.

(End of this chapter)