A beautiful summer night

"Do you really know how to use witchcraft?" Jiang Baichuan couldn't help but ask when they got back.

Xia Wanzhi took the initiative to throw herself into his arms, which was one thing, but were the people who called him a "wife-doting maniac" crazy tonight? They were so tacitly making things convenient for Xie Qiyan.

Single people don't understand.

Xie Qiyan expressed his understanding, and then, in a very kind manner, explained to him: "Proposing marriage is a very important matter. The two from the Lu family, the two from the Qu family, and your brother-in-law are all married men. They are all experienced and know the hardships of pursuing a wife. Moreover, a gentleman should help others achieve their goals."

After a slight pause, Xie Qiyan, making no attempt to conceal his delight, teased, "You wouldn't understand even if I explained. Come back and discuss this with me when you have a girlfriend."

Jiang Baichuan: "..."

He was the one who suffered the most tonight.

The journey was still long, so Jiang Baichuan took a deep breath to calm himself down and started a new conversation: "Does Xia's sister know about your proposal gift?"

Xie Qiyan was telling Xia Wanzhi that he would be home in twenty minutes when he replied after a while, "If I knew, it wouldn't be a surprise."

Forget it, single people don't deserve to talk to people who are showing off their love.

To avoid further injury, Jiang Baichuan kept quiet and didn't bother to speak the whole way.

Xie Qiyan was quite busy, constantly texting his girlfriend.

Jiang Baichuan felt distressed.

Having a girlfriend is great.

He wants it too.

Previously, I was detached from worldly desires and attachments, but after meeting Yunli, a longing gradually arose deep within my heart.

He didn't want a girlfriend; he wanted Yunli.

He wants Yunli to be his girlfriend.

He wasn't too surprised by the rapid progress between Xie Qiyan and Xia Wanzhi. Back then, his cousin and Lu Beiting got their marriage certificate after only meeting a few times. She was extremely unwilling before getting the certificate, but she got pregnant at the end of the following year.

So once you fall in love, anything is possible.

A good man will seize the opportunity to keep the person he loves close to him, not giving anyone else a chance.

Thinking of this, Jiang Baichuan's eyes darkened.

He couldn't wait any longer.

When Xie Qiyan returned to Lanting Villa, it was almost ten o'clock. He thought Xia Wanzhi was in his room, but when he opened the door, he only saw Changsheng, a cat, lazily coming out of the cat room, giving him a perfunctory glance, and then going back to sleep.

He was too lazy to pay attention to Xia Changsheng. He locked the "Heart of the Kingdom" in the study, changed his clothes, and went to find Xia Wanzhi.

Xia Wanzhi is still drawing at this hour.

She has already painted the sixteenth piece for Xie Qiyan's order.

At this moment, she is painting Yao Qin at the age of forty-two.

Xia Wanzhi was so focused that she genuinely didn't hear Xie Qiyan open the door and come in.

Xie Qiyan silently stood behind him, his gaze fixed intently on the paintings. His earlier excitement subsided and slowly faded.

This may not be Yao Qin's true appearance, but it is definitely 180% similar.

Even at the age of forty-two, Yao Qin's unique temperament was still vividly displayed. He knew that his mother was an outstanding beauty and had even imagined what she would look like now.

But what is imagined is ultimately vague.

But at this moment, the vague fantasy is brought to life.

The Yao Qin characters at every age, as depicted by Xia Wanzhi, are even more real and vivid than he imagined.

Standing before the painting, Xie Qiyan felt as if Yao Qin had never left him, as if he had witnessed his mother slowly growing old.

He looked at the painting carefully, and also watched Xia Wanzhi carefully and attentively draw the outlines of the portrait.

With his palms slightly clenched, Xie Qiyan's thoughts shifted from himself to Xia Wanzhi.

He never believed in fate, the so-called divine intervention, destiny, or divine favor.

He only trusts himself.

If the gods truly had mercy, they wouldn't have torn apart their happy lives in the first place.

If gods truly exist, he wouldn't have become a despised illegitimate child, and Yao Qin wouldn't have been driven to such a desperate situation.

If the gods truly heard his heart's desire, they shouldn't have let his hopes be dashed.

He searched for Yao Qin for so long, so very long.

For twenty-one years, he had never seen her.

The gods couldn't bring Yao Qin to him, but Xia Wanzhi could.

These paintings were created by Xia Wanzhi.

He saw his mother and watched the changes in her expression, as if Yao Qin were really standing in front of him.

There are no gods in the world, but there is Xia Wanzhi.

He doesn't believe in God.

But at this moment——

Xia Wanzhi was the only deity he worshipped.

From the moment she first saw him as a child and felt sorry for him, she was destined to be his savior.

She is his little bodhisattva.

Xie Qiyan looked at her with tender affection.

He deeply regretted spilling the milk she offered him.

He spilled not only milk, but also Xia Wanzhi's care, kindness, and heartache for him, severing their initially harmonious relationship.

But back then, he wasn't good enough for the beautiful Xia Wanzhi.

If it weren't for that incident, he might not even have had the chance to argue with Xia Wanzhi.

He felt sorry that Xia Wanzhi disliked him, and he was also annoyed that he had misunderstood Xia Wanzhi's good intentions due to psychological factors.

When I grew up, it was inevitable that I would return to China and reunite with her.

The only unexpected thing was his growing feelings for someone.

Xia Wanzhi finished her sixteenth painting, and only when she put down her brush did she realize that Xie Qiyan had appeared behind her at some point.

Judging from his expression, he must have been watching this for quite a while.

Xie Qiyan snapped out of his reverie, met her gaze tenderly, leaned down to remove the paint-stained apron from her body, then gently massaged the wrist of the hand she had been painting with, asking her with utmost care, "Are you tired?"

Xia Wanzhi leaned closer, resting her chin slightly on his shoulder, and said with a smile, "Tired."

Xie Qiyan smiled and massaged her arm, then rubbed her slender waist, making Xia Wanzhi laugh while dodging.

He liked Xia Wanzhi's sincerity.

She never beats around the bush when it comes to her love for herself.

"Sit for a while?" Xie Qiyan affectionately ruffled her hair.

Xia Wanzhi shook her head: "I want to take a shower."

Since they couldn't take a bath together, Xie Qiyan asked her if she was hungry and planned to cook her a late-night snack.

Xia Wanzhi shook her head: "I'm not hungry, I want to take a shower first."

It doesn't matter if she gets paint on herself while painting, but Xia Wanzhi is exceptionally clean after she finishes painting.

Xie Qiyan had been thinking about a lot of things, and now his eyes were filled with love. He didn't want to leave Xia Wanzhi, either mentally or physically, and just wanted to stick to her.

Seeing Xie Qiyan's reluctance to part, Xia Wanzhi laughed and teased, "President Xie, would you like to come along?"

A dangerous glint flashed in Xie Qiyan's eyes. He pressed down on her smiling lips, forcing her to shut up, and gritted his teeth: "There will be a day when we're together."

Every day after I legally started working.

There were times when she cried.