A beautiful summer night

For a moment, the air seemed to freeze.

The only sounds in the ward were those of cold, mechanical instruments.

Xie Tianqi is still waiting.

After a long while, his gaze finally shifted from the direction of the door back to Xie Qiyan.

He seemed to have so much to say, but when he looked deeply at Xie Qiyan, all he could see was endless regret and longing.

In the end, all the emotions were reduced to a silent apology.

Xie Qiyan could see his lip movements clearly.

Faced with Xie Qiyan's indifference, Xie Tianqi shed tears again, his breath growing weaker and weaker. He struggled to lift his fingers upward, still trying to pull off the ventilator.

He dared not hope for his forgiveness.

He knew he wasn't qualified.

Knowing that his time was running out, he was afraid that he wouldn't have enough time and that he would never have another chance.

He stubbornly wanted to say one last thing.

"I want to...see..."

"Yes...I'm sorry..."

He wanted to see Yao Qin, to see her one last time, and to say sorry to her in person.

A weak, indistinct voice came through the ventilator, and the doctor firmly prevented Xie Tianqi from touching the equipment.

But he struggled fiercely.

The old man couldn't bear to see this scene and looked at Xie Qiyan with almost pleading eyes: "Qiyan, I want to talk to your mother..."

The phone rang for ten seconds before being answered, but before the old man could speak, Liu Shubai's irritable voice came from the other end: "What's the rush! Yao is sleeping."

The call was hung up on again without any hesitation.

Judging from this, they don't seem to be planning to come.

Xie Qiyan avoided the old man's gaze.

He will not interfere with Yao Qin's decision.

He wouldn't have come if it weren't for the old man's sake.

"The patient suffered a cardiac arrest and fell into a coma; their blood pressure dropped rapidly..."

"Immediately begin emergency treatment!"

"Prepare for defibrillation!"

"Family members, leave immediately..."

The atmosphere at the scene suddenly became tense. This unexpected turn of events caused a brief blank in everyone's minds, and everyone except the medical staff was asked to leave.

The closed door separated them.

For that brief minute, Xie Qiyan stared intently at the door.

Then, the door was opened again.

The doctor removed his mask and solemnly announced the clinical death.

"The patient suffered repeated cardiac collapses due to the stimulation and died despite resuscitation efforts..."

"Please grief."

No sooner had the words left his mouth than a familiar figure appeared at the corner of the corridor.

Yao Qin suddenly stopped walking, her body swayed for a moment, and then she fell into a long silence.

"Mom." Xie Qiyan was worried about her health and stepped forward to support her, while frowning and glancing at Liu Shubai.

The implication over the phone was clear: they didn't intend to come.

Liu Shubai noticed the meaning in his eyes and explained, "You called someone over in the middle of the night. Your mother's health couldn't take it, so I let her continue sleeping in the car. Is there a problem?"

After the doctor announced the death, the old man broke down in tears.

Who can blame it?

It's just karma.

The other members of the Xie family, especially Xie An, were the most emotionally affected, and they swarmed in to take one last look at Xie Tianqi.

The situation was on the verge of spiraling out of control.

Yao Qin came to her senses at this moment and said calmly, "It's nothing."

"It's okay..." she murmured, but her body continued to fall.

Xie Qiyan and Liu Shubai helped her up at the same time.

Tears streamed down her face silently, yet she smiled and said, "Perhaps... this is our destiny."

If we never meet again in this life, then we truly will never see each other again.

Years ago, she wanted to see him but couldn't.

Years later, he longed to see her again, but they were separated by death and he could never see her again.

-

Seven days later, Xie Tianqi's funeral was held in the cemetery.

The rain wasn't falling too heavily. Xie Qiyan held up his umbrella, his eyes devoid of emotion.

His fatherly affection for Xie Tianqi had long since vanished due to years of neglect.

Hou Mengqiu took Xie An away on the day Xie Tianqi passed away. Xie An did not attend the funeral, and perhaps he will never appear in front of the Xie family again.

From then on, there was no more Xie An.

The old man was severely affected by Xie Tianqi's death and was hospitalized. He recovered a little after half a month and was discharged. The sunshine in April was warm and the flowers were in full bloom. In the blink of an eye, it was Grain Rain.

Grain Rain is the last solar term of spring.

This means that the start of summer is not far away.

As usual, Xia Wanzhi's studio was packed with orders in April and May. Spring and summer were coming and going, and people were often sleepy and prone to dreaming.

With so many bizarre dreams, more and more people are coming to Xia Wanzhi for dream interpretation and drawing.

In the evening, Xie Qiyan came to pick up Xia Wanzhi from get off work as usual.

This time, however, Yao Qin was brought along.

"Don't disturb Wanzi." Yao Qin stopped Xie Qiyan, who was about to step forward, and stood not far away, watching Xia Wanzhi's busy figure through the glass door, making no attempt to hide her inner smile.

Xie Qiyan chuckled: "So, what do you think of the wife I found? Not bad, right?"

As they spent more time together, Xie Qiyan and Yao Qin's relationship became increasingly natural. The mother and son understood each other perfectly, and even though they hadn't seen each other for many years, Yao Qin still knew her son quite well.

That mouth of his, he took after his great-grandmother.

A sharp tongue deserves a beating.

Yao Qin laughed and joked, "Not only is she alright, but marrying her is a blessing for our whole family."

Xie Qiyan smiled but said nothing. He watched his wife for a while longer, and only after he had had his fill of watching her did he take Yao Qin to the rooftop garden next door.

They should have arrived much earlier, but they were delayed because of Xie Tianqi's matter.

During that period, Yao Qin was in a bad mood, and it wasn't until recently that she started to feel better.

Pushing open the closed gate, the spring breeze from high above greeted her, and a garden full of spring colors came into view. Yao Qin was stunned for a long time, unable to describe the unparalleled beauty before her.

She almost instantly recalled the Hanging Gardens that Xia Wanzhi had mentioned when she was in Ireland.

After returning to China, Xia Wanzhi also intentionally or unintentionally suggested that she go somewhere with Xie Qiyan.

That place, this is it.

Xie Qiyan went around behind Yao Qin and gently pushed her forward with both hands: "Do you like it? This is a gift I prepared for you."

Yao Qin's eyes instantly welled up with tears.

"This is the place where your daughter-in-law proposed to me," Xie Qiyan said with a mischievous smile.

He didn't even remove the scene that Xia Wanzhi had set up for her marriage proposal.

Yao Qin was amused by his smugness. After looking around for a while, she finally stopped in front of a thriving potted asparagus fern.

"After your wedding with Wanzi, I want to go back to Nancheng." This was the first time Yao Qin had taken the initiative to express her thoughts to Xie Qiyan.

There is a small courtyard in the south of the city, which is where Yao Qin has lived since she was a child.

Xie Qiyan knew what Yao Qin was thinking and said almost without hesitation, "I'll agree if Uncle Liu accompanies me."

Yao Qin just smiled and didn't say anything more.

Before leaving, she gently took Xie Qiyan's hand and said in a soft voice, "Mom really likes your gift."

Just like many years ago when her little Ayan gave her what he considered the most beautiful thing in the world, she responded earnestly and gently.

The wedding plan was finally finalized, and the custom-made wedding rings, wedding dress, and wedding shoes were delivered to the Qingcheng Villa as early as May.

To prepare for this grand wedding, Xia Yongqing and Ross returned to China early to help with all the preparations.

The elders were busy running around, and Xia Wanzhi was so busy she was completely disoriented.

May is the peak season for the studio, but Xia Wanzhi tends to get obsessed with work and almost missed the time she had arranged with Xie Qiyan to select the finished wedding photos.

Xia Wanzhi had thought Xie Qiyan would be a little upset, and she was already prepared with how to coax him. But when she turned around, she saw Xie Qiyan staring at her with a look of utter delight.

She was even more engrossed in it than when she was working.

"What are you looking at?" Xia Wanzhi said with a playful laugh.

"Look at my wife." Xie Qiyan held out his hand to her. "Her bag."

Xia Wanzhi handed it over skillfully: "Thank you, little assistant."

"You're too kind. Your assistant is at your service 24/7." Assistant Xie, carrying her bag in one hand and holding her boss's hand in the other, happily headed out the door.