Figure Skating: Waltz on Ice

Mei Jing smiled ingratiatingly, "Are you angry?"

Du Liangchen frowned, tilted his head and stared straight at him, raising his chin to signal him to continue.

Mei Jing quickly explained her bold actions from the previous few days, which shocked Du Liangchen so much that his eyes widened and his jaw nearly dropped.

Mei Jing is usually quiet and reserved, I never expected her to be so bold.

Are you crazy? What were you thinking? Aren't you afraid my mom and grandma will beat you up?

Mei Jing nodded vigorously, her expression pitiful. "Of course I was scared! How could I not be? My back was soaked with sweat from nervousness. But for our future, we couldn't back down even if it meant drowning."

His tone grew more and more impassioned as he spoke, and when he reached the last sentence, he suddenly clenched his fist, inexplicably becoming energized.

Du Liangchen couldn't help but laugh at his antics.

Mei Jing composed herself, her expression serious yet tinged with anticipation and uncertainty. "So, baby... now that your family has agreed to let us move out, what are your thoughts on this?"

Du Liangchen didn't answer him immediately, but lowered his eyes. He was now a problem. Although Mei Jing had been stubborn and unwilling to break up, he was actually very uneasy. He was afraid that Mei Jing would gradually distance herself from him because of the suspension, until one of them had worn away all his love and then left resolutely.

It's important to understand that in this world, there are not only couples who love each other, but also couples who part ways. In the end, love depends entirely on one's conscience.

Liking someone isn't hard; what's hard is having the courage to be together.

Du Liangchen was deeply moved that Mei Jing had gone to such lengths for him.

Seeing that Du Liangchen did not directly refuse, Mei Jing knew there was still hope and continued to persuade him.

“I’ve already found a place to live near the school, just a few minutes’ walk away. I don’t need to take a car, I can just walk home.”

"That way, after we finish our classes at school each day, we can go to the gymnasium to train and then go straight home, which is quite convenient."

"The house has three bedrooms and a living room, and the space is very large. It's just right for you to have one room and for me to have one room. You can put your precious musical instruments in the extra room."

"Of course, don't feel pressured by what I'm saying. We haven't decided on a house yet, mainly because I'm worried you might not like it. I'll take you to see one when you're awake and have some time. If you don't like it, we'll keep looking."

"Hmm~ How about tomorrow?"

Du Liangchen pursed his lips, becoming more and more excited as he listened.

After receiving the suspension notice, they could no longer train with the team or use the team's training facilities. So, the two applied to the school to use the ice rink in the gymnasium for training, with all expenses borne by the two of them.

Although the school was unaware of what had happened, both students were good students and would be paying for their own tuition, so the school naturally wouldn't refuse.

So for the past few days, the two of them have been going to the gymnasium to train and practice on the ice during their free time.

They saved time traveling to and from work, and now they get home an hour earlier every day.

Now I don't need to take a car, I can just walk home, and there's a room for all my treasures. What reason is there to refuse? His family has already agreed!

Okay, I'm free tomorrow.

Mei Jing jumped out of bed excitedly when she saw him agree, pumping her fist, "Yes! Great, yay!"

Du Liangchen smiled and looked away, because the image was shaking so badly that it made his eyes blurry.

We chatted for a while longer before hanging up the video call.

Du Liangchen rubbed his face, mentally encouraging himself, and opened the door to his room.

Grandpa Du and Grandma Du were watching TV on the sofa when they heard the sound and turned to look at him.

"Xiao Chen, come sit down. Want to watch some TV?"

Du Liangchen shook his head and glanced in the direction of the kitchen; no one was there.

Where is my mom?

Grandma Du pointed to the room door, "She's in her room. She's been working hard all day and went to rest early."

Du Liangchen nodded, then poured himself a glass of water and went inside.

Originally, there were two apartments facing each other, one upstairs and one downstairs. The upstairs apartment was Du Langyu's marital home, and the downstairs apartment was Du's grandparents' home.

After Du Liangchen was born, his parents rarely came home. In order to take care of the three children, Grandpa Du suggested that the upper and lower floors be connected so that it would be easier for them to travel back and forth.

Later, Du Liangchen's eldest and second eldest brothers went out to work and rarely came home. With their consent, Du Liangchen used their rooms.

When Tian Zhixi was diagnosed with an illness, her older brothers came back to stay. When they saw that their room was gone, Du Liangchen could sense their discomfort, even though they didn't say anything.

So Du Liangchen cleaned up the room. The large communal bed, which was five or six meters long, was gone. As for his musical instruments and drawing boards, he moved them to the dance studio.

Mei Jing is right. People like them, who are away from home for most of the year and rarely see their families, miss the time spent with their families. But once they actually live together and have gotten used to living alone, they do feel a little awkward.

The next day, after finishing their ice skating session, the two did not go home immediately, but instead went to look at houses.

Following Mei Jing, they arrived at Lucheng International Community, where Mei Jing saw the real estate agent who was already waiting at the gate.

After exchanging greetings, the agent led the two to a detached villa with a small yard.

Looking at the villa with a small courtyard in front of him, Du Liangchen turned his head to look at Mei Jing with suspicion.

Is this the three-bedroom, one-living-room apartment you were talking about?

The real estate agent stood quietly to the side, watching the thin man before her, whose face was covered up, yet whose natural, refined air still shone through. Although she didn't understand what he was gesturing, she realized he was mute, and her eyes instantly filled with care and pity.

Mei Jing touched her nose guiltily.

"Ahem! This isn't the house I was talking about before. I thought about it last night and realized that buildings aren't safe or convenient with so many people coming and going."

“This place is great! It’s a detached house, no one will bother you, and you no longer have to worry about disturbing the neighbors when you play the piano.”

"Hey~ why don't you just go in and take a look? You're already here, aren't you?"

As he spoke, he winked at the real estate agent next to him.

The female agent immediately understood his meaning and cleverly said, "Uh, right! Gentlemen, why don't you go in and take a look? We're already here, aren't we? From what Mr. Mei is saying, this... uh..."

Mei Jing introduced him, saying, "His surname is Du."

The female agent continued enthusiastically, "Oh, Mr. Du enjoys playing musical instruments, so choosing a villa is perfect for him! No matter how good the soundproofing of an apartment building is, it can't withstand the penetrating power of musical instruments without soundproof walls. There are no such concerns here."

Mei Jing put her hand on Du Liangchen's shoulder and pushed him inside, saying, "Let's go in and take a look."

As soon as the agent saw that the job was done, he immediately perked up and introduced the property in a friendly manner: "The building area is 258 square meters, and the garden area is 380 square meters. Look how spacious our front garden is."

The agent led the two to the side, saying, "This side garden also has a feng shui fish pond and rockery, and there's a storage room next to it."

The three of them walked into the house.

"The house has two floors. The first thing you see when you enter is the living room, which has floor-to-ceiling windows on two sides. Next to it are the dining room and the kitchen. Upstairs are the bedrooms, a total of five rooms."

The two looked around, and just as Mei Jing was about to say something, Du Liangchen gave him a wink.

Without saying whether he liked it or not, he simply asked about the price and left.

On the way back, Mei Jing drove the car, occasionally turning her head to look at Du Liangchen in the passenger seat, her face full of worry.

Du Liangchen leaned his head against the window and looked out at the roadside, the gentle breeze ruffling the stray hairs on his forehead.

We arrived at his residential complex.

Mei Jing parked the car, and Du Liangchen unbuckled his seatbelt and was about to get out when he was suddenly pulled back.

"You haven't said a word the whole way. Are you angry because I made the decision on my own?"

Du Liangchen: [You've already made your decision, why are you asking me?]

Mei Jing panicked, grabbed Du Liangchen's hand, and subconsciously licked her dry lips, "No, of course we should listen to your opinion if the two of us live together."

Du Liangchen looked up at him, a thin layer of frost settling over his dark eyes, and gestured with his hand.

So what did you mean today?

"I......"

Mei Jing was speechless when asked the question. Feeling guilty, she silently lowered her head.