Chapter 15: Chapter 15: ‘Don’t be afraid, I will protect you.


    On the gravestone was affixed a cheek bearing a bright smile, and just below it was engraved the name Lin Xu.


    Visiting one’s own grave—this experience really was novel.


    Lin Xu noticed a bunch of lilies ced in front of the gravestone, her favorite flowers. A few petals had fallen, but they still looked fresh, as if they had been ced in recent days.


    It wasn’t just her gravestone; her husband’s next to hers also had fresh flowers on it.


    Besides the flowers, the gravestone had been cleaned very thoroughly.


    “Did you buy these flowers?” Lin Xu asked Ji Tingyang.


    Ji Tingyang had also noticed the flowers and the offerings in front of the gravestones, seeming like someone had recently paid their respects, which also caused him some confusion.


    He shook his head, “No.”


    Lin Xu made an “Oh” sound, but didn’t dwell on it.


    She casually nced at her own gravestone, then walked over to the one beside it.


    The man on the gravestone had handsome features with a slight smile at the corner of his lips,posed yet dashing.


    Lin Xu gently stroked the photo with her hand, her eyes filled with sorrowful and nostalgic thoughts. She murmured softly, “So foolish, you clearly wouldn’t have been hit by the truck, yet you insisted oning over to shield me.”


    During the ident, the truck hit Lin Xu first, who was in the passenger seat. Though the driver’s seat might not have beenpletely unscathed, it wouldn’t have been life-threatening.


    And yet, he had immediately leaned over, pulling her into his embrace.


    A steel rod pierced both their bodies and imed both their lives.


    n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    But now that she was reborn, had he also been reborn?


    Lin Xu couldn’t help but think this.


    But if he had been reborn too, after so long, he should havee to find them by now.


    So had he truly died?


    The emotions she had just managed to calm at her parents’ graves erupted once again, and tears welled up in Lin Xu’s eyes.


    Ji Tingyang’s face suddenly stiffened, and he put out his hand, awkwardly patting Lin Xu on the back.


    He had neverforted someone before; his actions and tone were very unnatural: “Don’t be sad, you still have me, I will definitely protect you just like your father did!”


    As a boy, Ji Tingyang loved watching TV shows and movies about heroes, and every time a hero appeared, he would mimic them and run to Lin Xu proiming loudly, “Don’t be afraid, I will definitely protect you!”


    The cute, well-behaved child from back then ovepped with the current moment as Lin Xu smilingly said, “Okay, thank you, darling.”


    Ji Tingyang’s cheeks turned red, slightly embarrassed as he averted his head.


    It was one thing to be called darling as a child, but now that he was grown up, how could she still call him that, it was so embarrassing.


    Thinking this, the smile that formed on his lips couldn’t be suppressed; apparently, he was very pleased.


    Lin Xu didn’t stay long at South Mountain Cemetery; after speaking a few more words with her husband, she headed back with Ji Tingyang.


    At the entrance to the cemetery, a ck sedan was parked not far away, watching the two of them speak.


    Lin Xu rubbed her reddened eyes, petntly said, “I’m not happy today, I want to go on a big shopping spree!”


    Her rule was to shop when happy, and even more so when unhappy.


    Ji Tingyang recalled the dressing room already overflowing with clothes within just a week of her return, paused, then said, “Okay.”


    Let her buy if she wants to; he could afford it anyway.


    Lin Xu’s mood brightened slightly, humming as she opened the car door, suddenly feeling as if someone was watching her.


    She looked up, and the window of the ck sedan not far away slowly rose, blocking her view of the inside of the car.


    Lin Xu blinked and returned to the car at Ji Tingyang’s urging. By the time she looked back at the sedan, it had already driven away.


    ——


    “Is something urgent going on?” Xiao Yu suddenly asked.


    Since meeting, Wen Li had been intermittently checking her phone, and her furrowed brows never eased.


    Wen Li was stunned for a moment, then snapped back to reality, “No… I’m fine.”


    After saying that, she immediately put her phone back in her bag.


    She had just posted on her Moments, including Xiao Yu in the photo, but strangely, Ji Tingyang hadn’t reacted at all.


    Even when she mentioned she would return homete tonight, he had agreed without any hesitation.


    Normally, he would have called to interrogate her, or even driven over to take her back personally.


    These were precisely the aspects of life she had once desperately wanted, so why couldn’t she feel happy about them now?


    “If you are busy, we can meet another time,” Xiao Yu offered considerately.


    “I…” Wen Li hesitated.


    Xiao Yu thought she was reluctant to part with him and smiled, “No worries, we have plenty of time ahead to meet.”


    “Okay.”


    The two got up from the bench in the park, and Xiao Yu escorted her to the bus station. Before parting, he pulled a small box out of his pocket and gave it to Wen Li.


    Wen Li was slightly taken aback: “What’s this?”


    “Take a look.”


    Wen Li opened it, and inside the small boxy an exquisite ne with a sapphire embedded in it.


    At first, she was surprised, then upon closer examination, she noticed the sapphire seemed off.


    The gem appeared to be of poor quality, and the whole ne was a high imitation.


    The smile on her lips froze instantly.


    “I saw you liked this ne yesterday, but I can’t afford it right now, so I bought a cheap one to give you,” Xiao Yu’s cheeks shed with an awkward tinge, then he spoke with determination, “but I promise you, once I earn enough money, I will buy it and give it to you.”


    Wen Li smiled weakly, “Okay.”


    She didn’t tell Xiao Yu that Ji Tingyang had already bought the ne.


    After parting with Xiao Yu, Wen Li returned early to the Ji Mansion.


    She had said she would be backte, and now she was returning before it even got dark, which was somewhat embarrassing.


    She nned to tell Ji Tingyang that she had finished her business earlier than expected if he asked.


    As she was thinking this, she entered the mansion.


    Upon opening the door, she saw over a dozen bags ced on the cab in the foyer, all bearing logos of luxury brands, nearly overflowing the space.


    Wen Li almost instinctively thought these were gifts from Ji Tingyang for her. She reached out to check inside the bags, but just as her hand was mid-air, she heard Lin Xu’s voiceing from upstairs.


    “Housekeeper, could you please move everything from the foyer to my room? There’s too much, and I can no longer carry it,” Lin Xu said.


    It turned out all these items were for Lin Xu.


    In no time, the housekeeper came from the backyard, first giving Wen Li a friendly and polite smile, then in front of her, he took all those bags away.


    From one of the open bags, Wen Li saw a shimmering, beautiful bracelet with crystal-clear gemstones; just one nce, and she knew it was incredibly expensive.


    Suddenly, Wen Li remembered the imitation poor-quality ne in her bag, and her expression became unsightly.