Chapter 158 Take All You Want

She glanced at the snapped cigarette, reached out to poke his knee, and muttered, "Bad Bian Yang."

Bian Yang lowered his thin eyelids. "You're too young to know better, yet you call me bad. Not only has Tang Xiao-yu learned to lie, but she's also learned to turn things around and blame others."

Tang Yu puffed out her cheeks, unconvinced. "You're the one who bought this thing in the first place."

"I bought it, so I smoked it?" He let out a scoff.

Tang Yu raised her smooth chin and said with absolute composure, "If you weren't going to smoke it, why would you buy it? Besides, when I walked over, I saw you holding it in your hand. Who knows if you were sneaking a smoke just now and just happened to get caught by me?"

His fingertips had already crushed that object into pieces. He was already feeling deeply stifled and frustrated: frustrated with Bian Cheng and Qi Mingzhou for hiding the truth under the guise of doing what was best for him; frustrated with Qi Mingwan for lacking principles while indulging in her self-righteous, lenient kindness; frustrated with Tang Yu for acting like an undercover agent just to secure an apology; and even more resentful toward that ignorant family...

He hadn't forgiven her for those previous actions, and now he was so angered by her words that his blood felt like it was rushing backward.

"Tang Yu!"

When Bian Yang uttered her name, he was clearly suppressing his emotions.

Tang Yu abruptly cut him off, reached out two fingers to tug at the hem of his shirt, shook it slightly, and tilted her head up. "Bian Yang, look. Life is sometimes just like this—even what we see with our own eyes isn't the whole picture. It's like how I wronged you based solely on a cigarette, how you got angry seeing Uncle Bian and Uncle Qi hide the truth, and how you felt it was ridiculous when you heard Aunt Qi died for someone completely unrelated... We aren't the people directly involved; what we see is merely the tip of the iceberg."

The young girl's voice was soft and gentle in the quiet night.

It felt as though she were soothing his hidden scars and open wounds.

"Uncle Qi told me that even in the days leading up to her death, Aunt Qi never once regretted saving that little girl. As outsiders, we might think she was blindly and unconditionally kind, but as the person involved, she simply wanted to reclaim a life beneath her surgical scalpel. To her, every life, no matter what kind, was precious."

Shadows wrapped around him in layers.

She leaned her upper body forward, reached out to cup his lowered face, and guided him to lift his head toward the light.

"But no matter how brilliant Aunt Qi was, she couldn't take care of everyone. She wanted to protect her most beloved Bian Yang so he could grow up carefree, but she forgot that Bian Yang is already a grown man. He has the ability to make his own decisions, the ability to control his emotions, and even the ability to protect his girlfriend."

She sounded a little proud. "He no longer needs protection; he can even stand entirely on his own."

Bian Yang's gaze flickered slightly, his dark pupils clearly reflecting the young girl's image.

Her face was bare of makeup, completely clean, and the streetlamp cast a soft, hazy glow over her, as if light had been projected straight into his pitch-black world.

All he could do was look up at her.

Tang Yu stood on tiptoe, suddenly kissed the space between his eyebrows, and then curved her lips into a smile.

"I let you get away last time, but this time I succeeded."

A fine, shimmering light danced in the young girl's eyes, brilliant and brimming with a hint of quiet triumph.

The young man, having been taken advantage of, averted his gaze, slowly blinked his eyelashes, and murmured in a low voice, "Tang Xiao-yu, don't think this means I've forgiven you."

The young girl kept her hands cupped around his face, refusing to let go, and playfully rubbed her hands a few times against his skin, which felt exceptionally nice to the touch. "Fine, no forgiveness. Classmate Bian Yang retains the right to be angry, and Classmate Tang will never appeal."

"So, considering how sincere my apology is, can Classmate Bian Yang take pity on me and reward me with a hug?"

She opened her arms, laying herself out before him without a shred of hesitation.

Her eyes carried a pitiful, aggrieved expression.

Yet even though it sounded like a question, she didn't wait for his answer. She slipped her hands under his ribs, pressing in as if embedding herself into his most vulnerable moment, and locked her arms tightly around him.

They fit together like two matching puzzle pieces, as if they had been destined to fit this seamlessly from birth. Her hands seemed to tie a knot behind his back, impossible to untie.

"Classmate Bian Yang, studies show that a hug can release dopamine and endorphins, relieving 120% of your stress, and a kiss can relieve 150%. I've already injected 270% of energy into my baby's body. If that's still not enough, feel free to take as much as you want—your girlfriend is very generous, you know."

She called him "baby," mimicking the way he spoke to her when passions ran high.

Dark shadows fell across his cheeks as he slowly lowered his head. The young girl in his arms was nuzzling her face back and forth against him.

It was as if she were painstakingly gathering up the shattered pieces of him, earnestly piecing them back together just to love him.

Finally yielding to the temptation, he plunged himself into this deeply addictive warmth.

He buried his face deep into the crook of her neck, breathing in her scent with a sense of utter reliance.

Beneath the streetlamp, they clung tightly to each other like two small animals seeking shelter within each other's bodies.

Each other's hair fragrance, body temperature, the downy fuzz on their skin... and that fluffy, warm scent radiating from one another.

All of it wrapped around them, offered up entirely and unconditionally to one another.

Tang Yu's cheek pressed closely against his heart, her hand stroking his curved back, stroke by stroke.

Through the thin fabric of his clothes, she felt the warmth radiating from her fingertips.

The sound of the wind, a car horn in the distance, the rustling friction of leaves, and his own heartbeat...

Even with so many sounds around them, it felt remarkably quiet.

After a long while, he spoke in a voice that was completely hoarse, "Tang Xiao-yu, even though I'm hugging you, I still haven't forgiven you."

Tang Yu curved her lips slightly and replied, "Okay."

"Even though I haven't forgiven you yet." He tightened his embrace around her slightly, his voice growing gradually softer, wringing a tightness from anyone who heard it, "You aren't allowed to leave me either."

The young girl replied softly, "Okay."

"And you aren't allowed to deduct points from me in your heart either."

Tang Yu smiled in bewilderment. "You're angry because I did something wrong. Why would I deduct points from you?"

The young man, buried in the crook of her neck, spoke in a muffled tone, "Anyway, you just can't."

A strange, aching sourness blossomed in her chest.

Even while her boyfriend was angry, he was still worrying about whether she would secretly dock points from him. How could she possibly do that? She was already too busy trying to coax and comfort him!

Yet right now, she could only answer helplessly, "Okay."

"No forgiveness, no leaving, and no point deductions."

Tang Yu even deliberately repeated it, "You can stay mad for as long as you want, alright?"

Bian Yang let out a muffled "Mm."

He had decided he was going to stay mad for a whole month.

Her waist was so slender that even when he wrapped both arms tightly around her, pulling her deep into his embrace, there was still plenty of space left over.

He wasn't satisfied; he wanted to be closer and tighter still, until Tang Yu cried out in pain several times before he finally loosened his grip a little.

"Classmate Bian Yang, how about I take you somewhere?"

The young girl had been squatting for too long, and when she stood up, her body swayed slightly, forcing her to steady herself by grabbing his shoulders.

Bian Yang looked up at her. With her back to the streetlamp's glow, her fluffy strands of hair caught an orange-yellow light, and she reached her hand out to him.

"Don't look down on me just because I haven't been in Imperial City for long—I bet you've never been to this place."

His gaze lingered on her outstretched hand, and then he grasped that ray of light.

Tang Yu took him to a bustling, clamorous snack street, a place an elderly man who loved wandering around had told her about.

The young girl held the young man's hand, strolling through the fragrant, people-filled alleyways.

While she went to buy skewers, a pretty girl came over to ask for his WeChat ID. Upon seeing this, the young girl abandoned her skewers immediately, rushed over to hug his arm, and asked him with an obedient expression to help hold her bag for a moment.

Afterward, she bought a pair of glowing rabbit ears, and while he was looking down, she stood on a stone pier and placed them right on his head.

They bought a few bags of junk food, eating and wandering through the vast, prosperous capital city.

When they grew tired of walking, they sat hand in hand on a random lounge chair.

Watching the endless stream of traffic, listening to the clamor of the streets, and observing the myriad facets of ordinary life.

Both human nature and life itself were just like this.

A bustling, crowded street might gradually fade into absolute silence after midnight.

A confident, radiant urban professional might suddenly feel a wave of loneliness and desolation upon returning home.

An elderly scavenger trudging alone might, in the very next moment, run into their family on the street and reunite...

Tang Yu rested her head on his shoulder and said, "We can never predict what will happen in the next second, or how the people around us might change. Just like in a sea of people, someone always has to leave first, and someone else always walks in. The only thing we can do right is to live in the present, and not let down our families, lovers, and friends. But no matter when it is, Bian Yang, I will always stay by your side."

She pointed to the stars in the sky. "I'll stay by your side, just like Aunt Qi."