Chapter 516: Memories

"I was no longer able to love another person afterwards, you know?" Huang Yaming said suddenly beneath the streetlights, "I am not unwilling, and it's not that I never met a good girl, but I just couldn't do it...heck, I freaking just can't love anymore."

While this might sound a bit like an excuse, it might really be more of sorrow that was contained within.

Xu Tingsheng knew that the good girl he spoke of should be called Chen Jingqi. Over the past few years, there was no other woman who had treated Huang Yaming as she had. Meanwhile, Huang Yaming might really have wished and tried to properly love her. Sadly, he couldn't do it.

A big bus pulled over by the roadside.

Zhang Xingke got off and waved to Huang Yaming, "Sorry, bro. I can't attend your engagement banquet. It so happens that we're departing today. We're heading to Xihu City to catch a flight to Chengdu..."

The two exchanged a few words, after which Zhang Xingke walked over to Xu Tingsheng.

"So courteous, you specially stopped by here?" Xu Tingsheng asked.

Looking at him, Zhang Xingke smiled wryly and shook his head, "The way I see it, because of Chen Jingqi, we should have made a detour even if here was on the way. But that silly girl...in fact, it was she who asked the driver if he could help make a detour over here."

As he spoke, Chen Jingqi got off the bus. She stopped on the stairs a little, seemingly making great effort to get her emotions under check.

Xu Tingsheng and Zhang Xingke looked at each other as they could do nothing but be silent.

Walking over to Huang Yaming, Chen Jingqi neither cried nor caused a scene as she simply smiled and said, "I was afraid I might not be able to get through to your phone. Good, you're here, huh. I...offer you my congratulations."

"Thank you," Huang Yaming nodded a bit stiffly.

"When you're there, remember to take care of yourself. If you really can't get used to it, just...if you meet with any difficulties, you can..." Yet Huang Yaming was able to complete neither of his sentences in the end as he ended up caught on his words.

He had been going to say to return to Yanzhou if she really could not adapt and tell him if she met with any difficulties...yet, he was actually the least qualified person to say these two things to her.

Look for you? How was Chen Jingqi supposed to do that?

How was Chen Jingqi supposed to return to Yanzhou?

What was this girl leaving to avoid in the first place?

Huang Yaming himself was well aware of all this.

Xu Tingsheng recalled that he had previously said, "Don't mention Chen Jingqi. She'd be done for if we got married. The woman is too silly and too pure. She can't handle it. Hurt her once and she's practically half-dead...with me, she'd go crazy if she didn't die first."

This might just be the reason why Huang Yaming had never gone to look for Chen Jingqi after Tan Qingling had successfully compelled her to move away.

No words had to be said for the intent to be grasped.

"I'll be fine. Don't worry about me," Chen Jingqi said.

As for whether she was saying that she would be fine with regard to going to Xinan or his engagement...no one knew.

She produced the hand that had been behind her back, revealing a bag.

"This is the ointment that I prepared for you after your arm got hurt last time, in case it hurts when it rains...I just happened to chance upon it when packing up my things. You should keep it just in case."

"Ah," Huang Yaming received the bag in a nearly numb manner, "Thank you."

Chen Jingqi forced out a final smile and said, "In that case, I...I'll be off then. You shouldn't drink so much in the future."

Huang Yaming already dared not speak now as he could only nod.

Chen Jingqi turned and returned to the bus. Zhang Xingke and Xu Tingsheng shared a goodbye hug.

The engine of the bus revved up once more...soon it was but a dot on the horizon.

"You can give that to me. I'll help you put it in the car. Also, it's high time you get back. It'll be getting busy later," Xu Tingsheng pointed at the bag in Huang Yaming's hands.

Huang Yaming said, "It's okay. I'll bring it over myself. Go on in first. Don't wait for me."

"Huh?"

"I'll be back in a jiffy."

"Alright."

Thinking that Huang Yaming might need some alone time, Xu Tingsheng did not wait for him as he returned to the banquet hall.

......

The engagement ceremony was soon to begin. As per Tan Qingling's request, this engagement itself was to be even more complex than a normal wedding.

Yet, the cars dispatched to Libei to transport the relatives of the Huang and Tan families had yet to arrive.

More importantly, where was the male lead, Huang Yaming?

Tan Qingling dialled his number a few times but could not get through. And so everybody began scanning the area for a glimpse of him.

"Could he be nervous?"

"Anyone checked the toilet? I always go to the toilet when I'm nervous. Maybe Huang Yaming's like this too."

"Haha, he's too young. A few more times and he'll be fine."

"..."

Bored, a portion of the guests started chatting and joking around.

Xiang Ning and Niannian were already stealing bites of the food on the table.

Fu Cheng was buttering up Ms Fang.

Song Ni was instructing some supermarket manager on some stuff...

Xu Tingsheng, however, was already beginning to feel a strange premonition.

"This fella wouldn't have suddenly changed his mind and gone chasing after the bus, would he?"

This thought merely flashed through his mind for a second.

Xu Tingsheng then immediately recalled what Huang Yaming had previously said to him and Fu Cheng regarding his engagement with Tan Qingling: It's not me who wants it. She's the one who asked for it.

Xu Tingsheng had felt the logic in his sentence to be rather strange somehow. It just seemed so incongruent with the idea of getting engaged.

Still, he had not pondered further into this at the time.

Now that he thought about it, it felt a bit off. Why did it sound so much like: It wasn't that this old man wanted to harm you. It's you who've got a death wish!

Also considering how the two families' relatives, Tan Qingling and Huang Yaming's parents especially, were still not here even now, also considering how Tan Qingling had insisted on inviting many guests Huang Yaming had not wanted to invite whereas he had invited those three particular students she had been unwilling to invite...

Along with how Huang Yaming had been unwilling to speak further on this engagement even with Xu Tingsheng and Fu Cheng and not further tried to get to the bottom of his fight with Fu Cheng, seeing how Huang Yaming had only laughed when Xu Tingsheng had jokingly brought up how Tan Qingling had asked him for an engagement present...

"There's something wrong. He has been up to something all along," Xu Tingsheng could already more or less come to a conclusion.

Tan Qingling walked over and inquired, "You went out with Huang Yaming just now. Is he back?"

Xu Tingsheng did not give a direct response as he said, "I'll try calling his phone."

"I've already tried. No one picked up. No, but you went out with him just now...my parents are still on the way. The car still hasn't reached yet," Tan Qingling became a bit emotional.

Xu Tingsheng raised a hand to dissuade any hysterics as he whipped out his phone and dialled Huang Yaming's number. No one picked up. He tried a spare number Huang Yaming had which few people knew about. Yet still no one answered.

"The dude's not even telling me anything. Looks like he's really hardened his heart this time..."

There was already a bit of a stir in the hall now.

As Xu Tingsheng was racking his brains over how to answer Tan Qingling, the emcee picked up his microphone smiling mysteriously, "Everyone, I've received a note. There'll be an additional segment to our ceremony today...please enjoy a short video which Mister Huang Yaming has prepared for Miss Tan Qingling."

"Oh~so that's what it is."

"Whew!"

"Haha...so he's playing the romantic!"

Cheers and applause resounded as everyone relaxed, including the female lead Tan Qingling who had just been a bit worked up. Everyone felt that it was really obvious why this male lead had still yet to arrive. So it was for the sake of a romantic confession...

So, it was a video?

Images began to appear on the screen.

Still, unlike what they had thought, it was not actual recorded footage in which Huang Yaming appeared. Instead, what appeared should perhaps be considered a simple animation...

The images gave off the vibe of simple sketches.

The first scene depicted a campus. Their ex-classmates recognised it at once as Libei Senior High.

Amidst applause.

As the boy in the animation entered the classroom for the first time, a girl by the window just happened to turn her head...their eyes met. The girl's gaze quickly shifted away, whereas the boy was rooted there momentarily.

Xu Tingsheng and Fu Cheng both knew that this was Huang Yaming's and Tan Qingling's first meeting.

Everyone believed that this was an incomparably romantic gesture, with Huang Yaming having specially produced an animation recounting the full process of him and Tan Qingling meeting and falling in love...

Amidst much envy and congratulations all around, Tan Qingling joyfully nodded non-stop in acknowledgment.

The boy in the animation confessed time and time again yet was rejected time and time again, evoking laughter from the audience.

Finally, he succeeded...

At the moment the girl nodded and they held hands, the entire venue burst into applause.

The images depicted many things in their relationship, all minor. Still, just like at the start of every love relationship, every little thing was actually sweet and so very memorable indeed...

The girl in the animation was a bit proud and hard to serve. The boy tried hard to make her happy...laughter resounded, but Tan Qingling did not mind...this seemed better able to convey to everyone here just how deep Huang Yaming's love for her was.

More than half of the video had passed. The university entrance examinations were over...

Tan Qingling's relaxed, smiling face suddenly froze the instant the next scene appeared.

The image was that of the girl knitting a woolen sweater...

The accompanying music changed from the original gentle, romantic music to a song.

Most of the youths here had heard this song before. One had even sang it...the original version.

This song was called: <>.

Fu Cheng looked at Xu Tingsheng. Fang Yunyao looked at Fu Cheng. Song Ni, Xiang Ning...

"Turn it off! Enough already!" Tan Qingling suddenly yelled without any heed for her image whatsoever, "Enough already! Turn it off!"