Chapter 63: The Rose Pendant

Just as the weather forecast had warned, it began to rain in Nancheng a little past seven o'clock.

The slanted drizzle coated everything in a layer of moisture. The asphalt roads quickly darkened, and raindrops clung to car windows.

Traffic surged around the airport.

Partings and reunions were the things least lacking here. The rainy night only heightened the sense of urgency among everyone.

When Ji Xi caught sight of Shu Shiran, she was standing there in a daze, as if a pause button had been pressed solely for her.

She did not notice him until he drew close.

Ji Xi carried a trace of travel-worn weariness, yet his voice was gentle and clear, "Why are you here? Didn't I tell you to wait for me in the car?"

Shu Shiran moved her lips, unsure of how to begin, so she simply reached out and wrapped her arms around him, burying her face against his chest.

Ji Xi paused at her sudden embrace, faintly sensing something unusual. His free hand came up to stroke her back, and he asked, "What's wrong, Shu Shiran?"

Wrapping her arms tightly around his waist and feeling his body heat, Shu Shiran felt a slight sting behind her eyes. After reigning in her emotions for a moment, she said, "I just missed you, wanted to see you sooner."

Ji Xi tightened his hold on her and said, "I missed you too."

Shu Shiran let go of him, took his hand, and said, "Let's go home."

Shu Shiran drove on the way back.

Ji Xi sat in the passenger seat, leaned over to press a couple of kisses to her lips before fastening his seatbelt, and asked, "Have you had dinner?"

Shu Shiran started the engine, "Yes, I ate with Grandmother."

Ji Xi: "Did you go back to Lubei today? How is Grandmother's health?"

Shu Shiran: "She's been quite spirited lately. Have you eaten?"

Ji Xi: "I have. Where is Xu Ying staying now?"

Shu Shiran: "Pretty close to us."

Ji Xi: "Did Cheng Yexiu agree to a divorce?"

Shu Shiran: "Not yet, they're just separating for now."

Outside the car, the rain continued, pattering softly.

Moisture filled the air.

The two of them chatted about the events of the past few days, enveloped in tenderness.

As soon as they arrived home and stepped inside, before the lights could even be turned on, Shu Shiran was pressed against the door.

Warm breath brushed across her face.

"How much did you miss me?"

Shu Shiran looked at his face in the darkness.

She remained silent, and Ji Xi did not rush her.

Their breathing intertwined, just like their countless intimate encounters in bed before.

Utterly intoxicating.

After gazing at him for a few seconds, Shu Shiran suddenly raised her chin and pressed her lips to his.

After just a couple of kisses, she was met with a much more fervent response, and the control was seized away from her.

Her breath was stolen away along with it.

In the dark, only the sound of kissing remained.

When their lips parted, both of them were breathing heavier.

Ji Xi pressed his nose against hers, looking at her as he said, "Princess, why are you so enthusiastic today?"

He was teasing, but Shu Shiran answered earnestly.

"Because I missed you very much."

The amusement in Ji Xi's eyes froze for a fraction of a second, and his desire grew heavier.

He scooped her up by her waist with one arm, lifting her into the air. "It seems I need to travel far away more often, so you'll miss me like this more frequently."

Pressed against him and teased like this, Shu Shiran blushed, yet she still crossed her arms behind his neck and held onto him tightly.

Once lifted, she was a little taller than Ji Xi.

Seeing her raise her head, Ji Xi held her just like that and kissed her once more.

Every single kiss and movement of his was met with a response.

It was only after this deep kiss that Ji Xi carried her to the bedroom.

***

"I brought you a gift, I'll give it to you tomorrow."

It was still raining outside.

The damp moisture seemed to drift into the bedroom.

Shu Shiran felt as though she had been caught in a rainstorm, the friction of the bedsheets and quilt weaving together like thunder in her ears.

Long afterwards, they took a shower and lay back down in bed.

Ji Xi had already fallen asleep.

Shu Shiran lay in his arms, listening to the sound of the rain.

Her birthday in the second year of junior high was one of the birthdays that had left the deepest impression on her.

She truly had been furious with Shu Shian back then, and she genuinely loathed illegitimate children.

She hadn't expected those words to be overheard by him.

No wonder he knew she had always despised illegitimate children.

She remembered him saying that he first encountered her on the anniversary of her mother's death during the second year of junior high.

Her mother's death anniversary was in September, and her birthday was in December.

Which meant he had known she despised illegitimate children three months after meeting her.

A heavy ache settled in Shu Shiran's chest, and she looked up at Ji Xi.

His breathing was even, and his jawline was right before her eyes, clearly outlined by the night light.

She pressed a light kiss to his jaw, moving with the utmost care, afraid of waking him.

When Xu Ying and Zheng Tingyan found out that Ji Xi had liked her back in their school days, both were astonished, saying he didn't seem like the type to harbor a secret crush.

She hadn't expected someone as unrestrained and cynical as him to silently care for her for so many years.

He had once told her that he wasn't the only one who had a crush on her, and even joked that it would hurt his pride if she didn't like him, so she hadn't thought much of it.

She never imagined the real reason would be this.

Shu Shiran's mind remained in turmoil for a long time.

Perhaps her movements were too restless, as the hand resting across her waist shifted.

She looked up and saw Ji Xi open his eyes.

Half-asleep, Ji Xi instinctively pulled her closer into his arms and asked, "What time is it?"

Shu Shiran: "One o'clock. You only fell asleep a little while ago."

Ji Xi rubbed his chin against the crown of her head, his voice lazy: "Why aren't you asleep yet?"

Shu Shiran pressed her face against his chest, feeling the warmth of his skin: "I'm not very tired yet. You go back to sleep."

He had just traveled back, dealing with jet lag as well; he must have been exhausted.

Instead of going back to sleep, however, Ji Xi wrapped his arm around her, guided her head onto his shoulder, and turned on a bedside lamp.

"What's wrong with you today?"

The room instantly grew a bit brighter.

Shu Shiran shifted her head to find a comfortable position, and after a few seconds of silence, she spoke: "Things I said when I was a kid shouldn't be taken seriously."

Ji Xi looked down at her: "What did you say when you were a kid?"

Shu Shiran's throat tightened slightly. Her voice sounded strained and dry as she asked softly, "On my birthday in the second year of junior high... did you go?"

A brief silence answered her.

Then, Ji Xi's voice sounded: "You... found out?"

With her face buried in his shoulder, Shu Shiran nodded, her voice muffled: "I'm sorry, Ji Xi."

She couldn't imagine what it must have been like for him to go specially to her birthday venue, only to hear her say such things.

Shu Shiran raised her face: "I'm truly sorry."

She had always treated others with gentleness and kindness, yet unknowingly wounded the person who loved her.

Ji Xi pinched her earlobe, his smile making the matter seem light and effortless: "That wasn't anything important anyway, you don't need to apologize to me."

Seeing that Shu Shiran still wore a look of guilt, he added: "Like you said, things you said as a kid shouldn't be taken seriously."

"Besides, you're my wife now."

Shu Shiran nodded: "Mhm, I'm your wife."

Ji Xi tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear and asked, "How did you find out?"

Shu Shiran: "I ran into Qin Shengiyan today. He told me about that incident. He saw you there back then."

Ji Xi raised an eyebrow: "Didn't you go to see Grandmother today? How did you run into him?"

Shu Shiran: "I ran into him in Lubei. The Qin family's old residence is there."

She glanced at Ji Xi's expression, pressed a kiss to his chin, and said, "Stop being jealous. I only like you."

The soft, gentle tone was meant to coax him, carrying a hint of coquetting.

Ji Xi was very receptive to this, lowering his head to press his lips against her forehead.

The two of them held each other like that for a moment.

Yet bitterness still lingered in Shu Shiran's heart.

"Did you ever come again after my birthday that year?" she asked.

Ji Xi: "No."

He hadn't gone to disturb her again.

After they became classmates in high school, whenever someone had a birthday, the group chat would be flooded with happy birthday wishes.

For all three years of high school, including after he went to the United States, he always joined the other classmates in sending her a "Happy Birthday" message in the group chat whenever her birthday arrived.

Since everyone sent it, it wouldn't make him stand out.

The message he sent would quickly be swallowed up by the messages of others.

Shu Shiran sighed.

Ji Xi pinched her chin: "That was all many years ago."

His hand slid down from her neck to her collarbone, tracing a casual, idle caress over the skin.

"Shu Shiran, cheer up, and I'll tell you one more thing."

Shu Shiran raised her head, blinking as she looked at him: "What?"

Was there something else she didn't know?

Ji Xi looked at her, as if confirming whether she had perked up a bit.

Shu Shiran urged him: "Hurry up and tell me."

Ji Xi: "I actually prepared a birthday gift for you that year."

Later, fearing it would upset her, he took the gift back to school with him.

"But when it was your birthday last year, I gave it to you after all, so it wasn't a regret."

Shu Shiran froze for several seconds: "That rose pendant?"

Ji Xi: "Mhm."

So that pendant, which had puzzled her before, was the gift he had wanted to give her back in the second year of junior high.

Shu Shiran's breath trembled. She abruptly sat up, slipped out of his arms, and got out of bed to head into the walk-in closet.

She turned on the lights in the walk-in closet and walked over to the section specifically reserved for jewelry.

Aside from the pieces she wore frequently, her other jewelry was piled together with their boxes.

Shu Shiran opened several small boxes in succession, but none of them contained it.

She couldn't remember where she had put that pendant; it seemed she had simply tossed it aside casually back then.

When Ji Xi walked over wearing his pajamas, Shu Shiran was sitting on the floor rummaging through things, surrounded by boxes containing jewelry.

"My wife has way too much jewelry."

Seeing Shu Shiran's tightly pressed lips, he dropped the teasing tone and said offhandedly, "Ran-ran, if you can't find it, forget it. It wasn't even that nice of an item. I'll buy you something better next time."

To him, the fact that he was eventually able to give it to her was already wonderful enough.

Shu Shiran: "It should be in here."

That was a gift he had wanted to give her back then; how could it possibly be the same as anything else?

Shu Shiran searched box by box, setting each one aside after opening it.

Ji Xi came over to help her look: "It should be a smaller box, blue-black in color."

Shu Shiran received an enormous amount of jewelry throughout the year.

Many pieces had only been opened once to look at before being put away, tucked away until she forgot about them and never wore them.

Even with Ji Xi narrowing down the description, there were still a lot of them.

The longer she searched, the more anxious Shu Shiran became.

If it were truly lost, it would weigh heavily on her mind.

When she opened another box and saw the rose pendant resting quietly inside, she breathed a sigh of relief, her eyes stinging with moisture.

The two of them stood up, and Shu Shiran took the pendant out of the box.

It was an item from many years ago, and given Ji Xi's capabilities at the time, he couldn't have bought anything very expensive.

Even though he had later had this pendant redesigned by a top-tier master craftsman, it still couldn't compare to most of the pieces scattered casually across the floor around them.