Chapter 242: Insufficient Fate

"Yes. Back then, she mistook me for you, and I mistook her for my fiancée," Xie Huaizheng said.

’So that’s how it was!’

Xie Huaizhen’s eyes narrowed, and he felt a dull ache in his chest.

When was the first time he met Su Zhaozhao? It was on that night he went to see Zhou Chengguo.

’He must have just arrived not long before that, right?’

But at the time, he hadn’t revealed his identity to her.

Later, they had a few more encounters. He clearly could have said something, but he didn’t.

And the final result was that Su Zhaozhao ended up with Xie Huaizheng.

’Is this all because he and Su Zhaozhao weren’t fated to be together?’

The truth was like a knife plunging straight into his heart, leaving him bleeding and in unbearable pain.

"How could it be such a coincidence? She mistook you, and you mistook her..."

Xie Huaizhen’s dark eyes were grave, and his gaze, fixed on Xie Huaizheng, was filled with disbelief.

"Don’t look at me with such suspicion. You know I don’t get close to women. Later, my grandpa told me he was introducing me to my betrothed from our childhood engagement. She happened to come to me right then and said she was my betrothed, so I assumed it was her."

It was rare for Xie Huaizheng to have the patience to explain all this to Xie Huaizhen.

He had thought it over and decided he should be more magnanimous.

After all, if it weren’t for Xie Huaizhen’s acceptance of the situation, he wouldn’t have been able to be with Su Zhaozhao.

So, he would just be patient and tell him the truth. That would be enough.

Xie Huaizhen still looked utterly devastated, and the rims of his eyes were red.

Xie Huaizheng sighed and patted his shoulder. "Try not to dwell on it. Maybe it just wasn’t meant to be. I’m going to train now."

Xie Huaizheng left.

Xie Huaizhen remained standing there. He let out a scoff.

’Xie Huaizheng came to comfort me?’

’He actually had the nerve to comfort me?’

’Do I need his comfort?’

’What was the relationship between them now?’

’Rivals in love? No, not really. After all, what right did he have anymore?’

’Friends? Even less so.’

’Maybe, just as Xie Huaizheng said, it really wasn’t meant to be?’

He looked up at the stars in the sky. Countless stars were twinkling brightly.

’So beautiful.’ The image of Su Zhaozhao appeared in his mind.

Su Zhaozhao had always been that beautiful, her eyes always sparkling.

He had to admit, during those days, even though he had approached Su Zhaozhao with the worst intentions, he had still been drawn to her unconsciously.

So much so that now, after learning the truth, he was being hit by such a powerful emotional backlash.

’He was doomed to a sleepless night.’

Xie Huaizhen felt he needed to see a psychologist.

’Su Zhaozhao... isn’t she a psychologist?’

When Su Zhaozhao went to sleep, Xie Huaizheng hadn’t returned yet. He had told her not to wait for him, as he would most likely be back in the middle of the night.

So Su Zhaozhao didn’t wait up.

As she was sleeping drowsily, she felt the blanket being lifted, and then she was pulled into a comfortable, broad embrace.

She adjusted her position slightly, found a comfortable spot, and went back to sleep.

When she woke up the next day, she was surprised to find that Xie Huaizheng hadn’t gotten up yet.

The man held her as if she were a doll, his long arms and legs wrapped around her, as if afraid she would disappear in the next moment.

Su Zhaozhao blinked, not moving, and stared at Xie Huaizheng’s sleeping face.

She had to admit, Xie Huaizheng was handsome even in his sleep. With his eyes closed, his well-defined features were flawless, even as he lay on his side.

And he lacked his usual coldness.

Right now, she didn’t know what he was dreaming about, but he looked very relaxed, and the corners of his thin lips were unconsciously turned up in a slight smile.

’Is he dreaming of something happy?’

Su Zhaozhao didn’t dare to move, because she knew Xie Huaizheng was a very light sleeper. Even if she tried to get up stealthily, he would sense it.

Therefore, Su Zhaozhao could only choose to keep staring at him.

However, after five minutes, Xie Huaizheng woke up anyway.

Upon waking, he was dazed for a minute or two, but his gaze quickly sharpened and cleared.

"You’re awake?" The man’s voice was husky from sleep. He then subconsciously pulled her into a tight hug.

"How are you feeling? Are you better?"

"Much better! Listen, my voice is back to normal today."

Su Zhaozhao was touched. The first thing Xie Huaizheng did upon waking was to ask about her health.

"Don’t you have training today?" she asked.

"I trained too late last night, so I’m not going in until this afternoon."

After speaking, Xie Huaizheng nuzzled his face against Su Zhaozhao’s neck.

Su Zhaozhao increasingly felt that Xie Huaizheng was like a big dog.

"Then you should sleep a little longer. You can get up later. I’ll go make breakfast first."

"No, wifey, let me just get a little more sleep, okay? I’ll make it."

He still remembered that Su Zhaozhao had been sick.

Su Zhaozhao wasn’t hungry anyway, so she smiled and said to him, "Mm, okay. You can make it."

It was rare to see Xie Huaizheng lazing in bed like this, and Su Zhaozhao found it surprisingly cute.

He was never like this on normal days.

Xie Huaizheng slept for another half hour before he was fully awake.

After getting up, the two of them washed up, and then Xie Huaizheng went to the kitchen to prepare breakfast.

Just then, there was a knock at the door.

Su Zhaozhao went to open the door and was surprised to see several workers holding huge boxes.

Su Zhaozhao was a little surprised. She looked at Xie Huaizheng. "This is..."

It took Xie Huaizheng a moment to react. He said, "They’re here to deliver the television and the washing machine. Our mom ordered them a while ago, but they were brought over from Hong Kong. It wasn’t easy, so it took this long."

’They were actually brought all the way from Hong Kong!’

Su Zhaozhao was shocked, but she understood when she saw the brand labels.

But it was true. In this era, Hong Kong was developing quickly, and so were its home appliances.

They were much better than the ones in the mainland. Families with some means would try every way they could to have someone bring appliances over from there.

It was just that the price would certainly be much higher.

Xie Huaizheng brought out a plate of dumplings for Su Zhaozhao to eat, then directed the workers to install the television and washing machine.

The washing machine was placed next to the balcony and connected to the water inlet and drain pipes, making it convenient to hang the clothes out to dry right after washing.

The washing machines of this time were still the traditional drum-type models. They were simple, without the many functions of modern ones, but Su Zhaozhao felt that just having a washing machine at all was a huge deal.

As for the television, it was also one of those bulky types with a terrible picture quality, but in this era, it was still considered very rare.

After it was installed, Xie Huaizheng tuned it to a TV channel that was playing a drama series.

Su Zhaozhao found it quite novel.

The home now looked even warmer and cozier than before.

Su Zhaozhao looked around the house, which had started with very few things and now had more and more.

She and Xie Huaizheng had arranged it all, bit by bit.

Living a life like this was truly wonderful.