Chapter 118: You’ll Have to Coax Yourself

Su Qinghu’s mind froze for a moment, and then her heart started pounding wildly!

“!!!”

Wait… under the moonlight and among the flowers, did the topic have to change this fast? Her brain just couldn’t keep up right now!

She’d seen their marriage certificate before, but what was the date on it again? December 11th or November 12th?

Su Qinghu felt a chill run down her spine, but she still kept a bright smile on her face. “Tell me what birthday present you’ve prepared for me, and I’ll tell you when your birthday is.”

She might lose, but she couldn’t lose face—she had to keep up appearances.

If this man didn’t say what birthday present he’d prepared, then she wouldn’t have to answer his question about his birthday!

So, please, please, don’t say you’ve prepared a birthday present! Not a word!

“Something related to me,” Chen Lie replied. After he spoke, he looked down at her from above, waiting for her response.

Su Qinghu: “!!!”

What kind of answer is that? Does that even count as an answer? There are tons of things related to him—even the air counts!

Su Qinghu wanted to pound the ground in frustration, but she forced herself to look confident, lifting her delicate, fair chin and speaking up. “I only know the birthdate on our marriage certificate, but the way you asked just now made me unsure. Do you usually celebrate your birthday according to the lunar calendar or the solar calendar?”

As she spoke, her mind was frantically searching her memory for what she’d seen on the marriage certificate.

“The date on my ID is my birthday,” Chen Lie answered, then slowly added, “Lunar calendar.”

Su Qinghu looked at Chen Lie, her expression calm and confident, but her heart was beating like crazy. “December 11th.”

Fate would decide—whether Chen Lie was satisfied or not, it all came down to this moment!

Chen Lie paused, looked at Su Qinghu’s proud little expression, and smiled.

Did she get it right?

Su Qinghu let out a breath. Oh my god, that scared her to death!

Such a nice atmosphere, and he suddenly throws in a pop quiz—wasn’t he worried about ruining the mood?

Su Qinghu imagined the scene if she hadn’t been able to answer his birthday, and she almost cringed herself to tears.

“I—” Su Qinghu opened her mouth, just about to ask how he knew today was her lunar birthday, when Chen Lie cut her off, “The teacher told me.”

Su Qinghu: “???”

Teacher? Which teacher? Teacher Sun?

But how did the two of them end up talking about her birthday?

They chatted as they walked. Seeing it was getting late, Chen Lie started escorting her back to the guesthouse. “I probably won’t have time to see you off at the train station tomorrow. Once you get there, keep an eye on your surroundings.”

Su Qinghu nodded. Train stations these days, no matter where, were full of all sorts of people. If you weren’t careful, you could suffer a big loss.

But apparently, Chen Lie had something different in mind. “If you feel uncomfortable, just act. Don’t hesitate.”

Su Qinghu was a bit confused. “Huh?”

“If you feel uneasy, it means things are just as you think,” Chen Lie said seriously. “If you hurt someone, I’ll take responsibility.”

Su Qinghu: …What is this man saying?

“Oh, you mean if someone tries to take advantage of me at the station, I can just go ahead and hit them?” Su Qinghu suddenly understood.

Chen Lie nodded.

“Don’t worry about that,” Su Qinghu said proudly. “In crowded places, Sister Li and Yuan Hang always have my back. Ordinary people can’t even get close to me.”

“That supervisor—”

Chen Lie had just started to bring it up when Su Qinghu waved her hand dismissively. “Don’t get involved. I’ll handle this myself.”

The operations department supervisor was good at putting on a front, but running into the three of them this time was just bad luck for him.

With the current wave of reform, the rules weren’t clear yet. If you had the right connections and went into business, it was easy to find loopholes and get rich quick.

The supervisor clearly didn’t want the hard work of running around for business, but still wanted to use the newspaper’s name to get benefits—and secure his retirement. But if he was really pushed, he might just quit.

By dragging things out, at least for these next few years when it’s easy to exploit loopholes, she could block his path.

Chen Lie saw the calculation in her eyes and nodded, agreeing.

They talked as they walked, and before they knew it, they were near the guesthouse.

Su Qinghu was a bit surprised. The walk tonight was just as long as the one to the station last night, but she didn’t feel tired at all.

“When you get home—” Chen Lie started, but saw Su Qinghu standing there with her hands behind her back, smiling sweetly at him, looking so well-behaved it was almost suspicious. He paused, then shook his head helplessly and finished what he wanted to say. “Take it easy on the kids—don’t tease them too much.”

Su Qinghu: “…That’s all you have to say to me?”

They were about to go their separate ways tomorrow, and this was all he had to tell her?

“If you tease them too much, you’ll have to coax them yourself,” Chen Lie said with a smile, then asked in return, “What’s the point?”

Su Qinghu immediately let go of her earlier annoyance. “It’s to build up their mental toughness and give them a strong childhood.”

Chen Lie was silent.

“Don’t worry, they’re just like me—very resilient,” Su Qinghu said with a half-smile. “Just like when I want to kiss you and you refuse me, I’m still perfectly fine, aren’t I?”

In fact, the more setbacks, the braver she got!

As for the promise she made before…

Su Qinghu thought for a second and decided to keep it flexible.

If she felt like keeping it, she would; if not, she’d just toss it aside.

She’d found the perfect balance between keeping her word and not, and was very pleased with herself. She reached out, grabbed Chen Lie’s big hand, gave it a squeeze and a shake, and smiled expectantly. “See you next time, Comrade Chen Lie.”

A smile flashed in Chen Lie’s eyes. “See you next time.”

After a moment, Su Qinghu blinked. “I’ll watch you go.”

She was already at the guesthouse, so standing there a bit longer didn’t matter.

“You go upstairs first,” Chen Lie said, unmoving. “Once you’re up, wave to me from the window.”

Su Qinghu looked at the night, then at the man standing tall and steady like a mountain before her. She smiled, raised her hand and waved. “Chen Lie, I can handle everything at home. Don’t worry about me.”

With that, she turned and went upstairs.

Upstairs, Sister Li was reading a newspaper she’d gotten from the front desk. When she saw Su Qinghu come in, she greeted her with a smile.

Su Qinghu chuckled, pointed at the window. “I’ll say goodbye to him, then go to bed.”

Sister Li nodded.

Su Qinghu walked to the window, waved at Chen Lie, then made a heart with her hands, and finally gestured for him to go.

Chen Lie nodded, raised a hand in farewell, and strode away.

Leaning on the windowsill, Su Qinghu watched Chen Lie walk farther and farther away, her feet swinging unconsciously.

This was nice—just parting cleanly, no dragging things out.

“Haven’t had enough of looking yet?” Sister Li teased, seeing her cutely swinging her feet. “You two are sweet as can be.”

Su Qinghu just grinned, closed the window, and walked off to the bathroom, smiling all the way."