Because I Cannot Hurt You

Zhiyuan's eyes shone as if the brightest star just landed on the earth. He grabbed her shoulder and shook her. "Really? You really forgive me?"

Xinyi felt her eyes roll in dizziness as Zhiyuan eagerly kept shaking her. She snapped out and coughed. "Yes…"

She was indeed furious at him for sneakily reading her diary, but she had also understood that Zhiyuan was genuinely apologetic. She realized that she was also at fault for hiding this from Zhiyuan instead of properly communicating with him.

A marriage needed communication as much as it needed love and trust between two partners. She was too stubborn not to let him know anything.

Plus, now she wasn't doing anything different. Han Huizhong would be just as furious to know that they entered the storeroom without their permission. 

Han Zongying for him was similar to how Xinyi's diary was for her.

But this was necessary to dig out the truth. After all, what happened in their parents' generation had a cascading effect on their present lives.

Zhiyuan tightly hugged her and twirled her in his arms. "Xinyi really forgave me!"

Xinyi's head was rolling in dizziness. She thought that she might collapse at any moment.

She shook her head and faced him. "Yes, I did forgive you because I was also at fault. But!"

Zhiyuan froze. He got a bad feeling that her 'but' won't be anything but adding to his happiness.

"But?" He anxiously leaned towards her. "It's alright, Xinyi. I will suffer any punishment you give me as long as you forgive me."

She cleared her throat. "It's not about that. There is no need for any punishment. I...I was talking about…" she shifted her gaze away from him. "Your confession," she whispered in such a low voice that it was hardly audible.

Zhiyuan blinked his eyes.

"That! It's still overwhelming for me...So I have forgiven you, but don't consider it as a yes for your confession too…" her cheeks flushed. "I mean...it's all…"

"I understand!" Zhiyuan suddenly grabbed her hands and grinned. "I never misunderstood your intentions or took your forgiveness for granted. I will work hard to prove my feelings for you. Just how you accepted my apology, you will accept my love too. I am sure of it. I will make you believe that I am really sincere towards you."

She looked at him, a little stunned. Then she broke from her stupor and quickly looked away. She didn't want him to see her red face and hear her loud heartbeats.

"E-En…"

Zhiyuan beamed. He leaned in and pecked her cheek for a feathery kiss.

"Y-You...you just said that you will wait!"

Zhiyuan seriously nodded. "Of course, I will. This is just a promise that I won't go back on my words. A kiss seals the deal."

Her brow twitched.

"We could have made a pinky promise!"

"That is not fun," he shamelessly said, "A kiss makes it more real."

"..."

She coughed. "I-I am going in!"

She ignored him and then stomped her way inside the storeroom. Zhiyuan silently chuckled and followed her.

As they stepped in, they imagined the room to be dusty and messy. But on the contrary, the room was clean and neat, just like all the other rooms in the villa. There wasn't even a speck of dirt anywhere. There was faint sunlight coming from the windows through the curtain.

"Was this room really locked for years?" Xinyi asked in wonder.

"I guess Grandpa told some maid to keep it clean and tidy. Or wait. He doesn't want anybody to come in the room, so maybe...he cleans it himself?"

They switched on the lights and were surprised to see a bedroom. They thought that it was actually a storeroom.

Xinyi darted her gaze at all sides and took a good look. The layout and structure were similar to the other rooms. There was a cupboard on the left and a shelf on the right.

She opened the cupboard and found many beautiful dresses neatly lined up one after the other. The clothes were washed and kept and still in good shape. At the bottom, there were as many pairs of sandals as there were clothes. There was a make-up kit inside one of the drawers. Though the products were expired for sure, it was still maintained in a good state, just like all the other things in the room.

Such meticulous taking care of the room and Han Zongying's belongings…

Is Grandpa doing this everything himself? 

She could feel the care and sincerity as she held Han Zongying's things. Nothing was misplaced. Nothing was broken. To keep everything intact for so many years wasn't an easy job.

She felt a bit melancholic.

Suddenly, the door slightly opened, and they froze. Xinyi glanced at him, shocked.

Did Grandpa arrive already?

Zhiyuan also couldn't understand this. He silently raised his hand and nodded.

I will take care of it.

A head slowly popped in. "Hehe...can I join you too?" Zizi sheepishly grinned.

They stared at her for a few seconds and then let out a huge sigh of relief.

Zhiyuan pressed his brows. "You...why do you have to scare us like that? We thought that Grandpa came back."

Zizi coughed. "S-sorry! I actually heard you two whispering about coming here. So, I got curious. Bro, do you remember how Grandpa got angry in the past?"

"Of course, I do. Ugh, I had to kneel for the whole day…" Even thinking about that made him feel pain in his knees.

Zizi fumed. "He took my dollhouse away! I cried for so many days and begged him too, but he never gave me back. This is my revenge!"

So childish…

Xinyi chuckled. "We are here to find out about Han Zongying."

"Huh? Who is Han Zongying?" Zizi looked bewildered. "And why is she a Han?"

Xinyi sighed. "Well, that is a long story..."

"Hey, is that a makeup box in your hands?" Zizi brightened as her sight fell on the kit. "Show show!"

"Yeah."

Zizi took a closer look and rummaged through the stuff. Then she took a look at all the dresses on the cupboard. "Woah! Whoever Han Zongying is, she has good taste in fashion. I am impressed."

Zhiyuan waved his hand. "You can awe at it later. Come here quickly for now. I found one photo album. I guess we might learn something from here. Let's check it out."