1987 My Era

Chapter 707, My Perfect Love in This Life is Meeting You

Especially that line:
Emperor Jing once addressed his concubines, saying, "After I am a hundred years old, please take good care of them." Consort Li was angry and refused to respond, speaking rudely. Emperor Jing harbored resentment but did not express it.

Before his death, Emperor Jing of Han entrusted his most beloved concubine, Consort Li, to treat his other children well. However, Consort Li, being narrow-minded, did not agree and spoke rudely to him.

As a result, Princess Kuri and her son were deposed.

Around noon, Li Heng deliberately read this passage of classical Chinese in front of her. Wasn't he testing her?
Isn't this a subtle way of telling herself that if she can't be open-minded and accept other women, the top position in the think tank can't possibly belong to her?

What does the position of chief think tank member represent?
It is a force to be reckoned with, comparable to Yu Shuheng, and its significance and importance are self-evident.

On one hand, she wanted to "enjoy" love exclusively and "win the heart of one person"; on the other hand, he harbored wolfish ambitions and plotted schemes.

He painted a rosy picture for himself, but then put a tight rein on himself, leaving Zhou Shihe in a dilemma.

She had underestimated this man before. He was always smiling and approachable, but a single move from him could throw her into disarray.

Suddenly, she wondered: Was what happened in the kitchen just now, his kiss with Sui Sui in the kitchen, part of his plan? Was it deliberately meant to make her discover it? To make her jealous? To make her feel bad? So that she would quickly side with him and follow the path he had shown her?

The rain was getting heavier and heavier. When Zhou Shihe, who was in a daze, came to her senses, she brushed her hair back with her right hand and found that her hair was already half wet.

When she got home, she found a dry towel, wrapped it around her hair, and dried it.

Then it was just a matter of waiting.

Looking at the time, it's 6:46 now.
Time flew by, and just as she was calming herself and waiting patiently, Li Heng and Mai Sui came to find her.

Hearing footsteps at the entrance of the building, Zhou Shihe raised her right wrist to check; it was 7:01.
Did they kiss for almost 20 minutes?
The thought of that man's superb kissing skills made Zhou Shihe's heart flutter a few times, but she put away her doubts again.

"Shihe, we're planning to go see a movie, let's go together." As soon as we got to the second floor, Mai Sui quickly came over and took her arm.

Zhou Shihe initially wanted to say she wasn't feeling well and ask the two of them to go, but when she met Li Heng's expectant gaze, she agreed instead: "Okay."

The movie theater is in Wujiaochang, it's not very big, and there aren't many new movies showing.

After looking around for a while, Mai Sui stared at "Red Sorghum" and then discussed with the two of them, "Why don't we watch this movie? I saw in the newspaper that it won some kind of award at the Berlin International Film Festival last year. Shi He, do you remember what award it was?"

Zhou Shihe said quietly, "Golden Bear Award. This movie is really good."

Li Heng asked, "Have you seen it?"

Zhou Shihe nodded: "Yes, I spent the Spring Festival in Yuhang with my cousin last year."

The three of them reached a consensus, bought tickets, and entered the screening room for "Red Sorghum".

Somewhat coincidentally, they were almost the last group to arrive, and just as they found their seats at the back, the movie started.

Set in Gaomi, Shandong during the War of Resistance against Japan, the film tells the story of a man and a woman who break free from the shackles of feudal tradition and, after many twists and turns, run a sorghum distillery together. However, during the Japanese invasion, the female protagonist and the distillery's employees are all tortured and killed by the Japanese army for participating in the resistance movement.

To be honest, he and Song Yu saw this movie in Beijing last year.

But now that Mai Sui and King Zhou want to watch, he can't say "no." He can only pretend to be watching for the first time and attentively accompany the two women.

The three of them were sitting against the wall.

Mai Sui, who was walking in front, naturally sat at the innermost seat, Zhou Shihe sat in the middle, and Li Heng sat next to Zhou Shihe.

During this time, Li Heng's right hand unknowingly touched Miss Zhou's left hand.

At first, Ms. Zhou didn't react much, staring straight ahead, her eyes glued to the screen.

After waiting a while and seeing no movement, Li Heng became a little bolder and then grabbed her hand.

Zhou Shihe reacted this time, subtly twisting her left hand as if trying to pull it out.

But Li Heng didn't let her; instead of grabbing her hand, he held it tightly.

Zhou Shihe quickly glanced at him, then at her best friend on her right. Her eyebrows drooped, and she struggled again, but to no avail. She still couldn't break free. Then she pouted slightly and gave him a subtle sidelong glance.

Li Heng leaned close and whispered in my ear, "The most perfect love of my life is meeting you."

A slight ripple stirred in Zhou Shihe's heart, but she expressionlessly uttered three words: "Where is Song Yu?"

Li Heng gave an irrelevant answer: "5 minutes."

He wasn't lying.

If Song Yu was his calamity in his past life, then Zhou Shihe is his nemesis in this life.

In his past life, Song Yu was his love interest; in this life, Zhou Shihe is his love interest. Both women were the ones he fell in love with at first sight in both his past and present lives, and they were also the only two women he actively pursued.

Li Heng did not answer her question. Zhou Shihe seemed to have expected this. After a few seconds of silence, she raised her right wrist to check her watch. It was 7:38. Then she turned her attention back to the screen, coldly ignoring him.

But her left hand remained in Li Heng's palm, warm and cozy.

The first minute of holding hands was particularly difficult for her. Her mind was blank, and she was worried about being discovered by Sui Sui. Her gaze was fixed on the screen, but she had no idea what was being shown.
Two minutes later, her mind was still blank.

In the third minute, she regained her senses slightly, glanced discreetly at where the two were holding hands, and then cautiously looked at him.

Unfortunately, her eyes met Li Heng's, who smiled at her with a bright, sunny grin, revealing his clean, white teeth.

His eyes seemed to hold a deadly poison; Zhou Shihe recoiled at the slightest touch and looked ahead again.

In the fourth minute, for the first 30 seconds, she was watching a movie; for the next 30 seconds, she was silently counting down in her mind.

In just 30 seconds, she managed to count out her entire youth.

His shadow slowly filled the blank pages of my youth.

In the fifth minute, perhaps knowing it was the last minute, she stopped struggling and resisting. She calmly let him hold her hand, her mind filled with his words: "The most perfect love of my life is meeting you."

She herself admitted that she is a slow-burner when it comes to relationships.

But those words were like an atomic bomb dropped on her heart, sweeping away all her reluctance and resentment in a devastating way.

The woman's intuition told her that Li Heng was sincere when he said those words, and there was no ulterior motive.

But she also knew that this man was trying to maintain a balance; he had just spent his wedding night with Sui Sui last night, but tonight he was turning around to comfort her.

Thinking this, Zhou Shihe's heart, which had just softened, felt a pang of melancholy again. She raised her right wrist to check; 7:43.
The size was just right, and exactly 5 minutes had passed.

Zhou Shihe calmly moved her left hand, and then waited...

Li Heng stared at her profile for a while, and then very politely let go of her hand, muttering softly, "It's been almost two months since I heard you play the piano. I suddenly really want to hear you play 'Rain Imprint'."

It would have been better if this hadn't been mentioned. But as soon as the song was brought up, Zhou Shihe's nimble little mouth couldn't help but pout again. Images of his domineering kisses on her in the past seemed to have broken free of their reins and rushed into her mind, making her face flush and feeling extremely ashamed.

Fortunately.

Fortunately, the theater was dimly lit, so the difference on her face wasn't very noticeable.

The moment Li Heng released her right hand, Zhou Shihe felt a strange sense of loss, but she quickly adjusted her mindset, clasped her hands together at her lower abdomen, and began to watch the movie intently.

"Red Sorghum" is 91 minutes long, but because the film is so exciting, it felt like it went by in the blink of an eye.

Following the crowd out of the screening room, Li Heng asked Mai Sui, "Wife, was it good?"

Mai Sui was a little unaccustomed to him calling her "wife" in public. She hurriedly looked around and then at Shi He, who had no reaction, before secretly breathing a sigh of relief: "It looks good, but it's too tragic. Almost all of those guys are dead."

Li Heng sighed: "That's right, but this is the real War of Resistance against Japan."

It was already past 9 o'clock when the three of them passed by Zhang Bing's braised meat shop and were surprised to find that it was still open and bustling with people inside.

Li Heng walked over and asked, "Old Zhang, why aren't you closing the gate and going back to school yet?"

At this time, in addition to Zhang Bing and Bai Wanying, there were also Wei Xiaozhu, Dai Qing, Wei Sisi, Liu Yanling, Zhou Zhangming, Li Guang and Tang Dailing in the store.

Wow, it's practically a smaller-scale dorm get-together.

Bai Wanying was tidying up origami cranes by the window when she heard the noise and interrupted, "We'll be right back. Did the three of you just come out of the movie theater?"

Li Heng agreed, then watched her hands with curiosity.

If he remembered correctly, Bai Wanying folded these origami cranes after Li Guoyi's accident.

I stacked one can back then.

Wei Xiaozhu and Dai Qing also helped fold some later.

Seeing his confused expression, Bai Wanying said, "We plan to find a place to burn these origami cranes later."

Seeing him in a daze, Bai Wanying asked, "Didn't you read the newspaper? Li Guoyi was executed today."

Li Heng said, "You didn't have time to read the newspaper, how come it's so fast?"

Wei Sisi said, "The newspapers say the methods were too cruel, the case is extremely serious, and it will be dealt with severely."

Bai Wanying nodded: "Actually, it was mainly Liu An's family that put in the effort. Otherwise, how could it have been so fast? According to the normal procedure, it would have taken at least half a year. Of course, the most important thing is that it was handled specially during this special period."

Hearing this, Li Heng recalled something Wei Xiaozhu had once said: Liu An's family had considerable influence, possessing a grand hall and seemingly connections at higher levels. This explained why Liu An's father remained unscathed after betraying Wei Xiaozhu's father.

As for special arrangements during special periods, everyone understands the implication.

The group returned to school together. On the way, Mai Sui and Zhou Shihe kept talking to Wei Xiaozhu.

Li Heng and Dai Qing had fallen behind without him realizing it. He asked Dai Qing, "Manning and Ye Ning are both busy. How come you have time to come over here?"

Dai Qingxiao said, "If you're already the student council president, and you still have to do everything yourself, what's the difference between you and the freshmen who just entered the university?"

Li Heng gave a thumbs up: "Very knowledgeable, you're destined to be an official."

Dai Qing asked, "Are there any good movies showing today?"

Li Heng replied, "No, it's an old movie, 'Red Sorghum'."

Dai Qing said, "A big movie, 'The Founding Ceremony of the People's Republic of China,' will be released soon. It should be very good."

Li Heng nodded: "I also saw the news report, but it will be more than 20 days before it's published."

As he spoke, he glanced at Wei Xiaozhu in front of him and asked in a low voice, "Li Guoyi was executed today. Was Comrade Wei Xiaozhu's mood affected?"

Dai Qing shook her head: "It's alright. They weren't involved in any romantic relationship. Xiaozhu was upset in the past because of her kindness."

Almost four months have passed. Liu An and Li Guoyi are both gone, and Xiaozhu, aside from sighing when she heard the news, wasn't particularly affected.

Halfway there, Zhang Bing and Tang Dailing found a deserted clearing surrounded by rocks. The group watched as Bai Wanying lit hundreds of origami cranes with a match and burned them. The moment the cranes began to burn, everyone fell silent, a solemn silence falling over the scene. Several minutes passed, until the last crane had completely burned, before everyone relaxed and continued on their way to school.

Li Guang and Tang Dynasty Ling stayed behind to cover the rear, mainly to deal with the ashes, fearing that there might still be sparks inside that could be blown away by the wind and cause trouble.

Upon entering the school gate, Li Heng, Mai Sui, and Zhou Shihe parted ways with the others and headed towards Lushan Village.

Before leaving, Mai Sui invited Wei Xiaozhu and Dai Qing to visit Lushan Village, but Wei Xiaozhu said she had something to do and needed to see her aunt, and would come back tomorrow.

After parting ways, looking at the suddenly increased number of people on the campus road, Mai Sui sighed softly, "Time flies so fast, I'll be a junior tomorrow. The past two years feel like a dream."

Zhou Shihe softly echoed, "I feel the same way."

Then the two women looked at him.

Li Heng, with his hands behind his back, said leisurely, "Don't look at me, I'm even more melancholy than you two. But, you know, I've gained so much in the past two years, and I'll be able to spend a lot of time with you two after graduation, so it's not so sad anymore."

Look, look!
What kind of talk is this? Is this even reasonable?

His mother has such a thick skin!
Zhou Shihe and Mai Sui looked at each other without saying a word, and silently walked past someone, side by side, ahead of each other.

Gazing at the graceful figure ahead, Li Heng secretly gave himself a thumbs up. Shamelessness truly makes one invincible. He said this to subtly influence their perception.

The main purpose was to provide psychological suggestion to Comrade Zhou Shihe.

Walking along the bluestone path to the end of the alley, Zhou Shihe and Mai Sui, who were ahead, suddenly stopped and looked at the middle-aged man at the entrance of the small building at No. 27.

Mai Sui let go of her best friend's hand and unconsciously moved aside.

Zhou Shihe called out, "Dad, what brings you here?"

Is this middle-aged man Miss Zhou's father? Li Heng, who arrived later, took a closer look at the man.

At just one glance, Li Heng thought of a historical figure: Prince Lanling.

Zhou's father had striking features, an extraordinary air about him, and a refined, scholarly appearance. He was handsome and charismatic, exuding authority even without anger. No wonder he was able to marry a beauty like Zhou's mother, and no wonder they had a daughter as stunning as Zhou Shihe.

Okay, something seems off. He comes from the Zhou family, so even if he's not particularly good-looking, he still managed to marry a beauty like Zhou's mother...

To be fair, Mr. Zhou was indeed very energetic for his age, unlike most people.

"I just arrived recently." Instead of answering his daughter's question directly, Zhou's father smiled at Li Heng and Mai Sui as a greeting.

Maisui called out "Uncle".

Li Heng smiled and nodded, also politely calling him "Uncle".

But I don't know if it's just my imagination?

He felt that the other person had glanced at him several times. Did the other person know about his emotional entanglement with Miss Zhou?

As he was thinking this, Zhou Shihe had already taken out her key, opened the gate of the No. 27 building, and led her father into the house.

Li Heng and Mai Sui were sensible enough not to follow them inside. They walked a little further and returned to Building No. 26.

He casually asked, "You've been living in Yuhang for over a month. Did you see Shihe's father often?"

Mai Sui shook her head: "No, I've only seen him twice. And Shihe's father never stays home for long before leaving."

Li Heng nodded and didn't ask any more questions.

....
Building No. 27.

Upon reaching the second floor, Zhou's father stood at the entrance of the stairwell, looked around, and said, "I've come to Shanghai to take care of some business. I'll stay here tonight and head to Beijing tomorrow morning after I finish my business."

"Ah."

Zhou Shihe nodded and poured her father some cold tea.

After taking the tea and sitting on the sofa, Mr. Zhou took a couple of sips and asked, "Was that boy Li Heng just now?"

Zhou Shihe sensed that her father had something to say to her, so she sat down on the sofa opposite him and said, "It's him."

After looking at his daughter for a while, Zhou's father thought for a moment and said, "I came here so late mainly because I wanted to see his demeanor with my own eyes."

Zhou Shihe was not surprised at all. She met her father's gaze without flinching and waited for what was to come.

Mr. Zhou put the water glass on the coffee table. “In July, your mother was secretly collecting Li Heng’s personal information. She kept it in the study and didn’t hide it. I read some of it in my spare time. He was involved with six women outside.”

The six women mentioned by Zhou's father did not include Wang Runwen, since Wang Runwen decided to be with Li Heng after the summer vacation started. Nor did they include his own daughter.

At the time, Zhou's father was puzzled as to why his wife would suddenly collect information about Li Heng.
It wasn't until he saw some of it, until he saw Song Yu, who was comparable to his daughter in looks and temperament, fall for him; the Yu family's darling daughter was troubled by love; the Huang family's most beautiful youngest daughter willingly became Li Heng's lover; the spirited and charming Xiao Han; the eldest daughter of the Chen family in the capital was also involved; and Mai Sui, who was comparable to Su Daji reincarnated, was living with Li Heng. Only then did Zhou's father suddenly realize the truth.

It suddenly dawned on me!

Without even asking his wife why, Zhou's father already understood: it was no coincidence that so many outstanding women had fallen for one man at the same time.

Among them are Yu Shuheng and Huang Zhaoyi, who are both experienced in society and come from extremely wealthy families. What does this indicate?
This demonstrates Li Heng's immense charm.

This also suggests that Li Heng could very well have dragged his daughter into the mess as well.

"Ah."

Zhou Shihe gave another soft "hmm," and then said gently, "I know about his messy love life, but I just can't control myself..."

She paused for a moment, then continued, "Dad, if you can control your emotions when you like someone, then it's not true love. It's precisely because I can't control my feelings that I cherish this relationship so much."

Mr. Zhou continued to stare at his daughter without saying a word.

The father and daughter faced off like this for about a minute, when Zhou Shihe suddenly said emotionally, "The most perfect love of my life is meeting him."

These were the sweet words Li Heng said to her in the movie theater.

But after hearing it only once, it was etched into her very being. Now, saying it in front of her father, she didn't feel out of place or embarrassed; she felt only relief.

Only she was sincere in the face of this love.

After listening to his daughter's heartfelt words, Mr. Zhou looked away, picked up his cup, took a couple more sips of herbal tea, and said, "Prepare two new towels for me; I'm going to take a bath."

"Okay." Zhou Shihe stood up and walked towards the washroom.

She found a new bath towel and face towel in the drawer, then a new foot towel, toothpaste, and a toothbrush.

Before leaving, she asked her father, "Does Mom know you're here?"

She was testing him, trying to find out if her father had talked to her mother about Li Heng before he came.
Zhou's father replied, "No."

Before talking to his wife, Mr. Zhou naturally wanted to know his daughter's attitude, so he did not discuss it with his wife beforehand.

Upon hearing this, Zhou Shihe said gently, "I'll have him have breakfast with you tomorrow morning."

Mr. Zhou shook his head and smiled: "No need. Don't make him nervous. If that day ever comes, Dad will invite you to breakfast."

What does "that day" mean?
That is the day when my daughter and Li Heng can really get married.

The underlying meaning is: if he cannot get married, he will not see Li Heng again, and will not formally meet Li Heng.

Zhou Shihe understood the implication in his words, but said nothing more. Because her father's will was the same as hers: she wouldn't be with Li Heng if they weren't married.

....
Building No. 26.

After showering and washing their clothes, Mai Sui suddenly remembered something while hanging them up to dry and asked him, "Did Shi He's father come for you?"

Li Heng stood on the balcony, keeping her company as she hung out the clothes, and replied, "Half and half, I guess?"

The wheat ears were curious.

Recalling their previous meeting in the alley, Li Heng shared his thoughts: "My personal intuition is that he came partly to visit Shihe and partly to see me up close."

Mai Sui asked with some concern, "Will this make things difficult for you?"

Li Heng gazed at the distant horizon and spoke after a long while: "I am not afraid of anyone making things difficult for me."

Thinking of Teacher Yu, Huang Zhaoyi, and this man's extraordinary status, Mai Sui felt a little relieved. She put the last short-sleeved shirt on the hanger and said, "Did Auntie mention me on the phone today?"

The aunt she was referring to was Tian Run'e.

Li Heng nodded meaningfully: "Yes."

Mai Sui suddenly tensed up: "What did she say?"

Li Heng said, "She asked me what stage we had reached, and I said you are my wife."

Mai Sui bit her lower lip. "What was Auntie's reaction later?"

Li Heng walked over, hugged her from behind, and whispered in her ear, "My mom said she's going to send me a few old hens."

Mai Sui blushed and nestled her head in his arms, saying, "Will Auntie be angry with me?"

Li Heng nibbled on her earlobe and murmured, "Silly girl, you're part of the Li family. My mother is too busy spoiling you."

Just as the two were lost in their sweet nothings, Sun Manning and Ye Ning rushed back. The two idiots first went to the building next door, then ran into Zhou's father reading the newspaper on the sofa, so they secretly made an excuse to come over.

As soon as he entered the house, Ye Ning joked with Li Heng, "Li, you rich man, your father-in-law is here."

Sun Manning slapped him across the face and said fiercely, "Are you looking for death to say such things in front of Mai Sui?"

Ye Ning clutched her forehead in pain and protested, "Sui Sui herself doesn't care, why are you worrying about it?"

Seeing that the two were about to start fighting again, Li Heng felt a headache coming on and asked, "Why did you two come here? Why didn't you go back to the dormitory?"

Sun Manning peeked over: "Li Guoyi from your class got piupiu, and a lot of dorms are talking about it, did you know?"

Li Heng nodded: "I just found out recently."

Sun Manning said, "I thought you would go back to the boys' dormitory tonight. I thought Mai Sui and Shi He are both great beauties and would be easy targets for perverts, so we came over."

Li Heng rolled his eyes: "Can't you speak properly? If you keep being sarcastic, I'll just start beating you up."

Sun Manning suddenly shrank back and laughed loudly, "Okay, I need to make a phone call home, can I borrow your landline?"

(End of this chapter)