The landlord has multiple personalities and wants everyone to pay him.

"Ye Shu, let me tell you, I... I'm not planning on getting married yet."

Xia Qing sat on the kang (a heated brick bed), clutching the quilt draped over her body with both hands, deliberately putting on a tough act.

But as soon as the words left her mouth, she felt a pang of unease, realizing that she might have said something wrong.

Sure enough, Ye Shu's smile froze for a moment after hearing those words, and then slowly faded away.

He didn't say anything immediately, but just looked at Xia Qing, whose eyes, which were always gentle, now held a hint of disappointment and confusion.

Xia Qing felt a pang of pain in her heart when she saw it. She knew she had said the wrong thing; her words sounded too cruel and were not what she meant at all.

"No, Ye Shu, that's not what I meant!"

She grabbed Ye Shu's arm tightly, as if he would turn and leave if she didn't.

Although she knew Ye Shu wouldn't run away, she still wanted to do it.

This is an unconscious action she takes when she feels uneasy, forcing people to stay before starting to solve the problem.

Ye Shu looked at Xia Qing, who was filled with regret, raised his hand and patted the hand that was holding him, and asked:

"Um... Sister Xia Qing, can I ask why? Is it... that you don't want to be with me, or... that you just don't want to get married?"

"It's not that I don't want to be with you!"

Xia Qing rejected the first option without hesitation. Her voice was a little loud because she was anxious, but it softened quickly, and her face flushed slightly.

"I... I misspoke... It's not that I don't want to get married, it's just... it's too fast, you understand? I'm not ready yet."

As she spoke softer and softer, and as she realized she wasn't prepared, she inexplicably felt a pang of guilt.

What do you mean by not being prepared? This sounds like something a scumbag in a TV drama would say to avoid responsibility.

But that's not me! I didn't mean to shirk responsibility, I... I just...

Her mind was in turmoil.

Do I really not want to marry Ye Shu?

No, that's not it. She likes Ye Shu, she likes him very, very much, so much that she would give him everything without hesitation.

But marriage... this matter felt too heavy for her.

It's like climbing a mountain. She wants to reach the summit and see the scenery she's never seen before, but she also feels inexplicably afraid of the process.

Is it fear of change? Fear that you can't live up to the role of a wife? Or is it a deep-seated insecurity about your physical condition?

Unbeknownst to her, she was struggling with herself, her head bowed and her eyebrows furrowed.

"Okay, sure."

Ye Shu spoke, his voice unchanged from usual:

"These kinds of things are meant to be discussed and decided between the two of you. There's no need to make a decision right away. Take your time thinking about it, I'll wait until you're ready."

His reaction was so...calm, so composed; it could be described as sensible.

He didn't ask why, nor did he complain; he just accepted it and said he would wait for him.

Looking at his abnormally calm face, Xia Qing grew increasingly frightened. In TV dramas, this kind of attitude usually proves that he's angry... or rather, that he's given up.

So the next step is... to leave?

Moreover, Xia Qing realized that her performance just now had been enough to chill Ye Shuxin's heart, and she panicked:

"Not bad, Ye Shu, don't be like this..."

She gripped Ye Shu's arm even tighter, afraid that he would shake her off and walk away without looking back.

"Don't be angry, that's not what I meant. What I meant was..."

Seeing that Xia Qing's eyes were about to redden again, Ye Shu wondered what she had thought of. He quickly reached out and touched Xia Qing's face, saying with a bit of a laugh:

"I'm not angry, really not angry. What's there to be angry about? It's normal to have your own thoughts."

As he said this, he suddenly remembered something, raised an eyebrow, grabbed Xia Qing's hand, and pulled her off the kang (heated brick bed):

"Here, let me show you something to change your mood."

"What are you looking at?"

Xia Qing was pulled by him and followed him off the kang (a heated brick bed).

Ye Shu just smiled mysteriously, didn't tell her, and opened the inner room door to walk out to the outer room.

In the outer room, the elders were all sitting on the sofa, drinking tea and chatting. When they saw the two of them come out, they all turned to look at them.

Xia Qing's face flushed again as she thought about what had just happened.

But the elders only glanced at them before turning back to their conversation. Of course, the two kids are dating; what's wrong with a little kiss? They've lived half their lives; what haven't they seen?

Ye Shu didn't pay much attention and pulled Xia Qing to the wall by the window, where there was a row of flower pots of various sizes.

Ye Shu squatted in front of a small flowerpot, pointing to the makeshift greenhouse made of wire and plastic sheeting on it, and said:

"Sister Xia Qing, look at this."

Xia Qing also squatted down and saw through the transparent plastic sheet that a small pink flower was in full bloom inside.

"This is……"

"This is the packet of flower seeds you gave me before."

Ye Shu turned to look at her:

"Look, it actually survived and even bloomed."

Xia Qing stared at the little flower blooming in the greenhouse, feeling an indescribable sense of emotion.

She initially thought that when Uncle Ye said he would take good care of it, it was probably just a polite remark from an elder to comfort a younger person. After all, it was just a packet of flower seeds; who would really care that much?

But to her surprise, Uncle Ye actually planted it and even built a greenhouse for it.

She looked at the flower and felt a lump in her throat.

However, she was the kind of person who didn't easily show her romantic feelings, so she sniffed and held back the emotion that made her want to cry.

Of course, her strong-willed personality varies from person to person. For example, when it comes to the person squatting next to her right now, she can't help but want to tell him all her thoughts.

Tell him everything—the good, the bad, the touching, the unsettling.

Xia Qing squatted quietly in front of the small flower pot covered with plastic sheeting, looking at the flower and thinking about many things.

In fact, she had always known, or rather, all of them had known.

The true owner of this body is Xiaoxue.

Xiaoxue is like a little pink flower in this flowerpot, and the appearance of her, Zhiqiu, and Xiaonuan is to protect this body in their own way, to cope with the storms outside, and to try to maintain the integrity of this body and a normal life.

The three of them acted as a greenhouse, like the plastic sheet Uncle Ye covered for this little flower.

But what if we look at it on a larger scale?

Xia Qing's gaze swept over the other potted plants on the windowsill, then turned to look at the elders chatting beside her.

Aren't they themselves also flowers that are carefully nurtured?

Dad, Mom, Uncle Ye... these people also used their own ways and love to build a warm shield for themselves, protecting them.

And... Xia Qing turned her head and looked at the person next to her who was craning their neck to stare at the little flower in the plastic bag.

The plastic sheeting nailed to the window distorted the sunlight as it shone through, leaving shimmering, bubble-like halos on Ye Shu's face.

What about him?

He's not a shield, he's...

Xia Qing raised her head and looked out the window at the sun...