Rebirth: My Childhood Sweetheart Came into My Arms

The object fell into the grass with a "thud," and He Ziyu quickly bent down to look for it, finding it in no time.

Jiang Chengyu threw down a plastic bag containing something wrapped in foam, but the light was too dim to see clearly.

"What is this?"

"You'll know when you get back."

He Ziyu carried the plastic bag, a little curious. He wanted to quickly go back to the house and find a bright place to unpack the things, but he was also reluctant to leave.

"Brother Yu."

"Um?"

"Why don't you get a basket tomorrow and hang it down with a rope? That way I can pass you things."

Jiang Chengyu smiled slightly and said "Okay".

Under the moonlight, the two boys looked at each other from a distance that was neither too close nor too far, neither willing to say goodbye first.

After a long pause, Jiang Chengyu mouthed, "I miss you so much."

He Ziyu smiled brightly and said, "Me too."

……

After a while, He Ziyu was so cold that he waved to Jiang Chengyu and turned to leave.

When he got home, he went straight into his bedroom and turned on the light.

Picking up the scissors on the table, He Ziyu quickly dismantled the styrofoam.

Inside was a small box, which was stuffed with thick layers of paper. He Ziyu pulled out all the paper and finally saw the object.

It is a big white cat made of clay, chubby, with one yellow and one blue eye, and a rosy face. The words "Er Yu" are carved in cute lettering on the side of its body.

The most vivid detail is that two round testicles are hanging from its buttocks.

He Ziyu chuckled, put the kitten on the table, and took out a card from the edge of the box.

The card read: I secretly made a little fish, could you give it to it for me? (*^▽^*)

The last emoticon was drawn with a red pen, probably because it wasn't drawn well the first time and there are traces of corrections.

He Ziyu imagined Jiang Chengyu seriously drawing emoticons, then looked at the kitten standing on the table and couldn't help but smile.

So cute!

Both Yu Ge and Er Yu are so cute.

"Brother, dinner's ready." A sudden knock on the door interrupted He Ziyu's thoughts.

He Ziyu put the clay cat into the drawer, got up and walked out of the bedroom, only to find that He Ningqiu was already downstairs.

My father was here tonight too. It was a rare occasion for the whole family to have dinner together. He Ziyu helped his mother serve the rice and then sat down in his seat.

During the meal, He Lianghan chatted with Zhou Ying about work, and the conversation suddenly turned to Jiang Guosheng.

"I originally wanted to bring Lao Jiang along on this project, but he didn't seem very interested. He said he had a lot of things to do at home lately. I was surprised. His kids are so obedient, what could possibly be wrong?"

"I haven't seen Arou much lately either," Zhou Ying said, placing a piece of meat on He Lianghan's plate. She then turned to He Ziyu, "You're always hanging out with Chengyu, didn't he say anything to you?"

He Ziyu thought for a moment and said, "It seems that they introduced a girl from a well-off family to Brother Yu, but Brother Yu was not happy about it."

"A marriage alliance?" He Lianghan raised an eyebrow upon hearing this. "Old Jiang, why didn't you tell me about something this big?"

Zhou Ying: "Why should I talk to you? We have two sons, so it can't possibly be related to us."

"Who said I was going to marry him?"

"That?"

He Lianghan put down his chopsticks and explained in a serious tone: "Cheng Yucai is so young, what is the purpose of Lao Jiang's marriage alliance? It is obviously to expand his influence. No wonder he looks down on my project. It turns out that he had already made arrangements."

Zhou Ying: "..."

"And he kept this from us," He Lianghan said, getting angrier as he spoke. "You wait, I'll find two suitable girls for Ayu and Ningqiu in a while."

"Oh honey, calm down, our child is only in the first year of high school."

"Isn't Cheng Yu also in his first year of high school?"

Seeing that the two were about to clash at the dinner table, He Ziyu quickly said, "Dad, don't be impulsive. Impulsiveness is the devil."

He Lianghan: "What do you know, you brat?"

"Of course I understand," He Ziyu put down his chopsticks and straightened his posture. "When it comes to arranged marriages, it's fine if both parties are willing, but if they're not, how hurtful can it be? Look at the relationship between Brother Yu, Uncle Jiang, and Aunt Shen; they're not even half as close as I am to you all."

"I've always felt that the greatest fulfillment in life isn't how much money you make or how high your reputation is, but rather being able to live without regrets, being true to yourself and the people around you. That's enough."

After He Ziyu finished speaking, Zhou Ying immediately applauded him, "Son is absolutely right, that's the thinking of a wise person! Honey, you should talk less at home in the future, so that your money-grubbing doesn't pollute the air in our house."

He Lianghan: "???"

Thanks to the combined efforts of He Ziyu and Zhou Ying, the marriage proposal was temporarily shelved.

Although He Lianghan was unwilling, he thought that He Ziyu's words made some sense when he thought about the tense atmosphere in the Jiang family.

After all, money can be earned back, but family ties can never be regained.

……

After dinner, Zhou Ying washed the dishes in the kitchen, while He Ziyu and He Ningqiu helped clear the table.

As he was putting things away, He Ningqiu suddenly asked him, "Brother, what you just said about Brother Yu's arranged marriage... is it true?"

He Ziyu nodded without hesitation, "Yes."

"Which family's girl was it with?"

"I don't know."

Didn't he tell you?

He Ziyu stopped wiping the table, looked up at him, and said, "Although Yu-ge and I have a good relationship, we're not at the point where we can talk about anything. This is his private matter, why did you tell me?"

"..."

"Okay, I'm going back to do my homework now. Could you please take the dishcloth back to the kitchen for me? Thank you."

After He Ziyu finished speaking, he turned and left.

Back in his room, he took out his notebook and started copying English words while pondering what He Ningqiu had just said.

Judging from his tone, it seems he hasn't given up on Jiang Chengyu yet.

So when exactly did he and Lan Yuan get together?

He Ziyu frowned, and a scene flashed before his eyes of He Ningqiu and Lan Yuan appearing together at the sanatorium in his previous life.

Perhaps at that time, He Ningqiu hadn't fallen in love with Lan Yuan; she had only used him as a tool to show off her power.

Thinking of this, He Ziyu couldn't help but chuckle softly.

Indeed, birds of a feather flock together.

In the end, no one benefited from the other.

……

Over the weekend, Jiang Chengyu got her phone back, which had been confiscated for a long time.

It wasn't that his relationship with Shen Murou had improved, but rather that he was going to have dinner with Uncle Han's family that day.

Shen Murou got up early, canceled all her work, sent the restaurant reservation information to Jiang Guosheng, and reminded him not to be late.

While Shen Murou was applying makeup, Jiang Chengyu called He Ziyu.

When He Ziyu answered the phone, his voice was muffled, as if he had just woken up, but the excitement in his voice was as if he had just drunk eight cans of Red Bull.

"Brother Yu! You got your phone?"

"Yes, I got it."

Upon hearing He Ziyu's voice, Jiang Chengyu's gloomy mood instantly vanished.

"Have you been released from quarantine yet? Can I come to see you?"

"Not yet," Jiang Chengyu said. "I'm going out with my mom in a little while."

"Where are you going?"

"Had dinner with Han Zhiruo's family."

Upon hearing this, He Ziyu said "Oh," and then suddenly remembered something and jumped out of bed.

"By the way, Brother Yu, I have something very important to tell you right now. Wait a minute, I'll just get dressed and come over in five minutes. Auntie shouldn't kick me out, right?"

"Ah Yu, you'd better..." he said on the phone.

Before he could finish speaking, He Ziyu hung up the phone.

Because of Shen Murou's subtle probing that day, Jiang Chengyu didn't want He Ziyu to appear in front of her, worried that she would notice something amiss. But He Ziyu seemed quite anxious on the phone, so since it was urgent, she could only let him be.

Two minutes later, He Ziyu rang the doorbell.

To avoid suspicion, he brought two exam papers, saying he was there to ask questions. Shen Murou was busy tidying up and didn't ask any further questions.

Upon arriving at Jiang Chengyu's room, He Ziyu put down the exam paper without saying a word, then hooked his arm around Jiang Chengyu's neck and kissed him on the lips.

After kissing him, she mischievously ruffled his hair.

"Dressed up so handsomely, are you going on a blind date?"

"Isn't that right?" Jiang Chengyu wrapped his arms around He Ziyu's waist, his smile somewhat helpless.

"What if I get jealous?"

"Jealous of girls?"

"Yeah," He Ziyu raised an eyebrow, "Han Zhiruo is so beautiful, what if you get a crush on her one day and go back to being straight..."

Before He Ziyu could finish speaking, Jiang Chengyu pinched his cheek.

"My heart is already locked up by you, where can it flutter?" Jiang Chengyu stared into his eyes. "Besides, I've said it before, I like He Ziyu. If you're a boy, I'm gay; if you're a girl, I'm straight. What I am depends entirely on you."

He Ziyu originally just wanted to tease Jiang Chengyu, but he didn't expect to receive such heartwarming words. Overwhelmed with emotion, he couldn't help but bite Jiang Chengyu's collarbone.

Of course, I only took a light bite; I didn't dare to use too much force, because it would be hard to explain if I left any marks.

Jiang Chengyu, with an air of "unconditional indulgence no matter what," simply rubbed He Ziyu's head and asked him what he wanted to say.

He Ziyu then remembered that he still had important things to do.

He released Jiang Chengyu and earnestly repeated what Han Zhiruo had said to him in the coffee shop.

Jiang Chengyu: "You said she is...?"

He Ziyu nodded and took out his phone from his pocket. "She was afraid you wouldn't believe her, so she specifically gave me her personal space account and password to pass on to you. But I don't think you need to look at it too closely, after all, it's her privacy."

Jiang Chengyu stared at the account and password on his phone screen, lost in thought.

From his initial shock upon learning that Han Zhiruo liked girls to his composure, it only took him half a minute.

The reason was that he recalled the few WeChat conversations he had with Han Zhiruo, and the coldness and distance that the other party inadvertently revealed.

In fact, Han Zhiruo had already been sending signals.

He was too busy resisting to notice.

"I believe her," Jiang Chengyu said. "I'll go talk to her at lunchtime..."

"Is Ayu inside?"

A sudden knock on the door interrupted Jiang Chengyu's words.

The two exchanged glances and then distanced themselves from each other.

He Ziyu: "Yes, I'm here."

As soon as she finished speaking, Shen Murou, with her exquisite makeup, walked in and said with a smile, "You're off today, right? If you don't have anything to do, how about coming to lunch with us?"