All the people who like me are other people’s girlfriends! ?

"……How will you be here?"

She was stunned.

"Of course I'll go back with you." The man said as a matter of course, patting the light snow on his sleeves. It would occasionally snow in March.

"……Oh."

Yukinoshita pursed her lips and turned around so that Qingye couldn't see her expression.

We came to Tokyo together four years ago, and returned to Chiba together four years later.

*

After graduating from university, you become a real member of society.

The way people treat students and social personnel is completely different. From now on, she will no longer be tolerated and protected, and she must be responsible for her actions.

Yukinoshita Yukino began to inherit the family business.

The Yukinoshita family has two jobs.

First, she would become a county councilor - she would gradually get involved in this job, because there were few female councilors in the political arena and they were also criticized. Even in the Yukinoshita family, it was Yukinoshita's father who held the position.

Then came the construction company - the company's affairs were not difficult. After all, she took over as a manager and a boss. She didn't need to worry about anything when dealing with most of the employees. She could just do things with her original attitude.

At the beginning, her work went smoothly. After four years in college, she was completely familiar with her family's company. Moreover, she was extremely outstanding and capable, and with the help of her parents and sister from time to time, she could be called a "Snow Prodigy". Many employees of the company had a good impression of this decisive and cold president, and her career was booming.

At this stage, she was full of confidence and worked very enthusiastically - even spending less time with Qingye.

But after just two years, she gradually felt overwhelmed.

As the next president of the company, she has to deal with more than just employees. She also has to deal with numerous partners, peers, and the government... In other words, she has to deal with all kinds of people.

Moreover, this period is mixed with interests and money, full of calculations, intrigues, and scheming. With Yukinoshita Yukino's serious character who can't stand any sand, she will definitely not be able to get out even with the protection of her family. If she wants to survive in this dark and dangerous circle, she can only change herself and let her beautiful and pure soul continue to be stained by mud. This is the responsibility she has to bear.

Yukinoshita Yukino is as smart as Haruno. She can understand this kind of logic and even see through other people's hearts. Even so, she still resists.

She didn't want to change herself, didn't want to become the person she hated, but being in this position, she had to change and adapt...

On this day, Yukinoshita, who had messed up another batch of orders, returned to the apartment tiredly - after graduation, she chose to live alone because it was close to the company, and by the way, Qingye was next door.

At this time, Kiyono was standing in the semi-open kitchen area on the first floor. In front of him was a soup pot with white steam coming out. Yukinoshita, who had changed her shoes, happened to see his profile. He had a serious expression, was wearing an apron, and holding a long spoon in his hand.

Hearing the noise behind him, Qingye turned to look at her. These eyes were always looking at her, and she must always be looking at these eyes.

"Welcome back." He smiled.

"Um……"

Yukinoshita Yukino shyly put down her bag and sat on the sofa. She was exhausted physically and mentally during this period and couldn't even balance her life and work, so Kiyono would cook dinner for her like this from time to time.

"Oh, I forgot to mention that."

Kiyono turned off the pot, put down the spoon, and walked in front of Yukinoshita.

Forgot to say something? She was a little confused.

Then, she saw Qingye showing her a bright smile——

"thanks for the effort."

Yukinoshita Yukino suddenly felt her legs weaken. She grabbed the handrail tightly and turned her face away. Her snow-white face and neck were all pink. After a long moment, she whispered, "How cunning..."

She sighed resignedly, then turned her head and looked at him with moist eyes.

"Come here, lend me your shoulder."

Kiyono was forced to do as he was told, and Yukinoshita quietly told him everything that had happened recently.

"This is the path I decided to take, but now I'm thinking about this. Isn't that irresponsible?"

Kiyono saw the confusion and helplessness in Yukino's eyes. Every change in a person's personality must be made with difficulty amidst contradictions. On the one hand, she wanted to get her mother's expectations and recognition, but on the other hand, she noticed the dark side of the world.

"If you want to follow the path of the Yukinoshita family, if you want to achieve something... or even just to preserve what the family has, you must integrate into this circle and do things you hate. The longer you stay, the further away you will be from your original intention. You may even forget the self who once wanted to change the world."

Yukinoshita Yukino's voice ended softly: "...What should we do then?"

"As long as you have the ability to ignore the rules, it will be fine. I like the current Yukinoshita Yukino. She is a little clumsy and unwilling to compromise with the world. She is solitary and brilliant. I want you to always maintain your original self, so leave these things to me."

He smiled, his words carrying an indescribable sense of security, which meant that every choice she made would not lead to bad consequences, because he would solve everything for her and bear everything...

"If I continue to rely on you like this, I will become more and more useless." Yukinoshita gently touched his shoulder with her little head.

"Look at what you said. At least you are pretty." Qingye said gently.

...I pinched it.

Qingye stood up, holding his waist, and took a breath.

The next second, the familiar scent of camellia surrounded him, and Yukinoshita Yukino gently hugged his waist, her voice muffled.

"...Thank you. I'll leave it to you."

She raised her slightly red eyelids.

Who can stand this.

"Well, leave it to me without worry!"

He touched Yukinoshita's head.

So, two people started working together.

Apart from socializing and exchanging benefits with others, Yukinoshita Yukino still takes care of everything else. In other words, all he needs to do... is drink?

It’s actually quite easy.

The value of the name 'Kiyono' now far exceeds that of the Yukinoshita family. Many truly large families want him to change his job and become a famous son-in-law - he is now the one who can make the rules.

After that, at the 'president's' drinking party, a piece of Mr. Wenhao came out, poured a pot of sake, and recited a line of seductive words. Orders came in one after another in the drunken and elegant atmosphere.

The company's revenue is increasing day by day.

Yukinoshita Yukino's mood became more and more awkward.

All sorts of complicated emotions began to swirl and turn in her chest.

——She must be happy.

After all, Qingye did this for her, how could she not be happy? She wanted to accompany him and reward him... Maybe what her mother said was right. After a hug, one would greedily think about more things, and the same is true for women.

She must feel guilty too.

She knew that Qingye had sacrificed his own time and energy to help her. Because of her own clumsiness, Qingye had to do this. He had shouldered many things that he shouldn't have shouldered for her, such as the darkness of human hearts and disgusting social interactions...

But... no matter whether this is escape or dependence, at least, this kind of life is actually very happy.

Yukinoshita was a little worried, but immersed in this sweet beauty.

Things took a turn in November this year.

It was late at night, Yukinoshita Yukino returned to the room and turned on the table lamp on the bedside table. The soft light dispelled the darkness.

She lay on the bed, not knowing what to do in this blank time. She just took out her cell phone and searched for someone's name.

The name Kiyono had long become a trend on major platforms. She had seen many reports, most of which were praises that praised him to the point of being a god. Some people had also dug up his drinking and affairs with the Yukinoshita family. She had also seen the dean of the Faculty of Letters at the University of Tokyo comment on this, which was a rare thing, after all, people of their status rarely made public statements.

The senior's remarks were a rebuke, mostly saying that instead of focusing on reviving the glory of literature, he was neglecting his duties—even if he wanted to enter politics, starting in Tokyo would be the most appropriate, there are other ways to repay kindness, and even his talent for painting has been the subject of much discussion.

Did I delay him?

Yukinoshita Yukino stared at the screen of her mobile phone until it gradually went black. She sighed softly, put the phone next to her pillow, and stared at the ceiling in a trance.

Qingye is bathed in the bright and brilliant light, and he should have a broad and colorful future.

But because of him, he was trapped in the Yukinoshita family...

Guilt, discomfort, she couldn't explain what was going on in her mind, all sorts of thoughts swirling into a tangled mess. If she could be like her sister, Qingye would be able to do her own thing more easily, right? Wouldn't it be the same as letting her sister do this job?

She picked up the phone and wanted to call him, to hear his voice and what he was doing now...

She put down her phone and closed her eyes.

I inexplicably feel extremely tired tonight. My body feels like it's rusted, extremely heavy and stiff, because what supports a person's movements is not only the flesh, but also the fuel born from the heart.

She had to make a choice...

*

Recently, Yukinoshita Yukino could clearly feel that Kiyono's phone was ringing more frequently. In addition to publishing matters, work matters, and the work that should have belonged to her, he would come home later from time to time. Although he looked quite happy, she felt more and more empty inside, and even had a vague sense of guilt.

Is my persistence really meaningful?

Is it really arrogance to rely on others to maintain pride?

If you rely on others to help you achieve a goal that you cannot achieve, in order to satisfy your original behavior, is this deceiving yourself with false things?

However, at this point, she couldn't bring herself to ask Qingye to leave, because they had been together for so long, and the word "goodbye" was like a huge hole in her chest just thinking about it... He had said ten years at the beginning, so when the time came, what would he choose without the kindness he had shown her?

The more cruel the truth is, the more nostalgic the beauty is.

Come on—this was the only meaningless and superficial thing she could say to Qingye.

If it were an ordinary girl - even Yukinoshita Haruno, she would have a good way to deal with this situation, but Yukinoshita Yukino would only feel secretly guilty, which would bring a huge psychological burden to herself. Moreover, because of her awkward personality, she would bury this emotion in her heart, making herself depressed and uncomfortable, and torturing herself.

Snowing.

night.

When Qingye pushed the door open and returned home, the lights in the living room were not on.

Standing at the entrance and looking over, with the help of the light coming through the floor-to-ceiling windows, even though it was pitch black all around, one could still see Yukinoshita Yukino sitting on the sofa, sipping black tea absentmindedly.

She did nothing but quietly looked out the window at the lights and falling snowflakes. The brilliant neon lights illuminated her beautiful face.

She seemed to hear footsteps and glanced over here. At this time, Qingye vaguely saw her expression. Her fair face was paler than usual, and it looked strangely crystal clear in the dark. Her pale blue pupils were extremely cold and clear, like a beautiful ice sculpture that would collapse at any time.

Qingye frowned. He rarely saw Yukinoshita Yukino like this, Yukinoshita who was as fragile as an ice crystal.

"Um, Ms. Yukino?"

"Dinner is ready, just heat it up and you can eat it."

Yukinoshita interrupted him, drank the last sip of black tea, and gently placed the teacup on the table with a crisp sound. Then, she stood up, walked to his side, and changed her shoes.

The two met eyes.

Maybe it was an illusion, but the look in Yukinoshita's eyes as she stared at him in the darkness was so gentle that it was sad.

The fragile smile that looked like she would cry at any second shook his heart.

"I'm sorry, I've been deceiving myself, stalling for time, relying on your gentleness. The real me is too weak. If I don't change, it will continue like this..."

There was an illusory voice ringing in my ears, as if it were an illusion.

Qingye subconsciously reached out his hand, but did not grab her hand.

The door clicked shut.

After that, he was never able to have a good conversation with Yukinoshita Yukino again.

*

26 is old.

12 month 24 day.

At the junction of late winter and New Year, the streets seem like an enchanted fairy tale world.

On top of the giant Christmas tree in the center of the square, crystal stars shine quietly in the cold wind. Staff wearing deer antler hats walk through the crowd, extending warm smiles to passers-by. Street performers play Christmas Eve melodies, and the melodious accordion sounds drift into the snowy night sky.

White snow covered the eaves, lovers were holding hands, and there were a few unmelted snowflakes on the girl's plush scarf. The boy clumsily brushed them off for her, in return for a happy smile.

On this night, lonely people will feel a little warmth, and happy people will hug each other tighter.

Kiyono, who had just returned from a business trip in Tokyo, was walking on the street. When he saw the beautifully wrapped gifts in the window, he would think of Yukinoshita Yukino. When he saw a coffee shop, he would also think of Yukinoshita Yukino... He knew that Yukinoshita had been deliberately avoiding him recently, and he could guess the reason.

In a way, he is the person who knows Yukinoshita Yukino best in the world.

In her eyes, I sacrificed a lot for her, such as time and dirty social interactions, so she blamed herself and couldn't extricate herself, but that was only in her opinion.

Qingye exhaled a puff of white mist.

Indeed, if a son-in-law had no status, doing such things might indeed make him extremely tired and painful, but he was the one being toasted by others, not the one toasting others. He also already had extraordinary resources and connections, so to be honest, it was really easy for him, and he could simply not do things he didn't want to do.

It was true that some energy was wasted, but life was so long, how hard was it to devote one's whole life to one thing? He also had times when he wanted to be lazy and relax.

But Yukinoshita Yukino didn't understand. She felt that she owed herself something and tortured herself.