Try Saying You Don't Like It - Chapter 35

Chapter 35

He Xinglan had been to Yin Qiuman’s house before. During the week they dated in high school, she walked her home every day.

They hadn’t moved over the years, still in the old location.

As soon as they stepped out of the car, He Xinglan felt a sense of familiarity everywhere she looked.

Following Yin Qiuman to the ground floor of her building, He Xinglan stopped, looked up, and asked: “Manman, I remember you said your house was on the third floor.”

Yin Qiuman: “Mm.”

He Xinglan turned her head to the person beside her and asked: “Which apartment number?”

“Three-zero-two.”

“Okay, I know.” He Xinglan nodded, then looked around. She spotted a bench under a large tree on the right, led Yin Qiuman over, and gently pressed her onto the bench to sit down.

Yin Qiuman looked up at He Xinglan, confused.

Addressing the confusion in Yin Qiuman’s eyes, He Xinglan smiled brightly and said: “The charging work must, of course, be handled by the princess’s knight. So, I’ll go up first. When I call you, you come up.”

Yin Qiuman hadn’t expected He Xinglan to do this. She froze for a moment, then quickly reacted: “No way.”

Yin Qiuman’s worry was clearly written on her face: “I’m afraid they’ll make things difficult for you.”

“Do you think your parents will make things difficult for me?” He Xinglan countered, raising an eyebrow with an air of fearlessness: “Will they actually hit me?”

He Xinglan didn’t expect Yin Qiuman to nod seriously: “If I go up, no, but if you go up… it’s hard to say.”

He Xinglan: “…”

“Then let them hit me. What does it matter since I love their precious daughter?” He Xinglan didn’t care. If two slaps could buy their agreement, she thought it would be worth it.

“Alright, don’t worry. Your parents aren’t unreasonable people.” After saying that, He Xinglan turned and strode towards 302.

Yin Qiuman watched He Xinglan until she entered her building before pulling back her gaze.

The wait was agonizing. At first, Yin Qiuman could still console herself to be patient, but half an hour passed, and Yin Qiuman couldn’t sit still anymore. She stood up, just about to head upstairs, when the phone she was tightly gripping rang.

Yin Qiuman quickly answered, her expression more anxious than ever before.

“Manman, come up. Our parents agreed to us being together,” He Xinglan’s cheerful voice came through the phone.

Yin Qiuman froze completely.

Agreed?

Her parents… agreed?

Just like that… they agreed?

After a long while, Yin Qiuman finally found her voice, filled with disbelief.

“Re… really?”

“Really! Don’t you believe me? Fine, fine, even if you don’t believe me, you cannot believe our Mom, right?”

Yin Qiuman heard He Xinglan call out ‘Mom’ right after, in a very intimate tone—the kind Yin Qiuman couldn’t manage, sounding like she was their biological daughter. Then she heard her mother’s voice.

“Come up.” Three very brief words, but the tone was completely different from when she had called her before.

It was much gentler.

Yin Qiuman’s heart finally relaxed. She hurried upstairs.

The door to 302 was wide open. He Xinglan stood happily at the entrance. Seeing her approach, the smile on her face grew brighter. She opened her arms to her: “Welcome home.”

Yin Qiuman playfully glared at He Xinglan. This was definitely not the time for a hug. She looked inside the house.

Her parents were sitting on the sofa in the living room, their faces unexpressive, but they didn’t give off a feeling of great seriousness either.

Yin Qiuman’s eyes questioned He Xinglan on how she did it, but He Xinglan just smiled and said nothing.

“Come in and sit down.” Seeing Yin Qiuman standing at the door with He Xinglan, Yin Huaishan finally spoke.

Yin Qiuman quickly pulled He Xinglan inside.

He Xinglan smoothly closed the door behind them.

Yin Qiuman led He Xinglan to sit opposite Yin Huaishan and Leng Ci. Yin Qiuman greeted them: “Dad, Mom.”

Yin Huaishan acknowledged her with an ‘Mm,’ then said in a not-so-polite tone: “What? You dare to have a girlfriend but not dare to bring her home?”

Yin Huaishan had always been proud of his daughter, yet he didn’t expect that when she started a relationship, having a girlfriend, she would be the one hiding behind her partner.

When He Xinglan came up, Yin Huaishan couldn’t believe it.

He thought his daughter was a person who dared to take responsibility for her actions. How could she choose to hide at a time like this?

But she was indeed the one who chose to hide.

Yin Huaishan felt like he was about to lose face.

Yin Qiuman remained silent. This time, it was genuinely He Xinglan who stood in front of her.

“Dad, you’re too fierce.” Seeing Yin Qiuman hanging her head and looking dispirited, He Xinglan immediately became unhappy. She stepped in protectively, confronting Yin Huaishan directly.

Yin Huaishan: “…”

After a long silence, Yin Huaishan asked uncertainly: “Fierce?”

He Xinglan nodded emphatically.

“You scared us both.”

Yin Huaishan glanced at the silent Yin Qiuman, pondering. Was it really because he was too fierce that his daughter was so ‘well-behaved’?

He recalled his daughter’s obedience since childhood—never talking back, though she also never behaved affectionately like other girls, or confided in him. Even the way she said ‘Dad’ wasn’t as sweet as the way He Xinglan said it. Could the reason be that he was… too fierce?

Thinking this, Yin Huaishan cleared his throat: “Then I’ll be gentler in the future.”

Yin Qiuman looked up at Yin Huaishan in disbelief.

Sensing his daughter’s gaze, Yin Huaishan instinctively straightened his face: “What? Do you think your dad is an unreasonable dictator?”

The moment the words left his mouth, Yin Huaishan noticed He Xinglan’s tightly furrowed brows.

He quickly rephrased his sentence: “Actually, Dad is still very reasonable.”

“Now that’s our good Dad,” He Xinglan said, giving Yin Huaishan a timely thumbs-up and a brilliant smile.

Perhaps infected by He Xinglan’s smile, a smile also appeared on Yin Huaishan’s face.

Leng Ci gave her husband an amused look, then pulled her daughter closer to her, and said patiently: “Xingxing is a good girl. You two must treat each other well in the future, help each other, and be understanding of one another in all things. Don’t think that just because your father and I agreed, you no longer have anything to worry about and can be reckless.”

“Reckless?” Yin Qiuman looked at Leng Ci in confusion, not quite understanding her meaning.

Leng Ci: “I heard from Xingxing that you two were together in high school, but then you dumped her. Abandoning her after the initial thrill—I truly didn’t expect that.”

When the doorbell rang, Leng Ci thought her daughter had returned, but initially saw a stranger. Leng Ci was startled, and just as she was about to ask who she was, the girl immediately opened her mouth demanding an explanation from them.

Leng Ci was stunned at the time.

A young girl demanding an explanation from them?

After He Xinglan finished explaining in detail, all other thoughts vanished from Leng Ci’s mind.

She had absolutely no idea that her daughter, who was obedient in her eyes, academically excellent during school, and successful in her career—outstanding in every way—was actually a heartless player who abandoned people after the initial thrill?!