Back Then, I Adored You

Xu Wennuan finally snapped out of thought. After gently thanking him, she lifted her hand, took the medicine from him, and put a tablet into her mouth. She lifted the glass of warm water and swallowed it along with her medicine, which warmed up her stomach as well as her heart.

She placed her glass of water down and looked up at Lu Bancheng. Pointing at the seat across from herself, she said, “Why don’t you take a seat?”

After she said it, she realized that Lu Bancheng might have intended to go back to his party, so she added on hurriedly, “I’m alright. Why don’t you go back in?”

Without speaking, Lu Bancheng shuffled a few steps and sat right across from Xu Wennuan. He glanced at the empty glass before her and raised his hand to beckon for the waiter nearby to pour some more water for Xu Wennuan before saying to her, “Are you feeling down?”

Xu Wennuan was momentarily stunned by his sudden question but then recovered, shaking her head. “Nope.”

“Then why are you drinking so much alcohol?”

How does he know how much alcohol I drank? Has he been watching me all night?

A strange sense of pleasure crept into Xu Wennuan’s heart. She didn’t know why she felt so happy, but along with her mood improving her stomach also felt significantly better. She flashed a smile at Lu Bancheng to pretend she wasn’t feeling down. “The wine tasted really good.”

“Oh,” Lu Bancheng responded and quickly shifted his gaze to the road outside the window. Xu Wennuan had no idea what he was thinking about, but he seemed to be deeply caught up in his thoughts. After a long time, he eventually turned back and looked into Xu Wennuan’s eyes. “Don’t drink alcohol or eat cold and raw food in the future because your stomach can’t handle it.”

After a moment of silence, he said gently, “Take good care of yourself.”

While it was a simple sentence, it stabbed Xu Wennuan’s heart. She was aware that he would not be returning after he left for America, and his current behavior seemed to be a final farewell to her.

Xu Wennuan forced a smile and nodded her head. She suddenly became exceptionally melancholic and her throat felt unusually constricted, as if it was choked up by something. After much effort, Xu Wennuan finally forced her lips to curl up into a smile as if nothing had happened. She then stared at Lu Bancheng and said, “I heard from Xiao’ai a while ago that you’ll be leaving for America?”

Lu Bancheng did not open his mouth and merely acknowledged with a sound.

Even though she already knew the answer, upon receiving his affirmation, Xu Wennuan’s heart inevitably sunk. “Xiao’ai even mentioned that you intend to reside in America permanently…”

Lu Bancheng looked down.

Yes, I intend to live there permanently.

Initially, he hadn’t planned to stay there permanently, but the last time he had returned home his two interactions with her had made him realize that he could not stop himself from yearning for her. He was afraid that one day he wouldn’t be able to restrain himself and would hurt her again as he had last year. Thus, he decided to leave once and for all.

A faint smile formed on Lu Bancheng’s face, and he nodded at Xu Wennuan before replying, “Yes, that’s the plan.”

“When are you leaving?” Xu Wennuan no longer looked at Lu Bancheng in the eye and nonchalantly asked as if she were casually chatting with him.