Rebirth in 1986: Unforgettable Regrets

Chapter 1359: Chapter 1359: Lullaby for Sleep

“You really look good.” An Bai took another careful look at her and said it with utter seriousness.

“Pfft.”

Shuqing burst out laughing. Seeing how serious he looked, she turned her head and said, “Xiao Bai, can’t you say it a little nicer?”

An Bai looked blankly at Shuqing, his gaze seeming to ask: Saying you look good… isn’t that already something nice?

“Xiao Bai, when you were overseas, you never dated anyone?” Shuqing looked at him with open curiosity. By all logic, An Bai should have been very popular abroad, but looking at him now, why did he seem like some clueless little rookie?

“No.”

An Bai answered without even thinking and said, “When I was abroad, in order to get my degree early, I spent every day either studying or dealing with work. I basically had no time.”

“Oh~”

Shuqing dragged out her tone. “So it was because you didn’t have time, I knew it.”

“That’s not it.”

Seeing that she was about to misunderstand, An Bai hurriedly said, “Chenchen, I never thought about dating either.”

From a very young age, there had only ever been room in An Bai’s heart for one person.

When he was abroad, there really were a lot of people who tried to stick to him. Some even resorted to tricks, standing stark naked in front of him, only wanting to spend one night with him. But An Bai turned them all down.

He was extremely put off by those women.

“Then who’s the kind of woman you like?” Shuqing looked at him with what seemed like innocence. Her eyes were big and round, the black-and-white of her pupils reflecting An Bai’s silhouette.

Her gaze was pure and unblemished. An Bai wanted to say: You.

But he was afraid he’d scare her away.

If he got rejected as directly as Chu Huaijin had been, that was an outcome he absolutely could not accept.

“The person I like… she’s very beautiful.” His gaze traced the lines of her face as he continued, “She’s really outstanding. Even though she throws a bit of a tantrum sometimes, she’s got the kindest heart. She’s like a Little Sun, like a beam of light in my life. Just seeing her makes my heart feel full of happiness.”

Even though he hadn’t named names, his gaze was like a burning flame, instantly setting her heart alight.

Thump, thump, thump.

She could practically hear that thunderous heartbeat ringing by her ears.

She wanted to take back what she’d said.

How was he someone who didn’t know how to sweet-talk? He was clearly the king of sweet talk, okay!

Those compliments were enough to make a person blush to their ears.

Was she really that great?

“Achoo.”

Shuqing let out a sneeze and completely shattered the tender atmosphere.

An Bai hastily tugged the blanket up over her and patted her back lightly, coaxing her the way one would coax a child. “Chenchen, you’ve caught a cold, you need to rest more. I’ll cook you some noodles tonight. For now just sleep a bit.”

“Do you want some water?”

An Bai fussed over Shuqing in every detail, coaxing her to rest like she was a little kid.

“I’m not a three-year-old, you know.”

Shuqing’s voice was still hoarse, her throat hurt, and her head was a bit dizzy and uncomfortable, but An Bai was treating her like a child, even singing children’s songs to her. That low, deep voice singing nursery rhymes, the huge contrast of it made her feel like she could listen to them eight hundred times and never get tired.

Only, she was an adult!

She was an adult, not a child.

“You don’t like it?” An Bai raised an eyebrow. From what he could see, she clearly did.

Shuqing pressed her lips together, like she was picking tracks at KTV—wanting to hear this one a moment, that one the next.

An Bai had a naturally good voice. No matter what he sang, once it came out of his mouth it seemed to change into a flavor that belonged only to him.

Shuqing originally thought that with him singing nursery rhymes she would definitely not fall asleep, but unexpectedly, after just a few songs, she drifted off into a deep sleep.

“Chenchen, when will you finally understand my heart?” An Bai gazed at her sleeping face. Once asleep, she looked like an Angel who had strayed into the mortal world. Her long lashes were thick and curled, like a row of tiny fans. It made him think of what his mom used to say all the time when he was little—that the first time he saw her, he kissed her.

He’d always been very proud of his foresight. A girl as exceptional as Chenchen—if he didn’t stake his claim early, how could he ever feel at ease?

In those early years, An Bai came back to Huaxia every year, just to see Chenchen and keep in touch with her. But after he turned sixteen, he had to both start his own business and get his degree, and his time suddenly became very tight.

Up until now, at twenty-one, in these five years, if he counted on his fingers, most of the time he’d only seen Chenchen through video calls and photos—watched her grow from a fifteen-year-old girl into a twenty-year-old, graceful beauty.

Back then, he was especially worried that Chenchen would fall for someone else.

In the little spare time he had, An Bai specially created a small account to play games with her whenever he had a free moment.

At first, they could only play together two or three times a month. Later, when he had a bit more time, his gaming sessions with Chenchen became more frequent. By last year, they could pretty much chat in-game every day.

Unfortunately, in the last half year, when Chenchen was preparing for the college entrance exam, their contact shifted from in-game to real life.

When Shuqing woke again, it was already completely dark outside. She sat up groggily; after lying at home in bed all day, her head felt heavy and her limbs light.

She was still a bit dazed when she saw An Bai, wearing an apron, walk in. Noticing her sitting on the bed spacing out, he asked, “Still feeling sick?”

He walked over and pressed his hand to her forehead. Confirming that her temperature had returned to normal and was only a little warm, he said, “Go wash your face. The noodles will be ready in a minute.”

That nap had lasted her several more hours. The whole day, all she’d had were two bowls of millet porridge and nothing else; she was probably starving by now.

Shuqing answered him drowsily, then went to wash her face with warm water. She felt much clearer afterward. After smoothing out her hair, she walked to the dining area and saw a steaming bowl of chicken-broth dragon beard noodles on the table, just the smell of it making her appetite roar to life. She swallowed and watched as An Bai came out of the kitchen with another bowl of noodles. Smiling, he said, “Don’t just stand there, hurry and eat. I asked the doctor—this is what’s best for you. Light but nutritious.”

“Thank you.”

Shuqing looked at him gratefully. He’d stayed the whole day and hadn’t left once, taking care of her the entire time she was sick.

She tasted the noodles; they were indeed excellent. Shuqing finished off the whole big bowl, soup and all, then praised, “Xiao Bai, your cooking is amazing. Even if you went to be a chef, you’d definitely be top-tier.”

“As long as you like it.”

The corners of An Bai’s lips lifted. He only wanted to be Chenchen’s personal chef.

“You sit, don’t move, I’ll wash the dishes.” He pulled Shuqing over to sit on the sofa beside them, not letting her touch a single bowl. Her cold still wasn’t better; she needed to rest more.