Chapter 87: …Wife

Chapter 87: ...Wife

"Teacher Chu, Teacher Chu? What's wrong, why are you crying?"

A concerned voice sounded by his ear.

Chu Lanting blinked his sore eyes and saw a weathered hand in front of him, holding out the coins he had just handed over.

Seeing him finally react, the vegetable seller sitting on a stool smiled at him.

"Did you and A Du have a fight? A Du's always the one who comes to buy vegetables—but today it's you. Did he make you angry?"

Pei Du had only lived in Unit 207 for less than half a year, yet he could chat with just about anyone in town.

Even though he usually came off as simple and honest, a lot of the market vendors liked him.

The vegetable auntie in front of him was no different. When A Du came by, the two of them would chat about cooking and everyday stuff.

Even though two men getting married was a new thing for the townsfolk.

But since A Du and Chu Lanting were so well-liked, nobody gave them weird looks.

Instead, after they got married, people would wish them well whenever they ran into them on the street.

And now, not long after they'd received those blessings...

His throat tightened again. Chu Lanting looked down, fighting back tears, and quietly thanked the auntie.

"I'm heading back now."

He'd bought just about everything he needed. Even though he didn't want to go back or face a cold, distant Pei Du, lunchtime was approaching, and he couldn't stand the thought of Pei Du going hungry at home alone.

"Wait, Teacher Chu—you didn't catch what I said, did you? I told you I'm not taking your money. Put it back."

"A Du fixed my water pipe a couple days ago and I never even thanked him. And my son—after taking your classes, he's a whole different person now."

"Having you and A Du in this town is a real blessing for all of us."

A rough hand grabbed his wrist.

Chu Lanting had no choice but to stop as the vegetable auntie rambled on behind him.

He pressed his lips together, took a deep breath after a long moment, turned, and forced a faint smile at her.

"Next time, auntie. Next time you can turn me down. I've still got things to do at home—I'm heading back now."

As he spoke, he pulled his hand free and walked out of the market without looking back.

The auntie, seeing how fast he left, had no choice but to give up on giving the money back.

"They must've fought. When I came by earlier, I saw A Du—he didn't look too good either."

A passerby said this, though he didn't look too worried.

Actually, he had a smile on his face.

"A Du and Teacher Chu are so close—they're definitely just having a little spat. Couples like them make up in bed and get all sweet again soon~"

The market was pretty busy today.

Hearing that, everyone burst out laughing.

Meanwhile, Chu Lanting hurried out of the market in a panic. Only once there was no one around did he collapse, the things in his hands falling to the ground.

He clutched his chest with one hand, his fingers digging into his clothes.

As if that was the only way to ease the relentless ache in his chest.

The image of Pei Du pushing him away in that barren courtyard not long ago was still fresh in his mind.

Especially the shock and regret in the other man's eyes—it was enough to take his breath away.

His already pale face went white as paper, and even his fingers, still clutching his clothes, wouldn't stop trembling.

After a long moment, a whimper like a wounded animal's finally slipped out of him.

-

By the time Chu Lanting dragged himself home, Pei Du had already cleaned the courtyard again.

The courtyard was small, with two trees planted in it that had grown into tall, leafy giants. Whenever he had free time, Chu Lanting would drag Pei Du under the trees to play chess.

At first, they played simple games like Gomoku and Chinese checkers.

Pei Du was sharp—it didn't take him long to figure out the rules and turn the tables.

Soon, all of Chu Lanting's pieces would be wiped off the board. Back then, he'd praise Pei Du for being smart, but now he wished he wasn't.

The chessboard he'd made himself, which used to sit in the shade, had been stuffed into a cloth bag.

As he did all this, Pei Du's brows were furrowed, like he was disgusted by something.

The hanging chair strung between the two trees had been taken down and tossed into the bag too.

And the weird little stones A Du had collected in the corner...

Everything—anything that held memories of him and A Du—had been thrown into that bag, no exceptions.

His heart clenched tight, and it felt like all the blood in his body was draining away.

Chu Lanting's fingertips went cold. He wanted to say something, to stop him, to beg him to keep these memories, so at least he wouldn't be left with nothing in the end.

But when he opened his mouth, he realized he couldn't make a sound.

Not just words—he couldn't even breathe, couldn't even move his lips.

Why was he being so cruel?

Didn't he promise... to stay with him forever?

Pei Du had noticed Chu Lanting the moment he stepped into the courtyard.

He wanted to finish packing the last few things, so he didn't look up or say hi—just kept his head down and kept tidying.

As a Major General, the military had given him a pretty spacious villa. He had other places, but the villa the military bought for him was closest to work, so it was the one he stayed at most.

The villa was big, but since he was almost always away on missions, the whole place felt cold and empty.

Like a showroom—no sign of life at all.

If he brought all these things over, maybe they'd make the place feel a little more like home.

And if he brought all these to the main star, would Chu Lanting stop thinking about leaving?

With that thought, the gloom that had weighed on Pei Du for so long finally lifted a little, and even his normally hard, cold eyes softened.

It was just a shame there was so little here—whether decorations or entertainment.

He carefully tucked the last few stones into the cloth bag.

Just as Pei Du was about to rise and carry the bag into the house, a heavy thud made him jerk his head up.

The moment he saw Chu Lanting collapse to the ground, Pei Du's breath stopped. He didn't even bother with what was in his hands and rushed over to him.

"Chu Lanting?! Lanting?...... Darling..."

Chu Lanting's body had never been strong to begin with. The weight A Du had so carefully built up on him had all melted away in just these two days.

He'd fainted from the sudden tightness in his chest, and through the haze, he thought he heard A Du come back.

Even unconscious, a whimper slipped out of his throat against his will.

"A Du...... don't...... my A Du......"