Yan Yan - Chapter 15

Chapter 15 : Passerby

Su Yan was stunned by Bai Xingfan’s words. She was not stupid enough not to understand what Bai Xingfan meant, and she could feel it by looking into his eyes. But as she couldn’t accept it, she decided to keep a blind eye.

Bai Xingfan was the best man she had met so far.

He had an excellent family background; he was handsome, gentle, and considerate; he had outstanding abilities; and he was young and promising. He was the perfect man in any woman’s eyes. However, Su Yan had self-realisation, and she knew that she was not worthy of such a heavenly man. So she didn’t dare have any unreasonable thoughts about him from the beginning.

But she was really moved by what he did for her these days, and there would be inadvertent ripples in her heart; after all, no woman could resist the charm of this man.

It’s true that she had a crush on him, but that’s not strong enough. So she once again politely declined his offer. “I am not as good as Mr. Bai said. I am just an ordinary woman, and I don’t have such high ambitions. I just want to find an ordinary man who shares my desire to love and marry. I don’t dare think too much about other things.”

“Why, Ms. Su, am I not an ordinary man?”

Bai Xingfan never thought he would be rejected by a woman because of his prominent family background. Additionally, everything in his life was arranged by the family the moment he was born; in fact, before meeting her, he never even thought that he could marry a girl he liked in his life. Like his fate, his marriage would be arranged by his family, and it was nothing more than a question of which family to marry.

When he met her in Guzhen, the second choice appeared in front of him.

At that time, his parents had already chosen a lady from a family for him. The parents of both parties wanted to introduce them to each other on his grandpa’s birthday, but at the birthday banquet that day, when the parents of the woman asked him what kind of girl he liked, he replied, “The younger generation already has their own hearts, so, of course, I also have that thought.”

From there, he announced to the public that he didn’t want an arranged marriage.

His parents’ faces were not good, but he didn’t bow his head. He faced their stern gazes without changing his expression.

After the banquet was over, his mother came to inquire what he meant by saying those words.

He said succinctly, “Yes, I said it correctly. If Grandpa and Grandma had been more determined back then, you would not have been able to marry into the Bai family.”

His mother froze for a moment and couldn’t say anything.

He said again, “Compared to the original you, she is much better.”

Bai Xingfan’s mother’s face was as black as a burnt pot, but she remained silent for a long time. “I know you have been angry with me for so many years, but you are the flesh that fell from me, and I…”

He interrupted his mother. “I don’t want to hear that.”

His mother pursed her lips and stared at him for a long time, finally saying, “You can make up your own mind about marriage.”

He understood that his mother had compromised with him, but to him, it didn’t matter; even if she didn’t compromise, he had to decide for himself.

She was the first woman he desired to date and the first person he truly liked. How could he give her up so easily when he loved her so much? So Bai Xingfan made the decision that he would not be married in this life if he couldn’t marry Su Yan.

Su Yan wasn’t anticipating Bai Xingfan to have such a rigid attitude. They had a large gap between them. When she first decided to marry Xie Yu, she didn’t realise the importance of this point, but after experiencing a failed relationship and a failed wedding, she thoroughly understood this point. The right family was the basis for a long-lasting relationship.

She must reject Bai Xingfan’s intentions, even though he was truly excellent. She didn’t want to make the same mistakes twice, and she also didn’t want to rush into the next relationship when the emotional intelligence of the previous one was not yet perfect. “It is a blessing for me that Mr. Bai thinks highly of me, but I am not good enough to merit his praise. You will undoubtedly meet better ones in the future.” This time, she was more explicit.

Bai Xingfan didn’t say anything.

Su Yan apologised while grinning and offered a blessing, saying, “I and the spring breeze are both passers-by, and you take the autumn water to embrace the galaxy.”

‘I am not a lover; just like the spring breeze, I am a passerby who inadvertently blows into your life. One day, you will meet your Yingying Qiushui and embrace the bright galaxy with her.’

Bai Xingfan: “What if I only want the spring breeze?”

Su Yan replied, “The wind is too loose, insignificant, and not worthy of your favour.”

Bai Xingfan understood that it was not that the wind was too loose but that the spring breeze was unwilling to stay for him.
“Tomorrow, I will go home with my younger brother. I have disturbed you a lot during this period, and I will never disturb you again.” After speaking, Su Yan walked into the room.

Bai Xingfan looked at Su Yan’s back with an uneasy feeling. ‘Do you still think about Xie Yu?’

…………………..

Su Yan thought her brothers and Bai Xinglan would fight again, so she hurriedly went back to the living room. But only Su Zhan remained there.

“Where’s Xinglan?”  Su Yan asked her brother anxiously.

“Went to the dining room.” Su Zhan rolled his eyes. “Why… Do you think I did something to him?”

Su Yan: “…” ‘Are you studying computer science or yin and yang in college?’ 

She sighed helplessly, stretched out her hand, lightly poked her brother on the head, and reprimanded him in a low voice. “If it wasn’t because of you who kept making trouble, would the brothers be able to quarrel?”

Su Zhan was not convinced. “It’s not right for me to argue?”

Su Yan: “Even if you are right, the time, place, and occasion are not suitable. We are at someone’s house now.”

Su Zhan still refused to accept it and said sourly, “Cut it; you just favour him. I think he is your real brother, and I’m the picked one.”

Su Yan: “…”

Seeing her silly brother was sad, so she had to coax him with a gentle voice. “I didn’t say you did something wrong; it was indeed his fault about the quota, which made you wronged.” Although there was no one in the living room, she kept her voice down as much as possible. “But you can’t do everything that you like, especially when you are under someone else’s roof. You and he are still classmates. Is it appropriate to have such a fight? You have created a conflict between two brothers as well. Are you happy now?”

Su Zhan pursed his lips. Although he was still a little unhappy, he didn’t refute his sister’s words.

‘Although my family’s boy is silly and stubborn, he still listens to us when he does something wrong.’ Su Yan breathed a sigh of relief.

At this time, the fat aunt’s voice suddenly sounded behind the siblings. “Miss Su, sir, asked me to call you to eat.”

Su Yan immediately replied, “Okay, we’ll come!”

When Su Yan and Su Zhan entered the dining hall, Bai Xingfan and Bai Xinglan had already sat down at the dining table. Remembering their conversation, Su Yan looked at Bai Xingfan a little embarrassedly. Seeing that his expression was normal, as if nothing had happened just now, she couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief in her heart.

The dining table was rectangular, and Bai Xingfan sat on the inner side of the table, near the middle. Bai Xinglan didn’t sit next to his brother but sat at the end of the dining table, far away from Bai Xingfan, still with red eyes.

Eight dishes and one soup were all placed in the centre of the dining room.

Su Yan sighed in her heart, seeing the two brothers at peace, but who knew that at this time, her family’s silly Baitian actually pulled the chair at the other end of the dining table, sat down on the chair, and expressed to Bai Xinglan with practical actions: I would rather starve to death, and I also want to be eight feet away from you!

Su Yan was speechless to the extreme. “You two… not going to eat?”

Neither of them spoke; they stared at each other nervously.

Su Yan just wanted to persuade these two people, but Bai Xingfan opened his mouth first and said coldly, “Don’t worry about them.”

Su Yan rolled her eyes. “Then let them both starve to death?”

“Even if they are hungry, they won’t die,” Bai Xingfan said.

Su Yan felt that this person was not gentle and was impatient with children. She ignored Bai Xingfan and looked at her brother with a stern face. “I will count to three; if you don’t behave properly, I will beat you. One, two, three!”

Usually, Su Zhan could only persist until his sister counted up to “one,”, but today he gritted his teeth and persisted until Su Yan counted up to “three”.

Seeing that his sister’s face was getting greener and greener, as soon as the word “three” fell, he jumped from the stool and sat obediently beside her.

Bai Xinglan, on the other end, snorted coldly. “What a…”

But Bai Xinglan couldn’t finish the sentence because Su Yan turned her face and looked at him.

The moment he met Su Yan’s gaze, Bai Xinglan felt as if he were back in kindergarten: pitiful, weak, and helpless.

After all, Bai Xinglan was not her own brother, so she couldn’t do anything to him. She just stared at him for a few seconds, then said, “Sit next to your brother.”

Bai Xinglan glanced at his brother and found out his brother didn’t intend to save him, but even he had raised the corners of his lips slightly, watching him being trained with interest. ‘Hmm, this is my good brother!’

In the end, Bai Xinglan could do anything, and he obediently sat down beside his brother.

Su Zhan: “Oh, I’m so cowardly… ah!”

Silly Baitian couldn’t finish his mocking as he got a slap on the back of the head from his sister.

Seeing that, Bai Xinglan felt pain in the back of his head, and at the same time, he was glad that he listened to Su Yan; otherwise, he would be the one who was beaten.

After making sure that both of them were honest, Su Yan pulled out the stool, sat next to her younger brother, and then looked at the man sitting opposite her.

The moment the four eyes met, Bai Xingfan said, “Let’s serve the meal.”

Su Zhan immediately picked up the chopsticks and started to pick up the rice.

Su Yan breathed a sigh of relief and also picked up the chopsticks.

After the meal, the aunt removed the dishes and served fruit and dessert.

While they were having the desserts, Bai Xingfan said to Su Yan, “Tomorrow I will arrange for the driver to take you home.”

Su Yan nodded. “Ok…”

After that, neither of them talked anymore.

Bai Xingfan didn’t like sweets, so he didn’t eat any; Su Yan only ate a piece of green tea cake.

There were four green tea cakes in total; Bai Xingfan didn’t eat them, and the other three ate one piece each, so there was one piece left. After eating their piece, Su Zhan and Bai Xinglan reached out to take the remaining piece at the same time, creating another argument.

Bai Xingfan: “What are you arguing about? If you want to eat, let Auntie make it for you.”

Su Zhan and Bai Xinglan said in unison, “But I only want to eat this piece!”

Bai Xingfan: “…”

Su Yan: “How about two of you eating half?”

The two boys didn’t speak, and Su Yan regarded them as if they had agreed. First, she wanted to divide the cake into two pieces herself, but suddenly realising something, she gave the job to Bai Xingfan. “Come on.”

Bai Xingfan: “…”

The thorny ball was kicked to him, and he had no other choice but to pick it up, so he pulled the plate to him, found the center, cut open the green tea cake with a silver table knife, and gave half to each of them.

Su Zhan didn’t look at the size and started to eat. However, Bai Xinglan was not satisfied. He looked at the piece of cake and made an angry face, accusing his brother. “Why is his cake bigger than mine?”

Bai Xingfan: “…”

Bai Xinglan: “You’re biased! You just don’t love me anymore! You think he’s better than me!”

Both Su Yan and Su Zhan were dumbfounded.

Su Zhan: “You, you, you, what are you crying for?”

Bai Xinglan cried and cursed. “You shut up…”

Su Zhan: “…”

Bai Xingfan sighed. “I’m not biassed.”

“You are biased!” Bai Xinglan cried more, saying, “You told me to give him the bear, and you didn’t let me eat the whole cake!”

Bai Xingfan finally understood that the problem was not the size of the cake but the bear.

Su Yan also understood the real reason, and she quickly added, “Xiao Zhan doesn’t want your bear.”

[TL Notes: xiǎo (written 小) means young or small. Using it in front of someone’s name is an affectionate or informal way to talk about someone younger.]

After hearing his sister’s words, Su Zhan had a bleeding heart but was finally able to utter, “Cut, who cares about your bear? I don’t want it.”

Bai Xinglan was noncommittal, still crying.

Seeing that Bai Xingfan’s face gradually turned cold, he reprimanded his brother in a deep voice. “Aren’t you finished?”

Su Yan gave Bai Xingfan a slightly reproachful glance and reminded him in a low voice. “Don’t be so fierce…”

After hearing Su Yan’s words, Bai Xinglan became more aggrieved. “Sister, he has always been so fierce to me!”

Bai Xingfan was unmoved, and his tone was stern. “Give that bear to Xiao Zhan, not because I favour him but because you committed a crime. You used improper means to occupy Xiao Zhan’s quota, so you have to compensate him and apologise to him.”

“I, I, I won’t!” Bai Xinglan cried violently. “Even if I’m dead, I will not apologise to him!” After speaking, he stood up and ran out of the dining room, crying.

Bai Xingfan was exhausted because of his brother’s drama; he let out a long sigh again, raised his hand, and pinched between his eyebrows.

Su Yan originally wanted to chase Bai Xinglan but suddenly thought of something, so she pushed Su Zhan hard. “Go after him and persuade him!”

Su Zhan was stunned, and asked his sister, disbelievingly, “I have to persuade him?”

Su Yan: “It was you who caused the trouble!”

The person who untied the bell had to tie it, so no one could solve this matter except Su Zhan.

Su Zhan struggled desperately. “Can I not go?”

Su Yan: “No! If you can’t persuade you, don’t think about going home tomorrow!”

Su Zhan gritted his teeth, but finally succumbed to Su Under Yan’s “obscene power” reluctantly. He slapped the table hard, then stood up from the chair, and went to find Bai Xinglan.

After Su Zhan left, only Su Yan and Bai Xingfan were left at the table.

Seeing the exhaustion on Bai Xingfan’s face, Su Yan felt guilty. “I’m sorry, I caused you so much trouble.”

“It has nothing to do with you, it’s because

Xinglan is too capricious.” Bai Xingfan said helplessly, “He was pampered by the elders. It’s bad; he always thinks that the world should revolve around him, and if something goes wrong, there will be a lot of noise.”

Su Yan pursed her lips and looking at the man sitting opposite her, she suddenly felt distressed: It was obvious that these two brothers have the same pair of parents but have completely different life experiences, and the attitudes of their parents towards them can be described as very different. No wonder Xinglan would say that sentence when losing his temper: “No matter how bad or rubbish my life is, you, Bai Xingfan, would envy me! I have the love of my parents, do you have it?!” Their parents must love Bai Xingfan, but as they have high expectations, he would not have received love from his parents.’

After thinking about it, Su Yan was persuaded: “In fact, he is not self-willed, he just wants you to be close to him, to put it bluntly, he is just jealous, and thinks you are partial to Xiao Zhan.”

Bai Xingfan reiterated again. “I really have no partiality. ”

Su Yan: “Of course, I know, but Xinglan doesn’t think so.”

Bai Xingfan: “So he’s still capricious.”

Su Yan was speechless, and couldn’t help rolling her eyes. “If I have a brother, dad, or boyfriend like you, I will also feel miserable!”

Bai Xingfan was stunned. “Why?”

Su Yan: “There is no love at all! Everyone wants a preference from the person they care about, but you are too reasonable to give people the impression of favouritism!”

Bai Xingfan pondered for a moment, and asked seriously, “So, Miss Su wants an unreasonable favour?”

He had never chased after women and had never dated anyone. However, it didn’t mean that he couldn’t flirt.

Su Yan blushed instantly and hurriedly explained. “I didn’t mean that, I meant that Xinglan wanted a share of your preference.”

Bai Xingfan didn’t intend to tease Su Yan anymore. “It’s too late, go back and rest.”

Su Yan breathed a sigh of relief. “Oh.” Then she immediately stood up and left quickly.

Su Zhan tried to persuade Bai Xinglan with a black face, but who knew that Bai Xinglan was really a hypocritical and stingy squeamish ghost? As he didn’t open the door of his room, Su Zhan got tired of trying to pursue Bai Xinglan and gave up the task his sister assigned.

Since Bai Xinglan’s room was on the third floor, in order to prevent the two of them from fighting in the middle of the night, Su Yan asked the fat aunt to arrange Su Zhan’s room on the first floor.

Before nine o’clock, everyone went back to their respective rooms, and the villa returned to silence.

‘Tonight is my last day of staying here…’ Su Yan still felt a little bit reluctant.

She sat on the balcony chair, looking at the starry sky and Swan Lake, and thought about Bai Xingfan. ‘If Bai Xingfan expressed his affection when he was in Guzhen, would I be moved? It should be, because he is really charming and attractive. At that time I was not with Xie Yu, so I will definitely agree with him.’

Although Su Yan used Bai Xingfan’s family background as an excuse to refuse his proposal, when she agreed to marry Xie Ye, she didn’t care about the difference between her and Xie Yu’s family backgrounds. But now she had learned her lesson and would dare not think such a thing again.

With a long sigh, she stood up from the chair and went back to the bedroom.

She slept soundly that night, got up before eight o’clock the next morning, washed and packed her things, and then went downstairs. However, Bai Xingfan was no longer at home at that time. She had no chance to say goodbye to him face-to-face.

After breakfast, she and her younger brother got into the car that Bai Xingfan had arranged in advance, and the driver drove them back home.

At the moment when the black car drove out of the gate of the manor, Su Yan looked back, the sky was blue, and the white three-story building stood under the bright sunlight, covered with a thin layer of golden light, looking elegant and majestic.

She suddenly felt a little regretful. ‘For the rest of my life, I won’t be able to come here again, nor will I have any interaction with Bai Xingfan again. I’m the spring breeze in his life, so why is he not my spring breeze?’

If only he had appeared earlier, she wouldn’t be as rational as she was now, and she wouldn’t be as cowed as she was now.

But in this world, there were no “ifs.”

End of chapter 15