Reborn: The Return of the Villainous Mr. Liu

"How did you know about my mother's singing?" Xing Bi was genuinely bewildered.

Nian coughed. "Ai told me. I mean I asked her of course. She told me some things from your past which you shared with her."

He twirled the tip of his finger on the table, feeling abashed. "So I thought of singing that tune for you too! I mean…I thought it would make you happy…"

It was the first time that Xing Bi was witnessing an awkward, shy and mixed with guilt expression. Usually, it was either his goofy side or his serious side. The look of embarrassment for failing to sing properly was crystal clear.

It was amusing but extremely heartfelt at the same time. It was a sweet gesture that completely took her by shock but also tugged her heartstrings like a sweet melody.

Xing Bi let out a chuckle after much trying to suppress it. "So you were trying to imitate her. I was wondering why you were suddenly humming a tune."

Nian scratched the top of his head, feeling doubly embarrassed. "I know it can nowhere be near your mother's singing, but I only want to make you happy! I also know that you might have some grievances against your mother but you still love her. She is still there in your heart. So…well…in any way possible, I wanted to bring her good memories…"

Xing Bi thought of all those awkward moments with her mother. She was a little troublesome, nevertheless the presence of her mother always left warmth in her heart. There were problems around them all the time but within the walls of the small apartment where they lived together, it felt like that dark time outside amounted to nothing.

"Y-Yeah…" her voice slightly choked. "She was a little silly and sort of an airhead. Maybe that's why she got entangled with my father who was clearly never upto any good. It was a…bittersweet time with her. I used to feel annoyed and helpless with her around because she only kept adding to my work. But when she left…"

She took a pause to gather her complicated emotions.

"I strangely started to miss the troublesome part of her too. She was drunk most of the time and laughed and talked about random things. So the house was never quiet. But then it suddenly became silent," she awkwardly laughed to herself, "And I didn't know what to do with that silence anymore."

She shook her head, thinking of that time of her life. "To cope with that, I buried myself in work even more just to not feel that silence and…loneliness. Sometimes, I avoided going back to my apartment from work. It was so silly…"

"It's not silly," Nian said with an absolute earnest expression. "Silence is terrifying."

She couldn't help but tremble.

"Especially left by a person who you hold dear to your heart. Do you know why Grandpa is such a chatterbox? He told this story once to Jian and me. That one day, Grandma had a nightmare of losing him forever. It was a silly bad dream, but she cried a lot after that. Later, she used to panic if Grandpa would give even a tiny late response to her. That's why he turned out to be even more talkative and loud," he chuckled, "Just so that Grandma gets to hear his voice and feel assured."

Her eyes slightly widened. She thought back to all those times she met Liu Hai, and she came to realize one thing.

Almost all the time, Liu Hai stayed within his wife's hearing or sight range.

The first time she met Liu Hai was at Jinhai and Nana's anniversary banquet. When she had been talking to him and Jian, she had noticed that Liu Chunhua was standing at a distance as well, talking to other guests.

"He only runs off at times when food is concerned or to hide from her to secretly eat some sweets," he snorted, "but he also makes it a point to return as quickly as he can."

Xing Bi's jaw dropped. "Damn, he is indeed always there wherever Grandma is!"

Nian laughed. "I know right? Even Grandma doesn't know yet. She thinks he grew talkative with age."

Xing Bi sniffled. "Damn…Grandpa is so cute."

Nian brightened. "Does that mean I am cute too? After all, I got the same genes as him~"

She sneered. "I remember you denying your grandfather's genes on many occasions."

He coughed. "Let's not dwell in the past, my dear."

Xing Bi rolled her eyes.

Nian stared at her pleasant expression and curving his lips in a sincere smile, he gently held her hand. "What I mean to say is that you will never feel lonely again like in the past. If you are afraid of silence, then worry not! Your handsome boyfriend here would never let a single day of yours pass by with quiet. The space around you will always be filled with laughter and this time, it's your turn to get pampered and enjoy super delicious meals everyday! You have worked hard enough in the past. Now I will cook for you every single day and all you have to do is eat, eat and eat!" He chirped.

Xing Bi could feel her heart almost pop out of her chest upon seeing his resilient and dazzling face. His smile shone so brightly that she felt the remnants of darkness and despair still lurking somewhere in her heart dulling away with his light.

His voice sounded so melodious that she laughed and cried at the same time. "You…when did I agree that you are my boyfriend?"

Nian blushed. "I know you were definitely drooling over my handsome figure while I was cooking."

Her brow twitched.

Damn it, he caught me?

"And let's just say…" he leaned over, making her heart pound faster and her cheeks growing redder, "that your beautiful face tells me the truth."

"W-what truth?"

Nian slid his fingers across the back of her neck and smiled. "That your heart cannot hold back from falling in love with me anymore."

And bridging the last space of distance, he touched her lips with his for a fiery kiss.