Chapter 71
Chapter 71
Daiyu's class moved up a grade too. She proceeded towards her last year of primary school together with Chunhua, Yan Yan, and even Zhenzhen too.
Still, while the world continued to turn, Daiyu felt like her life had come to a standstill.
Things were just no longer the same for her.
She had lost her appetite and had begun eating less. Naturally, she had begun to slim down too. She lost her baby fat and her cheeks were no longer chubby.
Aside from that, she lost her bubbly personality too. While she still smiled and remained as friendly as before, Wang Jing would often see her in the garden, just quietly sitting among the flowers with Nao Nao beside her.
She sent letters to Liu Jin weekly. She would take pictures of anything that caught her eye and would send them to him on the weekends. He would reply to her with pictures too.
They shared no words between them, just photos.
No I love yous.
No I miss yous.
Just a glimpse of each other's every day life.
Perhaps it was because no words could express the emotions they felt. Or perhaps it was because they were saving them for when they meet again. But whatever it was, they remained silent, quietly passing each day with the hope that tomorrow would come quicker, that the day of their reunion would be closer.
---
While Daiyu was slowly changing, Zhihao was too. He took over Liu Jin's job and made sure to fetch her during the mornings and sent her home in the afternoons. While he missed the bubbly Daiyu who used to bite and tease him, he understood that it was not easy for her to cope with Liu Jin's departure. He had seen for himself how attached she was to Liu Jin. He could only imagine the heartbreak she must be going through right now that her Jin-gege was far away from her reach.
"Xiao Yu, you know that your Zhihao-gege will always be here for you, right?"
Daiyu paused before smiling.
"Mmm."
He sighed and hugged her tightly before kissing her forehead.
"I miss my chubby, bubbly, happy Xiao Yu! Give her back to me!"
Daiyu giggled.
"Thank you, Zhihao-gege." She smiled.
Zhihao paused.
"Is there anything I can do to make you happier?" He asked, still worried.
"… Can you come visit me more often?"
"Of course! Anything for our baby Daiyu!" He replied as he rubbed his cheek against her hair.
She giggled and rested her head on his chest.
"Zhihao-gege… I miss him…"
Zhihao felt his heart clench. His poor baby!
"It's okay! Forget that stupid Jin! It's his loss for leaving behind our Xiao Yu!"
Daiyu laughed.
"Should I tell him you said that?"
"DON'T! HE'LL KILL ME!!!"
Daiyu continued laughing.
"Zhihao-gege!" She cupped his face and stretched his cheeks.
"Thank you…" She smiled warmly.
Zhihao blushed. Since her transformation, Daiyu had become much thinner. She had also started hitting her growth spurt.
The smile that was once common on her face was now rare but every time she did smile, hearts would stop and swoon. While she used to be cheerful, now she had a soft and feminine air about her, as if she was reserving her happiness for when Liu Jin returns.
Needless to say, every day, she was becoming more and more beautiful.
'Jin. Hurry up and come home before someone steals her away from you.'
"Xiao Yu, you're not allowed to look at other men, okay? Jin would kill me!!!"
Daiyu laughed.
"Mmm!"
Zhihao hugged her again.
"I will always be with you. You can tell me anything and everything. Your Zhihao-gege loves you as much as your Jin-gege does. So don't be sad anymore, okay? I'll make sure to feed you lots so that you won't lose anymore weight than you already have!"
Daiyu giggled.
"Promise?"
"Promise!"
"You'll take me out to a buffet?"
"Yes!"
"The expensive one?"
"…"
"Zhihao-gege!" She gritted her teeth.
"Fine! I'll just charge Jin when he comes back!"
Daiyu laughed and hugged him back.
"What happened to that girl you were courting?"
"HAHAHA Hey why don't we go right now?"
"Zhihao-gege! Stop changing the topic!"
"I don't know what you're talking about!"
Daiyu rolled her eyes.
---
Aside from Zhihao, the twins did their best to cheer Daiyu up too.
"Daiyu-jiejie!!!" Mingli excitedly ran towards Daiyu.
"Baby!" She bent down and caught him.
"Daiyu-jiejie!" Meili stretched out her arms and Daiyu picked her up too.
"We've come to visit!" Meili smiled and softly kissed her cheek.
Mingli nodded.
"To make Daiyu-jiejie happy!"
Daiyu giggled.
"Thank you!" She then kissed each of their cheeks
The twins would visit her often to show off their drawings. They would spend most of their Saturdays at the Wang Mansion keeping Daiyu company and sometimes even sleeping over too.
Of course, Daiyu indulged them. Whenever they were around, Daiyu would forget her loneliness. They were her happy pills and with the two of them present, she got twice the dose of happiness she needed.
---
Aside from the twins, Butler Tang tried his best too.
When Daiyu was younger, Butler Tang would often have tea parties with her. Now that she was older, he would still drink tea with her. But this time, he would sit in silence with her in the gardens, just enjoying the afternoons together.
Daiyu loved those moments with him. It was her quiet haven away from the noisy world and she felt at ease knowing that her Uncle Tang was always there to listen to her. Her Uncle Tang may be a silent man but through his actions, she knew that he was her loudest supporter.
Of course, Wang Jing would not lose out either. He would often take Daiyu out, bringing her to different restaurants, trying to get her appetite back. He would also make her pancakes every once in a while, reminding her of the best moments of her childhood.
While he had never said it out loud, Daiyu knew that her grandfather loved and doted on her a lot.
"Grandpa, Daiyu loves you the most!" She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed his cheek like she always did when she was younger.
Wang Jing smiled.
"Really?"
"Mmm! Thiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiis much!" She said as she stretched out her arms.
---
While all this was going on, Liu Jin was working hard too. He only had three years to change. He was giving it his all!
Every day he looked forward to the weekends when he would receive Daiyu's letters. He loved the photos she took. They gave him a chance to see through her eyes.
Sometimes, she would send along something she had sewn – a handkerchief, a pair of socks, a bath towel. Other times, she would send him some snacks. Either way, he treasured everything she sent him and it always gave him strength to face another tiring day.
Of course, Zhihao would send him letters too. While he hated reading them as he would remember Zhihao's annoying voice, still, that idiot did a pretty good job of reporting everything to him.
Zhihao would send him photos of Daiyu to show him how much she had grown. It broke his heart to see how his chubby baby had grown thinner. Still, he kept her photos close to him at all times, looking forward to the day where she would finally be right before his eyes.
"Who's that?" Chen An, his friend, asked him.
"My girlfriend." He proudly answered.
"Woah. She's a total beauty!"
"What? Where?" The other boys in the room quickly stood up to take a peek at Daiyu's picture.
"Woah! What a babe!"
"Hehe." Liu Jin proudly huffed. His baby was beautiful… even more so now. He smiled.
Of course, Daiyu wasn't the only popular one. Liu Jin was quite the eye candy too. He had grown even taller and his body had toned up too. His sexy tan and deep black eyes easily captured the hearts of the few females around him.
Still, no matter how many women pursued him, his heart was set on Daiyu. Even his big boobed instructor could not seduce him.
"He's so hot." Liang Jiayi commented as she watched Liu Jin and his team run laps around the field.
"Give it up. He has a girlfriend." Chen An replied.
"So what? Three years is a long time. He'll forget her by then."
He scoffed.
"You're only saying that cause you haven't seen her."
"And you have?" She rolled her eyes.
"Course I have. She's ten thousand times prettier than you. Only a fool would trade in a goddess like her for you."
"You prick!" She kicked his shin and he groaned.
"I heard she's real gentle too. Unlike a demon like you!"
"Why you!"
Indeed, three years was a long time. But it was not long enough for Liu Jin to forget Daiyu. He had waited ten years in the afterlife for her – three years would pass by in a blink of an eye.