The Only Choice - Extra 4

Dating Song Li was a genuinely happy experience, precisely because he knew exactly how to make a girl feel good.

Sweet nothings were poison, and Xu Xiaoqian learned this lesson deeply through him.

But she treated it as a slow-acting poison. As long as it didn't flare up, she could simply enjoy how good he made her feel.

With nothing urgent at school, Xu Xiaoqian stayed at Song Li's place for several days. She worked on her thesis in the mornings, tutored Fei'er in the afternoons, and afterward, Song Li would pick her up, and they'd go home together.

That Friday, Song Li said he had a family matter and couldn't pick her up. Xu Xiaoqian told him to handle his business and not worry about her, taking a taxi back to his apartment alone.

Song Li returned very late that night, his expression gloomy, clearly in a foul mood.

Xu Xiaoqian went over to him. "What's wrong?"

Song Li pulled her onto his lap. "Just some family stuff. Annoying."

"Did your parents lecture you?"

Song Li was silent for a long moment. "They're always like this with me, never satisfied enough… It's fine, just some company matters. Don't worry about it."

Xu Xiaoqian hummed in acknowledgment. "Did you eat dinner?"

"Too busy getting chewed out. Barely ate."

Xu Xiaoqian smiled helplessly. "Honestly… Wait here."

She tried to get off his lap, but Song Li held her tighter. "Baby, where are you going? I need a hug."

Xu Xiaoqian patted his head. "I'm going to make you something to eat. You can hug me later."

Xu Xiaoqian went to the kitchen. Song Li watched her back, smiled, got up, and followed her.

Xu Xiaoqian took some frozen dumplings from the fridge to make him a simple late-night snack. Seeing Song Li come in and cling to her, she pushed him lightly. "Go wait outside. Don't get in the way here."

Song Li refused to listen, insisting on sticking to her. "Xiaoqian, I like you so much."

Xu Xiaoqian snorted lightly. "You 'like me so much' just because I'm making you food?"

"Mn… I just do."

Xu Xiaoqian couldn't help the smile that tugged at her lips, but she still shooed him away. "Alright, get out. I can't cook with you like this."

Song Li had no choice but to leave the kitchen.

After a bowl of dumplings, the emptiness in Song Li's stomach was filled, and his mood improved considerably.

He found that his mood always lifted when he was with Xu Xiaoqian. So when he said things like 'I really like you,' he wasn't lying.

With his appetite satisfied, they soon tumbled into bed.

The next day was the weekend, so they were more unrestrained, staying awake until the dead of night.

The following day, Xu Xiaoqian also got up very late. Song Li was sleeping even more deeply; she had been working outside for a while by the time he showed signs of waking.

Around eleven, feeling hungry, she went into the bedroom to wake Song Li.

As she reached the bedside, she saw his phone light up with two WeChat messages.

In all their time together, Xu Xiaoqian had only looked through Song Li's phone once.

That time, it was Song Li who insisted. He said he only had her now, and if she didn't believe him, she could check for herself. So that day, she looked at his WeChat and learned his password.

But afterward, she never snooped through his phone again. Not out of complete trust, but because she felt there was no real need for her to do such things.

The WeChat notifications flashed a few more times. In the quiet room, Xu Xiaoqian, almost as if possessed, found herself entering the password.

The moment she saw it was a message from his mother, she felt a wave of relief. But after reading the content, her heart grew cold, inch by inch.

She felt she shouldn't have looked.

Yet she was also profoundly grateful that she had opened it today.

[The meeting with both families is the day after tomorrow. Consider it settled between you and Qingyuan. Don't be late.]

[Song Li, I was serious with what I said last night. Once you start seeing Qingyuan, you must end things with all those flashy people outside.]

[If the Chen family finds out you're still messing around after you two are together, it will be very embarrassing for both families.]

[Son, you understand my position, right? Your older brother is still watching like a hawk.]

—

Xu Xiaoqian came out of the bedroom. She ordered takeout, sat at the dining table, and ate it, one bite after another.

"What's for lunch, hm? Takeout?" Song Li came downstairs, his eyes still sleepy.

Xu Xiaoqian looked up at him. "I need to leave in a bit. Can't wait for you."

Song Li was puzzled. "Leave? Go where? It's Saturday. Didn't we say we'd stay in during the day and go out for a nice dinner tonight? That Japanese place on South Cheng Road."

"I want to go back to school."

Song Li: "Something come up with your professor?"

Xu Xiaoqian's chopsticks stilled. She didn't speak for a long moment.

Song Li sensed something was off and sat down beside her. "What's wrong, baby?"

Xu Xiaoqian turned to look at him. "Yes, something with my professor. I'm busy this weekend. How about Monday? Let's go to that Japanese place on Monday night, okay?"

Song Li paused. "Monday? Monday might not work. How about Tuesday? I'll pick you up."

"Why not? Do you have something on Monday?" Xu Xiaoqian stared directly at him, hoping, against hope, that he would say something.

But he didn't.

Song Li smiled and said, "I have a meeting with some partners Monday evening. Can't really skip it."

Xu Xiaoqian took a deep breath. Disappointment washed over her instantly, accompanied by what felt like shards of glass, shredding her insides.

"Partners… Not a new girlfriend?"

Song Li froze, the smile vanishing from his face.

Xu Xiaoqian let out a cold laugh. "Your mom sent you a WeChat this morning. I saw it. You haven't seen it yet, have you? Your mom told you not to be late the day after tomorrow, and to end things cleanly with all those 'flashy people' outside… oh, that would be me."

Song Li frowned and grabbed her hand. "Xiaoqian, I'm only going the day after tomorrow to placate my family. You and I are still—"

"Placating? When you're already practically engaged to someone else?" Xu Xiaoqian's voice was sharp.

Song Li:"It is just placating! I like you. Any nominal connection with her is just for the sake of the families' business. Her heart isn't with me either. There's nothing real between us."

"And then what? You like me, so you'll be someone else's boyfriend, then get engaged, get married. Should I still be listening to you say you like me even after you have children with her?" Xu Xiaoqian's hand trembled slightly, but she restrained herself fiercely, clinging to her dignity. "Song Li, I dated you for fun. I never intended to be your mistress."

Song Li said, "I never meant for that either."

"Then what did you mean!?" Xu Xiaoqian shot to her feet. Her clothes brushed against a water glass on the table, knocking it over. Water splashed across the table and dripped steadily onto the floor.

Xu Xiaoqian glared at Song Li, her teeth clenched. "If I hadn't found out today, how long were you planning to keep it from me? Having a new girlfriend on one side while playing lovey-dovey with me on the other? What do you take me for?"

Song Li tried to explain. "Xiaoqian! I told you, it's just a facade!"

"A facade you'll have to maintain for your whole life, Song Li! No matter what, you'll end up marrying her because that's your fate." Xu Xiaoqian's eyes reddened. "And our fate… is to part ways amicably."

After saying it, her heart felt cold, but there was also a sense of a weight landing. Because she knew this day would always come, if not today, then some day in the future.

Xu Xiaoqian sniffed and said, "Fine. Let's break up here. No need for your mom to keep nagging you about it."

A pang shot through Song Li's chest. He grabbed her hand tightly. "I don't agree!"

Xu Xiaoqian lowered her gaze. "Breaking up doesn't require your agreement. I never wanted such a complicated relationship to begin with. Now that it's getting complicated, it's time to end it."

Song Li looked at her incredulously. "After all this time together, you can say 'break up' so easily?!"

"It's only been a year. Is that so long?" Xu Xiaoqian thought for a moment, then added sarcastically, "Oh, right. For someone like you, Young Master Song, I suppose it is considered a long time."

Song Li: "Xiaoqian—"

"Let's break up. It's better for both of us."

—

It was an ending she had always known was coming. She brought it up with seeming detachment.

But when she was alone again, the pain was heart-wrenching.

Xu Xiaoqian returned to school and stayed in her dorm for three days, her phone turned off, out of contact with everyone.

She was too embarrassed to tell Fanfan, afraid her friend would see her wretched state and realize all her previous confident assertions were now a joke…

She had fallen for Song Li. Fallen for him uncontrollably.

But this was wrong. She had to correct it.

On the fourth day, Xu Xiaoqian finally turned her phone back on.

She put on makeup, left the dorm, and went to her tutoring job.

Can't keep being sad like this… she told herself.

"Teacher Xu! My uncle is here to pick you up. Look!"

The study room window faced the main gate downstairs. Fei'er, with her sharp eyes, tugged on Xu Xiaoqian's sleeve.

Xu Xiaoqian stiffened slightly but didn't even glance down. "Focus on your problems. Don't get distracted."

Fei'er: "Okay, I'll focus. But you should go down and say hi to uncle. I've still got a lot to do anyway."

"No need. I'll wait here for you."

Fei'er sensed something. "Teacher, did you and my uncle have a fight? Oh, couples fight, it's normal! You need to communicate more, don't misunderstand each other."

"It's not a fight. We broke up," Xu Xiaoqian said flatly. "Just do your work. Don't worry about this."

Fei'er's eyes widened slightly, but under Xu Xiaoqian's stern gaze, she didn't dare say more. She lowered her head and began working on her test paper, distracted.

The tutoring session ended an hour and a half later.

Xu Xiaoqian packed her things and walked out of Fei'er's house. She ignored Song Li and walked straight ahead.

"Xiaoqian."

Song Li caught up and grabbed her arm. "Where are you going? Let me drive you."

Xu Xiaoqian's expression was blank. "We're not in that kind of relationship anymore. I don't need you to drive me."

Song Li said, "I didn't go last night! I didn't meet them!"

Xu Xiaoqian's eyes flickered slightly.

Song Li continued, "So, Xiaoqian, let's just forget all that. Let's be together like before, okay?"

"Be together like before…" Xu Xiaoqian smiled faintly. "I thought being together before was really happy. But now your family has arranged a girlfriend for you, is preparing for you to get married. How can we possibly be like before?"

"Why can't we?" Song Li insisted. "I'm not close with that girl, but we've already reached an agreement these past couple of days. It's just an empty title. We won't interfere with each other."

"So?" Xu Xiaoqian felt weary, because of him, and because she realized what she wanted was far more than this.

Song Li: "So, there's no third person between us."

"Then, can you marry me?" Xu Xiaoqian asked suddenly.

Song Li stopped. His brow furrowed. "You… want to get married now?"

Xu Xiaoqian said,"I'm just asking if you can marry me. Can you go tell your family right now that you won't be seeing anyone else because you're going to marry me?"

Song Li fell completely silent. He looked at her, his expression a mix of indescribable pain and… coldness.

The coldness unique to a businessman, constantly calculating, weighing benefits.

"Wasn't what we had good? I can give you anything you want," he said.

"Anything except marriage, right?"

Song Li pressed his lips together. After a long pause, he spoke, his words slow. "We were so happy together before. That happiness can continue."

Right. They had gotten together just for happiness. Why bring up marriage?

She was breaking the rules maliciously, deliberately taking herself out of the game.

"Fine. I don't want it to continue. And I don't want to get involved in your… high-society dramas. And more than that, I don't want to play anymore." Xu Xiaoqian shrugged. "I'm an ordinary person, you know that. I can't play for too long. I need to be in a serious relationship, the kind with marriage as the goal. So, Song Li, let's just part on good terms."

—

After that day, Xu Xiaoqian didn't see Song Li again.

She fell into a routine, shuttling between the university and her tutoring job. She thought that would be the end of any connection between them.

But three months later, she received a call from Song Li's mother.

The woman, accustomed to privilege and high status, spoke with an icy tone from the outset. She said: Young lady, if my son didn't have a single cent to his name, would you still go to such lengths to cling to him? He's insisting on calling off the engagement, on protesting. I know it's for you. He's willing to walk away with nothing, to come to you as a penniless, powerless nobody. And you? Are you willing to take him in?

Xu Xiaoqian was stunned for a long moment. The woman on the phone continued: I know what you want. This outcome isn't what any of us envisioned. How about this: I'll give you the money. You make him come back obediently. Otherwise, you'll end up with nothing.

…

Xu Xiaoqian returned to campus. At the entrance to her dorm building, she saw Song Li.

Three months had passed. He seemed much thinner.

Xu Xiaoqian walked up to him. "Come with me."

Song Li didn't speak, obediently following her. They walked to the deserted lake on campus. She directly opened her phone and showed him a recent bank transfer record.

So many zeros. It was the most impressive balance her bank account had ever seen.

Song Li looked up at her, asking her what she meant.

Xu Xiaoqian said, "Your mother transferred it. Hopes I'll stop clinging to you and let you go back obediently and get married. But you know we broke up long ago. I haven't been clinging to you at all. Song Li, what are you doing?"

Song Li didn't speak. He hugged her. In that moment, all the loss and emptiness he'd felt seemed to fill.

Over this period, he felt like he'd gone crazy.

His mind had been torn between conflicting interests, until it finally settled on one thing: he didn't want to lose Xu Xiaoqian.

"Since she called you, then you know what I've done. You said you wanted to marry me, right? I've thought about it. I agree." Song Li said. "We can go get the marriage license right now."

The long-lost embrace felt so familiar it made her want to cry.

But her eyes were dry. She gently pushed him away and asked, "Get the license with you, penniless?"

Song Li froze.

Xu Xiaoqian looked up at him. "Did you ever ask me if I'm willing?"

"…"

"Song Li, when I brought up marriage before, you were Song Li, the scion of the Song family. Now, when you bring up marriage, who are you?"

Song Li's heart skipped a beat. His eyes reddened slightly.

Xu Xiaoqian, however, curved her lips into a faint, somewhat helpless smile. "Besides, if I marry you with nothing, your mother will surely demand this money back. So what exactly do I get by marrying you? How would we live afterward? Have you thought about that?"

"So… you're not willing."

"Why should I be willing? Do you really think I love you that much? Are we in some idol drama?" Xu Xiaoqian laughed humorlessly. "Go back, Song Li. Be your Young Master Song. You couldn't handle a life without money. You'd regret it before long. Let's both be realistic, okay?"

When Xu Xiaoqian returned to her dorm from the lake, she found her hands were shaking. As they shook, she began to cry.

The dorm was empty. Three months of deliberate numbness finally crumbled at this moment. She cried until she trembled.

What was the point of all this?

She would have preferred the story to end with Song Li's weighing of options, to end the moment he chose to give up on her.

Not like this, churned up into the plot of some tacky movie.

—

Later, in the first year after graduation, Xu Xiaoqian went south.

The city was unfamiliar, but like the capital, it was vibrant and flourishing.

She gradually stabilized and began putting down roots.

The following spring, Zhou Fanfan came to the city to prepare for a new project.

They met up at Xu Xiaoqian's newly rented apartment.

The apartment wasn't huge, but the location was quite good, costing half her salary. But with side jobs, her overall income was decent enough to support her life here.

"Fanfan, Song Li got married last week, right?" At the end of their chat, Xu Xiaoqian brought it up as if it were an afterthought.

Zhou Fanfan was momentarily startled, then nodded.

She knew the whole story by now, but as an outsider, she knew she had no right to intervene.

Xu Xiaoqian said, "That's good. I just remembered seeing a post in a girl's Moments, congratulating Song Li on his marriage… She's someone I met when I used to hang out with Song Li, a friend of his. I guess I forgot to delete her."

Seeing the worried look on Zhou Fanfan's face, she smiled and said, "Oh, it's been so long, it's fine. I was just asking."

Zhou Fanfan nodded gloomily, then added, "Xiaoqian, you returned all that money his mother gave you a long time ago. You should have told Song Li that… Otherwise, people might misunderstand you."

"Misunderstanding me won't cause me to lose a piece of flesh. It doesn't matter." Xu Xiaoqian picked up her glass and took a sip of wine. She sighed. "But honestly, I did regret it after transferring the money back. That amount could've bought an apartment here. Ah, why did I have to be so proud back then? Really."

Zhou Fanfan knew Xu Xiaoqian's character; she was just saying that.

Seeing her friend like this made her sad. "And what about Song Li? Do you ever regret it?"

Xu Xiaoqian shook her head. "Never."

"Him rebelling against his family back then was genuine…"

"I know. But I don't regret refusing." Xu Xiaoqian said. "Because if we had continued down that path then, the road ahead would have been incredibly difficult. The love and sweetness between us would have been worn away by the sheer grind of an ordinary life. Fanfan, someone like Song Li, how could he endure the ordinary daily necessities?"

Even if he really could, she didn't want that.

She didn't have the confidence to pull a rich young master down from his pedestal and then live happily ever after.

She was afraid of guilt, afraid of regret, and afraid of the potential mess of mutual resentment in the end.

So, it was better to end it here.

They each had their own paths to walk in life.

---

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