Chapter 39: Reencountering the Token of Love: A Lifetime of Devotion to One Another

Chen Fan stood frozen in place for a long time.

It took him a good while to process what had just happened.

"Hey, what is that supposed to mean?"

"No way. I've decided we should go back and watch another movie."

Su Rutu turned her head and blinked playfully at Chen Fan with a smile.

"Too late. Who told you to chicken out back then?"

Chen Fan felt like crying without tears.

It felt as though he had missed out on something wonderful.

Yet, Su Rutu's sudden transformation—the fact that she could now tease him with playful couple banter—thrilled Chen Fan beyond measure.

This was proof that Su Rutu had completely accepted him in her heart.

Chen Fan let out a hearty laugh and quickly dashed after her.

"Who says I chickened out? Right now, I'll show you whether I dare or not!"

"Ah..."

Su Rutu let out a giggle and sprinted ahead.

The two of them chased and playfully brawled along the street until Chen Fan finally caught up to her.

He pulled her straight into his embrace.

Su Rutu didn't struggle; she simply leaned gently against Chen Fan's chest.

"You... let go of me."

Doing something so intimate out on the open street still made Su Rutu feel rather shy.

Chen Fan, however, just grinned widely as he wrapped his arms around her.

"Not a chance. Unless you give me a kiss."

"No way!"

"Then I'm just going to hold you like this and never let go!"

"You... you're such a rogue!"

Su Rutu's pretty face flushed crimson, and she cast a self-conscious glance around her surroundings.

Seeing Chen Fan staring intently at her with burning eyes, she hesitated for a moment, then suddenly stood on her tiptoes and pressed a quick kiss to Chen Fan's cheek.

As soon as she finished, she swiftly broke free from his arms and bolted forward, her face burning red.

Chen Fan stood rooted to the spot, dumbfounded.

He had only been making a joke.

Given his understanding of Su Rutu, the girl was extremely traditional and conservative.

He hadn't imagined she would have the courage to kiss him right out on the public street.

Yet, against all expectations, she had actually done it.

After the initial shock wore over, Chen Fan was instantly overwhelmed by a surge of wild ecstasy.

"Hey, a kiss on the cheek doesn't count!"

By then, however, a deeply embarrassed Su Rutu had already sprinted far ahead.

Hand in hand, the two of them arrived at the city's most bustling commercial street.

Though they had been here many times before, with Chen Fan walking by her side today, Su Rutu acted as though everything was filled with brand-new wonder.

The little girl looked at this and touched that, showing a particular fascination with the small trinkets on display.

Even so, she only looked, never asking for prices or making any purchases.

Eventually, giving in to a surge of chivalrous pride, Chen Fan spent his own money to buy the few little trinkets Su Rutu liked best, along with a generous assortment of snacks.

Though she scolded him with words for wasting money, when she actually took the snacks Chen Fan handed to her, Su Rutu's face blossomed with a radiant, happy smile.

With one hand linked through Chen Fan's arm, the two of them wandered aimlessly through the streets for the entire afternoon.

Sometimes, Chen Fan truly wondered—women really were miraculous creatures.

Over the course of the afternoon, she had managed to consume a grilled sausage, a portion of octopus balls, half a scallion pancake, and an ice cream cone.

Just how did Su Rutu manage to eat all that and still keep her stomach as flat as ever?

As Chen Fan stared intently at Su Rutu's flat belly, she suddenly spoke up.

"Do you think Xi Yazhou is a pity?"

"What?"

Chen Fan blinked, taking a moment to realize she was referring to the character played by Zhang Guoli in the movie they had just watched.

"Why would anyone pity him?"

"He has a wife and child who love him, yet he went out and found a much younger mistress..."

"And in the end, he actually wanted to keep both and couldn't bear to let either go."

"A man like that is the epitome of wanting to have his cake and eat it too."

Su Rutu, however, replied calmly, "In matters of the heart, who can ever truly explain things clearly?"

"Xi Yazhou's feelings for his wife were genuine at the start, but the mundane trivia of married life ground away his passion for living."

"Meanwhile, the mistress, played by Liu Pei, was young, beautiful, and knew how to be charming. I don't believe any man could resist that kind of temptation."

Chen Fan raised his hand decisively.

"Me!"

"I can resist it."

"I, Chen Fan, will only ever love Su Rutu in this lifetime."

Su Rutu cast a meaningful look at Chen Fan.

"I once read a line in a book."

"The two things in this world you can never trust are: pigs learning to climb trees, and a man's glib tongue..."

Chen Fan glared.

"Which idiot wrote such nonsense? Stop reading those unhealthy books from now on."

Su Rutu rolled her eyes.

"I think it makes a lot of sense."

"Men turn bad once they get money. Especially successful men."

Chen Fan chuckled.

"I don't have money, and I'm not successful."

"But you have capability."

Su Rutu stared directly at Chen Fan, speaking with earnest sincerity.

"I didn't know it before, but now I believe that you, Chen Fan, have the brains and the talent. Whatever you set out to do in the future, you're bound to succeed."

"When that time comes, you'll be surrounded by beauties, and you'll never run out of young, gorgeous..."

"Stop right there!"

Chen Fan suddenly reached out and clamped his hand over the girl's small mouth.

He finally figured it out.

So this little girl had been worrying about all this!

He should have known that picking that movie today was a mistake.

With her mouth covered, Su Rutu blinked her large, beautiful eyes, her long lashes fluttering as she stared at Chen Fan as if her gaze could speak.

Chen Fan looked straight into her eyes with utmost seriousness.

"I, Chen Fan, will only ever love Su Rutu in this lifetime."

"For all time, through all lives, my heart will never change."

Su Rutu reached up and gently pulled Chen Fan's hand away.

"What if we end up just like the characters in the movie—getting married, having children, and having our passion eroded by the trivialities of everyday life?"

Chen Fan hurriedly shook his head.

"That won't happen. My feelings for you will always..."

"What if I grow old?" Su Rutu added softly.

Suddenly, Chen Fan understood.

Su Rutu was a deeply traditional and sentimental girl.

This was her very first romance.

She was both bewildered and filled with anticipation.

That was why she was feeling so anxious...

Chen Fan decisively raised one hand.

"If I ever change my mind in the future, let me..."

Su Rutu once more used her hand to block Chen Fan's lips, shaking her head slowly.

She refused to let him finish the oath.

Amidst Chen Fan's bewildered expression, Su Rutu lowered her gaze and fished a small, red embroidered pouch from her pocket.

Opening it right in front of Chen Fan, she drew out a red string bracelet.

At the sight of the red string bracelet, Chen Fan froze in place.

Keeping her head down, Su Rutu gently untied the bracelet.

She took Chen Fan's palm in her hand.

"A few days ago, when my parents and I visited my eldest aunt's house, we made a trip to Mount Putuo."

"I asked for this at the temple, and it was blessed by a senior monk."

"There were two bracelets in total, and I'm giving this one to you."

Carefully tying it around Chen Fan's wrist, Su Rutu lifted her head to look at him.

"Chen Fan, today I officially agree to be your girlfriend."

"I hope that the two of us can be each other's one and only for a lifetime, never to part..."

Here, Su Rutu paused for a brief moment.

"Of course, if the two of us truly reach that day like the characters in the movie... I hope you won't hide it from me."

"You can tell me everything. I won't pester you; I will leave on my own, leaving behind my blessings for you."

Chen Fan: "..."