TMDP CH 35

Chapter 35: Have You Really Stopped Loving Me?

Xia Ye’s heart pounded louder and louder. He was familiar with the bridge effect^[1] and had even visited Vancouver’s Capilano Suspension Bridge^[2] last year with a bickering couple for the experience. He knew that thinking of Han Mingxiu in such a moment of heightened heart rate was entirely irrational. Yet, he also knew that during that terrifying moment when life and death seemed to hang in the balance, all he wanted was to see Han Mingxiu immediately—to confirm that he was okay.

Xia Ye took a deep breath. He was aware that in a few minutes, his rationality would return, but right now, he couldn’t even wait a single minute. He grabbed his phone and made a call.

He had tried calling Han Mingxiu’s mobile earlier, but it was off. This time, he dialed Han’s father’s phone, only to have it answered by Han’s mother instead.

“Xiao Xia, what’s the matter?” Recognizing the caller ID, Mrs. Han greeted him with a voice that carried an air of feigned calmness.

“Auntie, is everything alright? Xiaoli mentioned that something happened on your way home?” Xia Ye skipped the formalities and got straight to the point.

“Oh, you’ve heard about it,” Mrs. Han’s façade of nonchalance crumbled under his direct question. Her tone shifted, revealing a trace of unease. “Listen, Xiao Xia, don’t be upset. Xiaoli is fine. Well, not entirely unscathed—he fell and hurt his knee. But don’t worry; it’s just a superficial injury. He had an X-ray at the hospital, and there’s nothing wrong with his bones. We’re just concerned about potential scarring. I’ve already asked Junzhou to get the best scar-removal ointment from dermatology. Once Xiaoli’s wound heals, I’ll personally apply the ointment morning and night to make sure there are no scars.” Mrs. Han rattled off a long explanation in one breath, ending with a remorseful note. “Xiao Xia, I’m really sorry. It was our oversight; we didn’t take good care of him, and he got hurt.”

“…” Xia Ye was speechless. Did Mrs. Han think he was calling to scold them? What kind of unreasonable person did they take him for?

“Auntie, Xiaoli is a boy. It’s normal for kids his age to get a little hurt and even end up with a few scars. There’s no need to worry so much,” Xia Ye reassured her before cautiously probing further. “But…is everyone else alright?”

“We’re fine, we’re fine,” she replied quickly, her tone overly dismissive.

“…” Xia Ye fell silent again. Hearing no further elaboration, he decided to get straight to the point. “I heard that Han Mingxiu got injured?”

“…” Mrs. Han fell silent this time. After a moment, he heard her sigh. “He… he’s alright. A motorcycle ran over his foot, and his toe got fractured. He had to go into surgery to have a metal plate inserted. He just got out of the operating room and is resting now.”

At this point, there was no hiding the truth anymore. Mrs. Han recounted the events of that evening to Xia Ye in full detail.

It was just as Xia Ye had suspected. Xiaoli had been playing recklessly and wouldn’t listen, insisting on playing with the ball himself. The adults, caught up in the moment and seeing that the parking lot was quiet with no cars moving, had let their guard down. While throwing the ball, Xiaoli lost control and forgot the repeated warnings not to chase after it, running after the ball. Out of nowhere, a motorcycle suddenly appeared from behind a truck. The rider, likely thinking the area was empty, had picked up speed. As soon as Han Mingxiu saw the motorcycle, he rushed forward to push Xiaoli out of the way. Though the rider braked urgently, the bike still skidded for a short distance. The motorcycle’s handlebar grazed Han Mingxiu, knocking him down, and the fallen bike ended up crushing his foot.

“Xiao Xia, Mingxiu knows he made a mistake. He didn’t hold Xiaoli properly, and it almost led to an accident. He feels terribly guilty about it. Normally, we’re very careful to hold onto Xiaoli, but this time… we’d just come out of the court and were all too excited. It was a moment of negligence, and we’ve learned a hard lesson. We’ll definitely be more careful in the future. Please don’t blame him too much…” Mrs. Han pleaded earnestly.

“…” Xia Ye felt helpless. What was going on? He had only called to check on Han Mingxiu’s condition, especially since he’d gotten hurt protecting Xiaoli. He had initially been worried that the Han family elders might be angry at Xiaoli for not listening and causing Han Mingxiu to get injured. But now, it seemed like they were afraid he would blame them instead.

“Auntie, I don’t mean to blame Han Mingxiu for anything. I’m very grateful to him for protecting Xiaoli. Xiaoli already admitted to me earlier that it was his own disobedience that caused his Daddy to get hurt.” Xia Ye felt a little awkward referring to Han Mingxiu as Xiaoli’s Daddy in front of the Han family. After all, Han Mingxiu had just gotten injured for the child. Calling him “Uncle Han” in this situation felt too distant and inconsiderate. After a brief pause, Xia Ye continued, “It was Xiaoli’s fault this time, and he has reflected on it. I’ll have him apologize to Han Mingxiu later and thank him properly for saving him.”

A noticeable sigh of relief came from the other end of the line. “Oh, no need to thank him. That’s his son; it’s what he should do. As long as you’re not angry. Mingxiu was worried sick, thinking that if you found out he didn’t take good care of Xiaoli, you’d get mad and take Xiaoli away…”

“…” Wonderful. Xia Ye now knew exactly where his reputation for being unreasonable had come from—Han Mingxiu had been slandering him behind his back.

Mrs. Han noticed Xia Ye’s silence and became nervous. “You… you wouldn’t really take Xiaoli away, would you?” Her voice quivered as if she were on the verge of tears, full of reluctance.

“No, no, Auntie. Don’t worry. I wouldn’t casually take Xiaoli back and forth like that—it wouldn’t be good for him,” Xia Ye quickly reassured her. “I know you all put a lot of effort into taking care of him. What happened today was an accident, something no one wanted to see. Let’s not blame each other for it.”

“I knew it. Xiao Xia is so sensible; how could he do that?” Mrs. Han seemed to breathe a sigh of relief, her tone lightening. Unable to help herself, she began rambling, “You don’t know, but when the accident happened this afternoon, Mingxiu was scared out of his wits. He was holding Xiaoli and checking him all over to see if he was hurt. Only after the hospital confirmed that Xiaoli was okay did he finally admit that his foot hurt. And when they examined him, they found that his toe was fractured. Junzhou even joked with him, saying he could use this to play the sympathy card with you. He got so mad he chased Junzhou away, insisting that you absolutely couldn’t find out because you’d blame him for not taking good care of Xiaoli. Honestly, I don’t know what he’s thinking…”

Heh. “Indeed, I don’t know what he’s thinking either…” Xia Ye felt his face twitch in irritation.

“Xiao Xia, Auntie knows you still care about Mingxiu,” Mrs. Han couldn’t help but seize the chance to speak up for her son. “He’s been so dedicated to raising Xiaoli these past few years—he’s almost obsessive about it. He treats that booklet of instructions you gave him like a Bible, following every point to the letter. And then he went and bought a set of books on parenting techniques from Jewish, Japanese, and German mothers, saying it would teach Xiaoli how to think critically and be self-disciplined…I can’t even remember all of it. He’s been so dedicated—it’s a textbook example of a first-time parent raising a child by the book. He’s put Xia Li first in everything and is genuinely trying to be a good father. Xiao Xia, couldn’t you see how much effort he’s put in and give him another chance? I think you still care about him, don’t you?”

“Uh…” Not exactly. Xia Ye was starting to feel drained.

Sensing his hesitation, Madam Han pressed further. “Why don’t you say a few words to Mingxiu? I think he’s awake now.”

“No, no, let him rest. He didn’t want me to know, right? Then I’ll pretend I don’t know, so he doesn’t overthink and affect his recovery,” Xia Ye replied.

“That makes sense. It’s better to act as if you don’t know,” Tang Xi agreed, though she sounded disappointed. “Alright then, I’ll pretend you never called.”

After exchanging a few more perfunctory words, Xia Ye ended the call. Compared to the emotional storm he’d felt before making the call, he now just felt drained.

He had seen a once-proud Alpha, now like a frightened bird, putting in so much effort yet unable to bring himself to face him directly. No courage to move forward, yet unable to let go, spinning in place like a duck paddling aimlessly.

Was Xia Ye too cruel, watching from the sidelines as though it were none of his concern? Never making his rejection clear, nor turning a cold shoulder, occasionally even permitting small gestures of closeness. Was this why Han Mingxiu couldn’t let go?

As he held his head and thought about it, Xia Ye couldn’t help but wonder: was it because, deep down, he never truly wanted Han Mingxiu to let go? Like a malicious angler, letting the fish take the bait but never reeling it in, leaving it to swim in circles, unable to escape, while he, the angler, simply watched on in amusement.

Even imagining it made Xia Ye feel a pang of guilt—for the fish.

---

Years ago, Han Mingxiu had said, “I don’t love you anymore,” and Xia Ye had believed him, walking away without hesitation.

Later, Xia Ye had said, “I don’t want this anymore,” but Han Mingxiu hadn’t believed him, holding on through lingering guilt.

Xia Ye had once scoffed at Han Mingxiu’s lack of decisiveness. But now, in comparison, Xia Ye realized he hadn’t been much more confident in his own feelings.

The one willing to take a leap of faith for love was the Han Mingxiu who had been repeatedly rebuffed. Xia Ye, on the other hand, was just an overdramatic ostrich, clinging to the scars of the past.

Did he truly not love him anymore? Did he truly not want this?

Even Xia Ye wasn’t sure of his answer anymore.

If Han Mingxiu were to let go of him completely, would it make things easier?

But who would it make easier? Xia Ye pressed his lips together and pondered this for a long time. Finally, he realized one thing.

It wouldn’t make things easier for himself.

---

The reminder on his phone buzzed. It was time to head out.

He touched the back of his neck. After undergoing treatment for a while, the originally flat and sunken spot had started to swell occasionally. Sometimes, it even emitted pheromones uncontrollably.

This wasn’t good. He’d have to ask the doctor later if they could just stabilize his hormone levels and stop the treatment altogether.

An active gland was of no use to him now.

⸻⸻⸻✿⸻⸻⸻

– End of chapter –

NEW CHAPTER RELEASED/UNLOCKED EVERY MONDAY.

If you enjoy this translation, consider giving it a high rating on Novel Updates! 😉

Stay tuned, and happy reading! 📖✨