Quick Transmigration: What to Do When the Male Supporting Character You Saved Becomes Obsessed with

Chapter 440 "Infecting the World" - Male Mother (51)

"So what are you going to do if you don't disappear?" Lu Liruan pressed him for an answer.

Liao Tingyuan shrugged: "He got arrested."

Lu Liruan: ?

"and then?"

"I'm waiting for someone from my workplace to come and rescue me."

Lu Liruan pursed her lips, but one question remained unasked: Will they really come?

Will they really... come to save you?

Since entering this space, what happened to your colleagues, and whether they even arrived, remains a mystery!

Lu Liruan thought to herself, if he really were arrested, her encounter with him would be over.

I guess he'll go to the police station to testify himself, and he certainly doesn't seem like a good person.

Liao Tingyuan had no idea what Lu Liruan was chuckling to herself about.

He glanced at Lu Liruan's face out of the corner of his eye and also slightly raised the corners of his mouth.

He said all this to cheer Lu Liruan up.

Otherwise, she seemed too downcast just now.

She looked listless and dejected, unlike her usual self.

Liao Tingyuan still preferred to see her happy and carefree.

Now they've both gotten used to cleaning up.

There are just too many discarded sheets and bed sheets.

The ones I bought are all used up, so Liao Tingyuan is contributing a set today. It's a rather expensive set of bedding that he usually uses.

Before throwing it into the trash can, Lu Liruan was still a little reluctant: "You're such a spendthrift!"

"All right!"

Liao Tingyuan closed the lid of the trash can and took out a wet wipe to wipe his hands.

"Let's go."

"Huh? Where to go?"

Lu Liruan didn't react for a moment.

Liao Tingyuan pointed outside the residential area with a half-smile: "Let's go get some late-night snacks!"

The next moment, Lu Liruan suddenly felt that the atmosphere around her had changed drastically.

It was as if suddenly, there was warmth again, an invisible barrier disappeared, everything began to flow, and even the smell in the wind was different.

Another night has passed...

Liao Tingyuan had already moved forward.

Lu Liruan watched his tall figure disappear into the distance, then hurried a few steps, her voice tinged with reproach: "Slow down! Wait for me!"

"Is this enough?"

Seeing her ordering with such grandeur, Liao Tingyuan whispered a word of advice.

"It's a rare treat to eat here! You usually don't let me eat! Why are you complaining that I'm eating too much now?" Lu Liruan said casually as she flipped through the oily menu.

They didn't notice the ambiguity in their own language.

Liao Tingyuan sensed that the young male waiter waiting for customers to order was looking at him with a strange expression.

Lu Liruan ordered two more dishes: "It's my treat! Let's have a good meal together... otherwise, who knows when you'll come out to eat with me again."

That gaze became even stranger.

What Lu Liruan actually wanted to express was that, given how seriously Liao Tingyuan took eating, he probably didn't know when he would be out having barbecue with her again.

Still at this time.

Lu Liruan had already made up her mind.

Since Liao Tingyuan was unwilling to accept payment for his meals, if he insisted on calculating the exact amount, he would probably only upset Liao Tingyuan.

Why not find an opportunity to go out for meals a few times a month, with her paying? That way, she can contribute some money, right?

When these meanings are combined, they seem quite strange...

She didn't look up, so she didn't see the awkwardness in Liao Tingyuan's expression.

Then Liao Tingyuan shut his mouth.

"Do you want to eat this?" Lu Liruan asked him.

"I... am fine with anything."

"what about this?"

"Ah."

"Soft drink or beer?"

"drinks."

Lu Liruan finally finished ordering and returned the menu to the waiter. Liao Tingyuan, who had straightened his back, relaxed a little.

The male waiter turned around, pursed his lips, and said: Who is he?!

He found such a young and beautiful girlfriend, but he's so stingy.

So what if she has a pretty face?

The barbecue arrived quickly.

Unlike the occasional takeout Lu Liruan used to order at home.

The freshly grilled lamb skewers sizzled with heat, filling the air with their aroma. The sounds of people eating, drinking, and laughing around them made the whole scene even more enjoyable.

"It's been so long since I've had this kind of roadside barbecue with anyone," Lu Liruan said, picking up a skewer, taking a bite, burning herself, and hissing.

"Who did you eat with last time?"

Liao Tingyuan asked casually, touching the large bottle of juice that had just been taken out of the refrigerator and was so cold it was frosty.

"my mother."

Lu Liruan's words made Liao Tingyuan pause for a moment.

This little girl is someone who can't keep secrets, or maybe she just doesn't think it's a secret at all...

He already knew more or less about her background and what had happened to her.

"That was... a long time ago, wasn't it?" Liao Tingyuan didn't avoid her question and answered naturally.

As expected, Lu Liruan showed no other expression and nodded: "Yes, many years ago."

Perhaps it was because the atmosphere was so good, or perhaps it was because Liao Tingyuan was so trustworthy, but the barbecue smelled delicious, and everyone around us was laughing and joking without any guard up.

“My mother was still in good health at the time, so we went downstairs for a walk together… As we walked further back, there was a charcoal stove set up by the roadside, selling lamb skewers. The two of us bought ten skewers.” Lu Liruan crossed her fingers to make a cute “ten” shape.

As Liao Tingyuan listened to her talk, he used a tissue to wipe off the black residue that had gotten on the tip of the skewer while it was grilling.

Then he handed the cleaned item to Lu Liruan.

“My mom and I each ate five skewers. At that time, my mom had already ruined her stomach from taking medicine and had no appetite at all.”

"Maybe my mom ate with me because she saw I wanted to eat it. My family wasn't well-off back then, and we were very frugal when it came to buying meat. I really thought the lamb skewers that day smelled so good..." Lu Liruan swallowed the meat in her mouth and took a sip of the ice-cold beer she had ordered.

“Mom didn’t finish her food either, and gave me the remaining two skewers.” Lu Liruan pursed her lips, her expression somber. “I was so happy eating that I don’t remember if I even looked at Mom. She probably looked at me, sighed, and said, ‘In this life, we’re busy all the time, but in the end, all we’re busy with is our mouths.’ I… I didn’t feel anything at the time.”

Lu Liruan put down her chopsticks and looked at the barbecue grill.

Her eyes flickered: "Many times afterward, I remembered what my mother said that day..."

"And then?" Liao Tingyuan picked up his juice glass, pretended to clink glasses with hers, and made Lu Liruan twitch her lips slightly.

"I don't know why I remember my mother's words so clearly. Maybe it's because I've been thinking about it ever since... My mother never ate anything good until the very end. She suffered so much, yet her mouth never got to enjoy anything good..."

Lu Liruan sighed deeply to cover up her trembling voice at the end.

Liao Tingyuan didn't expect her to take such an ordinary sentence so seriously.

But that's how people are; they don't even know which moment they'll remember or what will leave a deep impression on them.

These are all things beyond one's control.

No one knows which moment will trap them.

But Liao Tingyuan felt that he might... remember what Lu Liruan looked like now.

"She left so early, and she never even got to eat anything good..." Lu Liruan murmured, "That time she even shared two of her meat skewers with me because I was so greedy. I don't know how Mom looked at me then... Was she smiling?"

Lu Liruan lowered her head and quickly touched her face with the back of her hand.

But the tears that welled up were too big, too heavy, and slid down the back of her hand onto the table.

Under the awning set up at the barbecue stall, the lights shone brightly, making everything appear crystal clear.

Liao Tingyuan always has a lot of reasoning to say and his own insights.

But at this moment, he was unusually silent.

He silently placed a wet tissue in Lu Liruan's hand.

He gently squeezed Lu Liruan's fingertips, placed her on the table, and slowly opened his clenched hand.

He grabbed her hand and squeezed it a little tighter; "The meat skewers are so delicious, your mother will be happy to see you enjoying them."

"Seeing you enjoy your meal makes me happy too..." Liao Tingyuan said softly.

"Don't keep thinking about what your mother was thinking back then, because you'll never have a clear answer. You know, she will always love you, but she no longer has the capacity to love you."

Liao Tingyuan moved from the opposite side to sit next to Lu Liruan, lowering his shoulders so that Lu Liruan could lean against him comfortably.

"Don't be so hard on yourself. Mom can't love you in your current life anymore. You remember her love, but you have to...you have to let her go."

"Let her go?" Lu Liruan lowered her head, leaning against Liao Tingyuan, but did not look up, not wanting him to see her face.

It's so inexplicable. I suddenly felt sad for no reason, and then I started talking about my own problems for no reason. I started pouring out my troubles to others for no reason.

Perhaps it's because I've seen the word "mother" too many times these past few days.

Seeing how other children are with their mothers, one can sense that the mothers are almost willing to do anything to protect their children.

It made me think of my mother a little...

"No matter how much you think about her every move now, no matter how much you try to figure out what she's thinking, what she would do or what she would be like if she were still here... it's all useless now."

Liao Tingyuan raised his hand and put his arm around Lu Liruan's shoulder. The girl was unwilling to look up, so he let her wipe her tears on his shirt.

The fabric of summer clothes was too thin; the tears were initially scalding hot, but then cooled down quickly, touching his skin perfectly.

"Just remember the good things she did for you, the love she had for you, and the happiest and warmest times you spent together. That way you can draw strength from them instead of letting them hold you back," Liao Tingyuan said softly.

"How did you manage to trap me?" Lu Liruan said sullenly.

"You just said that you hadn't eaten barbecue in a long time, and that you only occasionally ordered takeout and never came to a barbecue stall like today?"

Lu Liruan nodded and pressed her head even closer to him.

“A mother’s love isn’t about making you lose your appetite or crying at the sight of lamb skewers.” He hugged Lu Liruan even tighter.

The two leaned against each other without any sense of boundaries.

"A mother's love might be... just to make you feel that lamb skewers taste even better."

Lu Liruan wanted to laugh, but she just sniffed.

"Give me that piece of paper," she muttered. "Otherwise, I'm going to wipe my snot on your clothes!"

"Go ahead and use it, you'll have to wash it when you get back anyway," Liao Tingyuan joked, quickly handing her the paper.

Lu Liruan was busy blowing her nose and wiping away tears from her face in a mess.

"Doesn't your neck hurt?"

Liao Tingyuan's cold fingers tapped the back of her bent neck.

"Phew—" Lu Liruan blew her nose again and whispered, "I don't want you to see."

"Okay, then I won't look." Liao Tingyuan's hand slid from her neck and shoulders to her back, gently stroking her to help her breathe.

Lu Liruan wasn't sad for long, after all, it happened many years ago, but today the memories were suddenly stirred up.

"You sound quite experienced?" Lu Liruan asked somewhat awkwardly, trying to make conversation.

"Because many years ago, I also... thought about it that way." Liao Tingyuan smoothed the messy hair that had been rubbing against him.

"Shall I tie your hair back up for you?" he asked in a low voice.

Lu Liruan steeled herself, pulled her head off his shirt, turned around, and nodded.

Lu Liruan's hair is the kind that is very fine and dense. It's soft and fluffy, like the long fur of a small animal, when you run it through your fingers.

Liao Tingyuan used his fingers as a comb to gather her messy hair back and tied it into a high ponytail, revealing her entire face.

Lu Liruan touched her eyes; she had just cried, and now her eyes felt a little swollen.

I don't know if it will be very obvious.

Liao Tingyuan was very considerate and didn't use her crying to tease her.

Are you feeling any better?

“Mm.” Lu Liruan nodded.

“You just said…” Lu Liruan didn’t know how to ask.

"I've wondered why I ended up in an orphanage. I don't even remember what my parents looked like. But I've also wondered if something happened to my family? Did something happen to them? Or maybe they just didn't want me..."

Liao Tingyuan said seriously, "I've thought about it many times, for many years. Then I suddenly realized that these questions will never have answers. And now that I'm this age, even if I might have the opportunity to find the answers, I won't look for them anymore."

He patted Lu Liruan on the back: "This answer has no meaning for me anymore. I can't draw any strength or feel any emotion from it. You are much luckier than me, so don't make things difficult for yourself because of this."

He spoke sincerely, looking into Lu Liruan's eyes, as if he wanted her to fully feel that he truly cared about her, without uttering a single false word.

"Oh." Lu Liruan realized she had very few words of comfort to offer, and in her haste to speak, she finally managed to squeeze out, "Don't...don't be sad. I'm good to you. In the future, can you draw strength from me?"