Blazing fire is hard to extinguish chapter 47

 Parting

After Lin Chi said this, Li Tingyan’s breathing seemed to become heavier.

But he didn’t plan to listen to Li Tingyan’s answer. He simply said, “Goodbye, Li Tingyan, take care of yourself.” and hung up the phone decisively.

But after hanging up, he stared at the phone in a daze.

Huo Yuning, at some point, had quietly sat back across from him.

There were hardly any people in the lounge, it was very quiet, and she couldn’t avoid hearing some of the fragments of Lin Chi’s conversation.

Moreover, from Lin Chi moving out of Li Tingyan’s house and saying he wanted to settle abroad for a while, she had roughly guessed the outcome between the two.

She took a plum candy from the snack box, peeled the wrapper, and gave Lin Chi a thumbs up.

“Quite free-spirited.”

She was referring to Lin Chi’s final attitude.

“Well, us ordinary people aren’t really suited for getting involved with those from wealthy families. You see, it’s better for you to focus on your career, gaining both fame and fortune. When you’re famous worldwide in the future, you’ll have plenty of…”

She was trying to comfort Lin Chi.

But when she peeled the candy and put it in her mouth, she looked up and was stunned.

Because she saw Lin Chi’s eyes were red.

Lin Chi didn’t look miserable when crying; his eyes were just slightly red, and his face had no particular expression.

If it weren’t for the tear tracks on his face, there wouldn’t be much difference from usual.

But those were indeed two lines of tears.

All of Huo Yuning’s words got stuck in her throat.

After knowing Lin Chi for so many years, she had seen him being bullied as a newcomer, harassed by others, and in embarrassing situations. Despite living in a leaky house, he would still take out a glass to offer her a drink.

She had seen Lin Chi’s despair and frustration, as well as his joy and excitement.

But she had never seen him cry.

This made her feel a mix of emotions all at once.

But it was only for a moment; the next second, she silently raised her phone and took a picture of him.

Click.

The flash clearly illuminated Lin Chi.

“What are you doing?”

Lin Chi couldn’t help but laugh in frustration, feeling at a loss, looking at Huo Yuning in disbelief.

Huo Yuning admired the photo in her hand.

“Sorry, it is just too rare. I couldn’t resist capturing it,” she said without any guilt. “When you become famous, in a few decades, I’ll secretly sell this photo to the media, and it’ll be titled ‘Broken First Love’.”

Lin Chi was amused.

Huo Yuning’s interruption seemed to ease his sadness a bit, but as soon as he tried to smile, it quickly faded away.

He couldn’t laugh.

The beautiful emerald earring still dangled from his ear, causing him heartache.

Huo Yuning sighed, took out a pair of sunglasses from her bag, and personally put them on him.

“When we get on the plane, don’t let anyone see you like this,” she advised. “I don’t want a paparazzo to catch you in this state. Babe, you’re a star under the spotlight now, the muse of designers. Show some style, will you? Don’t look so downtrodden and miserable; it affects your image.”

Lin Chi’s eyes were hidden behind the sunglasses, and he gave her a perfunctory smile.

“I’ll try.”

He lowered his head to look at his phone again, but after a while, he reached out to Huo Yuning, “Give me a candy.”

Huo Yuning handed him one.

Lin Chi unwrapped the candy and put it in his mouth. The sour and sweet taste of the plum spread instantly.

He frowned and muttered, “So sour.”

When he said this, his voice had a noticeable nasal sound.

But he didn’t say anything more, just kept folding the candy wrapper, crumpling and straightening it, folding it neatly again and again.

Huo Yuning didn’t know how to comfort him either.

She thought for a moment and said softly, “When I broke up with my first love, I also felt like I was dying.”

Lin Chi’s attention was caught a bit.

He knew Huo Yuning had a first love she loved deeply, and their breakup was heart-wrenching.

But she never mentioned that person much afterward.

“And now?” Lin Chi asked, his voice hoarse, resonating with shared pain. “Do you still think about him?”

“No, I only think he’s a jerk, unworthy,” Huo Yuning said firmly.

Lin Chi was amused again.

But he lowered his head, still fiddling with the candy wrapper, folding it over and over, wearing the purple wrapping to the point of it losing color.

After a long while, he suddenly spoke softly.

“But Li Tingyan isn’t a bad person.”

From start to finish, Li Tingyan was never a bad person.

On the contrary, he was too good, which is why Lin Chi couldn’t stop thinking about him, couldn’t let go.

Even after they separated, the memories of Li Tingyan were all good—buying him donuts, picking him up from school, holding him when he was sad, and helping him light sparklers…

These countless images formed Li Tingyan, the person he loved.

He never felt that he loved the wrong person.

Lin Chi blinked, feeling his eyes stinging again.

But he didn’t want to dwell on these memories. He picked up a magazine and covered his face, hiding all his emotions.

He half-lay on the sofa, his muffled voice coming from under the magazine, speaking calmly to Huo Yuning, “I’m going to sleep for a while. Wake me up when it’s time to board.”

Huo Yuning looked at him with complex emotions.

But she knew she wasn’t good at comforting, and Lin Chi didn’t need it.

She shook her head lightly and picked up a financial magazine herself. “Okay.”

….

Thirteen hours later, Lin Chi and Huo Yuning landed at Charles de Gaulle Airport in France. They took a taxi to the hotel. Exhausted, Lin Chi hadn’t adjusted to the time difference yet. But as he sat by the window adorned with white gauze, looking at the evening street scene outside, he felt a bit lighter in his heart.

And just a few hours later, at 6 a.m. Beijing time, Li Tingyan returned home.

Everything seemed unchanged—the garden was still lush, the fountain’s water still flowed like pearls from the bottle. Entering the house, every staff member greeted him politely, and the butler dutifully and caringly inquired about his trip.

But when Li Tingyan handed his coat to the butler, he sat in the living room, waiting and waiting, yet no one wrapped in a messy robe, more carefree and casual than anyone else, yet always shining, came down the white marble steps to welcome him home.

Li Tingyan waited on the sofa for quite some time, not even sure what he was holding onto.

It wasn’t until the clock slowly passed eight in the morning, signaling the start of a new day, that he finally stood up and slowly walked toward Lin Chi’s room.

This room, connected to his bedroom, was once prepared by a designer for his future wife.

It’s hard to say what he was thinking when he ordered the butler to let Lin Chi stay here on that stormy night.

And now, sitting by the bed, he could clearly feel the room suddenly becoming much emptier.

The canopy on the four-poster bed hung quietly; Lin Chi had once praised the embroidery on it.

The woven blanket on the sofa in the corner was also something Lin Chi liked; he often sat there reading.

By the bedside, there were still Lin Chi’s cup, the magazine he read yesterday, and his favorite snacks.

It was as if Lin Chi had only stepped out briefly and would soon return.

But when Li Tingyan stood in front of the jewelry box that once belonged to Lin Chi, he realized clearly that he would not return.

Inside the jewelry box were all the pieces he had given Lin Chi.

Whether it was the bracelet he designed himself at sixteen, the yellow diamond brooch he acquired at an auction, or the ruby ring he had quickly sent over a few days ago.

He knew Lin Chi liked these shiny, beautiful things. Being materially wealthy, he was never stingy in using these gems to please Lin Chi.

He liked seeing him surrounded by all things beautiful and precious, believing that nothing in this world compared to the brightness of Lin Chi’s eyes.

Initially, Lin Chi refused to accept them.

Just like their relationship at the beginning, clearly defined and separate, turning into strangers as soon as they left the bed.

But later, Lin Chi could only smile helplessly and no longer refused when he slipped the bracelet onto his slender white wrist.

And now, looking at the jewelry box, Li Tingyan couldn’t describe what he was thinking.

Lin Chi accepting his gifts was the beginning of accepting him.

But now Lin Chi didn’t want him anymore.

So he was abandoned along with these cold, lifeless things.

No matter how valuable they were, they were useless to Lin Chi now.

This realization felt like a hidden crack in his heart.

Since the morning when Lin Chi broke up with him, this wound had been bleeding continuously.

It couldn’t stop.

But he had no right to scream in pain.

Li Tingyan’s eyelashes fluttered, and he closed the jewelry box, returning to sit by the window.

The morning sunlight shone on him, illuminating his cold face.

His fingers lightly caressed a black Vivienne Westwood skull ring.

This was from the day he first met Lin Chi. He took Lin Chi home, and Lin Chi took it off and gave it to him.

He still remembered how Lin Chi put the ring on his ring finger.

In his memory, even in the night, Lin Chi’s face glowed with pride.

Lin Chi said, “This is a parting gift for you, as a keepsake, because you’ll never meet someone of such high quality like me again.”

Back then, he didn’t take it seriously.

And shortly after that day, he met Lin Chi again at a club.

But now, thinking back, that day seemed like a lifetime ago.

And Lin Chi’s words became prophetic.

They had indeed parted.

And he would never meet anyone like Lin Chi again.

….

In the early morning sunlight.

Li Tingyan slowly put the skull ring back on his ring finger.

The ring was cold, yet it felt burning like a hot heart.

Thump-thump—thump-thump.

Never had he realized so clearly that he had lost Lin Chi.