Hearing You Say Love chapter 57

 Engagement gift

The date was set for Saturday. To keep things fresh, Su Ming insisted that Zou Beiyuan go back to his own place the night before.

On Saturday, near noon, Zou Beiyuan came to pick him up.

The weather was perfect, with the summer heat mostly gone, a bright blue sky, and drifting clouds.

Su Ming wore a stylish white shirt, the collar slightly open, exposing a hickey near his collarbone.

In the elevator, Zou Beiyuan’s eyes lingered on the mark, reaching over to adjust Su Ming’s collar. But without a button, it kept slipping back open.

When he adjusted it again, Su Ming deliberately moved, and the hickey peeked out once more.

Zou Beiyuan, with a patch covering his own neck, was speechless: …

Su Ming suppressed a laugh and gestured with his fingers: You’re so innocent.

Zou Beiyuan felt a bit helpless and could only respond in sign language: You’re so lewd.

Su Ming then noticed that Zou Beiyuan was still wearing the black hair tie he accidentally dropped the other night on his right wrist. He reached out to ask Zou Beiyuan to give it back to him.

Zou Beiyuan didn’t return it but seriously added a label to the old hair tie: “This is a souvenir from the first time you bit me.”

Su Ming, blushing at the teasing, gave Zou Beiyuan the middle finger. Zou Beiyuan grabbed his finger and intertwined their hands.

When the elevator doors opened, the two of them walked hand in hand toward Zou Beiyuan’s car.

For lunch, they went to a rooftop restaurant in a commercial center that was hard to book. Su Ming had been there once before, thanks to a friend who made a reservation a week in advance. He was curious how Zou Beiyuan managed to get a reservation just a day ahead.

After parking the car, they took the elevator directly to the top floor. The hostess at the restaurant was momentarily stunned when she saw Su Ming and stuttered while delivering her welcome speech.

After Zou Beiyuan provided his last name and the last four digits of his phone number, the hostess regained her composure and led them to their reserved private room.

As they passed through the dining area, Su Ming heard a familiar voice call out, “Ge!”

He stopped in his tracks, realizing why the hostess had been surprised.

He turned around and saw Su Mo.

Sitting across from Su Mo was a beautiful girl in a wheelchair.

…Qu Yanxi?

Su Mo stood up to introduce his girlfriend to them.

Because of their awkward encounter at the blind date dinner last time, Qu Yanxi felt a bit shy seeing Su Ming again. She glanced at Su Mo for encouragement before softly calling out “Ge” with Su Mo.

Since they had run into each other, Zou Beiyuan invited Su Mo and the girl to join them, as the private room was spacious enough for four.

Su Ming and Zou Beiyuan sat on one side, while Su Mo and Qu Yanxi sat on the other.

Both Su Mo and Su Ming wore silver-rimmed glasses, and sitting across from each other felt like looking in a mirror.

However, Su Ming’s hair was slightly longer, and he was dressed more casually, making him appear younger than his brother.

Zou Beiyuan didn’t know that Qu Yanxi was the girl Su Ming had been tricked into meeting on a blind date, and he asked Su Mo how long he had been with the girl.

Su Mo was quite open and recounted how he got together with Qu Yanxi.

After the unpleasant meet up at the restaurant in Yishi, Su Ming got into Zou Beiyuan’s car and left with him. When Su Mo returned to the private room, he saw Qu Yanxi crying, and no matter how her parents tried to comfort her, they couldn’t get her to stop.

So Su Mo suddenly whispered something in Qu Yanxi’s ear, and she immediately stopped crying.

The set of parents had no idea that what Su Mo told Qu Yanxi was: “I’ll let you in on a secret; my brother is gay.”

Qu Yanxi laughed at that but still felt like she had been rejected, not believing Su Mo’s words.

So, Su Mo added Qu Yanxi on WeChat, promising to send her proof that his brother was not a straight man.

Although they didn’t discuss their brother’s orientation again afterward, they often chatted on WeChat, and over time, Su Mo would go to Mingshan to meet Qu Yanxi, and they naturally ended up together.

Su Mo pointed at Zou Beiyuan and said to Qu Yanxi, “See, I wasn’t lying. My brother really is gay; this is his boyfriend.”

Zou Beiyuan smiled at Qu Yanxi in agreement.

Qu Yanxi glanced between Zou Beiyuan and Su Ming, noticing the red mark at the base of Su Ming’s neck and feeling a bit shy, she pursed her lips.

Hearing that Qu Yanxi had cried about this matter made Su Ming feel guilty, so he asked the waiter for paper and a pen, seriously writing “I’m sorry” to Qu Yanxi.

Qu Yanxi pushed the paper back and gently said, “It’s okay. I’m not mad at you Ge; I’m upset with my parents. They didn’t discuss it with us before they invited us to meet, so it’s normal for you to have reacted that way, Ge.”

She kept referring to Su Ming as “Ge,” which made him feel even guiltier, so he signed: About that last time, I was also upset with my parents; don’t think too much of it.

Su Mo translated for Qu Yanxi, and she nodded, “I understand.”

With that, the matter seemed settled, and Su Mo didn’t bring up their parents again. However, halfway through the meal, Qu Yanxi said, “Ge, please don’t tell your parents about Su Mo and me.”

Su Ming paused, realizing that Su Mo probably hadn’t told Qu Yanxi that he had almost no contact with their parents anymore. If it weren’t for Su Mo acting as a mediator, he might not have seen their parents for years.

But… didn’t their dad and mom have a good impression of the Qu family?

Why keep it a secret?

“He won’t tell them,” Su Ming was about to gesture, but Zou Beiyuan spoke first, “But why do you straight people have these worries too?”

Su Mo squeezed Qu Yanxi’s hand resting on the table but Qu Yanxi shook her head and said openly, “It’s fine. Your brother will find out sooner or later.”

Seeing that they seemed to want to discuss something important, Su Ming put down his chopsticks and looked at Qu Yanxi, signing: Is it my parents that disagree?

This time, Zou Beiyuan didn’t wait for Su Mo to speak and translated for Qu Yanxi.

Su Ming turned to look at Zou Beiyuan, who raised an eyebrow proudly at him, their hands discreetly interlocking under the table.

The private room was quiet. Qu Yanxi glanced at Su Ming and gently said, “Actually, before I met your brother last time, I overheard my parents discussing that they wanted to find a son-in-law. I heard them say that they had already talked to the Su family, and if things went well, they would give 1.66 million in bride price in one go, and the husband would live with us, and the children would take the surname Qu.”

Su Ming scoffed coldly, realizing why his parents would disagree.

The Su family, led by their grandmother, had very traditional views. They were counting on Su Mo to carry on the family line.

Moreover, in their hometown, being a son-in-law was very shameful. It was one thing for the disabled Su Ming to be a son-in-law, but how could their precious son Su Mo do such a humiliating thing?

Zou Beiyuan gave Su Ming a look as if he were an elderly person reading a surprising headline on the subway: “Su Ming, your parents wanted to sell you off for just over a million.”

Su Ming: …

“I used to feel indifferent about it,” Qu Yanxi continued. “After my car accident, my parents took great care of me. I thought whatever they said was right, and I would do whatever they arranged… until I met Su Mo.”

She looked at Su Mo, her smile a little sweet. “They forbade me from dating Su Mo, but Su Mo and I have already decided to be together.”

Su Ming was confused and used sign language to ask: I thought it was my parents that disapproved? How come your parents disapprove too?

“Because I told mom and dad that I was with Yanxi,” Su Mo sighed, then continued, “I thought they’d be happy, but they were strongly opposed and told me not to contact Yanxi again. This news even reached Yanxi’s parents, who felt we were being unfair to her and didn’t want us dating either.”

Su Ming: …

“Oh, I get it now,” Zou Beiyuan nodded, his face serious. “Your parents wanted to marry off Su Ming as a son-in-law, taking 1.66 million in bride price without caring about him. But now that it’s about you, they feel it’s a loss and don’t want to do it.”

“Fuck,” Zou Beiyuan couldn’t hold back his anger. His eyes reddened as he cursed, feeling both angry and heartbroken for Su Ming. “They’re so damn selfish!”

Imagining what Su Ming must have endured at home for years—how much unfair treatment and discrimination—he felt an urge to punch them!

Sensing Zou Beiyuan’s bad mood, Su Ming held his hand under the table, soothing him by gently rubbing the back of his hand with his thumb and using his gaze to tell him: It’s okay.

He was used to it by now; if he still got angry over this, he would have been worn out long ago.

Su Mo looked a bit embarrassed. “I’ve already argued with our parents about it and am currently keeping it a secret from them.”

In contrast, Qu Yanxi, who was rebelling for the first time in her life, was thrilled and smiled excitedly. “I snuck out of Mingshan to find Su Mo. Pretty impressive, right?”

Su Ming was slightly surprised and gave her a thumbs-up. Zou Beiyuan asked, “So, how are you two going to wrap this up? Planning to elope?”

“No way,” Su Mo chuckled. “I already called Uncle Qu and persuaded him to let Yanxi spend a day in Rong City. Tomorrow, I’ll take her back.”

Qu Yanxi added, “Even if my legs can’t move, my soul is free. They can’t control me.”

“Behave a little,” Su Mo gently ruffled her hair. “When I spoke to your dad today, they were searching everywhere for you, and your mom was even crying.”

Qu Yanxi pouted, “Oh, if you take me back, they’ll watch me even more closely, and you’ll never see me again.”

Su Mo: “Guess why he agreed to let me take you back instead of picking you up himself?”

“Oh right,” Qu Yanxi’s eyes widened. “Why?”

“Because I told him I’m willing to be a live-in son-in-law, and that if we have kids, they’ll take your last name, Qu.”

Qu Yanxi was momentarily stunned, her eyes shimmering with tears as she covered her mouth and softly called out, “Su Mo…”

Zou Beiyuan served Su Ming more food and asked Su Mo, “Will your parents agree to this?”

Su Mo hadn’t yet figured out how to explain it to his parents. “No matter what, I won’t let Yanxi down. I’ll work on convincing them gradually.”

Su Ming paused with his chopsticks in hand, thinking his parents would never agree, but then he realized they loved Su Mo so much that they might eventually understand and compromise, so he said nothing.

After the meal, Su Mo invited them to the panda base, as Qu Yanxi had long wanted to see the giant pandas.

Zou Beiyuan asked Su Ming, “Want to go?”

Su Ming originally planned to see a movie, but Su Mo and Qu Yanxi looked at him eagerly, so he signed: Let’s go.

When they went downstairs to get the car, Su Mo was pushing Qu Yanxi ahead, and Zou Beiyuan, walking behind, hooked his finger around Su Ming’s hand.

Su Ming turned to look at him.

The two were already close, and when Su Ming turned, he almost touched Zou Beiyuan’s face. In a hidden gesture, Zou Beiyuan gave him a quick kiss and said, “At the end of this year, I have a boxing match against Harrison.”

Su Ming blinked at him: And?

“I’ll win the gold belt,” Zou Beiyuan continued, “and give it to you as an engagement gift. How about that?”