"If I pay you, would you be willing to be my boyfriend?"
Pei Cheng had just seen a customer out. As he turned, a voice drifted from outside the shop—shy, slightly absurd, yet it brushed against his eardrum with a delicate touch.
Pei Cheng looked back involuntarily, his gaze landing on the source of the sound.
A young woman was standing quietly outside the door.
She wore a simple white dress, and her long hair was left unstyled, falling loosely over her shoulders. A few stray strands clung playfully to her pale cheeks, adding an air of unadorned fragility and pitiable grace.
The sunlight after the rain shone upon her slender frame, making her look like a fleeting breeze—as if she might vanish in the blink of an eye.
***
Half an hour ago.
In the hospital corridor, the smell of disinfectant was acrid and cold. Xu Huan sat on a bench in the waiting area, her fingers unconsciously twisting the hem of her clothes.
Her gaze was fixed blankly on the floor, and the doctor’s words echoed in her ears, each syllable like a sharp blade piercing deep into her heart.
"Xu Huan, your test results are in."
"I am sorry, but you have been diagnosed with late-stage leukemia."
The doctor’s voice was low and heavy, as if every word carried a thousand pounds of weight.
Xu Huan’s heart skipped a beat, and her chest felt as if it were being crushed by a giant stone, making it nearly impossible to breathe.
She forced a faint smile, trying to hide her inner panic with a light tone, but her voice couldn't help but tremble. "Is it curable?"
The doctor fell silent for a few seconds, his eyes filled with a flicker of reluctance before he spoke slowly: "If it were the early stages, the chances of recovery would be higher. But it is already late-stage. The effectiveness of treatment... might not be ideal."
Xu Huan’s fingers trembled slightly, and her throat felt as though it were blocked by something, leaving her unable to speak.
She lowered her head and stared at her pale fingers, her mind a complete blank.
"If you undergo treatment, you might have two to three years left," the doctor said, his voice laced with a subtle hint of pity.
Two to three years?
Xu Huan’s heart sank, as if gripped tightly by an invisible hand; even breathing became difficult.
She forced herself to remain calm, her voice barely a whisper: "And... what if I don't get treatment?"
The doctor remained silent for a few seconds, his voice growing heavier: "Probably... about a month."
A month.
Xu Huan gripped the hem of her dress tightly, her face drained of color.
Late-stage leukemia.
These words were like a sharp knife, piercing Xu Huan’s heart and instantly shattering all her hope.
She had once thought that everything she had endured was already unfortunate enough, but she never imagined that fate could be this cruel to her.
Xu Huan slowly stood up and walked out of the consulting room, her steps unsteady.
People came and went in the hospital hallway, yet she felt as if she were in another world; everything around her blurred and grew distant.
The only thing left in her ears was the doctor’s phrase "about a month"—like a funeral bell tolling, casting a heavy shadow over her future.
She walked to the window and looked out at the grey, overcast sky through the glass. A feeling of indescribable sorrow welled up in her heart.
Just how unfortunate can a person be?
Xu Huan had once thought that being switched at birth due to a nurse's negligence—only to go from being a wealthy heiress to "wild grass" in a family that prioritized sons over daughters—was the greatest misfortune of her life.
Later, when she was found by her biological family, she became the target of their disdain for her poverty and lack of sophistication, the result of years spent dropping out of school to work. That had been another great misfortune.
She thought that was the limit.
She never expected that something even worse was waiting for her.
Xu Huan stood by the window, her fingers gripping the frame so tightly her knuckles turned white.
Memories flickered through her mind—the grievances, the pain, the helplessness of not being trusted—surging up like a tide, nearly drowning her.
She had once believed that as long as she worked hard enough, she would eventually gain her family’s approval and find someone who truly loved her. But now, it seemed all of that was just a pipe dream.
Xu Huan’s vision grew blurry, and tears slid silently down her face.
She raised a hand to wipe them away and took a deep breath, trying to calm herself down.
Just then, her phone vibrated.
Xu Huan glanced down. It was a message from Xu Yan—the girl who had lived her life for nineteen years, the girl who had enjoyed the love of their parents and brothers in her place, and who still occupied everything that rightfully belonged to her:
"Sister, the second and third brothers took me shopping for clothes today. It’s such a pity you weren't there."
Xu Huan stared at the message, a bitter smile tugging at the corners of her lips.
Even though she was the true eldest daughter of the Xu Family, it seemed there had never been a place for her in that house.
The brothers could find time in their busy schedules to take Xu Yan shopping, yet none of them had time to accompany her to the hospital.
Xu Huan tucked her phone away and turned to leave the hospital.
The sky outside remained grey, and the air was filled with a damp, heavy quality, as if it might rain at any moment.
Xu Huan walked aimlessly through the streets, the doctor’s words echoing in her mind.
She didn't know where she should go, or what else she could do.
She only felt that the entire world had become cold and foreign, as if there were no place left for her to exist.
Unknowingly, Xu Huan found herself in front of a tattoo shop.
She had seen the owner of this shop a few times before.
He was strikingly handsome, with features as delicate as a character from a comic book, his eyes holding a sense of detachment from the mundane world.
Every time Xu Huan felt down, she would involuntarily walk here, stand outside the shop, and watch him quietly through the glass.
His presence seemed to have a kind of magic, allowing her to temporarily forget the pain that haunted her.
Just as Xu Huan was standing blankly in front of the shop, the owner appeared at the entrance alongside a young woman dressed in wealthy attire.
"Take care," the owner said, standing at the door and turning slightly to see the customer off.
He was wearing a simple black shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows, revealing strong forearms.
His movements were elegant and composed, a faint smile playing on his lips, as if even his farewells held a gentle power.
Xu Huan’s heart began to race. An absurd impulse surged from the depths of her soul, unstoppable as a rising tide.
Her feet moved of their own accord, carrying her toward him.
The wind brushed past her ears, cool and sharp, but it couldn't cool the agitation in her heart.
As the man turned around, Xu Huan rushed forward and spoke, casting all caution aside:
"I’ll pay you. Can you be my boyfriend?"
If her life was destined to be short, Xu Huan hoped that in these final moments, she could truly experience what it felt like to be loved.
Even if it were only for a brief moment of warmth, even if it were only a sham of tenderness, it would be enough to give her a shred of solace in this cold, cold world.
***
Pei Cheng looked at Xu Huan—skeletal, pale as a vampire, and so fragile she seemed to be held together only by a single thread of obsession. He raised an eyebrow slightly. "You want to buy me as your boyfriend?"
Xu Huan struggled to lift her face, a faint spark of expectation flickering in her dim eyes. "Is that possible?"