What If I Ended Up Marrying My Enemy? - Chapter 50

Chapter 50: Wishes

 

The fruit was swallowed down. Yu Zhixue originally wanted to argue back, but when he recalled the time he drunkenly asked for a kiss, he couldn’t get the words out.

 

Everyone finally finished eating, but no one was in a hurry to leave. They stayed seated, chatting about funny memories and activities from their high school days.

 

Yu Zhixue listened to a couple of stories and then asked Yu Wenxuan the question he had been curious about:
“Why did you decide to go study out of town back in high school?”

 

Usually, going to school out of town had to do with family reasons, but from the looks of Yu Wenxuan’s mom, she didn’t seem like someone who would send her son away.

 

“There wasn’t really any other reason. I just wanted to leave,” Yu Wenxuan replied softly, his voice low because of the people nearby.

 

He reached over and took Yu Zhixue’s hand, gently rotating the ring between his fingers, slowly spinning it.

 

“Honestly, I kind of regret it now.” Yu Wenxuan lowered his eyes to look at the ring on Yu Zhixue’s hand and continued, “If I hadn’t left, maybe I would’ve met you back then.”

 

He would’ve met that younger, more innocent version of him—the one who secretly got sad from time to time.

 

But that was just a what-if. It didn’t mean anything. Just a fantasy, nothing more.

 

Yu Zhixue stole a glance at the group nearby. They were already deep into conversation, laughing and chatting, and no one was looking their way. Yu Wenxuan was shielding him too.

 

His fingers, which Yu Wenxuan had been playing with, twitched. He curled them and held Yu Wenxuan’s hand back. Then, he leaned in and quickly kissed Yu Wenxuan’s chin.

 

The touch was slightly damp. Yu Zhixue said, “You smell kind of weird.”

 

Yu Wenxuan’s first thought was the drink he had earlier, but after seeing the look in Yu Zhixue’s eyes, he realized that wasn’t what he meant.

 

It wasn’t a scent—it was a feeling.

 

“I’m not sad. Just… a little regretful,” he said.

 

They were still murmuring softly to each other when someone from the group said, “Since we’re all here, why don’t we take some time to visit our old teachers?”

 

As soon as that was said, several people chimed in, “Yeah, it’s been forever since we saw our homeroom teacher.”

 

Yu Wenxuan noticed some glances sent their way and replied,
“I won’t be staying here long. I’m just showing him around for a bit, so I won’t be going.”

 

There was no need to say who he was—it was clear.

 

Zhao Kaiyun stepped in to smooth things over, smiling as he nodded.
“Alright, alright. We won’t disturb you lovebirds then. You two go have fun.”

 

…

 

By the time they left the restaurant, it was already late. The night in T City was freezing, with patches of snow cleared off only to be quickly covered again.

 

Yu Zhixue had been indoors for a long time, and even though Yu Wenxuan had pulled on his hat and gloves before they went out, the cold still hit him hard as soon as they stepped outside.

 

He even shivered a little.

 

Yu Wenxuan saw him rubbing his hands together for warmth and stepped over, breathing warm air into Yu Zhixue’s palms.

 

The heat vanished almost immediately, swallowed up by the cold night air. But even so, Yu Zhixue could still feel that fleeting warmth.

 

The car they called would take a few more minutes to arrive. Yu Wenxuan unzipped his coat a bit, took Yu Zhixue’s hands, and slid them inside, then wrapped his arms around him.

 

Caught off guard by the sudden hug, Yu Zhixue could feel Yu Wenxuan’s breath near his ear and the almost burning warmth of his chest through the coat.

 

He tried to pull his hands out but was stopped.

 

“My hands are cold. They’ll make you uncomfortable,” Yu Zhixue explained earnestly.

 

Yu Wenxuan ignored the last part entirely and only replied, “Your hands really are cold.”

 

Even so, he clearly had no intention of letting go. “Just warm them up here a bit. The car will be here soon.”

 

No one could resist warmth in cold weather, and Yu Zhixue was no exception. After a slight, futile struggle, he stopped resisting.

 

By the time the car came, he no longer felt cold.

 

Once they were home, Yu Zhixue took off his coat and went straight to the bathroom to soak in the tub. Yu Wenxuan knelt beside the tub to help him wash his hair.

 

As Yu Zhixue played with the bubbles, a thought came to him. He leaned his head back and asked, “Where are we going tomorrow? Should we go check out that temple?”

 

Yu Wenxuan, who was rinsing his hair and accidentally got himself wet in the process, didn’t mind. “Sure.”

 

But thinking about how packed that place usually was, he added, “We might need to leave a little earlier tomorrow.”

 

“Alright.”

 

With his hair washed and dried, Yu Zhixue burrowed into bed first under the pretense of “warming the sheets.”

 

He shifted around under the blanket, and with nothing better to do while waiting for Yu Wenxuan to finish showering, he pulled out his phone and searched for the temple online.

 

Yu Wenxuan wasn’t lying—the place was indeed popular. Just typing its name brought up countless photos of huge crowds.

 

Clearly, it was well-known for being spiritually effective. Yu Zhixue scrolled through the comments, reading people’s stories with great interest.

 

He didn’t even notice when the sound of running water stopped. It wasn’t until a warm, damp body pressed against his back that he realized Yu Wenxuan had joined him.

 

Yu Wenxuan rested his nose on Yu Zhixue’s shoulder, eyes glancing through the gap at the screen.

 

He had assumed Yu Zhixue was replying to messages and hadn’t expected him to be searching for information about the temple. He chuckled quietly.

 

Once Yu Zhixue noticed he was there, he locked his phone and turned around, burrowing into Yu Wenxuan’s arms.
“Sleep. We’re getting up early tomorrow.”

 

…

 

Maybe it was excitement, but the next morning Yu Zhixue didn’t even try to sleep in. He didn’t even doze off while brushing his teeth like he usually did.

 

Yu Wenxuan, used to helping him through groggy mornings, found himself with nothing to do and a bit at a loss.

 

As he brought a warm glass of milk to the table, he asked, “Excited?”

 

“A little bit,” Yu Zhixue said, holding his thumb and forefinger together to show “just a little.”

 

Then, tilting his head with a curious smile, he asked, “You’re not excited?”

 

Yu Wenxuan took a bite of breakfast, looked at him, and said,
“I’m not really one to believe in this stuff, so I wouldn’t say I’m excited. But I’m happy to go with you.”

 

Yu Zhixue’s excitement dropped the moment he saw the mountain. The temple sat high above, and the winding path up seemed to have no end in sight.

 

Still standing at the foot of the mountain, he paused and asked,
“The temple is halfway up the mountain, right?”

 

Yu Wenxuan, having been there before, crushed his last hope.
“It’s at the very top.”

 

Yu Zhixue made a small, defeated “mm” sound. His expression didn’t change much, but he looked slightly wronged.

 

Mimicking Yu Zhixue’s tone from the night before, Yu Wenxuan bent down slightly and sniffed him, whispering,
“You smell a little unhappy.”

 

Yu Zhixue immediately caught on and even sniffed himself once, pretending to agree:
“Yeah, maybe a little unhappy.”

 

Yu Wenxuan couldn’t help but chuckle softly, then reached out to hook Yu Zhixue’s finger.
“Let’s go. There’s a cable car up that way.”

 

Yu Zhixue’s eyes lit up—then dimmed again. He didn’t move.

 

Yu Wenxuan swung his hand gently. “What’s wrong?”

 

Yu Zhixue looked a bit down.
“I saw someone say yesterday that if you don’t walk up yourself, the wish won’t be as effective.”

 

Yu Wenxuan was about to call it superstition but stopped himself. After all, they were going to a temple.

 

He instead turned to Yu Zhixue. “Do you want to walk up or take the cable car?”

 

Yu Zhixue hesitated for a long time. In the end, he looked up seriously and said,
“Let’s walk up together. I want to do it properly this time—no regrets.”

 

Yu Wenxuan didn’t argue and just took his hand, leading the way.

 

Though the path wound its way up the mountain, it had been repaired over the years and wasn’t too hard to walk.

 

By the time they reached the halfway point, Yu Zhixue was starting to tire. He didn’t say anything, just quietly followed behind.

 

Yu Wenxuan, knowing exactly how much stamina he had, slowed down without pointing it out.

 

Eventually, seeing him struggling, Yu Wenxuan stopped and switched topics.
“Tired?”

 

Yu Zhixue rotated his ankle and admitted, “A bit.”

 

Yu Wenxuan looked at the remaining distance, turned his back, crouched down, and waved him over.
“There’s not much left. I’ll carry you.”

 

A lot of couples had already started doing this at that point on the path, so it wasn’t unusual.

 

But just because the act wasn’t eye-catching didn’t mean they weren’t. Their faces drew attention no matter what.

 

Yu Zhixue didn’t climb on. Instead, he rubbed Yu Wenxuan’s hair and said,
“I’m fine. I can keep walking.”

 

Nearby, another couple had the same issue—the guy crouched down, the girl refused. One bystander was curious to see how Yu Wenxuan would convince his partner.

 

But Yu Wenxuan said nothing. He simply stood up, turned, and lifted Yu Zhixue into his arms.

 

Caught off guard, Yu Zhixue let out a quick yelp, which he quickly stifled. He clung to Yu Wenxuan’s shoulders and whispered,
“Put me down.”

 

Yu Wenxuan freed one hand to lightly pat his butt.

 

Yu Zhixue: “!”

 

The guy waiting nearby, who’d hoped to copy his strategy, was stunned. He watched Yu Wenxuan walk up the path steadily, then slowly turned back around.

 

Yu Zhixue didn’t speak again. He stayed obediently in Yu Wenxuan’s arms until the temple came into view.
“Will my wish still come true like this?”

 

“It will,” Yu Wenxuan said softly.
“I’ll tell the gods to take mine and give it to you. As long as your wish comes true, that’s enough.”

 

Yu Zhixue didn’t argue.
“I’ll make your wish too.”

 

Yu Wenxuan smiled.
“I don’t really have any wishes.”

 

Yu Zhixue didn’t believe him.
“Then why are you here?”

 

“To accompany you,” Yu Wenxuan said, gently tightening his hold.

 

The closer they got to the temple, the more crowded it became. Because it was a famous temple for making wishes, most visitors were young couples.

 

Yu Wenxuan put Yu Zhixue down before they reached the top. They held hands as they entered the temple grounds.

 

The temple was well maintained, with stone steps neatly arranged and incense smoke curling gently in the air. The smell of burning incense was strong but not unpleasant.

 

Yu Zhixue didn’t speak for a while. He just stood in place and looked up at the grand temple gate.

 

Yu Wenxuan followed his gaze.

 

After a moment, Yu Zhixue whispered,
“Did you really not make a wish?”

 

“I did,” Yu Wenxuan said, honestly.
“But I lied about not having any.”

 

“What did you wish for?” Yu Zhixue asked.

 

Yu Wenxuan didn’t answer right away. He reached out and gently brushed a strand of hair behind Yu Zhixue’s ear.

 

“To always stay with you,” he said.

 

Yu Zhixue’s heart gave a slight thump.

 

After a pause, he said, “Then I’ll wish for you to live a long, healthy life.”

 

“That’s good too,” Yu Wenxuan replied.

 

They walked hand in hand to the prayer area, burning incense sticks and bowing quietly. Yu Zhixue stood in front of the large incense burner and closed his eyes for a long time.

 

He didn’t pray for anything grand or extravagant.

 

He just wanted everything to stay as it was now.

 

The warm hand he held, the quiet companionship, the shared silence—all of it.

 

That was his only wish.

 

After bowing and placing the incense in the burner, Yu Zhixue stepped back and looked at the temple again.

 

Yu Wenxuan didn’t urge him to leave. He just stood beside him silently.

 

Eventually, Yu Zhixue said, “Okay, I’m done.”

 

“Did you make your wish?”

 

“Yeah.”

 

“What did you wish for?”

 

Yu Zhixue glanced sideways at him, then deliberately teased,
“If I tell you, it won’t come true.”

 

Yu Wenxuan smiled, “Alright. Then I won’t ask.”

 

They left the temple slowly, their steps unhurried. The mountain breeze was still chilly, but the sunlight had broken through the clouds.

 

On the way back down, they took the cable car. Yu Zhixue sat by the window and leaned slightly on Yu Wenxuan’s shoulder.

 

The two sat quietly.

 

Yu Wenxuan looked at the scenery passing outside and suddenly asked,
“Did you make the same wish as me?”

 

Yu Zhixue didn’t answer right away. Instead, he reached into his coat pocket, pulled out a small folded prayer slip, and handed it to him.

 

Yu Wenxuan looked down and read the neatly written characters on the paper:

 

“I wish for us to always be together, safe and happy.”