Shen Lanting's deceased husband was named Wei Renmin. When he died, he was bombed to the point of being completely destroyed. After arriving on the grassland with her younger brother, she consulted the clan chief and, according to the customs of her hometown, erected a cenotaph for Wei Renmin.
This cenotaph is not far from where Shen Lanting lives. He would visit it during festivals, and for the first thirteen years, he went there alone.
Occasionally, when Shen Liyan and Shang Shujue returned from out of town, they would take them to burn incense together. For the next five years, Shen Liyan was busy with his studies and Shang Shujue was busy with his work, so they were basically not by his side. Only Lu Liuru accompanied him.
Lu Liuru sorry for him traveling alone, so she always stayed with him, asking for nothing in return, just silently keeping him company.
When he mourned his deceased husband at the tombstone, he would always stand not far away and wait, keeping a proper distance and never overstepping the boundaries, yet always watching over him.
Lu Liuru always gave selflessly and quietly; when he loved someone, he loved only that person.
I feel sorry for him raising his child alone, with nowhere to turn when the child is sick. I feel sorry for the way he sheds tears because of his deceased husband. I always feel that he is so fragile that he seems like he could be blown away by the wind at any moment.
I feel sorry for him, as he has to suffer alone every time he gets into heat, and there's nothing I can do about it.
The mark on Shen Lanting's body remained, Lu Liuru wanted to give him a temporary mark, it would only cause him to have a rejection reaction, making the pain even worse...
Lu Liuru had never liked anyone before, and she never knew how to express her feelings to the person she liked, nor did she know how to flatter or say nice things.
He gave silently, asking for nothing in return. Just seeing him there brought him peace of mind, and as long as he was well, he felt at ease.
In their world, the average lifespan is 300 years. He is only 45 years old now, and there is still a long way to go before he reaches 300. Shen Lanting is only 43 years old. They are in their prime.
Therefore, he has plenty of time to give and wait, even if it means waiting a lifetime, it would be worthwhile.
As she had done countless times before when accompanying Shen Lanting, Lu Liuru followed behind him slowly, carrying a bamboo basket. They remained silent, neither of them speaking.
When they reached within five meters of the tombstone, Lu Liuru stopped. Shen Lanting heard the footsteps stop and also stopped. As he turned around, Lu Liuru handed him the bamboo basket.
"I'm waiting for you."
"Good."
Shen Lanting blinked, his curled eyelashes trembled again, and there were still some tear stains at the corners of his eyes, making him look somewhat pitiful. He remained silent for a full two seconds before finally taking the bamboo basket and turning to walk to Wei Renmin's tombstone.
Lu Liuru stood there waiting for him, watching him. He couldn't hear what Shen Lanting said in front of the tombstone, but he saw him start to cry again, this time his nose was red from crying.
Lu Liuru sorry for him, but she didn't know how to comfort him. Her deceased husband was a respectable man.
He admired him greatly, but occasionally he would still feel a little resentful. Why didn't he protect himself when he went on missions? Why did he leave such a good person as Shen Lanting to suffer in this world?
Shen Lanting leaned against the tombstone, saying something for a while before finally standing up, carrying an empty bamboo basket, wiping away his tears as he walked towards Lu Liuru.
Lu Liuru naturally took the bamboo basket from his hand, slung it over her arm, and conscientiously cleared away the thorns that might scratch his calves, working hard without complaint and without saying a word.
Soon, they left the area where the tombstone was buried and walked onto the open grassland road. The road was flat, the grassland was boundless, the flowers in the grass were beautiful, the wind was gentle, and the sky was blue. Everything was just right.
" Brother Ru." Shen Lanting stopped in his tracks. A gentle breeze ruffled his clothes, lifting the colorful ribbon on his wrist that symbolized blessings and good fortune—it was tied for him by Lu Liuru. "Come with me to S City tomorrow."
Lu Liuru stopped and turned to look at him. Although there was some confusion in her eyes, she nodded gently without asking anything, "Okay."
Looking at Lu Liuru's appearance, Shen Lanting unconsciously took a step forward and took his hand with the one tied with the colorful ribbon. A smile suddenly welled up in her rosy eyes, and the tears in her eyes were still swirling, but they did not fall.
"I want to go to S City to have the markings removed."
Lu Liuru's body stiffened slightly, the bamboo basket in her hand suddenly fell to the ground, and she even stopped breathing for a moment. It took her a long time to react to what Shen Liyan had said.
He pursed his lips, his facial features tense, but he didn't say anything. His eyes reddened first, and he gripped Shen Lanting's hand tightly, pulling him into his arms.
The warm embrace scattered the tears in Shen Lanting's eyes, but they eventually fell again. He hugged Lu Liuru back, and they held each other for what seemed like an eternity. He heard a man's extremely hoarse voice, tinged with sobs, in his ear.
" A-Ting, thank you," he said.
This fool... Shen Lanting couldn't hold back her tears again. This time, they weren't for her deceased husband, but for the fool in front of her who silently gave without asking for anything in return...
Shen Lanting and Lu Liuru officially got together. When he proposed to Shang Shujue that they go to S City to clean up the markings, even Shang Shujue himself was surprised for a long time. In the end, he happily arranged everything for him.
He loves seeing lovers finally get married!
"... Mr. Shen's mark isn't deep; it's probably because your previous Alpha cherished you and didn't leave a deep mark. The removal surgery is very easy to handle."
"You just need to have a minimally invasive surgery, drink a bottle of oral liquid for gland repair, go home and get a good night's sleep, and you'll be completely fine the next day."
After arriving at the hospital, Shen Lanting underwent a series of examinations. When the results came out, Shen Lanting couldn't help but shed tears again, Lu Liuru and comforted him for a long time.
"... So he knew all along he wouldn't live long, so he gave me the right to choose someone else... Brother Ru, I'm sorry, I've been trapped by my own moral standards all these years, making you wait for me for so long..."
Lu Liuru wiped away his tears, unsure how to comfort him, only repeatedly saying sincere words like, "It's okay, you're so good, worth waiting a lifetime for."
Seeing the two of them like this, everyone else couldn't help but smile with relief. Shen Liyan held Lu Xingzhi's hand and couldn't help but say to him with emotion, "My Alpha dad is also a very, very good person. I hope he can be healthy in his next life."
Lu Xingzhi patted Shen Liyan's head and nodded gently. "Yes, because they are all so good, they have such a wonderful Omega like you. I'm very lucky."
"Hehehe, then you'd better treat me really, really well, otherwise I won't talk to you anymore."
"Yes, I won't let you ignore me."
The young couple stood in the corner whispering to each other, while Shang Shujue, Song Yanqing, and Nuomi stood nearby watching the drama unfold. Both Shang Shujue and Nuomi had expressions of utter delight at their unexpected romance.
Song Yanqing remained expressionless, and no one could tell what he was thinking. But Shang Shujue knew that this guy was happy too, happy for others to be happy.
After all, Song Yanqing had also done things like silently protecting Lu Liuru, only he was a bit Lu Liuru, never letting her know. Otherwise, they would have been together in the first world. But it's not too late now...