Shen Qing thought seven days in Xi’an would be enough for a brief infatuation.
At thirty-two, she was used to leaving herself an escape route in love. Lin Xu was twenty-five, yet earnest in a way that seemed almost unreal.
She said, “I just want to treasure what we have now. As for the future… nobody knows.”
But with red-rimmed eyes, he asked her, “I’m still trying to figure out how to end the long distance, and you’re already thinking about how to end things with me?”
Seven days later, she returned to the Netherlands.
The distance, the age gap, the past, and reality: none of it had gone away.
But they both knew
Their real story had only just begun.
He walked into her life with complete sincerity, telling her again and again:
Age isn’t the problem. Not being cherished is.
