A lifetime of kind words

Their acquaintance was recommended by the club. At that time, she was young and vibrant, with many suitors around her, while he was an ordinary person. So, when the banquet ended and he invited her to have coffee together, she was surprised. However,
out of politeness, she still agreed.
Sitting in the coffee shop, the atmosphere between them was very awkward. There was nothing to talk about. She just wanted to finish quickly so that she could go back. But when the waitress brought the coffee, he suddenly said, "Could you bring some salt? I'm used to adding salt to my coffee." Before that, she was stunned, the waitress was stunned too. Everyone's gaze was focused on him, so much so that his face turned red.
The waitress brought the salt, and he sprinkled some out and slowly drank it. She was a woman with a strong curiosity, so she asked him, "Why do you add salt?" He was silent for a while, slowly and almost word by word, saying, "When I was a child, my family lived by the sea. I often swam in the sea. When the waves hit, seawater rushed into my mouth, it was bitter and salty. Now, I haven't been home for a long time. Adding salt to my coffee is a way to show I'm homesick, to bring the distance closer." Suddenly, she was touched. Because this was the first time she had heard a man say he was homesick in front of her. She thought that a man who was homesick must be a caring man, and a caring man must be a loving man. Suddenly, she had a desire to confide in him and told him about her hometown thousands of miles away, the cold atmosphere gradually became more harmonious. They talked for a long time, and she didn't refuse to send him home.
Later, the two had frequent dates. She discovered that he was actually a very good man in reality, generous, careful, and considerate, all the characteristics she had read about in excellent men. She secretly felt grateful that the courtesy beforehand had prevented her from missing him. She took him to every coffee shop in the city, each time saying, "Could you please bring some salt? My friend likes coffee with salt." Later, it was like what was written in a fairy tale, "The prince and the princess got married, and lived a happy life from then on." They really lived a happy life, and it lasted for forty years until he recently passed away due to illness.
The story seemed to be coming to an end, if it weren't for that letter.
The letter was written by him before his death and addressed to her: "Forgive me, I have always deceived you. Remember the first time you invited me to have coffee? The atmosphere was extremely bad. I felt very uncomfortable and calm. Somehow, I said to the waitress, 'Bring some salt,' actually I didn't add salt. Since I had said it beforehand, I had to make the mistake. I never expected it to arouse your curiosity. This time, it made me drink coffee with salt for the rest of my life. There were many times when I wanted to inform you, but I was afraid you would be angry, and I was even more afraid that you would leave me because of it.
Now I'm finally not afraid. Because I'm about to die, aren't dead people easily forgiven? Right? This life, getting you was my greatest happiness. If there's a next life, I still hope to marry you. But I don't want to drink coffee with salt anymore. I don't know, but I thought of it beforehand. How did I come up with the idea of adding salt to coffee?" The content of the letter surprised her and gave her a feeling of being deceived. However, he didn't know that she really wanted to inform him: "How happy she was! Someone was willing to deceive her for the rest of her life..."