Under the dimly lit hallway, a young man was walking back and forth. Distress was written all over his face. His beautiful pale blue eyes seemed unfocused and his whole body emitted a cold aura which made him seem unapproachable.
Every few minutes his gaze lingered over the Mahogany door. The more he looked the worst his mood seemed to get. Three black lines appeared between his eyebrows as if a storm were brewing under those eyes.
Han Zhixin looked grim and pale, his always neat and trimmed hair appeared messy like it has been combed through multiple times. The clothes he wore looked wet and shriveled but he didn't seem bothered about it.
However, that was not the case, he was a neat freak and liked things to be well organized. This distinct behavior of his was something everyone around him knew. If his subordinates or younger brother saw him like this, they would certainly run to a Taoist and claim that their demon boss had been possessed by a higher-level demon. His eyes twitched at that thought.
The amount of patience he had for Tang Li Mei surpassed his expectations.
Taking a deep breath, he tried to calm himself. Whatever took place in the garden has been etched into his memory like a huge boulder weighing heavily on his heart. Seeing her in that condition worried him to no end but what could he do?? How can he ever claim to love her, when he did not even know the reason for her current misery??
There was already a list of truths that made him realize his unique situation with her starting from the fact that he barely knew her. The things that he knew were just basic stuff that anyone in this day and time can find on the internet. Anyone... that's precisely how he felt.... like an outsider!!!
Han Zhixin halted in his steps and froze as realization hit him like a clap of thunder. He never felt so powerless in the entire twenty-seven years of his existence.
Unclenching his fist, he sighed while a barely noticeable hopeless smile appeared on his worn-out face. His eyes were filled with despair while he tried to calm his distressed heart.
While this was not the first time, he had questions regarding her past, he always felt that he could take it slow, and hoped this would also construct a decent personality of him in front of her instead of as a pervert as she assumes. Although he cannot deny his perverseness, he had zero control over it, this was not his fault whenever she was close to him his body spontaneously made advances. However, every time he took a step ahead, he seemed to be pushed back ten steps further.
Resting his back on the wall he stared at the door once again with longing. Only he knew how scared he was when she fainted in his arms. The dread that filled his heart didn't let him think straight nor could he calm his wildly beating heart. At that moment he felt an immense amount of guilt for letting her get drenched in the rain. If something had happened to her then what would he do?? He didn't even want to think about all the consequences he and her loved ones would have to go through. Especially her little one...
In this life, Tang Li Mei was his and no one can change this fact unless that person was her. He promised himself that he would make her fall for him no matter how much patience it took or the time it requires.
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Aunt Lan sighed when she took a glance at the young man who was leaning against the wall. His condition was no better than her young miss's, he looked sleep-deprived and tired. Those eye bags under his eyes indicated how exhausted he was yet he was unwilling to leave the young woman's side.
She tried to advise him so that he too can rest, she was there to take care of her young miss, but he blatantly rejected it. She knew the young man had genuine feelings towards her miss but.... her miss on the other hand... Her lips twitched at this situation, she calmed herself before walking towards the man.
The moment Han Zhixin opened his pale blue eyes he saw the old woman gently closing the door behind her and walking towards him. He quickly straightened out and asked,
"How is she?" His voice was overflowing with concern.
"Young master, although her clothes had been changed, she seems to be burning up. I'm afraid young miss has ...." Aunt Lan's eyes widened when she heard a 'whoosh' sound.
".... caught a fever."
Aunt Lan's lips twitched while staring at the space where the young man was standing before his vanishing act.
'What was she thinking?? Of course, the man who caught her young miss's and little master's attention would be anything but normal.'
She shook her head and sighed before heading towards Tang Li Mei's room.
Han Zhixin stared at the woman sleeping on the bed. She appeared serene in her slumber, only the flush on her cheeks let him understand that she was running a fever. Tang Li Mei looked bewitching in her spaghetti-strapped black satin dress and the slight blush on her cheeks purely added an extra charm to her beauty. His cheeks heated up and he quickly adjusted the blanket to her neck while he tried to look everywhere but her. A surprised look crossed the old woman's eyes at his reaction. She couldn't believe a grown man like him could blush at the sight of his lover.
Han Zhixin had seen many beauties during his travels while pursuing his career, but none could compare to his woman. She carried herself with elegance and grace like a queen and the bit of unruly fierceness simply added to her ravishing charm. He sat down on the bed before holding her slim and dainty hands. His thumb slowly ran circles on her palm as a despairing look passed his eyes.
He had never met a woman like her, who was not only stubborn and headstrong but also tender and warm-hearted. But right now, she was so quiet, and this didn't suit her, he badly missed the energetic and stubborn woman who would kick him every time they met. His heart ached for her.
Even though they met only a few times, but it was enough to make him fall in love with her. She was the only woman who could make his heart race by just being herself and she was also the only woman whom he could ever confide to.
"Why does she seem so thin and light??" Han Zhixin asked while he stared at her thin hands.
"This...." She sighed.
"Young master must have heard the news about the Tang Corp on the verge of bankruptcy two years ago. At that time young miss single-handedly took charge of the company. Little master was barely two years old at that time. Juggling between work and her child she failed to take care of herself. Even now young miss barely has time to spend with the little master."
Aunt Lan answered with a helpless smile but soon she felt beads of sweat form on her forehead when she felt the surrounding temperature drop. She peered at the young man whose expression looked cold and gloomy while tending to the young woman. Hence, she quietly stood beside the couple and cursed herself for blurting out so much unnecessary information.
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Sometimes there was an air of melancholy that surrounded him, while sometimes she could see a small smile filled with tenderness and longing.
"Young master don't worry I already fed her medicine for fever. I'm sure young miss will be alright after a night's rest." Aunt Lan whispered when she saw the tenderness and compassion in his eyes. A small smile spread on her lips while Han Zhixin merely nodded his head, but his gaze never left the woman.
"Young master Han I'll stay beside young miss. Please change out of your wet clothes otherwise you too will catch a fever. Our young miss wouldn't like that, you are our family's benefactor." She politely stated but it fell on deaf ears.
Aunt Lan could only sigh, she took a last glance before walking out.
Han Zhixin on the other hand felt the situation a bit odd, he knew the old woman fussed over both the mother and child like her own. But when he knocked on her door some time ago to help with Tang Li Mei's clothes, instead of her usual fussing she took the news quite calmly.
"Does this happen a lot??" Han Zhixin whispered. But that one question halted the old woman's steps while the hand holding the doorknob slightly shook. Aunt Lan took a deep breath to calm her panicked heart before replying.
"No... Not... Not at all. It's just that young miss sometimes tends to sleepwalk, this is something everyone at home is used to. " Aunt Lan stammered before quickly walking out of the room.
Once she was out, she took a deep breath to calm her fast-beating heart. Even if this person was a potential future husband for their young miss, she couldn't just let him in on something that is forbidden to be talked about.
Han Zhixin squinted his eyes at the closed door before taking a seat on the chair. Folding his hands, he stared at the woman and sighed. He knew the old woman was lying and whatever happened tonight was not the first time either.
He saw the anguish and pain in her soulless eyes. He couldn't miss the despair and heartbreak in between her sobs. Those were obvious signs of suffering and grief.
"Little Mei what should I do??? The more time I spend with you the more I can't seem to let you go."
He whispered as his pale blue eyes filled with sorrow. A warm hand softly held the cold one and opened her palm apart before interlacing their fingers together. He slowly closed his eyes and gently leaned on their laced hands.