Su Hui's line of sight was blocked by the umbrella, unable to see the road. Seeing the umbrella covering her completely, Gu Beixian's clothes were soaked by the rain.
She lifted her hand and pushed the umbrella handle towards him.
Gu Beixian instinctively looked towards the broken bridge.
The man called Yao had disappeared, elusive, like a fleeting moment, and yet like a phantom.
He secretly breathed a sigh of relief, pulling Su Hui closer to himself.
In retrospect, he realized that in that moment just now, he was afraid of her being taken away.
For the first time in his life, he felt this way, surprising even himself.
Returning to Grandfather's house, it was already noon.
The two hastily had some food.
Su Hui, tired and sleepy, entered the bedroom, took off her clothes, and wanted to take a short nap.
These days of keeping vigil for her grandmother, she hadn't closed her eyes much.
Gu Beixian followed her, took off his coat, draped it over the chair next to the bed, intending to sleep with her.
Su Hui's hoarse voice softly said, "Go sleep in the next room. I haven't bathed in three days, and I have a smell all over me."
Gu Beixian leaned over, sniffed at her head, "There is a bit of a smell."
Embarrassed, Su Hui quickly covered her head with her hands to prevent him from smelling.
Gu Beixian chuckled, "It's okay, I don't mind."
He lifted the blanket, pushed her into the bed, took off his shoes, lay down beside her, and hugged her, saying gently, "Your relatives are watching, and if we sleep separately, there will definitely be gossip."
Su Hui thought about it and agreed.
Three years ago, when she married Gu Beixian, only a few close relatives knew the truth. Behind her back, they said her mother sold her to a disabled man for money.
Now that Gu Beixian's legs had healed, those people were probably waiting to see her make a fool of herself.
People care about their reputation.
Even if they were to divorce, in front of others, they had to maintain appearances.
Su Hui no longer forced it.
These days had been too tough, and as soon as her head touched the pillow, she fell into a deep sleep.
As she slept, she began to have nightmares.
In the dream, the night was pitch-black, and strong winds stirred up a raging fire, thick smoke pervading the air.
The scorching flames passed over her skin, and there was a strong smell of gasoline and pungent smoke at the tip of her nose.
A slender young man struggled to push her out of the fire, but his legs were hit by a burning beam.
She reached out to grab and pull him, trying to drag him out of the fire, but she couldn't move him.
She cried out loudly, "Brother Yao, Brother Yao..."
Gu Beixian was awakened by her cries. Seeing her closed eyes, a face full of pain, and tears at the corners of her eyes, he frowned slightly.
He grabbed tissues from the bedside table, gently wiped away her tears, and silently looked at her for a while. Then he hugged her, comforting her like before, patting her gently.
But in his heart, it felt like a stone was lodged there, causing a sharp pain.
After several sleepless nights, his emotions were on the verge of losing control, and his patience had reached its limit. He wanted to scold her, vent his frustration, and then leave in a huff.
But she was too good, smart, beautiful, gentle, and sensible. Now, in such a fragile state.
He couldn't even bring himself to scold her, let alone have a quarrel.
Taking several deep breaths, Gu Beixian reluctantly suppressed the anger in his heart, hugged the woman in his arms, and tried to comfort her bit by bit, tucking her in.
Getting off the bed, putting on his coat, he walked out, wanting to smoke a cigarette.
There were still people in the courtyard. He walked to the front gate.
There was an old unused pond in front of the gate.
Across the pond was a sparse grove of poplar trees, and messy power lines passed through the treetops, swaying slightly in the wind.
Gu Beixian took out a cigarette from his pocket, lit it with a lighter, shielded it from the wind with his hand, and took a deep breath, exhaling a faint blue-gray smoke.
He squinted, looking at the grove across, smoking one after another.
The usually refined and restrained face now showed a trace of coldness.
From the sinking of the sun to the darkness of the night.
On the ground were scattered cigarette butts.
After smoking half a pack, his restless mood couldn't completely calm down.
His phone suddenly rang.
Gu Beixian held the cigarette in his mouth, took out his phone from his pocket, glanced at the caller ID, it was Chu Suosuo.
He furrowed his brows, directly ending the call.
After a few minutes, the phone rang again, this time it was his father, Gu Aoting.
He answered.
Gu Aoting asked, "When are you coming back?"
Gu Beixian, without much emotion, said, "Su Hui's grandmother was buried today, and I'll be back early tomorrow morning."
Gu Aoting's voice carried a hint of reproach, "Why did you stay for so long? It's been almost four days in total."
"Her grandmother passed away, and she's very upset. I can't leave her alone."
"Doesn't she have a mother and relatives?"
"Her mother is also grieving, overwhelmed. As for her relatives, they are just like that. For now, I'm the only one she can rely on."
Gu Aoting snorted, "You're getting a divorce, why bother being so good to her? Just give her some money. Your time is much more valuable than money. The projects you are involved in have been delayed due to your absence, do you know how much loss it has caused the company?"
Gu Beixian narrowed his eyes slightly, saying indifferently, "Deduct the losses caused to the company from my personal account."
Gu Aoting displeasedly said, "It's not about money, it's about the company's reputation!"
Gu Beixian remained silent for a moment, "This time only, it won't happen again."
Gu Aoting grunted, with an authoritative tone, "When you come back, remember to divorce. Dragging out the divorce is troublesome."
In
the bedroom.
Su Hui turned over in her sleep, subconsciously reaching out to hug Gu Beixian but found nothing.
Her heart skipped a beat, and she woke up.
Her sleepy eyes opened, not seeing him, her heart felt a bit empty, and she was vaguely worried about him.
Rubbing her eyes, trying to clear her groggy mind, she uncovered the blanket, put on her clothes, and got out of bed to find him.
After searching a few rooms without finding him, and not seeing him in the courtyard, Su Hui became anxious. She hurriedly ran to the gate.
Bathed in the light of the gate, she saw a tall and proud figure in the darkness, standing by the edge of the pond, talking on the phone. A faint orange glow flickered at the tip of his left finger.
The man was wearing a black windbreaker, exuding an air of nobility and aloofness, displaying a unique demeanor.
It was Gu Beixian.
He was so different that even just a silhouette could distinguish him from others.
Su Hui's anxious heart suddenly settled.
Afraid of disturbing him on the phone, she walked lightly, slowly approaching him.
As she got closer, she heard him say to the person on the phone, "I am human, not an animal. In my most difficult times, Su Hui accompanied me. Now that she is so fragile, I cannot abandon her. Let's forget about the divorce."
Su Hui's heart warmed, and without saying a word, she rushed forward, hugging him and burying her head on his back, arms tightly wrapped around his waist.
As if afraid that if she let go, he would disappear.
Gu Beixian's eyes showed a slight stagnation. Turning his head and seeing her, the gloomy expression on his face eased slightly.
Her one hug seemed to have dissipated most of the tension in his heart.
Really incompetent, he thought.
She hadn't said a word, and he was almost appeased.
After a couple of sentences with Gu Aoting, Gu Beixian hung up the phone, threw the cigarette butt to the ground, extinguished it with his foot, held Su Hui's hand, and with a softened tone, asked, "Why did you come out? It's cold outside; wear a bit more."
"I thought you left," Su Hui said softly, her hoarse voice sounding particularly helpless.
Gu Beixian touched her head affectionately, pulling her into his arms, and said, "Even if I leave, I will say goodbye to you before leaving. I won't leave without a word; you can rest assured."
Su Hui looked up, her eyes moist, gazing at him, "Are you going back tomorrow?"
"Yes, you can come back with me tomorrow morning."
Su Hui shook her head, "I want to stay here for a few more days, until my grandmother's seventh day passes before leaving."
Gu Beixian paused, "Alright, I'll leave two people here to protect you."
"Okay."
Seeing the scattered cigarette butts on the ground, Su Hui asked, "Why did you smoke so many cigarettes?"
Gu Beixian casually replied, "Feeling a bit annoyed, but it's okay now."
Su Hui stared into his eyes, "Is it because of the divorce?"
"No, business matters," Gu Beixian looked away, avoiding her gaze.
When he looked up, he caught sight of a slender and sharp figure on the other side of the pond, standing at the edge of the woods, wearing a black tactical jacket, black short hair, and a mask on his face.
It was Yao again!
His gaze instantly turned several degrees colder, staring at that figure for a while with a sinister smile tugging at the corner of his lips.
He pinched Su Hui's delicate chin, lowered his head, and kissed her forcefully.