Chapter 1390 - 1387: Better Than Living in Humiliation

Chapter 1390: Chapter 1387: Better Than Living in Humiliation

Upstairs, only Uncle Ye was left, his terror-stricken gaze only now barely reining itself in. He hadn’t expected this woman to be so tough. That did surprise him a little, beyond what he’d anticipated. Still, this way she died cleanly; it was better than staying alive to suffer endless humiliation.

He walked slowly to the window in just a few steps, lowered his lids and looked down. She was lying on her back in a pool of blood, arms splayed open, legs curled, as if there had been a moment of agony when she hit the ground. Blood spattered everywhere, scarlet and slick, soaking into that white silk nightgown. The sight of death was too ghastly to look at, and it stirred up a creeping, demon-like aura of ghosts and monsters...

Hiss—Uncle Ye sucked in a breath of cold air. He didn’t know if it was the chill wind blowing straight at him, but his body shuddered a few times. He’d better leave here, quickly.

Still, before leaving, certain people needed to be informed of this.

Uncle Ye shivered once more before finally taking out his phone, scrolling to that familiar number, and promptly reporting to his master this not-quite-unexpected accident, this not-quite-newsworthy news.

...

On the hospital’s side.

Qiao Junlie’s arm tightened around the phone. He listened to Uncle Ye’s report in utter silence. After a moment—

"...All right. You did very well." Words that sounded like praise came out icy cold.

Then he hung up, rose to his feet with a blank face, and walked over to that familiar floor-to-ceiling window. He gazed at the woman he loved so deeply; she lay motionless on that desolate expanse of hospital bed. And he was powerless to do anything to save her.

Ruoxi, Ruoxi...

I’m sorry... I’m sorry! I’m the one who made you suffer...

His sharp brows knit together; his long hands pressed against the glass, wanting to touch her, yet limp with weakness. The sulfuric acid had been thrown at her face, but it had clearly been thrown onto his heart as well, corroding it every moment, making it hurt unbearably.

...

Time slid by bit by bit, day after day. Her life was maintained only by IV drips hanging from a stand. Zi Ruoxi lay there quietly; the respirator over her mouth had now been removed, her condition temporarily stabilized. She had been transferred from the intensive care unit to an ordinary ward—ordinary, yet luxurious, with top-of-the-line monitoring equipment fully in place. Aside from 24-hour special nursing care, two people’s figures refused to leave even for a moment, afraid that in the blink of an eye her condition would worsen again.

In theory, the physical treatment was over. But she still hadn’t woken up. If she didn’t regain consciousness after five days, her internal organs might begin to show abnormal decline. That would be very dangerous.

And now, it was already the fourth day.

The two men spoke little, yet as if by tacit agreement, they no longer argued or fought. Perhaps they understood that no amount of blame, hatred, or remorse could change anything anymore. What was done was done; all they could do was accept it.

Looking at her face entirely bound up in gauze, it was impossible to describe how much it hurt inside. The pain was beyond words, like a keen blade sawing into flesh...

Zi Ruoxi’s dreamscape

At some unknown point, she suddenly found herself passing through a forest. After much difficulty she finally emerged; the view before her opened wide. She sat on a rock on a hillside, hands propping her chin as she leisurely gazed off into the distant scenery...

It looked like the evening glow of dusk, hazy and radiant, very beautiful, very beautiful—so beautiful that it made people pause in their tracks. The wondrous clouds shifted in unpredictable ways, the flaming clouds miraculously taking shape now like mushrooms, now like animals, rare birds and strange beasts, each bizarre in form, making a person watch on and on, never getting bored. How could it be so gorgeous, so breathtaking...

But before long, the wind and clouds changed; that sunset glow vanished. Huge swathes of dark cloud blocked the light; the sky suddenly went black.

Looks like it’s going to rain; I should head back. Otherwise that little demon will get anxious waiting. Hehehe...

Instinctively, she took out her phone, wanting to call him, to tell him she’d found such a beautiful place. But as she rummaged through her bag again and again, to her surprise, she couldn’t find the phone...

Did it fall somewhere along the way here? Forget it, I should just hurry back. She stood up and brushed the dust from her clothes, then quickly stepped back into the forest she’d just come through.

After weaving through for a while, she felt her head growing dizzier and dizzier.

All at once, she stopped walking.

She looked again at her surroundings. Thin dusk-light mists coiled around the entire forest. The trees here all towered into the clouds; when she raised her head, she could only see a palm-sized patch of sky. Those banks of dark cloud seemed to be exhaling black vapor, as if at any moment they would press down and swallow her whole.

W-where is this? Why is it different from the road I came on...

It had clearly been a simple straight path—how had it become crisscrossed into so many different routes? Forget it, whatever; she’d tried all the others anyway, might as well try this way.

The result was another frantic run, but no matter what she did, she couldn’t get out of this forest. In plain terms, it was like running in circles, over and over, back to the starting point, then back again.

Ah——

Why, why is it like this?

Restlessness slowly rose in her heart; she wanted to scream, but nothing came out.

Now she was in real trouble: her phone had fallen somewhere, and now no one knew she was trapped here. What should I do, what should I do~

Lost—this was a grave realization. She suddenly crouched down, feeling utterly at a loss. But even in this dazed state, she still couldn’t stop night from falling, couldn’t stop the storm from coming.

"Boom——" A clap of thunder roared past her ears. It jolted her awake.

Then came a rolling barrage of thunder, surging toward her.

Ah——

She screamed, but somehow there was no sound, though her heart hurt terribly. Pain and terror seized her chest. She hugged her head tightly, crouching in the belly of the forest, her body trembling in shrunken spasms. Soon, big, heavy raindrops pelted her head.

Hualala, hualala...

The downpour sluiced straight down, soaking her through in moments. Drenched to the bone like a drowned rat, she was as wretched as a person could be.

She didn’t know whether it was rain or tears blurring her vision; her wide eyes were veiled in mist. Just as she tried to see more clearly, the rain washed away all light from before her. Ridiculous—how could she possibly see anything in a forest this eerie and oppressive, in a night this pitch-black, with wind shrieking and rain lashing, lightning tearing through thunder...

Even a person’s spirit could be smashed to pieces, the fright pulling at her heart until it hurt.

Qiao Junlie... Qiao Junlie... where are you? Where are you?

Her call came from the very core of her heart, torn with anguish, but no one answered.

Suddenly.

"Do you only ever think of him? Wasn’t your heart supposed to love me forever? Why did you fall in love with someone else?" A mellow voice sounded by her ear.

She jerked her head up. In the distance, a handsome face like an immortal’s, a white suit setting off his striking looks. That was...

That was a face long since engraved into her soul.

Xiao Lei? Xiao Lei——

No sound came out; she wanted to stand, but felt utterly weak all over. The raindrops beating down on her seemed to weigh a thousand pounds, pressing on her with invisible force, leaving her unable to breathe.