Chapter 1357: 1356 does not qualify
A week passed by quickly.
If it weren’t for occasional monts of longing and bouts of lancholy, Bai Yiyi’s days were no different from before.
But with Tongtong, the adorable little angel, and the demands of work, Bai Yiyi felt fulfilled. She didn’t have much ti to think about that man.
Upon her persistent questioning, Wen Ran had no choice but to tell her that Gu Kai had t Li En. However, no one knew what Li En had said to Gu Kai that made him retreat to calm himself alone.
Yet, after a week passed, Gu Kai still hadn’t returned.
No calls, no ssages.
Two more days went by, and Bai Yiyi finally lost her patience for waiting. That night, after putting Tongtong to sleep, she called her mother Bai Yuqin.
The phone rang several tis before her mother’s cheerful voice echoed in the night, “Hello, Yiyi.”
“Mom, am I bothering you again? It sounds so lively over there.”
Alongside Bai Yuqin’s voice ca sounds of singing, dancing, and laughter.
A mont later, those noises softened, turning into a backdrop for Bai Yuqin’s cheerful tone, “Yiyi, the other day when you told not to co back, I joined them for the next stop instead. Just now, I was dancing around a bonfire with the locals here. How are you and Gu Kai doing? Tongtong doing well? I saw the news—has Little Li confessed yet?”
Hearing her mother’s rapid-fire questions, Bai Yiyi frowned slightly, her mood darkened by her words.
“Mom, Li En is already dead. He ended his own life and freed himself.”
“What? Little Li, why would he be so foolish?” Li En’s death had not been made public, so Bai Yuqin was unaware.
The previously cheerful voice abruptly turned heavier, tinged with sorrow. Bai Yiyi pressed her lips together and spoke softly, “Mom, I need to ask you sothing.”
“What is it?” Bai Yuqin’s tone carried noticeable sadness, and Bai Yiyi’s voice hardened slightly, “Did you know what Dad did to Ranran when he took her away all those years ago?”
“Yiyi, why are you asking such a thing?” Bai Yuqin’s voice sharply rose, layered with surprise and faint displeasure.
It was the displeasure of being questioned.
Bai Yiyi gripped her phone tighter, “Before Li En died, he t Gu Kai. I don’t know what he said to Gu Kai, but on that day, Gu Kai sent a single ssage saying he was going on a business trip. Now it’s been over ten days, and his phone is still off.”
“Yiyi, are you saying that Little Li t Ah Kai and said sothing to him?” Bai Yuqin’s voice was filled with worry, as though she couldn’t believe it.
“Yes. In fact, the person he wanted to et all along was Gu Kai, not . That afternoon when I went to see him and asked you to talk to him on the phone, I just hoped to dissuade him from eting Gu Kai.” Bai Yiyi’s tone grew increasingly detached, “Mom, I need to know. Were you aware back then?”
“Yiyi, those things happened more than twenty years ago. Don’t jump to conclusions. Ah Kai might genuinely be on a business trip, or he could be dealing with so unusual situation, which is why his phone is off.”
Bai Yuqin’s evasiveness only deepened Bai Yiyi’s suspicions, her heart sinking heavily.
Her eyes suddenly reddened with sorrow, “Mom, I need to know the truth. You shouldn’t hide it from . No matter what the truth of the past is, you really should not have kept it from .”
Fu Jingyi wronged the Gu Family, and Bai Yiyi could comfort herself by thinking that Fu Jingyi also wronged her as well. She, Gu Kai, and Wen Ran equally hated Fu Jingyi.
The enemy of an enemy is a friend.
She could still convince herself to try remaining with Gu Kai.
But if her mother—her beloved mother—had also been part of those events, not only would Gu Kai struggle to accept it, so would she.
“Yiyi, are you crying?”
Bai Yiyi raised her hand to wipe her face and indeed felt tears. She pressed her lips together stubbornly and said, “No, I’m not crying. I’m just very upset. Mom, you couldn’t possibly have been involved in such things. You loved that person, but your love was so rational. Tell it had nothing to do with you.”
“Yiyi, I’ll co back tomorrow and we’ll talk then. Those matters are too distant in the past; they can’t be explained in just a few words.”
“Alright.”
This ti, Bai Yiyi didn’t persuade her mother not to return, because she needed to know whether her mother had been involved in those events.
After hanging up, she wiped away her tears, pressed her lips together stubbornly, and composed a ssage to Gu Kai’s phone.
She had waited ten days.
She had battled with the turmoil inside her for ten days.
Simply because she truly liked him and couldn’t bear to give up on this fledgling relationship. After sending the ssage, she suddenly laughed—a laugh tinged with self-mockery and sorrow.
Bai Yiyi, you should have never fallen in love. You shouldn’t have harbored any illusions. You never had the right.
***
A seaside villa in a certain city.
A man, dressed casually with a tall and commanding presence, stood before the floor-to-ceiling windows, gazing out at the ocean under the night sky.
The sea was tranquil.
The doorbell suddenly rang. Assuming it was the housekeeper again, he turned to open the door.
“Mo Xiuchen, why are you here?”
Upon seeing Mo Xiuchen at the door, Gu Kai’s eyes flashed with surprise, “Why didn’t the housekeeper tell you were coming?”
“I told her not to inform you.” Mo Xiuchen’s narrow eyes swept over Gu Kai’s weary yet handso face, his brows knitting tightly, “Do you plan to keep running away forever?”
“Who said I was running away?” Gu Kai glared at him angrily, then walked over to the sofa and sat down.
Mo Xiuchen followed him, sitting on the sofa as well. Noticing Gu Kai wasn’t inclined to get him a drink, he helped himself to the red wine on the table and poured a glass.
“This is a great place to vacation. Coming here doesn’t seem like running away—it’s more like indulging in solitary pleasure. But this selfish indulgence is worrying everyone else. Don’t you think that’s a bit much?”
Mo Xiuchen swirled the wine in his glass, the faint aroma of the wine drifting to his nose.
Gu Kai’s gaze flickered, but instead of replying, he asked, “How did you find here?”
“I checked all your usual hideouts.” Mo Xiuchen raised his glass, tilted his head slightly, and took a sip of the wine. “If Ranran wasn’t so worried about you every day, I wouldn’t have bothered looking for you.”
At the ntion of Ranran, Gu Kai’s expression shifted.
Lowering his eyes, he picked up the glass on the coffee table and downed its contents in one gulp. “I’ve just been really tired lately, so I gave myself a break to unwind for a while.”
Mo Xiuchen narrowed his eyes slightly, scrutinizing Gu Kai. Though Gu Kai hid it well, there were still traces to be found. “Ah Kai, we all know. You t Li En. What did he say to you that made you disappear without a word and abandon everyone to hide away here?”
Gu Kai pressed his lips together in silence, his hand gripping the stem of the glass tightly.
“Bai Yiyi knows too. Ah Kai, are you planning to give up?” Mo Xiuchen’s gaze settled on Gu Kai’s hands gripping the glass stem.
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