Chapter 8

After that night when we said the cruelest things to each other, Zhou Xiangyu vanished completely from my life. I thought that brief, passionate romance had come to an end, and that from then on, we would simply become two parallel lines, each going our separate ways.

Except that while he was gone, he generously left Uncle Guo behind to follow me around as my twenty-four-seven bodyguard.

Countless times, I nearly pulled my hair out in frustration as I tried to explain to him that his boss and I were truly over and begged him to go back to his side.

But every time, Uncle Guo would merely smile politely and shake his head.

“Miss Hsu, the gentleman is worried about you. That’s why he ordered me to stay and protect you.”

“But we’re really done. What good does it do for you to stay here?”

Perhaps seeing how utterly miserable I looked, Uncle Guo added meaningfully,

“Miss Hsu, every arrangement the gentleman makes has a reason behind it. Please trust him. To be completely honest…” He paused, then looked at me with utmost seriousness. “…you are the first woman he has ever allowed into his private residence.”

His blunt words sent my already-frozen heart into another flutter.

Once I regained my composure, I decisively pulled the lotus jade necklace I had prepared from my bag and pressed it into his hand.

“Uncle Guo, please don’t try to persuade me anymore. He and I simply come from two different worlds. When you get the chance, please return this precious necklace to him for me.”

After officially cutting ties with Zhou Xiangyu, I poured two hundred percent of my energy into securing my spot in the graduate program.

It wasn’t until a week later that I finally understood what Uncle Guo had meant by saying there was a reason behind everything.

Because Jiang Ye’s ghost had come back to haunt me.

After the near-death brawl in the private room at the club, Jiang Ye disappeared for a while. Rumor had it that he’d been hospitalized to recover from his injuries and had even been placed under house arrest by his family as punishment.

I thought that beating would finally teach him a lesson and make him stop following me around.

But no.

When that familiar figure started lurking behind me again, I realized just how naive I had been.

The only difference this time was that Uncle Guo was always by my side. Jiang Ye didn’t dare try anything too reckless. All he could do was stand at a distance and glare at me with the cold, venomous hatred of a snake.

And sooner or later, what was meant to happen would happen.

One day, the fear I’d been carrying finally became reality.

The moment I stepped into the women’s restroom at school, Jiang Ye suddenly appeared and shoved me into a corner. He gripped my chin tightly, bloodshot eyes burning with madness.

“Zhou Xiangyu did this to me, Hsu Lian. And you really don’t feel even a little sorry for me?”

I tried to turn my head away from his touch, forcing down the tremble in my throat.

“Jiang Ye, I’ll say this one last time. I don’t have a single ounce of love left for you. We broke up peacefully. Let’s at least leave each other with the last shred of dignity we have. Okay?”

“Okay? You actually have the nerve to ask me if I’m okay?” Jiang Ye snarled. “Hsu Lian, is your heart made of stone?! I love you this much, and you can just throw me away because of some street thug like him? How can you be so stupid? A man like him could never genuinely love you…”

His voice rose with every word, dripping with delusion and madness.

Instinctively, I tried to retreat, but his arm had already locked tightly around my waist. His fingers slowly brushed across my lips as he whispered in a chilling voice,

“Hsu Lian, don’t be afraid of me. I really love you. Can’t we go back to the way we were?”

No matter how desperately I struggled, he lifted my chin and lunged down, trying to force a kiss on me.

“Jiang Ye! How much more disgusting can you get? What kind of man sneaks into the women’s restroom to pull something like this?”

A sharp female voice rang out from the doorway, saving me just in time.

Jiang Ye jerked around and was forced to loosen his grip. He cursed under his breath before hurriedly turning and leaving.

But before disappearing from sight, he leaned close to my ear and whispered like a demon planting a curse.

“Hsu Lian, I’ll prove it to you. Zhou Xiangyu is not the man you’re meant to end up with.”

I stood there frozen, my chest rising and falling as I struggled to catch my breath.

Then the shadow of a woman fell across the floor in front of me.

When I looked up, I was stunned to see that my savior was Chen Xi.

She folded her arms and raised an eyebrow, getting straight to the point.

“Jiang Ye and I are getting engaged next month. Both our families place a great deal of importance on this marriage.”

“So… congratulations. I hope you two have a long and happy marriage?” I replied cautiously.

“You don’t need to congratulate me. What I mean is, you should know better than to get anywhere near my fiancé, Hsu Lian.”

Seeing the wariness mixed with exhaustion in the young heiress’s eyes, I could only sigh helplessly.

“Miss Chen, you should be on my side by now. Could you please get him to leave me alone first? Honestly, I’m sick to death of him. I just want to stay as far away from him as possible.”

Chen Xi narrowed her eyes suspiciously, trying to decide whether I was telling the truth.

When she saw that I genuinely didn’t look like I was putting on an act, she gave a faint laugh and changed the subject.

“I heard you’ve switched targets to that big shot from Port City. You certainly have expensive taste. Is that true?”

“No. My only goal right now is successfully securing my place in the graduate program.”

Apparently satisfied with my answer, Chen Xi lifted her chin slightly. The sharp click of her heels echoed across the tiled floor as she walked away with all the arrogance of a princess.

For the days that followed, I buried myself in papers and research.

But Jiang Ye’s final warning remained lodged in the back of my mind like a thorn. Whenever night fell, I found myself dreaming about Zhou Xiangyu’s familiar face.

Before I knew it, I had started worrying about his safety.

That anxiety reached its peak a week later when Uncle Guo suddenly disappeared without saying a word.

I frantically searched the internet for “Zhou Xiangyu,” hoping to find even the slightest piece of reassuring news about him.

But there was nothing.

His identity was far too sensitive and mysterious. There was practically no reliable information about him online.

Then, one afternoon, my phone chimed with a message from Chen Xi.

【I heard your Port City man was in a really serious car accident.】

My fingers flew across the screen almost instantly, trembling as I typed.

【Where is he?!】

【Hmph. Hsu Lian, I knew it. You’re completely crazy about him, aren’t you?】

【Please, Chen Xi. Just give me the address!】

Perhaps she decided she’d teased me enough. After a brief silence, another message finally came through, this time with a location pin.

【Central Hospital. VIP Room 888.】

I never imagined that my next reunion with Zhou Xiangyu would be under such devastating circumstances.

Standing at the doorway of his hospital room, I stared at the man who had once seemed invincible.

Now he lay helplessly on the bed, his chest wrapped in thick bandages and one leg encased in a white cast.

His face was so pale, as though he’d just taken a stroll through the underworld and barely made it back.

Yet the moment he saw me, his dark eyes suddenly lit up.

The corner of his lips lifted as he raised his good hand and beckoned me closer.

“Hsu Lian, come here.”

The tears I’d been holding back all the way there finally broke loose.

I hurried to his bedside, and Zhou Xiangyu immediately pulled me into his arms without the slightest hesitation. He rubbed his face against my shoulder, clinging to me like a child who had finally found his way home.

“Come here, sweetheart. Did you miss me? I’ve been going crazy missing you…”

Seeing him act as though nothing had happened left me both heartbroken and furious.

I lightly punched him in the chest, only to be rewarded with a pained groan.

“You trying to kill your future husband?”

“Zhou Xiangyu! Do you have any idea how close you came to dying? How can you still joke around like this?” I cried as I scolded him.

On the hallway earlier, I’d overheard the doctors talking about how serious his surgery had been.

That steel rod from the accident had only needed to shift a few more centimeters. Even a miracle-working surgeon wouldn’t have been able to save him.

Looking at me through tear-blurred eyes, the once-feared man awkwardly used his rough fingers to wipe away my tears.

“Tsk. Why is the waterworks starting up again? Come on, sweetheart. This time I’m not wearing an expensive suit for you to use as a tissue, and these bandages aren’t exactly waterproof either. Listen to me. Stop crying. These little injuries are nothing compared to what I can handle…”

He kept dancing around the real issue without getting to the point, and I finally interrupted him through my tears.

“Don’t you have anything you want to explain to me?”

Zhou Xiangyu let out a long sigh.

Knowing he could no longer hide it, he finally told me everything.

After the fight at the club that day, the Jiang family had used their influence in the area to make trouble behind the scenes, forcing him to return to Port City as soon as possible to deal with the mess once and for all.

He had already sensed how reckless and unhinged Jiang Ye could become, which was why he had deliberately left Uncle Guo behind to protect me.

He had planned to wrap everything up within a few days and fly straight back to me.

But right before he was supposed to leave, his trusted subordinate had stopped him and warned him that the route was currently under surveillance and an ambush was likely. It would be safer to stay out of sight for a few months and wait until things settled down before returning to the mainland.

But Big Brother Zhou was stubborn as hell.

He refused to listen.

He insisted on making the journey that very night, despite the danger.

And the horrific accident happened exactly as they had feared.

By the time I heard the whole story, I was so angry that I snapped my head up.

“What were you in such a hurry for? They told you to wait a few months. Was waiting really that unbearable for you?”

“If I didn’t hurry, my little wife on the mainland might’ve forgotten who I was.” Zhou Xiangyu grinned, then shamelessly leaned closer and planted a quick kiss on my lips. “You were the one who confidently promised to take responsibility for me. Then you turned around and tried to return the necklace and cut ties with me. You nearly broke my heart.”

I knew I was in no position to argue.

All I could do was lower my head, my cheeks burning red.

“It’s a shame I went to all that trouble, only for the woman I love to keep trying to push me away.” His voice suddenly dropped, full of hurt. “Hsu Lian, tell me. What do I have to do before you’ll believe me? Before you’ll believe that Zhou Xiangyu truly wants to spend the rest of his life with you?”

A familiar coolness brushed against my neck.

The lotus jade necklace was once again fastened around my neck by his own gentle hands.

He pulled me tightly against him, our breaths mingling.

For the first time, I heard a feared underworld boss speak to me in such a low, pleading voice, practically begging for my love.

I closed my fingers around the tiny jade lotus resting against my chest and looked straight into his deep eyes, which seemed to hold an entire universe of love.

“I believe you, Zhou Xiangyu.”

In that instant, countless fireworks seemed to explode in his eyes.

He lowered his head and carefully kissed away every last tear clinging to the corners of my eyes.

“Hsu Lian, this time… will you come back to Port City with me?”

If a man was willing to take ninety-nine steps toward me, even putting his own life on the line to do it, then surely all I had to do was take that final step toward him.

Right?

In that moment, I finally found the answer I had been searching for all my life.

I gave a small nod.

“Okay, Zhou Xiangyu.”

While I stayed at the hospital to take care of Zhou Xiangyu as he recovered, I also happened to hear what became of Jiang Ye.

Worried that my boyfriend might get jealous for no reason, I had to reassure him again and again that I wasn’t asking because I cared about Jiang Ye. I was only worried that he might try to hurt Zhou Xiangyu again.

Zhou Xiangyu merely raised an eyebrow, the corner of his lips curling into a dangerous smile.

“Your concern is unnecessary. You should know one thing: anyone who dares lay a finger on Zhou Xiangyu is either six feet under or wishing they were. Jiang Ye is no exception.”

Sure enough, a few days later, I heard that Jiang Ye had been ambushed by a group of unknown thugs and beaten within an inch of his life.

His face was so badly disfigured that his own parents could barely recognize him.

The Jiang family was furious.

They threw money and influence at the police, demanding an investigation, but the thugs stubbornly stuck to the same story:

They’d been drunk, mistaken Jiang Ye for someone else, and gotten into a fight.

Everyone in the upper circles understood exactly what had happened.

It was Zhou Xiangyu’s brutal retaliation.

But in this world where the powerful preyed upon the powerful, the Zhou family’s methods in Port City were simply operating on a level far beyond anything the Jiang family could touch.

With no evidence, no loopholes to exploit, and no trail to follow, the case eventually went nowhere.