She asked unexpectedly.
“Will what?”
He slightly furrowed his brow, not understanding her out-of-the-blue question.
“Follow in your mother’s footsteps, suffer for love.” She gazed into his eyes, suddenly very wanting to know the answer to this question.
“Me? Hmph!”
He laughed sarcastically, propping himself up with his arm and sitting up, his unfocused eyes turning towards the dazzlingly blue ocean.
“I learned the lesson of love from my parents long ago – so-called love is just a momentary confusion. Humans are animals easily swayed by novelty. I learned this from my father. When the passion of love subsides, only sadness and pain remain. If one clings obsessively, that’s seeking death. My mother taught me this before she died!”
Ironically, he knew everything yet still sought his own destruction, wasting the bloody example his mother set before his eyes, stubbornly falling in love with her. Could it be that his mother’s passionate and tragic side had also been inherited by him?
“Seems like you’re very pessimistic about love,”
Ji Mengtang gave a bitter smile.
She had indeed guessed correctly – in his mind, love simply didn’t exist! He didn’t understand love, which is why he could be so cold-hearted and manipulate others’ destinies with an almost cruel calmness…
Fortunately, she hadn’t fallen in love with him, otherwise she would only be inviting suffering! She wanted to laugh triumphantly, but forcing a smile only made her chest hurt more.
Learning that he could never love anyone, she not only didn’t feel relieved, but instead felt an emptiness in her heart, as if no more enjoyment or happiness could fill that void…
Forget it! Thinking is useless, stop thinking.
She jumped out of bed wrapped in a blanket, pretending to be excited: “The weather is so nice, the sea is so blue, let’s go! I can’t wait to swim!”
Let them truly spend this last day with a relaxed mood!
Chapter Nine
Wrapping herself in the blanket, Guan Qiyi’s eyes were swollen like walnuts, yet she still couldn’t stop her heartache.
He had successfully deceived everyone, including her.
When the truth was revealed, her heart was in chaos and pain. She had no idea what to do next and had no way to face him.
The phone rang, interrupting her thoughts. She hurriedly picked up, happily discovering it was her closest friend.
At dusk, they walked hand in hand on the white beach of Nanwan; at night, they sat on the steps of a seaside wooden cabin admiring the brilliant starry sky; late at night, they were passionately entangled on the bed… Neither mentioned future plans, as if time had stopped for them in this moment.
However, no matter how beautiful a moment is, it must end. By Sunday noon, they had to check out and leave Kenting.
On the return journey, both were silent, each lost in their own thoughts, neither speaking. It wasn’t travel fatigue that made them reluctant to talk, but as they were about to separate, neither knew what to say.
Their emotions were equally complex – with joy and sorrow, anger and resentment, and full of reluctance.
Especially Ji Mengtang –
She thought she would be happy, about to be free from his lingering entanglement. However, she realized that in the future, there would be no more gentle greetings from him, no more careful reminders, no one to bring her a steaming bowl of energy soup when she was exhausted, and no one who could bring her such unforgettable passionate memories like he did…
The journey back to Taipei seemed particularly brief, with just a few hours passing before the moment of parting arrived. Kang Yan-cheng stopped in front her apartment, opened the door for her to get out. Ji Meng-tang picked up her travel bag and looked back at him.
At that moment, she didn’t know what to say. Say thanks? No! That would be ridiculous. Say hate? Ugh – actually, she didn’t hate him that much. Say love? Good heavens! What was she thinking?
“Goodbye!” Finally, she took a step back, gripped her travel bag tightly, raised her chin, and bid farewell with the courage of a warrior cutting off his own arm.
Goodbye to the man who once took care of her! Goodbye to five years of memories! Goodbye…
Kang Yan-cheng barely curved his lips, a forced smile in response, gave a hasty nod, and immediately drove away.
He couldn’t say goodbye! He had wanted to appear nonchalant, but the moment he tried to speak, his throat choked up.
He didn’t want her to leave! He wanted her to stay by his side forever and ever!
Yet – how luxurious and impossible was this dream? Her heart only held Gao Zhong-wei. He was merely an intruder, like the villain Ma Wen-cai in the story of Liang Zhu, thinking he could win a woman’s heart through despicable means, not realizing she would rather die than be separated from her lover!
In the end, they had only been dreaming – a dream of thinking happiness was within grasp! In reality, they had gained nothing, only earning a bad reputation.
He stared straight ahead, the car headlights casting shadows on his face, a faint glistening reflection appearing on his cheeks.
That was… tears!
Is there no rush?” A sudden thought jumped into his mind. “Are you—are you because of the day of…, so that…”
“What day?” Kang Yansheng asked seemingly absentmindedly, his hands busier flipping through the book.
“It’s Miss Ji’s—wedding day!” Because his girlfriend Zhou Peiru was invited as Ji Mengtang’s bridesmaid, he was certain it was today!
Kang Yansheng was like a statue petrified by an evil spirit, instantly stopping his movement. Only the hands holding the medical journal between his fingers trembled slightly, letting people know he was not truly petrified but still a normal person with soul and consciousness.
After a long time, he closed the journal, wearing a stiff smile and saying, “Is it today? Well, congratulations to her!”
“Dr. Kang—”
“The information in these medical journals is still insufficient. Later, I want to go to the library to find some other materials. Please help me arrange the patient’s examinations first.”
After speaking, he stood up, pushed his office chair, took off his white coat, put on a suit jacket, and was truly preparing to leave.
“Dr. Kang! Are you giving up just like that?” Xu Kuanhou couldn’t help but cry out anxiously.
“Miss Ji’s wedding will be held at the Holy Family Rose Church. You can still make it in time to stop her!”
“No, I won’t go.” He could not destroy her hard-earned happiness.
“Why? I know you also like Miss Ji. Since you love her, why don’t you win her back? If you go, perhaps Miss Ji might change her mind!”
“Because the man who can make her happy is not me!” Kang Yansheng roared uncontrollably: “She loves Gao Zhongwei. Only by marrying him can she obtain the happiness she truly wants!”
He then gave a bitter smile, his eyes full of pain. “Besides, she would never change her mind for me because she hates me. Although I obtained her body, I can never obtain her heart!”
“Dr. Kang…” Xu Kuanhou never expected such a tangled story beneath the seemingly calm surface.
“I’m leaving first! If you attend the wedding feast, remember to offer my blessings.”
Kang Yansheng put on his coat and quickly left the office. Xu Kuanhou stared blankly at his thin, lonely back, suddenly seeming to understand.
In fact, Dr. Kang loved Miss Ji more than anyone else and wanted to possess her more than anyone, but for her happiness, he would rather quietly withdraw and let her pursue her own happiness.
The love in this world… Alas!
Xu Kuanhou scratched his head and turned to walk towards the ward, beginning his busy day of work.
★★★
To reach the altar, Yan Zheng handed her over to Gao Zhongwei. As the wedding was about to begin, Gao Zhongwei suddenly let go of her hand and loudly said to the priest: “I, Gao Zhongwei, will not marry this lewd woman!”
