CM | Chapter 26

In the boutique, just as Du Tong stepped through the doorway and was about to greet the owner, Emma, she saw Zhu Shengxi and Gu Yao standing on the other side.

Du Tong paused, then looked away and said to Emma, “Madam, I’m here to pick up the clothes Mr. Gu ordered.”

Emma smiled. “Oh, Miss Du, you’re right on time. I just took them out and wrapped them up, and here you are.”

Du Tong took the paper bag from her and turned toward Gu Yao and Zhu Shengxi.

“President Zhu, Miss Gu.”

Zhu Shengxi showed no expression, only nodded once. At the same time, his phone buzzed, and he stepped aside to answer it.

Gu Yao stayed where she was. She couldn’t help looking at Du Tong a couple more times, then at the bag in her hands.

“My dad sent you to pick up the clothes?”

Du Tong nodded. “President Gu is still in the office. I’ll bring the gift over to him after I take it back.”

Then Du Tong glanced at her phone and added, “It’s getting late. I’ll head back first.”

Gu Yao didn’t say anything.

Du Tong walked past the two of them. After a couple of steps, she suddenly stopped again and said, “Oh, right, Miss Gu.”

Gu Yao turned her head.

Du Tong said, “The dress is beautiful.”

With that, Du Tong left the boutique.

Gu Yao turned and looked through the glass at Du Tong’s retreating back, then lowered her head to look at the water-blue formal dress on herself. Her brows furrowed.

After Zhu Shengxi finished his call, he went back to the counter to pick up the wrapped jewelry box. When he returned and saw Gu Yao like that, he asked, “What’s wrong?”

Gu Yao lifted her head and tugged at the corners of her lips. “Being complimented on my dress by someone I don’t like, I don’t know if I should be happy or not.”

Zhu Shengxi arched a brow and pulled Gu Yao out the door.

The two of them crossed the street together and reached the car.

Zhu Shengxi asked, “The person you’re talking about is Du Tong?”

Gu Yao pressed her lips together and said nothing. Clearly, she was somewhat displeased.

After they got back in the car and fastened their seatbelts, Zhu Shengxi drove toward the main road, then shook his head. “Hey, you’re still the same as before.”

Gu Yao asked, “How so?”

Zhu Shengxi said, “Before you lost your memory, you didn’t like her either.”

Gu Yao froze. “Really? I’ve never heard you say that. Why?”

Zhu Shengxi smiled. “Why would I bring up someone you don’t like for no reason? As for the reason, I had seen you two arguing before. Sometimes you were even at each other’s throats, but it was always over some insignificant little thing. I can’t remember exactly what it was anymore.”

Gu Yao was quiet for a few seconds, then looked out the window, no one knew what she was thinking.

After a long while, she murmured, “Looks like even if memories are gone, some preferences never fully change. The people you hate are still the people you hate.”

Zhu Shengxi said, “It’s strange, really. Du Tong was sent overseas by Mr. Gu after graduating high school, and she’s only been back for a few years. You haven’t had much contact with her, so by rights, you two shouldn’t have had any chance to fall out.”

Gu Yao actually knew this. Du Tong had also been raised by the Gu family. Although her personality was distant, she was studious and hardworking. At such a young age, getting to the position of special assistant in the group was not thanks to Gu Chengwen. Every step had been earned by her own effort.

Gu Yao said, “You know, when one person develops hostility toward another, even if they don’t show it on the surface, the other person can still sense it. Hostility is like light, it can be reflected, and it can also be refracted.”

Zhu Shengxi glanced at her and gave a half-joking, half-serious suggestion. “If her presence is bothering you, you could always ask her to leave Chengwen Real Estate. After all, you’re Gu Chengwen’s precious daughter, Auntie’s darling, and my queen. As long as you say the word, I’ll definitely run around for you, go through fire and water, and make sure you never have to see her again.”

Gu Yao found it amusing and quickly rolled her eyes at him. “Abusing power to ruin someone’s livelihood? Forget it, I can’t do something that Low.”

The night in Jiangcheng was nearly ten degrees colder than the day.

Xu Luo was handling work on the sofa in his office when Xiao Chuan came in holding a laptop.

“Ge.”

Xiao Chuan placed the laptop in front of Xu Luo. On the surveillance footage, a man and a woman were seen walking intimately into a boutique together.

Xiao Chuan said, “Looks like Gu Yao still trusts Zhu Shengxi a lot.”

Xu Luo only glanced at it and said flatly, “Of course. If you want to pry open a crack in a stone, it’s not something that happens overnight.”

Xiao Chuan said, “But she can’t act like nothing’s wrong, can she? What you told her wasn’t small stuff. What kind of mental fortitude is that!”

Xu Luo finally looked at Xiao Chuan. “If you were a woman, facing a stranger who used despicable methods to hold you captive for an entire night, forced you to listen to two stories and bad-mouth your boyfriend, and then compared that with the boyfriend who took meticulous care of you, thought of everything ahead of time, and cherished you, who would you lean toward?”

Xiao Chuan: “…”

Xu Luo smiled. “Women are emotional creatures. Some of the fiercer ones are especially protective of their own.”

Xiao Chuan said, “If you put it that way, aren’t we basically wasting our time?”

“Not necessarily.” Xu Luo said, “The crack still isn’t open, but the fissure is already there. Water dripping through stone takes time. After she reads the third diary entry, she’ll come looking for us on her own.”

Xiao Chuan blinked. “You mean she hasn’t read it yet? No way, can she really hold back?”

“With her personality and her profession, she’ll definitely force herself to do something against her instincts at a time like this. Once her reason and emotions finish fighting it out, she’ll naturally read it. Just wait.”

With that, Xu Luo gathered the things on the desk into a kraft paper bag and stood up to leave.

“I’m not coming back tonight. No need to leave the door open for me.”

Xu Luo drove all the way without cutting straight through the busy downtown. Instead, he followed the ring road to a somewhat desolate neighborhood.

There weren’t many residents here, and the land wasn’t worth much. It was a little far from the city center, the subway didn’t run directly here, and the roads weren’t even. No developer would give this place a second glance.

Xu Luo parked by the roadside and didn’t get out right away. Instead, he turned to look at the small tavern across the narrow street.

The tavern was lit up. The door was open, and the owner, a woman, was smiling as she saw off the last customer. Then she hung a “Closed” sign on the door.

At that moment, two men in their fifties came to the entrance. They exchanged pleasantries with the owner, clearly old acquaintances, and chatted for a long while. The two men wanted to go in for a drink, but the owner apologized with a shake of her head, then turned back inside and came out with two bottles of beer, which she pressed into their hands.

The two men left disappointed, muttering as they went that this little tavern had no business during the day and only made money from the regulars in those few hours at night. What was going on today?

Only after the two of them had gone far away did Xu Luo push open the car door and get out, walking to the tavern entrance.

He pulled the door open a crack. The owner was busy at the entrance and, hearing the sound, said without looking up, “Sorry, we’re closing early today.”

Xu Luo didn’t leave. He gave a low laugh. “Aunt Wang, it’s me.”

The owner, called Aunt Wang, froze. Still in a crouching posture, she lifted her head. Xu Luo was standing with the light behind him, so from her angle she could only see a tall shadow like a mountain.

Aunt Wang braced herself on the side and stood up. Only then did she make out Xu Luo. After staring for two seconds, she asked uncertainly, “You are… Xiao Luo?”

Xu Luo grinned, his teeth flashing white. “Long time no see.”

Then he stepped forward half a pace and pulled the somewhat plump owner into his arms.

Aunt Wang was both startled and delighted, and immediately grabbed Xu Luo to size him up from head to toe. “Goodness, you’ve grown so tall, and you’ve gotten handsome too. You look even better now. If I ran into you on the street, I probably wouldn’t dare to recognize you!”

As she spoke, Aunt Wang didn’t forget to shout toward the back, “Lao Liu, hurry up and come out, look who’s here!”

At that moment, a middle-aged man came out from the inner room. His face was weathered, his whole bearing desolate, his hair already graying, and one of his legs was a little lame.

When he saw Xu Luo, he wasn’t as shocked as Aunt Wang, but joy still lit his face, with a hint of restrained excitement in his eyes.

“You brat, you’re actually making a decent living now.”

Xu Luo’s throat bobbed, and then he strode forward. Without saying a word, he hugged the middle-aged man. They both held on tightly, and the middle-aged man even slapped Xu Luo hard on the back twice.

When they finally pulled apart, the middle-aged man said, “And you’re sturdier than before too.”

Only then did Aunt Wang come back to herself. She closed the door, locked it, and while arranging the drinks she said, “Oh, I was just wondering why Lao Liu was closing early today and not even doing business. So it was because Xiao Luo was coming…”

Xu Luo and the middle-aged man were already seated at the table, smiling at each other.

The middle-aged man’s eyes were a little wet. After the dishes and alcohol were brought over, he finally sniffed and said, “You came back earlier than I expected.”

Xu Luo poured him a cup of baijiu. “It’s already been ten years, Uncle Liu. It could have been even earlier.”

This middle-aged man was none other than Liu Chun, one of Xu Haizhen’s most capable right-hand men ten years ago. He had even received commendations while in the criminal police team. He was only in his early forties now, but he looked like a scruffy old man in his fifties.

Liu Chun raised the cup and took a sip. Enduring the burn as it went down his throat, he let out a long breath. “Yeah, ten years have really gone by in the blink of an eye.”

Liu Chun turned his head and gave Aunt Wang a look. Aunt Wang understood, quickly went to the inner room, and left the two of them to talk outside.

After Aunt Wang left, Liu Chun’s expression turned serious. He said, “You said on the phone before that you were almost ready?”

Xu Luo smiled faintly. “Mm, everything’s in place, except for the final piece.”

“Easy to say. If that matter could stay hidden for ten years, then it’s not something that can be shaken loose by just any breeze.”

Xu Luo also lifted his cup and took a sip. “Everything comes at a price. Some people say justice may be late, but it will never be absent. That sounds reasonable, but if no one digs, so-called justice will just be buried in the ground.”

When Liu Chun heard this, realization dawned on him at once. He nodded slowly. “So you really are going to overturn the verdict.”

Xu Luo’s gaze was deep. “A life for a life, blood debt for blood debt, murder calls for death. That’s the principle. The great path of justice lies in the human heart. Even if the law can’t bring back justice, I still have my own way. Even if it costs me my life, I won’t hesitate.”

Xu Luo’s tone was calm, but every word seemed to land on Liu Chun’s heart like a heavy hammer. Liu Chun nodded heavily, then nodded again, swallowing twice before forcing down the emotions surging up inside him.

Then Liu Chun said, “Whatever you need me to do, just say the word.”

But Xu Luo laughed as he poured his cup full again. “If anything happens to me, I hope Uncle Liu can help collect my body and bury my ashes together with my father’s.”

Liu Chun froze. Just as he was about to speak, Xu Luo continued, “As for the other things, I can handle them myself. Besides, you’ve already helped me a great deal. Ten years ago, in that case involving the Du family, the case file suddenly vanished. If you hadn’t been prepared and made a copy, it really would have become an unsolved case.”

Liu Chun said, “It was still Captain Xu who reminded me. He said that matter was suspicious, and that it probably wasn’t just a single life in Du Chengwei’s death. There must have been other bombs hidden inside, so he told me to photocopy the case file and bring it home for him to study. Who would have thought… by the time I finished copying it, Captain Xu had already gone missing.”

As he said that, Liu Chun let out a long sigh, then continued, “The people who dare to move against the head of the criminal police team aren’t many in Jiangcheng, much less killing to silence him… Back then I was thinking, before Captain Xu asked me to copy the file, he must already have known something. Thankfully, you had left Jiangcheng by then and dodged that disaster. Otherwise those people might have even gone to the hospital to target you.”

Xu Luo sat there with his head lowered, expressionless, saying nothing.

Liu Chun went on, “And thank heaven had eyes. Of all things, you were diagnosed with that damn lung cancer. Luckily you ran out of the hospital overnight. Look at you now, you’re perfectly fine. If you’d really gone through with that surgery, you’d have been healthy and still come out with some illness from all that trouble…”

Only then did Xu Luo lift his eyelids. “Uncle Liu, did you really believe I had lung cancer back then?”

Liu Chun was stunned.

Xu Luo said again, “I don’t smoke, and I hardly ever inhaled Old Xu’s secondhand smoke. The air quality in Jiangcheng is still decent. How could I suddenly be diagnosed with lung cancer?”

Liu Chun thought about it, then asked quickly, “Was the examination wrong? Did you know about it at the time?”

Xu Luo shook his head with a light smile. “I didn’t know at the time. I just inherited Old Xu’s rotten temper. I’d rather die than ever step onto an operating table. Hearing that they wanted to cut out half my lung, wouldn’t I run?”

On the other side, Gu Yao went home with Zhu Shengxi and celebrated Li Huiru’s birthday together with Gu Chengwen. The two of them were very in sync, neither mentioning the little incident at the boutique, and the whole family was warm and harmonious.

After they’d eaten and drunk their fill, Gu Chengwen was in high spirits. He even turned on the stereo and put on a soft, pleasant Western piece, then pulled Li Huiru up to dance a slow four-step.

Gu Yao leaned against Zhu Shengxi’s shoulder, smiling as she watched the scene. The two of them occasionally exchanged a smile.

– How many people would dream of having such a happy family.

But as she watched, Gu Yao’s thoughts gradually drifted away. Right now, she simply couldn’t fully immerse herself in it. The knot in her heart still hadn’t been untied.

Most scientists in this world believe that memory determines personality, because a person’s specific background, experiences, education, and social experience gradually shape their character into a certain self. In turn, that formed personality also influences the choices that person makes in the future, thereby affecting his fate.

After Gu Yao lost her memory, she had been studying research in this area, and she quickly thought of a paradox. If she had lost her memory, had her personality changed too? If her personality had changed, then her preferences should have changed as well, so why were her likes and dislikes now still pretty much the same as before?

Then she attributed it to the subconscious.

Back then, she read a great deal of Freud’s theories on the subconscious, and she also saw a set of numbers saying that 95% of human cognition and decisions were made outside consciousness and handed over to the subconscious.

The facts supporting this theory had also happened to her.

For example, from the very first time she saw Du Tong, she disliked her. At that time, she couldn’t even remember who Du Tong was at all, everything was left to the subconscious and instinct to choose.

For another example, when she faced Chen Feiyu last time, her professionalism and her ability to adapt on the spot were both triggered. Before that, she couldn’t even have imagined it.

And then there was Xu Luo…

Everything he did, every step he took, every word he said, all made her pay special attention. She rarely fought with people like that, let alone in sharp verbal sparring where neither side gave an inch.

No one knew why, but every word Xu Luo said made her care. Sometimes she couldn’t control herself at all. Even after he used underhanded methods to keep her at the office for a night, she wasn’t even that angry afterward, much less did she call the police and have him arrested. Instead, she wanted to use him to get to the bottom of the whole thing.

It was clear now that she truly cared about everything she had now, this family, these people around her, the story behind them, and the self she had been before she lost her memory.

The night deepened, the wind rose, and all of Jiangcheng was lit up by the city lights.

Gu Yao went back with Zhu Shengxi to where she lived. Halfway there, she fell asleep in the car. When she got out, she was still a little groggy, draped in Zhu Shengxi’s coat, with him holding her by the shoulder as they went upstairs.

The light in the elevator was too bright. Gu Yao narrowed her eyes and lowered her head to avoid the glare. When the elevator arrived, Zhu Shengxi went out first and opened the door with a password, but he didn’t turn on the lights.

Gu Yao entered, went straight into the dressing room, and only switched on one small lamp. She opened the wardrobe and was about to pull up the zipper at her back.

The zipper was halfway up and very difficult to pull, until two large hands suddenly came up from above and took over the task.

In the dim light, the sound of metal scraping against the zipper track rang out, all the way to the bottom. The straps of the long dress dangled precariously from Gu Yao’s shoulders, and before it even hit the floor, a warm body had already pressed up to her.

Gu Yao shivered. His hot kisses landed on her shoulder and earlobe, fine and dense.

She drew in a breath and instinctively turned around, only to be lifted and placed on the shelf inside the wardrobe by him.

His movements were unhurried, his breathing slightly unsteady.

Suddenly, the air in front of Gu Yao turned cold, and the dress fell to her waist.

She quickly grew aroused. At the height of it, she closed her eyes and waited quietly for that moment of complete merging.

Who would have thought that right then, a harsh ringtone would suddenly ring out.

It was Zhu Shengxi’s phone.

In the dim light, both of their bodies froze at the same time.

Zhu Shengxi first withdrew a step, took a few deep breaths, and worked hard to steady himself before answering the phone with one hand.

Gu Yao rose from inside the wardrobe, staring at him without blinking.

Although the lighting wasn’t sufficient, it was enough for Gu Yao to see the change in Zhu Shengxi’s expression.

His hair was a little messy, the ends falling over his forehead and adding a few points of laziness. His face was also slightly flushed, and desire had not yet left his eyes. When he heard the words on the other end of the line, he first looked startled. After two seconds of shock, he seemed to calm down all at once.

After he hung up, he met Gu Yao’s gaze, looking like he wanted to speak but hesitated.

Gu Yao’s heart tightened, and she asked in a low voice, “What happened?”

Her voice was a little weak, her breathing uneven.

Zhu Shengxi drew in a breath, his voice also rough. “I need to go to the hospital right away.”

Gu Yao was stunned. “The hospital?”

Zhu Shengxi explained, “There’s a kid over at Lixin who needs a blood transfusion, but he’s a rare blood type. Only my blood type matches… I’ll explain when I get back…”

Gu Yao opened her mouth and quickly reacted. She hurriedly stepped down onto the floor, pulling the dress up over herself as she said, “Then I’ll go with you. I’ll drive.”

But Zhu Shengxi stopped her. “No need. Rest. Go to sleep early. You don’t have to wait for me.”

With that, Zhu Shengxi lowered his head and pecked her lips twice, with a trace of lingering attachment, then stepped back two paces, gave her a slight smile, and turned to leave the dressing room.

A moment later, the front door shut. Gu Yao let out a sigh, her emotions surging and falling unevenly.

She took off the dress on her body, let it drop to the floor, then simply stepped over it and walked toward the bathroom wearing only her underwear.

Water washed over her body. She stood there motionless with her head tilted back, her mind in complete chaos.

More than ten minutes later, Gu Yao had just finished showering and came out wearing a bathrobe. She sat in front of the vanity, mechanically patting skincare products onto her face, hands, and neck, and her mood gradually began to settle.

She didn’t get into bed right away. Instead, she walked back to the fitting room, glanced at the blue dress collapsed on the floor, sighed, and picked it up to hang it back in the wardrobe.

Then Gu Yao’s gaze shifted, and she saw the shoulder bag she had put in the cubby when she came back the day before.

She took the shoulder bag down, pulled out the kraft paper bag from inside, then went to the living room, poured herself a glass of water, and sat down on the sofa.

A long silence.

Gu Yao finally opened the kraft paper bag and took out the third diary entry and a folder.

She had brought these things back a day ago. There was no point in dragging it out any longer. Avoidance was just avoidance, and it would be better to face reality sooner.

Gu Yao opened the folder, but a few photos fell out first and landed by her feet.

She picked them up and froze.

The male lead in every one of these photos was Zhu Shengxi. The female lead, however, was different. There were four women in all, and one of them was the very same one she had seen tonight.

Du Tong.