Chapter 181: Surging
Gu Zhi’s social media was updated for the first time in a long time. The last post was a short text mourning her deceased cat. This time, it was a photo. The location should be the tarmac of an airport. The background was the tail of a plane that had broken through the clouds in the gloomy sky. The plane was parked on the empty runway, and the grass was bent by the strong wind. The huge tail of the plane occupied two-thirds of the photo.
It was a very empty and boring photo, with no caption, which made people confused. The eldest daughter of the Gu family, even her frequent attendance at high-end and luxurious banquets was considered a common occurrence.
It was normal for her to be away from Qingchuan for a long time on business trips, but she had specially updated her social media after returning from this trip. Those who followed Gu Zhi could only send a few perfunctory greetings, and the messages quickly filled the entire screen.
Gu Zhi had always been a person who was hard to see through. Whether it was in the ever-changing business world or at a leisurely and comfortable banquet, she always acted too gentle, not at all like a woman who should be standing at the forefront.
The first time most people saw Gu Zhi, they were all amazed: “So this is the Gu Zhi who is now almost in charge of the Gu family. She’s actually so dignified and gentle.” This was completely contrary to the rumors that the eldest daughter of the Gu family, Gu Zhi, was a bloodthirsty madwoman.
Su Yu also received this social media update. He rarely used this kind of public social media platform. For most ordinary people, their world was too mediocre. No one would pay attention to an ordinary person who lived the same boring life as them, let alone post their plain life trajectory on it.
He didn’t know about Gu Zhi’s life these past few years. He only knew that she had lived alone for six years and had not had a good life. For two people who had once relied on each other, he was more like a deserter. So he searched on these public social media platforms with guilt, but Gu Zhi was a person who didn’t like to share much. He couldn’t find many traces of this blank period.
Things whose edges and value could not be grasped would be infinitely magnified in his heart. He felt more and more guilty.
They had met by chance in Qingchuan after a six-year blank. Besides Gu Zhi’s still-young and gentle appearance, he couldn’t find anything else to prove anything. He still called Gu Zhi “sister,” and they got along like relatives. That was all.
The phone in his palm vibrated. It was a call from Gu Zhi.
“Xiao Yu, are you busy these days?”
The voice on the other end was Gu Zhi’s familiar tone. Her voice wasn’t as sweet as a young girl’s, but rather a bit deeper, with a slight magnetic quality to it, giving off a mature, dignified, and gentle vibe—like a pure lotus blooming in the mud, captivating yet not overly flashy.
Su Yu suddenly sat up in bed. The other party had just gotten off the plane, and she had actually called him.
“Are you back, sister? I’m not busy. Was everything okay on your end?”
“Very smooth.” Gu Zhi’s laughter was gentle, and her tone was full of a light and happy emotion. “I haven’t seen you since before the New Year. Did you miss me? I brought you a gift this time… when I came back.”
“Yeah, you don’t have to spend money. I’m not a child anymore.”
“Of course I think Xiao Yu will grow up. So… you have to accept this gift. Do you have time tomorrow, Xiao Yu?”
“Tomorrow… the school has an art festival. It’s quite busy.”
“Oh, I see. Hey… I heard from Xiao Nie that the Youth Association has a play. Are you participating?”
“Yes, tomorrow afternoon. If you’re interested, sister…”
“Okay, I’ll definitely go and see it.” Gu Zhi readily agreed. She mentioned the gift again. “What about the day after tomorrow? Let’s meet the day after tomorrow. Let Gu Chuan bring you. We can have a meal together.”
“Gu Chuan?” Su Yu hesitated for a moment. “He seems to be very busy these days. He’s not in the dorm much…”
Before Su Yu could finish speaking, the door to the dorm was suddenly knocked. Chu Feng, who was near the door, opened it, and Gu Chuan was standing outside, panting.
“Yo yo yo, Young Master Gu is willing to come back?” Lu Siyuan teased. He looked at Gu Chuan’s formal attire. “You smell of alcohol. Did you go to a banquet arranged by your dad again?”
“Haha… isn’t it the art festival tomorrow? I have to come back and see.”
Gu Chuan grinned, a cheeky smile on his face. He looked up and met Su Xi’s gaze, wiped the sweat from his forehead, and then smiled at Su Yu.
“Xiao Yu… why aren’t you speaking?” Gu Zhi’s confused voice came to his ear. “Is something wrong?”
“Oh… nothing. Gu Chuan just came back. What a coincidence.”
“I see. Then it’s a deal.”
“Ah, I know.” Su Yu quickly agreed, but his mind was a little wandering, and he was vaguely uneasy.
“Sigh… forget it.” Gu Zhi sighed to herself and said with a smile, “You young people have more to talk about. I’ll hang up now.”
“Then see you the day after tomorrow. Good night.”
“Good night… Xiao Yu.”
A busy tone sounded in his ear. Su Yu stared at the screen. The dim light flickered in his eyes like a star. He wondered if it was because he was too nervous about tomorrow’s art festival. He rubbed his throbbing temples, stuck his head out of the bed curtain, and shouted to Gu Chuan, “We’re having dinner together the day after tomorrow. Did my sister tell you?”
“Huh, no… no. Is that so?” The smile on Gu Chuan’s lips froze for a moment. He lowered his head and pulled off the tie that was choking him. He looked up and said with a smile, “I know. I’ll take you in my dad’s new car then. It’ll be very cool.”
…
“Zhiyan…”
Su Xi opened the door with some difficulty, holding the package she had picked up from the supermarket downstairs. She had been in a happy mood on the way back, her cheeks hot and flushed. She pushed open the door, and her gaze passed over the entryway. She looked at the cold and dim house, and her joy came to an abrupt end.
She walked into the study, which had been converted from a guest bedroom, with the package, feeling a little dejected. She turned on the light, and the calendar with its wrinkled pages was lying on the desk. She picked up the calendar, took the pen on the desk, and began to draw on the date.
She circled an ordinary date as usual, approaching the end of the month… she couldn’t help but fantasize about the future, and her empty heart was once again filled with warm blood.
Su Xi set an alarm and took out a few chemistry professional books with complicated content from the bookshelf on the wall. She almost didn’t need the table of contents and skillfully flipped to the chapter she wanted. The dense text was covered with many marks, which showed that she had studied it for a long time.
Purification of tranquilizers…
The few things she had been interested in in the past had now become her despicable means.
She took out the expensive instruments from the express box, washed them clean, and let them dry. Then she put on the medical rubber gloves that were used to prevent corrosion from chemical solutions, and tried them on for a bit. Her pink lips, under the mask, were pursed, and a smile of excitement appeared on her lips.
The purification of the drug was a very long process. The night outside grew deeper, and the white incandescent light above her head was dazzling. She had been staring at the chemical reagents at her desk until the early morning.
The alarm stopped and then rang again. She stood up to relieve the pain in her joints and blinked her eyes. A few clear tears oozed from the corners of her sore eyes.
In the end, there was only a little bit of the extracted powder. She carefully collected the white powder and shook the small bag to make sure it was sealed. She finally breathed a sigh of relief, and her cat-like round eyes narrowed into a crescent moon.
Su Xi took off her gloves and opened the window of the guest bedroom wider. The noisy night wind rushed into the room, replacing the chemical smell in the room. She breathed in the cold and damp water vapor in the wind, and her hot and soft brain nerves slowly tensed up.
She looked at the silent and dark night outside the window with excitement. She had not taken those psychiatric drugs for two days, but she felt unprecedentedly comfortable, as if the drug residue that had accumulated in her blood vessels had been cleared, and her blood had resumed its fresh and lively flow.
She was as if she were reborn.
