Chapter 184: Freedom
“Do you like me… Su Yu?”
The girl looked up at him with her dark eyes, her face like a peach blossom, her makeup dark and heavy. But her tone was as cold as a question. In a daze, they seemed to have returned to the play on the stage.
He subconsciously retreated, but his wrist was grabbed. The other party’s eyes narrowed slightly, and the corners of her lips curved into an alluring arc. Her warm fingertips gently rubbed his wrist. The frivolous and ambiguous action made his almost-stopped heart suddenly pound violently, pulling at his fragile nerves.
Thud!
The door lock was turned, and the noisy wind of the night rushed in through the gap. Almost no light entered the room. The sky was gloomy, and large clumps of clouds were kneaded together, soaked with moisture, as if they had reached their limit… with just a gentle squeeze, it seemed as if it would pour with rain.
…
“Hey, we’re here. You can go in first.”
Gu Chuan nudged Su Yu’s shoulder with his elbow, waking him from his daze. He looked at Gu Chuan. “Aren’t you going?”
“Oh… I still have something to do. I can’t go. You can go back by yourself tonight after you’re done, or you can ask my cousin to take you.”
“Then be careful on the way.”
“I know…”
Su Yu watched as Gu Chuan slowly disappeared into the city’s always-congested traffic. He turned his head… he was standing in front of a high-end and luxurious Western restaurant. A well-dressed and upright waiter politely walked up to him and asked if he had a reservation.
“Gu Zhi…”
“Is it Miss Gu Zhi’s reservation? Please follow me.”
The waiter’s reaction was very quick, as if he knew every guest by heart. He led Su Yu through a long and dim corridor, and a soothing and gentle melody was playing in his ear. The repressed and restless emotions in his heart calmed down like a soothed beast.
“This is it. Miss Gu is waiting for you in the private room.”
“Okay, thank you.”
Su Yu nodded, his palm on the golden doorknob. The touch was cold. He braced himself and pushed open the door. As expected, he saw Gu Zhi sitting on a sofa with a complex pattern.
She didn’t seem to have noticed Su Yu. She was leaning in a corner of the sofa, reading a book in the only light in the room. Her graceful curves were turned towards Su Yu, and her long, white thighs were crossed, casting a small shadow, squeezing out the plumpness of her thighs.
Her gaze was deeply immersed in the book, and her thick and slightly curled black hair was casually draped over her shoulders, a little more lazy and casual than usual.
Su Yu gently knocked on the door twice. The crisp sound attracted Gu Zhi’s attention. She slowly raised her long, narrow eyes and squinted slightly, the curve of her eyes becoming deeper. She showed a gentle smile. “You’re here.”
“You asked me to come, sister. Is there something you need?”
Gu Zhi smiled and put down the book in her hand. “The performance that day was very exciting. I saw it all.”
“Th-Thanks. Then you asked me to come…”
“You must be hungry after rushing over. I’ll have the restaurant bring the dishes up first.” Gu Zhi did not answer Su Yu’s question, but instead changed the subject without any reason.
“I still have something to do, sister. Since you couldn’t say it clearly on the phone, then let’s say it quickly now.”
“Are you in a hurry?” Gu Zhi looked at Su Yu’s tired expression with concern. Her voice was full of a clear heartache, and she slowed down her tone again.
“I heard that Xiao Yu’s grades at school are not bad? I wanted to ask you if you have any thoughts of studying abroad. After all, there is no better room for development in the country. There happens to be a very suitable opportunity recently. If you want…”
“You don’t have to worry about these things for me, sister. It’s fine as it is now. I’m probably not used to being alone.”
Su Yu refused, almost without any hesitation. He had no interest in such things.
The smile on Gu Zhi’s face froze for a moment, and her nails dug into her flesh, turning pale. She still wanted to try again.
The last chance…
“It’s not just you. I can go with you. It will be quick… just a few years.”
Gu Zhi inadvertently took a few steps closer, her fresh and gentle neroli fragrance rich and fragrant. A small, dark red mole was dotted under the corner of her eye. She silently took the upper hand, her eyes closed as she looked down at Su Yu. “Xiao Yu actually wants to, right? I can feel it. You’re scared… you clearly want to leave, to get away from this city, the farther the better.”
“What are you talking about?”
His heart ached. Gu Zhi’s words were as sharp as a knife stabbing into his heart. He was a little tempted. He really wanted to escape… but there was nowhere to go.
A storm of emotions was raging in his heart. His hand, which was hanging by his side, was unconsciously clenched, and the corner of his clothes was wrinkled into a mess. His eyes were filled with fear, and his lips were tightly pursed into a line.
“Is there anything here that you’re reluctant to leave? Is it the broken family, or… is there someone you care about? We’re the same in the end. What’s wrong with relying on each other? Just like before… it would be so good.”
Gu Zhi whispered in the boy’s pale cheek with a gentle smile, her hot breath brushing against his earlobe, the soft flesh turning a faint pink. She spoke of her own beautiful vision, but it was her heart’s most crazy and obsessive ambition.
The violent desire was growing wildly… the boy’s last refusal made her completely tear off her disguise.
“Besides the one who considers the other as their only one, who else in this world would be good to another person for no reason? Do you think I would approach you without any intention? Do you think I’m some kind of goody-two-shoes?”
Gu Zhi’s smile was ferocious and terrifying. The anger that had been accumulating in her heart had almost burned her heart to a bloody mess. She was clearly still suppressing her frantic emotions and had given the other party a choice. But in the end, what she got…
was just the other party’s unhesitating refusal. She was ashamed and angry at her own hesitation in her heart.
Su Yu’s tired eyes were wide with exhaustion, and the dense blood vessels were spreading on the whites of his eyes like a plague. He glanced at the sky outside the window and saw a dazzling white light explode.
“Boom!”
A loud thunderclap sounded, and the gentle and soft melody in the private room was instantly torn to pieces, scattered on the floor at his feet.
“I really love you, sister… when will you understand?”
Su Yu broke free from Gu Zhi’s hand, which was trying to cling to his cheek. He was very strong. After he had moved away from the woman’s rich neroli fragrance, his breathing seemed to have become less labored. He actually had the illusion of having survived a disaster.
He was about to speak when the rain that had been accumulating for several days turned into a downpour, and the pattering raindrops, wrapped in the roaring wind, hit the fragile glass. It was as if a big hand had twisted the water-filled clouds, and the pouring rain completely blurred his vision.
“Why are you running… where else can you go?”
Gu Zhi asked Su Yu back. She was still smiling, but her gentle, spring-water-like eyes were covered with a cold and aloof look. The beautiful muscle curve on her forearm, which was hidden under her sleeve, was tensed, and it was filled with a violent… and powerful force that was about to be unleashed.
“You’re all crazy… crazy…”
Su Yu was completely unaware of the terrifying possessiveness that was hidden under the other party’s brief gentleness. He wanted to stand up from the soft sofa, but it was as difficult as trying to get free from a quagmire.
He still struggled up. He glanced at Gu Zhi, who was standing silently on the side. She still had that mature and intellectual demeanor, but it was as if she had changed into a different person. The cold curve at the corners of her eyes was staring at him. No matter how he looked at it, he couldn’t find a single bit of similarity with the Gu Zhi of the past.
Su Yu opened the door of the private room in a panic. He turned his head and looked at Gu Zhi, who was standing in the shadows. The woman was still watching his escape with an indifferent expression. Her lazy gaze scraped against his face, making his vision blur and turn black. He felt as if he were a fish that had just had its head chopped off in the other party’s eyes. All his struggles were pathetic and futile.
He ran along the long and narrow corridor, but this dark corridor seemed to be infinitely stretched, and he could never see the end. The private room behind him was getting farther and farther away, but the fear in his heart was not healed at all.
He didn’t dare to look back. The crisp sound of high heels on the floor echoed in his ears, like a chain of death tightening around his neck. He saw a glimmer of light at the end. Outside the door was a pouring rain. The trees in the wind were blown sideways, as if demons were dancing wildly, as if they were celebrating the arrival of the end of the world.
The waiter who had led him into the private room was still standing at the door, welcoming guests. But Su Yu couldn’t see any expression on his face. The other party looked at him coldly and blocked the open door with his body. The light suddenly dimmed again.
He still didn’t dare to look back. His heavy breathing was frantically rushing in his lungs. The familiar expression brought a familiar sense of fear, which was frantically overflowing from his seven orifices.
“Sir, where are you going?”
The other party stepped forward politely, but he was as ruthless as a guard, trying to block all his way forward. But Su Yu didn’t dare to stop for a moment. The echo of the high heels on the white porcelain stone in his ear was getting shorter and shorter, as if it were getting closer and closer to him.
Su Yu gritted his teeth. He was like a dejected old lion, ready to break the shackles of the cage with a fierce and tragic determination. But just as the collision was about to happen, the other party made way.
In front of him was a wide open space, the exit.
He was overjoyed. With a huge inertia, he rushed out and plunged into the vast and cold rain.
The waiter adjusted the microphone in his ear and listened to the woman’s cold and ruthless tone, accepting her instructions. They bent down and waited for a while, and saw the woman walking out of the shadows of the corridor in her high heels. The heels of her shoes were silent on the soft carpet.
She held a glass of mellow wine and took a small sip, looking at the pathetic figure that had disappeared into the vast rain with a doting expression, but a playful and frivolous smile on her lips.
“Miss… are you just going to let him go like this?”
“No rush… he can’t escape. Don’t worry about him. Just consider it the last bit of freedom I’m giving him. It will be fine in a few days… just wait a little longer. Arrange the matters over there. I’m going to give the little guy a grand…”
She had completely shed the shackles that had been used to restrain the monster, as if she had been relieved of a heavy burden. The surging and turbulent ambition was frantically transmitted in her central nervous system. The overused nerves were limp and drooping. The two contradictory emotions of fatigue and excitement were almost driving her mad.
“Rebirth…”
I gave you the chance to choose freedom, but you still rushed into the cage.
What a pity…
