“But listening to a story is different from becoming the character in one. You know, when it happened tonight, the person I felt the most disgust for wasn’t Lu Zhaochun. It was Gu Zhengbo. And my mother.”
Ming Li reached out and squeezed her shoulder. She could feel Gu Fei trembling.
“I know I can’t really hurt them,” Gu Fei continued. “The most spiteful thing I could think of was killing myself in front of them, splashing my blood all over them. I thought that would be the ultimate revenge.”
“No,” Ming Li frowned, about to protest, but Gu Fei let out a wild laugh.
“But why should I? They’re humans, and so am I! Why do they get to play God with my life? They punish me when they want, give me away when they want… They don’t deserve that power!”
A gust of wind howled past. Gu Fei looked at Ming Li suddenly. “Do you think I’m being scary?”
Ming Li shook her head. “No. Thinking like that is the only way to stay sane.”
“It’s painful sometimes,” Gu Fei said. “In this world, having money seems to be a free pass to being a ‘good person.’ Look at Gu Zhengbo. People grovel at his feet wherever he goes, acting like he’s actually achieved something. In reality, he’s just a parasite clinging to the Gu family. He belongs in a gutter, yet countless people think he’s some legendary figure.
“If you strip away the money, you see him for what he is: ugly, untalented, arrogant, and vicious. He has the worst traits imaginable, yet he’s praised because he’s rich. This world is broken.”
Ming Li listened in silence. Gu Fei was usually a woman of few words, often hiding behind a polite, shallow smile. Ming Li had heard more from her today than in the past year, but she found herself liking the honesty. She felt the same way.
She despised Gu Zhengbo as well. In the Gu household, he was like a low-functioning creature unable to control its impulses, always on the verge of a breakdown—a mad dog ready to bite. Ming Li had suffered at his hands before, and it was Gu Qingshuang who had physically pulled her away to prevent the conflict from escalating.
“You’re right,” Ming Li said softly. “The world is broken.”
“But I don’t want to be assimilated by it,” Gu Fei said. “I’m going to see this through to the end. Right is right, and wrong is wrong.”
Seeing Gu Fei’s energy returning, Ming Li realized the girl had spent years in a state of internal conflict and forced reconciliation. She was much like Ming Li had been.
This thing doesn’t align with your values? Just convince yourself it does. Gradually, it will fit, or you’ll twist reality until it does.
Gu Fei had likely been doing this much longer, yet she was still fighting. She refused to be an accomplice to a corrupt world.
Ming Li patted her shoulder. “I’ll support you.”
After a moment of silence, Gu Fei asked, “Did the media get hold of it?”
“Gu Zhengbo called them, but President Gu suppressed the story,” Ming Li said. “Don’t worry, nothing leaked.”
“Why shouldn’t it leak?” Gu Fei’s lips curled. “They brought this on themselves.”
“What do you plan to do?”
Gu Fei didn’t share her plan. Instead, she suggested they go see Gu Qingshuang.
Gu Qingshuang’s injury wasn’t life-threatening, but she was still being kept in the VIP ward. Ming Li understood the politics of it immediately.
Lu Zhaochun was in worse shape and hadn’t woken up yet. Lu Tingsong had tried to visit Gu Qingshuang twice, but Elder Madam Gu hadn’t shown her face, leaving the Gu Group staff to handle him. After being turned away twice and receiving a few warnings and threats, Lu Tingsong was now more inclined to go back and beat Lu Zhaochun himself.
When Ming Li and Gu Fei entered the room, Gu Qingshuang was sitting on the edge of the bed, lost in thought. The punishment for Lu Zhaochun was still too light, she mused.
Gu Fei immediately thanked her for intervening. Unaccustomed to such intimacy, Gu Qingshuang pursed her lips and gave a clipped “It’s fine.”
Ming Li sat nearby, quietly observing Gu Qingshuang’s bandaged arm, noting that she still seemed to be in discomfort. As she watched, she suddenly heard Gu Fei speak.
“Even though I’m grateful for what you did today, it won’t change things between Ming Li and me. I won’t give up on her just because I owe you a debt of gratitude.”
Gu Qingshuang’s brow furrowed. Ming Li was stunned, a sense of impending danger washing over her. She met Gu Fei’s eyes for a split second before quickly looking away.
“Some things,” Gu Qingshuang said coldly, “are better left unsaid, Little Aunt.”
She emphasized the title “Little Aunt” pointedly.
“You’re still calling me that?” Gu Fei laughed. “I’m already planning to drop the surname Gu.”
“For the time being, you are still Gu Fei,” Gu Qingshuang countered.
“My name used to be Dongfang Fei,” Gu Fei said. “Your grandmother brought me here, changed my name, told me she was my mother, and insisted on raising me in the Gu family.”
Gu Qingshuang clearly didn’t want to hear this. “There’s no need for me to know these things.”
“Why not? Don’t you want to know what kind of person your grandmother really is?”
“I judge her by her actions.”
“Then do you think your grandmother had a hand in what happened today?”
“…”
“What exactly are you trying to say?” Gu Qingshuang asked.
Gu Fei lowered her voice. “Isn’t it obvious? I’m trying to recruit you.”
Recruit? More like drag her into the mud, Ming Li thought.
“I have no interest in these matters,” Gu Qingshuang replied expressionlessly, but her eyes flickered. Gu Fei’s words had clearly struck a chord. There was a high probability that the Elder Madam had been involved. Her grandmother was notoriously stubborn and controlling.
“It doesn’t matter,” Gu Fei said. “Gu Fei or Dongfang Fei, I won’t be a member of this family much longer. I’m going to turn the Gu family upside down. Out of respect for you helping me tonight, I’m giving you fair warning.”
Gu Qingshuang remained indifferent. “Oh. Do as you wish.”
“One more thing,” Gu Fei added. “What I have to say to Ming Li won’t change just because you’re injured.”
Seeing the tension rising, Ming Li tried to lighten the mood with a smile. “Why am I involved in this? Did you two discuss something behind my back?”
“Of course,” Gu Fei said, looking fearless. “But we didn’t discuss it together.”
“What is it?” Ming Li joked. “Don’t tell me you’re planning to stay and nurse her back to health?”
Gu Fei shook her head. “No. I like you, Ming Li.”
Gu Fei didn’t care that Gu Qingshuang was in the room. She said exactly what she wanted to say. When Lu Zhaochun was beating her, she had been ready to die with him. She had realized that her life—whether as Dongfang Fei or Gu Fei—had been cowardly. She had spent all her energy trying to please people, only to end up like that.
Forget this pathetic life! I’m done with it! she had thought. From now on, she would say what she wanted and do what she wanted.
The smile froze on Ming Li’s face. She could tell Gu Fei wasn’t joking, but the atmosphere was so stiff it made her skin crawl.
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