The call was connected quickly.
Hearing Jiang Nan Fang’s voice from the other end, Zhan Bei Jue finally breathed a sigh of relief.
“Where are you now? The hotel caught fire, are you alright?”
Jiang Nan Fang was also among the onlookers. The moment the fire broke out, she rushed to bring the woman down, so everyone was fine.
“I’m fine, and the elder sister is fine. But that man…”
“Why don’t you leave first? This will probably take some time.”
The fire was set by the man who followed them to the hotel and placed it in the top-floor corridor. Afterwards, he went to take the elevator and was trapped inside, dying by his own actions.
Next, Jiang Nan Fang had to explain the man’s cause of death, help the woman with the complicated procedures she didn’t understand, and then arrange work for her.
She had thought of many things, and it would take at least two to three days before she could return to Nan Cheng.
But Zhan Bei Jue directly rejected her suggestion: “No rush, I’ll deal with it with you and then we’ll go back together.”
The two went to the police station to give their statements. After a long time, they came out, and it was already dark.
Jiang Nan Fang casually pointed to a roadside fast-food restaurant, and the two went to have dinner.
During the meal, Zhan Bei Jue couldn’t help but ask her why she was so determined to help the woman.
This was the first time Jiang Nan Fang had mentioned her family matters to him.
Although it was not appropriate to bare her heart to him at such a time, people always needed someone to confide in.
Jiang Nan Fang said, “The moment I saw her, she not only reminded me of my mother back then, but also of myself.”
“Can you imagine? My mother and I were beaten the same way she was.”
Zhan Bei Jue couldn’t imagine it.
Her mother was clearly such a gentle person.
“In this world, being good doesn’t guarantee a kind reward. Perhaps kindness equals a certain degree of weakness.”
“It’s a pity my mother never understood this principle until she died. Thanks to her, I understood it from the age of seven.”
“Suicide? Heh, it’s utterly meaningless. Besides making loved ones grieve and enemies rejoice, it achieves nothing. I really didn’t expect my mother to be so incompetent as to escape through death…”
But at this point, she suddenly stopped.
Zhan Bei Jue saw that her expression was wrong, and his mind seemed to be calculating something rapidly. Thinking she had recalled a painful memory, he moved closer to comfort her.
Jiang Nan Fang grabbed his hand.
“No! How did I never think of this before!”
“Think of what?”
“The truth about my mother’s death!”
“?”
“This elder sister, despite being so miserable and facing such hardship, never thought of suicide for her child. Why would my mother?”
She furrowed her brows tightly. “Back then, even though it was tough, she was still very refined.”
“With her around, I had enough to eat every day, clean clothes to wear, I could learn to dance, and go out on outings on weekends.”
“She never showed any intention of committing suicide in front of me!”
Zhan Bei Jue understood what she meant: “So through this elder sister…”
“Exactly! She definitely didn’t commit suicide! On the contrary, because of her strength and her persistent refusal to back down, she blocked someone’s path, so…”
Jiang Nan Fang trembled all over. Zhan Bei Jue had never seen her look so terrifying.
She almost dug her own palm open.
“I actually let them go like that, and actually believed their lies!”
“My mother didn’t commit suicide, she never thought of giving up on me… I’m so stupid!”
“You were only seven years old then, and you didn’t see it with your own eyes…” Zhan Bei Jue tried to comfort her.
But Jiang Nan Fang trembled uncontrollably, shaking her head desperately, denying herself again and again.
“I’m so stupid, truly too stupid. I actually lived with that damned woman for over a decade, I’m a pig!”
In the end, Zhan Bei Jue carried her home.
Jiang Nan Fang was completely drunk, muttering apologies to her mother and calling herself a pig.
They changed to another hotel. As soon as they entered, Zhan Bei Jue, carrying her on his back, closed the door and tried to put her down on the sofa.
As soon as they entered, she slid off his back.
Afraid she would fall, Zhan Bei Jue caught her back. Jiang Nan Fang clung to his neck, and their eyes met.
Her drunken breath, along with her hazy gaze, made Zhan Bei Jue’s hair stand on end.
But he couldn’t do anything.
“Don’t look at me like that, you should go wash up.”
Jiang Nan Fang hiccuped, “Are you disgusted with me?”
“How could I be… If you don’t want to wash, just go to sleep like this.”
“But I don’t want to sleep.”
“Then what do you want to do?”
Jiang Nan Fang cupped his chin, stood on tiptoe, and touched his lips: “Kiss you.”
“…Jiang Nan Fang, you’re drunk.”
Jiang Nan Fang continued to look at him, “So what?”
“You’ll regret it when you wake up tomorrow.”
“Why would I regret it?”
Zhan Bei Jue was speechless.
Why would you regret it, you should ask yourself!
Anyway, I’d be delighted.
“Let’s go, I’ll help you in.”
The two stumbled into the room.
Near the foot of the bed, Jiang Nan Fang pressed Zhan Bei Jue’s neck and pushed him onto the bed.
They leaned against each other, and she nestled on his chest: “Zhan Bei Jue, thank you.”
Zhan Bei Jue was being tormented by her, his heart pounding wildly, “Thank me for what?”
“I’m not drunk. I know everything. I just want to thank you.”
“…”
“But I can’t get past this hurdle in my heart, I can’t betray Ke Teng. You should leave, and we shouldn’t see each other again. I’m serious.”
What is a roller coaster of emotions, Zhan Bei Jue finally experienced it thoroughly with her.
One moment he was fantasizing about them getting back together, and the next he was being asked to leave.
Jiang Nan Fang’s warm tears dripped into his clothes, onto his chest.
“I think there’s no possibility for us anymore. I owe Ke Teng too much.”
“As long as he doesn’t wake up, I’ll stay by his side forever.”
“If he wakes up and still likes me, I’ll marry him.”
“People say that between someone you like and someone who likes you, you must choose the one who likes you. Now I understand.”
“Liking you is too hard. It’s too bitter.”
“I’ve liked you for twenty-two years, since the first time I met you until now, and it’s never been sweet.”
“Let me go. Let me taste what sweetness is like in the future.”
These words were more effective than any other means to provoke Zhan Bei Jue to leave.
She was too bitter. He could feel it.
From childhood to marriage, she had never truly experienced love.
She was once so close to him, and he hadn’t given her what she wanted, it was his fault.
Perhaps he was truly not suitable for her.
At least his mother, compared to her father, seemed to express themselves on different dimensions.
He wouldn’t hate Jiang Nan Fang, and he would no longer be unwilling because of her departure.
It was all his own doing, fate’s best arrangement. He finally understood at this moment.
If my letting go can bring you something better, then I will do it willingly.
After a long silence, he released his arm around her.
“Okay. I’ll leave after you fall asleep. Don’t worry, I won’t bother you again.”
Jiang Nan Fang silently rolled away from him.