The tall silhouette of the man receded further and further into the night until he vanished from sight. After a long while, he reappeared under the dim yellow street - lamp in the distance, with wisps of smoke curling up. Facing the dark river, he took long, hard drags on his cigarette. It was hard to tell whether he was still seething with anger or drowning in sorrow.
Xie Bingxia had never intended to mention Xia Jingwei. It was a taboo name for both herself and Gu Bei. Now she regretted it deeply. It was she who had peeled away the protective shell around Gu Bei's heart, and it was also she who had snapped it shut again.
Oh well, it wouldn't kill her to be with him. After all, Xia Jingwei had been with him quite a few times before. They shared the same body. She didn't know why she was being so coy.
Perhaps, instinctively, she was resisting a loveless union.
Xie Bingxia sat alone in the car for a long time. Gu Bei returned, bringing in a chill with him. When he got into the car, the strong smell of cigarettes lingered. He was pinching an empty cigarette pack in his hand.
He grabbed the steering wheel, started the car, and said softly, "No matter where you heard about what happened between her and me, you're never allowed to mention her name again." Xie Bingxia stole a glance at him. His eyes were slightly red and his expression was tired. She felt a twinge of pity and clamped her mouth shut.
Gu Bei drove straight back to the Gu mansion. Xie Bingxia had her own little plan. She thought she could slip away when Gu Bei wasn't looking. But as soon as they stepped into the house, half a dozen black - suited bodyguards immediately reported for duty. Each of them was imposing and clearly not to be trifled with.
Gu Bei said to Xiaomei, "Take the young lady back to her room. She's not allowed to come out without my permission." Then he turned to the bodyguards and said, "If she takes a single step out of her room, I'll hold you accountable!"
"Yes, sir!" The professional bodyguards were well - trained. In an instant, they formed a phalanx and followed Xiaomei.
Xie Bingxia was incredulous. "Gu Bei! Are you going to软禁 me?"
"For a disobedient child, this is the only way," Gu Bei said coldly.
Xiaomei knew when she could joke with the young master and when she had to do exactly as he said. She pulled Xie Bingxia over and whispered in her ear, "The young master is serious. Let's go back to the room first."
Xie Bingxia bit her lower lip, her face full of anger. She followed Xiaomei upstairs. Before entering the room, a bodyguard blocked her way. "The boss has ordered that you hand over your phone."
"Fine, here!" Xie Bingxia took out her phone and slammed it into the bodyguard's palm. Then she slammed the door shut.
"Hey, miss? Miss?" Xiaomei and two bodyguards were all shut out. The miss was mad at her! She was so aggrieved that she went to the kitchen on the first floor, sniffling, to prepare a late - night snack for Xie Bingxia.
Xie Bingxia sat on the bed, her arms folded. This wasn't the time to be angry. She had to figure out how to contact Qin Feng. Her phone had been confiscated. There were two bodyguards at the door, one downstairs outside the window, one at the living - room entrance, and the rest were probably scattered around the house. Even worse, Gu Bei was there like the King of Hell, so escaping was probably out of the question.
After much thought, she decided to start with Xiaomei.
"Miss..." Xiaomei knocked on the door. "I've cooked you some plain noodles. Please eat something. Don't starve yourself."
"Come in."
Xiaomei was overjoyed. She quickly carried the noodles in, along with a cup of warm milk. Xie Bingxia hadn't eaten anything all night. The smell of the noodles made her ravenously hungry. Under Xiaomei's smiling gaze, she ate most of the bowl.
"Xiaomei..."
"Drink the milk too," Xiaomei said, pushing the milk cup.
"I don't want to drink it now."
"Drink it. I heated it specially."
"Ugh—" Xie Bingxia picked up the cup. Xiaomei's eyes were full of expectation, as if her drinking the milk would complete a great mission. After a moment of hesitation, she tilted her head and drank it all in one gulp.
"Good, good, that's great," Xiaomei murmured, clearly relieved.
As the warmth of the milk faded from her mouth, Xie Bingxia smacked her lips. Something felt off. She then said to Xiaomei, "Xiaomei, can you help... me... o - one..." As she spoke, her tongue started to get tangled, and the scenery in front of her blurred. It was a familiar feeling.
There was a drug in the milk! As soon as Xie Bingxia realized this, she slumped forward onto the table and fell into a deep sleep.
*
This sleep was long and peaceful. Since the day of the blood moon, she hadn't slept so soundly. When she slowly woke up, the evening glow filled the window.
Gu Bei was sitting by the bed, looking calmly at the person on the bed. "Awake?" Xie Bingxia swallowed. Her throat was so dry it felt like it was on fire after sleeping for so long. Gu Bei knew what she needed. He took a water cup from Xiaomei, inserted a straw, and handed it to her. "Drink some water."
Xie Bingxia propped herself up on her arms. A sense of weakness spread through her body. She pushed the water cup away and said hoarsely, "No need."
She leaned back against the pillow, lowering her eyes, and stayed quiet for a while. Gu Bei thought the little white rabbit would jump up and fight him when she woke up, but instead, she was even quieter than usual. He asked again, "Do you feel unwell?"
The dosage in that glass of milk had been carefully calculated. There shouldn't be any after - effects. Little did he know that what hurt Xie Bingxia wasn't her body but the heart beating in her chest. When she woke up and saw Gu Bei's calm demeanor, she knew that using underhanded tactics like drugging was nothing new to him, just like when he had drugged Xia Jingwei's wine two years ago. As long as he could achieve his goal, hurting those close to him didn't matter.
The sadness that flashed in Xie Bingxia's eyes disappeared in an instant, but Gu Bei still caught a glimpse of it. He put down the water cup and said gently, "I'm sorry I resorted to such extreme measures. I told you not to get involved in anything related to Yuan Yiyun, but you didn't listen. Instead of watching you make a fuss all night, it was better to let you have a good sleep."
Gu Bei reached out his hand, trying to stroke Xie Bingxia's hair. "I'm protecting you."
Xie Bingxia dodged abruptly, looking at Gu Bei with resentful eyes. "Protecting me? You're protecting Yuan Yiyun, aren't you?" Gu Bei had let her sleep well, and now her mind was very clear. She decided to break the ice and tell Gu Bei all her deductions.
"You've known what kind of woman Yuan Yiyun is for a long time, but you chose to tolerate her and even clean up her mess for the sake of the alliance, right?"
"..."
"All her lovers were obedient. They didn't mind being toyed with. But Yan Xiaoyi was an exception. He was extremely infatuated with Yuan Yiyun. He still didn't want to give up on her even after being abandoned."
"..."
"This kidnapping has something to do with Yuan Yiyun. You were afraid that the matter would get out of hand and Yuan Yiyun's true image would be exposed, so you wanted to solve it secretly. That's why you arrived at the small hotel where Yan Xiaoyi was staying before we did. Whether you threatened him or gave him some benefits, the result was to make him keep his mouth shut."
Gu Bei listened calmly to Xie Bingxia's reasoning. He couldn't help but admire her. His little white rabbit was truly extremely smart. There was no point in arguing anymore.
"But you miscalculated," Xie Bingxia continued. Gu Bei nodded. "Yes, I miscalculated. He had two other accomplices, and I didn't catch him. Moreover, my appearance made them move up their plan."
"You mean the kidnapping?" Xie Bingxia immediately reorganized the clues in her mind and quickly came to a conclusion. "Sure enough, this was a play staged by Yan Xiaoyi himself!"
Gu Bei's eyes turned sharp. He stared at Xie Bingxia. "So, why did you insist on getting involved? As long as he gets the money from the family, this matter will come to an end. I can handle the rest. There's no need to involve the police or let too many people know the inside story."
For Gu Bei, Xie Bingxia was a variable in his life. With this little girl around, anything could happen. All he hoped for was a smooth resolution to this matter.
Xie Bingxia laughed self - deprecatingly. "This isn't the first time you've cleaned up Yuan Yiyun's mess, is it?"
Gu Bei's silence was the best answer. Xie Bingxia's eyes welled up with tears, and her chest ached badly. In the end, the person he wanted to protect was Yuan Yiyun. She was just a nuisance who would disrupt his well - laid plans and had to be removed.
"Since we've laid it all out, I'm sure you understand. After today, this matter will almost be over."
Xie Bingxia exclaimed, "Over? Does that mean..."
"Yan Xiaoyi's gang will soon get the money from the family."
"Who's going to deliver it?"
"Qin Feng."