Gu Bei had been in self - isolation for over a month. Finally, he began to eat some food. Xiao Mei tried every means to prepare his meals, but he stuffed the food into his mouth mechanically, tasting nothing. He ate very little.
Xiao Mei saw the increasingly dark circles under his eyes and how unkempt he had become. He no longer had the charm of the former President Gu. She felt really sad.
As dusk was approaching, Gu Bei slowly raised his eyes and stared out of the window at the setting sun. No one knew what was on his mind. His expression was extremely absent - minded.
Grandpa Xie came in. "Gu Bei, I have something to tell you."
Gu Bei turned his head. It took a long time for his unfocused eyes to land on Grandpa Xie. His lips parted slightly but finally closed.
"Jingwei's father, your Uncle Xia, passed away a few days ago."
Gu Bei's back suddenly trembled, and his already weak upper body slumped even lower. Grandpa Xie and Xia Jingwei's father were good friends. He really couldn't bear it, so he had helped arrange the funeral these days.
The Xia Group had fallen apart and been completely devoured. The Xie Group had taken the major share. He felt quite sorry about this, but it was better than having it fall into the hands of some second - rate enterprises and be ruined.
"You know, most of the Xia Group has been acquired. The rest is in Yuan Zhentian's hands." Grandpa Xie walked up to Gu Bei, stared at him, and asked, "Do you want to get it back?"
A glimmer of light flashed in Gu Bei's empty pupils. Grandpa Xie thought there was a chance, so he quickly added, "If you can get it back and manage it, I believe Jingwei will be grateful to you."
"How?" Gu Bei spat out three words.
Xiao Mei was so excited that she was almost in tears! The young master finally spoke!
Grandpa Xie pressed his lips tightly to hide his excitement and tried to ask for Gu Bei's consent in a calm tone. "Your Uncle Yuan has said that as long as you get engaged to Yuan Yiyun and the two families get united through marriage, the shares of the Xia Group will be the dowry."
Anger welled up in Gu Bei's eyes. He slapped away Grandpa Xie's hand on his shoulder and gritted his teeth. "Don't even think about it."
His bride would always be Xia Jingwei and only Xia Jingwei!
"Gu Bei!" Grandpa Xie advised earnestly, "If you go on like this, you'll be finished! Do you understand?"
Gu Bei ignored him, lay down on the bed, and covered his head with the quilt.
Sorry. Please act as if you never had a son like me! Gu Bei bit his lower lip so hard that he swallowed the sobbing sound back into his throat until he tasted the blood.
Seeing this, Grandpa Xie sighed and left the room with the help of his walking stick.
That night, Gu Bei had another dream. The dream was full of the young Jingwei. She was like a little tail following him around, making him happy and laugh, standing up for him, and cheering him on.
"Let's get married when we grow up." Xia Jingwei plucked the weeds in the garden and wove them into a ring. "Here, the engagement ring is ready."
"Silly girl. It should be me proposing to you." After saying that, Gu Bei blushed suddenly and mumbled, "Don't talk nonsense. We're still young."
"I can wait for you to grow up. I'll grow up too." Xia Jingwei held Gu Bei's hand. "You'll marry me then, won't you?"
Yes, definitely. It's you, and it can only be you!
But...
Gu Bei woke up from the dream. Jingwei's smiling face faded like a mirage behind the cruel reality. He lowered his eyes, as if he had made some kind of determination.
The next day, when Gu Bei came downstairs looking clean and tidy, Xiao Mei's eyes widened, and tears welled up involuntarily.
Gu Bei returned to his position and accepted the Yuan family's proposal of marriage. He seemed to be the king he used to be again, but also not. Only he knew the truth.
Without love and a heart, he only had the goal of atoning for her.
Two cold years passed like this. All women were just a passing cloud to him until a girl named Xie Bingxia appeared. She timidly called him brother, and her insincerity was too obvious.
On the way back from Grandpa Xie's funeral, Gu Bei sat in the back seat of the car. He carefully studied the paternity test reports and then threw them out of the window speechlessly.
Did it really matter who she was? A little girl who couldn't pose any threat to him didn't need to be worried about.
"Take her to the house by the river." Gu Bei gave the order. He wanted to see how long she could keep up the act after she was taken to that place. She would surely cry and beg him to let her go and go back where she came from.
However, he was wrong. He was terribly wrong.
That night, Xie Bingxia was like a flower growing on a cliff, pure and extremely tenacious. Her eyes were filled with stars.
"Come on. Go back with me."
He wanted to know more about her.
The more he got to know her, the more deeply he was trapped. He had to admit that he wanted to find a little trace of the young Xia Jingwei in her, even though he knew it was as elusive as a mirage.
He couldn't help but plead with Xie Bingxia for a little bit of comfort. Day and night, Gu Bei was struggling with himself. One part of him couldn't stop getting closer to Xie Bingxia, while the other part blamed himself for his wavering and felt ashamed of Xia Jingwei.
At this moment, Gu Bei deeply understood that Xie Bingxia's threat to him was not material but emotional. He was scared, scared that he might really fall in love.
So he tried every means to push Xie Bingxia away.
"It has to stop!" Gu Bei warned himself in front of the mirror.
Once again, things didn't go as he wished.
Gu Bei had always been proud of his unshakable willpower, but this willpower was like something that would fall apart at the first touch in front of Xie Bingxia.
Jealousy can make a person unrecognizable.
He was jealous that Qin Feng could stand beside Xie Bingxia without any burden, could openly say that he liked her, and could go forward bravely to pursue his own happiness.
While he was so humble, hesitant, and not like a man at all.
In the dead of night, Gu Bei drove alone to the cemetery where Xia Jingwei was buried. He sat in front of the tombstone. He wanted to have a good talk with Jingwei.
He had lost count of how many times he had come here alone at night, seeking an answer.
"If I fall in love with someone else, will you blame me?"
The gentle night breeze blew by. Of course, Xia Jingwei wouldn't answer him.
Gu Bei took out a small flask from his bosom, unscrewed the cap, and took a sip. The spicy liquid slid into his stomach, giving him a lot of courage. He decided not to pretend anymore and said directly, "I want to give it a try."
The photo on the tombstone still showed a peaceful smile. Gu Bei tightened his grip on the flask and bowed deeply in front of the tombstone. "Forgive me, Jingwei!"
The initial courage was given by you. So, I want to inherit this courage and keep going.
Facts proved that Gu Bei had never loved the wrong person.
It was late at night. Gu Bei looked at the little girl lying in his arms. Her nose twitched slightly. It seemed that she was having a good dream. It would be better if he was also in her dream.
He tightened his arms, feeling the real body temperature and weight of Xie Bingxia, and smiled faintly.
He didn't need to hug the so - called mirage anymore. This time, he was sure he could hold her tightly in his hand and walk to the end.