Bai Wenxi fiercely pressed the back of her hand against her eyes, but the tears still streamed down uncontrollably. Soon, they gathered under her chin and dropped in droplets.
"I've always been obedient and followed the elders' words. But why couldn't I keep anything?"
Jiang Beihuai pulled her into his embrace, filled with remorse. He blamed himself for forcing Wenxi to make a choice.
He wished he could crush his own heart to prove that he hadn't meant to hurt her, but had just been at a loss in this complicated relationship.
"Beihuai, my original intention was really to protect you from harm." Bai Wenxi cried on Jiang Beihuai's shoulder for a while before gradually calming down her overflowing grief.
"I've now found out that Yao Chunmei used the address of this island to set up a shell company for money - laundering. Even my father's death is intricately linked to her."
"After coming back this time, I wanted to take away the will related to Moon Island." Bai Wenxi put some fish in her mouth and chewed. The sharp pangs of hunger eased a bit.
"Yao Chunmei is so scheming. Do you know that when my mother was seriously ill, she even stooped to serve her attentively."
Bai Wenxi hugged her dress tightly. The warm fabric wrapped around her arms, as if it could transmit this warmth to her skin.
"I asked a detective to investigate Yao Chunmei's financial situation. As a result, by following the clues, I found many dangerous people. She has connections with them, and there are always large, unexplained sums of money flowing in and out of her accounts."
The more Jiang Beihuai listened, the angrier he got. Even a person like him, who had grown up in the slums, knew that such investigations were extremely dangerous.
Let alone Bai Wenxi, a pampered rich girl. Venturing out like this was simply asking for trouble.
"You were so reckless!" Jiang Beihuai buried the leftover fish bones in the soil and prodded the fire with a stick.
"Even if you didn't tell me, you shouldn't have come here alone to take risks." He angrily thrust the stick into the sand.
"You could have hired a bodyguard or at least called Su Yuning!"
Bai Wenxi was both amused and exasperated. "It's my fault. I didn't think it through. I just didn't want to drag others into this."
She quietly placed her hand on Jiang Beihuai's back. As soon as her hand touched his bare skin, he trembled.
"Just talk about things. Don't try these tricks." Jiang Beihuai retorted, his dull eyes looking listless.
In a muffled voice, he said, "Don't do things secretly next time. I'm also human. I can't just watch you go to your death, can I?"
Bai Wenxi nodded like a pecking chicken. "Definitely. I've deeply realized my mistake this time."
Her palms were sweating as she tried to ingratiate herself a bit. "Is the phone dry? Let's see if it can be turned on."
Seeing her obediently nestled beside him, Jiang Beihuai felt a warmth in his heart.
He sized her up and down with a teasing look. "What, are you afraid to stay here overnight?"
No matter how much mental preparation Bai Wenxi had made, she still felt a bit embarrassed. "I'm afraid Yuning and Uncle will worry. I should contact them as soon as possible."
Jiang Beihuai picked up the phone and pressed the power button, but the screen remained completely black.
"Damn it. The phone won't even turn on. And in a place like this, it's hard to say if there's even a signal." He moved the phone closer to the fire, but the screen still showed no sign of life.
Bai Wenxi was a bit panicked. In fact, there used to be a signal tower on Moon Island.
But things had changed, and she didn't know if the signal tower could still transmit messages.
"Now you're in a hurry. When you rushed over impulsively before, why didn't you think about an escape route?"
Jiang Beihuai was sharp - tongued and didn't care about Bai Wenxi's feelings at all. He just rambled on.
The naughty side of his nature was revealed under the cover of the moonlight. "I was just concerned about you, but you said I was too controlling. Then you should have just told me everything and not made me worry."
Since Bai Wenxi had blurted out the misunderstanding incident before, Jiang Beihuai had always been in a weaker position.
He naturally felt guilty, so he had changed his usual domineering ways and always tolerated and obeyed Bai Wenxi.
Although his wife always did things secretly behind his back and used clumsy excuses to cover them up.
But he still comforted himself, thinking that it was just Bai Wenxi's momentary anger. There shouldn't be any secrets between husband and wife, and she would surely confess eventually.
But he didn't expect that her two disappearances had worn out all his patience. And this time, being robbed on the boat had finally triggered all his pent - up frustration.
"What's this? This is a typical case of good intentions going wrong. If I hadn't saved you this time, you probably wouldn't have even reached Moon Island safely."
He rambled on, feeling relieved. Bai Wenxi's face turned pale and then red. She was both sad and heart - broken.
She had already been carrying a heavy psychological burden. She had only meant well and didn't want to drag Jiang Beihuai into this, but she had been misunderstood by him.
Now being scolded so harshly, even though she had toughened up during this period, she couldn't bear such a merciless onslaught.
Bai Wenxi was extremely angry. She immediately took off her shirt and threw it at Jiang Beihuai. Then she put on her dress and ran barefoot.
"Don't run away. I haven't finished yet." Jiang Beihuai was stunned for a moment, not reacting immediately.
When her figure became smaller and smaller in the darkness, he suddenly came to his senses and rushed forward.
Bai Wenxi, out of breath, was caught in his arms. She struggled with all her might.
"You're just using this as an excuse. You're clearly taking revenge for my coldness recently!"
Jiang Beihuai suddenly let go. Bai Wenxi landed on the ground and almost lost her balance and fell.
But Jiang Beihuai resisted the urge to help her. He clasped his hands behind his back and said seriously, "I was a bit too harsh just now. I apologize for that."
"However, the idea of revenge is completely unfounded. When you ignored me, I could only try every means to please you. I would never hold a grudge."
Jiang Beihuai calmly put on his shirt. "Can you be more mature? Don't run away just because we disagree. If you don't like what you hear, running away is such a childish thing to do."
His long fingers covered Bai Wenxi's cheek. "That's just like a childish act."
Bai Wenxi gritted her teeth. "I'll check Moon Island tomorrow morning and then go back immediately."
Jiang Beihuai folded his arms across his chest leisurely. "Immediately may not be possible, but they will surely come looking for us."
"The rescue boat that picked up those two people knew we were coming to Moon Island. And if we don't show any signs of life for a few days, Su Yuning will definitely send someone."
Bai Wenxi realized the seriousness of the situation. "Do we have to stay on this island for several days?"
She began to feel a bit desperate. "Looking at the overgrown weeds here, Yao Chunmei must not have spent any more money to hire people to maintain the island. I even suspect that she deliberately let the island go to waste just to set up a shell company."
Jiang Beihuai had walked around the area in the afternoon. Although he could tell that there were traces of someone once living there, it had indeed become an artificial desert island.
"After we go back this time, I think you'll have to go to court with your step - mother."
Bai Wenxi turned the phone over and over in her hands. "I hope it can be turned on tomorrow. I need to take photos as evidence!"
"Let's go back to the fire first." Jiang Beihuai picked up some more dead branches. "We can't let the fire go out. It was so hard to get the lighter to spark and start the fire."