Chapter 79: No one but her could be the executioner...
Luo Shu slept until she woke up naturally. There was no biological clock, no painful nightmares, no waking up in the middle of the night, no messy noises, and no side effects from any medicine.
It was my turn to have a day off today, so I checked the work group messages as usual, and only stayed in bed after making sure there was no urgent work to deal with.
The curtains were not drawn, leaving only a gap of light half the width of a palm to seep into the room.
As if remembering something, Luo Shu suddenly got out of bed and walked out of the bedroom. The sofa area in her sight was empty, without a single wrinkle, as if no one had slept on it the previous two nights. And her SpongeBob, who had been used as a pillow for two nights, was curled up in the corner of the armrest with his back to the sofa, and there was an obvious slap mark on the back of his head.
Luo Shu was speechless and burst into laughter. Could Fang Qingzhuo be any more childish?
Well, I never hold myself back, so I took out my anger on my toys last night, but that's all I can do.
The breeze was not dry. Luo Shu cut some fruits, poured a cup of yogurt and nestled in the balcony to enjoy breakfast. Above her was the mottled sunlight sneaking through the leaves and the slowly moving white clouds. Below her was the sound of old men and women playing with cats after returning from morning exercise. The whole place was thriving.
She didn't know if the venting last night had any effect, but she hadn't felt so comfortable in a long time.
In the past few years, I seem to have been drifting, wandering in a vicious circle of self-hypnosis, relying on drugs to untie the knot in my heart all night long, but it only treats the symptoms and not the root cause. The reality is that it is far less satisfying than scolding Fang Qingzhuo as I please.
Fang Qingzhuo, who was several kilometers away, had the same feeling. He was dressed in black from head to toe, except for a "Keep Out" sign. He leaned on the armrest of the sofa with his forehead supported and sent Luo Shu a tutorial on how to connect the surveillance camera to the mobile phone.
The sofa in the housekeeper's villa was more spacious and comfortable than the one in the rental house, but he didn't want to stay there for even a minute longer. He would rather be scolded by Luo Shu than just walking away and pretending not to know her. It would be harmless to get scolded and shed a few tears. As long as she paid attention to him, it would be a good start.
In fact, it is the same as raising a pet. No one likes an ugly and dirty dog that only knows how to eat, drink, defecate and urinate, and no one likes a spoiled stupid dog that can't tell the difference between big and small and bites people.
It doesn't matter if you make a mistake. Just lower your head, tuck your tail between your legs, put away your fangs, beg for mercy, be obedient and don't make the same mistake again. It's just that with him, the roles are reversed.
"Azhu, it's not that I didn't try my best, but she doesn't want to accept it. Brother, I'll find another way to compensate her, okay?" Guan Siqi's solemn promise suddenly brought the little calculation in his mind back to reality.
"Are you done? I'm leaving now."
Guan Siqi was shocked. They didn't even bother to give them a perfunctory response. He scratched his ear and quickly sent a distress signal to his teammates on the other side. Gu Yang turned a blind eye, while Gu Qin was full of disdain, even muttering in authentic American English in a sarcastic tone: "Get the fuck outta here, dawg!"
Fang Qingzhuo was halfway down the road when he suddenly heard the sound of "dawg". His eyes darkened instantly, and he turned around sinisterly and said, "If you dare, yell it again."
When being called out, Gu Qin was not afraid at all. He stood up calmly and faced the face that looked like it was about to storm.
"Your ears are bad, right? Then I'll grant your wish. Dawg, dawg, dawg, I'm scolding you. Why should my brothers bear the consequences of the karma you sowed? You can come to the wedding or not, as if I'm begging you." Gu Qin was already unhappy because his unrequited love interest had broken up with him, and now his good brother wanted to break up with him because of this. "I think you're just unhappy with yourself. After hitting a wall with women, you can't bear to see others happy."
Gu Yang tried to stop her several times but failed, until the words "It's shameful to see others doing well" popped up in the tense air, and it was completely impossible to undo the damage.
Fang Qingzhuo did not choose to look at Gu Qin at the first time, but looked at Gu Yang who had nothing to say. When beating a dog, you have to look at the owner, let alone teaching someone a lesson. The fact that he could be scolded by Luo Shu did not mean that he had completely changed his character. Moreover, this fake foreigner-like way of speaking, which was half Chinese and half English, made him think of someone for no reason, which made his crime even worse.
He raised his eyelids and fixed his eyes on the culprit, saying with a hint of laughter: "Do I look easy to talk to?"
Gu Qin was a little confused about his intentions. He stared at him warily as he got closer and closer, and told the truth: "No..."
"Then who are you to Luo Shu?"
Gu Qin risked his life: "I admire her..."
Guan Siqi and Gu Yang both looked satisfied.
"I see..." Fang Qingzhuo was still laughing, "I see."
"Then why do I need your approval? I'm just a fool whose judgment was lost along with the placenta at birth."
The original illusion of harmony disappeared under this question, and was replaced by an attack like a thousand arrows piercing the heart.
"You think you're generalizing based on just a few words? Do you understand what I mean? I hate people like you who claim to be gilding the lily, but end up with bad habits that pollute the air of our country. I feel bad about my mistakes back then, too. Why doesn't anyone understand me? Why doesn't anyone sympathize with my dilemma?"
He looked down upon Gu Qin, but seemed to be challenging everyone present.
"I'm the bad guy, I'm the executioner, but I'm the only one being punished, accused of a crime that everyone despises. It seems like you're all good people, judging and criticizing me from a moral high ground. Anyone in this world can do that, except you, Gu."
"I miss Luo Shu more than anyone else. I feel sorry for her, but I haven't wronged you. Apart from her, no one else can blame me so harshly."
Every time Fang Qingzhuo spoke, he would poke him in the chest. Every time Gu Qin was yelled at, he would take a step back until his calves touched the edge of the sofa and he had nowhere to retreat.
"The last sentence..." Fang Qingzhuo grabbed his collar with both hands and pulled him close to her. "Swallow your thoughts bit by bit. If you can't learn it, it's okay. I don't mind teaching you bit by bit."
As soon as he finished speaking, he let go and pushed Gu Qin, who fell down on the sofa.
At this point, Guan Siqi was to blame, and before Gu Qin could expose him, he tried to smooth things over: "Don't argue with the kid. He's stubborn, you know, full of heroism. He met Luo Shu once and heard some nonsense from others, so he insisted on standing up for her. Don't worry, Yangzi and I will definitely strengthen discipline in the future."
Fang Qingzhuo glanced at him nonchalantly: "From what you said, it seems that I am the one who caused the current situation?"
"I..." Guan Siqi wondered how he could have expressed that, and then he explained, "I just don't want him to get involved in this mess."
Fang Qingzhuo didn't like what he heard. He narrowed his eyes and sneered, "It was Gu Qin who muddied the waters, right? If you think it's inappropriate, just pack him up and send him back abroad."
When Gu Qin heard that he was going to be sent abroad, he was the first to disagree. He jumped up angrily and said, "Fang Qingzhuo, who the hell do you think you are? How dare you make the decision for me?"
Fang Qingzhuo turned a deaf ear to him and looked at Gu Yang, who was in a dilemma, with a half-smile on his face: "If it's too embarrassing, I can help you and be the bad guy."
From the beginning to the end, Gu Yang seemed to be in a dilemma and said nothing. Now, he finally understood what Fang Qingzhuo's mentality was at the time, as if he was being roasted on the fire.
Sometimes keeping silent is also a kind of tacit consent. Seeing this, Gu Qin opened his voice and cursed, picking out every word that was offensive. If Guan Siqi hadn't held him, he would have jumped up and rushed to Fang Qingzhuo to fight to the death. At the end, he cursed like a wild horse that had broken free from its reins, and was about to curse the whole family. Guan Siqi almost subconsciously slapped his mouth in the face for that word.
Fortunately, Liang Anqi appeared in time to stop the farce: "What are you doing?"
Guan Siqi wiped away a cold sweat, and skillfully changed the hugging position to an arm around each other's shoulders, laughing even uglier than crying: "Reminiscing about the past, can't you see? We were reminiscing about the past, why are you here?"
Liang Anqi noticed Gu Yang's abnormality at the first time and frowned unconsciously. Although the other party said it lightly, his eyes were clearly on him.
"Brother Qingzhuo, Uncle Fang and the others are in the garden asking you to come over."
Fang Qingzhuo was unusually silent throughout the whole process. He put his hands in his pockets and walked straight towards the garden. However, he deliberately paused halfway, gave Gu Qin a meaningful look back, and then strode away.
Gu Qin had a bad feeling: "Is he going to complain to my uncle?"
Guan Siqi: "Come on, he still needs to complain."
Gu Qin: "Of course. He'll tell my uncle about my crimes and make me pack up and go back to LA."
Guan Siqi: "Then you really underestimated him."
Gu Qin: "What do you mean by underestimating him?"
Guan Siqi: "I guarantee that not only will he not complain, he will even speak well of you in front of Uncle Gu."
Gu Qin: "Do I look like a fool?"
Guan Siqi: "Don't be impatient. You've heard of the saying 'first suppress then praise'. He uses this trick. First praise then suppress. It's a common tactic. Don't tell me, old-fashioned people fall for it."
Gu Qin: "How did you know?"
Guan Siqi: "Back then, I also had a cousin..."
They complained to each other, while Gu Yang looked lost and staggered up to the second-floor terrace like a sleepwalker. Liang Anqi hesitated for a moment and followed him.
"Gu Yang."
Since the engagement was confirmed, Angela Leong started calling him by his full name.
"Yeah." Gu Yang sat on the wooden swing, his elbows resting on his legs, without raising his head.
"Are you okay?" Angela Leong squatted in front of him, putting one hand on his knee.
Gu Yang buried his face even deeper, and this time he didn't even say "hmm".
The dramatic reversal that year dealt him a heavy blow. He went from being a betrayed victim to an indirect murderer. Although he appeared to be indifferent on the surface, he was actually surviving under a layer of plastic film.
During the years she had been with him, Angela Leong had long seen through his disguise, but she was not sure whether she had done anything wrong regarding the marriage between the two families.
Besides, the person he likes is back.
Looking at his painful expression, Angela Leong checked her conscience and told herself that one should not be too selfish. She took a deep breath, as if she was making an important decision.
"I know you agreed to this marriage because of pressure from your uncle and aunt. I also know that the person you like has never been me. I'm not greedy. I'm very happy to be with you as your fiancée these past few years, but I really want to hear your true feelings. Have you ever been moved by me, even a little bit?"
The only answer she got was a still and lengthy air. Gu Yang hung his head, motionless as if fixed on a log. Liang Anqi didn't know what she was expecting, a bitter smile played on her lips. "I don't care if I don't have any. If you don't want to get married, I'll go talk to the elders."
Just as she stood up and was about to give him some space to be alone, she felt a sudden tightening around her waist. Gu Yang came up and held her tightly.
"Don't go."
The sound was not loud, and Liang Anqi even suspected that she was hallucinating: "What?"
Gu Yang slowly raised his face: "You are the only one I have, don't leave."
Panic was clearly visible on his face at this moment. "It wasn't because of pressure from my parents. I agreed. I nodded in agreement."
Liang Anqi felt that the blood in her body was retreating: "Can you say it again?"
He blinked several times, gazing longingly at the black pupils in Liang Anqi's eyes, his tone anxious, "There are some things I've been holding in my heart for a long time. My parents asked for my opinion on this marriage, but the decision was mine. I agreed to it myself. In the beginning, I really only had pure brotherly feelings for you, and I don't know when it started to sour. It might be when I had a bipolar attack and you huddled by the door to keep me company all night, or when I lost my appetite and you huddled in the kitchen researching recipes, or when I was frustrated at work and you told jokes that weren't too bad to make me laugh."
He suddenly stopped talking halfway, his expression showing that he was at a loss as to what to do after saying so much in one breath that he couldn't utter a single word. Perhaps because he had been shutting himself off for too long, the rest of his words were stuck in his throat.
Liang Anqi's heart tightened. She raised her arms that were hanging on both sides of her body and hugged him back, putting one hand on his back and the other hand gently stroking his hair on the back of his head, as if to encourage and comfort him, telling him to speak slowly and not to be in a hurry.
Comforted, Gu Yang felt more at ease. He buried his head in her arms and continued intermittently, "I often wonder, what is the balance point on the scale of marriage between men and women? Is it mutual affection? Is it a good match or is it parental consent? I can't find the answer. My mind is too numb and too confused. Maybe there is no need for balance at all, but I desperately hope that on the other side of the scale, the person I want to spend the rest of my life with, is you."
"In the past, I also thought it was Luo Shu that I liked. She dumped me and embarrassed me in public. I was angry with her but couldn't bear to leave her. It wasn't until the truth came to light that I realized that my love for her was actually limited to the vague throbbing through the phone. It was given by Luo Shu, who was willing to talk with me all night long. Without that throbbing, there was more resentment and obsession. Fang Qingzhuo was obviously my brother and should have stood on my side in everything, but he deceived us again and again for others, even at the cost of tearing our faces and fighting. I was determined to break them up to prove him wrong, but in the end it turned out that I was the one who was wrong, and very wrong, so wrong. I shouldn't have hit the brother who grew up with me, let alone said those jokes. If it was just a simple fight, he could have hit back with punches, but those words couldn't be. They were like spilled water and there was no turning back. Anqi, you can't imagine the way he looked at me that day. He has never looked at me like that in his life."
Liang Anqi thought he was choking again, so she patted his back gently with her palm until she felt the wetness on his clothes, followed by a sob that she had endured for a long time. "I am his best friend and best brother, and those cruel words came from my mouth. I shouldn't be angry. I was wrong, I was really wrong..."
"So, don't leave me alone, okay?"
The two people hugged each other quietly, and before the word "good" fell, it was Angela Leong's tears that fell.
The sun is shining, and even the most hidden and damp corners are warm.
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