Chapter 29 I Love You
The man lay peacefully with his eyes closed, his expression so serene, a slight smile on his lips, looking as if he were asleep.
"Old man!" Xu Yi felt his heart sink. He reached out to shake the other man with a sliver of hope, but received no response—this man had finally come to the end of his heavy life.
"Father!!!" A heart-wrenching roar echoed throughout the ward, but it could no longer make the man on the bed open his eyes again.
As Xu Yi uttered the word "Father," his phoenix eyes filled with tears. He slowly knelt down, burying his face in the bedside. He had never called a man "Father" before, and this first and last time he uttered that word, the man did not hear it. Why hadn't he called him that sooner?
“Father…” Xu Qi slowly stood to the side, staring intently at the peaceful face of the person on the bed, his fists clenched tightly.
With a thud, the sound of a heavy object hitting the ground was heard. Xu Qi reflexively turned his head and saw that his mother had fainted on the ground. Her frail body was curled up limply by the bed, a rather shocking sight.
"Mother!" Xu Qi's face turned pale. He immediately picked up his mother and rushed to the door, pulling it open and shouting, "Help! Someone has fainted here!"
After a period of chaos, Xu Qi finally settled Shao Minyu down, closed the door to his mother's room, sighed, and walked into the living room. There was another person there who needed his comfort—his younger brother, sitting on the sofa with his head down, shrouded in a heavy shadow, making him look pitiful.
“Ah Yi…” He slowly walked over and sat down next to Xu Yi. After hesitating for a moment, he put his arm around the other’s shoulder, pulled the other’s head into his chest, and gently stroked the soft, disheveled long hair with one hand. His voice was low and husky, “Your words… Father will hear them… He definitely will hear them…”
He understood what his younger brother was thinking. Seeing his beloved child immersed in regret and self-blame, his heart, already gripped by grief, ached terribly. So even though he knew it wouldn't do any good, he couldn't help but offer words of comfort.
“That perverted old man…who would call him…sob…” Xu Yi, unusually submissive, buried his head in his chest, muttering a protest, but the uncontrollable sobs betrayed him. It wasn't just the unanswered call, but also the past intertwined with resentment and tenderness; he was trapped in a gloomy mood, unable to extricate himself. Although he knew the old man was in poor health, he never imagined he would leave so suddenly, without giving him any chance to react.
Feeling the dampness on his chest, Xu Qi pursed his lips and tightened his embrace. For many years, he had shouldered the burden of the Xu family, but he never imagined that after his father's passing, the burden would suddenly become even heavier. Especially at times like this, it almost suffocated him. In this family, there was his mother, deeply traumatized, and his younger brother, immersed in regret; there was no room for his own grief—as the eldest son, he had to handle his father's funeral arrangements perfectly.
What he didn't expect was that this was far from the end of the disaster. People often say that good fortune never comes in pairs, but misfortunes never come singly. This saying always seems to be especially true when disaster strikes—half a day later, Xu Qi took Shao Minyu, who had taken a large amount of sleeping pills, to the same hospital, and after an entire night of emergency treatment, she received a death sentence.
Within two days, both members of the previous generation of the Xu family passed away, causing a minor commotion in New York. However, Longming had been headed by the eldest son of the Xu family for many years, so the passing of the previous generation would not have a substantial impact on Longming. A few days later, everyone in Longming gathered for a grand funeral for Xu Qingjue and his wife, with representatives from various parties also in attendance. During this time, the newly appointed head of the family, Xu Qi, displayed admirable competence, deterring those who wanted to take advantage of the situation.
No one would have imagined that Long Mingxin, who presented himself as dignified and calm in front of everyone, would silently collapse into the arms of the man who had been following him closely the moment the funeral ended.
Si Qiang hugged the man, whose face was as pale as paper, tightly, her heart clenching with pain. He nodded to Xu Yi and Su Xibai behind him, "I'll take care of things here. You two should go back and rest."
Xu Yi stared intently at Xu Qi in his arms, biting his lip in silence. Su Xibai immediately replied, "Alright, in that case, let's go back first." He then forcefully pulled Xu Yi away, driving straight home. These past few days had been almost unbearable for Xu Yi. He had to immediately push him back down. Because of Xu Qingjue, Xu Yi had shut himself off for several days. Now, witnessing his brother collapse, he would surely blame him again—he couldn't allow this man to continue down this dead end. Su Xibai gripped the steering wheel, subtly glancing at the man beside him. The relentless pressure of the past few days had already broken the usually resilient Xu Qi; he couldn't let him fall into that situation.
Si Qiang carefully placed Xu Qi on the bed and sighed heavily. First, his father passed away, then his mother followed. Any normal person would be devastated, let alone a man like Xu Qi who only ever shouldered responsibility and never wanted to rely on others. Add to that the immediate aftermath of the funeral arrangements, and there was absolutely no time left for him… And she, who had been by his side the whole time, could only silently help with the funeral arrangements, unable to do anything about the pain that was gnawing at his heart.
"I'm sorry..." Si Qiang leaned down and kissed the man's forehead, her voice full of pain, "There's nothing I can do."
Waking from a chaotic dream, Xu Qi saw Si Qiang slumped over the headboard, her clothes disheveled. Looking closer, he saw that her once fair face was now a dry, sallow yellow, and deep shadows clung to her usually bright and lively eyes. Xu Qi took a deep breath, his gaze lingering on her face, unwilling to look away.
Overwhelmed by her own pain, she also caused the man before her much suffering. Watching herself struggle so desperately while he could only silently stand by, she must be blaming herself for her powerlessness. He didn't need to ask to know—because if she were in his shoes, she would feel the same way.
He lay quietly, remaining motionless in that position, not wanting to wake her. Si Qiang must have been exhausted; otherwise, she would never have fallen asleep right next to his bed—like himself, she was the kind of person who would never want her loved one to worry.
He didn't know how long he had slept, but he knew he had experienced a long, disjointed dream. In these dreams, he met his father, his mother, and even Qi Weiru. From their expressions, he saw no attachment to life and the unbreakable bond between them.
In truth, the successive deaths of his father and mother were a huge blow to him, but for them, it was a relief—his father wanted to see the woman he had loved all his life, and his mother followed him without hesitation. They were both too persistent; perhaps their entanglements would continue even in the afterlife. However, neither he nor Xu Yi could ever be a part of those people's lives again.
Although he still missed his father and mother, he would no longer indulge in those feelings. It was their wish, and he had neither the right nor the ability to stop it.
"Hmm..." Suddenly, Si Qiang, who was lying by the bed, stirred, then quickly looked up and saw Xu Qi looking at him with his eyes open. He immediately stood up, but lost his balance and fell back into the chair. He shook his head and leaned over, looking closely at Xu Qi's face, and said softly, "Qi... you're awake? How are you feeling?"
Xu Qi stared at him without saying a word.
"...Ah, I'll go have someone make some clear soup. You lie down and don't move." Feeling a little uncomfortable under his gaze, Si Qiang straightened up, said this, and turned to leave.
"Don't go..." Xu Qi said in a hoarse voice, not loud, but it stopped the man in his tracks completely. "Thank you."
Si Qiang froze, whirled around, grabbed his shoulder, and glared at him fiercely: "That's not what you're talking about, is it? I didn't do anything! What are you thanking me for?"
“…Then,” Xu Qi paused for a moment, then smiled, “I love you.”
Si Qiang was stunned for a moment, finally realizing what the man had just said. Why? Why, after all that had happened, did he say such incredible things so calmly? He rarely said it... Even when he hinted and suggested it, he wouldn't say it easily... The whole world seemed to disappear, and all that could be heard in her ears was the man's "I love you," her heart pounding so hard it felt like it was going to burst.
Seeing the man's face flushed crimson, Xu Qi's smile widened, and he finally couldn't help but laugh out loud: "Hehe...don't you have anything to say?"
"You're...too cunning." Si Qiang turned her head away, her gaze darting around, refusing to meet the man's mocking smile. To have fallen to this state was utterly shameful!
"Cunning? How am I cunning?" Xu Qi feigned curiosity, raising an eyebrow as he asked, "This is the first time someone has called me that." The blushing face of Si Qiang before him reminded him of many years ago—when he occasionally pointed out mistakes Qiangwei made during training, she would show the same expression. Seeing Si Qiang like this was a rare treat, and he couldn't help but want to tease her.
"You..." Si Qiang suddenly turned her head, pounced on him, and lowered her head to kiss his lips.
His still-recovering body protested. Xu Qi's breathing grew weaker and weaker as the other person continued to kiss him passionately. He could only let the other person cover his originally dry lips with clear saliva.
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