Gunshot wound
It's been three days. You picked up a button and drew a line on the wall. The room, with its white walls, was empty except for the bed and a small table. On the table were the meals that Xiaoman had recently brought over. You glanced at them and then moved them back without showing any interest.
Xiaoman didn't care whether you ate or not, she just said "enjoy your meal" and turned to leave.
With a bang, the iron gate slammed shut, and you frowned as you watched the direction she had left.
'You'll help me, won't you?'
The words Ah-Qiang said to you before he left came to mind again, a devilish whisper filled with expectation and hatred, tightly binding your heart, almost like a curse.
You wonder how Chen Peiyuan is doing now. You look worriedly at the window above. The dim light indicates that it is daytime. If only you had been more careful that day. You only let your guard down because you saw A-Qiang crying in front of you in grief and anger, which is why you were attacked from behind. The last thing you saw when you fainted was a panicked Chen Peiyuan and his hand reaching out to you. Your last thought was to hold his hand and tell him not to be afraid.
When you wake up, you find yourself trapped here, ostensibly to protect your safety at Chen Peiyuan's request for cooperation. You're forbidden from leaving or contacting anyone, but you know perfectly well it's essentially a form of soft imprisonment. It seems they're using your life to coerce Chen Peiyuan into helping them. You sneer, your eyes turning cold. It's a disgusting tactic. This doesn't seem to be the first time they've used it. It seems all the things they said before need to be taken with a grain of salt. Maybe the girl in the story was also obtained through similar means.
But as you clutch your left chest, the thought of his sad face that day makes your heart ache. Is your heart broken? Or were you just traumatized? You're a little confused, unable to figure out why. Your eyes wander around, as if you'll find a place to settle your gaze and then you'll understand.
-
"You like him?"
You stare at her in surprise.
This is your fifth day of imprisonment. Xiaoman brought you food, but you glanced at it and took it back. It was stir-fried carrots and pork, which you don't like.
She, who should have left, stayed. Standing in front of the door, she turned to look at you and suddenly uttered these words to you.
It's inexplicable, you think.
It's really baffling. You stand up and look her straight in the eye, "Who do I like? Why are you suddenly saying this?"
A knowing glint flashed across Xiaoman's delicate face. She smiled, placing her hands clasped over her stomach. "Miss Chen, do you like Mr. Chen?" Seeing your puzzled expression, she slowly took a few steps forward, stopping at a comfortable distance, and said softly, "Well, because I'm curious. The way you two interacted that day... well, it's very different from what they say, like..." She lowered her head, seemingly searching for the right words, then quickly looked up at you, her eyes bright, "It's more like saying one thing to your face and another behind your back, if I remember correctly."
That's awful how she talks. You stare at her speechlessly. This young lady's level of education isn't much better than those three. Of course, she can't be two-faced like that in this kind of situation!
"We don't have the strange relationship you're imagining. We're just ordinary rivals or work partners." You thought she was going to say something weird, but it turned out to be just that.
Xiaoman let out a disappointed "Ah!" upon hearing your words, looking completely disbelieving. She kept muttering to herself, and if someone were to listen closely, they would hear her muttering something astonishing: 'I clearly saw that guy kiss you. How could it be such a simple relationship?'
You watch her talking to herself, and you happen to have some questions for her too. "I've answered one of your questions, and in exchange, you have to answer one of mine."
Xiaoman thought for a moment, then readily agreed to your request. She put her hands on her hips, faced you, and stretched out her right hand to make a '1' sign. "Okay, but I can only answer one question for you."
You have so many questions in your mind. Although you said earlier that you needed her to answer one question in exchange, how could you only want to ask one? You have so many questions. Five days, a full five days, five days without any news from the outside world. You dare not imagine how much the company has changed in these five days. Your parents and friends must be very worried about you, even though you don't contact each other that frequently. And then there's Chen Peiyuan.
Finally, you gently opened your lips and asked that one and only question, "How is my company doing?"
Xiaoman tilted her head and looked at you with a puzzled expression. You were confused by her gaze and couldn't help but ask, "What's wrong?"
“I thought you were going to ask about that man,” Xiaoman said, pointing upwards.
"That man," you blinked, looking at the ground. In just a moment, you raised your face and smiled at Xiaoman standing by the door. "I won't ask him. No matter what, he can always take care of himself. Besides, we don't have the relationship you imagine. My position doesn't require me to ask him."
"Also, this is the second problem, so you owe me another one."
Xiaoman couldn't accept that she had accumulated another problem in such a short time. She grabbed her hair in a fit of rage, pulling so hard that her facial features became slightly distorted.
Looking at her unusual expression, you couldn't help but chuckle and sigh, "She's still just a little girl. I was really fooled by her act before."
Before this silent farce could last long, you coughed twice, feigning seriousness, and forcefully steered the conversation back to the main topic.
Like a child who tried to trick an adult but failed, Xiaoman answered your question with a bitter face.
As you listened and pondered, just as you expected, things were in complete chaos while you were away, which alerted your parents who were on vacation in another hemisphere.
“However,” Xiaoman suddenly stopped, looking puzzled, which made you a little concerned.
You can't help but lean forward slightly, afraid you won't hear what she's about to say.
"But, Chen Peiyuan, is that his name?" Xiaoman muttered to herself.
Your heart tightens. Chen Peiyuan? What happened to Chen Peiyuan? A bad feeling suddenly welled up inside you. You tell yourself to calm down. It can't be what you think. It's none of your business what he does, right? No, that's not right. You're engaged. It's normal for a fiancée to care about her fiancé, right? But why do you feel your breathing quickening and your heart pounding? Something's wrong. You know that, but what can you do?
"What happened to him?" you couldn't help but ask, your voice a little sharp.
Xiaoman looked at you as if she were startled. You couldn't care less and asked urgently, your sense of foreboding growing stronger. It was like a sharp sword urging you to ask.
"He...he's injured, shot, and he's in the intensive care unit now," Xiaoman said in one breath.
She seemed to say something else and pointed outside the door, but you couldn't hear her anymore. After she finished speaking, tears instantly welled up in your eyes and blocked your ears. Your heart seemed to stop beating. You stared wide-eyed, unable to believe it.
Gun, gunshot wound?! How could this be! How could a gun be used? You can't understand it. A man with a gunshot wound falls in front of you. You forcefully raise your hand, trying to grab the falling man, but he still slides down your arm, with a familiar smile on his face, as if saying a final goodbye.
"It's a lie, a lie, isn't it?" you murmured.
When you regain consciousness, a voice keeps asking you questions. Everything in front of you slowly becomes clear. You stare blankly at the voice and see it is the doctor.
"Miss, miss, are you alright?" The doctor in the white coat looked at you with concern.
You shake your head to indicate that you are fine, and then look around. How did you suddenly end up in the hospital?
The doctor in the white coat left after you responded, leaving you alone in the chair.
You unconsciously reached into your pocket and felt a rectangular object. You took it out and saw it was your phone. You pressed it twice but couldn't turn it on. It had been five days and must have run out of battery. A note fell to the ground. It was something you had taken with you when you got your phone. You picked it up, opened it, and saw it was left for you by Xiaoman.
"I'm sorry, our business is done. As planned, we're going to return you to Chen Peiyuan. I apologize again for telling you about Chen Peiyuan yesterday; Brother Qiang scolded me. I know I was wrong. Brother Qiang told me to tell you that Chen Peiyuan is on the top floor of this building, but we don't know the exact number. Lastly, I'm really sorry, Sister Xiaolan. Please allow me to call you that just this once. I regret this now. Xiaoman's last words."
The note made your eyes go black and black again. These illiterate people shouldn't write letters if they can't write them, let alone a note that doesn't even qualify as a letter. You resisted the urge to correct the grammatical errors and told yourself that the most important thing right now is to find Chen Peiyuan.
You stand up, feeling slightly dizzy. You have no idea how they left you here without anyone noticing; it was incredibly stealthy. But you can't worry about that now. You look for a way up and take the elevator.
So, has everything settled down? You lean against the elevator back, watching the numbers jump on the screen. The empty elevator is quiet. You let your mind wander and start thinking about other things. Five days. It seems that A-Qiang has successfully gotten his revenge before releasing you. How did Chen Peiyuan get injured? What exactly is the content of their cooperation agreement? Why did they think that imprisoning you would make Chen Peiyuan obediently cooperate with them, and apparently, it worked?
One mystery after another fills your brain like sponges, like a giant maze. You can't find your way out and can only spin around in circles. The more you want to know, the calmer you become unexpectedly. Looking at the numbers jumping around on the screen, you have a cold face. The elevator is quiet, and you can only hear one person breathing.
'Ding.'
The elevator doors slowly opened, and you couldn't help but shout as you looked at the scene before you.
how so!
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