Everyone watched with expectant eyes as Gu Mai left the manor, hoping he would bring good news about saving the family.
His haggard face, worn from several sleepless nights, conveyed a sense of desolation no matter what expression he wore. Yet, his assistant, standing beside him, felt that he actually seemed relieved and at ease.
The assistant couldn't help but speak up: "Master, please take a rest. I'll remind you when we arrive."
Gu Mai stared out the window, his face expressionless, and said, "Let's go to Orland Manor first."
"Orland? Aren't we going to the royal family's place?" The assistant was a little surprised, but still drove the car to Orland Manor as he instructed.
Gu Mai didn't bring him with him; he only had a thin envelope between his slender fingers.
"You wait outside."
He saw that after a short while, someone came out and invited the head of the family inside.
When Zhuo Wen heard from the steward that Gu Mai had arrived, he did not stop him outside this time, but instead had him taken to the villa where Zhuo Yue usually lived.
As he slowly walked out, Zhuo Wen's face was expressionless. "I thought you had already made your choice."
The two stood separated by the door, neither of them moving forward.
Gu Mai dared not. From the moment he stepped into this courtyard, he knew that this was Zhuo Yue's former residence, so he dared not bring these filthy things into the gate.
He should have taken a few more steps back and left the courtyard altogether, but his feet wouldn't move, as if they were nailed to the spot.
It was broad daylight, and at that moment, Gu Mai even felt that the sunlight was a bit dazzling.
He knelt on one knee. "Please, let me see her."
Zhuo Wen admitted that for a moment he felt a little relieved, because he knew that it was a pipe dream for the living to pray to see the dead.
Gu Mai took out a well-sealed envelope from his pocket, which bore the conspicuous seal of the Sig Group and a confidentiality mark in the upper right corner.
"I want to hand this to her myself."
He stared at his face for a long time, and even though his left knee had been soaked with snow water and had dark marks on it, Gu Mai did not move.
Zhuo Wen was not a particularly enthusiastic citizen; he could have even taken this opportunity to have Gu Mai die in the Orland manor, so that his soul could remain in this villa forever to keep Zhuo Yue company.
Unfortunately, that's too easy on him.
He turned back and walked into the house.
Gu Mai propped himself up with his hands. His left knee was numb from the cold, and his walking posture was not very natural.
Stepping into the courtyard, he felt a pang of melancholy. Although the house had been uninhabited for a long time, it seemed as if her presence lingered in every corner.
He thought he must be hallucinating from kneeling, that's why he was like this.
She dozed off at her desk, she sat in front of her vanity mirror, she lay on a recliner on the balcony.
The room was well-lit, with sunlight reaching almost every corner, just the way she liked it.
The altar and urn were in the only place in the room that didn't get any sunlight, making it look somewhat eerie.
He felt that he used up all his strength every time he lifted his leg.
The photo above was taken by Zhuo Wen on her 18th birthday. She's smiling happily with her teeth showing.
Zhuo Wen left the room, leaving Gu Mai alone inside.
Looking at the cheerful Zhuo Yue in the photo, he knelt down and shed tears. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry... You shouldn't have met me. I was not able to protect you."
He repeated these words like a broken tape recorder, his voice becoming hoarse before fading away.
The room was filled with silent screams and struggles. Gu Mai's calm over the past few days seemed to erupt at this moment. He felt as if her figure appeared in front of his blurred vision, but he shook his head, unable to believe it.
"You should hate me, you don't want to see me, right? But I miss you so much."
...
He left the envelope in front of Zhuo Yue's altar before standing up again and walking out of the dark room.
Back in the car, the assistant finally felt relieved, seeing that Gu Mai had fainted in front of the Orland Manor not long ago, and that his expression was no different from when he went in.
The assistant helped deliver a thick stack of documents to the reception room and then left.
There was no one else in the room this time, only the prince and Gumai.
The prince frowned as he looked at his haggard face. "Are you really sure?"
The neatly organized and sealed documents on the table are like a magic box; open it, and a cloud of mist will fill the room, making it difficult to discern directions.
"Prince, didn't you already know this outcome?" Gu Mai forced an untimely smile.
"Gu Mai." The prince called out the name with a serious expression. "Does it have to be this way? I told you, you can actually protect yourself. If you take back this position, you and the Sigor family will be destroyed."
"Destroy? I was destroyed a long time ago. Even my brain and memories are not my own. I was once unsure of what I wanted to do, but now I know."
A hint of regret appeared on the prince's face.
Gu Mai made his request: "I hope that what you, Prince, need to do can be announced to the public in a couple of days, because I have other very important things to do."
The prince's expression froze for a moment, but he still nodded.
Gumai stood up and walked out without even a bow, but the prince still watched his retreating figure and said, "Goodbye."
Then the figure disappeared through the doorway.
The fact that Gu Mai returned to the manor without bringing any news left everyone in the branch families uneasy. It seemed that in the entire silent and oppressive atmosphere, only Gu Mai appeared relaxed.
With everything over, Gu Mai finally got a good night's sleep, as if he had a very long dream, though he couldn't remember the details.
After tidying himself up, he untied the family head insignia from the metal chain in his pocket and placed it on the table.
The pocket had been replaced with a tube of transparent glass solution, the cold white light reflected by the morning sun piercing Gu Mai's eyes like a blade.
Lauren saw that Gu Mai was about to leave, and this time she simply bent down and handed him the keys without asking any questions or even making eye contact.
Gu Mai knew that he had been drugging him for a long time, so he naturally thought of what the drug was meant to cover up.
He is a traitor, so even the right to submit should be taken away from him.
Gu Mai took the key from his hand and instructed in a light tone, "Have the group's lawyer come to the manor tomorrow morning." Then he turned and left.
Lauren bent down even lower.
His relaxed tone seemed out of place with the recent atmosphere in the manor, where everyone was anxiously awaiting the royal family's final verdict. He appeared both confident and resigned to his fate.
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