Chapter 27
In April, the weather in Xi'an is actually quite warm.
The red flowers and green grass in the garden mansion's courtyard began to burst into life. Xiao Meng knew nothing about plants, but faced with the vibrant colors and lush greenery, she felt a quiet joy in her heart.
He walked briskly across the courtyard and onto the lawn behind the building. There was a lush old tree by the lawn, and Rongxiang was dozing off on a white bench under the tree.
He leaned back against the chair and armrests, his head drooping heavily, fast asleep. A sparrow had landed at the other end of the chair and was pecking back and forth. Seeing someone approaching, it quickly flapped its wings and flew back to its branch. Sunlight filtered through the thick foliage, casting dappled shadows on the ground.
Xiao Meng gently sat down beside him, resting her hands on her knees, feeling very calm and peaceful. Turning her head to look at Rong Xiang, she found that he had lowered his head as low as he could, his neck bent as if it were about to break, making one feel sorry for him.
Xiao Meng couldn't help but reach out and lift his head, letting him lean on her shoulder. His cheek touched the short hair on top of his head, and he couldn't help but smile.
No one had ever seen him smile, not even Rongxiang or himself. But if someone were to hand him a mirror at this moment, he might be incredibly surprised by his reflection—people with baby faces are generally quite cute when they smile. However, the word "cute" simply had nothing to do with him.
He held up the half-open red flower in his hand, smelled it, and then slowly tucked it into Rongxiang's breast pocket. Rongxiang was wearing a dark gray Zhongshan suit today, brand new and impeccably tailored. Because of the heat, he had left it open, revealing a white shirt underneath. This plain, somber outfit paired with a bright red flower made him look like a narcissist.
So when Fu Jingyuan first saw him, he couldn't help but smile subconsciously, but that smile vanished in an instant. As a smart man, he was now able to control his words, actions, and expressions very well.
He strode toward the wooden and clay-sculpted master and servant on the bench, feeling as if he were a raging chariot, crushing all the grass into green mud with overwhelming force.
Xiao Meng spotted him from afar and immediately patted Rong Xiang's back gently, trying to wake him. However, Rong Xiang only groaned in his drowsy state and showed no sign of waking up. At the same time, Fu Jingyuan had already stopped in front of the two of them.
"Let him sleep," he said.
Xiao Meng, expressionless, helped Rong Xiang lean back in his chair, then got up and stood beside the chair.
Fu Jingyuan sat down in the seat that Xiao Meng had just occupied without any hesitation. He tilted his head and looked at Rong Xiang, who was fast asleep, but his brows were slightly furrowed, probably because the back of his head was resting on the back of the chair and he was not feeling very comfortable.
He was always sleeping, Fu Jingyuan thought. If he continued to let him continue like this, one day he would finally sleep himself to death.
Wasn't that the incident at Tongguan? Luckily, he had the accompanying military doctor administer a large dose of narcoticone as an antidote; otherwise, the man would be rotting in the ground by now. Thinking of this, he couldn't help but feel disgusted with Xiao Meng again. He felt that Xiao Meng was inhuman. If asked to kill, he would kill without hesitation.
The accompanying military doctor was a typical quack, completely incapable of controlling the dosage of various medications. An overdose of narcotic would trigger severe withdrawal symptoms, so to alleviate the pain, they had to continue administering large amounts of morphine. This repeated ordeal continued until, by the time they left Tongguan, Rongxiang had become somewhat mentally unstable.
Therefore, he always felt somewhat guilty towards Rong Xiang, as if someone was already walking towards the edge of a cliff, and he had pushed them back. However, if he considered it rationally, there was absolutely no need for guilt; in fact, his actions could even be considered merciful—he should have killed this guy to avenge his elder brother.
Rongxiang is now essentially a cripple. He spends most of his day in a daze and in a state of delirium, and he's begun to lose the ability to distinguish between reality and hallucination. Yet, even so, he still finds ways to resist. For example, he doesn't speak.
He doesn't speak, so others don't know what he's thinking or seeing. Unable to see into his heart, they naturally don't know the extent of his confusion, and therefore have no way to attack or ridicule him. At the same time, his attachment to Xiao Meng has reached a pathological level. Xiao Meng is a piece of driftwood in a vast ocean, and he is the loneliest drowning man in the world. It's as if only Xiao Meng is real and trustworthy in his heart, while everyone else is an illusion, a delusion.
Therefore, Fu Jingyuan grew to dislike Xiao Meng even more.
After sitting quietly for three minutes, he suddenly became interested and put his hand on Rong Xiang's snow-white neck and squeezed it hard. Sure enough, he was so frightened that he screamed. Before he even opened his eyes, his body jerked upwards, but Fu Jingyuan pressed him down again.
"Sleeping well in broad daylight, huh?" Fu Jingyuan asked with a sneer.
Rongxiang rubbed his eyes childishly, then stared at him blankly: "You..."
Fu Jingyuan crossed his legs: "I recently ran into an old friend of yours."
Rong Xiang looked up in confusion, his gaze passing over Fu Jingyuan and landing on Xiao Meng, who was standing beside him. Xiao Meng walked over and stood behind him.
“Old friend…” Rong Xiang leaned back with relief, his eyes about to close again.
Fu Jingyuan quickly reached out and pinched his cheek hard: "Don't you want to know who it is?"
Rong Xiang gave a numb snort. As a prisoner who had lost all hope and was just waiting to die, he had long since lost all curiosity. It didn't matter who it was.
Fu Jingyuan, feeling somewhat disappointed at not getting a question, said, "Think about it, an actor in Fengtian. Remember him?"
Rongxiang tilted his head back, gazing intently at the clear blue sky through the dense foliage. A leaf twirled down, its edge brushing against his fair cheek before settling into his slightly open collar. He picked up the leaf, touched it to his lips, then pulled a red flower from his pocket, wrapped the leaf stem around it, and tied it to the base of the flower, creating a natural scene with both flower and leaf.
He held the flower up to his eyes, smiled self-admiringly, his sharply defined pink lips curving into a graceful arc. Then, he lowered his gaze and tucked the flower into the pocket of Fu Jingyuan's breast pocket.
Fu Jingyuan stared at him blankly, his mind in turmoil, wondering what his sudden show of goodwill meant. Rong Xiang, on the other hand, looked up at him with a long-lost tenderness in his eyes.
He was speechless for a moment, then suddenly, as if possessed, he wanted to turn to the side and hug this poor person. But as soon as his arms opened, Rongxiang's expression changed, and he quickly moved back an inch: "What are you doing?"
Fu Jingyuan was also stunned for a moment, then quickly sat up straight: "You didn't...you didn't want me to..."
Rongxiang looked at him, confused: "What... happened to me?"
Fu Jingyuan pulled a flower from his pocket and threw it at him: "Are you kidding me?"
Rongxiang picked up the flower, looked at it, and then threw it on the ground while covering his eyes with his hand and shaking his head in distress: "I... I misread it just now, I'm sorry."
Upon hearing this, Fu Jingyuan suddenly flew into a rage. He abruptly stood up, walked up to Rong Xiang, grabbed his shoulders, and squeezed them hard: "Then who do you think you saw? What, do you think that at this point, some lover would still come to visit a good-for-nothing like you? Tell me, who do you think I am?"
Rongxiang winced in pain: "Xiao Meng! Xiao Meng..."
Xiao Meng stepped forward as expected, skillfully prying Fu Jingyuan's hands away: "Please, Mr. Fu, don't do this."
Fu Jingyuan angrily raised his hand, drew his gun from his waist, and pointed it at Xiao Meng: "Get out of the way, this is none of your business!"
Xiao Meng ignored his threats. Rong Xiang, however, turned around and pushed him away, whispering to Fu Jingyuan, "Don't kill him."
Fu Jingyuan had only intended to scare the two men, but seeing Rong Xiang defend Xiao Meng like this, he felt a knot forming in his heart, a surge of anger welling up inside him, almost driving him mad. Putting his pistol back, he pointed it at Rong Xiang's nose and asked again, "Tell me, who did you think I was just now?"
Rong Xiang lowered his head indifferently. He was not quite clear-headed at the moment. When he saw Fu Jingyuan suddenly lose his temper, his instinct was to resist with silence.
"Not going to talk? Fine, then don't give me the injection later."
This was Fu Jingyuan's trump card. Although he was very reluctant to force Rong Xiang in this way, he had no other choice but to resort to this tactic. A less desirable option was better than no option at all.
Sure enough, Rongxiang immediately looked up at him, his eyes clear and bright, revealing the deep sorrow and resentment hidden within.
Fu Jingyuan took a deep breath: "Speak!"
Rong Xiang's lips trembled: "It's...it's someone you don't know." As he spoke, he leaned forward and tried to slip away from Fu Jingyuan. Of course, he was quickly pushed back onto the bench.
Fu Jingyuan stared at Rong Xiang, his heart sinking. He knew his expression was fierce, his behavior despicable, just like the ugly and filthy world around him. But wasn't this man the same? He seemed so good, yet why was he so wicked? Ever since meeting him, his life had embarked on a path far removed from his ideals, becoming increasingly erratic and difficult. But as his elder brother's heir, he didn't even have the option to back down!
Rongxiang, you ruined my life. And I repay evil with kindness, continuing to take care of you to the best of my ability! What right do I have to do this for you?
Even though I'm sitting next to you, you still don't see me, you don't care about me. Why?
I don't believe it. I don't believe it's all because morphine has poisoned your mind. You've been lying to me all along. You made me think you loved me, then hid and watched me perform my self-indulgent monologue. And it wasn't just with me; wasn't it the same with Guanglin? Every time she sees me, she asks about you, but since you separated from her, have you ever mentioned her once?
Thinking of this, Fu Jingyuan suddenly felt a surge of grief and anger wash over him like a tidal wave. He grabbed Rong Xiang by the collar, pulled him up without a word, and dragged him into the building. Xiao Meng was about to follow when Fu Jingyuan shouted, "If you dare follow, I'll kill him!"
Xiao Meng indeed stopped in place, watching helplessly as Fu Jingyuan dragged Rong Xiang into the building through the back door.
Fu Jingyuan kicked open the bedroom door and shoved Rong Xiang inside.
Rong Xiang stumbled from the push, but before he could regain his balance, Fu Jingyuan slammed the door shut with one hand and grabbed his clothes with the other, gritting his teeth as he said, "I think it's time we clarified our relationship. I don't want to be fooled by a drug addict. Don't think that just because I used to like you, you have leverage over me and can toy with me however you want!"
Rong Xiang shook his head vigorously, feeling his mind go blank. He knew Fu Jingyuan was furious and vaguely sensed things were about to go wrong, but at this critical moment, he had lost the ability to think.
Seeing Rong Xiang staring blankly at him, Fu Jingyuan couldn't help but curse angrily, "You're still pretending to be stupid? Let's see how long you can keep up this act!" With that, he raised his hand and slapped Rong Xiang hard across the face.
His slap was extremely powerful, and Rongxiang's face was turned to the side. He was already dazed, and this blow was undoubtedly adding insult to injury. A trickle of dark red blood flowed from the corner of his mouth. In his dazed state, he only felt boundless terror.
"Xiao Meng..." He ignored the pain and began to struggle to escape.
Fu Jingyuan shoved him to the ground forcefully, then suddenly sneered, "What a fool I was, talking about Platonic love with someone like you! I've wasted so much of my time!"
Rong Xiang sat on the ground, looking up at Fu Jingyuan. But what he saw was someone else entirely.
This is what is meant by illusion.
So when his clothes were roughly torn off piece by piece, he sleepwalked and reached out to stop the other person, pleading in a very gentle and obedient voice, "Mr. Yi, please don't do this."
The other person stopped moving as expected, and he heard a clear, rough, and familiar voice say, "What did you say? Mr. Yi, who is he?"
Rongxiang closed his eyes. Yes, Mr. Yi, who is he?
He suddenly felt that this Mr. Yi must be a very, very important person, so he tried hard to recall, but his memory was empty, as if he were a person without a past.
He was getting anxious. He was certain he knew Mr. Yi, so why couldn't he remember him? This made him anxiously gather the buttons off his shirt, intending to get up and ask Xiao Meng.
But before he could stand up, the voice above him rang out again: "Mr. Yi, did he do this to you?" The figure leaned down, his warm breath brushing against Rong Xiang's face: "Why did he take off your clothes?"
When Fu Jingyuan asked this question, his voice trembled with emotion. He knew he had reached a critical point, perhaps, seeing the person's truest self.
Before he could finish speaking, Rong Xiang suddenly lunged forward and hugged his neck, his soft lips brushing against his ear: "Mr. Yi, I missed you so much."
Fu Jingyuan stiffly raised his hand, reaching through the wide-open shirt to tentatively touch his bare waist.
At this point, who Mr. Yi is is no longer important. Since there's no future between him and Rongxiang anyway, he might as well just live for the moment and enjoy life while it lasts!
Thinking of this, he turned his head sadly and kissed Rongxiang's lips.
Rongxiang's lips were soft, carrying a slightly sweet scent. They didn't have many good memories together, but he remembered that during their kisses, there was always a tenderness and affection between them. However, those good times were fleeting, almost instantaneous. Besides that, there was endless suspicion and arguments, and finally, one of them betrayed him without restraint. Rongxiang's body passively cooperated, his gaze unfocused as he stared at the ceiling. Fragments of the past and present flickered before his eyes. He lay on the riverbed as if unconscious, watching countless scenes drift away like dead leaves and driftwood, powerless to stop them.
He frowned in pain and forcefully pushed away the blurry figure in front of him. It's all an illusion, he thought, it's all an illusion, a dream. But how can he wake up?
Fu Jingyuan was caught off guard and pushed to the ground. Before he could react, Rong Xiang had already gotten up and stumbled out of the room. He quickly chased after him and saw Rong Xiang rush into the bathroom, followed by a splash of water.
When he followed him into the bathroom, the scene before him took him by surprise.
Rong Xiang was kneeling fully clothed in a large bathtub filled with cold water, his entire upper body and face completely submerged, as if trying to drown himself. Fu Jingyuan hesitated for a moment, then stepped forward to pull him up. But just as he reached out, Rong Xiang suddenly sat up, splashing water everywhere. He gasped for breath, wiped the water from his face, and after calming down, finally spoke to the stunned man before him: "You've come?"
Fu Jingyuan took a step back: "What are you doing?"
Rong Xiang stepped out of the bathtub, dripping wet: "I need to clear my head." He picked up a large towel sprayed with perfume from the counter and dried his hair: "When you're dreaming, you always have to die once before you can wake up."
Fu Jingyuan was both confused and found this very strange: "Die once?"
The towel covered the upper half of Rongxiang's face, only revealing a slight upturn at the corner of his mouth, as if he were smiling: "Yes, only by dying once can one be awakened."
Fu Jingyuan looked at him, a sudden sense of fear creeping into his heart. Seryozha had once told him that an overdose of morphine could eventually lead to mental instability. And Rong Xiang's behavior and words just now were already quite abnormal!
He took out a handkerchief and wiped the water droplets that had splashed onto his forehead—which were still mixed with cold sweat. He was genuinely frightened; he was afraid that Rong Xiang might suddenly pounce on him and bite his throat out—he was capable of doing that.
He took another step back subtly, placing one hand on the holster at his waist, his expression remaining calm: "I'll go get someone to change you into some dry clothes."
Rong Xiang waved his hand: "No need, I can manage on my own." He then threw down the towel and squeezed past Fu Jingyuan.
Fu Jingyuan didn't dare to say much. After entering the bedroom, he went out and stood under the bright sun. Only then did his mood gradually calm down.
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