Daiyu's body, Liangshan's heart
A gust of wind whistled past her ears, followed by the pungent smell of gasoline and a slight jolt, reminding Qingcheng that they were inside a train carriage. Wearing a hood, she felt isolated from the world; the murky darkness bound her, and she could only hear her own pounding heartbeat.
The smell of gasoline made her nauseous, and as the car swayed from side to side, her stomach churned even more. She wondered if she would drown if she vomited into the hood. Qingcheng smiled silently at herself for still thinking about such aimless things at this moment; the smile was more of a resignation to her situation.
Whose fault is this? She directed and acted in this whole drama herself. But how did things get to this point? Where did she go wrong? Where did she lose control?
My previously muddled mind gradually cleared. The questions that person had asked earlier all seemed to be about the source of the news material. The report had already been published, and we'd already lost face completely, so why were they suddenly questioning the source of the material?
Countless questions piled up, making her mind grow heavier and heavier. Suddenly, it felt like something was stuck in her throat, and she felt a strange mix of emotions. She wondered if she had been exposed.
If that's the case, then from now on she's "mute." The more she says, the more mistakes she makes; the less she says, the better. She's never considered how to protect herself after being exposed. At worst, she'll die—that's the best way to preserve the organization's secrets to the greatest extent possible.
She was pushed off the car in a daze. She didn't know where the car was going. The shouts and pleas for mercy from the other people gradually faded away. She hadn't gone far when someone kicked her in the back of the knee. Her knee buckled and she knelt on the ground.
It wasn't concrete, but rather grass that wasn't too soft. Just then, she heard the sound of a trigger being pulled. The hardness of the metal made her head throb, and her mouth tasted bitter. She was probably about to die.
At this moment, all she could do was grit her teeth to fight off the trembling of her body caused by fear. What was she trembling about? Even if her head was chopped off, she'd still be fighting the revolution again in eighteen years.
Bang bang—
The expected pain did not come as expected. Suddenly, the hood was removed, the darkness was broken, and she struggled to open her eyes, which had been closed due to the bright light.
The world seemed to stand still. She saw... Gao Junxiao? Her face burned with pain, and Qingcheng instinctively covered her face, unable to meet his gaze.
"Now you know you have some shame. If you knew this would happen, why did you do it in the first place?" Gao Junxiao put away his sidearm and knelt down to unlock her handcuffs.
Even with sunglasses on, his face still betrayed his exhaustion, and his clothes were unusually wrinkled. Qingcheng's heart stirred slightly, but she remained silent. How could she have forgotten about this ancestor? She thought he had already gone out of the city to suppress bandits. She couldn't fight him, and she couldn't run away, so she decided to play dumb.
When Gao Junxiao unlocked the handcuffs, he looked as if he wanted to execute her on the spot. He didn't pay attention to the force he used, and unfortunately, he touched the wound on Qingcheng's hand. She immediately pulled her hand away in pain, and her numb nerves suddenly became lively again.
"What happened to your hand?" Gao Junxiao grabbed her arm and questioned her sharply. Only after unlocking the handcuffs did Qingcheng notice that her right hand was limp and hanging down, probably dislocated. The sharp pain in her wrist continued to throb Qingcheng, and she felt increasingly wronged. If Gao Junxiao hadn't been so nosy, she would have been out long ago and might already be receiving treatment in the hospital.
Gao Junxiao suppressed a surge of anger and immediately retorted, "Your hand is broken, and your face is swollen like this. Anyone who didn't know better would think you were going to perform at a private gathering. You don't even need to put on makeup; you could just go straight to playing the role of Pigsy. And you dare to glare at me? You won't learn your lesson until you're faced with the ultimate challenge. You should be glad that I'm the one holding the gun today. If it were someone else, guess where this gun would have been fired?"
Oh~ thank you so much! Her grievances instantly turned into anger. Just as Qingcheng was about to retort, a sharp pain shot through her hand, and she couldn't help but scream. Before she knew it, Gao Junxiao had put her dislocated wrist back in place.
But Qingcheng didn't want to accept his kindness. She forcefully broke free from the man's restraints and, leaning against a tree, shakily supported her battered body.
She knew that Gao Junxiao appeared refined and amiable on the surface, but deep down he was extremely arrogant and conceited, believing that no one else was as smart or capable as him, and that there were very few people in the world he could respect. That was just his awful personality!
Seemingly wanting to ease the delicate atmosphere between the two, Gao Junxiao took the initiative to speak: "You still have the strength to resist, it seems you haven't been severely tortured. Should we send you back to learn a lesson and teach you a lesson?"
Anger took over again. Qingcheng remembered that bastard had kicked her earlier, and what's worse, he'd pointed a gun at her to scare her! Gao Junxiao, you've got guts! I'll settle the score with you when we get back. Looking at the lush vegetation around her, she figured it was the outskirts of town; she needed to get back to the city quickly.
Gao Junxiao beside her continued his incessant nagging: "Why are you so arrogant, Miss He, that you don't care to argue? Yes, you're young. You can say you'll take care of this and risk your life. Do you think you, He Suixia, can wield a sharp sword, kill someone every ten steps, and leave without a trace? That's a martial arts novel. In reality, everything you do comes at a price."
Gao Junxiao's voice sounded muffled and unclear, as if through a membrane. Qingcheng couldn't understand why a grown man was rambling on and on, and found it incredibly annoying. However, considering that he had genuinely come to save her, she swallowed the words that were on the tip of her tongue, turned her back, and pretended not to hear.
But just because you don't want to argue doesn't mean others don't. Gao Junxiao accused, "And that Red Flower Society, I told you not to mess with the local bullies, but you ignored me, didn't you? They're using you as a pawn, and you're happily working for them. What are you after?"
She knew she was playing with fire, but so what? They could provide her with a constant supply of bullets, and if necessary, even a padlock to protect her life.
"Of course there's an ulterior motive. We're all running schools under your supervision, using every available resource, including ourselves, to achieve some kind of goal. How can you do it, but I can't?" Qingcheng retorted in a hoarse voice.
Gao Junxiao was stunned for a moment when he heard her hoarse voice, then became even angrier: "I only dare to do this because I have someone backing me up. Forgive me for speaking frankly, but you are eating the food of the Grand View Garden while having the mind of a Liangshan hero. Give you a fire poker and you really think you are Sun Wukong. Before you poke a big hole in the sky, don't you think about your own strength first?"
Hearing Gao Junxiao's sarcastic words, Qingcheng was also furious and had nowhere to vent her anger. She almost blurted out that the person holding the fire poker might be Yang Paifeng from Tianbo Mansion. However, she was eager to know how the case would go. But she was unfamiliar with the place and would have to beg the man in front of her to return to the city. So she continued to endure it!
Suppressing the urge to slap him, she used her remaining good hand to pull the man's hand over and write the words "Return to the City." Ouch, besides her throat, her stomach also began to ache slightly.
"You can go back to the city, but tell me what you did wrong?" Gao Junxiao's tone was different this time, carrying a hint of sternness.
Even with her good temper, He Qingcheng could not tolerate such distorted facts. She shouted at Gao Junxiao with all her might, "Where did I go wrong? Was it me who was wrong, or were those scumbags wrong?"
She started coughing incessantly as soon as she finished yelling.
Hearing her hoarse voice, Gao Junxiao instantly lost his temper. While helping her catch her breath, he asked with concern, "What's wrong with your throat? Why are your hands so cold? Never mind, I'll take you to the hospital for a check-up first."
Kiyosumi covered her mouth and turned away, ready to argue with him: "Cough cough, I'm not going to the hospital, cough, take me back to the newspaper office."
"So you want to die that badly? Then I'm sorry. Without my permission, even the King of Hell wouldn't dare take you." Gao Junxiao ignored Qingcheng's weak resistance, scooped her up, and forcibly carried her in his arms.
With her feet suddenly lifted off the ground, Qingcheng, despite being dizzy and disoriented, still protested in a hoarse voice: "Return Society! Cough cough, I won't be able to live with myself if I don't send this scum to the guillotine."
However, Gao Junxiao ignored her with a cold face.
The car was actually parked not far away, and Gao Junxiao shoved her into the passenger seat. He added a double entendre before doing so: "As expected, the sparrows that sing the loudest don't gain weight."
Hmph! That means she's all talk and no action. Kiyosumi didn't care and let him say what he wanted.
Gao Junxiao also sat in the driver's seat: "Go back and take a good look around the streets. Look at how much trouble your conscience has caused others. You let a bunch of troublemakers join you in making a ruckus and disrupting social order. Do you know that the gangsters and the police are taking advantage of this time to make a fortune? Now the whole city is in an uproar. Are you satisfied? Just mind your own business, okay?"
In the passenger seat, Qingcheng's body trembled uncontrollably. Haha! It's her again for causing such a commotion. Qingcheng sneered, recalling how that family had also blamed her. The silhouette of the matchmaker who broke off the engagement years ago overlapped with Gao Junxiao beside her. "This girl can command the wind and rain at such a young age. What will she be like after she marries into the family?"
A woman born in this era of transition, fortunate enough to study abroad and broaden her horizons, possessing her own independent soul, is suddenly told by you that as a woman, she must fulfill her duties. Although he did not say it explicitly, the principle is the same.
She always thought he was different from others, but it turns out he thought the same way. A flood of resentment welled up inside Qingcheng. She clenched her fists to suppress her uncontrollable hand, and through gritted teeth, she forced out three words with reddened eyes: "I refuse to accept this!"
Why are we dissatisfied? We are dissatisfied with the tragic fate of the children, with the cowardice and incompetence of the Nationalist government, with the 400 million compatriots who cannot speak out behind us, and with the fate of women.
Her voice wasn't loud, but Gao Junxiao still heard it. He took a breath and, for the first time, seriously analyzed the situation for her: "Do you think I'm convinced? Behind this is a game between nations. With China currently fragmented, the Nanjing government alone is simply no match for the great powers."
“You’ve escalated the issue to a political level. If you do that, the problem won’t be solved, and it will only disappoint those who still have hope for the revival of the nation. Don’t you realize how serious the problem is?” Gao Junxiao said sternly.
Even though Qingcheng was seething with hatred for Gao Junxiao's profound thoughts, she couldn't utter a single word in rebuttal. The huge emotional fluctuation made her empty stomach churn again; she felt nauseous, suddenly pushed open the car door, and vomited—a large patch of blood instantly bloomed on the grass.
As if struck by lightning, Qingcheng trembled and covered her mouth with her hand to stop the blood from flowing out, but dark red blood continued to drip from between her fingers. All the strength in her body seemed to be drained away, and she seemed to hear a man's indistinct shouts in her ears. Then, her vision blurred and she fell into a dark abyss...
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"Fortunately, the concentration of lime water was not high, and the stomach has already been washed. Now, the patient needs to fast and abstain from water for 24 hours. We should keep an eye on the patient and prevent her from eating or drinking."
"Okay, doctor. So, can her throat still recover?"
"Speak less recently, maintain a regular schedule, and ensure she gets enough sleep. She has a good constitution and can recover. At the same time, keep her in a stable mood and avoid making her tense or anxious. It would be best to give her some apples to soothe her stomach."
"Okay. Is there anything else I should be aware of?"
"The patient didn't say anything, but you need to get some rest. Haven't you slept for days?"
"I'm fine, I'll just sit down and rest for a bit."
"Young man, you can't collapse before you take good care of the patients."
As soon as the attending physician left, Gao Junxiao couldn't help but yawn a few times. His face was bluish-black, and his eyes were bloodshot. After a few seconds of stunned silence, he rubbed his sore eyes and returned to the ward.
In the ward, Gao Junxiao stood quietly by the bedside. He admitted that when he learned of Qingcheng's actions in Jinan, he was frantic with worry and anger. He rushed back to Xuzhou overnight to pull strings to get her out of trouble and even deliberately arranged an "execution" to teach her a lesson.
But now, his beloved girl lay weakly on the hospital bed with her eyes closed, wrapped in thick bandages and with a splint on her hand. Gao Junxiao regretted it again; she didn't know how to take care of herself at all.
She's just a stubborn little girl, why bother arguing with her! The image of Qingcheng vomiting blood and fainting seems to be right before his eyes. Gao Junxiao can't use any words to describe the heartache at that time. He only felt that the world was collapsing and he couldn't feel anything in the outside world. Fortunately, she was not seriously injured.
After the upheaval, Gao Junxiao preferred to act within a safe and secure framework, including when it came to finding a wife. Qingcheng gave him a very good first impression; she was well-educated, reasonable, and even a little cute. Most importantly, he learned that her family background was impeccable, with no involvement in politics or the military, and her social connections were as clean as a blank sheet of paper, which would save him a lot of trouble.
She seemed like the perfect wife, but after getting to know her, he realized that women are the strangest creatures in the world. When they're docile, they're as gentle as a shimmering lake in spring; when they're fierce, they're as raging as a blizzard in the north. She has two sides, and there are probably other facets he hasn't had time to explore yet.
"Damn! You dare to copy me? You don't learn the good things, but you learn the bad things very easily." Gao Junxiao tucked Qingcheng in and then used a cotton swab to apply some water to her lips. Looking at her swollen face, Gao Junxiao thought of the nurse in the infirmary who used an egg to help reduce the swelling.
How could I have misjudged it in the first place? After all that searching, I ended up choosing this thing. It's all my old man's fault; I just believed his nonsense.
His father once suggested that if he was unsure about a woman and had no way to deal with her, the best thing to do was to quickly marry her in a grand wedding procession and keep her by his side to slowly adjust and study her.
What's there to research? My wife has this habit of practicing drunken boxing after drinking, and she hasn't changed it in decades. If she couldn't get rid of this bad habit before we got married, how could she possibly change it after marriage!
After the treatment, Gao Junxiao could no longer resist the exhaustion in his body and mind. He casually leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes to rest. Before closing his eyes, he thought: This girl must have been sent down from heaven to be his nemesis, but if he didn't marry such a stubborn girl, who would dare to? Sigh~ He resigned himself to his fate.
After an unknown amount of time, Gao Junxiao was awakened by a rustling sound. His body sprang up from the chair as if by reflex. He looked closely and saw that He Qingcheng had already gotten out of bed and was squatting in front of the cabinet with her back to him, rummaging through something, looking for something to eat.
Having just woken up and with his brain not yet functioning properly, Gao Junxiao took a while to realize that she had gotten out of bed by herself—wasn't that just fooling around? He coughed loudly twice to acknowledge his presence.
As expected, Kiyosumi froze instantly upon hearing the cough, her head turned slightly, and then her mouth moved, making a coughing sound. She seemed to want to speak, but no words came out.
She looked exactly like a child caught doing something wrong. Suddenly, she threw what she was holding at Gao Junxiao. Perhaps she used too much force, because Qingcheng's face changed drastically. She clutched her stomach, biting her pale lips, her little face scrunched up.
Seeing her pale face, Gao Junxiao's heart sank. He kept a straight face and gestured for her to go back to bed. He hadn't dodged, but it didn't hurt when he was hit; it was just a thin blanket. He looked at Qingcheng with some annoyance. At this moment, she was tightly pursing her lips, her expression tense, clearly very angry.
Touching the blanket she tossed to him, Gao Junxiao was overjoyed. This little brat, who didn't know her place, was quite cute when she wasn't causing trouble. But this matter had far-reaching implications, and he had to teach her a lesson. He suppressed his urge to help her and hardened his heart to continue looking at her with a deep gaze.
The ward was silent; no one wanted to speak first. "If I could redeem you, I would give a hundred lives." Seeing her suffering, Gao Junxiao felt even worse. "If I could take your place, I would rather be hurt myself."
Maintaining a tense expression and a dignified posture must have been exhausting. Before long, Qingcheng couldn't hold on any longer. She clutched her chest and coughed twice with difficulty. Her frail appearance was somewhat reminiscent of Xi Shi clutching her heart.
She was probably really feeling unwell, and she went back to her hospital bed on her own initiative. However, there was no backrest on the bed, so she was half-covered by the blanket and leaning against the bed board, while a mournful look shot towards him.
Now Gao Junxiao felt a strange mix of emotions. "Huh? What's with that look? It's making me feel like such a jerk. You caused all this trouble yourself, and now you're throwing a tantrum?"
Before Gao Junxiao could back down, Qingcheng said leisurely, "If you want to find a wife to stay at home and manage the household affairs and raise children, I may not be suitable."
"What do you mean?" Gao Junxiao's heart skipped a beat; he had a bad feeling.
"This is just my temper, and it's hard to change it in a short time. I don't know if I'll be able to change it in the future either." Qingcheng lowered her head, so her expression couldn't be seen.
She probably meant more than that, so Gao Junxiao could only say what he had been keeping to himself: "Everyone has flaws. I allow you to have flaws and respect your imperfections. We can discuss things together. If you can change something, do so; if you can't, I understand and will try to adapt to you. Those who share the same values will be closer, and those who are of one mind will go further."
“You can say you’re of one mind now and accommodate me in everything, but what if you don’t like me anymore? Then we’ll just end up hating each other. Since you know I’m not a peaceful person, you might as well find someone else sooner rather than later.” A forced smile appeared on Qingcheng’s face, with a hint of self-abandonment.
For a moment, his blood seemed to freeze. It took him a long time to recover. He stared at He Qingcheng in disbelief. Had he taken the wrong medicine? All I said was a few words. Why is he questioning our relationship?
On the hospital bed, Qingcheng was still imitating Lin Daiyu's frown. Gao Junxiao felt both sorry for her and angry. He could only reply, "One thing at a time. Don't confuse the two. You're still under the effects of anesthesia and are prone to talking nonsense."
"I'm perfectly sober." Qingcheng's head was held high, her face full of stubbornness.
"Shut up!" Gao Junxiao's anger, which he had just suppressed, flared up again. He suddenly remembered that the doctor had said not to make her nervous or anxious. Oh well, a good man doesn't argue with a woman. He forced himself to calm down and replied, "Once I've recovered, I'll buy a ticket back to Shanghai. It's safe there. I'll come see you again tomorrow."
Just then, the doctor came in with his notebook to check on the patients. Gao Junxiao happened to brush past the doctor. He felt like he had seen the doctor's eyes somewhere before, but the nurse came to urge him that visiting hours were over. He looked outside and saw that it was already dark. He didn't want to listen to Qingcheng's nonsense anymore, so he could only leave first.
No sooner had Gao Junxiao left than Qingcheng said to the doctor who was diligently making rounds, "Stop pretending, he's gone."
"Ms. He, the departure of your family will not affect our work attitude. We will still treat you seriously and responsibly." The doctor was still saying polite words.
"Speak quickly, what's the matter that made you contact me in such a hurry? If you don't tell me, I'm going to sleep." Qingcheng lay down impatiently, pulled the covers up, and pretended to go to sleep.
"Miss He, you're so heartless. They went through so much trouble to save you, and you come back and talk about breaking up. If I were in their shoes, I'd be angry too." The doctor took off his mask, revealing himself to be Hu Yukun. It's unclear how much he had been eavesdropping on.
"Let's get down to business," Qingcheng said in a hoarse voice, pulling Hu Yukun's train of thought back to the main point.
Hu Yukun found an empty seat and slowly said, "I've come to inform you that the organization requires all underground activities in Xuzhou to cease. You and I should both remain where we are and wait to be reawakened."
The situation was so serious! Qingcheng could hardly believe her ears. It felt like someone had poured a bucket of cold water over her head, leaving her completely numb. Her stomach also began to ache slightly. Hu Yukun wanted to call a nurse, but Qingcheng stopped him with a gesture.
There must have been a major blunder to make such a decision. What went wrong? This matter was linked to Gao Junxiao's unusual fatigue. Qingcheng was eager to ask Hu Yukun about it, but Hu Yukun refused to reveal a single word and only told her to rest well.
She was also aware of organizational discipline; she couldn't ask what she shouldn't ask, and she couldn't say what she shouldn't say. So Qingcheng changed the subject and asked, "Has Wang Renyong given any instructions?"
When Wang Renyong was mentioned, Hu Yukun suddenly became evasive, sometimes saying no, sometimes saying she was on standby. Her intuition told her that something had happened to Wang Renyong. Under Qingcheng's repeated questioning, Hu Yukun stammered, "Wang Renyong... he was disciplined and received a major demerit. He's currently under internal investigation."
After saying that, Hu Yukun let out a long sigh of relief and looked at Qingcheng on the hospital bed. She was clutching the corner of the blanket tightly, her body trembling slightly. Hu Yukun thought to himself with a bitter face: Why can't I control my mouth? I can't let her know that Lao Wang took all the blame and made a mistake in his command.
However, Qingcheng was more perceptive than him; she immediately realized that it was her oversight that led to such serious consequences. Qingcheng apologized to Hu Yukun with deep remorse.
"It wasn't you, it was us. This was everyone's idea," Hu Yukun hurriedly explained. "Everyone's intentions were good, otherwise Lao Wang wouldn't have supported it. It's just that things got a little out of control later on. Oh, right, there's another good thing I haven't mentioned."
Hu Yukun quickly changed the subject: "It turns out that the child has an older brother. His brother hired a lawyer to appeal, and the court has accepted the case."
Brother? With a family claiming him, the child can finally be laid to rest. This was the only good news Qingcheng heard today. Hu Yukun said a few more words of encouragement before leaving, turning off the light for her as he went.
Qingcheng was the only one left in the room, staring blankly at the ceiling. Despite it being the height of summer, she felt a chill in the room. The curtains fluttered in the breeze. She always liked to challenge herself and demand that she do things to the best of her ability within her capabilities.
Whether it's calligraphy, seal carving, French, mathematics, shooting, physical fitness, or anything else, she didn't want to disappoint her relatives and friends. Her father, despite the pressure from those around him who said that a woman's virtue lay in her lack of talent, taught her the Six Arts of Confucianism, hoping she would be knowledgeable and reasonable.
So she only required herself to practice calligraphy until it was exactly the same as the model. She didn't care about getting blisters on her fingers from carving stones every day.
My aunt and uncle, amidst the prevailing sentiment that "what's the use of a woman studying so much? She should just marry into a good family," sent her abroad to study, hoping she would serve her country after returning.
So, to practice her French, she overcame her shyness and worked as a waitress in a restaurant, hoping to have more opportunities to chat with French people. Her university major, advanced mathematics, was so difficult that she would spend a whole week in the library looking up a single formula, barely eating, drinking, or resting, until she found the answer.
After joining the organization, whether it was Sister Cai or Ai Ruirui, Wang Renyong always carefully cultivated and protected her. She could feel the revolutionary spirit of her predecessors, so she also wanted to devote herself to the revolution with 100% enthusiasm.
She decisively abandoned her original major and devoted herself to the well-informed newspaper industry. Lacking physical stamina, she would practice for a full hour even when working late. Finding her shooting speed too slow, she took five identical alarm clocks, set them, and placed them in a corner. She would point at whichever alarm went off, determined to develop the most standard shooting posture with the fastest reaction time.
She firmly believed that she hadn't done enough, that she could do better, and even better.
But after hearing the news that Lao Wang had been punished, she suddenly felt how foolish she had been. Gao Junxiao was right when he said, "You have to pay the price for everything you do." But Lao Wang had to pay the price for what she had done. That was not fair!
She was too arrogant, thinking she had everything under control. However, things didn't go as she wished.
She only felt a pang of sadness, but she didn't know what it was, or how to let herself go. Tears welled up involuntarily, and she wiped them away with trembling hands. Afraid that others would hear, she simply covered herself with the blanket to temporarily isolate herself from the world.
Suppressed sobs escaped from under the covers. Perhaps it was guilt, perhaps regret, perhaps everything would be over when she woke up.
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