Chapter 42 Part 2
The housekeeper: “It was just a facade. Master and I saw her… unstable side. She was already controlled by the egg. Perhaps she didn’t want you to know, to worry about her, so she pretended to be normal. That egg, like the pollutant that consumed Ah Cheng, was adept at deception.”
Shi Xu’s expression remained calm, but his fingers curled into fists.
“After my sister died, where did the egg go?”
“I don’t know,” the housekeeper admitted. “Master continued his search in the rifts, even spending a fortune searching for something worldwide. I suspect it was that egg.”
Shi Xu: “He was also obsessed with it?”
“I think so. That egg was terrifying, with the power to corrupt, to twist people’s minds.” Recalling the past aged him visibly, his voice filled with weariness.
“If not for that egg, your sister wouldn’t have… I don’t know what was inside that egg…”
What was inside?
Shi Xu knew, but he wouldn’t tell.
He replayed the housekeeper’s words in his mind, a key detail catching his attention.
“My sister had already defied Shi Yan. Why would she agree to go to the rift for him?”
If she hadn’t gone, she wouldn’t have died. Having already defied him, why obey his orders?
The housekeeper hesitated, then said, “Because Master used Ah Cheng as leverage.”
Shi Xu’s eyes narrowed, a wave of killing intent washing over the housekeeper.
He forced himself to calm down, his voice soft. “Continue.”
“Ah Cheng’s career was just starting. Master sabotaged him. He could bankrupt Ah Cheng’s company at any time. He made a deal with your sister. If she went to the rift and retrieved enough treasures to buy Ah Cheng’s company, he would leave Ah Cheng alone. She agreed.”
“For such a ridiculous reason?” Shi Xu’s grip on the coffee cup tightened, a crack appearing. He quickly released it, his expression twisting with barely suppressed rage.
The housekeeper sighed. “Yes, for such a ridiculous reason. Ah Cheng… was her weakness.”
Shi Xu remained silent, his fingernails digging into his palms.
He didn’t care about Ah Cheng. He only cared about his siblings. He would eliminate anyone who threatened them.
If he were in his sister’s position, he would have abandoned Ah Cheng without hesitation, choosing freedom.
But he wasn’t his sister. She chose Ah Cheng, and she died in the rift because of it.
How ironic.
“After your sister’s death, Master didn’t bother Ah Cheng anymore… but his company still went bankrupt. He lost interest, his heart broken by your sister’s death.”
Shi Xu chuckled softly, his voice filled with bitterness. “Then what was the point of her sacrifice? The outcome was the same.”
The housekeeper couldn’t explain. They weren’t Shi Xu’s sister. They couldn’t understand her choices.
“I’m sorry.”
Shi Xu: “If Shi Yan wanted the golden egg so badly, why didn’t he use it as leverage?”
Why send his sister to the rift for treasures?
Did Shi Yan even need those treasures?
The housekeeper: “The egg controlled your sister. If she tried to give it away, it would take over her mind. She could only protect it, not destroy it. Master couldn’t use it as leverage. He sent her to the rift, hoping to steal it while she was gone, but he couldn’t find it, not even on her body. After her death, the egg disappeared. I don’t know if she took it back to the rift, or if it escaped before she went there.”
…
Leaving the coffee shop, Shi Xu wandered aimlessly through the streets, his mind numb.
He heard footsteps behind him, a familiar scent. He didn’t pull away as a warm, dry hand reached for his, enveloping it.
Strangely, despite the pollutant’s slimy original form, his human form was clean, his skin feeling no different from a human’s.
The longer he maintained his human form, the harder it was for Shi Xu to distinguish between human and pollutant.
Perhaps Gu Sui was more human than them.
“Wife, what… are you… thinking? I followed… you… all the way… You didn’t even… notice… I’m sad…” Gu Sui leaned closer, his hair brushing against Shi Xu’s ear, his gaze still fixed on him.
Shi Xu turned, meeting his worried eyes.
“I want to go somewhere. Come with me.”
Gu Sui: “Okay.”
Shi Yan valued his image above all else. Even though his daughter had disappointed him, their relationship strained, he still maintained the facade of a loving father after her death, wanting to appear grief-stricken.
He held a lavish funeral for her, burying her beside his son.
The cemetery was nestled among the mountains, the wind, although blocked by the pine trees, still biting cold.
Shi Xu, usually impervious to cold, shivered. Gu Sui held his hand, blowing warm air on it.
The warmth wasn’t enough, but the gesture was comforting.
Animals licked each other’s wounds. Humans sought warmth from each other. Shi Xu had thought he didn’t need comfort or warmth, but now, enveloped by it, he realized he couldn’t resist, unwilling to let go.
He stopped, standing on a higher step, looking down at Gu Sui.
Gu Sui stopped too, looking up at him, still blowing on his hand. “Wife, what’s wrong?”
Shi Xu didn’t answer, his gaze lingering on Gu Sui before finally speaking. “Let’s go.”
Gu Sui didn’t question him, following him up the steps. They walked for about ten minutes, stopping before two tombstones.
The photos on the tombstones captured their youthful beauty. Gu Sui didn’t know their names, but seeing the shared surname, Shi, and the resemblance to Shi Xu, he guessed.
“Your… brother and sister?”
Shi Xu: “Yes.”
Gu Sui shuddered, then said excitedly, “Meeting… the parents?”
Shi Xu: “…”
Gu Sui’s lips thinned, looking at Shi Xu helplessly. “I… I didn’t… bring anything… Wife, what… should I… say?”
Shi Xu: “…”
He knew Gu Sui wasn’t being flippant. He was genuinely nervous, taking their relationship seriously.
Shi Xu squeezed his hand. “Just greet them.”
Gu Sui instantly calmed down, bowing to the tombstones, introducing himself sincerely. “Hello, brother and sister. I’m Gu Sui, an SSS-class pollutant. Seven years ago, I saw Shi Xu for the first time… and fell in love. I wasn’t SSS-class then. To protect him better, I waited seven years before pursuing him…”
Shi Xu listened, some of his words a revelation.
Gu Sui evolved for him.
He had fallen in love at first sight, but waited seven years, his affection only intensifying.
And even the usually bold and unrestrained Gu Sui felt nervous pursuing him.
Shi Xu wanted to laugh, his lips already curving upwards unconsciously.
“I’ll cherish him, I promise. You can trust me with him. He’s my precious treasure. I’ll protect him, I won’t let him suffer.”
After hearing the housekeeper’s story, Shi Xu’s heart felt heavy. He wanted to see his siblings.
If not for Gu Sui’s “interruption,” his sadness would have consumed him.
They stood before the tombstones for a long time. Shi Xu didn’t say anything to his siblings. As dusk approached, he led Gu Sui down the hill.
“I know I wasn’t the most important person in my sister’s life.” His voice, after a long silence, was hoarse. “So I never expected to be. But that’s a lie…”
While his brother was alive, he didn’t mind not being his sister’s priority, because he had his brother.
And his brother was more important to him than his sister. It was a fair exchange.
He couldn’t prioritize his sister, and it was fine if she didn’t prioritize him.
She had Ah Cheng. He had lost his brother.
After his brother’s death, he wanted to be closer to his sister, but he couldn’t. He couldn’t replace Ah Cheng.
He was alone, enveloped by loneliness, thinking he would never feel warmth again.
They stopped under a pine tree. Shi Xu leaned against Gu Sui’s shoulder, seeking shelter from the cold wind, finding warmth in his embrace.
“I’m selfish. When I learned that my sister died for Ah Cheng, I thought, why not Ah Cheng? Why couldn’t she choose me?”
They were family, their bond stronger, why choose Ah Cheng over him?
After his brother’s death, only he and his sister shared the same fate. Why couldn’t they find comfort in each other?
They should have faced their bleak future together, escaped their father’s control together.
He couldn’t say these things while she was alive, but the thoughts lingered.
“I’m truly selfish,” he murmured. “I only want to receive, not to give. I just wanted… companionship… I know I’m not like Ah Cheng. I can’t give her what he gave her. I can’t be the most important person in her life. But I wanted her to see me as the most important…”
He knew his desires were selfish, never expressing them to his sister. But now he regretted it. If he had been more selfish, would she still be alive?
Gu Sui’s hand gently stroked his hair.
Only his heavy breaths remained after his words were carried away by the wind.
“Everyone has someone most important to them. Your sister found hers before you. But yours has appeared.”
As Shi Xu looked up, Gu Sui cupped his face, their foreheads touching, his voice soft. “Sorry, I’m late. I kept you waiting.”
Shi Xu’s empty eyes regained focus, seeing his reflection in Gu Sui’s eyes, his own image illuminated by Gu Sui’s light.
He didn’t feel as selfish and despicable anymore.
Even he, flawed as he was, could be loved, cherished.
He wrapped his arms around Gu Sui’s neck, kissing him.
It was a simple kiss, devoid of lust, just a pure expression of affection, wanting to feel the warmth of his lips.
Gu Sui, for once, didn’t deepen the kiss, not reciprocating, just observing him quietly, like Shi Xu often did.
After a long moment, Shi Xu pulled away, squeezing Gu Sui’s hand.
“Gu Sui.”
“Hmm?”
“It’s cold.”
Gu Sui held his hand, blowing warm air on it.
After a few breaths, Shi Xu’s hand felt slightly warmer, but not enough.
“Let’s go home,” Shi Xu said.
Gu Sui: “Okay.”
Shi Xu: “Warm me with your body.”
Gu Sui: “Okay!!!”
Behind him, countless transparent tentacles wriggled excitedly…
Haha, golden retriever Gu Sui, with a twist.