Chapter 1183: Battered, But Not Ashamed! (4)

The light in the private room was quite bright. When Xi Xiaye went in, she saw Qi Lei sitting in the corner of the sofa and staring at the mess before him while deep in thought.

The floor in front was already wet. One could already smell the dense alcohol mixed with his blood. The mottled traces of it was a ghastly sight.

Upon realizing that Xi Xiaye was walking over, Qi Lei silently lifted his head. When she appeared before him, his gloomy eyes flashed with a faint radiance. His handsome face could not help but force a smile. He asked in a low and raspy voice, "Why are you here?"

Xi Xiaye examined him quietly, then her eyes stopped at his clenched fist. "I was nearby, so I came over to talk a look. Get up. Let's go to the hospital..."

Upon hearing that, Qi Lei started to smile bleakly while his eyes seemed a little sad. "Did Yang Sheng call you again? How busybody...Did you hear everything? You shouldn't have come. Even I'm not used to seeing myself this miserable."

Xi Xiaye only laughed at his reply. "Alright, even though you do look quite battered, you're not ashamed, I suddenly feel like this is more like you, Qi Lei. Your hand's hurt and it can get infected easily in this weather, so it's best to get it checked at the hospital. Right now, you should cherish yourself even more, Qi Lei. Don't be too silly. You should learn from my own sad past. We're both too silly. We're too kind to others but so harsh on ourselves. Sometimes, we might do better if we were a little more selfish...Maybe we wouldn't suffer as much."

Towards the end, Xi Xiaye's tone turned dismal.

Qi Lei sighed melancholically as he blinked his slightly dry eyes sadly and his voice was filled with defeat. "I used to not know what was so annoying about me. Every time I struggled, I would reflect on myself. I thought that if I didn't care so much and knew how to be content, everyone would do better. Later on, I understood that these things actually aren't up to me. Even if I didn't fight for it, it didn't mean that my life would get any easier."

Without caring about his bloody hand, he took another empty glass, poured himself a drink, and then finished it in a few gulps. He frowned and continued, "Did you know that in my younger days when I was studying, I would always hand in empty sheets for my exams. My results would always render me as the last in the ranks. That way, after every exam, the teacher would call my parents to the school, and it was only then that I would feel like I had parents. It was alright for the first few times, but afterward, they became annoyed and numb. I wondered if I studied really hard and got good results, would they take notice? So, I began to work really hard...

"But it was still useless. No matter how hard I tried to make up for certain gaps, it was useless. I was a son for someone else's interests. In the end, I couldn't force them to be like those loving couples who would treat each other kindly, be concerned about their son, and care about their family. Xiaye, were you like me? Did you feel extremely helpless? I didn't even want to go home. I was afraid that every time I went home, I would be met with apathy or mockery..."

Qi Lei was the kind of person who never willingly bring up the past with anyone. However, today he had suffered quite a bit, so he finally blurted it all out.

"I did feel quite helpless, but as long as we did our best, it's good enough. Qi Lei, you have to believe that the reason we lost some things was so we could create space for other things. Once we've experienced loss and pain, we understand how to cherish it even more. Don't be sad. We won't be abandoned by fate," Xi Xiaye said as she slowly bent down to pick up his blazer that had been tossed aside, then she looked down at him.

"Don't cower. Get up. I'll go to the hospital with you."

"Wouldn't Mu Yuchen be worried that it's late and you aren't home yet? Go home. I'll be fine myself," Qi Lei lowered his gaze and said softly.

"He's gone away for work. Before he left, he told me to watch out for you. He knows that you've not been doing too well recently. Also, Qi Lei, thank you for trusting me and Mr. Mu. Don't worry. We won't let you be taken advantage of. To us, kinship is more important than anything else. All those mere worldly possessions...even if we lose them, we can still get them back, but if we lose kinship, then..."

Xi Xiaye did not continue. When Qi Lei looked up, his gaze met her clear and sincere eyes. When he could see the concern in them, his heart suddenly felt sad and his throat could not help but taste bitter.

He always heard that those who walked alone were actually quite cold-hearted as they usually maintained an indifference to keep people miles away, but once they felt the kind of warmth and concern that they missed, they found it rather hard to accept.

While, he, Qi Lei—

Was just that kind of person...

Qi Lei lowered his eyes and fell silent for a moment. Then, his fists clenched and relaxed twice before he finally stood up without a word and walked out with Xi Xiaye...

Xi Xiaye drove him straight to the nearest hospital, where the doctor professionally disinfected and bandaged his hand for him. She told Yang Sheng and the accompanying bodyguards to get the medication. By the time they left the hospital, it was already close to 2 a.m.

Xi Xiaye drove straight back to Maple Residence since it was along the same way as Qi Lei's Grand Lake Villa area. Qi Lei sat in her car and behind them were Yang Sheng and the bodyguards.

When the car was speeding along, Xi Xiaye steadily controlled the steering wheel and asked Qi Lei,"What are you planning to do next?"

"What else can I do? This time, I must fight to stay. I can't guarantee whether the old man will give in or not, but I've already made my plans. If it really doesn't work out, we'll just have to have this fallout in advance. Once I lay my cards on the table, I'm sure many people will want to follow me. In fact, Gu Qiwu's got huge trouble on his end. It's not like the other people will support Qi Feng either," Qi Feng analyzed.

Upon hearing that, Xi Xiaye nodded as well. "Mr. Mu and I were thinking that too. As long as Gu Qiwu and Doris have a fallout, we don't see how things can be peaceful on Qi Feng's end. In fact, Mr. Mu is thinking of..."

"He wants to get Hui Gu, doesn't he? For Mu Lingshi?"

Having known Mu Yuchen for quite a while now, Qi Lei knew the reason he wanted to do that. In fact, his methods were decisive and did not contain any hesitation. Given his protectiveness over his family, there was no need to guess his intentions.