The ones who just broke up are the ones experiencing the most pain. Saying too much would only add to her sorrow.
But Heather wasnāt shy about discussing it. Smiling, she said, "Itās actually nothing much. Just a breakup, no different from how regular people break up. Thereās no big drama, it was very calm. Because of some reasons, we couldnāt end up together, so we broke up."
The two people across from her remained silent for a moment. She continued, "Just like youāve guessed, since youāve found me here, thereās no way he doesnāt know Iām here. The fact that he hasnāt shown up means heās agreed. So now, I count that as me letting go and accepting my new life."
"What... do you mean? When you say heās āagreedā... does that mean..."
"Yeah, Iām the one who left unilaterally. I know heāll hate me, but I had no choice. When I got back to Linyang, I didnāt contact you all immediately for this reason. When Luo Xuan captured me, he injected me with a new experimental poison they were researching, K. Later, they developed a makeshift antidote, but it came with numerous side effects. Before he died, he told me my life could end at any moment. But he didnāt know how long I have eitherāmaybe a year, a month, a week, or even a day."
Gu Liancheng wasnāt very surprised, as he had already known about this. He managed to keep his emotions under control, but Qianxun was completely stunned, unable to process it.
"How could this happen..."
"Even Luo Xuan himself wasnāt confident he could develop a true antidote. From the start, it was designed to be incurable. Fortunately, itās a slow-acting toxin. It wonāt kill me immediately. It just spreads gradually through my body, corroding my organs until they eventually fail," she continued. "Thatās why I didnāt want to contact you guys. Letting you think Iām already dead is better than making you go through a second goodbye."
Qianxun walked over and hugged her tightly, her sadness overwhelming. "This is so heartbreaking..."
Mm...
Gu Liancheng propped up his head, saying nothing.
In this world, nothing is more sorrowful than the separation of life and death.
Touching on this topic, the atmosphere immediately grew heavy.
"Silly girl, Iāve already come to terms with this reality. You donāt need to worry about me. Iām living quite well now. What matters is that I stay happy for the rest of my days."
"Have you thought about telling Mr. Li? Maybe he could find a way to save you?"
"But Qianxun..." Heatherās eyes turned misty with tears as she spoke, "If one day, you betrayed the Fourth Master, would you still want to stay by his side?"
Qianxun froze.
"Thatās exactly how I feel... consumed by guilt, self-reproach, and endless doubt. Leaving is my only redemption."
In the midst of this sorrowful moment, suddenly, a somewhat comical face appeared in their line of sight, startling Qianxun so much she froze. She didnāt know whether to laugh or cry.
A manās face was pressed right up against the glass window in front of them, his nose squished flat like a pig snout, looking utterly ridiculous and completely ruining the solemn mood.
"Who the heck is this guy..." Qianxun said, laughing through her tears.
Heather was already at her limit, her mind filled with black lines.
The man quickly ran in from outside and made his way to their table, unapologetically sitting down next to Gu Liancheng. This sudden intrusion caused Gu Liancheng to glance at him sideways with a puzzled expression: Who is this guy?
Qianxun took a closer look. He seemed completely different from earlierāa sunny-looking young man with a bright smile. He was, undeniably, quite handsome...