030. Flowers Fade, Flutter and Fill the Sky

— Youth has fled, and I'm left all alone. Only the cold tears are the harsh reality.

Tian Rao struggled to steady her ragged breathing. The sun stretched A Kang's shadow long.

For years on end, she'd always watched him from afar. She'd watched his stalwart figure dash towards that cold and haughty girl. She'd watched him dwindle into a mere speck in her line of sight. She'd been watching him like this, with a gaze as unwavering as a drill boring through stone. But he'd never once cast a glance back at her. Just one look would've filled her heart to the brim.

The sunlight seemed to drape A Kang in a golden mantle. Suddenly, a red dot emerged in that glow, glaringly conspicuous, like a hideous stain on a priceless golden masterpiece. Without a moment's hesitation, Tian Rao lunged towards that red dot. With her own body, she tried to mend that flaw.

A Kang, walking ahead, was still lost in the scenes from the hospital. The moment Tian Rao threw herself onto him, he knew what had happened. He'd been so careless. Ming Xichen had completely derailed him, and he'd even lost his basic sense of alertness.

He caught Tian Rao as she was about to crumple. When his hand touched the sticky, wet liquid on her back, his heart seized up. He scooped her up and sprinted towards the hospital at full tilt. Drops of sweat splashed from A Kang's face onto Tian Rao's deathly - pale visage. He ran like a madman, shouting non - stop, "Tian Rao, hold on! We'll be at the hospital soon. You must hang in there!"

A Kang burst into the hospital, clutching the blood - soaked Tian Rao in his arms. Then chaos ensued. Doctors, nurses, the emergency room door swung open and shut. A Kang slumped weakly against the wall, his mind a blank.

The waiting was an eternity of agony.

The moment Chen Chen heard from Leng Yan that Tian Rao had taken a bullet for A Kang and was in the emergency room, her heart plummeted. She yanked out the IV needle from her hand and dashed out in her slippers. Leng Yan trailed behind and called Chu Rui.

In front of the emergency room, Chen Chen saw A Kang slumped against the wall. His face was ashen, his eyes bloodshot. Her heart felt like it was being ripped to shreds. She walked slowly towards him and wrapped her arms around his waist. This was the first time she'd initiated a hug since A Kang came back. He bent down and buried his face in the crook of her neck, greedily inhaling her scent. His voice was hoarse as he asked, "Will she die?"

"She won't." Chen Chen patted his back, soothing him like a frightened child.

Her delicate fragrance filled his nostrils. Her soft, warm body gradually thawed his cold and rigid one. A Kang held her tightly, hardly daring to breathe. It seemed that as long as he was by her side, his heart wouldn't be so taut. But deep down, he was still terrified. He was afraid that this life would slip away because of him, and the bitter ache lingered.

Chen Chen wrapped her arms around his waist and pressed her face against his chest, listening to his pounding heartbeat. Her heart felt much calmer. She was grateful to Tian Rao. No matter what her feelings were, she was thankful that Tian Rao had kept A Kang standing in front of her. When she heard from Leng Yan that someone had tried to assassinate A Kang, her heart had been so tense that she'd forgotten about her own pain. When she saw him standing alone and helpless against the cold wall, her heart ached in tandem with his. She forgot about his domineering ways and his arrogance. All she wanted was for him to live. Only she knew how deathly afraid she was of death and how much she'd lived in fear and self - blame over the years. If something really happened to A Kang, and she was the cause, would she still have the courage to go on living?

The gentle sunlight bathed the two embracing figures.

When Chu Rui arrived, he witnessed this scene. The tall man was nestled in the delicate woman's arms. The man's head rested in the woman's neck, and the woman's face was firmly pressed against the man's chest. In the long corridor, it was so quiet that one could almost hear the symphony of their heartbeats. He seemed to be able to discern their heartbeats, one heavy and one light, one strong and one gentle, finally merging into an inseparable rhythm, intertwined and unending.

The tightly - embraced bodies, this harmonious and beautiful tableau, stabbed his eyes like a hot poker. There had never been a moment when he'd wished so desperately that he was blind. His heart was bleeding, but there were no visible scars. It was the curse of being smitten by love. No one could cure it, or rather, the person who could had stopped caring about him.

Love, such an enigmatic force, making people fret over every gain and loss. Even the stoic heart of Young Master Chu was no longer calm.

The two in each other's arms found solace and lost track of time. Time flew by. When the sound of the emergency room door opening jolted them out of their reverie, they rushed towards the doctor who emerged and asked in unison, "How is she?"

"The bullet missed the vital organs. It went through the scapula. She was brought in just in time, so she'll be fine. You can visit her in the ward later."

Chen Chen excitedly grabbed the doctor's hand. "Thank you. Thank you so much."

Chen Chen didn't even notice that this was a very young doctor. "It's my duty. You don't need to thank me." The young doctor seemed quite flustered being grabbed like this, especially by a breathtaking beauty. His face flushed slightly, and he discreetly pulled his hand away.

No one had the time to notice these details. They followed Tian Rao, who was being wheeled out, into the ward.

Chen Chen arranged for Tian Rao to be in the best ward and took care of her personally. Seeing that Tian Rao was out of danger, A Kang's heart finally settled. He sat on the chair beside her bed, gazing at her pale face, her long, curled eyelashes, and her lips, a faint pink from blood loss. A Kang had never studied Tian Rao so closely before. It turned out that she was quite beautiful.

Chen Chen was also looking at Tian Rao. Their eyes met in mid - air. She said with a half - smile, "Normally it's the hero rescuing the beauty, but now it's the other way around. Are you going to marry her to repay the favor?"

A Kang's eyes lost their icy edge and seemed to revert to the sunny look of his youth. "I've already pledged myself to a heartless person. She tramples on my heart and lungs and goes off having a grand old time."

A Kang's words were as pouty as a disgruntled woman's. Chen Chen couldn't help but giggle. "I didn't know you had this side to you. Now you're acting like a whiny woman."

The two bantered back and forth, and the atmosphere was as serene as a flower floating on a still pond.

Suddenly, A Kang grabbed Chen Chen's hand. "Let's be kind to each other and never quarrel again. Every time we fight, my heart aches like crazy."

Chen Chen looked into A Kang's eyes tenderly. There was a mist in his eyes. "Don't force me to go with you. Find some time for us to have a calm talk, okay?"

A Kang stared deeply into Chen Chen's eyes, took a deep breath, and said, "Okay, I won't force you, but you have to move out."

"You should go back to the military region. Let's talk after Tian Rao is discharged from the hospital, okay?" Chen Chen tried to soften her tone. She didn't want to shatter the finally - eased atmosphere with just a few words.

"Okay." A Kang didn't say much more. He picked up the phone that Chen Chen had left on the table and saved his number in it. "Call me if you need anything. I'll come back later."

"Don't come tonight. You didn't sleep last night, did you? Get some good rest. Don't wear yourself out." Chen Chen looked at the bloodshot eyes in A Kang's eyes and felt a twinge of pity.

"You care about me." It sounded like a question but was actually a statement of certainty.

Chen Chen lowered her eyes and said nothing. A Kang gently kissed her on the forehead. "Ming Xichen, I'll miss you."

Chen Chen's heart was suddenly filled with a pang of sadness at his words. "You're just trying to make me sad for no reason. Bad guy, Kang Hao, you big bad guy."

They seemed to be back to square one. Chu Rui, who had witnessed it all from the doorway, rubbed his sore eyes and turned to leave. His steps were still composed, showing no sign of awkwardness, but his tightened expression betrayed his inner turmoil.