Chapter 48: Give Auntie Rong Back to Me
The luxury car sped along the road, soon arriving at the seaside.
At this late hour, the coast should have been silent and still. But tonight, it was destined to be anything but peaceful.
Xiao Han’s subordinates, along with seven or eight maritime rescue and salvage teams mobilized from Imperial City and surrounding areas, were scattered across the beach and in the water—over two hundred people in total. The originally tranquil shore was exceptionally noisy.
Several rescue teams were still operating in the nearshore waters, while the rest were gathered on the sand. Some were taking short breaks, others were adjusting their equipment.
Seeing Gu Xinglan approach, Xiao Han immediately strode over to meet him.
“President Gu,” he greeted.
Gu Xinglan’s arm had been draped over Qin Wan’s shoulder the entire time; now, he tightened his grip slightly.
“Where is it?” he asked.
Xiao Han reached out. “This way. I’ll lead you there.”
Gu Xinglan felt Qin Wan’s body trembling violently. He gently stroked the boy’s shoulder.
“It might not be her,” he whispered near his ear, trying to keep his voice as calm as possible. “Don’t get too nervous yet…”
He offered comfort, but even his own voice lacked confidence as he spoke.
Qin Wan’s eyes were bloodshot, and he didn’t say a word. Held close by Gu Xinglan, he walked toward the water’s edge.
There, the body of a woman lay on the shore. She was bloated from the seawater, and her face was an unrecognizable, gruesome sight. Four or five doctors and nurses stood nearby, their expressions solemn.
As Gu Xinglan approached, the crowd that had been whispering in low voices suddenly fell silent. The beach became eerily still. Gu Xinglan held Qin Wan tightly, not daring to let go, as if fearing that if he loosened his grip even a little, Qin Wan would collapse.
Qin Wan’s head was buzzing, and his vision was blurred. With great difficulty, he forced himself to focus on the corpse. He stared for a long moment.
He realized that although the deceased’s build and hair were somewhat similar to Auntie Rong’s, the clothes she wore were not anything Auntie Rong usually wore. Given how rushed her departure had been, it was impossible for her to have bought a new set of clothes. Furthermore, her hair was slightly shorter than Auntie Rong’s.
It was almost certain that this body was not Auntie Rong.
“It’s not her…” Two words escaped Qin Wan’s lips as his entire body went limp.
As his nerves relaxed from their state of extreme tension, the breath he had been holding vanished, and he could no longer stand. Gu Xinglan caught him immediately.
Qin Wan raised a hand, instinctively wanting to push him away. He wanted nothing more than for this man to stay far away from him, instinctively recoiling even from the slightest touch. But his strength was entirely depleted; he couldn’t muster even a bit of force. He could only sink into the man’s embrace, allowing himself to be held.
Gu Xinglan gave a slight shake of his head toward Xiao Han. “Continue the search.”
With that, he half-carried, half-held Qin Wan as they left the beach.
Reaching the car, Gu Xinglan opened the door, placed him in the passenger seat, and buckled his seatbelt. He then got in and slowly started the engine.
Qin Wan didn’t make a sound, shrinking against the car door with vacant eyes. The interior of the car was stiflingly quiet. After a long time, Qin Wan spoke softly. His voice was hoarse and desolate.
“When I was four and arrived at the Sheng family, I slept in the basement at first. I was so scared I couldn’t sleep all night. It was Auntie Rong who would sneak in to tell me stories and coax me to sleep.”
“She had a bad back. If she caught the damp cold from that basement, it would hurt for days.”
“That time the Eldest Young Master splashed hot tea on my leg, it was Auntie Rong who braved the heavy rain, riding her little electric scooter across several streets just to buy me burn ointment.”
“On the way back, the road was slippery and the scooter fell. Her calf was bruised dark blue.”
“When I was six, I accidentally broke a plate. The Sheng family butler beat me with a feather duster, and it was Auntie Rong who ran over and shielded me.”
“That blow landed on her instead, and her arm swelled up a huge welt.”
“When I was eight and fell ill with a high fever that wouldn’t break at night, it was Auntie Rong who wiped my body with a towel over and over again, putting ice packs on my head to cool me down physically.”
“In the morning, when the fever finally broke, she hadn’t slept all night. I saw that her eyes were completely bloodshot…”
Qin Wan couldn’t go on. His voice broke into a sob.
Gu Xinglan felt uneasy as well. He wanted to comfort him as much as possible. “The one just now wasn’t her. Isn’t that good? At least there’s still hope.”
Qin Wan slowly turned his head to look at him. He didn’t respond. When he spoke again, his voice was even raspier. ” Gege , please give Auntie Rong back to me, okay?”
Gu Xinglan’s chest suddenly felt tight. He jerked the steering wheel and pulled the car over to the side of the road. His brows were knit tight, his face solemn, but he tried to keep his voice gentle.
“Qin Wan, Zhou Rong leaving wasn’t something I forced her to do. I’m anxious too. From dawn until now—”
“You did force her to leave!” Without warning, Qin Wan let out a scream. Along with his words, two lines of tears flowed down his cheeks.
“Auntie Rong left because she didn’t want you to use her to blackmail me!” he shouted, his tears like a broken dam. His small face was drenched in an instant.
“Before you appeared, although Auntie Rong and I lived poor and bitter lives, at least there was hope and something to look forward to.”
“But you broke in like a robber, forcing me to do so many things I didn’t want to do. I endured it all.”
“Because I owed you!”
“But since you controlled her, why didn’t you take good care of her? Why did you lose her? Gu Xinglan, is it because what I’ve done isn’t enough to satisfy you?”
“Give Auntie Rong back to me…” His eyes were bloodshot, as if he had lost his last shred of reason. “Gu Xinglan, give her back to me!”
As he spoke, he reached out and grabbed the man’s collar. His voice shifted from the previous angry rebuke into a hysterical plea.
“I beg you, I really beg you!”
“Gu Xinglan, I know your methods. You must have a way to find her, right? Please, give her back to me!”
He cried and shouted, completely losing his mind. “Gu Xinglan, I’ll do whatever you want! I’ll do anything, okay?”
He cried until his throat was hoarse, yet as if he had lost his sanity, he pressed his body against the man, his small hands clutching the man’s neck. Trembling, he pressed his lips against Gu Xinglan’s.
“Is this okay, Gu Xinglan?” he asked through his tears, kissing him again. Warm, salty tears rubbed onto Gu Xinglan’s lips, chin, and cheeks. “I’ll do anything you want, I beg you, just give Auntie Rong back to me…”
Gu Xinglan’s face was as still as water. In his memory, no one had ever dared to vent their emotions so frantically and recklessly before him. He felt that he should be furious and then punish the person making such a scene.
But in the next second, he reached out and held Qin Wan’s trembling body. He let out a deep sigh.
“Don’t be like this, A-Wan.” He gently patted his back, pulling the boy into his embrace.
Qin Wan was now crying so hard he could barely catch his breath. His body was limp, without a shred of strength left. Held in the man’s arms, his tears soon soaked a large patch of the shoulder of Gu Xinglan’s suit jacket.
“Alright, stop crying.” Gu Xinglan gently patted his back. “I promise you, I will definitely help you find Auntie Rong, okay?” he coaxed softly.
Hearing this, Qin Wan’s crying finally began to subside. Gu Xinglan felt him nod against his chest. The crying gradually turned into sobs, the frequency slowing down bit by bit.
Finally, the person in his arms fell silent. He lay motionless in his embrace.
The extreme fatigue brought on by his prolonged agitation made it impossible for Qin Wan to remain conscious. Gu Xinglan opened the car door, carried him into the back seat, and then called for a driver.
As the driver headed back, Gu Xinglan held Qin Wan tightly, not daring to let go. It felt as if if he let go now, Qin Wan would never belong to him again.
When the car arrived back at Shengshi Daguan Villa, it was already past midnight. Gu Xinglan carried him back to the bedroom and placed him gently on the bed. Sitting by the bedside, he looked down at him. Qin Wan’s eyelids and the tip of his nose were red, but his lips were pale. Crystalline, broken tears clung to his long eyelashes. Under the soft light of the night lamp, he looked incredibly fragile.
Gu Xinglan felt a wave of inexplicable panic. He felt a premonition that a day would come when he could no longer control him, and that he would eventually leave.
He leaned down and kissed his forehead gently. He muttered again, as if giving himself a suggestion and comfort: “A-Wan, no matter what happens, you are not allowed to leave me…”
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