Peach trees blossomed in April, row after row, a vast expanse of pink.
A young woman stood under a peach tree, smiling as she tilted her head back slightly. Her delicate, exquisite features were in no way outshone by the blooming peach blossoms.
At that moment, a flicker of nervousness appeared in her bright, wide eyes, and her tender cheeks were flushed a rosy red. "Luo Hongyi, I like you."
The girl's voice was soft, filled with a young woman's unique shyness and caution.
"What did you say? Say it again. I didn't hear you clearly." The man in the crisp suit beside her cocked his ear and raised an eyebrow. His long, dark eyes, usually sharp and penetrating, were now filled with deep affection and a hint of playful teasing.
"Luo Hongyi, I… I like you. I like you a lot. I want to marry you—!" The girl's face instantly felt like it was on fire, but she puffed up her cheeks, and as if mustering all the courage she'd ever had, she shut her eyes and shouted it at the man without a care in the world.
The smile on the man's face widened instantly. He wrapped his arms around her, sighing in satisfaction. 'This is my girl...'
In that moment, he felt his life was complete. He looked down and promised with the utmost sincerity, "Gu Nuan Nuan, I like you too. I promise, I will always be good to you."
...
Gu Nuan Nuan leaned against the hospital bed, which was propped up at a forty-five-degree angle. A single tear trickled down her face as her heart twisted into an unbearable knot of pain. 'Perhaps because my time is almost up, I've been reminiscing more and more these days?'
Her gaze lingered on her gray-haired mother, who was cooing to her daughter, not yet a year old. But she pointedly ignored the man kneeling on one knee before her bed, his face a mask of agony as he desperately clung to her hand.
Seeing the tears still shimmering in her mother's eyes, she closed her own, hiding the bitterness, reluctance, and regret that filled her heart.
"Nuannuan, I don't want you to go…" Luo Hongyi choked out, burying his face deep in Gu Nuan Nuan's palm. Seeing her lying on the hospital bed, looking so pale and gaunt, he felt as if his insides were being ravaged by wave after wave of overwhelming agony.
He had a premonition that if he lost her, this bone-deep heartache and regret would never cease for the rest of his life.
Even though he had worked so hard to reach the pinnacle, to have the world at his feet, what did it matter now? At this moment, he still felt so small and powerless. In the end, he couldn't stop Death's encroaching footsteps.
"Don't leave me. Don't leave our child… Can we start over? Please…" Luo Hongyi pleaded, cradling Gu Nuan Nuan's hand as his tears dripped through their fingers onto the bedsheets.
A powerful wave of fear, terror, and regret washed over him. Yes, at this moment, he could finally admit to the fear, terror, and regret hidden in the deepest corner of his heart.
In truth, this feeling had begun the moment he learned of their eldest son's accidental drowning, when she had completely cast aside all civility toward him and his family, frantically demanding to leave him—
'If only time could be turned back. If only there was a potion for regret. If there were, he would never have selfishly demanded she suppress herself just to please those people from his hometown…'
But it takes more than one cold day for a river to freeze three feet deep.
She was completely unwilling to give him another chance, to trust him again.
She could never let go of their son's death. If he had known that forcing her to stay would lead to this, he would have let her go back then, just as she had wished.
He would rather have protected her from the shadows for a lifetime, just watching her live well, than for them to be parted forever by death like this.
"It's too late."
Gu Nuan Nuan watched him coldly. Seeing the genuine pain on his face, she suddenly felt the urge to laugh.
And she did laugh, a laugh filled with unconcealed hatred and a feeling of satisfaction that surged from the depths of her soul, one she couldn't restrain. To see him grieving and shedding tears was truly a deeply satisfying sight.
She knew her time was short. She also knew the door to her room was wide open because his family was all outside. How could she not see their heads poking in, trying to catch a glimpse?
'Heh, what a full house.'
At a time like this, it wasn't that his family was unwilling to come into the room and put on a show; it was that he refused to let them in to bother her any further.
She was laughing and crying at the same time, but her heart was filled with waves of desolation. For her eldest son, for her own past endurance, and for this belated display of consideration from him…
'But isn't it too late for him to finally feel sorry for me?'
Her reluctant gaze fell once more on her mother, who stood to the side holding Little Shengnan, biting her lip to keep from crying out, her face streaked with tears.
'Was it worth it?' she asked herself.
For the sake of those people, she had completely ruined her own health. At the prime age of thirty-seven, just as the man before her had made the rich list as the Alliance's youngest billionaire and was riding high on his success; just as her little daughter was not yet a year old; just as her aging mother needed to be cared for—she was about to leave everything behind and let go…
'Maybe my death will be a relief for him.'
No one would be there to stare at him with hateful eyes, resenting him for so easily letting go of the people who caused their son's death—her enemies, who were also his closest relatives.
He wouldn't have to be torn between two sides anymore.
'His grief will surely pass quickly. Soon he'll feel a sense of relief, and a new woman will take my place in his heart, won't she?'
Heh, and his family will be even happier. If they ever felt even a sliver of guilt, it will quickly fade and disappear with her passing, not in the least affecting their ability to continue living comfortably under the protection of his "Major General" halo.
The only ones who will never forget her for the rest of their lives, who will feel heartache and pain whenever they think of her, will probably be my mother and my little daughter.
"In the future, if you remarry, send our child to my mother's. You're never home anyway, and they're both lonely. They can keep each other company. That will also prevent some other woman from sleeping with my man while beating my child."
Gu Nuan Nuan spoke without any restraint now, raising a sarcastic eyebrow at Luo Hongyi. "Are you disappointed I didn't say something virtuous like, 'You're still young, with a limitless future ahead of you. You don't have a son, no one to inherit your grand ambitions. You should forget me and hurry up and find another woman to carry on your family line'?"
"There will be no other woman. Nuannuan, I won't have anyone but you. There will never be another woman…"
Luo Hongyi looked up. That handsome face, which had once captivated her so deeply, with its rugged, chiseled features, still held a fatal attraction.
Time had truly been kind to him. A dozen or so years had not aged that face in the slightest; instead, they had added a touch of mature charm.
Gu Nuan Nuan averted her eyes. "Back then, I was young and didn't know that if you can believe a man's words, pigs can fly… Now, heh… COUGH, how can I believe you now… COUGH COUGH COUGH…"
Before she could finish, she was seized by a violent coughing fit. She whipped her head to the side, not forgetting to push her little daughter away.
Mrs. Gu understood her meaning immediately. Forgetting to cry, she quickly backed away several steps with the child in her arms. As Mrs. Gu retreated, Luo Hongyi rubbed Gu Nuan Nuan's chest to soothe her while pressing the call button by the bed. "Nuannuan, how are you feeling?" he asked anxiously. "Hold on, the doctor and nurse will be here right away."
The words had barely left his mouth when the doctor and nurse rushed in. In truth, they had been waiting right outside the door all along.
"No… no need… COUGH COUGH… COUGH COUGH COUGH… Let… let me finish…" Gu Nuan Nuan waved her hand dismissively as she coughed. When the fit finally subsided, she lay on the bed gasping for air like a fish out of water, feeling utterly depleted.
Sensing she didn't have much time left, she didn't waste words on pleasantries. Forcing herself up, she gave the man a cruel, cold smile. "But, since you've made such a sincere promise, I'll force myself to believe you one more time. This time, if you can really do it, my son and I will… will… for… give you…"
Her eyes were wide open, staring straight at Luo Hongyi, but her voice abruptly cut off. The final two words were so quiet they were almost inaudible. But Luo Hongyi still heard them. He nodded again and again, but before he could get the word "Okay" out, he suddenly froze. He keenly felt the terribly emaciated hand in his grasp go limp and begin to fall—
"The patient has passed. My condolences." The doctor, who had been waiting at the side, stepped forward to check her before stepping back with a soft sigh. Even for one accustomed to life and death, it was impossible to remain completely unmoved by such a scene.
Luo Hongyi closed his eyes. For an instant, his expression twisted in agony.
He quickly opened them again, leaning down and gazing at Gu Nuan Nuan as if to carve her final image into his very soul. He whispered in her ear, his tone exceptionally gentle yet firm, "Nuannuan, I know you couldn't let go of them. Don't worry, I'll take good care of them. And I won't marry another woman. Believe me, this time, I will absolutely keep the promise I made to you."
Gu Nuan Nuan's eyes finally, slowly closed, and a single tear slid down her cheek—