Irreversible - Chapter 14

Chapter 14: The Scumbag’s Counterattack (Part 4)

Gu Xizhou rode in an entirely pitch-black sedan, traveling from the remote research tower in the far suburbs toward the prison where Su Nanfeng was held.

The car sped past emerald-green fields, leaped over shimmering, clear river surfaces, and drove rapidly into a grove of golden trumpets. The bell-shaped flowers, each the size of a thumb, clustered together in bunch after bunch, hanging from the branches and blotting out the sky. On the untended suburban asphalt road, orange trumpet flowers lay fallen like autumn ginkgo leaves, carpeting the highway in a floor of pure gold.

The sky full of yellow flowers looked like the afterglow of a setting sun, reflecting across the upper half of the car windows. Noticing the change of color inside the vehicle, Gu Xizhou looked up. Seeing the golden trumpets in full bloom on both sides of the driveway, she suddenly called out to the bodyguard driving: “Stop the car.“

The bodyguard, Fang Ning, pulled the car to the side. Gu Xizhou pushed open the door and walked silently to the nearest golden trumpet tree, tilting her head back to look up.

The spring sunlight was bright and clear, falling upon the orange-yellow trumpet flowers and making them appear even more brilliant. Gu Xizhou watched them for a while before walking silently into the grove of trumpet trees not far away.

Fang Ning had followed her for several years and had grown accustomed to her boss’s taciturn personality. Without a word, she quickly followed in Gu Xizhou’s footsteps. Inside the grove carpeted with petals, a floral scent so thick it was almost sickening wafted through the air. Gu Xizhou, who usually disliked pungent odors, nevertheless trudged forward through the environment with uneven steps.

Fang Ning followed behind her, watching Gu Xizhou’s frame—frailer than a normal person’s and more petite than the average Alpha—stumble through the woods, feeling somewhat terrified. What if her boss were to trip and fall…

As Fang Ning’s thoughts wandered aimlessly, Gu Xizhou suddenly came to a halt. The female bodyguard looked up to see Gu Xizhou standing before a thick golden trumpet tree, staring intently at a branch laden with flowers, her gaze burning.

Fang Ning immediately understood. She walked to Gu Xizhou’s side and reached out for the branch. “Boss, do you want to break this branch?“

But before her hand could touch the wood, Gu Xizhou slapped it away with a sharp smack. Fang Ning retracted her hand, looking at the petite Gu Xizhou beside her in confusion. She blinked and asked, “Is it not this flower?“

Gu Xizhou did not look at her, saying only flatly, “Don’t touch it. I’ll pick it myself.“

Fang Ning looked at Gu Xizhou’s height, then looked up at the height of the branch. She thought to herself: I’m nearly two meters tall and I can barely reach it; you’re not even 1.7 meters…

Before Fang Ning could finish her mental grumbling, Gu Xizhou commanded: “Lift me up.“

“Alright.“

Fang Ning agreed instantly. Gripping Gu Xizhou by the waist, she easily hoisted her up and placed her on her shoulders like a child. “Can Boss reach it now?“

Gu Xizhou: “…“

With her field of vision suddenly elevated, Gu Xizhou looked at the flower within arm’s reach. Casting aside her reserve, she said softly, “Thank you.“

With Fang Ning’s help, Gu Xizhou picked a large armful of flowers and walked out from the woods. The two got into the car together. Only when Fang Ning started the engine did Gu Xizhou speak in a cold, clear voice: “Turn around. We’re not going to the prison. Let’s go home.“

In such beautiful spring light, one shouldn’t go to see something filthy. After all these years, she had seen enough of that “filthy thing” called Su Nanfeng.

Fang Ning remained loyal to her post and asked no questions. She said “Alright,” turned the car around, and drove back toward the research tower.

Not long after, Gu Xizhou returned to the lab cradling the golden trumpets. Lin Shi, who had just stepped out of the lab, saw her walking from the elevator with a bundle of flowers and found it quite rare. “The golden trumpets are blooming?“

Gu Xizhou was clearly in a good mood. “Yes, they’ve bloomed.“

She walked straight through the laboratory corridor with the flowers in her arms. As she brushed past Lin Shi, she said, “The spring scenery is lovely. If you have someone you like, ask them out for a spring outing today.“

“I won’t need you for the next two days.“

Lin Shi watched Gu Xizhou’s back with a look of utter bewilderment. Before she could say anything else, Gu Xizhou stepped directly into the lab and closed the door behind her, cutting off all people and affairs. Lin Shi stood there, looking at the brightly lit lab nearby. Recalling the way Gu Xizhou had just spoken, she couldn’t help but shudder.

Love… If falling in love turned a person into what Gu Xizhou had become, it was better never to fall in love at all.

On the other side of Su Zhiyi’s dormant pod sat an exquisite blue-and-white porcelain vase, which was filled with different fresh flowers every day. The flowers today were clear water lilies Gu Xizhou had inserted that morning; now, she replaced them with the newly picked golden trumpets.

Su Zhiyi loved flowers. When Gu Xizhou was first pursuing her, she had spent a great deal of effort finding out her preferences. In the early stages of their budding romance, Gu Xizhou had sent a small bouquet every single day for two consecutive years to win her approval. Even after marriage, she had maintained this habit, continuing it until this very day.

As Gu Xizhou arranged the flowers, the orange-yellow of the golden trumpets reflected on the glass of the dormant pod, appearing as if they were floating in the pale green nutrient fluid, draped over Su Zhiyi’s face. It seemed as though the moment she opened her eyes, she would see this brilliant bouquet of golden trumpets.

While arranging the flowers, Gu Xizhou spoke softly to the Su Zhiyi inside the pod: “This morning, I originally intended to go and humiliate Su Nanfeng. But on the way Old Fang was driving me, I suddenly saw the mountains and fields covered in golden trumpets, and I decided not to go.“

After finishing the arrangement, Gu Xizhou sat down beside the pod, looking at the wife inside with eyes full of tenderness. “Do you remember what I told you the year before last? It’s a massive field of golden trumpets, even bigger and more beautiful than the one at our school…“

“If you wake up within the week, you might still be able to see them.“

Her sleeping wife did not answer, but Gu Xizhou didn’t mind. she simply continued to herself: “It’s a bit funny to say, but I wasn’t tall enough. I only got the flowers because Old Fang lifted me up.“

“Old Fang… she’s that veteran soldier who used to be bullied while working as a security guard at the group headquarters until you stepped in to help her. I have her working as my bodyguard now.“

“Her mother’s illness is cured. She got married two years ago and had a daughter. I imagine her daughter likes to play ‘horsey,‘ because she let me sit sideways on her shoulders like a real sturdy person…“

Gu Xizhou lowered her eyes and smiled, her long, raven-wing lashes trembling slightly. After a long while, she said in a shaking voice: “A few months ago, I went to the prison and gave Su Nanfeng quite a shock.”

“I told her that I forcibly marked you and that we had a child… originally, I wanted to tell her today that you had postpartum depression to drive her into a frenzy, but I realized it doesn’t seem to have much meaning anymore.”

“I’m a bit… weary.”

Gu Xizhou reached out, her slender finger pressing against the glass over Su Zhiyi’s face. Her tone was heavy. “Zhiyi, wake up. Please wake up, okay?”

“Even if it’s like before—stabbing me with a knife, loathing me, hating me—it doesn’t matter…”

“Without hearing your voice, I’m so afraid…”

Gu Xizhou let out a sigh, leaning forward to press her cheek against the glass wall of the pod, holding it close to her wife’s cheek. She said in a hoarse voice: “Aside from what I did to you… I haven’t done anything bad in my life.”

“You love me so much… why must you treat me like this?”

If this was the punishment for utilizing and deceiving her lover, then why was it Su Zhiyi who had to die instead of her? Unable to truly live and unable to die, clinging only to a thread of ethereal hope—she had had enough of this torment.