On the way to the airport, Lu Chongyan remained silent, a mix of unhappiness and anxiety clouding him as he worried about something.
The driver had been arranged by Bai Shuo, so Zhuo Lin wasn't afraid of him overhearing anything. She decided to try and comfort Lu Chongyan.
She gently stroked his hand, "Were you scared?"
Lu Chongyan snapped back to attention and tried to sound calm, "No."
"If you're scared, just say it. I won't laugh at you."
Lu Chongyan said nothing.
"In fact, many of the things we experience can be seen as gambles. All choices, all indecision, isn't it like being in a casino, unsure of which side to bet on?"
Lu Chongyan understood the logic, but the casino made the wins and losses more tangible, making him feel that some things, once lost, were gone forever.
He then thought about the person sitting beside him, the person they had been intimate with just last night, someone he couldn't hold onto, and that he had no control over their relationship.
This was the most unsettling aspect for him.
"It's different. I've lost many things, but some things I cannot afford to lose."
Zhuo Lin instantly understood. She looked at him with genuine sincerity and smiled, "The wins and losses I'm talking about are in them, not in you. It won't happen with you, understand?"
Lu Chongyan looked bewildered.
So adorably foolish.
Zhuo Lin reached out and brushed his wind-tousled hair, "With me here, you will never lose. So, don't compare yourself to them. Do you understand now?"
After a few seconds of silence, Lu Chongyan nodded, "I understand."
Yet, he still harbored some doubt.
Seeing how capable she was, and that everyone around her was either wealthy or influential, he couldn't help but feel inferior and uncertain.
Compared to them, he was truly too ordinary.
So ordinary he was practically nothing.
"I want to study."
Zhuo Lin: "..." It seemed he still didn't quite get it.
"Alright. What do you want to learn in the future?"
"I need to understand it first."
"Okay, I'll look into it with you."
"Thank you."
"I don't want verbal thanks."
Then, in the back seat of the car, they exchanged a long, deep kiss.
The driver in front was unfazed, continuing to drive steadily.
—
A vow should not be made lightly.
Even if it's not made by oneself, it can still lead to trouble.
Fu Hongyu was beaten up. In the words of Fu Ningyun: her uncle appeared at the doorstep covered in blood. When she opened the door, she was so startled she almost mistook him for a ghost.
Fu "Ghost" Hongyu: "..."
It seemed like a loving relationship, otherwise, she wouldn't say something like that.
He lay on the guest room bed, bandaged around the waist and head, a plaster on his face, looking somewhat dispirited.
Upon seeing the two return, he forced himself to muster some energy to greet them.
"How is it? Is the matter resolved?"
"It's resolved." The person named Yang probably wouldn't dare to return, let alone cause them trouble.
"That's good." Fu Hongyu genuinely missed them. If they hadn't left yesterday, he could have shamelessly invited them over and wouldn't have ended up in such a sorry state.
"How did you get injured?"
Fu Hongyu gave a bitter smile, "Don't mention it. Last time, with your help at sea, we achieved a great victory, and I got a bit overconfident. I was suspicious, but I insisted on going, and I was ambushed."
Zhuo Lin: "...My fault."
"Of course not." Fu Hongyu wouldn't dare to take that blame. "It was my own underestimation."
He had almost not returned.
"Get some rest. If you die, we won't take care of your niece."
Fu Ningyun was still around.
Of course, she had no say in this matter here.
Fu Hongyu truly cared for her, not just out of kinship, but also out of guilt.
"I will live well."
Zhuo Lin nodded.
"But there's one more thing I need your help with."
"What is it?"
Fu Hongyu had the child taken out and closed the door before asking, "How did you get this house? Help me get one too. Name your price."
Zhuo Lin asked with some curiosity, "Aren't you an official? How are you so rich?"
Fu Hongyu replied, "I have a stake in the casino you visited yesterday. The money was left to me by my mother."
Fu Hongyu and his older brother were not born of the same mother. Old Master Fu had four wives and numerous extramarital affairs. Fu Hongyu's elder brother was born to his father and the first wife.
Fu Hongyu's mother was the third wife.