Chapter 73: The Endless Descent

The princess and the prince lived happily ever after — this is a fairy tale meant to deceive children.

Chen Qianqing felt himself falling, falling, endlessly falling. The sound of a high-pitched wind filled his ears, like a woman’s cry, stabbing his eardrums with pain.

It was a sunny afternoon in a park full of blooming flowers.

Chen Qianqing collapsed to the ground, his eyes slowly closing. Blood spilled from his chest, blooming like a flower across his chest in a beautiful display.

Lu Yiqin stood beside Chen Qianqing, watching him fall, then pulling the dagger from his body with a heavy force.

The taste of death was anything but sweet. This wasn’t the first time Chen Qianqing had tasted it, but compared to the last time, he felt an unprecedented calmness.

What Lu Yiqin said, he could no longer hear. All he could see was everything around him growing blurry, still, and slowly being consumed by darkness.

In his dazed state, he saw Lu Zhengfei’s smile, the young, handsome, and energetic Lu Zhengfei, whose brows never bore that inescapable shadow. Compared to him, they seemed like entirely different people.

Chen Qianqing thought, if this was the price for forgiving Lu Zhengfei, then he would accept it.

He had killed in public, and killed the person Lu Zhengfei loved most. When Lu Yiqin was pinned to the ground by those following Chen Qianqing, she laughed.

On her emaciated face was a strange smile as she said, “Lu Zhengfei, now let’s see how you’ll leave me.”

No one expected Lu Yiqin, on the verge of a mental breakdown, to do something like this. When she received Lu Zhengfei’s call and knew that everything was beyond saving, she completely broke down.

She used her last resources to track down Chen Qianqing’s location, then donned a large coat, hiding a knife inside.

At that time, Chen Qianqing was sitting on a park bench, watching a few children feeding pigeons. Several of the men Lu Zhengfei sent to follow him recognized Lu Yiqin, so they didn’t view her, slowly approaching Chen Qianqing, as a threat.

However, when she drew the dagger from her pocket and stabbed it into Chen Qianqing’s back, everything was too late.

Chen Qianqing didn’t even react. He merely looked down blankly and saw a blood-soaked knife blade protruding from his chest. Then, he slowly leaned forward and collapsed to the ground, motionless.

Lu Yiqin withdrew the knife, and the blood spurting from the severed vein splattered across her heavily made-up face. She laughed sharply, like a vengeful spirit’s cry in the dead of night, a sound so jarring.

Lu Yiqin was soon subdued, but she continued to laugh, tears streaming down her face as she shouted Lu Zhengfei’s name, as if she were still the little girl who had caused trouble and only hoped her brother would help her.

No one paid attention to Lu Yiqin; all focus was on Chen Qianqing.

The ambulance arrived quickly, and soon Lu Zhengfei did too.

He wasn’t wearing a coat, just the sweater that Chen Qianqing had worn when he left home. He stood outside the emergency room, gasping for air, staring at the glaring “In Surgery” sign for a long time before hoarsely asking, “Who did this?”

His subordinates nervously recounted the events of the day.

Lu Zhengfei fell silent, but anyone could see the anger in his silence. He asked, “Where is Lu Yiqin?”

“She’s been taken by the police,” one replied.

Everyone knew Lu Yiqin was Lu Zhengfei’s sister, but most didn’t know that Chen Qianqing was his lover. So, it was natural for them to think that Lu Zhengfei would want to suppress the matter.

Lu Zhengfei asked, “How many years would she get, according to the normal procedure?”

His subordinate thought for a moment and replied cautiously, “If there’s evidence of her mental health issues…”

If someone could prove that Lu Yiqin was mentally ill, she wouldn’t be punished by law. But no one would provide that proof — at least, Lu Zhengfei wouldn’t allow it.

Lu Zhengfei then asked, “How is Qianqing?” He had been silent for a long time before asking.

His subordinate hesitated and whispered, “He… might not be okay.” He had witnessed Chen Qianqing’s injury firsthand and knew the chance of survival was slim. Lu Yiqin had aimed the dagger right at his heart.

Lu Zhengfei wasn’t stupid; he knew exactly what his subordinate meant.

He sighed softly, his back, which had been straight all along, seemed to suddenly hunch over. He said calmly, “I killed him.” If it weren’t for his angry phone call to Lu Yiqin, if it weren’t for his failure to stop Chen Qianqing from going out, if he had reminded his subordinates to keep an eye on Lu Yiqin, none of this would have happened.

However, the most impossible thing in the world is “if.”

No one had expected Lu Yiqin to be so extreme, nor had anyone expected her to immediately find Chen Qianqing to vent her panic and anger.

The emergency room light stayed on for a long time. During this time, doctors came out, but Lu Zhengfei remained seated, unmoving, seemingly not anxious about Chen Qianqing’s condition.

His face was expressionless, and he kept his head down, playing with his phone. His subordinates, seeing his demeanor, thought he was simply sad and finally relaxed a little.

The people around Chen Qianqing were newly assigned to him by Lu Zhengfei. They didn’t know the history between Chen Qianqing and Lu Zhengfei, so to them, no matter how important Chen Qianqing was, he couldn’t compare to Lu Yiqin.

Since the murderer wouldn’t be punished, they figured they wouldn’t face much trouble either.

This lucky mindset was shattered when the lights in the operating room went out.

Because Lu Zhengfei, who had been keeping his head down, slowly raised it and said to them, “You and them, all resign.” He didn’t like to vent his anger on others, but he simply couldn’t bear to see their faces anymore.

His subordinates froze, wanting to say something, but seeing Lu Zhengfei raise his hand to silence them.

The operating room door opened, and a doctor came out. Seeing Lu Zhengfei, who had been waiting outside, he lowered his mask and whispered, “Sorry, we did our best.”

Lu Zhengfei didn’t respond, nor did he move.

Nurses and doctors filed out, walking past Lu Zhengfei. They all unconsciously quickened their pace.

Lu Zhengfei staggered, and if not for someone supporting him, he would have fallen. He shook off the person who was helping him, then walked step by step toward the emergency room, toward his Qianqing.

Inside the operating room, there was a strong smell of blood. The person covered by a white sheet lay quietly on the emergency table.

Lu Zhengfei walked slowly, extremely slowly, then gently pulled the sheet off the person’s face.

Chen Qianqing’s expression was peaceful, his eyes closed, as though in a deep sleep. Apart from the coldness of his skin, everything seemed the same as when he slept beside him.

Lu Zhengfei didn’t know how to react. He wanted to cry but couldn’t, wanted to smile but couldn’t move his lips. So, he could only stand there with a blank face, trembling fingers caressing Chen Qianqing’s cheek.

He said, “Qianqing, don’t sleep, wake up now.”

Everything was resolved, Chen Qianqing was willing to be with him, no one could stop them anymore, but Chen Qianqing… had gone.

It was as if fate’s absurd cycle — no matter how the pieces of the game struggle — could never escape fate’s crushing weight.

Liu Huamei and Chen Qingyang didn’t die on their way to see Chen Qianqing, but they died when they said goodbye to him. Chen Qianqing didn’t go blind, but in contrast, the price was paid by Lu Zhengfei’s parents.

Chen Qianqing’s death came so suddenly, like a book that was only halfway through, but someone ripped out the ending.

Lu Zhengfei knelt on the floor, tightly gripping Chen Qianqing’s cold, already stiff fingers. He gasped, trying to maintain his breath, but found something that should have been simple had become so complicated.

He couldn’t breathe, and everything in front of him was dark.

Had it not been for Lu Zhengfei’s subordinates following him, he would have likely joined Chen Qianqing in death. Psychological suffocation, if not detected in time, could be fatal in a short time.

When doctors tried to save Lu Zhengfei, they couldn’t separate his hand from Chen Qianqing’s. So, when Lu Zhengfei woke up, the first thing he saw was Chen Qianqing.

Lu Zhengfei said, “Am I dreaming?”

No one dared to answer him.

Lu Zhengfei repeated, “Am I dreaming? Why haven’t I woken up yet?”

Xu Shaoren had arrived at the hospital at some point. Standing by the bed, he called out softly, “Zhengfei.”

Lu Zhengfei clutched Chen Qianqing’s hand tightly with one hand, while the other hand covered his eyes in silence. He said, “He told me he wasn’t Chen Qianqing.”

Xu Shaoren responded with a quiet hum.

Lu Zhengfei continued, “I avoided that question.”

Xu Shaoren tightened his grip on Lu Zhengfei’s shoulder.

Lu Zhengfei said, “If I had told him, before he left, that I loved the person he is now even more, would he have left a little happier?”

Xu Shaoren didn’t know what to say, but he understood that at this moment, words would be meaningless.

Lu Zhengfei added, “I wanted the person he is now to stay with me for a lifetime.”

Xu Shaoren furrowed his brows deeply, as if trying to suppress his emotions, but his eyes still turned red.

Lu Zhengfei said, “But he’s gone.” At this point, his voice carried a distinct sob. He said, “Xu Shaoren, I’m so scared.”

Lu Zhengfei hadn’t cried when his parents broke his legs. He hadn’t cried when he escaped home to see Chen Qianqing, only to be turned away at the door. He hadn’t cried even when his parents passed away, forcing him to bear the burden of the family alone.

But now, it was as if Lu Zhengfei’s once-straight spine had been broken, and he could no longer hold himself up.

Grass, when uprooted, might still have a chance to live. But a towering tree, once split in two, could never stand tall again.

Lu Zhengfei was a tree on the verge of collapse.

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Lhaozi: AAAAHHHHHHHH!!!!! WHAT THE HECK IS THIS???!!! I DON’T LIKE SAD/TRAGIC ENDING!!! PLEASE!!