Chapter 145 - Time to Part (2/2)

”I was protecting a girl from Leader Rong. He got mad and decided to punish me for it. But knowing me, this wouldn't be the last time that I take another hit for her.” He smiled, looking as if getting whipped was equivalent to eating his daily meals.

She rubbed her forehead lightly and said, ”I'm guessing that she isn't just any girl you came across. You must have some feelings for her, am I right?”

”Bullseye! You could say that she's the only weakness that I have. It's already been almost 11 years already... since we first met.” He looked very chirpy at the moment as he revealed his joyful smile in front of her.

”Does she know about how you feel?” She couldn't help but lower her guards around him. He reminded her too much of her young love back then.

”No, and I don't plan on telling her either.” His voice lowered slightly as he mentioned about Ariana.

”Then, does she at least know that you're risking your life for her? Is it worth all these wounds and scarring for her?” She bent down to his eye level and listened to his heart felt emotions.

”Nope. Stupid, isn't it? I'm doing all this on my own, despite the fact that she probably thinks of me as her enemy. But it feels very weird. My heart would ache very badly when I see her upset or hurt. I think that pain is a thousand times worse than the pain I receive from fifty back whips. Therefore, I'm not afraid of the punishments as long as it is for her.”

He maintained a smile as he said these words. Perhaps it was a rare sight to see him dispirited with a bitter smile on his face; she subconsciously brushed through his hair. ”You're not stupid at all. I'm very proud that you didn't turn out like your grandfather and went out of your way for her.”

”Pfft, if I ended up like him, I wouldn't have this much hair right now! I'll be bald. By the way, since I shared my story with you, would you consider telling me a bit about your story? Like~ how you and your husband met~”

Since it was his first time talking about his feelings to someone, he felt somewhat embarrassed. The random words that he spat out at the heat of the moment unexpectedly received a positive response.

”Sure, it's actually been a while since I've talked about it with someone.” She leaned against the side of the bed and began reminiscing the past.

”It's pretty old fashion to call it fate, but our families were opponents in the same industry. From the day we met to the day we went out on our first date to getting married and having a wonderful family, we knew that it would be a rough journey. When we gave up our family's inheritance to explore on our own and build our own business, many people called it stupid.”

She smiled blissfully as memories flowed through her mind, ”regardless of what people had said, we ignored it. We were happy and feeling good at where we were standing in life. There was a lot of drama from both sides of our family, but we made it on our own.”

”Those years must have been very joyful.” He commented as he caught the sweet smile on her face that didn't match with the lingering sorrow in her eyes.

”Very. Extremely grateful that I met him. His family members were like leeches, but he never complained once.” She wished that there were more she could complain about, but nothing mattered at this point because he was already gone.

”Ahh, family drama is always so tangled.”

”Yeah, but he was very optimistic. No matter what obstacles we had to face, he would smile and find the positive perspective out of everything. That was up until your grandfather imprisoned me and separated my family and me.”

”I'm really sorry.” He said guiltily as he saw through her heartbroken expression.

She sighed, ”again, you can't repay what your grandfather has done. I could tell that you are a good boy. You should leave this place and leave your grandfather one day because it is too toxic here.”

”I will figure out a way to help you escape.” He patted his chest and promised her.

”After many attempts to escape this place, your grandfather threatened me with my family's lives. I have to protect my daughter. So, unless your grandfather dies, I doubt there is another way out of this shit hole.” She looked at him when she said these words to vent out some negativity.

”But why would he want to keep you here at all costs? Just for some lab research? That's absurd.” Alexander didn't understand this point at all and decided to ask her about it.

”His greed.” She shortened her response as she knew that she could not disclose anything more related to the lab to him. Too many people had been and are still implicated. The less someone knows, the safer it is.

Hearing her response, he held back his inquiries because he also understood that there were boundaries that he could not force through. He believed that he could figure things out in his own way.