Chapter 108 - Betrayal (1/2)
Warning: This chapter will include some violence and gritty details for fictitious purposes.
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Lin Anni brewed some hot tea as Qian Meigui waited at the kitchen table, looking out the window as she tucked a shawl over her, protecting herself from the cold chill. She sent Song Sheng a message before her aunt returned to the table.
Lin Anni poured two cups of Jasmine tea in front of her, passing it along. Qian Meigui took it, blowing the smoke away to drink it. She looked at the tea leaves on the bottom of the cup, and she recalled a time when she was younger, her mother taught her how to read dry tea leaves. But she had forgotten what any of them meant. Her mother told her she had learned from her time studying medicine abroad in Europe.
Lin Anni sat across her; her face grave and weary. Qian Meigui watched her cautiously, waiting. Her aunt took a deep breath, drinking some of the tea, Qian Meigui also drank it.
”That man,” Lin Anni began, though she appeared lost in thought. ”Is my ex-husband,” she said.
Qian Meigui's eye widened in surprise; her heart nearly stopped. But she waited for her to continue.
”My sister was someone bright, energetic, eager, and intelligent; we both were excited to learn and study biology, to advance medicine and technology,” she paused, circling her the edges of the teacup with her finger. ”We met Song Rui when we began to work in the field. He was intelligent and resourceful, but an ambitious man. He invested in many people, made millions of yuan as a result. But out of all his pupils, Aiguo was the one whose studies would bring his company further in the industry. He pressured her to advance the research knowing it was dangerous, but Song Rui assured her that no harm would come. He didn't expect...”
Qian Meigui's eyes remained wide, startled. ”He didn't expect that those who would harm her would be someone close to them,” she finished.
Lin Anni smiled, ”precisely,” she responded.
Qian Meigui's head began to feel heavy, dizzy, different than the feeling of alcohol. Her vision blurred, and she tried hard to keep her consciousness. She recalled the tea leaves were different, the taste, bitter.
Lin Anni appeared to be sorry in her own twisted way. ”Perhaps, I should be thankful that Song Rui erased your name,” Qian Meigui remembered hearing her say before her head fell on the table, her consciousness fading.
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Song Sheng was at the mansion with Song Ren and Su Feng and the others when he received a message from Qian Meigui: Mayday.
It was only one word, but his heart nearly stopped.
The other night, they talked about codes to use to alarm him whether she was safe, suspecting of something, or in danger. Mayday asked for help because something was wrong. He waited until she sent him a message from the location of the house she was staying at. Since he received it, both Su Feng and Song Jun worked on their computers, tracking the location while Song Sheng was speaking to Rong Ming over the phone. He had to pay millions for a helicopter and some men, but Song Sheng did not care; he spent the money without blinking at the numbers.
He had been preparing for this moment for weeks, and though he had seen her less than 48 hours ago, he was still worried.
”We received a location,” said Su Feng. Song Sheng went over to Su Feng leaning over Song Jun's shoulder where his younger brother spoke to him, ”I sent a drone over to that location,” he said while using a remote to drive it from his screen. Song Sheng was grateful for him, though puzzled by how quick and advanced he was with technology. ”I'll update you from here,” Song Jun said to him. ”You should go now,” he finished.
Song Sheng nodded. He dressed up in black military uniform, and Song Ren kissed Su Feng, wearing the same suit with her long black hair tied up. She followed him towards the helicopter that waited on their massive green front yard. He wouldn't allow Song Ren to go with him, but she insisted, and he felt like her fierceness was useful.
Rong Ming was driving the helicopter when he saw Song Sheng and Song Ren come in. They then left to the unknown.
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Qian Meigui was dreaming, but her dreams turned to nightmares.
She began to remember the days of the past, the ones she did not forget, but kept locked in her mind to save it for another day, and perhaps that day was today.
In her unconscious memories, she recalled a time when she was at home reading a book on true crime in her father's study room. The door parted slightly, and it was cold, and there was a fire burning at the fireplace in the living room, warming her parents. Qian Meigui wore a cream-coloured skirt with a red turtle-neck sweater. She glanced through the opened door.
She saw her mother in the living room speaking over the phone while drinking a cup of whiskey, or something else she did not know, most liquors looked the same to her.
But what startled her was when she heard glass shatter and a loud thunder erupt in the room. It sounded like thunder because it rang in her ears with such ferocity. Her heart pounded and thumped, so she walked towards the living room where she found her father lying on the ground surrounded by a pool of blood. Her mother was kneeling over him, frightened and pale. She looked over at Qian Meigui; Qian Aiguo knelt eye-widened in shock with blood staining the strands of her brown hair; blood splattered on her face like a painting.