Chapter 39: The Promise Across Two Worlds

Gu Nian Tang’s birth rekindled Gu Qiuhang’s will to live.

By the time the little boy was around three years old, his features had already become distinct. He was the spitting image of Tang Xi.

Soft black hair, a small face, and a pair of large dark eyes with slightly upturned corners. When he widened them, he looked just like a cat.

His lips and ears were identical to Tang Xi’s as well, those familiar features that Gu Qiuhang knew and loved best, the ones he had kissed countless times.

Only his nose resembled Gu Qiuhang’s.

The bridge was high and straight, making his features appear more defined. But Gu Qiuhang disliked it. He wished the nose had looked like Tang Xi’s too.

Although the child looked very much like Tang Xi, his temperament was nothing alike. Gu Qiuhang spoiled him outrageously.

He treated him like a precious treasure, afraid he would fall if held in his hands, afraid he would melt if kept in his mouth. Whenever he went out, he brought him along.

Nannies and bodyguards constantly surrounded the boy, several people watching him at all times to ensure nothing happened.

Eventually, Su Bei could no longer bear to watch.

While Gu Qiuhang was away on a business trip, he forcefully brought Gu Nian Tang to the Su family home.

He had never wanted to interfere too much in Gu Qiuhang’s affairs, but Gu Nian Tang was Tang Xi’s child too. He could not ignore him.

If Gu Qiuhang continued raising him this way, the boy would be ruined.

Su Bei was extremely strict with him.

Strangely enough, Gu Nian Tang adored him.

Children seemed to possess a natural superpower. Their little radars could accurately detect who genuinely loved them and who was merely going through the motions.

He liked both Su Bei and Zhang Xiaojing very much.

This made Gu Qiuhang furious.

Su Bei and Zhang Xiaojing officially got together after Tang Xi’s death.

On the day Tang Xi died, Zhang Xiaojing and Su Bei had still been in the middle of a quarrel.

The murderer had been caught on the spot.

It was Wang Pangzi, Gu Donghang’s biological father.

After Gu Donghang was imprisoned, Tong Yuemei was also sentenced for financial crimes. However, she had somehow managed to protect Wang Pangzi from being implicated.

Afraid that Gu Qiuhang would seek revenge, Wang Pangzi hid outside the city for a long time.

Only after things had calmed down and most people had lowered their guard did he secretly return.

He hated Gu Qiuhang.

He hated him for sending Gu Donghang and Tong Yuemei to prison.

He hated him for destroying his life.

He had endured humiliation and lived like a fugitive for one purpose only, to take revenge.

What he never expected was that he had failed to hurt Gu Qiuhang and had instead killed Tang Xi.

At first, he felt regret and anger.

But when he saw Gu Qiuhang’s face twisted with unbearable pain, he suddenly realized that he had accidentally killed the right person.

Gu Qiuhang had lost the love of his life.

He would never be happy again.

That was exactly how he should suffer.

If Gu Qiuhang simply died, wouldn’t that be letting him off too easily?

Wang Pangzi was practically grateful to Tang Xi.

His laughter was wild and ecstatic.

He had no intention of escaping.

He wanted to watch Gu Qiuhang descend into hell with his own eyes.

The pleasure and satisfaction filled him with euphoria.

Su Bei only received the news the next day.

He rushed to the hospital with Zhang Xiaojing.

There, inside the hospital room, they found a Gu Qiuhang who was barely recognizable as human.

The hospital belonged to the Gu family.

Gu Qiuhang was desperately preventing the staff from taking Tang Xi’s body to the morgue.

His eyes were bloodshot, and his expression bordered on madness.

He kept muttering and shouting:

“As long as you try harder, he’ll come back! He’s such a good boy. Nothing will happen to him…”

Then he fell to his knees.

For the first time in his life, he looked utterly vulnerable.

“I’m begging you. Please save him. You can do it. He’s not dead yet. Feel him. He’s only cold. That’s why his hands are so cold…”

Several young nurses had already hidden themselves nearby, crying silently.

None of them dared make a sound.

They simply covered their mouths and wiped away tears.

Su Bei had still been clinging to a sliver of hope.

But the moment he saw Gu Qiuhang, that hope shattered.

His mind went blank.

His knees nearly gave out beneath him.

Only Zhang Xiaojing’s support kept him standing.

For a moment, he thought his eyes were deceiving him.

Then he looked at Zhang Xiaojing and saw tears streaming uncontrollably down his face.

In Su Bei’s ears echoed a sentence Zhang Xiaojing had once spoken:

“It’s not the thief you should fear, it’s the thief who’s constantly thinking about stealing.”

A prophecy fulfilled.

This was the last time Su Bei saw Tang Xi.

He lay quietly on the hospital bed, just as he always had.

His expression was peaceful.

Because of the blood loss, his complexion was even paler than usual, making his dark hair and brows stand out more starkly.

Only his lips had lost their usual rosy color.

There wasn’t a trace of blood left in them.

They were a dull, lifeless white.

Suppressing his grief, Su Bei stepped forward and embraced Gu Qiuhang.

Gu Qiuhang, consumed by madness and rage, kicked and struck him until bruises bloomed across his body.

Meanwhile, Zhang Xiaojing worked with the staff to arrange Tang Xi’s remains.

Then he ran around handling every procedure and formality while enduring his own heartbreak.

Neither of them dared sleep.

They stayed with Gu Qiuhang day and night for several days.

Only after Tang Xi’s funeral had been completed did they finally return home.

It was also on that day that Zhang Xiaojing finally let go of the burden in his heart.

Compared to life and death, all the hardships of life seemed insignificant.

The insecurities and obstacles he had been unable to overcome for so long suddenly felt as light as clouds.

The only thing that mattered was that they were still alive.

That they still had each other.

They held one another tightly, as if only by doing so could they confirm they were truly alive.

Then they kissed desperately, tears running down their faces.

At that moment, they became one.

No one would ever separate them again.

They no longer wanted to waste a single second.

They did not want the day of parting to arrive, leaving behind only regret and pain.

Everything that Gu Qiuhang and Tang Xi had never had the chance to do, they wanted to do on their behalf.

They married soon afterward.

When they got married, Gu Qiuhang did not attend.

Despite years of conflict between them, Su Bei put aside all resentment.

Together with Zhang Xiaojing, he took turns watching over Gu Qiuhang.

They were terrified he might take his own life.

Most of the time, Gu Qiuhang remained drunk and unconscious.

Otherwise, he wandered around clutching someone and calling them Tang Xi.

Or he harmed himself.

He hated himself.

Hated himself for failing to protect Tang Xi.

This state continued until Gu Nian Tang was born.

That day, it snowed heavily.

The New Year had already passed. It was early spring, the season when warmth had only just begun to return.

Snow should not have fallen at all.

Yet that day, a heavy snowfall arrived.

Gu Qiuhang dressed himself carefully.

He had become frighteningly thin.

For nearly a year, he had not bought any new clothes.

He wore the cashmere coat he had bought with Tang Xi the previous year.

It had been a matching couple’s outfit.

Back then, it had fit perfectly.

Now it hung loosely on his skeletal frame.

Holding the baby against his chest, tears streamed down his face.

He said everything with Tang Xi had begun with a snowfall.

Surely this snow was a signal from Tang Xi in heaven, watching over them.

Su Bei and Zhang Xiaojing had worried that Gu Qiuhang’s unstable emotions might harm the child.

Now it seemed their fears had been unnecessary.

Gu Qiuhang stood up again.

He returned to the Gu Corporation, which he had abandoned for over a year.

Using his characteristic decisiveness and strength, he quickly restored the company to order.

He rarely painted anymore.

Yet whenever he picked up a brush, he always found himself drawing Tang Xi.

Sometimes he stared at that painting…

A young man.

A cat.

Soap bubbles.

It had once been so beautiful and romantic, filled with a youth’s limitless imagination.

Who could have imagined it would become nothing more than a shattered dream?

He hated the version of himself who had painted it.

As though by painting that bubble, he had cursed himself.

He became irrationally superstitious.

He started believing in things he once dismissed.

Ghosts.

Gods.

The supernatural.

Only then could he convince himself that somewhere in another world, Tang Xi was still waiting for him.

His hope was tiny and humble.

Yet he had no choice but to continue living.

Living had already become an incredibly difficult thing for him.

His life was simple.

Work hard.

Love Gu Nian Tang.

He wanted to leave his son the very best.

He wanted to give him the love of two fathers through the body of one father.

He wanted him to know there was another person in this world who loved him deeply.

But he was too busy.

The time he spent with Gu Nian Tang was limited.

A large part of the boy’s childhood was spent with Su Bei and Zhang Xiaojing.

Because of him, the couple delayed having children of their own for many years.

Yet Gu Nian Tang was still a child.

He was curious.

Why did other children have two fathers, two mothers, or a father and a mother, while he only had one father?

Such innocent questions often broke Gu Qiuhang’s heart.

When he was younger, he did not understand these things.

Gu Qiuhang hid his grief well.

He simply told him that he would explain his little father’s story when he was older.

Only once did things change.

On Gu Nian Tang’s fourth birthday, Gu Qiuhang drank too much.

When the child asked the question again, Gu Qiuhang burst into tears.

Terrified, Gu Nian Tang stood on tiptoe.

With his chubby little hands, he wiped away his father’s tears.

Then he kissed his cheek with his tiny pink lips.

But when Gu Qiuhang looked at that face—so astonishingly similar to Tang Xi’s, he cried even harder.

His eyes were red.

Holding the child tightly, he choked out:

“Because your little father was too wonderful. Nobody could dislike him. Even God loved him. So God brought him to heaven a little earlier. He’s there now, watching over us.”

Gu Nian Tang snuggled against his chest.

At four years old, he was already able to feel the overwhelming sadness and despair surrounding him.

In his childish voice, he said:

“Daddy, don’t cry anymore. Having you is enough. It doesn’t matter if I don’t have a little father. Compared to other kids, I don’t lack anything. I even have a second daddy and a third daddy.”

Since Zhang Xiaojing was two years older than Su Bei, he was the second daddy, while Su Bei was the third.

To be honest, Gu Nian Tang liked his second daddy the most.

His second daddy was gentler and more patient.

Several times, after waking from sleep, he accidentally pushed open their bedroom door and caught his second and third daddies “fighting” in bed.

Whenever that happened, the third daddy would become very fierce.

But the second daddy would always patiently accompany him, tell him stories, and help him fall asleep.

And afterward, the third daddy’s expression would remain terrible for days.

The Gu Corporation flourished.

Gu Qiuhang invested heavily in internet technology, gaming, and entertainment industries.

Not only did the company establish itself firmly in these fields, but it also became one of the industry leaders.

When Gu Nian Tang turned ten, Su Bei and Zhang Xiaojing finally had a daughter.

Strangely enough, the moment little Su Wei was born, Gu Nian Tang seemed to grow up overnight.

He treasured her like his own sister.

Whenever Zhang Xiaojing and Su Bei joked about it, they would say they were lucky to have waited so long to have a child.

They had gained a free babysitter.

Gu Qiuhang never sought another partner.

Handsome and wealthy though he was, he remained distant and cold.

Aside from charity work, he lived frugally despite possessing immense wealth.

Countless outstanding men and women appeared around him over the years.

None ever earned a second glance.

He lived like an ascetic.

Disciplined to a frightening degree.

Gu Nian Tang grew into an exceptional young man.

His appearance resembled Tang Xi’s.

His personality resembled Gu Qiuhang’s.

Strong.

Cold.

Capable.

Only in front of family would he reveal a gentle smile, carrying traces of Tang Xi’s warmth and kindness.

After Gu Nian Tang graduated from university, Gu Qiuhang quickly handed over all his businesses.

Gu Qiuhang did not live very long afterward.

His responsibilities had finally been fulfilled.

Once he relaxed, a serious illness struck.

The illness itself was not fatal.

But no doctor could save a patient who had completely abandoned the desire to live.

When he opened his eyes again, he had returned to reality.

There was no longer any Gu Qiuhang.

He was Wei Chuhan.

Like a dream.

He could not decide whether to laugh or cry.

The most intense emotions of his life had all been spent in that dream.

Wei Chuhan had once dreamed of becoming a painter.

For the first twenty-six years of his life, he pursued that dream relentlessly.

He had held a paintbrush since childhood.

Step by step, through his own efforts, he climbed toward the position he admired most.

He never relied on his family’s wealth.

Growing up in a business family, he had long witnessed the deception and schemes of the corporate world.

Yet he naïvely believed art was the only sacred place left in existence.

His soul seemed divided into two halves.

One half was realistic and ruthless.

The other was idealistic and innocent.

The two coexisted peacefully.

He always knew which side to use.

Until he encountered the dark side of the art world.

His innocent half was torn apart without mercy.

Perhaps the higher one is lifted, the harder one falls.

His dreams and ideals were smashed before his eyes.

The impact felt like a loud slap across his face.

It shattered twenty years of dedication and belief.

Reality and idealism blended together, scarred and broken beyond recognition.

Unable to accept it, he left the oil painting world in anger.

Instead, he turned to commercial comics.

His comics were sharp, dark, and full of criticism toward society.

Unexpectedly, they became a sensation.

Whether because of the work itself or because of his special identity, he never knew.

Wei Chuhan found it absurd.

Everything about his life felt like a joke.

He thought there was nothing left he wanted.

The imbalance in his heart filled him with thorns.

He even refused his father’s request to take over the Wei Corporation.

The old man became so angry he fell seriously ill.

Wei Chuhan rebelled with deliberate malice.

It was as though he wanted to destroy every trace of the obedience and reverence he had once possessed.

At first, he entered the mission worlds merely to seek inspiration for his comics.

After all, inspiration was something every creator desperately needed.

Unexpectedly, he found the one thing he wanted most in life.

And suddenly, his existence had meaning again.

After returning, he agreed to inherit the Wei Corporation.

He thought of Gu Nian Tang.

‘Such a good child. Quietly shouldering the entire Gu Corporation alone and fulfilling his father’s wishes.’

Compared to him, Wei Chuhan felt ashamed.

He also thought of that person from the dream.

That person had been so beautiful.

Gentle.

Considerate.

Almost completely selfless.

He had loved him wholeheartedly.

He had endured embarrassment and vulnerability to accommodate him.

He had brought joy and hope into an otherwise bleak life.

Wei Chuhan felt unworthy of him.

He wanted to become better.

Better and better still.

So that when he finally found him, he could give him the best of everything.

He firmly believed that person existed somewhere in this world.

He had never considered any other possibility.

He was willing to spend an entire lifetime searching through a sea of people for him.

To others, Wei Chuhan was heaven’s favored son.

People often said he was more handsome than celebrity idols and far wealthier than most people could dream of being.

Back then, he had dismissed such remarks.

Some things could not be measured by worldly standards.

He considered such people shallow.

Now, however, he felt genuinely fortunate.

And he believed he should use that fortune to become stronger and better.

Perhaps he had become more worldly.

Perhaps he had simply grown up.

He could not tell.

But he was willing to change for that person.

And perhaps becoming different was not such a bad thing.

Perhaps it was simply becoming better.

Wei Chuhan stared at He Ting without blinking.

Lost between past and present.

Between reality and illusion.

Unable to escape.

He wanted to give himself completely.

Without reservation.

As long as he was truly him.

The sky gradually darkened.

He Ting slowly raised an arm and stretched lazily, exposing a narrow strip of pale waist.

The faint effects of alcohol had not fully faded.

Rubbing his forehead, he sat in confusion for a moment before realizing there was another person breathing inside the quiet car.

Startled, he turned his head.

He met Wei Chuhan’s bright eyes.

The moment their gazes connected, those eyes darkened again.

Finally waking up, He Ting stared at him.

“Wei Chuhan, why didn’t you wake me up?”

For an instant, Wei Chuhan almost heard another voice.

“Gu Qiuhang, what are you doing?”

His heart pounded wildly.

“I didn’t have anything to do,” he said.

“Should I wait and drive you back afterward?”

He Ting smiled.

“No need. We might end up working all night. If it gets too late, I’ll just stay here.”

As he spoke, he opened the car door.

Wei Chuhan grabbed his arm.

This old warehouse hardly looked comfortable.

Its safety was even more questionable.

Looking back at him, He Ting smiled reassuringly.

“When I have time, I’ll treat you to dinner.”

Wei Chuhan laughed helplessly.

“Are you sure there won’t be any problems?”

He Ting nodded.

“I’ll be fine.”

He knocked on the warehouse door.

The door opened.

A beam of light spilled out and landed on him.

A man poked his head out, grabbed He Ting by the arm, and pulled him inside.

The door slammed shut again.

Wei Chuhan frowned.

Something about it made him uneasy.

He sat silently in the car, staring at the warehouse door that separated him from He Ting.

Just as he was trying to think of an excuse to knock on the door, a phone began vibrating.

After searching around, he found a phone wedged between the passenger seat cushions.

It was He Ting’s.

The corners of Wei Chuhan’s lips curved upward.

Talk about perfect timing.

Taking the phone, he got out of the car and headed toward the warehouse.

A blond young man opened the door.

“Who are you looking for?”

“He Ting.”

Rolling the name on his tongue, Wei Chuhan asked,

“Is he here?”

The blond man raised an eyebrow.

Turning around, he shouted,

“Tingting! Someone’s here for you!”

Then he looked back.

“Come in and wait. He’s changing clothes.”

Wei Chuhan thanked him and stepped inside.

Only then did he realize the warehouse had been divided into several sections.

The outermost area appeared to be a makeshift photography studio.

Nearby sat a simple mattress piled with clothes.

It was probably where He Ting slept when he stayed overnight.

He Ting emerged soon afterward.

He had changed into a khaki jacket and ripped jeans.

Through the tears in the denim, patches of pale skin showed beneath the lights.

The jeans fit perfectly, emphasizing his long slender legs.

His hair had been styled.

His bangs were swept back, exposing a smooth forehead.

A hint of red had been applied to his lips, muting their natural pink color.

Against his snowy skin, he looked almost ethereal.

Like an elf.

Beautiful and unreal.

Wei Chuhan stared.

His gaze traveled slowly across He Ting’s body.

Completely unaware, He Ting walked over.

“Wei Chuhan? You still haven’t left?”

Before Wei Chuhan could answer, Fei Yang suddenly exploded:

“Holy shit! No wonder you looked familiar! You’re President Wei!”

Wei Chuhan smiled politely and extended a hand.

“Wei Chuhan.”

Fei Yang hurriedly wiped his hand on his pants before shaking it enthusiastically.

“I’m Fei Yang. I’m a huge fan of your comics.”

“Thank you.”

Wei Chuhan smiled.

Then he turned to He Ting and handed over the phone.

“You forgot this.”

Noticing He Ting’s embarrassment, he added teasingly,

“Are you always this careless?”

The tone and look in his eyes carried an intimacy that was difficult to describe.

He Ting’s ears reddened.

“You’ve helped me three times in one day. I feel really bad about it.”

Wei Chuhan smiled.

“He Ting. Would you like to have dinner with me next Friday?”

After thinking for a moment, He Ting shook his head.

Next Friday was the day he would enter the mission world again.

“I can’t. Could we do it earlier or later? I’ll be busy next Friday and for a few days afterward.”

The darkness in Wei Chuhan’s eyes deepened.

Then he nodded.

“Then I’ll wait until you come back.”

It was only a small test.

Yet it filled him with quiet joy.

The corners of his lips lifted unconsciously.

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