Waterbound Love - Chapter 30

Despite being extremely tired, Du Bai found herself unable to fall asleep, her heart inexplicably restless as she tossed and turned in bed.

“What’s wrong?” Yaoyao turned on the bedside lamp and looked at Du Bai. “Do you have a headache again? Or is it a fever?” She reached out to touch Du Bai’s forehead.

“No, I’m fine.” A moment of warmth crossed Du Bai’s heart as she gently gazed back, taking Yaoyao’s hand from her forehead and kissing it softly. She observed the blush that spread across Yaoyao’s cheeks. The scene was set for a moment of spring-like tenderness, but it was abruptly interrupted by the ring of a phone. Du Bai felt a momentary regret; she had forgotten to unplug the phone line that day.

Reluctantly, she got out of bed to answer the call.

“Hello, Du Bai, is your phone with Tinna?”

“Let me check.” Du Bai started searching for her mobile phone. Upon turning it on, the screen indeed wasn’t hers.

“No need to check further. Tinna just used your phone to call me screaming for help; it’s chaos over there. What’s going on?” Shen Yan couldn’t contain her urgency and shouted out loud.

Du Bai’s mind went blank for a moment, then snapped back to reality by Shen Yan’s shout. “You need to contact Chief An. My phone has a nationwide tracking system. Dig him up quickly. I’m going to ask Ji Feiling. Keep the phone on,” she said before hanging up. She then picked up Tinna’s phone to find Ji Feiling’s number.

“Hello?” Perhaps because it was one in the morning, Ji Feiling’s voice was deep and groggy.

“Ji Feiling, has Tinna come back?”

Hearing Du Bai’s voice, Ji Feiling instantly woke up, all traces of sleepiness gone. He glanced at the caller ID. “What’s going on? Why are you using Tinna’s phone?”

“Tinna and I swapped phones by mistake. She just used mine to call Shen Yan for help. Is she at home?” Du Bai felt frustrated; Tinna never stayed at the ancestral home, and calling there now would only add to the confusion.

“What, you guys swapped phones? How could-”

“That’s not what you should be focusing on, you-” Du Bai suddenly thought of something. “Do you know something?” Sensing his silence, a chill ran through her heart. “Ji Feiling, no matter what you’re planning, your wife is the one suffering today. Tell me where she is.”

“Every minute you delay, she’s in more danger. Tell me now.”

“Ji Feiling, she’s going to be your wife, and the Liu family won’t let you off if something happens to her.”

“Ji Feiling, are you seeking revenge? Well, you’ve succeeded. I can clearly tell you that I wish I were dead. You’ve made your enemies wish they were dead using your own wife.”

“Ji Feiling, I’m begging you, tell me where Tinna is. I, Du Bai, have never begged anyone in my life, but I’m begging you now.”

“Fine, very well, even if you don’t tell me, I will find out where she is. Rest assured, even if it takes all my life’s effort, I will make sure you lose everything.”

Having said that, Du Bai fiercely hung up the phone, but she overlooked the fact that there had been no sound from the other end throughout the call. On the other side, a lone phone lay silently on the ground, its owner long gone. Just like some matters, their origins remain elusive.

“Shen Yan, did you find it?”

“Yes, in an abandoned factory at the northern end of Guoyun Road. I’ll come to pick you up.”

“No need, just bring people over, I’ll drive there myself.” At this moment, Du Bai had truly calmed down.

“No, I’m coming to get you. You can’t drive.” Shen Yan knew what driving meant for Du Bai.

“Stop the nonsense, just go if I told you to.” After saying that, she hung up. She knew Shen Yan would comply.

“Hello, Grandpa Wei, this is Du Ruo, Du Zhangde’s granddaughter. I’m calling you in the middle of the night to ask for a favor.” The reason why Ji Feiling, Rumor, and their associates couldn’t find any details about Du Bai was not because Du Bai was omnipotent, but because her true details were hidden under Du Ruo’s name.

“Grandpa Wei, I want a tight blockade at the north end of Guoyun Road, not letting a single person through. Turn the street lights up to their brightest.” This city was under the Wei Family’s control, only they had the power to mobilize so many people.

“Young lady, such a big move might be more than Grandpa can handle.”

“Grandpa Wei has been like a god to Du Ruo since she was a child. Du Ruo knows that there’s nothing too challenging for you. Let’s say that Du Ruo owes you a favor, and whatever you ask of her in the future, she will lead the charge.” Du Bai knew, even though the friendship was there, without a solid promise, success was dubious; having seen much from childhood, she didn’t need to be taught to know these tactics.

“What are you talking about, silly girl, I’ll do my best.”

Du Bai knew she had succeeded. She should have exchanged pleasantries, but she really wasn’t in the mood and hung up directly, realizing she was still not suited for this circle.

Touching her forehead, she was already drenched in a cold sweat, too rushed to change clothes, she hopped on her Ducati and dashed out of the house.

Old friend, please help me. She caressed her former comrade, released the clutch, and plunged into the endless darkness of the night.

Tinna mustn’t be hurt.

Tinna, you can’t be hurt.

Tinna, please, don’t be hurt, okay?

Du Bai had never felt the road to be so endlessly long, long to the point where no speed seemed hopeful.

From a distance, she saw Shen Yan carrying Tinna, wrapped in clothes, with a glaring liquid seeping out. At that moment, Du Bai felt the world fall silent around her, everything seemed so distant, and then darkness engulfed her. When Du Bai hit the ground, she even wondered if this was it, if she was really dead. Maybe that would be better.

The white ceiling proclaimed the fact that Du Bai was alive. She really didn’t know when she would open her eyes to see something other than the pervasive white, or perhaps one day she’d want to see it but ultimately couldn’t.

“Awake?” Hearing that voice, Du Bai just looked at Lian Yinyun. If possible, she did not want to see her at that moment, “Call Shen Yan in.”

Lian Yinyun looked at Du Bai and ultimately said nothing, realizing it wasn’t the time, and reluctantly went out to call Shen Yan. When Shen Yan came in, Lian Yinyun was still in the room. Du Bai glanced at her, “Yunyun, I’d like some porridge. Could you buy some for me?” Ignoring Lian Yinyun’s pale face, Du Bai firmly looked at her.

When only the two of them were left in the hospital room, Du Bai took a long time before speaking, “How is she?”

Shen Yan smiled brightly, “She’s fine, all is well.” As if to reinforce her persuasion, she nodded to herself.

Du Bai quietly watched Shen Yan, closed her eyes, her hand under the bandage gripping tightly, as if her nails were digging into her palm, yet she felt no pain, “Shen Yan, do you know? When you lie, your smile looks very fake, and it makes people uncomfortable.”

“Don’t lie to me. Asking Lian Yinyun to come proves things are very bad, so bad they couldn’t be worse. I want to hear the truth. Tell me the truth.”

Shen Yan’s smile collapsed instantly as if drained of all strength, “What else can I say? It’s not good, really bad.” Even with all her might, Shen Yan couldn’t bring herself to speak further, closing her eyes, “She was pregnant, and the child is gone.”

“Tinna?” The voice sounded so foreign as if it wasn’t her own.

“It’s bad, she can’t accept the reality. Upon waking, she became hysterical, and even sedatives couldn’t stop her from crying, cursing, and pleading.”

The soft words seemed to torment Du Bai’s spirit, pushing a person so stubborn to plead in such pain. Du Bai struggled to breathe, as if hands were choking her, making it impossible to breathe.

“Huff, huff-” Du Bai, her hand wrapped in bandages, clutched her neck, her face contorted as she struggled to breathe. Her whole body began to convulse.

“Du Bai, what’s wrong with you?” Shen Yan ran to Du Bai’s bedside, shaking her. No, she couldn’t be in trouble; she couldn’t be. Shen Yan frantically pressed the alarm button, tearing it off in the process.

“Huff, huff.”

“Doctor, doctor, get the hell in here!” Shen Yan was truly panicking, desperately shouting.

Doctors and nurses rushed in, pushing Du Bai’s bed into the emergency room. Shen Yan collapsed to the floor in despair.

She saw Lian Yinyun standing despondently at the door of the ward.

Shen Yan closed her eyes, and when she opened them again, they were filled with an unusual determination, as if she had made a decision. “You can go, I’m letting you leave.”

“Huh?”

“If you still love Du Bai, go back to her. I won’t stop you anymore.” With that, she stood up and walked out. The setting sun cast a fragmented red glow on her, stretching her shadow long and lonely, yet so solitary.

How reluctant I am to let go, but I understand you. Only she can give you the hope to live, so I let her go, to be happy with you. As long as you are alive, that’s all I need, just to see you alive.

I will no longer use love to hurt you. Now, my love will be humble, humble enough that simply seeing you alive brings me immense joy.

Tears can be red, shattering on the ground, declaring an irreparable pain. This pain can only be felt by its bearer, to others it’s merely a fleeting cloud. Like those tears, trampled by anxious footsteps, leaving behind a faint ring of moisture that is hard to find unless you look closely.

Yaoyao, who hurried to the scene, felt a silent pain upon seeing Lian Yinyun in the ward. She had fantasized about their meeting so many times, yet none had ever been like this; it seemed all her efforts were in vain, always being left out. And her, she needed to do nothing to already be in Du Bai’s heart.

“Where did Du Bai go?” Yaoyao, hiding all her emotions, asked Lian Yinyun cautiously. Some people, trapped by emotions, were no longer as clear-hearted as before. Whether Du Bai knew and would be hurt and upset was uncertain.

Lian Yinyun sized up the girl in front of her, a glint in her eyes, “Shen Yan took her out.” That wasn’t exactly a lie.

“Oh.” Yaoyao nodded and sat on the bed, showing no intention of leaving.

“Let’s go sit outside,” Lian Yinyun suggested, seeing that Yaoyao wasn’t going to speak. Saying so, she walked out without waiting for a response, now understanding that many things had to be fought for by oneself.

They entered a nearby drink shop.

“Orange juice, please. What will you have?” Lian Yinyun asked Yaoyao.

A bitter smile crossed Yaoyao’s face. Was the orange juice prepared for her every morning related to this girl? “Fruit milk.”

The setting sun filtered through the window, casting an intoxicating red. This red was so beautiful, it was mesmerizing and tear-inducing.

That evening, the heartbroken wouldn’t be alone.