Until she took a ride back to Taipei City, Qi Feifei was still shaken.
Just moments ago on that dark mountain road, it was really dangerous. She realized someone was following her and kept calling Xin Zhihuan, but for some reason, he didn’t answer the phone.
She panicked and was about to dial 110 to seek help from the police when the person suddenly quickened their pace. Hearing footsteps like a ghost following closely behind, she also became frantic and hurriedly started running.
One running, one chasing. In just a moment, she was tightly embraced from behind by that person, a strong smell of alcohol assaulting her.
“Let go of me! Let go of me!” she screamed, her terrified voice echoing through the mountains.
“You’re so beautiful…” the person’s tongue licked her neck like a snake, sliding stickily over her delicate skin.
She got goosebumps all over, struggling even more violently. Finally pushing him away, she stumbled forward in panic, only to trip and fall, breaking her heel, spraining her ankle, and scraping her knees badly.
“Help! Someone help me!”
She cried out hoarsely, feeling intense despair. In such a vast night, in such a desolate mountain area, she was in danger all alone. Who would come to save her? Who could save her?
Zhihuan, where are you? Why don’t you answer the phone? Why?
She called out bitterly in her heart, calling for a man who she knew couldn’t make it in time to save her. When she needed him, why wasn’t he there?
That person grabbed her again, this time with his hands wandering all over her body, forcibly tearing her skirt. She bit his arm hard, very hard, causing him to cry out in pain.
“Bitch! Slut!” he cursed roughly.
In the darkness, his eyes seemed to glow red, like those of a beast, sinister and cruel.
She was so scared that she felt paralyzed, but no, she had to escape. No matter what, she couldn’t give up. She stumbled to her feet, clutching her leg, dragging herself forward with a limping gait toward the endless road ahead.
He was chasing behind, so close, pressing so tightly. Just when she thought she was about to be caught and couldn’t escape the beast’s clutches, a beam of glaring headlights suddenly shone ahead.
“Help! Help me!” she waved frantically at the car. Inside was a young couple who stopped, rolled down the window, and saw her in a mess, startled.
“Miss, what happened to you?”
“Someone…someone is trying to grab me…” she trembled, unable to speak clearly.
Seeing her in such a critical situation, the man quickly opened the back door and let her in. The man chasing her saw this and fled, hiding in the nearby woods.
Just like that, she escaped a disaster. Fortunately, she met this kind couple who kindly drove her back to the city. Otherwise, she might have still been trapped on that dreadful mountain, in the clutches of that strange man’s lustful hands.
“Thank you.” She thanked the couple who rescued her.
“Are you alright? Do you really not need us to take you to the hospital?” the girl in the passenger seat asked.
“No, it’s just a small injury.” She forced a smile. “My shop is just ahead. Please drop me at the corner, I’ll go in through the back door. Next time, please visit my restaurant, and I’ll treat you well.”
“‘New York Ex’? That’s your restaurant?” The young couple was surprised. “We’ve always wanted to try that place!”
“Yes, you’re welcome to come.” She sincerely invited them.
“Are you sure you can go in alone? Or should I help you?”
“No need, I can manage on my own.”
Qi Feifei got out of the car, repeatedly thanking the two who had helped her, standing in place and watching them leave.
Only after the car’s shadow disappeared did she look down at herself: her clothes were in disarray, her skirt was torn, and her knees and ankle were injured.
What a mess! This chapter was taken from g.com without permission.
She tugged her lips in self-mockery. This is why she decided to come to the shop first to change and tidy up. She was afraid that going back like this would scare Xin Zhihuan. She didn’t want him to worry too much.
She hobbled to the back entrance of the restaurant, slowly making her way inside and down the hallway past the kitchen.
A waitress who was about to serve a dish saw her and was shocked. “Boss! What happened to you? How did you end up like this?”
She pressed her index finger to her lips, signaling for silence, not wanting the waitress to make a fuss. “I just fell and got hurt. Can you ask the manager to come to my office in a bit and bring the first aid kit?”
“Okay, I’ll go get the manager right away!”
The waitress hurried off, while she quietly made her way to her office, turned on the light, and collapsed onto the sofa.
Her body was still trembling uncontrollably. She lifted the glass teapot on the table, intending to pour herself a cup of water, but she didn’t even have the strength for that. The teapot tipped over, spilling the tea.
She stared at it, momentarily lost, her left hand moving to her lips as she subconsciously bit her thumb. After a while, she curled up on the sofa, her entire body shaking like a frightened rabbit.
There was a knock on the door.
Was it the manager?
“Come in,” she called weakly.
But it was Xin Zhihuan who rushed in, looking anxious. “I heard you got hurt—Feifei, what happened?”
Why was it him?
“Why…are you here?” Qi Feifei was stunned, lifting her pale face to look at him blankly.
“I brought a friend here for dinner,” he explained offhandedly. His eyes fell on her disheveled state, her bruised and scraped bare knees, and he was almost at a loss for words. “What happened? Who did this to you?”
He cried out in anguish, kneeling before her and clasping her hands.
Her immediate reaction was to pull her hands away, not wanting him to see her so disheveled and miserable, but he held on tightly, and she eventually gave in, accepting his comfort.
“What happened? Weren’t you meeting with Fang Jiajun tonight? Did he do this?” At this point, a storm of gray clouds gathered in his deep eyes.
She shook her head. “It wasn’t him.”
“Then who? Who did this to you? You’re hurt, your skirt is torn, could it be—” His face turned pale. “Did you encounter a bad person?”
She didn’t answer, just stared at him.
“Feifei, can you talk to me? I’m really worried,” he said, his voice full of anxiety, almost desperate.
“Why didn’t you answer the phone?” she asked him.
“What?” He was taken aback.
“I called you several times. Why didn’t you answer?”
“I left my phone in the office.”
Why was he always not there when she needed him? Hadn’t he said that if she were drowning, he would save her?
“Did you call me?” he asked, his face full of remorse. “When I realized I didn’t have my phone, I borrowed the restaurant’s phone to call you, but you didn’t answer.”
That was because she had lost her phone; it had been knocked away by that beast of a man, and in her rush to escape, she couldn’t worry about any of her belongings.
Did he know that at that time, she was calling his name in her heart? In her most frightened, most panicked moment, how she wished she could see him, or at least hear his voice!
She missed him so much, did he know that?
Tears suddenly flooded her eyes. She had sworn not to cry, so why was she being weak again?
She hated herself for it.
“Feifei, are you…are you scared?” He saw the tears shimmering in her eyes, panicking as he caressed her cheek. “Don’t be afraid, it’s over now. You’re fine, you’re safe.”
Liar! She had never been fine, never truly felt safe. She was always anxious, always afraid, fearing that one day the cruel hands of fate would snatch away everything she had.
“Feifei, don’t be like this. You’re scaring me. Tell me what happened, okay? Please don’t cry.”
She bit her lip in silence, struggling to hold back her sobs.
She couldn’t cry. She had already decided not to cry…
“Feifei!” Xin Zhihuan cupped her face, about to say something when a sweet female voice suddenly sounded from the doorway.
“Sean, are you here? Why did you leave me alone? I’m so bored!”
Both of them were startled and turned to look at the newcomer.
“Jennifer!” Xin Zhihuan exclaimed, glancing at her, then at Feifei, suddenly feeling that the situation was dire.
“Is this the wife you wanted to divorce but couldn’t?” Jennifer, unaware of the tension, walked over with a smile. “Hi, I’m Jennifer, Sean’s colleague from New York.”
Qi Feifei stared at her.
Deep red hair and green eyes, just like the type he had said always captivated him.
They had slept together, hadn’t they? Tonight, he had been so distracted by this sexy woman that he had even forgotten his phone.
So that’s how it was.
Qi Feifei’s heart sank, her tear-filled eyes turning cold.
She took a deep breath discreetly, placed her feet on the ground, stood up straight, and with the utmost pride and dignity, opened her mouth to speak in perfect English—
“Hello, I’m Feva, the owner of this restaurant.”
“What’s going on? Why did you urgently call me out here? What happened?”
It was midnight, and Wang Qixuan had received an urgent call from his friend, prompting him to come as quickly as possible. Xin Zhihuan had arranged to meet him at a quiet little bar, clearly wanting to have a serious talk.
“Take a seat,” Xin Zhihuan, who was sitting on a corner sofa, greeted him, raising a whiskey bottle that was already a quarter empty. He poured Wang Qixuan a drink and added some ice. “Here, have a drink first.”
Wang Qixuan took the glass, and the two men clinked glasses in silent understanding.