Song Qingxian gasped desperately for air.
She had been reborn once again.
The terror from being underwater had not yet faded. Even though she had revived, the overwhelming despair of death still clung to her like an inescapable nightmare, wrapping tightly around her.
Sitting on the bed with her knees hugged to her chest, Song Qingxian still felt the bone piercing coldness from the river lingering around her body. Tears streamed endlessly down her face. Those ten plus minutes of waiting for death underwater would probably become a lifelong shadow she could never escape from.
About an hour later, warmth finally began to return to her icy hands and feet.
So merely fear alone was enough to leave someone frozen and mentally blank.
Song Qingxian looked around the room.
It was a terribly shabby and dim little motel without even a window.
Because no identification was required here and the location was remote with no surveillance cameras, she had managed to avoid Lu Nanzhan’s carpet search across Nanchuan City.
This time, the point at which she had been reborn was even earlier.
Earlier she had joined forces with Lu Chiyan to plant bombs and scheme against Lu Nanzhan.
This time, she would not foolishly help Lu Chiyan again.
In the novel, Lu Chiyan was the true protagonist, while she and Lu Nanzhan were merely cannon fodder sacrificed to highlight the protagonist’s brilliance.
But in Song Qingxian’s own world, she herself was the protagonist of her life.
She refused to continue living for others only to end up erased from existence in the end.
Song Qingxian hesitated.
Now that she has been reborn, should she still go back to Lu Nanzhan?
If she never saw him again, would she stop dying?
She feared seeing that gloomy, ruthless face of his, a face that carried the aura of death itself.
The room was dark and damp, not a trace of sunlight visible. She could not even tell whether it was day or night outside.
A moldy stench filled the air. It was hard to imagine that the Song Qingxian in the novel had hidden here for half a month.
Song Qingxian got off the bed and turned on her phone. After checking the time, she saw that it was eleven at night.
Then she noticed another phone sitting on the table, an old fashioned mobile phone only capable of making calls.
She immediately realized something was wrong.
The reason this phone had not been turned on was probably to avoid being tracked and discovered by Lu Nanzhan.
She was doomed.
Song Qingxian realized she might have caused a huge disaster. Trembling, she hurriedly tried to shut off the phone, but because she was too nervous, she accidentally dropped it onto the floor.
Her heart raced wildly as she picked it up and quickly powered it off.
Thankfully, it was already midnight. She had only turned it on briefly, so hopefully she had not been discovered.
At the same time, at Nanshan.
Inside the villa’s study, Lu Nanzhan sat in a large executive chair. The lighting was dim, revealing only half of his handsome features.
Butler Zhou stood silently nearby.
It had already been three days.
Lu Nanzhan had not slept once in those three days.
The elegant and noble Young Master Lu was no longer as graceful and refined as before. His hair was messy, dark circles filled his eyes, stubble covered his sharp jawline, and his eyes were bloodshot.
“Sir, why don’t you rest for a while?” Butler Zhou finally gathered the courage to speak.
Lu Nanzhan’s voice was terribly hoarse. “Any news?”
Butler Zhou gently shook his head. “Sir, please get some rest first. I’ll keep watch for you.”
Lu Nanzhan’s eyes remained dark and sharp as he swept everything off the desk with a wave of his hand.
“A bunch of useless trash. It’s been half a month and you still can’t find her. If you still fail, I’ll throw all of you to Shuangye.”
Butler Zhou was so frightened he did not even dare breathe loudly.
He knew very well that Lu Nanzhan was absolutely capable of doing such a thing.
Suddenly, knocking sounded at the study door.
Butler Zhou hurried over to open it. A bodyguard stood outside holding a laptop.
“Mr. Lu, Miss Song’s phone was turned on briefly just now. We’ve already locked onto the signal.”
Hearing this, Lu Nanzhan abruptly rose from his chair.
“Where?”
“In a remote alley on Zhongshan Road. According to the map, it seems to be a small motel.”
“Immediately send people to seal off Zhongshan Road. No one is allowed to leave.” Lu Nanzhan issued the order swiftly.
“Yes, sir.”
Lu Nanzhan strode downstairs with long steps, but just as he was about to leave, he suddenly thought of something and turned to the bodyguard beside him.
“You take people there first and surround the motel. If she escapes, you’ll answer for it.”
“Yes, sir.”
Song Qingxian loved beauty and cleanliness more than anything. She hated dirty things the most.
If she saw him looking like this now, she definitely would not be pleased.
Lu Nanzhan entered the bathroom and quickly showered, shaved, and changed into a neat dark gray suit. He fastened his tie carefully, elegant cufflinks decorating his sleeves, while his leather shoes remained spotless as always.
He sprayed perfume twice on his wrist, a cool scent mixed with faint woody notes.
It was the fragrance Xianxian had chosen for him.
Only after finishing all this did Lu Nanzhan hurry toward the small motel on Zhongshan Road.
His heart pounded violently, Xianxian.
His Xianxian. If he could not find her soon, he truly would go mad.
He would die.
Inside the motel room, Song Qingxian lay on the bed unable to fall asleep no matter what. The place was filthy and cramped, even the blanket carried a stale, rotten smell.
For some reason, a strong sense of unease rose within her. The room made her feel inexplicably suffocated and oppressed.
Song Qingxian got out of bed to pour herself a glass of water when her eyes landed on the abortion report nearby.
Her expression changed instantly.
The child seemed to be the key factor that pushed Lu Nanzhan completely into madness and loss of control.
Suddenly, urgent knocking sounded at the door.
Already on edge, Song Qingxian dropped the cup in her hand, and it shattered on the floor.
“Who is it?” she asked cautiously.
In the middle of the night, it could not possibly be Lu Nanzhan finding her already… right?
No one answered.
Instead, she heard the sound of a key unlocking the door outside. Thankfully, she had locked it from the inside as well.
Song Qingxian’s heart leapt into her throat as her unease intensified. She quickly tore the abortion report into pieces and threw them into the trash can.
Outside, they had already begun forcing the door open.
After only a few hits, the already worn out door collapsed.
The moment she saw Lu Nanzhan, Song Qingxian’s emotions became complicated.
There was disappointment, yet strangely, also a trace of relief.
Deep down, she truly wanted to save Lu Nanzhan.
Standing at the doorway, he looked tall and imposing, with a group of black clad bodyguards behind him.
Lu Nanzhan strode directly toward her and pulled her forcefully into his embrace. His strength was overwhelming, as though he wanted to press Song Qingxian completely into his body.
After a long while, Lu Nanzhan leaned close to her ear and lightly bit her earlobe.
“Xianxian, I found you.”
A current of electricity instantly spread from her ear through her entire body.
Lu Nanzhan frowned tightly. “Xianxian, how could you let yourself stay in a place like this? It’ll dirty you.”
Song Qingxian bit her lip and looked at the number above Lu Nanzhan’s head: 85.
Good!
This time, there was still hope.
She had to lower that number to zero.
If she succeeded, perhaps she would finally have the chance to return to her original world.
Song Qingxian wrapped her arms around Lu Nanzhan’s waist and rested her face against his chest as she softly called out, “Azhan.”
Disbelief filled Lu Nanzhan’s eyes.
How could Song Qingxian possibly treat him this way?
Yet the number above his head did not change at all.
So this approach was useless against him?
“Xianxian, what are you plotting this time?” Lu Nanzhan’s deep voice sounded above her. “You know that being brought back means punishment awaits you.”
His voice made Song Qingxian shiver.
It seemed Lu Nanzhan did not trust her at all.
To him, even her acting spoiled and trying to please him was merely another scheme.