Chapter 158: Reunion
Xia Fei had a dream while he was pa.s.sed out.
He dreamed of a ma.s.sive wars.h.i.+p drifting away slowly amid a pitch-black s.p.a.ce.
No words could describe how shocking that was. The s.h.i.+p resembled a mushroom, which was multiple times the size of Earth. Its golden alloy hull made it stand out in the dark s.p.a.ce.
Suddenly, a dazzling ray of light shone from the core of the s.h.i.+p. Its white light was incredibly blinding like a million suns.
Without any warning, the light started waning.
When the light completely disappeared, everything in the s.p.a.ce disappeared with it. The two planets, which were previously next to the s.h.i.+p, disappeared, leaving behind the empty dark s.p.a.ce.
Where did they go?
Could that light have destroyed those planets?
The large wars.h.i.+p kept moving forward. It was like a huge beast, traveling forward inch by inch as if nothing in the universe could stop it.
No matter where it went, nothing was left in its wake, planets, wars.h.i.+ps, or even terrifying blackholes; everything seemed incredibly fragile under its intense attacks.
It was like the ultimate destroyer of the universe, and the only task it had was to destroy all, leading itself and the endless s.p.a.ce to propagate further demise.
Xia Fei could only feel himself burn up as an indescribable sadness filled him.
When he next opened his eyes, all he saw was white. Initially, his vision was blurred, but after blinking a few times, everything in front of him became clear.
The white ceiling looked incredibly clean. He could also smell flowers in the air as well as a sweet, enchanting scent.
His body was still quite weak, so Xia Fei had to use his arms to support himself in order to sit up on the bed.
He was in a hospital ward. The room was decorated very lavishly; there was a row of vases on the window sill, the beautiful flowers so fresh that there was still dew clinging onto them. Obviously, they had been freshly picked.
There was a blonde lady lying down next to the bed. Her mouth was slightly ajar, sleeping soundly while hugging his thigh.
Xia Fei’s eyes lit up. “Avril!”
Because she was lying face-down on the bed, Xia Fei could not make out her face clearly, so he decided to lower his head, taking in the girl whom he had long known yet only officially met today.
Under normal circ.u.mstances, due to the various post-processing of video communication, people usually looked better on the projected screen than in real life, but Avril actually looked prettier in real life.
Her facial features were well-defined, with skin as white as snow, and thin lips just like a princess’ from a fairytale. The word ‘perfect’ almost aptly described her, but this princess had huge eyebags, and the markings of now dried up tears could be seen staining her cheeks.
After taking in the view, Xia Fei took out half a box of cigarettes from his spatial ring, stopping abruptly right before he was about to light it.
“Forget it. The smell of cigarettes is strong; it won’t be good if that wakes her up. I’ll just let her sleep a bit more,” Xia Fei muttered.
Suppressing his nicotine addiction, Xia Fei placed the cigarette and lighter on the bedside table. He then grabbed a crystal bowl on top of the table and took a drink.
Xia Fei wiped his mouth with his sleeve and looked outside the window, feeling a bit bored.
“How long have I been asleep?” Xia Fei asked Phantom.
“Three days.”
“That long?” Xia Fei furrowed his eyebrows. “What happened in these past three days? How did I get here?”
“You pa.s.sed out after falling into the valley. Meanwhile, that frigate with the Plumager onboard had gone down with the s.h.i.+p too, which exploded because its reactor received damage. It was a short time later when Butler Pang made it to where you were and sent you to this hospital. You’ve been in a coma up until now. ” Phantom gave a brief narration of the events that had transpired while he was unconscious.
Looking at Avril who was next to him, Xia Fei asked, “Was the person who got abducted Avril?”
Phantom nodded. “It’s quite fortunate that you rescued the right person. A few seconds later, and you might not have ever seen her again.
“She was drugged using a type of rosemary extract sedative and had only woken up two days ago. When she found out about you, she barged into the room and had not left your side since.
“She even had someone give her the video recordings of what had happened that day. She cried when she saw herself in your arms, taking the impact of the harsh landing for her so she wouldn’t get hurt. She even pa.s.sed out a few times.”
Phantom recounted in a profound voice as he glanced at Avril. “This lady’s all right. She’s been blaming herself these past few days; be sure to comfort her when she wakes up. This’ll be something she has to live with for the rest of her life if you don’t help her get through it now.”
“Alright.” Xia Fei nodded. He put his fingers through Avril’s hair, curling it between his fingers.
“Do you know why she’s unwilling to see me?” asked Xia Fei.
Phantom laughed. “Heh, it wasn’t that she didn’t want to see you but that someone else didn’t want you two to meet. From what I’ve gathered, it’s her father. He doesn’t like you all that much and doesn’t want to see his daughter with you.”
“Yesterday, Avril and his father had a big row in the ward, and her father hasn’t been here ever since.
“You know?” Phantom spoke with a mysterious smile. “Avril actually wanted to break off ties with her father for you. Despite her pretty looks, she’s quite courageous.”
Xia Fei knitted his eyebrows and spent a moment thinking. “That’s not a good thing; what’s so funny about it? Familial bond is like flesh and blood—an argument here and there, and it’ll just be as if nothing has happened afterward.”
Phantom curled the corner of his lip. “Fair point, but seeing her protecting you so fiercely, she seems to be rather serious. If her father keeps disagreeing, she might actually break off ties with her kin.”
Xia Fei thought for a few moments. No matter the case, it would never be a good thing if Avril broke ties with her family for his sake, so he began to think of something to dissuade her from doing so later.
It was evident that Avril was skinnier than she used to be, and she looked paler than before too.
A feeling of pity rose in Xia Fei as he muttered, “Who wanted to abduct Avril? I won’t let them off if I catch them.”
“Do you have any suspects in mind?” asked Phantom.
Xia Fei shook his head. “You must be joking. I’ve only been here for a few days; how would I know whom to suspect? Still, from my a.n.a.lysis, everyone here in Sunset Villa at that moment are suspects.”
Phantom was stunned. “Why?”
“This is a heavily guarded city. These hitmen had chosen to strike a wealthy family in broad daylight probably because someone inside had told them that a person was causing a disturbance into this villa, an opportunity which they promptly made use to abduct Avril.”
Phantom could not help nodding. “That’s possible. The villa was turned upside down at that time by your intrusion, but since it’s a private matter, if n.o.body leaked the information, those people would definitely not choose to stage their kidnapping then.”
“I believe the ones behind this had been planning such a move for a long time, and they were waiting for the right time to come. So when I happened to show up here, which inadvertently weakened the manor’s tight security, they decided to go for it and abduct Avril. They probably intended to put this whole matter on my head; I caused all this ruckus, so I would never be able to clear my name.” Xia Fei a.n.a.lyzed, scowling at the thought that somebody had come up with such an insidious plan.
Phantom sat on the edge of the bed, and looked at Avril with concern. “No matter what, the lady here who had gotten the worst out of all this. Sometimes, being born into a rich family isn’t a good thing.”
Xia Fei stayed silent for a few moments. “Yes, it’s really been troublesome for her. She didn’t provoke anyone, yet she still had to go through all that. If I’m not wrong, there are two possibilities.
“First, this was done by Starlink Corporation’s rival or even an enemy, perhaps to threaten or take out their anger. Second, it was someone from Avril’s family, someone who would benefit the most if Avril’s kidnapping succeeded; they’re the most suspicious.
“The former is still acceptable, but the latter is just horrible.” Xia Fair smiled bitterly.
Xia Fei and Phantom a.n.a.lyzed the situation, but as there was no proper evidence, everything was purely conjecture. Moreover, Xia Fei did not know Avril’s entire situation, so he did not know who would benefit the most out of this.
Avril had been sleeping soundly on Xia Fei’s thigh this whole time. He wanted to let her sleep undisturbed for a bit longer, so he continued to sit on the bed.
When afternoon turned to evening, Avril finally got up and stretched. She rubbed her eyes using her fair hands before she discovered that Xia Fei was looking at her with a smile on his face.
She jumped out of her chair and exclaimed in shock, “Xia Fei, you’re awake!”
Xia Fei smiled. His eyes were still on Avril’s face, taking in the beautiful sight.
She looked much better in real life than in their video-calls. They’ve known each other for two years, yet this was their first time meeting in person. n.o.body would have expected that this was how they would meet.
“Do I have something on my face?” asked Avril.
Xia Fair nodded. “Yeah.”
“What is it?” She quickly rubbed her face.
“A beauty comparable to a flower.”
Avril was slightly taken aback before smiling heartily. Her cheeks flushed as she said in a barely audible voice, “Meanie. You’re teasing me again.”
Xia Fei leaned backward. He had pins and needles in his legs for having stayed in this sitting position for a long time, but Xia Fei did not care as it was worth it to see the beautiful girl in front of him sleeping.
“Sorry that you had to deal with those irritating guards to see me and got yourself hurt trying to save me,” Avril said pitifully, her eyes glistening with tears.
Xia Fei hated seeing girls cry, so he quickly said a bunch of jokes to try and cheer up Avril. The two of them gradually returned to normal after the initial b.u.mp on the road, just like good, old buddies who had not seen each other for a long time.
Avril regained her sweetness and the smile on her face, laughing as she said, “I’ve seen the recordings. Pang Hai and Pang Xing weren’t a match for you; the garbage guards weren’t a match, either. You’re incredible to be able to beat up everyone on your way up the mountain.”
Xia Fei did not say anything, just watching this glamorous lady narrate everything quietly. The Avril, who was now back to normal, was obviously more charming than when she was frowning.
With a swift change of topic, Avril quietly probed with her cheeks flushed, “Did you call me your woman when you were at the entrance to Sunset Villa…?”