Gu Yuxuan thoroughly tried to identify one time before she managed to tell who this girl in an awkward state was. "Tong Nan?!"
"Sister Xuanxuan, it"s been a long time since we"ve met!" Tong Nan got up from the ground and look at Gu Yuxuan.
"How did you...?" Gu Yuxuan looked at the completely awkward state that Tong Nan was in. It does not seem to have been caused entirely by the car crash.
Tong Nan wore a black down jacket but the few big openings in it had already caused a lot of feathers to fly out. The graze also created two big holes in her slim-fit jeans. Her hair was slightly messy and there was even a b.l.o.o.d.y gash on her cheek. No matter how one looked at this, it did not seem to be a sorry state that resulted from being hit by a car. Furthermore, the speed of their car was not fast.
Tong Nan gave a slightly awkward smile. However, having a naturally cheerful personality, she was not excessively coy as she said to Gu Yuxuan straightforwardly, "Sigh. It"s a long story! This morning when I was on my way to the management company, I met an archenemy of mine. In the end, we had a discord, and that wretch actually began to get physical. How could I allow myself to be taken advantage of? Hence, I fought with her and then I became like this. Afterward, I actually b.u.mped into a paparazzi by coincidence. In the near future, I am going to partic.i.p.ate in an annual model compet.i.tion, and my talent manager had repeatedly urged and instructed me to pay attention to my image and not to cause trouble. Thus, I took to my heels and ran. Just after shaking off the paparazzi, I b.u.mped into you right here."
"Oh, right! I"m so sorry that I b.u.mped into you! Are you all right? Let me take you to the hospital to get checked out!"
"No worries! Actually, you did not b.u.mp into me very hard. I reckon that I only grazed my leg slightly. It probably did not hurt my bones. It was just that I was really so unlucky today and I was in a bad mood, so I began to argue with your chauffeur. Haha, speaking of this matter, I indeed went a little overboard."
"It is good that the misunderstanding has been resolved. I should still take you to the hospital to take a look. There is no harm in checking."
"No worries, there is really no need to. If it truly leaves me with some problem in the future, I will be able to find you anyway. I am not afraid that you will run away."
As Tong Nan spoke, she began to laugh, and it even made Gu Yuxuan laugh unnaturally as well.
"Right, earlier on, I heard your chauffeur mention that you were in a hurry. You can go now if you have matters that you are busy with. No need to worry about me. We can wait until someday when we are free to arrange another date."
"Ok. Actually, there is nothing too important. I was just going to visit Xiao Xi. The road was too jammed today, so I stumbled onto this road by accident."
"Sister Xiao Xi?" When Tong Nan heard this name, her face darkened slightly but she quickly recovered her usual smile. "Has she been well recently?"
Gu Yuxuan knew that Tong Nan definitely had a knot in her heart toward Murong Yunxi because of Gong Yu. But after all, they had been friends for so many years and Gu Yuxuan still hoped to help resolve the unhappiness between the two of them.
"Xiao Nan, do you still blame Xiao Xi?"
"Hah, what should I say? Why would I blame Sister Xiao Xi? I liked Gong Yu and was unsuccessful. Gong Yu does not like me, but what does that have to do with Sister Xiao Xi? Thus, I do not blame Sister Xiao Xi. I still understand these basic principles."
"But after that, you never contacted Xiao Xi again. She always thought that you blamed her in your heart."
"Why would I? I was merely still unsure about how to face Gong Yu, which has nothing to do with Sister Xiao Xi. I am also glad that she could find her happiness. Since it was due to me that she lost Mother Yun, it could be counted as what I owed her."
"My heart will be at ease if this is what you think. If Xiao Xi found out that you do not blame her, she would probably be very happy as well."
"Has Sister Xiao Xi been well recently? Life after marriage is probably not bad? There is always news on the Internet about them showing off their love. Right, I watched a movie that she had filmed together with Gong Yu. It was really quite good."
Gu Yuxuan looked at Tong Nan"s radiant smile and then thought of Xiao Xi"s current state. Her heart ached slightly. "Xiao Xi seems to be in trouble."
Tong Nan immediately withdrew her smile and asked with surprise, "What happened to Sister Xiao Xi?"
Gu Yuxuan looked at Tong Nan and suddenly found it slightly difficult to put it to words. "It was said that she has temporarily lost her sight. I also do not know the specific situation and I am planning to visit her."
Tong Nan was stunned for a moment. She did not actually expect this to be the case. She had thought that it would merely be something like an argument or a misunderstanding between the couple. Since Gong Yu was in the entertainment industry where good and bad mixed, it would be difficult to be at peace.
"Oh, let me go with you to visit her then. How did it become like this? Wouldn"t Sister Xiao Xi be so pitiful then?" A hint of worry surfaced on Tong Nan"s face. She still had some special feelings toward Murong Yunxi. In her heart, she also treated her like a real sister. If it was not because of the appearance of Gong Yu, perhaps they would have been great.
Gu Yuxuan sized Tong Nan up and asked rather awkwardly, "Your current appearance...?"
Tong Nan as well took one look at her current awkward appearance and could not help bursting out into laughter. "Hah, my current appearance is indeed rather inappropriate. If you are not in that much of a hurry, then accompany me to go buy a set of clothes to change into. There is a shop on this street that specifically sells clothes. I will just randomly change into a set. It will not take too much time."
"All right! Get into the car then." Gu Yuxuan nodded her head. Taking the lead to open the car door, she entered the car and subsequently, Tong Nan got into the car as well.
Gu Yuxuan accompanied Tong Nan to purchase a set of clothes and change into them. Afterward, they headed straight to the Murong family"s old house.
When the road became more and more remote, Tong Nan asked slightly suspiciously, "Sister Xuanxuan, where does Xiao Xi live currently? Why is it increasingly remote?"
"Xiao Xi is at her father"s house." Gu Yuxuan casually replied to Tong Nan without even thinking it through.
"Father? Didn"t Father Yun pa.s.s away already?"
Gu Yuxuan suddenly realized that Tong Nan was still unaware that Xiao Xi had reunited with the Murong family. Thus, she simply summarized and explained it to her.
"Wow, I never expected Sister Xiao Xi to be a rich girl who was lost out here in the mortal world. This is truly unbelievable. I"ve heard about the Murong family. Regardless of whether it was back in America or now back in the country, the Murong family has always been a very reputable family. I never thought that Sister Xiao Xi would suddenly fly up through the clouds and to actually fly up so high."
Gu Yuxuan was not very willing to express her opinion about this topic because, in her heart, she felt that Murong Yunxi deserved all of this.
The car drove on for some time and finally arrived at the gate of the Murong family. This was also Gu Yuxuan"s first time coming to the Murong family"s old house. She was also slightly shocked by the sight before her eyes.
She knew that the Murong family"s old house was very luxurious, but she did not actually expect it to be as luxurious as this. It was an entire mountain!
When Gu Yuxuan and Tong Nan entered through the gates, it was like Granny Liu visiting the Grand View Gardens. They completely did not know where their eyes should be looking, and beyond their amazement was only further amazement.
The Murong family was already aware that they were about to arrive when they were coming up the mountain earlier on. Thus, regardless of whether they were entering through the main entrance or that they have reached the door, it was unusually smooth sailing. As they got out of the car, there was already a maid waiting at the door.
Ever since Niannian had returned to live here, Murong Qingtian had canceled the grounding order in the main house. Usually, the maids would often go in and out and the entire house became increasingly humanistic.
The two of them walked up to the main door and a maid approached them with a smile. "Ms. Gu, please follow me."
Gu Yuxuan nodded her head politely and followed the maid upstairs along with Tong Nan.
Before the two of them could recover from their shock over the grandeur and magnificence of the Murong family"s main residence, they had already arrived at Murong Yunxi"s room. The maid pushed open the door to the room and let the two of them in.
The moment that Gu Yuxuan saw Murong Yunxi, her tears fell uncontrollably.
Murong Yunxi was tightly seated and leaning closely against the huge bed. Her small head was c.o.c.ked to one side and her silence made one"s heart panic.
Coincidentally, Gong Yu came up with a plate of fruits. Upon seeing Gu Yuxuan and Tong Nan standing by the door in shock, he said expressionlessly and calmly, "You"re here. Come on in."
Awakened by Gong Yu"s voice, Murong Yunxi hurriedly raised her hand to wipe away the tears from the corner of her eyes and turned her head to greet Gong Yu.
When Tong Nan saw Gong Yu, her heart could not help palpitating slightly. In her heart, the feelings of love were actually still so deep. She had not seen him in such a long time and thought that her heart had already calmed down. Little did she expect the tides of longing and love to surge so turbulently upon seeing him.
She stared at Gong Yu in infatuation. Although he appeared to be a little thin, he was still handsome and bright, and she was unable to shift her eyes away. She could clearly see in his eyes that his gaze was almost always focused on Murong Yunxi. There was a complex intertwining of sorrow, pampering, and expectations within, and one would be infected by those emotions by watching him.
Although she already knew that Murong Yunxi was all that was contained in Gong Yu"s heart, at that moment, she still felt a slight heartache. The heart-wrenching pain was transmitted directly through her nerves to her brain, and a headache erupted like thunder, stimulating every single nerve.
Gong Yu felt the burning gaze of Tong Nan and, with slight displeasure, he looked over with a frown. When Tong Nan"s eyes met his biting cold gaze, she instantly returned to her senses.
Sure enough, the gentleness in his eyes was only for Murong Yunxi. She could never enter his line of sight, let alone his heart.
Tong Nan retracted her gaze and looked at Murong Yunxi.
The few of them walked toward the huge bed. Upon hearing the sound of their footsteps, Murong Yunxi immediately switched to a radiant, smiling face. However, everyone still wondered in their hearts if that smile was truly genuine.
"Gong Yu?" Murong Yunxi asked softly.
"Yes, it"s me! Xuanxuan and Tong Nan have come to visit you." Gong Yu hastened his steps forward and spoke gently to Murong Yunxi.
"Oh? Xuanxuan? Xiao Nan? Why are you guys here?" Murong Yunxi was slightly surprised, but a large part of it was that she was thrown off guard.
Although Murong Yunxi was already pretending to be strong, she was not actually mentally prepared to show her current state to others, even to a close friend like Gu Yuxuan.
Seeing Murong Yunxi"s deliberate avoidance, Gu Yuxuan"s heart felt slightly cold. She never expected that there would be a day when Murong Yunxi would regard her as an outsider.
"Xiao Xi..." Gu Yuxuan called out softly. She wanted to say something but she realized that, in this moment, words became so vacant and weak. It seemed that saying anything would cause one to be even sadder.
Having a cheerful and easy-going personality, Tong Nan did not seem to worry so much and she greeted Murong Yunxi with a smile. "Sister Xiao Xi, I really did not expect you to be a rich missus who was lost in the mortal world, and to have such a legendary life experience as well as a glamorous ident.i.ty."
Murong Yunxi merely gave a slight, awkward smile. She was not in the mood to discuss such a topic with Tong Nan.
However, Tong Nan did not seem to think so. Walking over and sitting down next to Murong Yunxi, she casually held up Murong Yunxi"s hand. "Sister Xiao Xi, I"ve watched that movie of yours twice. It was really super good. I never thought that you would actually have such great talent in acting. If we had known earlier, you should have debuted sooner. If that was the case, you might already be a tremendously successful celebrity now."
Tong Nan"s exaggerated tone humored Murong Yunxi, who twitched unnaturally into a faint smile. One had to say that Tong Nan seemed to have lightened up the originally gloomy atmosphere. Gu Yuxuan looked expressionlessly at Tong Nan for a brief moment. She was actually slightly grateful to her. If not for her, perhaps she would have been here alone and the atmosphere would definitely be gloomy and sad.
Gong Yu sat down on the other side. He pierced the fruit with a small fork and quietly fed it to Murong Yunxi.
Tong Nan chirped and talked a lot with Murong Yunxi. Most of the time, it was Tong Nan who was talking, but when she said something that was really interesting, Murong Yunxi would smile lightly.
On the other hand, Gu Yuxuan seemed to be slightly redundant as she sat on the side. She could only interrupt with a sentence occasionally, but it would seem to be something that was dispensable.
When it was almost noon, Murong Qingtian came back and went straight to Murong Yunxi"s room because he knew that at this time, Gong Yu would only be here.
Upon entering the room, he was slightly surprised to see Gu Yuxuan and Tong Nan. Gong Yu explained casually, "They are Gu Yuxuan and Tong Nan. Both have been friends with Xiao Xi for many years."
Murong Qingtian nodded at the two of them and greeted them casually before saying to Gong Yu, "Gong Yu, come over for a moment."
Gong Yu handed over the plate of fruit in his hands to Gu Yuxuan and walked out.
Gong Yu followed Murong Qingtian, and right after he entered the study and took a seat, Murong Ye came in hastily. It was obvious how much of a hurry Murong Ye was in when he arrived.
Murong Qingtian gave Murong Ye a signal, and Murong Ye sat down next to Gong Yu with his eyes staring fixedly at Murong Qingtian.
Murong Qingtian"s face was slightly solemn. As a result, the two of them had a vaguely bad premonition and they did not even dare to make a sound.
"I paid a visit to Old Xu today. Old Xu is an old friend of mine for many years, so he would not lie to me."
"Then what do the results actually mean?" Murong Ye became a little impatient as he listened on as he could not help wanting to know the results anxiously.
"The result... The result is that Old Xu cannot save Xiao Xi."
"Cannot save? Why? He did not even take a look. Why can"t he save her?"
"Old Xu also found it very regrettable. Currently, he completely cannot treat illnesses for people."
Neither Murong Ye or Gong Yu could manage to say a single word. This was not the result that they wanted, and Murong Qingtian"s statement was obviously very perfunctory. It could not truly convince them.
"Xu Lao currently suffers from Alzheimer"s disease. He no longer had the ability to treat illnesses for people. He had forgotten too many things."
"But... what will happen to Xiao Xi?" Gong Yu finally opened his mouth and questioned Murong Qingtian. However, it seemed more like he was asking himself. The desperation in his tone seemed to have dulled him slightly.
Murong Qingtian rubbed his two big coa.r.s.e hands against his cheeks and then said somewhat abruptly, "Xu Lao said that if we could find his senior, there might be a glimmer of hope. His senior"s medical skills are not beneath his own. However, it is unknown if he is still alive today or where he is, as his senior retired since his master pa.s.sed away. Xu Lao has not seen him in 30 years."
"A person whom he has not seen in 30 years?" Murong asked somewhat impatiently. The dissatisfaction in his tone was very clear.
"Yes! He could only provide the name of his senior. It is Kuang Youzhi. He could not provide anything else, so it would be somewhat like looking for a needle in a haystack and even illusory. It is possible that we might never find him in our lifetime or that he might have pa.s.sed away."
Murong Yet cursed softly before he continued to say, "Then wouldn"t this be equivalent to a direct death sentence for us? A death penalty with reprieve like this makes one harbor hope but also not know when the end will be. Wouldn"t this cause one to feel even greater despair?"
Murong Ye only cared about venting his emotions and did not notice that Gong Yu, who was beside him, had an unusually complex expression on his face. He was frowning and seemed to be pensive about something.
"I am aware of this as well, but right now, we have no other solution. Beyond trying to find that person, what else can we do?" Murong Qingtian was slightly unhappy. He also knew that this was a very hazy matter.
"Couldn"t Xu Lao give it a try first? Even if he were to take a look first and then determine that he could not treat it?" Murong Ye proposed. He was truly quite anxious and had the intention to grasp at any straw he could find.
"If I could manage to get Xu Lao, wouldn"t I have done it long ago? I am equally anxious about Xiao Xi"s issue. She is my daughter, and I went through great lengths to find her. I would, of course, cherish her more. But right now..."
"Then what should we do now? Do we just search for a person whom we don"t even know is still alive?"
Both of them sunk into silence. It was as silent as death, which was just like their current mood—hopelessness without a hint of life.
The entire room was permeated with a negative vibe. It was as if one had entered Death Valley and was waiting for death to arrive. There was not a single shred of hope for life.
However, Gong Yu looked up and scanned the two men briefly. Seeing their looks of dejection, he said coldly, "Perhaps I might know where he is!"
Neither of them managed to react to Gong Yu"s words but continued to remain silent. After a full half-minute of silence, Murong Ye suddenly managed to react to something and turned to look at Gong Yu. "Gong Yu, what did you say?"
Murong Qingtian also looked up at Gong Yu instantaneously, and a burning glow of light shone in his eyes.
"I might know where he is!" Gong Yu repeated again in a low voice.
Murong Ye suddenly became excited and grabbed hold of Gong Yu"s arm with such great force that one could hear the sound of bones cracking. Fortunately, Gong Yu was from a martial arts background. If it had been an ordinary person, perhaps his arm would have been fractured.
The glowing light in Murong Qingtian"s eyes became increasingly bright as if he had discovered some treasure.
Gong Yu continued to say, "However, I do not know if he is still alive now. I also do not know if he could save Xiao Xi. Nor do I know if Xiao Xi and I could go to where he is, or if we could even make it back."
Now, Murong Ye was suddenly uncertain if the hope that he had finally found was actually hope or not. Confused, he asked, "What do you mean by this?"