Chapter 90

Chapter 90

Darkness enveloped him, with countless stars twinkling overhead.

Gu Yubai lay on the rough floor, his first reaction a stunned silence as he gazed at the black night sky and the shimmering stars.

His eyesight was remarkably sharp.

Even in the city, he could see the stars above with such clarity.

Only then did the pain register—the scrapes on his arms and back from the concrete ground.

Gu Yubai tensed his waist, slowly propping himself up against the wall, mentally cursing Su Shengli.

He wasn't even bothering to pretend anymore.

The last time he'd kidnapped him, at least he remembered to put him on a mattress. This time, he just threw him straight onto the ground.

Earlier, when Gu Yubai took a breath, he inhaled a thick layer of dust from the floor into his nasal cavity.

The air was chilly, and there were no lights.

A damp, brine-laden sea breeze blew fiercely, sending shivers through Gu Yubai's body.

He looked at Su Shengli, who sat in the darkness like a marionette, facing the full force of the sea wind.

"Couldn't you at least put me behind a wind-blocking wall!"

Su Shengli finally moved. He seemed to have been sitting there for a long time, his entire being merged with the darkness, rigid and numb, devoid of any emotion.

He glanced back at Gu Yubai, who was still lying bound on the ground, and said coldly,

"Don’t be afraid. I won’t hurt you. I have no grudge against you. I just want to see—among those who love you, those surrounding you, who is truly willing to worry for you?"

A twisted smile played at the corner of Su Shengli’s lips.

Gu Yubai frowned. "Why did you change your plan?"

A thread of unease wound in his heart.

"Weren’t you originally going to keep me for two or three days before letting me go? Why bring me here now? And where’s the person who was always with you before?"

"Oh, you mean President Zhang’s man? I sent him back," Su Shengli replied.

Gu Yubai fell silent. Bound and unable to move, with no sharp objects around, he truly couldn’t fathom how protagonists in novels could just escape or shine in critical moments whenever they wanted.

Besides, this wasn’t even that dire of a situation.

Su Shengli wouldn’t dare harm him.

Perhaps he would have before, but now Gu Yubai’s status was different—he was the future spouse of the Yu Family Patriarch. Someone as shrewd as Su Shengli wouldn’t dare touch him.

Unless he had a death wish.

Moreover, ever since Su Shengli reappeared in Mingcheng, Gu Yubai had never seen hatred in his eyes directed at him.

That was the source of his calmness.

He didn’t think his perception was wrong.

Their exchange had been so casual that, if not for the desolate coastal wasteland and the abandoned building they were in, Gu Yubai might have thought Su Shengli was chatting with him in a café.

Gu Yubai lowered his gaze.

"So you brought me here... to test Yu Li’s sincerity toward me?" His expression grew strange.

"Of course not," Su Shengli shot back.

"Or rather, it’s not just that."

"You’ve probably guessed it already. For all my apparent success now, thinking I’ve taken control of Su Group, the truth is I’m still teetering on a cliff's edge. Old Master Su and Su Wanlin are definitely waiting for me to stumble—this was all part of their scheme!"

Su Shengli’s face contorted abruptly.

"I always wondered why I assumed control of Su Group so effortlessly. Only after kidnapping you did I realize—I never had control at all. It was just my own fantasy of triumph."

"Before, I could say defeating Old Master Su and Su Wanlin was because I caught them off guard. But Su Linyuan’s disappearance—which wasn’t even by my hand—proves that Old Master Su and Su Wanlin have already regained their bearings."

"Yet I was so arrogant, thinking Su Group had fallen into my lap. Heh, obviously because they’d already prepared how to deal with me."

"I miscalculated. But if I hadn’t kidnapped you, I wouldn’t have realized this."

"I was a fool before, thinking I could test the Su family’s intentions by kidnapping you. But the Su family doesn’t care about you at all. You’re just another pawn like me. The only difference is you’re luckier—at least you have a brother who cares for you, a comatose foster father, and a... hah, a lover."

Su Shengli’s tone was calm, but his eyes gleamed with manic fixation.

Gu Yubai instinctively leaned back. In the darkness, he could sense the palpable despair emanating from Su Shengli—his features twisted in resentment, his body oozing quiet desperation.

It was just as he said: he had finally realized that the victory he thought he’d achieved was actually just playing into their hands.

Su Shengli had his moment of clarity, but it was too late to turn back.

He knew that from the moment he kidnapped Gu Yubai, there was no way back into Su Group.

Gu Yubai didn’t know how Su Shengli had suddenly gained such insight.

But he had to admit, his hunch was correct.

There was no way Old Master Su and Su Wanlin would allow an outsider like Su Shengli to take over Su Group. Aside from hiding Su Linyuan away, they must have been plotting in the shadows all this time.

The only reason they hadn’t acted yet was probably because the moment wasn't ripe.

Su Shengli had been baffled by the Su family's inaction, but now that he’d realized the truth, he suddenly understood he’d walked right into their snare.

Gu Yubai: "So you moved me from the warehouse to here... as part of your escape plan?"

Su Shengli abruptly turned his head, his look both detached and composed.

After a weighted silence, he rasped.

"We'll see..."

He couldn’t remain mired in this quagmire forever.

Su Shengli cut a sidelong glance at Gu Yubai, finally admitting to himself that he lacked the cunning of the other man.

If he were truly smart, after the false young master scandal came out and the Su family’s stance became clear, he should have washed his hands of them entirely—just like Gu Yubai did.

But he didn't, which sank him deeper into the mire.

Now, he had grown impatient with continuing to deal with the Su family.

But by the time he woke up, everything around him was already chaos, making it nearly impossible to walk away clean.

Su Shengli gave Gu Yubai a cold stare.

But today presented an opportunity.

Gu Yubai fully understood now.

But precisely because he understood, he was rendered speechless by Su Shengli.

After committing every evil act, now regretting and wanting to clean up his image?

It's too late for that.

Gu Yubai didn’t believe this man would get what he wants.

He just didn’t understand why Su Shengli thought now was the opportune moment.

Gu Yubai waited in silence for Yu Li to arrive.

About two hours later, the sound of a car engine suddenly rang out near the crumbling building by the sea.

Su Shengli abruptly stood up and looked down over the edge.

He sneered, then turned back to look at Gu Yubai.

"Do you think President Yu is an idiot? I told him to come alone, and he actually left his bodyguards at a distance. Isn’t he afraid I’d get desperate and push you two lovebirds off the building all at once?"

"This is a place I specifically chose. Falling from here, even if it doesn't kill you, you’ll be severely injured."

His threats were vicious, but his expression didn’t match his words.

Gu Yubai suddenly spoke, "You’re not planning to jump from here, are you? You deliberately moved me here and called Yu Li to witness it?"

Su Shengli chuckled, grinning brightly. "You caught on~"

"You won’t tell on me, will you?"

Gu Yubai went quiet. Listening to the waves crashing against the building below, he thought of the stars he had seen so clearly and let out an uncharacteristically melancholy sigh.

"Falling from this height, even into the ocean, you wouldn't walk away unharmed. Are you sure you want to use this method to make your escape?"

His tone carried persuasion, but Su Shengli didn’t accept his kindness.

With a cold laugh, Su Shengli said, "I’ve already gone past caring. Who cares if I live or die?"

Su Shengli marched to his own drum. Once he made up his mind, no one could sway him with a few words. Besides, now that Yu Li had arrived, changing plans was out of the question.

The fierce sea wind howled wildly through every corner of the derelict high-rise, laden with a damp, fishy stench.

Gu Yubai’s body was growing cold. He instinctively closed his eyes but, amid the clamor, heard footsteps coming up the stairs from below.

The rhythm was instantly recognizable to him.

It was Yu Li.

He really was obedient.

Su Shengli had told him to come alone, and he truly came alone.

Gu Yubai shut his eyes briefly. Just as he was about to call out and tell him not to come up, Su Shengli suddenly stepped forward and slapped tape over his mouth.

Su Shengli gave him a strange smile, then abruptly let loose a blood-curdling scream.

Yu Li’s footsteps on the stairs immediately became frantic.

Gu Yubai’s eyes widened as he watched Yu Li step onto the platform—only for Su Shengli to suddenly turn and leap from the building.

Thud!

A dull impact echoed from below as something heavy hit the sea.

In the darkness, Yu Li burst in frantically before Gu Yubai. Without even looking around, he lunged toward the windowsill where Su Shengli had fallen.

He thought the one who had fallen was himself.

Finally, Gu Yubai understood why Su Shengli had taped his mouth shut. As Yu Li was halfway out the window, Gu Yubai didn’t have time to think. His lower back found sudden strength, and even with his legs bound, he managed to stand in an instant.

Like a shot from a gun, he shot forward, crashing precisely into the young man whose feet had already left the ground—nearly plunging after Su Shengli into the sea.

Yu Li was sent sprawling. Dazed, he sat up from the floor and saw the panting shadow of Gu Yubai collapsed nearby. A belated chill ran down his spine.

He shuddered violently.

He broke out in a cold sweat uncontrollably.

So close!

He had almost died!

Just having climbed the stairs, he hadn’t had time to think about who had fallen from the window. His first thought was that Gu Yubai, his kidnapped lover, had been harmed.

That was a natural assumption.

Su Shengli had kidnapped Gu Yubai.

This man, in his ruthless revenge against the Su family, had taken Gu Yubai hostage. If he realized he was truly cornered, he wouldn't hesitate to harm his beloved!

That was why Yu Li had ordered his bodyguards to stay a mile away, coming alone as demanded to this abandoned seaside building.

Because he had climbed step by step, he knew just how treacherous the ocean beside this derelict building was at night.

Without preparation, anyone who fell in wouldn't survive.

But when he reached the top floor and still hadn’t found Gu Yubai—unsure if he was even safe—he saw a figure go flying out the window into the night sea.

At that moment, Yu Li’s mind emptied.

The only thought was: *I have to pull Gu Yubai back!*

But he didn’t follow the shadow into the sea.

Only after escaping that brush with death did he realize the true danger.

"You..."

Yu Li finally came to his senses, still unable to confirm whether the person who had fallen was Gu Yubai, his heart still pounding.

Yet reason had returned.

Yu Li: "...Yubai?"

His voice was weak, carrying a hint of hope.

Gu Yubai came to his senses and gave a heavy grunt in response. But with his mouth still taped and his legs bound, he barely noticed how faint his reply was.

In truth, Gu Yubai had been thrown to the ground from the full-body impact earlier, his arms, legs, and waist badly scraped.

Yu Li stared at the motionless shadow lying not far from him, and a strange surge of joy rose in his heart.

Yu Li: "Yubai."

Gu Yubai: "Mm..."

Yu Li: "Yubai!"

Gu Yubai: "...Mm..."

Yu Li raised his voice even louder.

"Yubai!!!"

Gu Yubai: "......"

Stop calling like you're summoning a ghost!

Yu Li finally crawled over, immediately reaching out to touch Gu Yubai’s face. The moment he confirmed it was really him, tears spilled over, his entire body trembling.

Only then did he notice the restraints on Gu Yubai, tearing off the tape from his mouth before fumbling with the ropes binding him.

Gu Yubai spat a couple times and said bluntly, "The one who jumped just now was Su Shengli."

"He realized how unnaturally smooth things had been for him lately, so he deliberately kidnapped me and brought me here, trying to escape everything in Mingcheng—with you as his witness."

After a pause, he added, Gu Yubai continued, "But he was even more twisted. He taped my mouth shut, probably thinking it’d be even better if he could drag you down with him."

Gu Yubai realized he had underestimated how twisted Su Shengli could be.

How could he have assumed that just because Su Shengli didn’t seem to hold much malice toward him, he wouldn’t use him to scheme against others?

If Yu Li had really fallen into the sea and died, Gu Yubai, having to witness it, would have lived with that guilt for the rest of his life.

At the thought, Gu Yubai sniffled and, once freed from the ropes, yanked Yu Li into a fierce hug.

Yu Li gave a soft laugh, patting his back.

"It's all over now. Don’t be afraid."

Finally regaining their composure in the darkness, the two held hands and slowly made their way down the steps of the abandoned building.

On the ground floor, Gu Yubai glanced at the distant sea.

Lowering his eyes, he said, "At dawn, have someone fish out Su Shengli’s body."

Though there might not even be a body. Maybe he wasn’t dead?

Perhaps, just as he had confessed, he'd actually gotten away.

Gu Yubai felt strangely conflicted at Su Shengli’s madness.

Seeing the two limping figures, Yu's bodyguards rushed over from a distance.

A blinding light suddenly shone directly into Gu Yubai’s face. He instinctively threw up a hand, but Yu Li had already covered his eyes.

Gu Yubai paused briefly before laughing.

"The doctors said my light sensitivity has long since eased."

Yu Li grunted in response, swinging their joined hands lightly.

"I’ll still cover your eyes for you."

Gu Yubai shot him a sidelong glance, his smile sweeter than honey.

Yu Li had been seething earlier about Gu Yubai’s ordeal at Su Shengli’s hands, but now, holding his hand and seeing him look at him so lovingly, he suddenly felt everything was worth it.

"Let’s go home."

"What are we doing after we get back?"

"Wedding planning... Secretary Jin sent me a few design options, asking which style we prefer for the invitations and venue. We'll choose together."

"Alright."

Their scattered conversation drifted in the wind as their figures, surrounded by attendants, eventually vanished into the night.