Back Then, I Adored You

It was so far that he was able to hear his own breathing.

Gu Yusheng had no idea how long he had been lost in thought, when his phone suddenly rang and shattered his trance.

He didn’t immediately answer; instead, he looked down to see who was calling. It was his grandfather’s landline number, probably calling to convince him to not shed light on the scandal between him and Liang Doukou.

Not wanting to argue with his grandfather, Gu Yusheng let the phone keep ringing—he was trapped in a car with an incessant ringing. When the ringing stopped, a text message came in from Nanny Zhang.

She’d texted him a picture and a message. “Young Master, your grandpa passed out.” The picture showed his grandfather laying on the bed with his eyes closed and looking pale.

Before he could click the picture to examine it in detail, a call came in. It was Nanny Zhang’s number, and he answered without hesitation.

“Young Master, your grandpa Gu passed out. I just called the ambulance. I tried to feel his pulse, but I didn’t find it.

“Young Master, your grandpa Gu has not been feeling well since you left for Shanghai at the beginning of last year. Even though Miss Liang saved your grandpa’s life from the accident, he still sustained serious injuries. Your grandpa asked me not to tell you about it…

“He went to his bedroom without any lunch after you argued with him. I thought he was just sleeping. I didn’t find him unconscious until I went to ask him to have dinner…”

Nanny Zhang continued talking, but Gu Yusheng had stopped hearing her at the word “unconscious.” His hand gripped the phone harder and he finally asked tersely, “Which hospital?”

After hanging up with Nanny Zhang, Gu Yusheng tried to start the car but realized his leg was too weak to even press on the gas. The weakness was soon accompanied by breathlessness, so he leaned on the steering wheel to rest.

With his eyes closed, a memory of himself receiving a phone call from home five years ago entered his mind. That call had prompted him to rush home to find his parents lying shoulder to shoulder on the bed without any signs of life.

His grandfather in the picture Nanny Zhang had sent looked like his parents had looked five years earlier.

His heart was squeezing him to the point he was anxious and in pain. His hand on the steering wheel was uncontrollably shaking, and he failed to start the car after trying a few times.

When he looked up before trying again, he saw Qin Zhi’ai’s apartment building not far from him through the window. He had controlled himself for several days and not bothered her, but at this moment he was losing his resolve.

Gu Yusheng shakily picked up his cell phone and dialed Qin Zhi’ai’s number; even hearing her speak would make him feel better.

“I’m sorry. The number you have dialed is not in service.” Gu Yusheng kept calling her and heard the same recording each time.

He suddenly bolted out of the car and sprinted to Qin Zhi’ai’s building.

The elevators were all occupied and, after waiting for less than a minute, he burst open the stairwell door and ran upstairs.

He was out of breath by the time he reached Qin Zhi’ai’s apartment and pressed the doorbell twice. No one answered.

Gu Yusheng started to frantically bang on the door.