They stared at each other for about five minutes as neither of them wanted to give in.
The silence was broken by Gu Yiâanâs phone which rang suddenly.
It was Guan Mingchang. âIâd like to meet you. Itâs about what happened with Guan Zijue.â
Gu Yiâan glanced at Guan Zijue as he answered, âOkay. Iâll call you later!â
Guan Zijue asked, âWho was it?â
âItâs Jue. I guess Iâll have to go back to England for the time being. Be careful when youâre on your own. Get Guan Zixuan to contact me if need be. Iâll rush back here immediately.â
âOkay. Go on then.â
Silence once again ensued.
Guan Zijue knew that Gu Yiâan would not leave if he was still in the apartment.
He thus said, âIâm going to pack my things now. You should pack up too!â
They were packed and ready to leave in about ten minutes.
As they stood outside the door, Guan Zijue said, âTake care!â
âYou too!â
They then left with their suitcases in tow.
It felt as if they were never going to meet each other again after this.
After walking for quite a distance, Gu Yiâan dragged his suitcase with him into a tiny alley and made a phone call.
A female voice answered. Assuming that it was Guan Mingchangâs secretary, Gu Yiâan said, âIâd like to speak to Mr. Guan!â
âPlease hold on.â
He heard Guan Mingchangâs voice shortly after. âIâm waiting at Yongfu Teahouse.â
Gu Yiâan nodded. âDonât worry. Iâll be there in ten minutes.â
He then dragged his suitcase with him as he made his way to Yongfu Teahouse.
Guan Mingchang was visibly surprised to see Gu Yiâan arrive so quickly.
âTake a seat!â
Gu Yiâan sat and greeted Guan Mingchang politely. âHi Uncle!â
âYou donât have to be so polite. I think you should already know why I want to meet you.â
âI know!â
âSince thatâs out of the way, I donât want to waste anymore of your time. Iâm going to be very direct and ask you to leave Guan Zijue.â
Gu Yiâan rejected the request without a moment of hesitation.
âImpossible. Iâll never leave him!â
Guan Mingchang was displeased.
âDonât you know the severity of this? Do you know you could ruin him? Is that what you want to see?â
âI wonât let him get hurt!â
Guan Mingchang scoffed at this.
âWho do you think you are? You might have some skills, and you may have your connections in England or in America, but itâs a different world here.â
Gu Yiâan remained silent.
âYou have absolutely no power here in Emperor City, so itâs impossible for you to help Guan Zijue. Itâs nothing but a pipe dream. The only way forward is for you to leave him. I may be able to help him out if you do that, but that promotion is probably no longer happening. Please spare a thought for him. Youâve already done enough damage!â
âI wonât leave him no matter what!â
Guan Mingchang did not expect Gu Yiâan to be this stubborn.
âGu Yiâan, you have no idea what I would have done to you if it wasnât for Zijue who asked me to spare you. Iâm only giving you a chance now because I donât want to upset my son. Youâd better know whatâs best for you!â
We got caught because we werenât being careful enough. The nature of our relationship is not one that would be traditionally accepted either, not to mention we were even on opposing sides of the law. I was too naive to think that we could actually be together.
Gu Yiâan then smiled.
âFine. I can leave him. But not before I know that he is safe and well. Iâll leave Emperor City only after Iâm sure of that. I hope you can understand!â
âOkay. Iâll let you know. I hope you will keep your promise and leave Zijue and Emperor City after that!â
A bitter feeling crept up on Gu Yiâan as he watched Guan Mingchang and his secretary leave in silence.
He walked out of the teahouse dragging his suitcase with him. The sun in Emperor City seemed to be scorching hot today and he felt as if he was being baked underneath it.
He called Luo Qiqi after a while.
He had no idea what Luo Qiqi had been up to recently, but she was still in Emperor City.
Judging from her voice over the phone, it was obvious that she was out of touch with recent events.
âQiqi, where are you now? Are you still with Xia Zi?â
âHow can I disturb Aâzi and Guan Zixuan? Havenât you already left? Whatâs up?â
âWhere are you now? Letâs meet!â
âYouâre still in Emperor City?â Luo Qiqi sounded genuinely surprised at this.
âMm! Where are you? Iâll go over right now!â
Gu Yiâan headed for the hotel right away after Luo Qiqi gave him the address.
When he arrived, Luo Qiqi answered the door with a head of tousled hair.
Gu Yiâan gave her a look of disdain before entering the room.
âWhatâs with that look on your face? Iâm not the one asking for help now.â
Gu Yiâan frowned at this. âYou passed your days like this?â
âWhat?â
Putting his suitcase aside, he quickly cleaned up the room before looking at Luo Qiqi again.
âQiqi, I might need your help on something!â
Luo Qiqi hopped onto the bed and asked, âWhat is it? Iâll try my best if itâs within my means!â
Using his phone, Gu Yiâan showed her the piece of news from this morning.
Her head snapped up almost immediately.
âWhat? So youâre actually into guys? Itâs no wonder you didnât seem the least bit interested in relationships. Look at that. Oh, my heart canât take it!â
Before he could respond, Luo Qiqi continued.
âYouâre such a beast, Gu Yiâan. You made a man like Guan Zijue gay? My gosh!â
Gu Yiâan already felt drained at this point. Why canât I have a proper conversation with this girl.
As if suddenly reminded of Gu Yiâanâs earlier request, Luo Qiqi asked, âSo what did you need my help with?â
âGuan Zijue was supposed to be up for a promotion, but that probably wonât happen because of this scandal. Youâve been in the system before, so do you know what we have to do to remedy such a situation?â
Luo Qiqi frowned at this. âSo youâre asking for my help on this? Youâve found the right person! The easiest way is for you to leave Guan Zijue. His career would definitely be affected if the both of you remain together!â
She instantly realized that she spoke too fast.
Trying to salvage the situation, she then said, âSorry, I didnât mean that. I mean, if youâre together⦠Well, I donât know how to lie, so let me just be frank with you. Letâs not talk about how you guys are on opposing sides of the law. Guan Zijue is in a position where this would affect him greatly. Also, how long can you keep your identity under wraps? Guan Zijue would be finished once youâre exposed. Itâs like a ticking time bomb!â
âReally?â
Luo Qiqi nodded. âDefinitely, and thatâs not even the worst that could happen. If you leave Guan Zijue though, there would be nothing for anyone to talk about since they wouldnât be able to obtain any sort of evidence, and with how powerful the Guan family is, theyâd be able to cover this up in a matter of minutes!â