Ten Years of Warm Words

Chapter 25

You Ran was also completely petrified.

Dad, you're still got a heart that's never broken even though you're old.

You Ran swallowed hard, moved her stiff neck with a creaking sound, and slowly stood up, saying, "Dad, you... take your time, I won't bother you anymore."

After saying that, she slunk back to her room. That night, You Ran didn't go out again, but hid under the covers and watched the dawn break.

Because I hadn't slept all night and was so tired, I slept soundly the next day. When I opened my eyes, it was already dark.

Anyway, there wasn't anything fun to do at night, so You Ran was too lazy to get up and went back to sleep.

When she finally came to her senses, it was already the fifth day after she returned home, which meant that she and Qu Yun had not been in contact for a full five days.

You Ran began to consider whether she should return to school two days earlier. Just as she was bringing up this idea with her parents, Gu Chengyuan arrived.

Hearing their conversation, Gu Chengyuan offered to drive You Ran back to school.

Upon hearing this, You Ran was naturally reluctant, but Bai Ling and Li Mingyu wanted the siblings to have more time to spend together, so they tried their best to persuade them.

You Ran's will was as firm as iron; she refused no matter what anyone said.

Unfortunately, Gu Chengyuan always managed to find her weakness. He smiled at You Ran and said, "If you drive yourself, it will only take an hour to get to your school, saving you the trouble of waiting for and squeezing onto buses... You Ran, why are you so resistant? It's like you're afraid I'll eat you up?"

You Ran felt that Gu Chengyuan's words were a bit too explicit. Worried that her parents might overhear something, she quickly laughed it off: "I'm so fat, can you even eat me?"

“No, the fat and lean meat are just right.” Gu Chengyuan said, “You Ran, don’t refuse anymore, otherwise, I might tell you something you don’t want others to know, and that wouldn’t be good.”

Gu Chengyuan's words, though seemingly innocuous, carried a threat no less powerful than a tornado to those who could understand them.

The thing she didn't want anyone to know was their past, a past that You Ran didn't want to mention.

This was You Ran's weakness, and Gu Chengyuan knew it very well; he had her firmly in his grasp.

You Ran dared not respond again, afraid that Gu Chengyuan would say something else.

And so, after Bai Ling helped her pack her luggage, You Ran got into Gu Chengyuan's car.

With a press of the accelerator, the car sped forward, and instantly, You Ran and Gu Chengyuan were alone in the relatively cramped space.

He sat leisurely in the passenger seat, his head tilted to the side, looking out the window.

It's a way of escaping reality.

"Are you that afraid to be with me?" Gu Chengyuan asked.

"It's not that I'm afraid, it's just that I don't want to," You Ran said. "Also, don't talk like that in front of Mom and Dad in the future. If they find out, it won't do you any good."

“However, it’s not harmful either,” Gu Chengyuan said.

"I beg you not to hurt them," You Ran said.

Gu Chengyuan turned his head and slowly looked at You Ran: "They are just your parents."

Upon hearing this, You Ran felt as if a bone was stuck in her throat, unable to describe the feeling, only feeling uncomfortable: "Why did you say such a thing?"

"That's a fact." Gu Chengyuan said expressionlessly.

"I don't understand what you're thinking." You Ran lowered her head.

“You Ran, there are many things you don’t understand, and you never will,” Gu Chengyuan said.

"Yes, I don't understand. If you don't like them, why do you come to our house and pretend to be all harmonious and happy?" You Ran asked. "Don't you feel uncomfortable doing that?"

“But don’t you think that’s fun?” Gu Chengyuan asked.

Then, a light drizzle began to fall from the sky, landing on the car window and forming a small, dense curtain, but it was quickly swept away by the wipers.

“Sometimes, I think even you don’t know what you’re doing,” You Ran said.

“My plans have been changing, but right now, I want you to stay by my side,” Gu Chengyuan said.

"Impossible," You Ran replied decisively.

"So, aren't you worried that I'll tell your parents about what's going on between us?" Gu Chengyuan asked.

His tone was still the same, the ending note still gentle, but now it didn't sound right to You Ran's ears.

"Fine, even if my dad isn't your dad, Mom is still our mother. She carried you for ten months and gave birth to you with great difficulty. If she gets hurt, you don't care?" A thin layer of anger suddenly appeared on You Ran's face.

“Everyone gets hurt.” Gu Chengyuan said, “I’m responsible for the harm she suffered, but who will be responsible for the harm I suffer?”

"Weren't the things you did to me before enough to quell your anger? Just how miserable do you want me to be before you feel happy?" You Ran asked. She had thought she would be very agitated, but unexpectedly, her voice was very calm, so calm that it surprised even herself.

"I don't know either," Gu Chengyuan repeated.

"I hate you," You Ran said softly.

Gu Chengyuan did not speak again.

The rain continued to fall, just as intensely as before, dense and fine, like countless tiny white flying insects being torn apart by the wipers and lying dead on the glass.

The world inside the car came to a standstill.

Halfway through the journey, we came across a gas station. I got out of the car and went to the restroom—not because I wanted to use the restroom, but because I wanted to leave Xia Guchengyuan temporarily.

Standing in front of the sink, I leisurely look at myself in the mirror, with long hair draped over my shoulders, wearing a T-shirt and jeans.

She seemed no different from that year, but only You Ran herself knew that her heart had turned completely over, even changed shape.

After that day at the bar, You Ran and Gu Chengyuan began a special relationship, a secret, yet one that brought her joy.

That year, I felt as if I had the whole world at my fingertips.

She could never have imagined that the tenderness Gu Chengyuan showed only to her contained the poisonous needle of hurt caused by the emotional entanglements of their previous generation.

You Ran's eighteenth birthday was a month before the college entrance examination. On that day, You Ran left home under the pretext of attending tutoring classes at school.

That day, Gu Chengyuan took her to the amusement park for a day, treated her to a big meal, and gave her a gift he had carefully prepared himself.

All day long, You Ran held Gu Chengyuan's arm and laughed happily.

Those seemed to be the happiest ten or so hours of her life.

In the evening, after returning to Gu Chengyuan's house, I leisurely drank a few glasses of champagne that Gu Chengyuan had poured for me, and somehow, I quickly got drunk.

He was so drunk that he was unconscious.

When she woke up, she found herself completely naked, and Gu Chengyuan was nowhere to be seen.

You Ran's mind went blank. After a long time, she finally had the courage to lift the sheet and check her lower body.

There was no blood, nor any aching or tearing sensation.

You Ran couldn't quite explain her feelings at the time; she just subconsciously felt very flustered because Gu Chengyuan wasn't by her side.

She put on her clothes, strolled out of the room, and at the top of the stairs, she heard people talking in the living room downstairs.

The staircase was spiral-shaped. When it turned a corner, she stopped, because at that moment she could see the scene on the sofa clearly.

On the sofa, Gu Chengyuan held a glass of red wine, and a very beautiful woman sat on his lap.

The woman had long legs, and her high heels hooked on her jade-like toes, swaying back and forth as if toying with people's hearts.

She has that ability.

Her long, curly hair exuded boundless charm with every movement.

Her lips, painted with bright red lip gloss, contrasted beautifully with her snow-white skin, exuding elegance and nobility without a hint of vulgarity.

A stunning beauty.

A true beauty.

You Ran had to admit this, because the fact that she could still marvel at the woman's beauty in such a situation that was enough to drive her crazy meant that the beauty was truly exceptional.

It wasn't just the two of them; there were also several men they'd met at the bar last time. When they saw You Ran, their eyes held a strange light, as if mocking or pitying her.

"Who is she...?" You Ran asked softly, her voice low, as she was using all her strength to keep herself upright.

“She’s my girlfriend,” Gu Chengyuan said.

As he spoke, his hand traced the beautiful legs of the woman in his arms.

"How could this be?" You Ran murmured.

She wasn't just asking Gu Chengyuan, but more so asking herself, but even You Ran herself probably didn't quite know what she wanted to ask.

"Why not? Do you think you're my girlfriend?" Gu Chengyuan laughed, the first time he'd laughed like that in front of You Ran.

“So, these days, and last night…” You Ran gently shook her head.

She felt as if she had traveled to the wrong time and space, and everything that was happening now was beyond her comprehension.

Gu Chengyuan took a sip of wine, then lifted the woman's chin and poured the wine into her mouth.

Just like what he once did to You Ran.

Or rather, he has always done this, not just with You Ran, but with all women.

You Ran gripped the railing tightly, because she felt as if she was about to fall.

She couldn't understand how these things happened; she really couldn't.

"Alright, stop playing around." The tall, thin man from the bar last time stood up, looked at You Ran, and said, "Little sister, go home. He's not the right person for you."

"Where...are you going?" You Ran's voice was a little hoarse.

She didn't know where she should go, and she really didn't know where she was.

Is it a dream, or a terrifying reality?

Gu Chengyuan placed the woman on the sofa, stood up, and walked towards You Ran step by step, but the closer he got, the less You Ran could see his face.

Gu Chengyuan gradually became a stranger to her, so much so that You Ran felt as if she had never known him at all.

He stood on the step down the stairs, so that he could look You Ran in the eye.

"Don't worry, nothing happened between us last night," Gu Chengyuan said. "I was originally planning to take your virginity and then tell you the truth. That would have been more bloody and more fun... But at the last moment, I couldn't go through with it. Do you know why?"

You Ran didn't answer because she could no longer understand what Gu Chengyuan was saying.

She couldn't understand a word.

“Because I hate you, I hate you so much that even touching you makes me feel disgusted.” Gu Chengyuan said slowly, every word dripping with venom: “Remember when I told you last time that I never considered you my sister? That’s true, because… from the first moment I saw you, I considered you my enemy, the one who took everything from me, the one who wanted to make up for my pain.”

“I don’t understand,” You Ran shook her head. “Brother, why did you do this? What did I do wrong? I don’t understand.”

"Because you were born, you took everything from me. It's because of you and your father that our family was destroyed." Gu Chengyuan reached out and gently tucked a strand of hair behind You Ran's ear. The gesture was gentle, but his words were chilling: "Your fault lies in your very existence... You Ran, why were you born?"