Chapter 431: Chapter 431

Mist rose before her eyes, gradually blurring her vision. She lowered her head and gently wiped the corners of her eyes, cursing herself for being so useless.

In such a situation, she should have held her head high, puffed out her chest, and left with pride. Instead, now she could only skulk here in defeat.

How had she become so inept? She used to fear nothing...

Tears still wouldn’t stop falling. Ling Chuxia wiped away her tears, cursing herself, and before long, her curses even extended to Shi Che. After all, they had grown up together, had been buddies, and he had her help with love letters, fights, and taking the blame.

Yet he was so ruthless, so heartless to her. Even if it was because his elder sister disliked her, she had worked so hard these past three years to help her sister secure this position. Now that he could finally be with his elder sister again, why did he insist on sending her away?

The more Ling Chuxia thought about it, the angrier she got, so much so that she wanted to burst out and demand an explanation from him.

But in the end, her feet felt as if they were nailed to the ground, unable to move. At last, she could only watch with wide eyes as Old Zhu drove up and Shi Che stepped towards the car.

Just as he was about to get in, his steps momentarily faltered, as if sensing something, his dark pupils staring straight toward the shrubbery.

Ling Chuxia was in the midst of bitter resentment when Shi Che suddenly looked over, sending a chill down her spine, and she quickly retracted her head.

When Shi Che looked over, there was nothing by the shrubbery. His eyes narrowed slightly, a trace of confusion fleeting across them. He had just felt... Chuxia’s gaze.

But in a flash, he shook his head. Was he missing Chuxia too much? How could she be here? She should be... sleeping in her hospital room by now, shouldn’t she?

He steadied himself, turned his head, stepped into the car, and Old Zhu closed the backseat door, quickly returned to the driver’s seat, started the car, and left.

Only then did Ling Chuxia slowly poke her head out, watching the car disappear from her sight.

The day grew brighter, and the sun’s warmth spread over the earth. Ling Chuxia walked out of the hospital, stood at the crossroads, looking at the roads extending in every direction, watching the street bustle with activity. She stood there, lost and unsure of where to go.

Because she had no home to return to...

She remembered how Shi Che would go days without returning to the villa, yet she always stayed there. Even if she went out, she’d return as soon as she could. She once thought she was just waiting for Shi Che, in case he returned home. Now she realized that she had come to think of that place as home, because she had none, and that’s why she clung to it.

Before leaving, she still wanted to take a last look.

After all, Che was at the office, Sister Hua was at the hospital, and no one would be home if she returned. Just let her say a proper goodbye.

Ling Chuxia took a deep breath, extended her hand, and hailed a taxi.

Once she stepped into the villa, Ling Chuxia’s pace involuntarily slowed down. She walked slowly, looked around, until she got back to her bedroom.

Everything in the bedroom was just as it had been the day she left home, with nothing changed. She stared blankly ahead, and tears, unforeseen, fell.

Perhaps she had been too absorbed earlier to hear anything, for it was only at the moment her tears fell that she heard the sound of a door opening behind her.