The moment the plane landed in Fucheng, looking at the plants and trees outside the window, Wen Baozhu still felt a sense of unreality.
She had thought that it was impossible for her to come back in the short term.
But unexpectedly, it was so easy.
On the plane, she even imagined countless possibilities: the plane might make a temporary stop, the flight might be postponed due to the weather, or Fu Lian might suddenly rush out and take her away.
None of the things she was worried about happened.
After all, Fucheng was a small city. After the plane landed, she still had to transfer to a direct coach bound for Fucheng.
Actually, she could take a long - distance taxi directly, but the drivers in small places generally only accepted cash, and Wen Baozhu had left in a hurry and didn't have time to exchange for cash.
The little Hong Kong dollars she had on hand were completely useless in the mainland.
So she had to wait at the station for the coach that came every two hours.
The coach was crowded with people. Everyone was carrying big and small bags of luggage. It seemed that they were all about to leave their hometowns to work.
In Hong Kong, the big shots indulged in pleasure and were obsessed with material desires; in Fucheng, the little people were busy working hard to support their families.
The disparity in this world was originally cruel and grand.
After the non - stop journey all the way, her lower abdomen began to ache faintly.
Wen Baozhu had a premonition that she should be bleeding again.
But the frequency of bleeding had been too high recently, and she was already used to it.
After going to the bathroom to change a sanitary pad, she came out and sat on the bench waiting for the bus.
She deliberately found a relatively less - crowded place. While waiting for the bus, she called Zhang Sumei.
She didn't know why, but recently when she called Zhang Sumei, there was always no answer.
Sometimes they would exchange a few greetings and then Zhang Sumei would hang up in a hurry.
This was very suspicious.
This call was the same as before. Once again, there was no answer.
Wen Baozhu lowered her eyelashes, and her hand tightened around the phone bit by bit.
For some unknown reason, her heart kept sinking, as if it would never reach the bottom.
She hung her head low, and her eyes were fixed on the ground.
It wasn't until a pair of thin - soled genuine leather shoes that were usually walked on carpets and completely unsuitable for this dusty ground appeared in her sight that Wen Baozhu slowly looked up.
She had a premonition. Slowly squinting against the light, her sight gradually moved up to the man standing in front of her.
The moment she recognized the cold and hard outline of his features, her pupils suddenly constricted in fright, and her heart skipped a beat.
It was Fu Lian.
She clearly saw the unfathomable coldness in his eyes and his usual condescending attitude of looking down on everything.
It was as if he was peering at an ant.
“... Mr. Fu.”
Fu Lian squinted his eyes. Recognizing the disbelief and panic in her eyes, he sneered mockingly, “Surprised to see me?”
“No.” Wen Baozhu's eyelashes trembled slightly as she whispered in denial.
She had never expected to be able to completely hide from him. She had also anticipated in advance that he would suddenly appear out of nowhere and then take her back to Hong Kong without any explanation.
She just didn't expect that he could act so quickly.
She couldn't help but feel unwilling.
Seeing the coach she was about to take pulling into the station, she tightly grasped the strap of her bag and pursed her lips.
“Still planning to run?” Fu Lian's eyebrows were cold, showing a haughty and arrogant attitude. It seemed that he already knew what she was going to do next.
Wen Baozhu's breath caught in her throat.
She felt the pain in her lower abdomen intensify. It was as if something was tearing or as if she was falling.
She gritted her teeth and still stared directly into his eyes.
“I haven't heard from my grandma. I'm really worried.”
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the bus attendant shouting loudly to ask if there was anyone else getting on the bus. She took a deep breath and summoned all her courage. “Just this once. Let me go back and see my grandma, okay?”
Fu Lian's face remained expressionless. Looking at her making a request without any bargaining chips, he squinted his eyes slightly.
Having been in the hospital recently, the woman in front of him looked thinner than before.
She had fled in such a hurry that there was dust on her clothes. Only her fair face showed pleading.
But she wasn't humble. There was still a trace of determination and rebelliousness left.
She didn't plan to explain or apologize for her escape. Instead, she directly made a request.
At this moment, she should have curried favor with him and begged him to calm down. How dare she be so bold as to make a request to him?
She was really stupid.
“Wen Baozhu, do you have it all wrong?”
His voice was cold. “You were the one who disobeyed first. Who allowed you to leave Hong Kong alone?”
“You violated our agreement.”
A chill ran down Wen Baozhu's back.
His expression was indifferent. Like a judge, he counted her crimes one by one. “According to the agreement, you have no right to return to Hong Kong, and you are not qualified to come back to visit your relatives without my approval.”
His eyes were deep. “Wen Baozhu, there's a price to pay for breaking the contract.”
In such a calm tone, he quietly delivered the final verdict to her.
No.
No for her to return to Fucheng, and definitely no for her to go back to see her grandma now.
But she was just one step away.
Was all her effort going to end in failure?
She had already accepted such a fate long ago, but when that invisible thread tightened around her throat again, she still resisted for a moment.
If she weren't under someone else's control, who would be willing to be a marionette?
She took a deep breath. Under the man's gloomy gaze, it seemed that she was finally making a compromise. “I understand.”
She lowered her eyebrows, avoiding Fu Lian's gaze. Suddenly, taking advantage of his unpreparedness, she took a big step and rushed towards the coach.
Fu Lian was stunned. Turning his head, he only saw her running towards the still - not - fully - closed coach door.
However, after only running a few steps, her feet seemed to be stepping on cotton, and her body suddenly started to fall.
Wen Baozhu didn't know what had happened. Maybe she had exerted too much force, or maybe she was physically exhausted. Suddenly, her vision went black—
But there was no pain of a collision. Instead, a pair of big hands caught her steadily, and she fell into the familiar and intimidating embrace with the cold woody fragrance.
...
In the end, Wen Baozhu still didn't manage to get on that coach.
She fainted due to blood loss and over - fatigue and was directly taken to a local hospital by Fu Lian.
After the doctor's examination, his brows were knitted into a deep frown. “High - risk pregnancy?”
Fu Lian looked down at Wen Baozhu and only let out a low “hmm”.
From his reaction, the doctor could tell that this extraordinary - looking man should know the woman's physical condition very well, so the doctor didn't say much. He prescribed some medicine and told him to take the patient back for rest.
Given Wen Baozhu's current condition, it was definitely not possible to fly back to Hong Kong. So Fu Lian had to book a hotel nearby and decided to stay there for a while.
They would return to Hong Kong after her condition improved.
Wen Baozhu had another nightmare.
In the dream, she was caught by the furious Fu Lian and taken back to Hong Kong. He threw her into a huge and exquisite cage. Through the cold steel bars, he stared at her intently.
She was so scared that she curled up into a ball. She wanted to call for help but couldn't make a sound. She touched her vocal cords, and her eyes were full of panic.
She stared blankly ahead. She wanted to take a step forward to plead, but the cold touch made her look down. There was a thick iron chain around her ankle.
In the dream, Fu Lian smiled at her and said, “The quietest birds are the best, aren't they?”
She was so scared that she opened her eyes instantly.
What came into view was neither a cage, nor the villa in Hong Kong, nor a ward full of the smell of disinfectant.
It was a completely strange environment. Judging from the decoration, it should be a hotel.
The hotel was booked temporarily. The environment and area were relatively small. It was not as good as the suites Fu Lian usually stayed in on business trips. It looked a bit shabby.
She turned her head blankly and saw the man sitting at the end of the bed.
The man was tall and long - legged. Sitting on the only chair in the room, his back was tightly against the backrest. He stared at her with deep eyes, and his emotions were hard to read.
The face in the dream overlapped with the real one again. Wen Baozhu subconsciously tensed up.
The fear that flashed in her eyes instinctively made Fu Lian's eyes darken.
“Did you have a nightmare?”
How dare Wen Baozhu tell him about her dream.
She just pretended to be calm and asked hoarsely, “Where is this?”
The man's gaze was unwavering. His indifferent sight passed over her face, and his tone was leisurely. “Where do you wish it to be?”
Wen Baozhu didn't know, but she was sure that this wasn't Hong Kong.
Otherwise, Fu Lian wouldn't have deigned to come here.
“It's a pity that I couldn't take you straight back to Hong Kong.”
“Wen Baozhu, you've really grown bold.”
His eyes were fixed on her face. He hooked his lips, and suddenly an extremely absurd but easy - to - implement idea popped into his mind.
“Since you're so good at running, I really should find a cage to lock you up.”