"Besides, Lin Yuan is the eldest disciple of Master Wen Jing. Master even said personally that he's the reincarnated Living Buddha. How could he possibly be the lone and evil star?" Qu Jiaran fully agreed with this view. "Wouldn't that be a contradiction?"
"I told him I don't believe in such things and asked him not to use these superstitious excuses to reject me."
That was so Qu Jiaran.
Nan Yu felt a complex mix of emotions. It took her a while to speak. "But what if these are true..."
"If these are true, Lin Yuan might bring bad luck to me and cause my death, right?"
Qu Jiaran let out a laugh, as if she had guessed what Nan Yu was going to say next. "I said you're quite like Lin Yuan. He had the same concerns."
Given Tan Lin Yuan's rigorous way of doing things, he must have explained everything clearly to Qu Jiaran.
Nan Yu also knew that after the successive accidents in the Tan family, he blamed himself more than anyone else.
It was almost effortless for Nan Yu to recall that night when Tan Lin Yuan was sitting at the temple entrance, with his almost ethereal and cold emotions.
Did he ever fear his own fate? Maybe he did.
Compared to Nan Yu's solemnity, Qu Jiaran herself seemed more relaxed than ever. "I told him that even if it's true, so what? Anyway, I'm already not far from death."
"Rather than doing nothing, I might as well take a risk. Maybe I can turn my little bike into a motorcycle." After saying that, she grinned, her eyes curving into crescent moons.
"Moreover, given his current situation in the Chamber of Commerce, he needs my father's support. If he marries me, my dad will surely firmly support his good son - in - law."
Qu Gaolin was an old fox. He must be waiting to watch the fight between the two tigers, the old and the young.
But once his daughter married Tan Lin Yuan, as a father, whether he liked it or not, the balance in his heart would surely tilt towards Tan Lin Yuan.
"He can benefit from this marriage, and I can marry him as I wish. Isn't this a win - win situation? Then he agreed."
Nan Yu wanted to say it wasn't.
This was completely a one - sided victory for Tan Lin Yuan, while Qu Jiaran was taking all the risks.
Whether it was physically or in terms of her background.
After a long time, Nan Yu finally said, "But he's taking advantage of you."
Taking advantage of Qu Jiaran's feelings for him to gain Qu Gaolin's support.
"I know." Qu Jiaran blinked her eyes, her long eyelashes fluttering. "With my status, there are plenty of people who want to take advantage of me."
Everyone wanted to curry favor with the young lady of the Qu family.
No wonder Tan Lin Yuan had said to her angrily that day that no one in Jiangcheng dared to touch Qu Jiaran.
Qu Jiaran looked up at her and winked playfully. "Didn't you, Yu Yu, do the same before? You used me to get out of the marriage with the Shen family."
Nan Yu was taken aback.
Sure enough, Qu Jiaran knew everything.
She wasn't a naive and delicate young lady. Instead, she was someone who saw through everything but still pretended to be innocent.
In a way, she and Tan Lin Yuan were quite similar, Nan Yu thought.
It's just that one was scheming step by step, while the other did things as she pleased and only cared about being happy.
Qu Jiaran said sincerely, "Don't think too much. I was willing to help you. I'm really happy that I could help you."
"Besides, I really like Lin Yuan. You can't buy happiness with money. Anyway, if I marry him, I'll have no regrets in my heart."
The topic returned to Tan Lin Yuan and Qu Jiaran's marriage. Nan Yu was silent for a moment.
Qu Jiaran took the orange back from Nan Yu's hand, peeled a segment and put it into her mouth. Then she put the rest back into Nan Yu's palm.
"Suppose I die. He still has a long life ahead. If he finds someone new, marries another woman and has children, it has nothing to do with me, Yu Yu."
There was so much hidden meaning in this sentence.
Nan Yu lowered her eyes and stared at the remaining half of the orange in her hand.
...
After a while, the nurse came in through the door to give Qu Jiaran an intravenous drip, so Nan Yu proposed to leave.
Before leaving, Qu Jiaran was still lying on the hospital bed waving at her. "Yu Yu, come and visit me often. I'm so bored alone in the hospital."
After opening the door and going out, Qi Zhu was waiting outside.
Nan Yu recognized him as the bodyguard who usually followed Qu Jiaran and nodded slightly.
Qi Zhu suddenly said, "Miss Nan, could I have a word with you in private?"
Nan Yu followed Qi Zhu to the stairwell.
Qi Zhu said, "The young lady's illness is atrial septal defect."
Nan Yu was stunned and repeated, "Atrial septal defect... What does that mean?"
"Put simply, it's a congenital heart malformation."
Qi Zhu explained to Nan Yu, "As she gets older, it will gradually develop into heart failure, and her heart will stop beating."
Qu Jiaran's casual explanation just now was already enough to make her terrified. Now Qi Zhu's words made her heart tremble even more.
Qi Zhu said, "Last week, the young lady went to Jingbei and had a check - up with the most authoritative doctor in the country. The doctor predicted that she wouldn't live past thirty."
Thirty.
Nan Yu couldn't help blurting out, "Only... five years left to live?"
Qi Zhu gave a bitter smile. "That's just the doctor's best - case scenario. In fact, her condition has deteriorated recently. Maybe... she won't even make it to five years."
Not even five years.
Nan Yu felt a deep sense of helplessness. "Isn't there any way to treat it?"
"The doctor said they could try open - heart surgery, but he doesn't recommend it because the mortality rate is very high."
If she doesn't have the surgery, she might live for three to five years. If she has the surgery, she might not even survive the operation.
Not to mention the risk of infection during the postoperative recovery period and the body's rejection of the operation.
Nan Yu felt her throat go hoarse.
Only now did she clearly realize why Tan Lin Yuan had said that his marriage with Qu Jiaran was only temporary.
Because Qu Jiaran simply didn't have much time left.
"Sorry, Miss Nan." Qi Zhu apologized to Nan Yu. "I didn't step in to help that day in the bar. The young lady scolded me severely."
"I've realized my mistake now. Since Miss Nan is the young lady's best friend, I will surely take good care of you from now on."
Nan Yu was stunned.
Qu Jiaran told everyone that Nan Yu was her best friend, including her own bodyguard.
---
On the way back, Nan Yu's mind was in a complete mess.
All she could think about were the words Qu Jiaran and Qi Zhu had said to her, as well as the half - orange that was stuffed into her hand before she left.
She took a taxi back to Ye Nanwan.
Because she was preoccupied, Nan Yu didn't notice that the iron gate outside was open, and she walked straight in.
It was already evening, and the house was completely dark, without a single ray of light.
Nan Yu opened the door and groped for the switch at the entrance.
The moment the light came on, she caught a glimpse of a person sitting in the living room. Their eyes met exactly.
Nan Yu was so frightened that her heart tightened, and she exclaimed, "... What are you doing here?"
On the sofa, Tan Lin Yuan was wearing a light - gray thin sweater, and his coat was placed beside him.
His expression was cold and lonely, showing no emotion at all.
It was only when he saw that she was scared that the corners of his lips couldn't help but show a bit of a smile. "What are you afraid of?"
Nan Yu looked at him. Her heart was still beating very fast due to the shock. "Uncle Tan has the key to my house?"
She regretted asking that right after she said it.
This villa was bought and decorated by him personally. It was only natural that he had a spare key.
So she changed the question. "Why are you here at this late hour, Uncle Tan?"