Reborn to Redeem: Their Abusive Love-Chapter 115: No rules
The velvet texture of the roses was so deep red that it bordered on black. Petals scattered across the vast courtyard, slightly singed and curled just right, lending a sophisticated, romantic, and lingering mystery to the night.
They drove all the way to a secluded corner of the villa grounds.
Even Xu Si, accustomed to grand scenes, was momentarily dazzled.
Fireworks and roses strewn across the ground—either would seem cliché on its own. But together on a rainy night, amidst thick fog, they burst into life with a startling beauty.
"Your invitation came so suddenly, I only had enough time to book the nearby Rose Manor and fireworks stall," Pei Zhen said. "Hong Kong Island has too many rules; next time, come to the Underground City. Anything you want, I can give to you anytime."
Pei Zhen didn’t share how he felt today, overseeing the surprise preparations while frantically searching for his lost love.
His voice was hollow, yet laced with a burgeoning desire.
He was strikingly beautiful, his silver-white hair illuminated by the relentless fireworks overhead.
Xu Si’s eyes shimmered as she gazed at the blooming roses. Then, lowering her gaze, she hesitated before hooking her arms around Pei Zhen’s shoulders and pulling herself close against his body.
"Thank you. I like it very much," she said.
In that second, more fireworks burst into the dark sky, erupting incessantly.
An entire universe of stars seemed to appear above Hong Kong Island, and the scent of roses was so sweet it was almost cloying.
She wanted to laugh again.
Her rosy lips curled high, yet her smile was devoid of joy.
She suddenly found the world absurd and indulgent; the heavens were too cruel to Pei Zhen. Her affection was superficial, far less than his for her.
More cruelly, she was especially adept at exploiting this, greedily seeking the power he held.
She also wanted to try to fall in love with him.
But she was certain that she inherited the base nature from her father’s tainted genes, always putting self-interest first, her heart a barren wasteland, incapable of truly loving someone unreservedly.
Isn’t it... unfair? But where is there fairness in this world?
That night, the fireworks continued for a long time, as if all the city’s fireworks had gathered around the Xu Mansion, never ceasing.
Xu Si led Pei Zhen by the hem of his clothes to the kitchen. She took out the peach-filled pastries, already cool. Xu Si fed him a piece and bit into another herself; the rich peach filling melted like a layer of nectar, its lasting aroma filling the entire mansion.
After thinking for a moment, she also went to the piano and played a piece for him.
She had been trained as an heiress since childhood.
This was a required skill.
The fireworks illuminated everything. There was no need for lights in the Xu Mansion; the shifting glow and shadows created a hazy, dreamlike atmosphere.
Xu Si’s white camisole dress covered her ankles. Her fair, glowing arms were exposed, her fingertips dancing on the piano keys. Her vibrant features, tender lips, and dewy peach-blossom eyes—all combined to form an exquisitely sensuous portrait that made the heart of any onlooker race.
Pei Zhen, now in clothes brought by his men, leaned against her piano. His long fingertips occasionally strayed onto the keys, producing a few soft notes.
When the fireworks finally extinguished, Xu Si stood up, lightly kissed his cheek, rested her hand on his shoulder, and murmured, "Azhen, I want to make a trip to the Underground City. Could you lend me a long gun and some men?"
Clearly, she was on the move again for what she saw as her interests.
"What a pity, your kisses always have ulterior motives. What is it for this time?" Pei Zhen mumbled, his voice hoarse with a hint of laughter, his silky silver hair entwined with her dark strands, swaying in the pitch-black night.
He claimed her lips in a kiss that seemed to devour and plunder.
"So be it. I’ll grant your request."
Xu Si closed her eyes, as if descending into the deep, dark blue sea of the Underground City.
He knew everything.
「—」
The kiss lasted far too long.
Only when a burst of bright light shone into the courtyard from a great distance, accompanied by several car honks—BEEP, BEEP, BEEP—did they part.
Xu Si was panting softly. Composing herself, she calmly wiped her red lips and said, her voice trembling slightly, "Someone’s here. I’ll go have a look."
Having said that, she stepped into her soft shoes, donned a coat, and walked out with light steps. The cold wind swept away the flush of desire from her face, vanishing completely. In the cool glint of her eyes, only vigilance and a restless agitation remained.
At this time, during this festival, she couldn’t think of anyone who would come to the Xu Mansion to find her. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝚠𝚎𝚋𝗻𝗼𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝚘𝐦
Following the road to the outside of the courtyard, she had dismissed the bodyguards. Now, only the roses blooming along the path exuded their subtle fragrance.
The headlights flickered. She saw several cars parked at the gate.
Several middle-aged men in black suits, each with a white carnation pinned to his lapel, stood there. They surveyed Xu Si with displeased expressions, their tone extremely sharp.
"Miss Xu, it’s your father’s memorial day, and you’re setting off fireworks at the Xu Mansion to celebrate. Isn’t that against the rules?"
It was the people from the memorial service. Xu Si understood.
It seemed the grand firework display had attracted them, and they had come to call her to account.
No doubt, her third uncle’s instigation was behind this.
Xu Si casually scanned the crowd but didn’t spot her third uncle among them.
Indeed, just like before, disgustingly astute.
Xu Si tightened her coat and said with a half-smile, "I do as I please. What’s it to you?"
The atmosphere instantly turned icy.
They hadn’t expected Xu Si to show them no deference at all, even upon meeting.
Those men clenched their teeth. "Give us Xu Sheng’s remaining ashes. We will place them on the altar at the memorial service to ensure they are safe and properly honored. Miss Xu, don’t tell us you don’t have them. Everyone in Hong Kong Island knows you kept half. Seeing you like this, we don’t believe you will treat Xu Sheng’s remains with due respect."
"Now you’re really pushing your luck." Xu Si glanced at the smoke-filled sky, then turned back to them. "To be frank," she said bluntly, "if you weren’t old acquaintances of my father, you wouldn’t even be qualified to set foot here. I’m rather busy. Will you see yourselves out, or do I need to have someone help you?"
They were all prominent figures, and no one wanted to make the situation uglier than it had to be. But in their eyes, Xu Si was truly behaving outrageously. They had received great kindness from Xu Sheng in the past and couldn’t bear to see him treated so wretchedly even after his death.
The urge to rush in and find the ashes welled up within them.
After a brief discussion, they whispered a few words to their bodyguards, then stood back with their hands clasped behind them, ready to watch the unfolding drama.
One of the bodyguards, a rough, gangster-like fellow, suddenly lunged forward. He began to slam his shoulder against the Xu Family’s main gate, evidently having been paid well enough to act as the scapegoat for this particular move.
Coldness filled Xu Si’s eyes. "What, are you planning to barge into my home?"
An old man leaning on a cane stepped forward, his expression icy. "We don’t intend to harm you. We just want Xu Sheng’s ashes. Either you hand them over, or we’re coming in to get them."
"Who knows what you intend to take? What if you steal confidential documents from my company? Who will compensate me for that loss? If you dare to set foot inside, I’ll make sure none of you leave walking."
Xu Si stared them down, her gaze intense and fearless. She was about to turn back to call the police and recall her dismissed bodyguards.
Suddenly, gunshots sounded from outside the gate.
The shots didn’t hit anyone, but they struck the tires of several cars, which exploded with loud bangs as alarms blared.
"Who’s back there!"
"Take cover! We’re under attack!"
Faced with a deadly threat, even the hired ruffians didn’t dare move. They pressed close to the middle-aged men, cowering behind the cars, heads down, frantically scanning their surroundings.
The scene was chaotic for a moment.
The sequelae of Xu Si’s rebirth had lessened. Hearing the gunshots, she only experienced a momentary ringing in her ears and made no other movement.
She stood behind the gate, took a deep breath, and tried to remain calm and collected. Looking back towards the villa, her brow furrowed.
These days, plenty of people dared to fire guns openly. But anyone who fired four or five shots and didn’t immediately flee was almost certainly one of Pei Zhen’s men. Fortunately, no one had been hit; otherwise, today would have become a real mess.
But... if the Triad Society people arrived, her reputation for being involved with the criminal underworld would be impossible to erase. That would still be a huge problem.
