Standing Next To You-Chapter 423: Defying Fate

Is he saying that because she and Fei Chuan liked each other and had feelings for each other, that Fei Chuan’s illness was getting worse?

Bei Sangyun couldn’t remember if Fei Chuan had suffered from this illness at this point in his life. She could only recall the time when Fei Chuan was absent for a long period due to his broken leg. As for the other matters, she had no idea.

She didn’t know if this illness, which had relapsed this time, would go away and if Fei Chuan would recover as he had in the past. Or if it had returned now only because they had fallen in love and formed an intimate relationship, as the great monk had said—unlike in their past lifetime.

If the latter was the reason, Bei Sangyun had no idea what to do. She didn’t want to believe it, nor could she accept it.

The great monk’s answer didn’t help at all.

Bei Sangyun’s gaze turned cold.

"Are you asking me to abandon him? To leave him just like Head Master Fei did to Fei Chuan fourteen years ago?"

Just the thought of leaving Fei Chuan, following in Head Master Fei’s footsteps, made Bei Sangyun’s blood boil.

"You have no idea what Fei Chuan felt after his own family abandoned him, do you? It wasn’t the illness that hurt him the most; it was the thought of his own family giving up on him, leaving him in that strange place all alone without anyone visiting him. As if the whole world had forgotten him. And now, you’re asking me to hurt him all over again after he’s managed to pick himself up and move on?"

Bei Sangyun clenched her fists. "...I can’t do that. There’s no way I’ll leave him. If I have to break this cursed fate, then so be it. You can tell the heavens to fuck off. They can give that damn dragon fate to someone else. We won’t be walking that path."

Bei Sangyun was so angry that she stormed out of the temple.

But despite the raging anger in her heart and the bold words she left with the great monk, she felt utterly defeated.

If that was the only answer the great monk could give, what other options did she have?

What would happen to Fei Chuan now?

She... had no answers. She was helpless.

She had seen the great monk as a lifeline, something to grasp before falling off the cliff. But after learning that lifeline was actually a poisonous barbed wire, Bei Sangyun didn’t dare to reach for it.

She was left feeling more devastated than before she met him.

Climbing down was much faster than climbing up. The sun had already set, and darkness surrounded Bei Sangyun. The only thing guiding her descent down the stairs was the moonlight.

The cold, the darkness, and the eerie sounds coming from all directions didn’t affect her. With so much on her mind, she was unaware of how much time had passed or how much her limbs were shaking from the effort of climbing up and down the mountain without rest.

When she finally came to her senses, she found herself at the foot of the mountain, and dawn had already arrived.

Butler Xin and the pilot were there, waiting for her.

Butler Xin had just received the call earlier and had rushed to this place. He had waited anxiously for hours before finally seeing Bei Sangyun emerge from the darkness.

He hurried to her and was shocked by her appearance. The hem of her clothes was stained with mud, her hair was slightly damp from the mountain dew, and her whole body was trembling from the cold.

He was about to ask why she was here and what had happened, but his gaze stopped at her face. The words he was about to speak caught in his throat.

Silently, he opened the door for her and handed her a jacket. During the helicopter ride back to the city, he remained silent.

How could he dare speak when he had seen such an expression on her face?

Another car was waiting for them at the helipad. Just before Bei Sangyun walked toward the car, Butler Xin finally spoke.

"...We might not have started well, and it may have seemed like you forced my loyalty. But I want you to know that, throughout the time I’ve worked for you, I’ve been sincere. Even now, I’ve become your devoted servant. I hope I can be the true personal butler you can rely on."

Bei Sangyun paused. Her blank gaze turned toward him, silently listening to his unexpected words.

"Please rest assured that I will take care of the company and handle the matters concerning the Lin family. As for whatever you have to face, I believe you will overcome it and emerge victorious, as you always have."

Butler Xin had no idea what could make his once confident and composed master bear such a look of defeat and despair—a look he hadn’t seen in a very long time.

But he hoped his words might offer some comfort.

Perhaps his words did have some effect. The dark expression on Bei Sangyun’s face slowly softened. She took a deep breath, trying to calm the chaotic thoughts in her mind.

"...Thank you. I’ll contact you again when I can. In the meantime, I’ll leave the rest to you."

Butler Xin gave her a deep bow.

Bei Sangyun entered the car, which then headed toward the villa.

....

A day had passed since Bei Sangyun visited the Fei family and climbed the mountain. When she arrived at the villa, it was already lunchtime.

Everyone was stunned by her disheveled appearance. She was still wearing the same clothes she had left in, and with how gaunt she looked, everyone was worried.

Fortunately, there was good news waiting for her.

"He woke up last night, but he was only conscious for a few minutes before falling asleep again," Grandma Pei said, her eyes brimming with happy tears. "Doctor Jang said that Fei Chuan is recovering now. He hasn’t coughed up blood since you left."

Bei Sangyun, who had felt as though she was drowning in a black ocean, seemed to have found a lifeline. The gloomy aura on her face finally began to lift.

"...I-is he really okay now?"

"We’re not sure yet. But Doctor Jang said that going a whole day without coughing up blood is a significant improvement. Fei Chuan has passed the most critical stage. Now, we just have to wait for him to regain his strength and wake up."

Tears started to well up in Bei Sangyun’s eyes. The suffocating feeling that had gripped her heart began to slip away.

"...Thank God... Thank God..." Her legs, exhausted from the day’s ordeals, gave out, and she slumped to the ground. Her tears continued to fall, blurring her vision. "...Thank God..."

She didn’t have to leave him. Those dragon’s fate or whatever it was—they weren’t real. None of it was real...

Grandma Pei cried as well. She knelt on the ground and hugged Bei Sangyun tightly. "Everything is okay now. You should rest and take care of yourself. Your grandmother is waiting for you upstairs."

Bei Sangyun nodded, hope brimming in her heart.

With the news of Fei Chuan’s improving condition, the turbulent waves in her heart and mind finally began to settle.

Grandma Bei and Grandma Pei took charge in the kitchen, cooking all of Bei Sangyun’s favorite dishes.

After a hearty meal, Bei Sangyun went to check on Fei Chuan.

She had wanted to see him immediately, but the two elderly women wouldn’t allow it until she had eaten and bathed properly.

Bei Sangyun gazed at Fei Chuan’s face. Just as Grandma Pei and Doctor Jang had said, he had visibly improved.

His brow was no longer furrowed. He was sleeping peacefully, free from pain.

Bei Sangyun gently held his thin hand. Though Fei Chuan was still pale, he looked much better than he had in the past few days. Perhaps it was because he was no longer coughing up blood.

She gripped his hand tightly. "...I was so scared, Fei Chuan. I thought I’d have no choice but to leave you... and I’m terrified that I even considered it, despite promising I’d never abandon you like those others did."

Bei Sangyun’s voice trembled. "...I-I’m so afraid that what he said is true... that in the end, you and I..." She choked, unable to finish the words, and slumped. "If that happens... I don’t know what I’ll do... I’m so scared, Fei Chuan."

She tried to hold back her tears. "...So please, wake up. Hug me. I miss you. I need you."

Perhaps because she had spent day and night frantically climbing the mountain and wrestling with her emotions, and finally hearing the words she had longed for all day, Bei Sangyun gradually fell asleep beside him.

But... she had underestimated the words of the great monk and the mysterious ways of heaven.