She had no choice but to call his name, but the man paid her no heed and continued to kiss her of his own accord.
"Tell me, what do you want?"
She could barely speak, took a deep breath, and with a hoarse voice she spat out a word.
"Good girl, I’ll let you off this time!"
He whispered low, Huangfu Jue pressed his lips against hers again, his body heavily bearing down, covering her beneath him.
The black car slowly drove through the bustling city streets, stopping in front of Duke Locke’s residence.
The assistant got out and opened the car door, Qian Xueying did not get out, but turned her face to look at Moses sitting beside her.
"Mr. Moses, would you like to come in for a cup of coffee?"
The man sat in the back seat in silence for a moment. Just as Qian Xueying was about to step out of the car, the man in the darkness suddenly spoke again.
"Miss Xueying, have you ever been in love?"
Qian Xueying turned back around, "I had a relationship once in high school."
"After that," Qian Xueying’s gaze darkened, "there was no after that."
Moses turned to her, "Why?"
Qian Xueying took a light breath, her tone indifferent as if narrating someone else’s story, "Because... a great tragedy befell my family. I had to leave school and take a break from my studies, and he... got into a prestigious university."
Having said that, she lifted her head again to look at Moses.
"Would you like... to go for a drink together?"
Moses raised his eyebrows slightly.
So the assistant closed the car door again, and took the two of them to a roadside bar.
The two found a corner to sit down. Moses ordered the drinks, and the man and woman each drank at their table, minding their own business.
After three drinks, Qian Xueying’s cheeks were flushed with the color of alcohol, and she spoke not with her usual gentleness, but with a somewhat reckless tone.
"I know..." She held the cup, squinting her eyes at Moses across her, "Gan Yuan is the Gaia you’ve been searching for. Gan Yuan... Gaia... It’s always been one name... I should’ve realized it sooner... Moses, you like her, don’t you?"
Moses pushed her away with his hand, "I’m her brother."
"Ha..." Qian Xueying laughed softly, lazily leaning back against the sofa, "Brother? I don’t believe it..."
The Xueying in front of him grew distant, and the noisy sounds around him also began to fade away.
Once again, a face appeared before his eyes – it was the face of Gan Yuan; she clutched his arm tightly, calling his name with concern.
"Brother Moses, Brother Moses... don’t leave me, please don’t!"
That year, he was fifteen, fighting against six, and he suffered severe injuries, to the point even the doctor declared him as good as dead.
But he survived because she forbade him from leaving.
"I will never leave you!"
That was the first sentence he said upon waking up—to her.
"Come... cheers!" Qian Xueying extended her glass, "To... all that we’ve lost!"