Gu Qiwu slowly stopped what he was doing as he looked up at the silent Qi Qiming with a very calm gaze.
“Are you planning on just staying in City Z? Hasn’t your thing with Doris ended? The project collaboration here is on track too.” Qi Qiming watched Gu Qiwu silently and picked up his drink.
“The thing’s been done with, but another’s just begun, so how can I just leave?” Gu Qiwu did not hide anything as he spoke. Then, he could not help but lower his head gloomily to look at the drink before him.
Qi Qiming obviously knew what Gu Qiwu meant. His matter with Mu Zi had caused quite a ruckus before. In fact, he did not doubt that Gu Qiwu and Mu Lingshi were related.
Ever since Mu Zi’s incident, the Mu family and the Qi family’s relationship was also…much more stifled after Lingtian’s incident.
“It might not have been a bad thing for you to not turn up, but I can’t help you. I never thought you’d do that to Zixi!” When Qi Qiming said this, there was an indescribable pain in his eyes too. A mistiness gathered there like he was trying to recollect something, and a pang of sadness could be felt from him.
“I should’ve been able to detect Zixi’s feelings for you years ago. I just didn’t look into it. I just thought she felt the same way about you as she did with me—good buddies. But I didn’t quite want to believe that you’d be the person who played her and caused her that tragic ending…All these years, have you ever had a clear conscience?” Qi Qiming’s words were filled with an unhappy questioning. Perhaps because he did not quite have a right to question him, his tone became gentler, yet even so, he could not hide the anger in his eyes.
Upon hearing Qi Qiming say that, Gu Qiwu paused with his drink in hand. He looked up at Qi Qiming, and then lowered his gaze again. As he watched the swaying drink in his glass, he fell silent for a moment, then his lowered voice was heard saying, “I admit I did let Zixi down when we were younger. Not everything I did might have been right. My mistakes let her down. I’ve always admitted that, and I don’t want to explain anything.”
A trace of regret flashed on the corner of Gu Qiwu’s lips as he sighed deeply and frowned before emptying his glass.
Qi Qiming stared at him coldly. “Do you think your few sentences of explanation can bring Zixi back?”
“I know how you feel about her. If it weren’t for me, I’m sure that Zixi would’ve married you in the end. You’ve always liked her, haven’t you?”
Gu Qiwu’s voice was calm, yet when you listened closely, you could sense that bitterness in between his words.
When he heard that, Qi Qiming was stunned for a moment, then he laughed coldly, not hiding from Gu Qiwu’s questioning gaze. “I do admit that I did quite like Zixi back then. If she had been willing to marry me, I would’ve been happy to marry her, but I didn’t love her. I’ve always seen her as a younger sister. There are many things that we understood between us, but regrettably, she hid this matter about you and her too.”
“Oh? You didn’t love her too?” Gu Qiwu squinted as if he was shocked to hear Qi Qiming’s words. He thought about it, then continued, “Love between siblings? Who did you love then? Qi Feng’s mother? Lu Xinlan? Your mistress, Gao Lanlan? Kong Xiner? Or your first wife, Wang Qin?”
In the face of Gu Qiwu’s questions, Qi Qiming was dazed as he did not quite have an answer.
Qi Feng’s mother?
That woman with a sweet smile? If Gu Qiwu had not brought her up, he would have forgotten about this person.
“You’re different from me, Qiming! Even though I did let Zixi down, at least, I think I did like her while you…women are probably just a pastime to you. As someone who’s never put in real feelings, you don’t have a right to criticize me.” Gu Qiwu’s voice turned cold.
“I’m talking about Zixi’s matter with you right now. There’s no need to drag me into this. Besides, how do you know I’ve never put in real feelings?” Qi Qiming looked cold as he refuted Gu Qiwu, crossed by his speculation. “It’s true that you let Zixi down. Right now, you don’t have a chance to make it up for it anymore! She’s dead, so what’s the use of talking about letting her down now?”
Qi Qiming had complicated feelings about this, especially about his attitude towards Mu Lingshi.
Gu Lingsha was now the daughter-in-law of the Qi family and Qi Feng’s woman. He obviously hoped that Gu Qiwu could be on Gu Lingsha’s side, but when he thought about this, he felt guilty towards Mu Lingshi.
Mu Lingtian had already been sacrificed. If Mu Zi knew this, she would be…
As Gu Qiwu’s gaze darkened, he poured himself another drink and swallowed it as he said, “I didn’t ask you out to talk about Zixi today. I want to talk about your two sons, Qi Feng and Qi Lei.”
When he said that, Qi Qiming was surprised. He looked warily at Gu Qiwu. “What do you mean?”
“You don’t have to be so shocked. Talk about Qi Lei’s disappearance has been going around. Half a month has passed, and there’s been no news at all. Aren’t you worried? In fact, Mu Lingmo also went missing with him, and he’s technically my son-in-law too,” Gu Qiwu said with a lowered voice. There seemed to be a hint of concern there.
Now, Qi Qiming’s sharp and vigilant gaze darkened slightly.
Yes, half a month had passed! There had been no news at all!
He only found out from the investigation on Mu Yuchen’s side that their traces suddenly stopped at a certain location, and right now, they could not find them!
So many days had passed, and Qi Qiming was becoming more and more anxious. He was very unhappy with Qi Feng’s efficiency. Helplessly, he added more manpower and pressured the police. Regardless, in a sea of people within this vast world, trying to look for someone was like looking for a needle in the haystack!
Thus, after many days of worrying, Qi Qiming seemed a little wan and sallow from fatigue. It had been tough for him. As the days passed, the uneasiness and fear he felt grew with each fleeting day too!
Was Qi Lei fine?
How was he right now?
He would not have just left so suddenly like his mother, Wang Qin, would he?