Xie Chi didn't know what possessed him to ask such a question.
But the moment the words left his lips, Mother Xie's body went rigid. She averted her gaze, almost instinctively.
"Why are you asking about her? What could possibly happen to her? If she isn't back, it's probably because she finally learned to behave. Have you forgotten how she..."
Her voice came to an abrupt halt. She glanced around nervously before lowering her voice to a hiss. "She pestered you shamelessly, nearly destroying your reputation and your future. It's better for everyone if she never comes back!"
"Xie Chi, forget about Jiang Ciyou. This wedding is of grave importance. Even the Commander is here in person. There can be no mistakes, do you understand?"
She denied it with such desperate urgency, as if she were terrified he would uncover the truth.
Xie Chi's Adam's apple bobbed. He closed his eyes for a moment, and in the end, he said only two words: "I understand."
He turned, phone in hand, and strode toward the door. Mother Xie grabbed his sleeve.
"You understand, yet where are you going?"
"The restroom." He lowered his head and brushed his mother's hand away.
The moment he left the room, he made a call immediately. The Order's intelligence network was faster and more reliable than any other organization's.
Minutes later, a file arrived—a preliminary casualty list from an international rescue organization, still under verification.
There were over twenty names on the list, but his eyes locked onto three specific words instantly.
Dr. Jiang Ciyou (Missing in Action)
Buzz—
A high-pitched ringing pierced his ears. His pupils constricted violently as he stared dead at that line of text.
It's a lie, isn't it? he thought.
Someone as selfish and malicious as Jiang Ciyou... someone who never considers others... would she really become a Doctor Without Borders?
But then, a photo of her wearing a white lab coat appeared before his eyes. He could no longer deny it.
It was Jiang Ciyou.
It was the woman who had tried to seduce him ninety-nine times, who had drugged him to climb into his bed, who had disregarded all ethics and morals.
Outside, the midsummer cicadas screamed deafeningly, yet he felt no warmth. He felt as though every drop of blood in his body had turned to ice.
When did she become a Doctor Without Borders? Why did she never tell me?
Why, when she has been missing for half a month, did the people I sent to watch her say she was still in Italy?
Countless questions flooded his mind in an instant. Black spots danced in his vision as he strode back toward the lounge.
Bang!
The heavy doors were shoved open from the outside. Xie Chi faced his mother, his expression as cold as frost.
Several believers and guests ran over at the noise. Mother Xie's face twisted as she scolded him sharply, "What are you doing? The ceremony is about to start!"
"Ceremony?" Xie Chi repeated the word in a low voice.
He turned to face his mother and the elders gathered there. The gentle, refined elegance he usually wore was gone, replaced by a calm that was freezing to the touch.
"I have one question."
His voice was deep. His gaze slowly swept over Mother Xie's face, which was struggling to maintain composure, and then over his comrades, whose eyes were darting away in guilt.
"Did you all know already? Did you know Jiang Ciyou was in trouble? Did you know her name... was on that missing persons list?"
The silence was the loudest answer.
Xie Chi felt his mind go blank. The emotions he had tried so hard to suppress crashed over him like a landslide.
His eyes reddened, and he questioned his mother like a madman. "Why didn't you tell me? Why!"
For the first time in his life, under the watchful eyes of everyone, he lost his composure completely.
A heavy atmosphere spread through the small lounge. After a long time, Mother Xie took a deep breath, as if making a difficult decision.
"Everyone, please leave first. Let me talk to him."
Everyone filed out, and soon, only he and Mother Xie remained in the room.
The heavy doors clicked shut behind them. Xie Chi stood with red-rimmed eyes, breathing raggedly. "What else do you have to say?"
Sitting in her wheelchair, Mother Xie spoke, her voice choked with tears. "Xiao Chi, Mom did this for your own good."
"Even if you knew, what could you do? Abandon the wedding? Abandon the Commander to go find her? She is just your student. She harbored evil intentions toward you before. If you left, what would people think of you?"
"They would think you are a sinner. That you deserve to die. All your past efforts and achievements would be erased... I couldn't watch you be dragged down to hell by her."
"Xiao Chi, you told me yourself. She is your student. In this life, she will only ever be your student."
She spoke slowly, every word heavy, sawing back and forth across Xie Chi's heart like a dull knife.
"Calm down. Finish the wedding properly..." Mother Xie reached out to smooth the wrinkles on his suit.
Blood from his palm dripped down the broken medal, drop by drop.
He looked at the blood on the floor, remembering the day Jiang Ciyou left. The chair she had sat on had been almost soaked in blood.
Yet she hadn't made a sound.
Just like when he had first brought her home—she bore everything in silence.
Had she already decided back then to live a life hanging by a thread? Had she already decided that he would abandon her no matter what?
Xie Chi didn't want to endure it anymore.
He pushed his mother's hand away, enunciating every word clearly.
"The wedding is canceled."
"I promised her," he heard his own voice say, calm to the point of being terrifying. "I would protect her for a lifetime. How can I break my oath?"