Rebirth: Different Way [(重生) 殊途]

Chapter 34

Once again, Shen Xi had a nightmare.

This time the dream was no longer about the night when he was eighteen in his previous life, but about the day his mother died when he was much younger.

Shen Xi remembered that it was a rainy day, and although it was midday, the sky was as dark as at night. His father hadn't been home for several days, and Shen Ji and Shen Cheng had been taken to the Li family by their aunt, leaving him and his mother alone in the entire Shen household.

His mother seemed to be in a bad mood for a few days, her face was pale and she often sat alone in a daze. After the housekeeper informed his mother that his father was coming back at noon, Shen Xi saw his mother throw everything in the room in annoyance.

At noon that day, Shen Xi was sent by his mother to take an early nap, but he couldn't sleep and was bored holding his bear and playing adventure games alone. Soon afterwards, his father returned and he and his mother had the most violent argument they had ever had. The servants all stayed away and Shen Xi was so scared that he hid behind the stairs with his bear. He heard his mother's voice getting quieter and quieter until it finally became a plea, but his father was still very angry and scolded his mother severely. Finally, his father returned to his study in a rage, leaving his mother alone in the corridor, lost in thought.

Shen Xi didn't understand what they were arguing about. He just ran over to comfort his mother, who didn't say anything, looked at Shen Xi blankly and smiled, and gently kissed him on the forehead. Shen Xi would always remember the feeling of his mother's lips on his forehead, cold and without a trace of life. After his mother kissed him, she took his hand and led him back to his room, then turned and left. Shen Xi watched his mother's back as she walked away.

Not long after, there was the sound of something heavy falling to the ground in the courtyard, accompanied by the screams of the servants. Shen Xi curiously climbed up to the window and looked down. His mother was lying in the courtyard covered in blood, the cold rain beating down on her body, and Shen Xi's eyes were dazzled with red.

Shen Xi stayed frozen at the window, looking at his mother's body until his grandfather received the news and rushed over. Only then did a servant notice that something was wrong.

After that day, Shen Xi fell so ill that he did not even make it to his mother's funeral. Perhaps because the shock was so great, the little Shen Xi forgot what he had seen. It was only when he drove his car into Tian Wenyao, with his eyes full of bright red, that he remembered that afternoon once again.

Since then, for fifteen years, these two nightmares had been a presence that Shen Xi could not shake off.

Struggling to open his eyes, Shen Xi sat up with a gasp. It was just past 3am, still three hours before dawn. Shen Xi did not feel like sleeping anymore and sat in the darkness, hugging the blanket, until it was light outside. Then Shen Xi tiredly lay back down and tried to nap some more.

When the phone rang, Shen Xi was sleeping very restlessly, and the constant ringing completely awakened him.

"Hello!" Shen Xi said in a low voice. His whole body was devoid of energy and he just wanted to go back to sleep.

"Shen Xi?" There was an unfamiliar voice on the phone, tinged with a hint of uncertainty.

Shen Xi rubbed his forehead, "It's me, who is this?"

The other party seemed to be thinking of the wording, "I'm Lu Gesen, I want to see you."

"Lu Gesen?" Shen Xi's mind snapped awake, his drowsiness immediately disappearing. Thinking of what Lao K said, Shen Xi said quietly, "Who is Lu Gesen? I don't seem to know you."