BOLD ITALIC illustrates Yibo's subconscious mind, where he engages in conversations with his late grandfather, Lan Xie Yun.
Yibo woke up early the next day, with the sun just beginning to climb over the mountains. The stable boy was caught off guard to see him and hurried to bring out his horse. "Good morning, Sir Yibo," he greeted cheerfully.
"Good morning." Yibo replied. "Saddle Fireball." he called out. The stable boy jumped into action right away. As the saddle for the stunning stallion was brought out, the horse let out a soft whine when Yibo got closer. "Take it easy, buddy," Yibo said gently, giving the horse a reassuring pat on the head. "Did you miss me?"
It had been four days since he arrived on the island with the girl his father had set him up with, and this was his first chance to hop on a horse.
Once Yibo got the horse saddled up, he hopped on and took off. The grass was still glistening from the rain that fell last night, which had finally stopped around dawn. And strange, since he came to the island, he hadn't been able to catch a wink of sleep until last night. If it hadn't been raining last night, he would've definitely taken a ride to the stream in the woods.
He made his way to the beach, looking forward to watching the sunrise from the mountains. The fastest way there was through their Family Mausoleum. "Come on, Fireball!" Yibo urged, giving his horse a light kick, and his horse ran as if he was just as excited about the ride.
The chilly breeze brushed against Yibo's face, making his short hair dance in the wind. He felt a rush of excitement. Whenever he's on the island with his siblings and cousins, they love to race horses. He was only three years old when he learned to ride a horse.
And as soon as his father retired, this feeling of being free will be counted on his fingers. Most of his time would be tied up in the company, and just thinking about it made him furious all over again.
He's angry at both his dad and Lan Xie Yun. He grew up working. All of them. And he had nothing against it. Everybody had to earn their keep. But the thought of being stuck with a company just because of duty makes him mad. He has a feeling that even though Lan Xie Yun is dead, the company is an extension of him so that he can continue to manipulate the lives of everyone.
"Damn you!" he shouted angrily and pushed his horse to go faster.
"I'll forgive you because you don't mean that... Someday, you'll thank me, wàisūn..."
"Never! And I'm passing by at your grave, Zǔfù! You are already dead, so don't crowd my mind!"
"I live as long as you live. As long as your children live and their children live, I will remain with you..."
He let out another curse just as he caught the sound of a horse neighing from mausoleum. Looking over, he saw a horse tied to the mausoleum fence.
"Yo, Fireball, come on!"
He quickly turned and brought his stallion right in front of the other horse and raising an eyebrow when he noticed the mark on its rear. It was one of the horses from the hotel those guests used.
"Who brought you here and why were you tied there? And how long have you been here?" he said angrily.
He was sure that the horse had been tied there overnight and had been soaked by the rain. The hotel has strict rules, guests are not allowed to go beyond the hotel's designated area.
Yibo looked around when his eyes caught something inside the mausoleum.
"God!" he said and hopping off his horse and rushing through the gate. From a distance, he noticed someone sprawled out on the tiles. Rushing over, he knelt beside Zhan, who was unconscious and completely drenched, lying right on top of Lan Xie Yun's tomb.
He held the boy by the shoulders and gently laid him across his lap. The boy skin is warm, burning with fever.
Yibo's eyebrows furrowed as he thought his face was familiar... that he had seen the boy. Yes, the boy at the airport.
The furrow on his forehead deepened. How did this boy get here? He stared hard at Zhan's face for a while.
Even given the tough circumstances the boy was strikingly beautiful. His lips were slightly parted, it was reddened probably because of a high fever.
Yibo scooped him up and carried him out of the mausoleum, placing him on the horse before climbing on himself. He adjusted Zhan so he was sitting in front of him and wrapped his right arm around him. "Alright, Fireball, let's head home," he said to the horse, which seemed to understand him and began to walk back gently.
A/N: Our main couple finally met, but one of them is totally unconscious 😅. I've been eagerly anticipating the arrival of this chapter. 💚💛❤️
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