380 Ambition
“Where were you?” An Qinyan asked as An Xiulan returned home late. “Your father called to ask about your health. He said you were sick and that’s why you took an early day off.”
Of course, An Qinyan could see that her daughter had lied. It was written all over the girl’s face. But she did not know what An Xiulan lied for. What compelled her daughter to lie to her father?
An Xiulan gulped. “I did not lie to dad. I just told my boss that I need an early day off. He thought I was not feeling good. I just did not correct him as I was in hurry.”
“Where did you go?” An Qinyan asked.
“Mom, I had something important to do, “An Xiulan said, changing the topic. “I am hungry. I want to eat something.”
An Qinyan sighed. “Go get changed. The food will be ready in a while.”
An Xiulan went through her room quickly before her mother could ask any questions. She did not want to lie to her mother and that was why she chose to run away from there as she knew her mother was going to ask questions. And it was not the right time to tell her mom that she and Zixin were dating. They just began dating and she did not want everyone around to overwhelm them. They wanted to grow at their own pace and that pace would not be given to them if everyone began intervening in their relationship.
“Mom, where is Uncle?” An Xiulan asked her mother as she didn’t see her stepfather anywhere.
“He went to meet his friend, “An Qinyan said. “His friend was sick. Their house was in another city and he had to leave. He will return tomorrow.”
“Oh, “An Xiulan responded. “Where is Lu Xuan?”
“Your brother is working overtime these days, “An Qinyan told her daughter. “It’s better if he focuses on work than other unnecessary things.”
“Are you upset that he is involved in too many scandals?” An Xiulan asked her mother.
“It’s not that I don’t mind the scandals at all and neither do I care about it. It’s just that his non-seriousness about everything scares me, “An Qinyan said. “He needs to know how these things are going to affect his future. When we are young, we don’t care about many things but as we get older, we begin thinking how better it would be if we had handled it differently.”
An Qinyan heaved out a sigh. “Do you think your brother likes someone?”
“Someone like who?” An Xiulan asked her mother. “I don’t recall someone like that.”
On the other hand, Lu Xuan, who An Qinyan believed was in office, was sitting in the last row of a private concert. His eyes were on the woman sitting in the middle of the stage playing piano with her long and slender fingers. Her eyes were closed as she was playing the piano. The soft tendrils brushed against her neck while her fingers were dancing on the beautiful piano. Everyone in the hall was mesmerized by her melodious voice that accompanied the piano melody.
The piano stopped playing and everyone stood up to give her a standing ovation. The hall broke up with the sound of clappings. The woman opened her eyes and softly smiled at the crowd before she stood up and bowed at them. Her slim and tall figure draped in a white long dress made her beauty seem ethereal.
After expressing her gratitude, she left the stage. When the concert ended, Lu Xuan was the first one to leave. He knew that the media would certainly be here and it was why his assistant was guiding him through the back door where he would not get captured. He had a talent for not getting captured by the camera if he wanted but he kept them busy by giving them all sorts of stories.
As he was leaving like every time, he heard a familiar voice, “Are you not going to meet?”
He turned back to find the ethereal angel in white leaning against the wall with a cigarette in her hand. She looked at him and took a puff of it.
“I am not here to meet you, “Lu Xuan answered with a smile.
The woman let out a laugh. Although she seemed alluring while laughing, he could feel the emptiness in those eyes that used to shine once upon a time. Those eyes were enough to light any dark room and now they were so empty that it felt as if she was not the same person who played such an emotional masterpiece in the hall just a while ago.
“Sure, “Yang Mei said. “Care to share a drink?”
Just like every time, he agreed. He followed her and she poured a drink for themselves. Every time she would have a concert or a show, he would go to see her. She might not know but he would do his best to go to all of her shows. Sometimes, it got hard for him but he tried. Even today when he should be in the office working as per his father’s office, he was here.
Each time Yang Mei would see him, she would invite him for a drink. They would not talk about anything, just have a drink in silence and then they would leave.
“How is your girlfriend?” Yang Mei asked. Today was a weird day. Lu Xuan could feel it. She was trying to make talk. She was usually someone who was not a fan of many words but today she was speaking a lot to him.
“Which one are you talking about?” Lu Xuan asked.
“How many do you have?” Yang Mei asked with a laugh. “I thought you were a one-woman man.”
“I am, “Lu Xuan answered. “I always break up before moving to another.”
“You should get serious, “Yang Mei said. “Having one person who loves you is enough.”
“Oh, is that why you are still with your husband?” Lu Xuan asked.
Her empty eyes softened. “Why else? He is the only person I loved.”
Even if Lu Xuan’s heart was breaking while hearing it, he did not show it on his face. He still remembered the day very clearly when the news of her getting married was made public by her agency. At that time, he was still in university. He had traveled all night to see her. The next day when he met her, he had opened his heart to her but she had only softly smiled at her and told him that he was too young to have an unrequited love and he should give chance to other women.
He had given so many chances to so many women on her advice now he didn’t feel anything. She said he would forget her if there was another person in his life but here he was even after seven years, madly in love with her.
He thought she would never talk to him after that day but she behaved so normally that it broke his heart. He confessed his feelings to her but she didn’t take them seriously. Instead, she treated him like a child. He was only two years younger than her but she still treated him like a child. He just hoped that she would stop treating him like a child and start treating him like a man.
“Lu Xuan, what is the ambition of your life?” Yang Mei asked suddenly.
“To succeed my mother, “Lu Xuan said. “I want to be capable enough that she can leave her position to me and spend her life in peace.”
Yang Mei swirled her wine glass and smiled. “Life is so bland and empty without ambition.”
“Ambition to man is what sharpness is to knife, “Lu Xuan answered. “What is the point of living if you don’t even know what you are living for?”
Yang Mei stared at him for a long time and then nodded her head. She looked at their empty wine glasses and knew that their time was up.
“Goodbye, Lu Xuan, “Yang Mei said to him.
Lu Xuan blinked. He did not know why her goodbye sounded different today. It was like she was saying they were never going to meet again.
As he stood up, she took a step ahead of him and hugged him while patting his head. “Take care of yourself. I hope you succeed in whatever you do and wherever you go.”
Lu Xuan could not react. She left the room and disappeared from his eyes, he was still standing there staring into the blackness. It was only when his assistant came to call him out did he move.
That night, Lu Xuan was haunted by never ending nightmares. The next morning Lu Xuan woke up to Gu Shangyan’s call.
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Lu Xuan turned on the TV and what he saw shocked him to the core.
“Music Industry Queen Quit the industry after declaring her divorce with her husband.”
“While leaving her last concert, her car collided with a pole of the bride. The police are trying to locate her but there is no success till now.”
“Lu Xuan?” Gu Shangyan called out his name softly.
“There is a chance that she died—”
“Don’t, “Lu Xuan reacted. “Don’t ever say this.”
…