Chapter 63: Utopia

Before he took her hand, Zhong Yu Bai’s hand was also slightly cool. It was only when their body temperatures interacted that a bit of warmth was created.

Ji Zhen Tang took the key to open the door, only to find that her aunt wasn’t home.

She pointed to the table and casually said, “You can sit here; she’ll probably be back soon.”

Zhong Yu Bai didn’t comply. Watching her take off her scarf and coat, he said, “Since we’re here, why don’t we go upstairs and sit?”

… How rude.

Ji Zhen Tang glanced at him in surprise and then laughed, “You have ulterior motives!”

As she said this, her steps lightened, and she dashed upstairs with familiarity.

He stepped forward to follow her.

In the bedroom hung a Suzhou embroidery screen.

When he first came, he was too focused on observing her symptoms because of her physical condition and didn’t take a close look at the screen. Now, Zhong Yu Bai stared at it for a moment—it depicted a peony.

Ji Zhen Tang tilted her head, looking at him proudly, “It’s my aunt’s work. Isn’t it impressive?”

“Very beautiful, exquisite.”

She sighed, “Ah, I used to live here when I was little. I know every stitch and thread in this piece; my aunt was really good to me. Look, after all this time, she hasn’t touched anything. I’ve lived alone in this small room for many years.”

Zhong Yu Bai listened, nodding gently in understanding.

The room had an attic design with high beams, and a one-meter table was set up for her studies.

Zhong Yu Bai sat down by the window while Ji Zhen Tang busily moved around, wanting to serve him. She realized that the hot water wasn’t ready, so she handed him her water bottle and told him to make do.

It didn’t matter if he didn’t drink; he looked at the drink in his hand, smiled, and then said, “Right now, I’d rather kiss you than drink water.”

“…” Ji Zhen Tang pointed to the nearby bed, already finding an excuse. “The sheets are all messed up; it’s not comfortable to sleep on.”

He said, “It’s just kissing; what does sleeping have to do with it?”

Seeing his serious demeanor and nonchalant tone, it was as if it was she who had the improper intentions. Ji Zhen Tang was pulled into his embrace, her peripheral vision catching the European-style arched window frame.

The window was made of azure stained glass, tightly closed. Outside, the wind and rain couldn’t penetrate at all. But after the kiss, Ji Zhen Tang felt stifled, so she cracked open the window a bit, lifted her sweater collar, and said, “It’s hot.”

Zhong Yu Bai held her while watching the snow falling outside.

Ji Zhen Tang remembered something and said to him, “A few days ago, I dreamed of my dad. I suddenly realized that people are truly contradictory. When it comes to parting ways, I feel a bit reluctant. I recall how good he was to me—bringing me food when I was sick, and it’s quite moving to think back on it.”

Zhong Yu Bai told her, “We always live in our own emotions, which is why we feel regret and loneliness. Standing on the ruins reminiscing, we forget the brokenness beneath our feet. We also forget that we drifted apart from our family, lovers, and friends because of that brokenness.”

He continued, “Emotions are things that have been beautified and polished; they can be deceptive. The reality is cruel—everything has changed, and that’s the harsh truth.”

“Even if it was beautiful once, what’s in the past should remain in the past.”

Ji Zhen Tang responded, “I understand what you mean. I won’t cling to it anymore. I can still call him ‘Dad,’ but I won’t listen to him anymore.”

“Mm.” Zhong Yu Bai held her hand and placed her fingers on a patch of snow outside the window; the pristine snow quickly melted away.

“No matter how beautiful the snow is, it will eventually melt. Since it has already vanished, there’s no need to reminisce about how it once fell.”

She looked into his eyes, silently repeating this profound saying in her heart, but she hadn’t yet had the chance to savor it.

As Zhong Yu Bai’s casual voice fell, someone entered the house downstairs.

Ji Xinhe returned, and Zhong Yu Bai said he wanted to talk to her aunt about a few things.

Ji Zhen Tang understood this meant he didn’t want her to intrude.

She nodded and watched him go downstairs.

While they were conversing downstairs, she wasn’t idle upstairs either.

“Ms. Ji.”

“Mr. Zhong.”

The two exchanged greetings.

The water Ji Zhen Tang had just put on to boil was ready, and although Ji Xinhe was wary of Zhong Yu Bai, she still politely served him tea.

They sat around the table.

“I know you have concerns and biases.”

This was Zhong Yu Bai’s direct approach.

He was too straightforward, and Ji Xinhe paused for a moment, her hand holding the teapot freezing.

Zhong Yu Bai continued calmly, “Since I’ve made a promise, I will naturally fulfill it. However, now is not the time. Once she is able to establish herself in the industry and has the energy to consider a lifetime commitment, if she still wishes, I will give this relationship an explanation.”

Ji Xinhe’s slightly stiff expression softened a bit after these words.

After a moment, a hint of relieved smile appeared on her lips.

He said, “If she goes to Singapore soon, I will help arrange her life there. I have a regular social circle there, so you need not worry. Thank you for taking care of her for such a long time.”

Ji Xinhe smiled and said, “I’m just casually checking on a child; it’s not much effort.”

“What you’ve done may not seem much to you, but to her, it means everything,” the man said gently. “Still, thank you.”

Hearing this, Ji Xinhe couldn’t help but close her eyes and shake her head. It was as if her heart was filled with mixed emotions, thinking of a child who had never had an easy life.

Zhong Yu Bai said, “If you encounter any difficulties in business, feel free to contact me.”

Ji Xinhe nodded, saying okay.

She glanced at the time and remarked, “Since we’ve known each other for so long, it seems we haven’t had the chance to have a meal together—”

Before she could finish her sentence, someone hung over the staircase railing, leaning halfway out, and shouted, “I want to eat Haidilao!”

Zhong Yu Bai and Ji Xinhe looked up and laughed together.

After dinner that day, Ji Zhen Tang returned home with Zhong Yu Bai. He washed away the smells from the meal and, wearing a bathrobe, asked the person on the sofa eating a small cake, “Did you find out about that designer team?”

She replied, “The training camp is actually just an advanced class at the Art College, mainly aiming to recruit some young students into their company team.”

He picked up on the key point and asked, “How long?”

Ji Zhen Tang said, “A year, but…”

But if she successfully joined the team, there was a possibility she might stay there to work in the future.

She didn’t finish that thought, quickly stopping herself.

Before she could elaborate, Zhong Yu Bai didn’t ask further and said, “Set off early.”

She opened her mouth in astonishment.

He said, “Before New Year’s Day.”

Ji Zhen Tang had many questions, but in that moment, she didn’t know which to ask first.

So Zhong Yu Bai spoke again, explaining, “I have too many concerns.”

She asked, “Is it because of your family? But I have a lot going on at school.”

“I will help you communicate and arrange everything. Just focus on your graduation project.”

After a moment of silence.

Ji Zhen Tang pinched her fingers and said, “That’s so soon; it’s only a few days away.”

Zhong Yu Bai noticed her sad feeling about parting and smiled gently, “I’ll take you there.”

Only then did her furrowed brow relax a bit: “I almost forgot you have a plane.”

Zhong Yu Bai said, “Four hours; it won’t even take half a day.”

“Oh right, four hours! It takes me longer than that to take the high-speed train to the capital.” Her mood brightened a little.

Zhong Yu Bai lightly hummed in agreement, saying, “Coming and going isn’t that long.”

It felt like a reminder or comfort.

—

Ji Zhen Tang packed her things, said goodbye to the school office, and set off for Singapore with Zhong Yu Bai before the winter break.

Everything felt a bit rushed. On the road, she gradually became anxious.

She wondered if something had happened with the Zhong family; otherwise, why would he be in such a hurry to send her away?

Zhong Yu Bai saw through her worries and reassured her, saying that nothing was wrong. It was still the same sentiment: “Better safe than sorry. Once you get to a more accepting place, you’ll have more freedom, won’t you?”

Indeed, no one would come to interfere with her life anymore; she had much more room to breathe.

Freedom was such an alluring word.

He said, “Change your mindset and welcome a new world.”

Ji Zhen Tang smiled, “Okay.”

But her mood truly improved five minutes later.

As they drove to the same helipad they had visited last time, Ji Zhen Tang’s heart raced with nervous anticipation as she spotted his plane.

Walking ahead, she glanced around, feeling a bit familiar yet not quite the same; something had changed.

She lifted her head and read the English characters one by one— 

“Jane’s…… Moving Castle.”

When she turned around in surprise, she saw the man in a black coat standing behind her, looking regal in the blue twilight of the setting sun, a gentle smile on his face. He nodded at her and calmly said, “Your promised moving castle.”

“You actually engraved it!” Ji Zhen Tang exclaimed in delight as she rushed over and hugged him. “Big Boss, you don’t have to fulfill every promise you make to me.”

She looked up at him, saying it wasn’t necessary, but her expression was filled with joy, her smile bright and wide.

In the cold wind, he took her hand.

“Last time you came, you were Cinderella. From now on, you won’t be,” they walked up the steps together, and Zhong Yu Bai said, “You’ll be a princess.”

“Alright,” she said, almost narrating, “From now on, the princess and the prince lived happily ever after~”

Ji Zhen Tang really liked the atmosphere here.

She enjoyed this utopian-like world. Stepping into the cabin, she didn’t think about wealth or the journey but about them dancing through the clouds, high above.

It was during that moment that she saw the pink dawn, welcoming her brand new rose. Those fresh, unforgettable firsts became the miraculous cure for her pain. On the plane, Ji Zhen Tang looked at the dim harbor in the darkness.

As they ascended, everything outside became obscured; it was pitch black, but she still pressed her curious face against the window. Zhong Yu Bai sat beside her, reading a magazine—not just flipping through it; he was reading articles related to a newly constructed hotel.

Li Da had invited him to attend the hotel’s ribbon-cutting ceremony a while ago, but he couldn’t go because it conflicted with his work in the mainland.

He had entrusted all his work in Singapore to Li Da, so he didn’t come here often.

“Isn’t it almost New Year’s?” Ji Zhen Tang tilted her head to look at him.

Zhong Yu Bai replied, “There will be gifts when we land.”

She laughed and waved her hand, “That’s not what I meant!”

He looked at her, his serious expression easing into a slight smile, “Haven’t been here in a while?”

Ji Zhen Tang answered truthfully, “I haven’t been back since I was eight,” she sighed, “It’s funny to think about; I still remember how Zhong Heng looked, but I’m almost forgetting how my mother looked.”

Zhong Yu Bai watched her quietly for a moment.

As they neared Xingzhou, he suddenly asked, “Do you recognize the botanical garden?”

She was looking down at the slowly revealing city through the window and pointed, “There, I see it.”

“There’s a hotel nearby, golden. Do you see it?”

“Hotel…” Ji Zhen Tang’s gaze shifted until she found a hotel glowing with golden light. The architecture was grand, resembling two European-style castles, especially striking from the sky. It must be enormous and majestic from the ground. She nodded, “Yes, what about it?”

Zhong Yu Bai said, “That’s mine.”

His tone was casual, merely introducing her to his territory.

Ji Zhen Tang was so astonished that she lost her words. She stared at him for a few seconds before looking down again. The coastline in the night was illuminated like strands of golden silk, casting light on the white foamy waves, resembling fleeting bubbles.

And bubbles, tides, and darkness seemed completely unrelated to him.

No matter where he went, a person like Zhong Yu Bai wouldn’t lose his nobility and wealth; he merely moved from one kind of prosperity to another.

The aura of wealth rushed in, leaving her in awe of the surrounding brilliance.

Not just the castle was her utopia; being with him made the whole world feel like a utopia.

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