Gu Lingsha's voice echoed through the empty room, but Qi Lei did not reply to her. The only response she got was the cold wind whistling from the rooftop.

Qi Lei had already disappeared when she tried to catch up to him.

Gu Lingsha's body shuddered as she covered her face and started sobbing. After some time, she sniffled. Her eyes were red as she put her hands down.

Helpless…

Why did all the promises become void as she was feeling helpless and struggling painfully?

What happened to forever?

What happened to protecting her?

The only person who used his life to protect her was Mu Lingtian. The others who spoke about protecting her were just all talk.

None of them knew the pain she went through. Everyone thought lightly of her suffering. No one knew she would have nightmares every night and would wake up from shock and pain, then fail to fall asleep again.

Two lives were lost. How could the perpetrator live peacefully?

As the survivor, should she not do something for the dead?

She was right. She did not do anything and would continue on this path even if it might be difficult for her!

Gu Lingsha's determination became firmer after she experienced despair once. She was adamant about her choice.

"Weiwei, Lingtian, and my baby in heaven, Ah Feng, please give me the courage. I'll make him pay for this!" She held her necklace as she mumbled to herself.

After Gu Lingsha finally calmed down, she took a deep breath, turned around and grabbed her documents on the ground before moving forward.

Inside Qi Lei's office.

"Master Qi, I think Ms. Gu cried just now. Her eyes are a little red. She…" Yang Sheng stood before Qi Lei's table and looked at him. He hesitated for a moment before speaking up as if he was trying to find out about something.

Qi Lei did not give him any reaction, so Yang Sheng just remained stationary and looked at him intently.

"She's not the old innocent Shasha anymore. Just how horrible did the situation have to be in order to have pushed someone this far? I truly hope she doesn't become a woman like that. I hope she turns back."

Qi Lei spoke up after a while, sounding helpless. "However, it seems that whatever I did was futile. There's nothing much that I can do. My mother is right. I'm just like a decoration without any real impact. How can I protect others?"

Yang Sheng felt bad when he heard Qi Lei's forlorn tone. He quickly replied, "That's not true, Master. You have talents that are better than Master Feng as well. It's just that CEO Qi can't see it. It is extremely rare to find someone like you in the world of business. I feel lucky to be working for you, Master Qi. I'm sure you'll be recognized one day. I've always had faith in you."

"I'm not sure if I'm worthy of you to have faith in me. I've always hoped to be a normal person and stay in a normal, peaceful family, living happily with my family members with no need to fight over pointless things like these. My life feels like a TV drama. What's the whole point of this?" Qi Lei put down his documents as he sat down.

"Master Qi, it's normal to feel like you're not good enough. Not many people can be satisfied with what they have. It's just a matter of perspective." Yang Sheng then continued, "Do you still remember CEO Han from the Han Corporation?"

"Han Yifeng?"

Qi Lei raised his eyebrows and laughed. "I heard he's doing pretty well over there while Xi Xinyi is struggling here. I have no idea what to say about him."

Yang Sheng took a deep breath and finally spoke what had been on his mind, "He's an unfortunate man. He's lost so much. Please forgive me for saying this, Master Qi, but I never felt that Ms. Gu was a good match for you. She's not worthy of you. I think it'd be perfect for you to find someone like Director Xi. Ms. Gu has never been within your reach, so you never really lost her. You should make better decisions than CEO Han."

"A long time ago, I remember someone telling me that there's no such thing as a perfect match. It depends on whether two people are willing to be with each other. I'm not sure how I feel about Shasha. I don't know if I love her or if I only admired her, but it's a fact that she's given me a lot of good memories in the past two decades of my life. I hope these can stay, and I never expected them to change."

This was the first time Qi Lei was opening up to someone. He was not sure why he could talk about this so calmly to his subordinate.

Did he secretly long for a listener?

"Director Xi said that, didn't she?"

Yang Sheng smiled. "She was madly in love with CEO Han back then and almost lost herself. It's all thanks to Chairman Mu. Speaking of which, your life experience is awfully similar to Director Xi's. An unhappy childhood, rough relationships, and a headstrong personality... That's probably why you find Director Xi relatable," Yang Sheng teased him a little.

Qi Lei frowned instantly and denied, "Of course, I don't feel that way! You're overthinking! I don't feel like that! I just think she looks quite pretty!"