Rebirth from the Ashes

Chapter 739: A Realistic Dream

Translator: EndlessFantasy TranslationEditor: EndlessFantasy Translation

Li Yuan watched his fair lady waste away and the fire in her eyes put out. He observed time and again Shen Xi giving her heart to the Su family only for them to crush it under their feet.

He saw the Su family attack her as though she was their enemy. In fact, Shen Xi was treated worse than an enemy. They did not care about her feelings or her life. All they cared about was Su Ruowan and doing everything in their power to make Su Ruowan happy.

Li Yuan watched Su Muxuan tamper with the car. Getting into the car with glee, Shen Xi mumbled to herself that it was the first gift she ever received from her oldest brother.

Unbeknownst to her, her older brother was nothing less than the devil. The car he gave her was a ride to hell!

When the car hit the crash barrier, Li Yuan stood in the front and looked at the girl’s blood-stained face. His eyes turned bloodshot as his heart broke to a million pieces.

With her legs broken, she could never dance again. She was bothered with aching discomfort every rainy season. Still, Shen Xi never blamed anyone but herself for wrecking the birthday gift from her oldest brother.

Li Yuan saw Su Muyan handing someone a bottle of acid in secret. The person snuck into the washroom and splashed it into the stall she was in.

Disfigured, Shen Xi was called an ugly monster. Everyone stayed away from her like the plague.

She harbored no resentment for anyone. Afraid that showing her ugly look in public would embarrass the Su family, Shen Xi began to lock herself in the house and avoided contact with the world outside.

Li Yuan watched Su Mushi put on a show by engaging with a mob to kidnap her and cut the nerves in her hands. Since then, Shen Xi had to live in a wheelchair.

All the miseries in life descended upon her. Believing they were all accidental, Shen Xi only had the Su family’s best interest in mind. She still dreamed of the day the Su family would see the good in her and accept her.

With downcast eyes, the girl in the wheelchair held a pen and drew. Alas, her hand refused to do her bidding. The drawing ended up as distorted scribbles.

She looked up at the starry night sky through the bay window on the balcony.

Kneeling by her, Li Yuan gently placed his hand on hers as they quietly watched the stars together. All was beautiful and quiet, but his thumping heart sank to the pit of his stomach.

In the beginning, the pain and anger he felt prompted him to destroy the world.

Li Yuan gradually regained his senses and, in his own way, walked life’s journey alongside her through happiness and pain.

He wanted to tell her not to be afraid and that he had always been around.

It did not take long before she fell terribly sick. It was leukemia.

Li Yuan watched her grow thin, saw her struggle with the pain, observed her stay true to her loving self without blaming or hating anyone. On her own, she took on all the suffering.

During that time, Shen Xi enjoyed spacing out in the sky. She could not eat or sleep because of the physical agony. Even if she managed to sleep, she would wake up from the pain.

She was waiting, waiting for the last glimmer of hope.

At last, Su Ruowan came and took away her last hope. Su Ruowan laid bare about their misdeeds toward her.

Standing in one corner, Li Yuan saw the girl laugh until she cried. The ironic, sarcastic, and contemptuous laughter bore her mockery and curse at everyone.

He knew that it was not that she was oblivious to them but a mere denial on her part. All she ever wanted was love, warmth, and their approval. In the end, she got nothing at all.

The dejection after extreme agony was the most hurtful.

The Su family did not show their faces thereafter, and the girl spent the last of her days in peace. It was awfully tranquil like a still lake with not a ripple to be found.

The pair locked eyes occasionally, and he could feel the tenderness in her eyes. It was as though she could see or feel him. Yet somehow, it might just be all in his head.

Shen Xi began to talk a lot, no longer bringing up the Su family. She mentioned the Shen family — Shen Zhangqing, Yun Jinping, Shen Tang, Shen Feng — and everything beautiful in her memory.

With her illness taking a turn for the worse, the girl grew weak and frail as if she would disappear with the wind. Still, her voice only became gentler. It did not seem like she was mumbling to herself, rather she appeared to be talking to him.

Li Yuan was there for her all the time, staying with her through the pain, looking at the sky, and watching the stars and moon. That was all he could do for her.

Two days later.

At night.

Waking up, Shen Xi opened her eyes and serenely looked in his direction. She let out a warm and cheeky smile. “Thank you for staying with me.”

With his pupils dilating, Li Yuan approached her bed and saw that she had peacefully closed her eyes as if she was asleep.

He cried in a gut-wrenching despair.

“Brother! Brother!” Scared witless, Shen Xi rocked him, slapped his face, and pinched his nose in a panic. “Brother, I’m here. I’m here!”

Li Yuan abruptly opened his eyes and met the girl’s worried eyes. His heart seemed to stop at that moment, so did time.

Shen Xi looked at him strangely. “Brother, did you have a nightmare?”

Without a word, Li Yuan stared at her as though to etch her face in his mind. He was fixated on her with affectionate, loving, and heartbroken eyes.

Was it a dream?

Could a dream be so realistic?

“Brother.” Shen Xi gently patted his face. Seeing that he was not out of it, she asked, “What did you dream about me?”

Li Yuan reached out to trap the girl in his arms, hanging onto her tightly. Resting his chin on her head, he breathed in the warm and sweet scent that was uniquely hers. He felt alive again.

She was still here and well.

Shen Xi could feel his beating and unrestful heartbeat. He was shaking and scared of something. What was it? Was his dream terrifying?

“Let me hold you.” Li Yuan sighed. It seemed he transmigrated from the previous to the present life through her worldview.

He could see her in the dream, but he could not touch her. Li Yuan never wanted to experience that again..