Standing Next To You-Chapter 425: Hard Decision

"...He hasn’t woken up yet, but his condition has stabilized. His vitals are improving day by day. So far, there’s no sign of his illness relapsing," Maid Ye Zhai reported in her daily update to Bei Sangyun over the phone.

"I see," Bei Sangyun responded, thanking her.

The tightness in her chest that had been present these past three days slowly eased. She let out a sigh of relief. The report was the same as yesterday: Fei Chuan’s condition had not worsened but had improved. Thank goodness.

On the other end, Maid Ye Zhai hesitated before speaking again, "Young Miss, Madame Pei has been asking about you. She asked again if you will return today."

Bei Sangyun remained silent for a long moment before sighing. "...Not yet."

Maid Ye Zhai also paused. "...I understand. I’ll think of something."

"Thank you."

Bei Sangyun ended the call. It must have been difficult to be on the receiving end of those questions, but Maid Ye Zhai handled it for her. She was grateful that Maid Ye Zhai did not pry into her sudden departure or ask any further questions. Because she herself didn’t know how to answer them.

Bei Sangyun glanced at the horizon, the sun setting over the vast fields, casting a golden hue over the crops.

Hearing that Fei Chuan’s health was improving day by day made the painful and difficult decision she had made three days ago feel worth it.

That night when Fei Chuan had a seizure and was told he might not survive another relapse, Bei Sangyun’s world seemed to fall apart.

She didn’t want Fei Chuan to die. The thought of living in a world without him was unbearable.

At that moment, the words of the great monk echoed in her mind. He had warned that their life energy would be drained faster the closer they were to each other. Since her presence was worsening Fei Chuan’s condition, Bei Sangyun decided she had to leave.

And as heartbreaking as it was, the great monk had been right. She was now thousands of miles away from Fei Chuan, and he was getting better.

Bei Sangyun’s gaze toward the horizon grew even more sorrowful. She had meant it when she said she would defy fate and not walk the path the heavens had crafted for them. But she had run out of time and options.

She had no other choice but to distance herself from Fei Chuan. And doing so had proven that the best course of action for him to survive was for her to stay away.

She turned silent as she faced the setting sun, feeling as though her whole world was slowly crumbling under the weight of her thoughts.

"...I knew you’d be here." Grandma Bei suddenly appeared behind her, carrying a basket filled with herbs she had picked on the mountain. She approached Bei Sangyun and sat beside her on the ground.

Bei Sangyun smiled at her, then looked back at the setting sun. "And you always find me here."

"This is your favorite spot. I remember one time, I nagged at you, and you cried and ran away. I searched the whole mountain and finally found you here. Every time you ran away, you always came back to this place."

Bei Sangyun smiled at the mention of the past. Though she had lived two lifetimes, whenever Grandma Bei brought up those memories, she could recall them vividly. Only her childhood memories were not blurry and unsullied.

"I found it by chance. I was trying to find that cliff the kids talked about so I could shout at the top of my lungs about how much I hated your nagging. But then, I accidentally stumbled upon this place. It has the perfect view of the sunset. Since then, whenever I felt sad or upset, I’d come here. For some reason, watching the sun set with an empty mind always calmed me."

Grandma Bei looked at her and gently took her hand, she stayed beside her, watching the sunset with her in quiet companionship.

Bei Sangyun turned her gaze back to the setting sun, the gloom in her heart lightened slightly with Grandma Bei beside her.

After a long moment of silence, Grandma Bei spoke again, "No matter what your decision is or what you want to do, I will always support you."

"...Thank you, Grandma."

Bei Sangyun was deeply grateful that Grandma Bei didn’t ask why she had suddenly left the villa or why she had asked Grandma Bei to come to the River Village during such a critical time.

She was thankful for the people who were so considerate of her feelings and quietly supported her even though deep inside they had a ton of questions regarding her actions.

However, she couldn’t help but worry about the people at the villa... and Fei Chuan.

She had disappeared so suddenly, without a word. Her departure at this time would seem strange and might even cause misunderstandings. But how could she explain this bizarre situation? How could she tell them that she and Fei Chuan were born with a cursed fate and that she had to leave him because of it?

They wouldn’t believe it. After all, even she found it hard to believe.

.....

During the past three days, Bei Sangyun hadn’t been idle.

She had been delegating people to search for any clues about the dragon’s fate. Anything related to it had to be reported to her.

However, most of what they found were just myths and legends, with no living proof to back them up. Nothing matched what she had seen in her dreams.

With no other choice, she decided to return to the mountain to meet the great monk.

The next day, she made an excuse to Grandma Bei and took a helicopter to the distant mountain.

When she arrived at the foot of the mountain, she found the great monk seated at the base of the staircase, as if he had been waiting for her.

Bei Sangyun paused. This was exactly how Head Master Fei had described his first meeting with the great monk.

Suppressing the uncomfortable feeling of being seen through once again, she approached the great monk. This time, she did not face him with the same rudeness and bold confidence as before.

She looked at him wearily. "...Were you waiting for me?"

The great monk nodded. "Yes. I read your divination that day and knew you would return today."

Bei Sangyun shook her head in defeat. "You and the heavens are starting to creep me out."

The great monk chuckled. "That’s a normal reaction. Follow me."

Bei Sangyun followed the great monk and soon found a small hut nestled in the forest.

The great monk seemed familiar with the small hut, as if it were his home.

"I usually stay here. I only go to the temple when I need to perform divination and rituals," the great monk answered the question she hadn’t voiced aloud.

Bei Sangyun wondered if the great monk was actually a psychic who could read minds, rather than someone who read the heavens’ ways.

The great monk offered her tea, which Bei Sangyun accepted.

"Seeing how calm you are now, it seems you’ve come to a decision," the great monk broke the silence again.

Bei Sangyun put down the teacup and, with a determined gaze, nodded. "...For now. This is the best course of action for now," she repeated.

"I see. You still want to defy fate?"

"I do. And if you tell me how, or even give me a hint on how I can change that fate, I promise I’ll be in your debt. This temple of yours would thrive and be abundant for as long as I live," Bei Sangyun offered generously. Since it involved her and Fei Chuan’s lives, she didn’t hesitate to go all out.

"...Defying fate... is impossible."

"...Nothing is impossible. Even I, who was an evil person in my previous life, was given a second chance and had gone back to the past. That sounds impossible, right? But it happened." Bei Sangyun stared at him, her resolve unwavering.

The great monk met her determined gaze and sighed, "I have no idea how to defy fate. To me, it’s an impossible thing to do. But I can perform another divination for you and see if there’s a part of the knot we can unravel. However, I can’t guarantee that I’ll see a different answer. I might just see the same thing."

Bei Sangyun’s eyes lit up with hope. "That’s better than nothing." She stood up. "Then we’d better go now. Climbing the stairs will take a long time."

But the great monk shook his head. "I forgot to mention one thing to you. I can only perform divination when the earth, sun, and moon are linked together. And that only happens once every four years. When you came to me four days ago, that was the appointed time. I used it for you."

Bei Sangyun was bewildered. Once every four years?

"...So you can only perform another divination four years from now?"

"Yes."

Bei Sangyun was speechless.

Four years... Did she really have to wait four years for an uncertain answer?

Four years was too long. How could she spend that time apart from Fei Chuan? Could she bear not seeing him for four years?

"...Is there no other way? Can you think of any other methods? Four years... Four years is too long."

"There is another way, as I told you. You can go to the farthest place from where he is. Although your energies would still contradict each other, which might cause you both to suffer from unknown illnesses, it would be better than constantly being in pain and dying sooner."

Bei Sangyun fell silent, clenching her fist. In the end, it still came down to leaving Fei Chuan.

Leaving him... Could she bear it?

And how would Fei Chuan take it?