Love in the Midst of Mistaken Identities

“Lui, I…” Li Manni wanted to say something, but Chu Lui’s cold and hard profile was unchanging. All words were useless now.

At the Chu Enterprise, in the office of the CEO, Du Jingtang eyes widened. “No way, Cousin. You really made such a decision?” His finger trembled as he pointed at the form for the transfer of assets on the table. He had given her half of the Chu enterprise.

Dear God, did he even know how huge the Chu Enterprise was, how many branch companies they have, and how much their assets were worth? If Xia Ruoxin had any ill intentions at all and gained all these, she would be able to take control of half of the Chu Enterprise.

Even if he were to give it away, shouldn’t he give it to Li Manni?

Why was it Xia Ruoxin? Didn’t he hate her? Didn’t he wish for her to meet a tragic end?

“Xia Yixuan is still alive.” Chu Lui kept the form. There wasn’t anything else he could give her except for this. It was what he owed her.

“What?” Du Jingtang jumped up from his seat. He did not hear wrong, right? He said that Xia Yixuan, whom everyone thought was dead, was actually alive and not dead? This was really the funniest joke he had heard all day.

“Yes, she’s not dead. She just let everyone assumed she was to figure out true love with other men.”

“Men? Multiple men?” The corner of Du Jingtang’s eye twitched. Did he mean that Xia Yixuan let others assume she was dead just so they wouldn’t find out she didn’t love his cousin anymore, or was her desires so insatiable that she needed more than one man? Well, it did seem like a good idea. It might be true love if she was able to love so freely without any burdens and constraints.

Haha…

He laughed. It was ridiculous.

“So she had used Xia Ruoxin as a scapegoat to escape all responsibility?”

“Yes, it’s just as you said. She made Xia Ruoxin the scapegoat while she was out enjoying life.” Chu Lui leaned back against the chair, his eyes black and still without a sliver of light.

So that was the case. Du Jingtang finally understood.

“So, Cousin, now that you know you hated and took revenge on the wrong person, you want to make it up to her?”

“Yes. There’s nothing much I can give her. I only have these.” He placed a hand on his neck. Only he knew that this wasn’t the form of compensation he wanted to give her, but another, yet it was impossible… for him and for her.

“Then, do you still love Yixuan, Cousin? Now that she’s back, are you…?” Du Jingtang’s imagination started to run wild. After all, he had never been able to guess what his cousin was thinking. Xia Yixuan was still alive, Li Manni was his wife, and he had done so many things to Xia Ruoxin. Could he really let go of these three women?

New flames and old lovers. Ex-wife and current wife. The person he had always been waiting for. What was he to do?

Chu Lui took hold of the amulet around his neck and grabbed it in his hand. “Cousin, did you retrieve it from Xia Yixuan?” Du Jingtang asked and pulled out the amulet around his neck, too. The two amulets were almost identical. His aunt had especially gone and collected it for them. They both had one, except his was always around his neck while Chu Lui had given his away to a little girl when he was young.

That little girl was the wife he had chosen since young. Du Jingtang knew of this when he was younger, but no one thought that he would take it so seriously. He was always searching for her until he took over the Chu Enterprise, when he met Xia Yixuan. He had always thought that this cousin of his was cold-blooded and emotionless since young so he should have been most indifferent. However, he always remembered the promise he made when he was young and was still pining for Xia Yixuan without interest for other girls even as he grew older. He was as loyal as could be.

However, things change. They were still the same person, but their feelings had changed.

“You’re wrong, Jingtang. Everything’s wrong from the start.” Chu Lui clutched the amulet tightly. The sharp edges of the amulet dug into his palms.

“What’s wrong?” Du Jingtang placed his amulet back into its original position. He didn’t understand what he said.

“Jingtang, the little girl I met when I was young wasn’t Xia Yixuan. The one I gave the amulet to wasn’t her.” Chu Lui opened his hand, and the amulet fell to the ground. He had made a mistake, and a ridiculous one at that.

“Then who was it?” Du Jingtang was stunned. How could it not be Xia Yixuan? He said that he met her in the Xia household.

Unless … His lips twitched.

“Don’t tell me, Cousin, that the girl you set your heart on wasn’t Xia Yixuan but Xia Ruoxin. That in some way or another, the amulet fell into Xia Yixuan’s hands; and the one you were searching for was actually Xia Ruoxin?”

Chu Lui was silent. His expression was extremely heavy. Du Jingtang had never seen him so out of sorts before.

“Oh, my God!” Du Jingtang slapped his forehead. It seemed like his guess was correct. Chu Lui met Xia Ruoxin, not Xia Yixuan when he was young. What a twist of fate. The things he did to Xia Ruoxin was too much for even him, an outsider, to leave alone; and Xia Yixuan’s death was the reason he tortured Xia Ruoxin. In the end, Xia Yixuan wasn’t dead; and the person he had tortured was the very person he was supposed to treat well.

It was all too ironic and ludicrous. If it were him, he would have lost his mind by now.

There were some words Du Jingtang felt like he had to say.

“Cousin, I know what you’re thinking right now… but it’s impossible for you and her anymore. Putting aside all the things you did to her in the past and whether she would forgive you or not—just based on your marital status now, there’s absolutely no way.”

Du Jingtang walked to his side and patted him on the shoulders. He must be suffering now. Two women—one he didn’t want to hurt, one he couldn’t hurt; one he wanted to compensate, and the other who prevented it.

“I know that it’s impossible. That’s why I thought of this path. I can’t take back all the harm I caused her so I’m giving her half the Chu enterprise’s shares. At least her life would be better from now on.

As long as that man treated her right, she would find happiness, he said to himself, but his heart was strangely bitter. What was supposed to be his was now out of his reach, and he had no chance to even extend his arm.