My Dearest General: It Has Always Been You

There was a saying that, the more you didn't want something to happen, the more likely it would happen instead.

Summer rain was annoying. The weather was still hot and sticky, but the rain still came crashing down nonetheless. It didn't diminish the heat, yet also didn't offer any comfort in temperature. As if the only purpose of the rain was to drench all of the people below to sober them up in a certain moment.

When Jiang Jinyan burst out of the taxi, his hair had already dampened. His head was aching and so was his leg. But all of it dimmed in comparison to the anxiety, fear and panic within his chest. He half limped to the sanatorium. Even before he passed through the door, he had already caught sight of the front receptionist lady standing in front of the door as she waited for him.

"What happened to my mother?!" His voice boomed to rival the rain.

The receptionist lady's face was pale, she said nothing more and brought him in instead. The sanatorium was currently in a mess. The workers, caretakers, doctors, all of them walking back and forth busily.

Amidst his ringing head and the noisy crowd, Jiang Jinyan managed to catch a familiar figure. "Auntie Yuan!" He didn't know how he looked right now, but as Yuan Xilu's eyes fell on him, the rims of her eyes reddened. "W—What happened to my mother?"

"Young Master Jiang…she—"

"Move away! Move away!" The nurse exclaimed hastily. "Does the sanatorium have 300 ml of AB blood supply?!"

"We do! Come with me!"

Jiang Jinyan was pushed aside amidst the chaos and the pressure fell onto his right leg, making him grimace in pain soundlessly. But he couldn't afford to care right now. He pulled on Yuan Xilu's hands and urged, his voice breaking in the end. "What happened to my mother, Auntie Yuan? What happened to her?!"

"She…" Yuan Xilu sighed wearily as she moved to avoid the busy crowd. Only then did Jiang Jinyan see that her white uniform was splattered with blood. Whose blood was it? Jiang Jinyan's blood ran cold at the thought. "Calm down first, Young Master Jinyan. Everyone is trying to save her."

"Isn't she…" His voice cracked. "Isn't she still fine a few days ago…?"

The warmth on Yuan Xilu's hands was the only thing that pulled Jiang Jinyan together. Yuan Xilu's eyes were teary and red as she started to explain. It was a short yet ironic story. These days, it was unknown what happened but the medicine and voice recording didn't work on Guan Xiaoxiao anymore.

Jiang Huocheng's words which would always work had failed and Guan Xiaoxiao wasn't so easy to be coaxed anymore.

"Where is he?! Where is Huocheng? I want to see him! I want to see him right now or else I will die!" Guan Xiaoxiao's mental illness was coming back in full force and her mind was exceedingly unstable day by day. They tried to contact Jiang Huocheng, trying to persuade him to come but his phone was turned off all the time. They could only manage to find Jiang Huocheng's secretary—Si Zhening—but Mr.Si was also helpless.

It was unknown what Jiang Huocheng said, but Si Zhening's answer was, "I am very sorry but CEO Jiang is really unavailable at this moment. He will come back next month. Please wait until then."

Jiang Jinyan's complexion was ashy. "My father…is on another business trip. He will not check his personal cell phone if he's busy."

Moreover, it wasn't one or two days that Guan Xiaoxiao started to throw a tantrum. Why should he care about it?

Yet no one knew. This time, Guan Xiaoxiao didn't throw a tantrum nor was she crazy. Her mind was absolutely clear, it was never clearer before. She meant every single word she said. When Jiang Huocheng didn't come day after day, she was consumed with more and more despair.

Maybe she had reached her limit or maybe she had decided to give up. In a literal sense.

Yuan Xilu tried to soften her words so as to not shock Jiang Jinyan but he understood it instantly.

Guan Xiaoxiao couldn't bear Jiang Huocheng's absence, cold behavior, abandonment and alienation anymore and finally, decided to commit suicide by biting her own wrist.

The nurse barged out of the door. "Is Mr. Jiang Huocheng here yet?! The patient keeps on calling his name!"

"I…" Jiang Jinyan stepped forward.

"Are you Mr. Jiang Huocheng?" The nurse looked at him upside down.

Jiang Jinyan didn't know how to describe what he felt at that moment. "No, I am Jiang Jinyan, her son."

"Where is your father?"

"He can't come."

The nurse frowned, her lips pursed tight. "Okay, you can also do it. Come in and talk to your mother so that she can keep her consciousness."

Jiang Jinyan numbly followed behind the nurse and he stopped on his tracks as he took in Guan Xiaoxiao's appearance. Weak, fragile, dying. Huge, bleeding bite mark on her wrist was being treated but the heartbeat monitor kept on giving an alarm signal. "The blood pressure is dropping rapidly! It's not good!"

The nurse who brought Jiang Jinyan in urged him. "Mr. Jiang, can you please talk to your mother? Her will to live is very weak and it's a dangerous phase for her right now!"

The thunder rumbled far in the distance, but Jiang Jinyan felt it like it had pummeled directly down his head. He staggered onto Guan Xiaoxiao's side and took her free hand. It's very thin and cold, brittle and weak. "Mother…" His voice made Guan Xiaoxiao's eyes crack open a bit, her breath fogging the oxygen mask.

Jiang Jinyan's legs gave up under him as he kneeled by her bedside, his head lowered to her palm. Shoulders trembled incessantly. "Mother…" There were so many things he ought to say like 'Don't give up' 'Father will be here soon' 'I will be here for you no matter what' but he couldn't say it.

Because none of it was what Guan Xiaoxiao wanted to hear.

Even the person who was saying it wasn't the person whom she was waiting for.

"Don't leave me…" Hot tears ran down his cheeks.. "Can you not leave me…?" he whispered, pleading.