LIGHTNOVELONLINE
Chapter 82
After Sang Li and the others left, Gu Zhi poked his head out from behind the corner.
"Sister, were you...looking for me?" Gu Zhi lowered his eyes slightly and leaned against the wall helplessly.
He sighed, came out from behind the corner, and prepared to leave.
Just as he turned the corner, he immediately bumped into Sang Li and Su Mo standing right around the corner. Both of them stared at him intently.
Gu Zhi was frightened and immediately turned back in, running into the alley.
Su Mo leapt forward, directly blocking Gu Zhi's path.
Gu Zhi hurriedly covered his face and stammered, "Miss, what are you doing?"
Sang Li watched his retreating figure and walked over.
Gu Zhi's heart was raised to his throat.
Looking at his hunched over and disheveled appearance, a sour feeling surged in Sang Li's heart.
She reached out her hand to pull away Gu Zhi's hand covering his face.
Seeing her fair fingers stretch out, Gu Zhi instinctively shrank back a little.
He was too dirty, he couldn't dirty the young lady's hands.
Seeing him dodge, Sang Li's outstretched hand stopped in midair. Her eyes reddened slightly as she took a deep breath and retracted her hand.
She had never imagined that Gu Zhi would actually fall to the point of begging!
If she had known he would fall to this, how could she have let him leave Qinglin Academy?
Sang Li's heart felt like it was pierced by thousands of arrows. She was extremely distressed.
After a long pause, Sang Li's voice carried a hint of choking sobs, "Why did you go to beg?"
"Miss, you...have the wrong person..." Gu Zhi still covered his face, not daring to look at Sang Li.
Sang Li looked at him, "How do you know I have the wrong person?"
"Take your hand down and let us take a good look, then we'll know if we have the wrong person or not!" Su Mo said.
"I...am filthy, afraid of soiling the young ladies' eyes..."
Sang Li took a step closer to him, and Gu Zhi instinctively took a step back.
Sang Li pressed closer step by step until he retreated to the wall and could retreat no further before stopping.
"Why make yourself look like this?" Sang Li asked again.
Gu Zhi did not speak. He secretly glanced at Sang Li and saw her slightly red-rimmed eyes. His heart involuntarily fluctuated.
Knowing that he could no longer conceal his identity, Gu Zhi slowly lowered his hand covering his face.
His face was dirty, his hair was a mess, and his beggar costume made him look extremely shabby.
"I...don't know how to do anything else, I can only beg..." Gu Zhi's aggrieved voice came.
Seeing Gu Zhi's pitiful appearance, it felt as if a huge boulder was pressing down on Sang Li's heart, making her feel stifled.
She reached out to wipe his face, but Gu Zhi still dodged.
"Sister, don't touch, I'm dirty."
These words almost broke Sang Li's composure. "Didn't Xiao Mu give you money? How did you end up like this?"
"That money...was snatched by the people at Huahua Building."
"Didn't your family find you?"
Gu Zhi paused, neither admitting nor denying, "I don't have any family."
He didn't want Sang Li to know the two people looking for him were from Miaojiang.
"But two people came to Simei Pavilion looking for you today. They said they were your family!" Su Mo said at the side.
Gu Zhi was stunned before responding, "No, they are not my family! Sister, don't believe them!"
Sang Li looked at him but did not continue asking about this.
"Come back to Qinglin Academy with us first."
"Sister..." Gu Zhi timidly called Sang Li, "Didn't you...not want me by your side?"
"I wanted you to find your family and be able to go home, not end up here begging!" Sang Li did not give him a chance to refuse. She grabbed his wrist and turned to leave the alley.
Gu Zhi stared blankly at Sang Li's hand holding his wrist. He couldn't help raising the corners of his mouth unconsciously.
...
Sang Li first took Gu Zhi back to Qinglin Academy and had him wash up and bathe.
After washing up, Gu Zhi came out wearing new clothes, restored to his former clean appearance.
He brought a drink to the courtyard and saw Sang Li lying in a chair under a big tree. Speckled light filtered through the branches and fell on her body, like an angel fallen into the mortal realm.
With his heartbeat racing uncontrollably faster, Gu Zhi slowly walked over. Seeing Sang Li with her eyes closed, seeming to be asleep, he unabashedly gazed at her face.
His fingers slowly reached out...
Just as he was about to touch Sang Li's face, she suddenly opened her eyes, staring at Gu Zhi standing in front of her.
Gu Zhi hurriedly retracted his hand, somewhat at a loss. "Sister...I thought you were asleep..."
"You thought I was asleep so you wanted to take advantage of me?" Sang Li retorted.
"I didn't..." Gu Zhi lowered his head, speaking neither reasonably nor convincingly.
He hurriedly picked up the fruit juice on the stone table next to him and handed it to Sang Li, "Sister, I made orange juice for you!"
Sang Li looked at the juice in his hand and sat up from the reclining chair.
She accepted the juice and took a sip. It was very fresh.
The sweetness was just right, and it was slightly cool, probably iced with well water.
Gu Zhi didn't know how to do anything before, but now not only could he cook and bake desserts, he could even make drinks.
He really learned a lot of things for her sake, almost all things she liked.
"Gu Zhi, I'm sorry..." Sang Li suddenly apologized to him.
"Sister..." Gu Zhi immediately crouched down, looking at her devoutly, "Why are you apologizing to me? You didn't wrong me."
"I shouldn't have driven you away. I was too selfish. And about Zhu Mu, I misunderstood you. I'm sorry."
She had thought a lot just now. She couldn't control her own heart, it was her own problem. What right did she have to drive Gu Zhi away?
Seeing Gu Zhi reduced to a beggar, she almost felt guilty enough to die.
"Sister, I won't allow you to say that. It was me who was no good, it was me who troubled you. If it wasn't for you saving me, I would have died long ago. You are the best to me."
"But you saved me too!" Sang Li looked at him, trying her best to restrain the churning emotions in her heart, and said gently, "Gu Zhi, let's call it even between us. You can stay here until you regain your memories or voluntarily leave after finding your family. I won't drive you away again in the future."
Hearing this, he should have been happy, but somehow, hearing Sang Li say they were even, he still couldn't feel happy at all.
Gu Zhi looked at her with determination flashing in his eyes. He gathered his courage and firmly grabbed Sang Li's hand.
Sang Li was clearly startled, her heart panicked, and she reflexively wanted to pull her hand out, but Gu Zhi exerted his strength and she couldn't pull it out no matter what.