Chapter 166: Isolation

My heart skipped a beat, and I hurriedly said, "Of course, please come in!"

Xu Shu smiled again and stepped into the living room. Fan Yunting quickly stood up and greeted her, "Hello, Chairman!"

Xu Shu glanced at me before turning back to Fan Yunting. "Oh, so Director Fan is here as well. That is wonderful. Has the company completely gone on holiday too? I called earlier, but nobody answered."

Fan Yunting replied, "Yes, indeed. The SARS outbreak has been spreading so rapidly and fiercely. If any employee were to catch it, our entire company would be finished, and everyone would be placed under quarantine. It is far better to simply suspend operations and take a holiday, then resume production once the storm passes."

Xu Shu nodded slightly. "I heard about it while I was abroad, though I had no idea it was this serious. My temperature was checked the moment I stepped off the plane yesterday, and now the entire city seems to be on high alert, turning pale at the mere mention of SARS. There were hardly any pedestrians on the streets when I drove over just now; it was terrifying."

I walked over with a glass of water and said, "Exactly! You could have just given me a call. Why would you brave such danger to come here in person? Is there an emergency?"

Xu Shu took the glass and smiled. "Your phone was switched off, and there was nobody at the office. I had no other choice but to come find you myself. The two of you, the president and the vice president, still sticking together even during a holiday—you certainly are diligent!"

I chuckled awkwardly and could only say, "Please, take a seat and tell me what this is about."

Xu Shu turned to look at Fan Yunting, smiled without saying a word, and sat down to sip her warm water.

Fan Yunting immediately caught the hint and said, "Ah! Perfect timing, I need to be going anyway. Chairman, please make yourself comfortable, I must take my leave."

Xu Shu smiled. "Is Director Fan leaving already? There is no rush, stay a while longer."

"No, no, I really must go. Tang Qian, let us consider that settled then, we can discuss the rest after work resumes." Fan Yunting grabbed her handbag and headed straight for the door. I hurriedly went to open it for her.

As she passed by me, she shot me a fierce glare and muttered under her breath, "A mistress is a mistress, aren't you just so important?"

I could only offer a bitter smile and said, "Have a safe trip, Director Fan, I won't see you out."

After Fan Yunting left in a huff, I closed the door, turned around, and smiled, "Xu Shu, I heard you were touring the world for concerts recently. Did you get too tired and decide to take a few days off?"

Xu Shu sank deep into the sofa, looking at me without a word. Only her smile slowly faded away. My heart sank. I walked over to her side and softly asked, "What is the matter? Is something troubling you?"

Tears were already shimmering in Xu Shu's eyes. "A couple of days ago," she said, "Aaron suffered a deep coma due to a drug overdose, and he is still lying in a hospital. The doctors say that, at worst, he might remain like this for the rest of his life."

I froze in shock. I could never have imagined that the handsome and dashing Heavenly King Zhang would resort to drugs, let alone fall into a coma because of it. I asked in astonishment, "Is that true?"

Xu Shu's lower lip quivered, and she finally broke down in tears. "It is all my fault. Ever since I turned down his marriage proposal, Aaron has completely lost his touch in his career. His films have bombed at the box office one after another, and his album sales plummeted because his singing was not as good as before. Aaron is a man of immense pride; he could not bear the dual blow of failures in both his career and love life, so he turned to drugs every day to numb himself. By the time I found out, it was already too late to save him."

Tears streamed down Xu Shu's face as she wept bitterly. I knew Aaron held a very special place in Xu Shu's heart, so naturally, she was devastated by his misfortune.

For a moment, I had no idea how to comfort her, so I reached for a box of tissues, pulled out two sheets, and gently wiped her tears.

Weeping, Xu Shu continued, "It is all my fault. Actually, I could have phrased my rejection much more gently that night. Perhaps then he wouldn't have been so heartbroken, and things wouldn't have reached this point. I regret it so much!"

I sighed, "Xu Shu, please don't grieve like this. Everyone's destiny is predetermined; even if you had phrased it differently, the outcome would likely have been the same."

Xu Shu flared up. "How can you say that? If I hadn't been so upset after seeing you being all intimate with that flower vixen, how could I have taken my anger out on Aaron? Do you even know how I rejected him that night?"

I fell silent. So that night, Xu Shu had treated Zhang Aaron harshly precisely because of me. I pulled out two more tissues and handed them to her, speaking in a soft voice, "Stop blaming yourself. This isn't your fault, it's mine. I shouldn't have been so intimate with Hua Jingjing; I didn't mean to provoke you."

Xu Shu took the tissues, reflexively hit me with them, and snapped, "Rubbish! What did you even know back then? What good does blaming you do now?"

Covering her face with the tissue, she began to cry again.

I sighed. "Perhaps if I hadn't shown up that day, you might have accepted his proposal? Then such a tragedy wouldn't have happened."

Xu Shu suddenly lowered her hands, stared at me, and asked, "Are you saying you would have been willing to watch me marry him?"

I lowered my head. "I don't know, but seeing you this heartbroken... you regret it now, don't you?"

Xu Shu let out a huff, turned her head away, and ignored me.

Not knowing what else to say, I fell silent as well. After using up several tissues, Xu Shu gradually stopped crying. She stared blankly at the wall, lost in thought.

After a long while, she let out a soft sigh, turned her gaze back to me, and said, "Although Aaron's fate is tragic, at least he once had a brilliant and glorious past. His artistic life is eternal. Heaven would not let a good man like him sleep forever; I firmly believe he will wake up."

I hummed in agreement and said, "I believe so too!"

Xu Shu discarded the used tissue and said, "The main reason I came to see you today isn't to talk about Aaron. I am here to deliver something for your wife."

Surprised, I asked, "You saw Jingjing again? What is it?"

Xu Shu scoffed, opened her small handbag, and pulled out a string of Buddhist prayer beads. "Jingjing's grandmother has settled in the United States. This is a string of prayer beads she consecrated with her spiritual power in America, said to ward off all evils and cure a hundred illnesses. Even with twelve years of spiritual practice, Jingjing's grandmother can only perform this consecration once. It was originally meant for her beloved granddaughter, but Jingjing cares deeply for her husband and knows that the SARS outbreak is raging across the country, so she asked me to bring this back for you across thousands of miles. She hopes it will bring you smooth sailing in all things, keep you free from illness, and protect you—her feelings for you are truly profound!"

I took the prayer beads, sighed, and said, "Jingjing is really something. I remember her acting all mysterious on the phone a few days ago, saying she had a magical treasure to give me, but she refused to tell me what it was. So it was this."

Xu Shu remarked, "Do you think it is mere superstition? Regardless, this is Jingjing's heartfelt wish for you."

I replied, "I know, I will cherish it." With that, I solemnly placed the prayer beads into my pocket.

At that moment, a commotion arose downstairs. It sounded like several cars had pulled up, followed by the sound of many people talking. Paying little attention to it, I asked Xu Shu, "Is Jingjing putting on weight or losing it these days? And why did you go all the way to America to see her?"

Xu Shu answered, "I recently landed another Hollywood film, an action movie. I'll be starring alongside the action superstar Michael Harrison. I've never done a film with fight scenes before. Last week, I was in America for costume fittings, and I dropped by to see Jingjing. Well, Jingjing is neither too fat nor too thin right now, her figure is just right. Nourished by your love, she is looking gorgeous! You can finally rest easy now, can't you?"

I smiled. "Look at you, I was just asking casually!"

The noise outside grew louder. I could even hear someone shouting questions outside, accompanied by the wailing of police sirens approaching from a distance.

Frowning, I asked, "What is going on out there? So much noise!"

Xu Shu chuckled dismissively. "Perhaps they are here to make an arrest? Seeing how nervous you are, could they be coming for you?"

Annoyed, I walked over to the window and retorted, "I'm not a criminal, why would they arrest me?"

Pulling back the curtains, I looked outside. I saw that the residential buildings directly in front and behind ours were being cordoned off with warning tape. Numerous people in full protective gear and carrying disinfection equipment were spraying everywhere. Several police vehicles were parked outside the barrier, and a dozen police officers were controlling the exits, strictly forbidding anyone from entering or leaving.

My heart skipped a beat, and I muttered subconsciously, "Surely we aren't this unlucky?"

Sitting on the sofa, Xu Shu asked, "What is it? Are they really here for you?"

I replied, "This is much worse than them being here for me. I'm afraid we're going to be quarantined!"

Xu Shu's expression changed instantly. "Quarantined? You don't mean..."

She sprang up from the sofa, hurried to my side, and peered out the window. Just in time, she saw a middle-aged man holding a megaphone, shouting loudly:

"Residents of Buildings 15 and 16, I am from the Municipal Epidemic Prevention Station. First of all, please do not panic, please do not panic. Stay inside your homes and do not come out, follow our instructions. I regret to inform you that due to the appearance of a suspected case among you, by emergency order of the municipal party committee and government, you are temporarily placed under quarantine. But residents, please do not panic..."

Hearing halfway through, Xu Shu's face turned pale with fright. She exclaimed in dismay, "Is this for real? Has there been a SARS case here? Heavens, we really are quarantined! How long is this going to last? I have so many things to do!"

Imagining an international superstar suddenly being forcibly quarantined in an ordinary citizen's home, I could only wonder how many people would be thrown into a panic. At that thought, I couldn't help bursting into laughter.

Furious, Xu Shu lashed out and kicked me, shouting, "Things are like this and you can still laugh? Do you even have a heart?"

This time, I deftly sidestepped her kick and smiled, "Why are you taking it out on me? It's not like I caught SARS. Didn't you see that I'm quarantined too? I'm a victim here as well!"

Between exasperation and helplessness, Xu Shu could only stomp her feet repeatedly.

Right at that moment, the doorbell rang.

I said, "Alright, what must be must be, panicking won't help. I'll go open the door, perhaps the situation isn't as severe as it seems?"