Chapter 184 Baby, I Won't Get Hurt
Song Ni suddenly woke up in the middle of the night. She had a very, very bad dream. She dreamed of Tan Zheng from a few years ago, dreamed of him speeding on the racetrack, dreamed of his car suddenly malfunctioning, dreamed of him crashing into a mountain. She rushed over and saw Tan Zheng in the driver's seat, already in a coma, immersed in blood. She tried hard to pry open the deformed car door, but couldn't move it at all. *Bang* – the deformed car suddenly exploded. She watched with her own eyes as Tan Zheng, unconscious, slumped over the steering wheel, engulfed in flames, while she could do nothing.
Song Ni sat up abruptly, a cold sweat breaking out on her back. Her eyes were dazed and panicked, the scenes from the dream replaying in her mind. She gasped for breath, frantically searching for her phone. It wasn't on the nightstand. She got out of bed barefoot, only to find her legs had gone weak, and she fell to the floor. The phone, she didn't know when, had been tossed onto the soft couch by the window. She struggled to get up, taking two steps at a time, stumbling to the window. She picked up her phone and video-called Tan Zheng.
Tan Zheng, who had been engrossed in looking at Song Ni's photos, was momentarily dazed by the sudden video call. He thought it was a hallucination caused by his recent illness and his intense longing for Song Ni. But the ringing sound was so close, so clear, so real. Tan Zheng answered the video call. The first thing he saw was Song Ni's messy hair and red eyes. The man was suddenly flustered.
"What's wrong, baby?"
Song Ni called out his name with a sob. "Tan Zheng."
The man's heart tightened, hurting him fiercely. "Yeah, I'm here, baby, what's wrong?"
Song Ni continued to cry, calling Tan Zheng's name, tears streaming down her cheeks. "Tan Zheng, Tan Zheng, Tan Zheng..." As Song Ni called out, she suddenly burst into tears, sobbing uncontrollably. The scenes from the dream were too vivid. Tan Zheng, speeding on the race car, was so unrestrained, so arrogant, so in control, so charismatic, so real. Then she watched with her own eyes as this vibrant Tan Zheng crashed into the mountain, fell into a pool of blood, and was swallowed by flames. It was too real, too real to be a dream.
Tan Zheng watched Song Ni just cry out his name, standing up in a daze, completely unaware of what had happened. He could only respond to Song Ni again and again. "Yeah, I'm here, baby, I'm here, I'm here."
Song Ni rarely cried, and had never cried in front of Tan Zheng, except when she was being playful or in bed. Tan Zheng had never seen Song Ni's tears. The man's heart ached terribly at Song Ni's tears. He paced back and forth in his room, gently coaxing Song Ni. But Song Ni's tears were like pearls falling from a broken string, unstoppable.
Tan Zheng had no other recourse but to kiss Song Ni's eyes through the screen, kissing every place where tears had fallen. "Baby, be good, I'm here, I'm here, what's wrong? Hmm? Don't cry, you're breaking my heart."
"..."
After a long time of coaxing, as Song Ni cried herself into clarity and heard Tan Zheng's voice, she finally pulled herself out of the dream scene. Song Ni raised her hand to wipe her eyes. Seeing Tan Zheng safe and sound on the screen, her suspended heart finally settled.
"What are you doing?" Song Ni's voice was hoarse from crying, still choked with emotion.
Tan Zheng frowned, his heart aching. "I'm looking at you."
Song Ni sniffled. "Looking at me how?"
"Looking at the photos I took of you." And the photos of Song Ni from childhood to adulthood that he had obtained from Tang Qinyun. Song Ni's mind was still a blur; she only remembered that Tan Zheng had indeed taken photos of her.
"Talk more."
"Okay, what do you want to hear?"
"Anything. Just talk to me quickly." She desperately wanted to hear Tan Zheng's voice to dispel the terrifyingly real dream. She wanted Tan Zheng to live well.
Tan Zheng casually picked up a book from the bookshelf and began to read to Song Ni. Worried about Song Ni, Tan Zheng didn't know what he was reading, and Song Ni was still palpitating, not hearing the content clearly. She just wanted to hear Tan Zheng's voice, to confirm that he was alive and well. The dream was just a dream. Tan Zheng was so capable, how could he get into an accident? He wouldn't. He never would.
When Song Ni's emotions had stabilized somewhat, Tan Zheng put down the book and asked Song Ni softly. "Baby, what happened just now?"
Song Ni instinctively held her breath, and then remembered the image of Tan Zheng slumped over the steering wheel, unconscious. She shook her head violently. She opened her mouth, not knowing what to say. In the end, she just said, "I dreamed you got hurt."
Tan Zheng's expression froze. Thinking of what had just happened on the rooftop, his face turned a little grim. He was angry at his momentary selfishness. If Xi Jinjiang hadn't called out Song Ni's name at the end, he truly wouldn't have feared death. Could it be because of this that Song Ni had nightmares? The man leaned closer to the screen and kissed Song Ni's forehead. "Baby, I won't get hurt."
Song Ni wrinkled her nose and responded. She couldn't quite understand why she suddenly had such a nightmare. Was it because she had been investigating Xi Jinjiang lately that she projected the accident from five years ago onto Tan Zheng in her dream?
Song Ni couldn't fall asleep again. Tan Zheng stayed on the phone with her, reading to her, until dawn, until Song Ni had to get up and prepare for filming. After hanging up the phone, Tan Zheng was still uneasy. He called Zhou Jin. He had been in America during this time and couldn't devote much energy to Song Ni. He didn't know what had been happening with her recently.
After learning that Song Ni had saved Yu Wei, Tan Zheng fell silent for a long, long time. Some things truly seemed destined by heaven. It just so happened that Yu Wei went to Yu City after leaving Xing City, it just so happened that Song Ni was filming in Yu City, it just so happened that Song Ni went to the bar where Yu Wei was, and it just so happened that Song Ni ran into Yu Wei. He wasn't sure how Song Ni became suspicious of Yu Wei and started investigating her. He only knew that Song Ni was getting closer step by step to what happened five years ago.
He hadn't considered telling Song Ni about the situation back then himself, but he always harbored a concern in his heart. He didn't know what he was worried about. He understood Song Ni's personality very well; upon learning the truth, she would definitely open her arms and embrace him, saying it wasn't his fault. But he just... wanted to resolve it himself. And then, wholeheartedly, love her properly. (End of this chapter)