CHAPTER 154: CHAPTER 154: PLEASE, DON’T LOVE ME ANYMORE

Aiden Fordham felt the blade of the dagger, and just as it was about to fall, he tightly grasped the blade with both hands.

Instantly, blood gushed from his hands, but he didn’t feel any pain.

He could only sense the struggle of strength between two men. Using all his might, he flung Andy Lockwood aside, releasing the man’s grip on him.

When he stood up, he was shaky, feeling the night wind blowing fiercely, with the sound of the wind howling in his ears.

Suddenly, a powerful force struck his head, his ears rang, and he lost strength, falling to the ground.

He tried hard not to faint, knowing that if he couldn’t get up, he might never have the chance to rise again.

But his consciousness could no longer support his body. As he closed his eyes, he heard a gunshot.

Just as Andy Lockwood was about to strike a fatal blow, Keegan Lindsey arrived with bodyguards, with Stella following behind.

The bullet knocked the dagger from Andy Lockwood’s hand, and at this moment, he was also on the brink of death.

The wound Aiden Fordham sustained was two centimeters above his chest, exacerbated by the previous fight.

Blood was quickly draining from Andy Lockwood’s body, and he suddenly felt cold.

"President Fordham." Keegan quickly approached and supported Aiden Fordham, but he was unconscious, his hands covered in blood, "Quickly, help him down."

A bodyguard stepped forward to assist, helping him away. At the foot of the mountain were a helicopter and an off-road vehicle.

Stella looked at the shocking bloodstains on the scene, at the two men, one unconscious and one injured, frightened to the point of losing focus.

If she had arrived a moment later, Aiden Fordham might have died under Andy Lockwood’s knife.

Blood streamed from Andy Lockwood, his body weak. He struggled to open his eyes, looking at the familiar woman in front of him, softly calling out.

"Stella."

His body trembled slightly in the night wind, holding himself upright with willpower, on the verge of fainting.

Stella quickly laid him down, took out a small bottle, sprinkled the medicine powder on his wound, then took out a handkerchief and gently pressed it against the bleeding wound.

"The bleeding will stop soon, don’t worry." She tried to comfort him, her voice tinged with a hint of lingering fear.

Today, no matter if it was him or Aiden Fordham, had something happened to them, it would be a result she couldn’t bear.

"Why... did you save me?" His voice was weak, with a hint of surprise in his eyes. "If I had killed him, would you... still save me?"

"Yes!" Her tone was firm, then she added, "Life is equal. No one is more noble than another, regardless of who it is, I would save them."

Andy Lockwood’s heart was instantly filled with disappointment, realizing he was not a special existence, and spoke with harsh words to provoke her.

"Nine Days Warmth, I’ve already destroyed it. Aiden Fordham, you can’t save him anymore, you must hate me now, don’t you?"

Her hand pressing against his wound trembled slightly, suppressing the excitement in her heart, "That is also his fate."

The night wind messed her long hair, beneath her long lashes was undeniable sadness.

"Senior Brother, whether or not you’re Erwin’s accomplice, whatever your purpose in approaching me, over the years, you’ve never hurt me and have taken good care of me. You’re a good senior brother."

"It was you who snatched me back from a shark’s mouth. The kindness given that day, reaps today’s fruit."

His eyes locked on her, unable to utter a harsh word.

His blood-stained hand gently grasped her small hand, a plea in his voice, "Stella, come with me."

Stella did not pull away, merely looked at him calmly, "Senior Brother, having the ability to love someone is more precious than selfishly possessing them! If one day you shed tears seeing the person you love happy, then you’ll understand what love is."

In the moonlight, Andy Lockwood’s cold gaze turned gentle, his wounded heart seemed pricked by something.

She looked at him, focused and earnest, continuing to speak,

"To love someone, you will accept their weaknesses and imperfections, willing to give everything. You will trust each other, grow together, having the meaning and courage of a life beyond self."

"You will shed tears for them, sing for them, even fearlessly, go to death together." Her voice suddenly turned hoarse.

Andy Lockwood couldn’t understand, but her voice carried a healing power!

The bleeding finally stopped, and she gently tied the handkerchief to his shoulder, staying close to him.

The scent of lilies lightly wafted into Andy Lockwood’s nose.

"In this duel, there is no winner. Whether it’s you or him, if anything happened to either of you, I would... be very sad."

Finishing, a tear fell from her eyes.

He reached out, catching it, its warmth burning his heart.

"Don’t cry." His voice was incredibly hoarse.

"Senior Brother, thank you... for the kindness you’ve shown me! Please... don’t love me anymore!"

She looked at him deeply, decisively turning to leave.

Andy Lockwood watched her departing figure, his vision gradually blurred.

He wanted to call out to keep her, but the words wouldn’t leave his mouth, watching her go farther and farther away.

He was like a solitary boat forgotten in the sea, drifting in the storm, seeing the lighthouse but unable to find the oars.

A heart wavering between hope and despair, tragically...

The roar of propellers thundered in the night sky.

Stella and Aiden Fordham sat in the helicopter, leaving. She asked the off-road vehicle driver to take the injured Andy Lockwood back to the town.

Aiden Fordham’s body was covered in wounds, especially his bloodied hands, stinging Stella’s eyes.

She carefully cleaned his bloodstains, her eyes reddening.

The helicopter landed on the helipad in the villa area.

Upon entering, Stella immediately ordered Keegan.

"Go to the laboratory at the foot of the mountain and have those doctors send over all the extracted plant solutions."

Her voice was undeniable, urgent with pressure.

"There’s no time to waste!"

Keegan nodded, without a word of complaint, he turned and left.

In the laboratory, several doctors in white lab coats were hard at work.

Keegan’s sudden appearance took them by surprise.

After all, the agreed submission date was still a few days away.

A female doctor wearing gold-rimmed glasses named Jane Jenkins adjusted her glasses.

"Mr. Lindsey?" Her tone held just the right amount of doubt, "Isn’t there still three days? We... we haven’t finished everything completely yet."

As she spoke, her eyes flickered slightly, then she carefully picked up a tube of deep blue solution from the lab table.

"Be very careful with this tube. Make sure not to drop it."

She solemnly placed the tube of blue solution into an insulated box and closed it.

Keegan took the insulated box, responding in a deep voice,

"Don’t worry." He then said to the others, "Everyone, continue your work, thank you for your efforts."

With that, he hurried back with the 12 plant ingredients mentioned by the doctors.

Stella was already waiting in the small building’s lab.

She took the plant solutions Keegan brought back, preparing for the final mixing.

The bright light shone on her focused profile.

When she picked up a tube of the deep blue solution, her gaze suddenly froze.

This color... was made by Dr. Jenkins.

She held the tube, not mixing it immediately, instead taking out a very fine silver needle, cautiously dipping it into the solution before withdrawing it to examine it closely under the light for a moment.

Only after confirming there was no problem did she slowly pour it into the container, mixing it with several other red-tinted solutions.

Time ticked by, and the sky outside gradually lightened.

Working almost until dawn, the semi-finished antidote that had consumed Stella’s efforts was finally completed.

Golden morning light filtered through the curtains.

Ignoring fatigue, Stella clutched the still warm antidote, hurrying to Aiden Fordham’s room.

Keegan had been waiting there for a while, and upon seeing her, he immediately stepped forward, carefully helping Aiden Fordham sit up, leaning him against the headboard.

Using a small spoon, Stella gently fed the antidote drop by drop into Aiden Fordham’s mouth.

The room was so silent that they could hear each other’s breaths.

About a minute later.

Aiden Fordham suddenly began to cough violently.

"Cough... cough, cough!"

He coughed with a heart-wrenching force, then abruptly spat out a mouthful of dark red blood, and his head tilted as he fainted.

Stella’s face turned deathly pale instantly.

"How could this be?" she murmured to herself, her voice trembling, "I definitely didn’t include Seven-color brocade’s component?"

She suddenly stared at the empty vial of antidote, her pupils constricting sharply.

"No, poisoned!" she exclaimed, "Those doctors... are problematic!"