Mu Chengfeng now felt extreme disgust toward Xia Siyue. His relationship with her had been a whim from the start—there was no real affection, just mutual convenience. Xia Siyue threw all her strength into fighting Mu Chengfeng, but it was nothing compared to a single punch from him, which landed squarely on her stomach.
The pain this time was even more intense than before. Xia Siyue staggered back a step, hesitantly clutching her stomach, suddenly feeling as if something had vanished from within her. She leaned against the railing, staring at Mu Chengfeng in disbelief. She truly sensed something flowing out of her belly. This fear of the unknown left Xia Siyue speechless. She reached out toward Mu Chengfeng, her voice weak, "Mu Chengfeng, my stomach... take me to the hospital, hurry, take me to the hospital..."
"Xia Siyue, what game are you trying to play?"
"No, Mu Chengfeng, call an ambulance..."
Seeing this, Mu Chengfeng eyed her suspiciously, then caught a glimpse of the stark blood trickling down her leg. He froze, his hand trembling slightly as he reached for his phone.
The ambulance arrived quickly. This commotion at school sparked various rumors about Xia Siyue and Mu Chengfeng.
At the city hospital.
Xia Siyue woke up and opened her eyes, seeing Old Madam Xia and Xia Minghui sitting in the ward. She instinctively reached down to touch her stomach.
"Yueyue, what’s going on? How did it come to this? What’s your relationship with Mu Chengfeng now?" Old Madam Xia asked sternly, looking at the dazed Xia Siyue on the bed.
Hearing this, Xia Siyue closed her eyes and murmured, "Was I pregnant? Is my child gone?"
Old Madam Xia paused at her words, then snapped back to reality. "This matter—our Xia family won’t let it slide. At the very least, that Mu boy must marry you."
"Yes, Yueyue, we’ll definitely seek an explanation from the Mu family."
Xia Siyue lay motionless, silent, occasionally opening her eyes to listen to their endless chatter. Suddenly, she pulled the blanket over her head. Hasty footsteps sounded outside the ward, and soon the door was pushed open. Mu Chengfeng’s father entered first, with Mu Chengfeng following behind, his expression calm, showing no trace of apology.
Xia Minghui exchanged some pleasantries with the Mu family before getting to the point. "Now that this has happened, I’m sure no one wanted it. I think, since Yueyue and Chengfeng are at the right age for marriage, why not take this opportunity to discuss it?"
"Discuss what? Marriage? Mr. Xia, you said it yourself—no one wanted this to happen. But as for this accident, Chengfeng’s careless action was wrong, so we’re here to apologize, nothing more. Don’t overthink it, Mr. Xia. As for marriage, our Mu family has no intention of forming an alliance with the Xia family."
"Mrs. Mu, what do you mean by that?"
"Chengfeng will not marry anyone from the Xia family."
"Mrs. Mu, isn’t that a bit too certain?"
"An alliance is out of the question. However, we’ll take responsibility for Chengfeng causing Xia Siyue’s miscarriage. We’ll provide due compensation..."
Xia Minghui’s face flushed red with anger at Mrs. Mu’s words, while Old Madam Xia was still fixated on the idea of a Mu-Xia alliance, not fully registering what Mrs. Mu had said. Xia Yan received Xia Minghui’s call and rushed to the hospital, only to find the ward crowded with family members, each wearing expressions that invited scrutiny. This stalemate persisted until Xia Yan’s arrival broke it.
Xia Yan’s status had changed—she was not only the publicly acknowledged eldest daughter of the Xia family but also Lu Zhengting’s only publicly recognized girlfriend. Even if the former identity didn’t draw attention, the latter certainly did. Everyone knew how much Lu Zhengting cherished Xia Yan; the rumors were hardly exaggerated—he treated her as if she might melt in his mouth or slip through his fingers. That was how outsiders saw them.
Mu Chengfeng froze at the sight of Xia Yan. It had been a while, and he hadn’t expected her to become even more beautiful. Why hadn’t he noticed her before?
Xia Yan didn’t catch Mu Chengfeng’s gaze on her. She walked straight to Xia Minghui. "Father, you said Yueyue had a miscarriage?"
The person pretending to sleep on the bed snapped her eyes open the moment she heard Xia Yan’s voice. "Why are you here?"
"Oh, Yueyue, with something like this happening to you, how could Father not inform me?"
"Get out! I don’t want to see you right now." Xia Siyue was used to lording it over Xia Yan and had never appeared so humiliated in front of her. This was tormenting her both mentally and physically.
Seeing her agitation, Xia Yan pursed her lips slightly, with no intention of leaving just yet. Xia Minghui and the Mu family continued their standoff, and Xia Yan played the role of a bystander. She wouldn’t tell anyone that when she got Xia Minghui’s call, she hadn’t planned to visit Xia Siyue at the hospital. But then she thought about how Xia Siyue might react to her showing up—curiosity got the better of her, so she came.
Sure enough, Xia Siyue’s reaction pleased her. She didn’t bother listening to what Xia Minghui and the Mu family were saying; the only thing she caught was Mu Chengfeng’s disgusted tone: "Marry such a vicious woman? Absolutely impossible."
Hearing this, Xia Yan blinked and glanced at the woman on the bed, who was clenching her fists. Vicious? That fit perfectly.
"Get out! All of you, get out!"
"Xia Siyue, watch your mouth," Mu Chengfeng snapped, pointing at her.
Xia Siyue refused to back down. As the atmosphere grew tense, Xia Yan’s phone rang at just the right moment. When things got heated, she had wisely slipped to a safe corner. Now that everyone was staring at her, she smiled sheepishly, rubbed her nose, and answered the call. "What’s up? I’m still at the hospital."
Lu Zhengting frowned. "What are you doing at the hospital?"
"Cough, there’s been a bit of trouble."
"Trouble? Are you okay?"
Xia Yan covered the receiver and lowered her voice. "I’m fine, just here to watch the show."
Hearing this, Lu Zhengting rubbed his eyes in amusement, his sexy lips pursed, a hint of weariness on his face. He switched the phone to his other hand and continued, "Which hospital? I’ll come pick you up."
"You don’t have to... fine, I’m at the city hospital."
Xia Yan hung up and noticed everyone’s attention had shifted away from her, except for one person—Xia Siyue, who always loved to compete with her. Now that she was so miserable, Xia Yan felt awkward flaunting her happiness in front of her. Xia Siyue narrowed her eyes, glaring at Xia Yan, catching the unguarded smile of contentment on her face. It made her tremble with rage—it was like Xia Yan was thriving while she was falling apart.
A woman who had miscarried needed rest, but Xia Siyue’s ward was too chaotic, causing her to become agitated. Before anyone could react, she fainted. Doctors and nurses bustled in and out, ushering everyone out of the room. The Mu family, eager to leave, seized the chance to slip away. Xia Yan wanted to follow—it was too boring, and Xia Siyue’s fighting spirit was completely off today.
But before she could speak, Xia Minghui told her to stay. She paused. "Father, Yueyue will be fine. Don’t worry too much."
"Come with me."
Xia Yan followed Xia Minghui suspiciously to the stairwell. "Father, what is it?"
"Yanyan, how are things with Mr. Lu now?"
"Same as always, nothing’s changed."
Xia Minghui didn’t believe her—the rumors said otherwise. He frowned and pressed on. "Do you remember what I told you last time?"
"Is it about my father?"
"Yes. I’ve never stopped investigating what happened back then, but it’s been years, and it’s too tricky. Aside from a few scraps of information, there’s been no progress. I recall Lanzhi mentioning your father’s belongings before she passed..."
"Belongings? I’ve looked through them. Aside from some jewelry Mom left me, there’s nothing valuable."
"Child, you might have missed a clue without realizing it. Why don’t you hand them over to me? That way, I can investigate what happened back then. There might be a lead in there." Xia Minghui patted Xia Yan’s shoulder, speaking earnestly.
Xia Yan lowered her head, pursed her lips, and thought for a long moment. "Are there really clues? Can we really find out the truth about my father’s death?"
"Of course." Xia Minghui thought he had convinced Xia Yan to hand over the items, but before he could celebrate for even a minute, the phone in Xia Yan’s pocket rang. He vaguely heard a man’s voice on the other end.
Xia Yan calmly reported the floor and room number, then hung up. She turned to Xia Minghui with a light laugh. "It’s Lu Zhengting. He’s downstairs now."
"Downstairs?" Xia Minghui’s expression shifted, and he eyed Xia Yan’s innocent face suspiciously, sensing something off. He quickly changed the subject. "Since Mr. Lu is here to pick you up, go ahead. Your grandmother and I will stay here."
"Alright, Father. I’ll be off then."
As Xia Yan and Xia Minghui stepped out of the stairwell, Lu Zhengting was just exiting the elevator, heading straight for Xia Yan. Xia Minghui narrowed his eyes, watching the two walk away side by side, lost in thought. He felt Xia Yan knew something, and Lu Zhengting’s inscrutable demeanor made him hard to read.
Xia Yan took Lu Zhengting’s arm as they entered the elevator, glancing back at Xia Minghui, who was still staring their way. She suddenly grinned. "You have no idea—when I walked into that ward earlier, the atmosphere was so tense and weird. But also really boring."