The man lowered his face and saw the girl in his arms gazing up at him with clear, beautiful eyes.
"Not sleepy anymore?"
An Ruo shook her head, her beautiful eyes shifting slightly away, no longer looking at him.
Seeing her cold attitude, Shen Xiaoxing had an illusion of losing her and tightened his arms around her.
The room was filled only with their faint breathing and the ticking of the bedside clock, eerily quiet and oppressive.
After a long silence, An Ruo closed her eyes, her mind filled with the rampant faces from her dream and the man's cold, ruthless smile.
She suddenly opened her eyes and spoke very calmly, "Is the child still there?"
Having slept all night without water, her voice was dry and hoarse.
Shen Xiaoxing's deep eyes darkened. He didn't want to tell her the truth, but hiding it seemed unrealistic.
After struggling for a long time, he held the girl tightly and said in a low voice, "The doctor said your constitution is too weak. The first child was already hard to keep..."
Her voice was very soft, "It's gone, isn't it?"
The man didn't answer her, but the answer was obvious.
"I don't even know if it was a boy or a girl..." An Ruo's dry eyes forced out two tears, but she couldn't cry.
Mentioning this unborn child, Shen Xiaoxing's heart ached all night.
But he had no time to wallow in sorrow. The girl had gone through such a big ordeal and needed him by her side without a moment's leave.
"We're both still young. We'll have more children in the future." Shen Xiaoxing's long fingers gently combed through her hair. "Once you recover, we'll try for another one soon."
An Ruo kept her face expressionless, turning away, unwilling to look at him.
Would they still have children?
Since her body had issues, even if she got pregnant again, wouldn't it just end in another miscarriage?
She didn't want to experience this pain a second time!
"I don't want any more..."
The man rested his chin on her head, his sexy Adam's apple moving heavily. "Then we won't have any."
An Ruo closed her eyes in sorrow.
"I've always felt that children aren't the only thing holding us together. If you don't want them, we won't have them. I can't bear to see you go through this pain again."
Everything was as she wished.
His gentle and considerate voice echoed in her ears, but she couldn't escape that dream. The Shen Xiaoxing in it felt so real that she couldn't tell if his kindness was genuine.
"Are you hungry? Should I have the kitchen make you something to eat?"
An Ruo shook her head. "I need to use the bathroom."
She had been on an IV all night, and her lower abdomen was painfully bloated.
"I'll carry you." Without waiting for her response, Shen Xiaoxing lifted her up, his long legs striding briskly across the floor, showing no sign of any disability.
An Ruo's gaze dimmed. He really had been hiding it from her all along.
Since she had seen him walking upright, Shen Xiaoxing no longer needed to pretend. He carried her to the bathroom, kicking open the toilet lid with his long leg.
Just as he was about to help her pull down her pants, the girl pushed his hand away in shock. "I'll do it myself."
She dismissed him mercilessly. "Get out."
Shen Xiaoxing rubbed his nose and chuckled lightly. "We're husband and wife. We've slept together for so long, and you still won't let me see?"
"Get out!" she repeated.
The man had no choice but to nod. He set her down on the toilet and grabbed a clean towel to place under her feet, so she wouldn't step on the cold floor.
Watching his tall back, An Ruo was momentarily dazed. Only when the bathroom door closed did she slowly look away.
...
The man walked to the balcony, took a cigarette from the pack on the table, and placed it skillfully between his lips. He clicked the lighter and lit it.
His deep eyes stared blankly into the distance.
The girl's sudden miscarriage was no accident. Last night, he had Han Chong investigate thoroughly, and the problem lay in the soup served at dinner.
When he learned the truth, Shen Xiaoxing almost wanted to stab himself.
The soup was tainted, and not only did he not know, but he had even ladled several bowls for the girl. She hadn't wanted to drink it, but she forced it down for the sake of the child. And the result... that was the poison that killed the child!
And he had become an accomplice!
It was a slow-acting poison, meaning An Ruo had been ingesting it under his nose for over a week!
The poisoner was Butler Xu, who confessed everything under torture. The mastermind behind it was Fang Yingxue. Strangely, though he was Lin Zhao's man, he was working for the second branch!
Han Chong found a large amount of money in his room, far beyond his usual salary. He must have been bribed. Following this lead, they indeed found he had been in contact with the second branch recently.
Shen Xiaoxing couldn't swallow this anger. He ordered torture. While An Ruo slept all night, Butler Xu endured a full night of whipping in the underground dungeon!
But Shen Xiaoxing wouldn't let him die. He kept him alive, barely breathing.
Last night, the villa was like a living hell. Everyone involved in the matter, including the servants assigned to personally care for An Ruo, was punished without exception.
He strictly investigated those who had leaked information. If not for their loose lips, their child wouldn't have died so unjustly!
The cigarette burned his fingers, snapping him out of his thoughts. He stubbed it out in the ashtray.
He brushed off his clothes, making sure there was no strong smell of smoke, then pulled open the glass door. The girl wasn't in the room, and the bathroom door was still closed.
He walked over and knocked. "Ruo Ruo?"
There was no sound from inside. He knocked twice more, then suddenly sensed something wrong. He grabbed the doorknob and tried to turn it—it was locked!
A bad feeling spread from the soles of his feet through his entire body. He pounded on the door. "An Ruo, open up!"
Not knowing what was happening inside, no matter how hard he knocked or shouted, the girl remained silent.
Shen Xiaoxing began to panic. He raised his leg and kicked the door with all his might!
But the door had been designed with sturdy materials, as he had requested, because he had built an underground space below. The kick didn't open the door—it set off the alarm!
Han Chong rushed upstairs immediately. "Young Master!"
Seeing the situation, he froze. "Young Master, what are you...?"
What kind of anger was this, kicking and punching a bathroom door?
"Stop talking nonsense and open the door!"
Han Chong responded, walked over, grabbed the doorknob, and tried to turn it. "Young Master, it's locked."
Shen Xiaoxing, furious, smacked him on the back of the head, his voice cold and chilling. "If you keep pretending to be stupid, do you believe I'll have you chopped up and fed to the dogs!?"
Wasn't he just trying to lighten the mood since the young master looked so gloomy?
Han Chong pouted. "Young Master, you forgot this door has a fingerprint lock."
The man suddenly remembered. When designing the door, he had specifically installed a fingerprint lock for emergencies.
But after checking, Han Chong reported, "Young Master, your... those kicks just now broke the fingerprint lock..."
Damn it!
Shen Xiaoxing's whole body radiated cold fury, on the verge of exploding. Han Chong wisely said, "Wait a moment. I'll go downstairs and find the spare key."
With that, he quickly dashed downstairs, afraid the man would lose it and actually have him fed to the dogs.
The room fell completely silent. The man pressed one hand against the doorframe and took a deep breath. "Ruo Ruo, if something's wrong, you can talk to me. Don't lock yourself away. I'm really worried when I can't see you."
---
The female lead's personality is flawed and she's not good with words, so she appears overly calm in this situation. But that doesn't mean she's heartless. Shen Xiaoxing: Otherwise, where does that leave me!?