MQSP - Chapter 50
Chapter 50
At the hospital, outside the emergency room, Xue Yuexian sat stunned on a bench, her mind blank. She never imagined Baiye would be so fiercely resolute, willing to die to protect her innocence.
If something really happened to Xiao Ye, she… how could she possibly face the cousin she had grown up with?
A flurry of footsteps approached from a distance. Lin Yuqing and the others had arrived.
"Yuexian, how is Xiao Ye?" Fang Yi asked anxiously.
"I don't know… They're still trying to save her…"
The moment Xue Yuexian's words fell, Lin Yuqing raised her hand and slapped her across the face. The sound was crisp and loud.
Xue Yuexian looked up, glaring at Lin Yuqing. "I didn't know she was…"
"Even if you didn't know who she was, to toy with a girl in the prime of her youth like this, to ruin her innocence, where is your conscience?" Lin Yuqing was trembling with rage. She had never imagined that Xue Yuexian was capable of something so outrageous!
"And what about you? You caused my cousin's suicide, then you hypocritically adopt her daughter. What are your intentions?"
"Yuexian, stop it! There must be a misunderstanding here!"
"What misunderstanding? I'd like to hear her explanation too," Lu Qing chimed in. She had been with Fang Yi the whole time they were looking for Xiao Ye and had inadvertently learned of Baiye's identity. Along with the surprise, she was also completely baffled.
"Don't you start adding to the chaos!"
As they argued, the door to the emergency room opened.
"Doctor, how is she?"
"She's fine. Fortunately, she didn't hit a vital spot. Her life is no longer in danger."
Everyone finally breathed a sigh of relief. Seeing Xiao Ye being wheeled out on a hospital bed, her pretty face pale and a piece of gauze taped to her forehead, Lin Yuqing felt as if a heavy stone was lodged in her heart, crushing her with unbearable pain.
In just one week, Xiao Ye had been reduced to this state—gaunt and lying there weakly. When she was in danger, she hadn't been by her side. She could only watch helplessly as she was violated by Xue Yuexian. She was truly… so useless.
Once inside the hospital room, Lin Yuqing glanced at Xia Xiaozi, who nodded in understanding. After Xiao Ye and Lin Yuqing were in the room, she blocked the others in the outer area.
"I'll tell you whatever you want to know. Let Xiao Ye rest for now."
Inside the room, Lin Yuqing sat by the bed and stroked Xiao Ye's cheek, a sharp pain stabbing at her heart.
She took Xiao Ye's hand from under the blanket but felt something was wrong. The little one's hands were clenched into tight fists, impossible to pry open. It was just like the first time she had met her, when she had tightly clenched her two little hands, which had been beaten until they were swollen like steamed buns, refusing to let go no matter what.
Lin Yuqing held her hand, rubbing it gently. "Xiao Ye, I'm sorry. I was late. I was late again."
Lin Yuqing leaned down, pressing her forehead against the back of Xiao Ye's hand. She closed her eyes, suppressing the overwhelming bitterness, and involuntarily recalled the first time she had seen Xiao Ye.
That day was the first time she had seen little Baiye. She was thin and small, without an ounce of flesh on her bones. Her lips were chapped, her body was filthy, her cheeks were red and swollen, and a bloody scab was crusted on her forehead. Lin Yuqing wasn't one to show her emotions, but when she saw the child, she couldn't help but choke up.
Baiye's eyes were very much like Xinran's—dark and bright, clear and pure.
After Xia Xiaozi carried her into the car, her big eyes remained fixed on Lin Yuqing without blinking.
Xia Xiaozi took out a piece of paper and handed it to Lin Yuqing. When Baiye saw it, she instinctively hid her hands behind her back. During this time, she had seen that paper countless times and had suffered immensely because of it.
Lin Yuqing set the paper aside, reached out, and pulled the small body into her arms, pressing the little head against her heart and comforting her gently.
"Xiao Ye, I'm a friend of your mother's. I've come to take you home."
The little girl's body trembled. "Home…?" she asked, looking timidly at Lin Yuqing.
"Yes, home."
The little girl lowered her head and remained silent for a long time. "I don't have a home anymore."
Lin Yuqing took a deep breath, her heart feeling as heavy as a stone. She patted the little girl, had her sit up straight, and took her small hands in hers, only to see the child frown sharply.
Lin Yuqing quickly let go. In the car's interior light, she saw that the back of the hand was swollen like a small steamed bun, with clear finger marks visible. It was obvious she had just been hit. A wave of fury rose in Lin Yuqing's chest. Such a small child… no matter what, Gu Xinyuan was her biological aunt. How could she lay a hand on her!
"Does it hurt a lot?" Lin Yuqing held her small hand to her lips and blew on it gently.
Xia Xiaozi promptly handed over a cup of warm water and helped little Baiye drink it.
"Xiao Ye, from now on, I'm afraid you'll have to live with me. I'm not very good at taking care of children, so if I do anything wrong, I hope you won't mind. Once you press your fingerprint here, I'll take you home, okay?" Lin Yuqing negotiated with her in a soft voice.
The little girl frowned in thought for a moment, then slowly extended her right hand, opening the fist that Gu Xinyuan had been unable to pry open no matter how hard she tried.
Lin Yuqing quickly took out the ink pad and applied it to her index finger, but before she could press it down…
"Auntie."
"Hm?" Lin Yuqing looked up at Baiye. The little girl's eyes were shimmering with unshed tears, and she managed a very strained smile.
"You're lying to me, aren't you?"
"What?" Lin Yuqing was taken aback.
"My mother said that pretty women are the best liars."
Lin Yuqing was speechless. Before she could say anything…
"I know. After I press it, you'll get lots and lots of money, and then you'll send me to an orphanage, where the mean director and kids will bully me…" Little Baiye pursed her lips and sniffled, trying to keep her tears from falling. This was all what she had heard her aunt outside say while she was in that small, dark room, which was why she hadn't dared to press her fingerprint no matter what.
Lin Yuqing opened her mouth, wanting to explain things properly to the little girl, but before she could speak, the child, with a solemn expression, pressed her own finger onto the page.
Tears fell, pattering down. Baiye wiped them with her dirty sleeve. "There."
A sharp pain shot through Lin Yuqing's heart. She stroked Baiye's little head. "Since you suspected me, why did you still give in?"
"Because you… you hugged me… Besides my mother, no one has ever hugged me."
Looking into Baiye's clear, big eyes, Lin Yuqing averted her gaze. She handed the paper to Xia Xiaozi, then placed Baiye on the back seat and turned to face the window, suppressing the tears that threatened to spill.
After Xia Xiaozi returned, the car started. Little Baiye kept her head down, sitting obediently, as if awaiting her final judgment from fate.
The car drove out of the bustling city and into increasingly desolate areas. The little girl looked out the window and grew scared. Large tears rolled down her cheeks, one by one. She raised her hand to wipe them away, swallowing her sobs.
By the time Lin Yuqing had more or less composed herself, she noticed the little one beside her seemed to be on the verge of a breakdown.
"Can you… hug me again?" Baiye mustered her courage and turned to look at her. Her small, dirty face was streaked with tears, which she had smeared into a mess.
Seeing her pleading gaze, Lin Yuqing's heart ached. She lifted her onto her lap and gently patted her back, soothing her deeply wounded young soul.
That time, if she had found Xiao Ye just a few days earlier, perhaps she wouldn't have suffered such deep harm.
It was the same this time. Even if it had been just a few hours earlier, she would have gone to pick her up herself.
But she was late again. She had promised to protect her, yet she could only watch helplessly as she was hurt.
Lin Yuqing looked up and reached out to touch the gauze on Xiao Ye's forehead. How helpless, how desperate must she have been when she hit her head like that…
As she was gently stroking her, she saw the little one's eyelids flutter. "Xiao Ye?"
As soon as she regained a bit of consciousness, Baiye's brow furrowed tightly.
"Xiao Ye?"
"Lin… Auntie Lin…?"
Hearing Lin Yuqing's voice, Baiye struggled to open her eyes. "Am I… dreaming…?"
"No, you're not dreaming. I'm back." Lin Yuqing gently held her hand.
"Auntie Lin… I saw the news. You're a Movie Queen now, right…? You're so amazing…" Baiye's voice was very weak, but she was still forcing a smile. That smile, however, made Lin Yuqing's heart ache.
"Hiss…" Baiye tried to lift her hand but suddenly cried out in pain.
"What's wrong?" Lin Yuqing asked nervously, taking Baiye's hand and gently prying her fingers open.
Lin Yuqing had thought she was just clenching it too tightly and that the sudden release would cause pain. She never expected that in her open palm were two bloody marks the shape of fingernails.
From the excessive force, her nails had pierced her palm, and the already clotted blood had split open again with the movement.
Seeing this, Lin Yuqing's heart trembled. She quickly and carefully opened her other hand. Thankfully, her left hand wasn't as strong as her right, so it hadn't broken the skin, but it had left two crescent-shaped purple bruises.
"Auntie Lin…"
"My hand hurts so much. Can you go get a doctor for me…?"
"Okay, okay, I'll go right now. Don't move!" Lin Yuqing replied and immediately stood up. But just as she reached the door, she heard a soft sob and paused.
She remembered that when Xiao Ye had asked her to get the doctor, her eyes were red, clearly unable to hold back her tears anymore. She was deliberately sending her away.
Lin Yuqing hesitated. Xiao Ye was trying so hard to get rid of her; she must not want her to see her cry. But she didn't want her to bear it all alone.
Lin Yuqing turned back and saw Baiye completely covered by the blanket, curled into a ball, looking pitiful and helpless.
She walked quietly to the bedside and listened to her sobs. After a while, she sat down on the edge of the bed and gently patted Baiye's body through the blanket.
After a moment's hesitation, Lin Yuqing gently lifted a corner of the blanket and patted Xiao Ye's shoulder. "Xiao Ye, actually, Xue…"
"Don't… touch me."
Seeing the little one hugging her own shoulders and shrinking away, Lin Yuqing's hand froze. "Xiao Ye?"
Baiye buried her face in the crook of her arm, weeping silently, her body trembling with each sob.
"Xiao Ye?" Lin Yuqing was frantic. She patted her on the back, but she immediately shied away.
"Don't touch me again, Auntie Lin. I'm… not clean. Don't touch me."
Lin Yuqing's brow furrowed fiercely in anger. "What nonsense are you talking about!"
With that, Lin Yuqing took off her shoes, slipped into the bed, and lay on her side. She wrapped an arm around Xiao Ye, holding her close. Xiao Ye struggled for a moment, but Lin Yuqing held her tight. "Don't you dare think such things. She didn't touch you. She didn't!"
"Don't mention her again, I'm begging you…"
"Fine, I won't mention her. But can you please stop thinking such things?"
Baiye didn't answer, her back to Lin Yuqing as she sobbed quietly. But she never relaxed her body, never fully surrendered to the embrace as she had before.
Faced with Xiao Ye's resistance, Lin Yuqing was at a complete loss. All she could do was gently pat her back, offering her what little comfort she could.
Meanwhile, in the lounge outside the hospital room, Xia Xiaozi had explained the entire story of Lin Yuqing's adoption of Xiao Ye.
"But you still haven't told me how Xinran and the others got into trouble. Who leaked the information? Who exposed Xinran and Yilan's secret marriage to the media?" Lu Qing demanded.
"I don't know. We've been investigating too. But honestly, you all know what kind of person Qing Jie is. Don't you have any judgment of your own? She wanted Xinran and Yilan to be happy more than any of you, because they did something she wanted to do but didn't have the courage for. Weren't you all the same? We all wanted them to be happy. No one would want to harm them. And even if someone did, that person would absolutely not be Lin Yuqing. She has never been the type to repay kindness with malice."
"But after Xinran's accident, she was the first to issue a statement distancing herself, even turning around to condemn Xinran's actions. Give me a reasonable explanation for that."
"Because she wanted to give Xiao Ye a good environment to grow up in. Xiao Ye was only six at the time, so small. She didn't trust anyone else with her and insisted on raising her herself. But back then, countless paparazzi and anti-fans were watching all of you, waiting to dig up more valuable news from you. If she didn't remove herself from the situation, with how pervasive those reporters were, the child would have been exposed sooner or later."
"She never betrayed Xinran, and she never betrayed any of you. All these years, no matter how you cursed her, slandered her, distanced yourselves from her, or even deliberately opposed her, she never truly held it against you. Because she has a clear conscience."
"All these years, not only has she had to endure the pain of her best friend's tragic death, but she has also had to bear your misunderstandings. More than that, she has had to work hard to become strong enough to shelter Xiao Ye from the wind and rain. Have any of you ever considered her situation? Have you thought about how difficult her life has been, how heavy the burden on her shoulders is? How could you still say something so outrageous, that she adopted Xiao Ye with ulterior motives!"
Hearing this, everyone fell silent.
"She… why didn't she tell us about Xiao Ye?"
"Each of you could barely fend for yourselves. If you had to worry about a child on top of that, could you have handled it?"
The room fell silent again. Xue Yuexian sat stunned on the sofa, then suddenly raised her hand and slapped herself hard across the face.
"That's enough. What's the use of slapping yourself to death? You should be thinking about how to make up for the psychological damage you've caused Xiao Ye. That child has very little sense of security," Fang Yi said, filled with regret. If she hadn't left the car back then, none of this would have happened.
Although she hadn't known Xiao Ye for long, she was the only one who knew her secret. Xiao Ye was a deep thinker and loved Lin Yuqing profoundly. To be nearly violated when her heart already belonged to someone else—an event like that would surely leave a scar on her psyche.
"I… I'll go apologize to her. I'll explain the situation. She's my niece, we're related by blood! Even if… even if I kissed her a few times, it… it shouldn't be that big of a deal, right…?"
"Forget it. She won't want to see you right now."
As they were struggling with what to do, they heard footsteps in the hallway. The door was pushed open, and everyone immediately turned to look. They had expected Lin Yuqing, but to their surprise, the person who came in was…
"Boyan? What are you doing here?" Fang Yi was startled. To get this big boss, who had been retired behind the scenes for years, to show up in person, only Xiao Ye could have that kind of pull. Lu Qing must have told her as soon as she found out Xiao Ye's identity.
"Yilan has a daughter? Is it true?"
Jiang Boyan's voice was ethereal. She wore a clean white shirt, and her shoulder-length hair was loose, looking a bit messy but not unkempt.
Hearing her words, Lu Qing pursed her lips. No matter how many years had passed, whenever anything related to Yilan came up, she would still get this anxious. After more than a decade of cultivating her mind, she would normally put off meeting Lu Qing again and again, but now, the moment she heard it concerned Yilan, she came running herself.
"It's true. She's in the room right there."
Upon hearing this, Jiang Boyan started walking toward the hospital room. Before she could push the door, it opened on its own.
The moment she saw Jiang Boyan, Lin Yuqing was visibly stunned. She frowned, then looked at the worried faces of everyone else in the room.
"Let me see her." Jiang Boyan's voice trembled slightly, as if she were pleading.
"She just fell asleep. Be quiet. Xiao Zi, go find a doctor. She has a few external wounds on her hands that need to be cleaned."
Suppressing their complex emotions, everyone tiptoed into the room and gathered around the hospital bed, automatically forming a circle.
Baiye was still in a curled-up position, asleep while hugging herself. Only half of her side profile was visible. The tip of her nose was red, and teardrops still clung to her eyelashes. It was clear she had just been crying.
Jiang Boyan stared at her face, a long-lost light flickering in her usually placid eyes. She cautiously reached out, wanting to touch Xiao Ye's cheek, but then, afraid she would wake her, she hesitantly pulled her hand back. She gently pulled the blanket down a little, revealing the little one's delicate profile.
"Her mouth is just like Yilan's," Jiang Boyan remarked.
"Her eyes are like Xinran's!" Lu Qing added. From the first time she saw Xiao Ye, she had felt she resembled Xinran, which was why she had paid special attention to her.
"Her nose is like Yilan's too."
"I think it's like Xinran's. And her eyebrows."
Listening to the two of them go back and forth, as if they wanted to compare every part of Xiao Ye to her mothers, Fang Yi didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "Alright, you two."
As she smiled, she realized someone was missing. Looking around, she saw that Xue Yuexian hadn't come in. She turned her head and found her standing at the doorway, craning her neck to see, seemingly too afraid to enter.
Fang Yi sighed inwardly. That woman had really brought this on herself.
Lin Yuqing stood in the outer room for a while, glancing into the room from time to time. Seeing them all treating Xiao Ye like a precious treasure brought her some comfort, but also a faint sense of unease. Even she couldn't say why she felt uneasy.
Before long, Xia Xiaozi returned with the doctor. As they were about to enter the room, Xue Yuexian, who had been standing at the door, pulled her aside. "On this spot, there should be a bite mark she made herself. Remember to have the doctor look at it." Xue Yuexian pointed to her own left forearm.
Lin Yuqing was stunned. She hadn't even noticed.
"Aren't you going in to see her?"
Xue Yuexian looked ashamed and gave a bitter smile. "I'd better not. What if she wakes up and sees me… I should go. You all take good care of her."
"If you need anything, just call me. I'll do everything I can."
Xue Yuexian glanced at the hospital bed one last time, then reluctantly turned to leave. "Oh, and Lin Yuqing." She turned back, looking at Lin Yuqing seriously. "I'm sorry." She gave her a slight bow.
Lin Yuqing was taken aback. Seeing her rare display of seriousness, she smiled faintly. "Mm." She believed that after this incident, Xue Yuexian would pull herself together and move on from the grief and resentment of losing her loved ones.
The doctor tried to examine Xiao Ye's external injuries but couldn't pry her hand open. Fang Yi tried as well, to no avail. The group all looked at Lin Yuqing in unison.
Lin Yuqing shook her head. "There's no other way. We'll have to wake her up."
Just as she said that, a pleasant humming sound suddenly came from the bedside. They turned to see Jiang Boyan crouching by the bed, her eyes fixed on Xiao Ye, filled with an unconcealable affection. At the same time, she gently reached out and smoothed the furrow between her brows.
As she hummed, Xiao Ye's brow gradually relaxed, and her body slowly loosened. Jiang Boyan took her hand and carefully tried to open it. The little one didn't resist this time, seeming to have completely let down her guard.
Lin Yuqing watched this, seeing how Xiao Ye seemed to be particularly reliant on Jiang Boyan, and couldn't help but feel a pang of jealousy.
"Quick, over here." Jiang Boyan held up the little one's hand and gestured to the doctor.
Seeing the horrifying wound, everyone gasped again.
"And here." Remembering what Xue Yuexian had said, Lin Yuqing pulled up Xiao Ye's sleeve and, sure enough, saw two rows of teeth marks, so deep they had turned purple.
"Xue Yuexian is lucky she ran off so fast!"
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