Returning - Chapter 169
Chapter 169: Wound
"He sent me to get close to you. I knew who you were the day at the airport, so I deliberately seduced you. The goal was to ruin your relationship with Eldest Miss Zhuang. If the marriage alliance between Yicheng and Lanxi fell apart, Huacan would naturally benefit."
Recalling these words Zhao Yu had spoken in the hallway of Huacan headquarters, for a fleeting moment, Xu Chengyan was absolutely certain it was the truth.
But upon closer reflection, it still didn't sit right.
If Xue Zi'ang truly sent Zhao Yu to get close to him, then why would she be so worried about Xue Zi'ang discovering their relationship? On Christmas Eve, she was visibly nervous when sneaking around with him in the restroom.
And what about the entrapment scene Xue Zhan orchestrated? If Xue Zhan had long known about her relationship with him, why stage such a production?
Or could it be… that everything was a collaborative act between Zhao Yu and that uncle-nephew duo? Was their acting simply too flawless for him to spot a single crack?
The nervousness she displayed before him was feigned? The irrepressible fury in Xue Zhan's eyes during the entrapment was also an act?
They painstakingly devised so many scenarios, performed one drama after another, all for the express purpose of provoking him, stoking his competitive drive and possessiveness?
Truth and falsehood, lies and reality swirled together. For a moment, he could not distinguish what the actual truth was at all.
Sitting in the backseat of the car, watching the receding vehicles and pedestrians outside the window, he faintly sensed that deep down, he actually wished all of this was mere coincidence.
He wished Zhao Yu hadn't deceived him, that he hadn't been played for a fool, led around by the nose.
Zhao Yu had already guessed that Xu Chengyan would come looking for her after seeing the news, and she was prepared to face him. She just hadn't expected that, before Xu Chengyan arrived, Ling Jianwei would show up first.
She hadn't intended to tell him about her injury, but seeing the way he burst into the hospital room, she knew she ultimately hadn't managed to keep it hidden.
Watching his reddened eyes fixed on her, not uttering a single word, Zhao Yu smiled faintly and spoke first. "You found out?"
Ling Jianwei stared at her wordlessly for a long moment before uttering a muffled "Mm" and slowly sitting down on the edge of the bed. "Why did you lie to me?"
Everyone's first question was the same.
Zhao Yu smiled, but changed the subject. "How did you find out?"
"My older brother said what Xu Chengyan did yesterday was too out of character. He's arrogant, but also shrewd and cautious. He wouldn't be easily duped, let alone so impulsive. Remembering that on the night of his wedding, you never answered my calls or texts, I guessed... you might be... genuinely injured."
Zhao Yu chuckled teasingly. "A true genius. So clever."
Ling Jianwei wanted to see where she was hurt, but as soon as his hand touched the blanket, he recoiled in fear, afraid of accidentally touching her wound. "Where are you injured?"
Zhao Yu glanced at her shoulder. "It's nothing, just a flesh wound."
"A flesh wound is enough to make Xu Chengyan that furious?" Ling Jianwei paused, then asked sullenly, "Does he... also like you?"
When Zhao Yu initially told him about this plan, she only said someone as proud as Xu Chengyan absolutely couldn't tolerate Zhuang Yiqing meddling in his affairs—it would cross his bottom line. But abandoning the bride at the wedding was already immense retaliation. How could he have done so many things yesterday that left acquaintances in their circle utterly dumbfounded?
"Would someone like him genuinely like anyone?" Zhao Yu smiled, shaking her head, but the motion inadvertently pulled at her wound, making her grit her teeth and hiss in pain.
"What's wrong?" Ling Jianwei looked at her nervously. "Does the wound hurt? Let me call the doctor."
"No need. Xue Zhan already went to find the doctor. They should be here soon."
Only then did Ling Jianwei notice the collar of her hospital gown was soaked. "It must hurt a lot, right?"
Outside the hospital room, Xu Chengyan's hand had already reached mid-air, but then inexplicably froze, unable to push the door open.
Ling Jianwei hadn't closed the door after rushing in; it was only held ajar by the draft. Naturally, he could hear the conversation inside with perfect clarity.
He liked her? He liked Zhao Yu?
Ling Jianwei's words sounded like a complete joke, something that made him itch to storm in and mock them immediately.
Yet, he also suddenly wanted to ask himself: why was he so furious yesterday?
Elders in the family advised against it. Colleagues at the company counseled caution. But he stubbornly persisted. As Ling Jianyuan put it: so impulsive, so out of character.
Was all of this truly just because Zhuang Yiqing overstepped her bounds?
He had arrived full of simmering rage and questions. Now, before he could even begin interrogating the person inside, he found himself burdened with even greater confusion.
"Since President Xu is here, why not go in?"
Xue Zhan's voice instantly snapped Xu Chengyan out of his daze. The moment he turned and met Xue Zhan's gaze, he fully regained his clarity and looked at him coldly.
Xue Zhan smiled slightly, pushed the door open, and entered with the doctor. Seeing Ling Jianwei inside didn't surprise him at all. He simply said to Zhao Yu, "Time to change the dressing."
Zhao Yu looked up, and Ling Jianwei turned his head, both of them spotting Xu Chengyan behind Xue Zhan at the same time.
Xu Chengyan didn't even spare Ling Jianwei a glance. His gaze was fixed tightly on Zhao Yu. Sensing the anger building in his eyes, Zhao Yu remained perfectly calm.
"It's better to lie down while changing the dressing. Sitting up might pull on the wound," the doctor gently assisted Zhao Yu in lying down, and Xue Zhan and Ling Jianwei quickly moved to help.
The hospital gown was unfastened, gradually revealing her slender shoulder and delicate collarbone. The wound beneath was wrapped in gauze. The doctor slowly unwound it, carefully removing the gauze.
The instant the wound came into view, Ling Jianwei's eyes burned. He spun around abruptly, facing away from the bed, unable to look anymore. Xue Zhan furrowed his brow, sitting on the edge of the bed and tightly grasping Zhao Yu's hand.
On the way here, Xu Chengyan had been thinking: since everything was their calculation, all an elaborate deception, could Zhao Yu's injury also be fake?
After all, he had never seen her wound with his own eyes. Everything he believed was pieced together from the bloodstains on Xue Zi'ang's clothes, the duration of the surgery, the bloodied knife, and Miao San's detailed confession.
If this was a meticulously crafted scheme, surely these were all just props deliberately laid out for him. That's why they didn't call the police. That's why they deliberately placed that knife before his eyes.
But now, looking at that real, gruesome wound, watching Zhao Yu's clenched teeth and the beads of sweat on her forehead, hearing the doctor say, "The painkiller is at maximum dosage. Just endure these next couple of days, and it'll improve," Xu Chengyan suddenly felt as if his own chest had been stabbed by a similar blade.
"For money, you were willing to throw your life away? How much did they promise you to make you sell your soul like this for them?"
Looking up at the utterly exasperated Xu Chengyan beside the bed, Zhao Yu suddenly grinned wide, mirroring the same mocking look he had so often directed at her in the past.
That expression inexplicably made Xu Chengyan feel as if needles were piercing his back.
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