He was so gentle with her—soothing her, kissing her, comforting her, his voice soft and tender as he spoke.
But the more he coaxed and doted on her, the harder she cried.
It was rather like—
A child seeing her mother and crying three times for no reason.
Children are always especially difficult in front of their mothers because they know their mothers will indulge them endlessly. That sense of security gives them the freedom to express themselves, so they dare to—and are able to—show their true feelings without the slightest restraint.
Song Xinya lay on top of Qin Yuhe, sobbing loudly.
Her tears flowed in torrents.
Worried that she would become dehydrated from crying, Qin Yuhe picked up the glass of water from the bedside table and fed it to her in small sips.
Every time Song Xinya cried for a while, he would give her some water.
Gradually, she cried herself out and lay in his arms, hiccupping between sobs.
Qin Yuhe ran his palm up and down her back. With his cheek resting against her hair, he murmured gently into her ear, “Don’t be afraid anymore, Yaya. I’ll always be with you.”
His embrace was broad, warm, and comfortable, wrapping her tightly within it.
Feeling his body heat and breathing in his familiar scent, she gradually drifted off to sleep, lulled by the intimate, solid sense of security he gave her.
Only after the woman in his arms was breathing evenly and her body had gone limp with deep sleep did Qin Yuhe adjust the arm she had been lying on until it was numb.
His gaze traveled down from her slender, fair neck, inch by inch.
He saw the red marks encircling her wrists and ankles where rough hemp rope had cut into her skin.
Qin Yuhe’s heart shattered with pain.
He placed her on the bed, then got up and found some ointment for swelling and bruises, carefully applying it to the red marks on her wrists and ankles.
His phone suddenly rang, startling the woman on the bed into a small shudder.
Qin Yuhe quickly hung up, lay down beside her, and gently patted her body while holding her close, silently conveying, I’m here. I’m here.
The woman in his arms gradually calmed down. After coaxing her back to sleep, he stood up, walked out onto the balcony, and called the number back.
The beauty salon director’s voice was obsequious and urgent, with a hint of taking credit for himself. “President Qin, I’ve taken care of everything here. I guarantee not a single detail will get out.”
Qin Yuhe said, “Did you call me just to tell me that?”
The beauty salon director prattled on, “Yes, President Qin. You can rest assured when I handle things. I personally checked everyone’s phones. I went through every single photo in their albums, and I even—”
Qin Yuhe cut him off. “You woke my wife.”
The beauty salon director fell silent for a moment. “…I’ll hang up right now.”
After putting away his phone, the beauty salon director saw Tiantianquan and Chen Siyan.
“Dr. Tian, are you getting off work?”
Tiantianquan suddenly stopped when the director called out to her, and her heart began pounding.
No way, no way! Was she really caught by her boss on her very first night skipping work?
She was on duty tonight. After making her rounds and finding nothing out of the ordinary, she had remained worried about Song Xinya. She hadn’t eaten dinner yet and was so hungry that she had come out to find something to eat.
And then she had been caught by her boss?
What rotten luck. Even if she jumped off a building, she’d probably get stuck between the floors!
Reluctantly, Tiantianquan turned around, her face covered in an ingratiating smile as she gazed at the director, preparing to come up with an excuse.
“Director, I’m not skipping work. I made an appointment with a client. I’m heading to the entrance to meet her.”
As someone who had spent decades navigating the workplace, the director immediately saw that Tiantianquan was lying.
But he did not expose her. Instead, he completely changed his former indifferent attitude and smiled at her with unusual warmth and benevolence.
“Dr. Tian is hardworking and responsible, and her medical skills are genuinely outstanding. It’s a blessing for our plastic surgery and cosmetic hospital to have such a promising young talent.”
The sudden praise left Tiantianquan flattered and overwhelmed.
Previously, the director had barely paid any attention to her.
After all, he was the head of the plastic surgery and cosmetic hospital and its highest-ranking leader. He had no obligation to show much enthusiasm toward a junior doctor like her.
What was going on today? Had the director been possessed?
She soon found out why—
The director asked, “I heard you’re a good friend of Mrs. Qin?”
Tiantianquan understood.
She was benefiting from someone else’s power—riding on her best friend’s coattails.
A mother’s status rose with her son; her own status was rising with her best friend.
“Director, is there something you’d like me to convey to Mrs. Qin?”
The director said, “Please tell Mrs. Qin that I’m deeply sorry such a thing happened at my hospital. If I ever have the opportunity, I’ll personally visit her and apologize.”
Tiantianquan said, “Sure, I’ll be sure to pass that along.”
The director rubbed his hands together with a smile and said, “I happen to have nothing else to do tonight, so I plan to stay at the hospital. Dr. Tian, you can go take care of whatever you need to.”
He was offering to cover her shift!
Song Xinya had prospered, and now even her friends were benefiting from it!
Tiantianquan was experiencing firsthand the bliss of having someone powerful to rely on. It felt fantastic. She was positively delighted.
Under the director’s watchful farewell, Tiantianquan and Chen Siyan walked out of the hospital entrance together to get something to eat.
As they passed a car, Chen Siyan suddenly stopped.
“Isn’t this my boss, Abbess Miejue Zhao Yinian’s car?”
Tiantianquan asked, “You recognized it from the license plate?”
“From the color of the car,” Chen Siyan said. “Besides Abbess Miejue, who would buy a car this shade of shit yellow? Driving this thing around town is like driving a turd down the street. Tsk tsk, what terrible taste.”
“Why would Zhao Yinian come to our cosmetic hospital?”
“To get plastic surgery?”
“What good would fixing her face do? Her heart is so ugly that surgery would be a waste of money.”
“Let’s hope I don’t run into someone with such an ugly soul. It would ruin my appetite.”
Tiantianquan and Chen Siyan continued walking, treating Zhao Yinian’s appearance outside the cosmetic hospital as nothing more than a coincidence.
Inside the shit-yellow car, Zhao Yinian sat in the driver’s seat.
A client file lay on the seat beside her. It stated that Sheng Tianjun had once been accused of rape by a female tutor. Later, through the use of his money and influence, the female tutor had withdrawn the accusation.
Zhao Yinian had known exactly what kind of person Sheng Tianjun was from the very beginning.
When Song Xinya had suggested taking a job as Sheng Tianjun’s tutor, Zhao Yinian, as the company’s manager, had not only failed to protect her employee’s safety but had also refused to give Song Xinya any information about Sheng Tianjun. She had happily watched Song Xinya go teach a man with a history of sexual assault.
Now that Song Xinya had nearly been raped by Sheng Tianjun, Zhao Yinian had long since anticipated it.
She had stood by and watched as Song Xinya walked straight into the tiger’s den and toward the abyss. Not only had she failed to lend a hand, she had been eagerly waiting to see Song Xinya make a fool of herself.
Several ambulances had just arrived outside the cosmetic hospital and taken away a number of seriously injured people.
Zhao Yinian knew that Sheng Tianjun must have assaulted Song Xinya.
The only question was—had he succeeded?
Judging by the timing, Qin Yuhe should have arrived at the cosmetic hospital just as he saw Song Xinya being molested. What man could accept a woman who had been sullied?
So President Qin must be thoroughly disgusted with Song Xinya by now, right?
At the thought of this, Zhao Yinian happily curved her lips into a smile.
………
If you notice that this book’s cover has changed, don’t be surprised. The title remains the same—just make sure you look for the title and the author, Mo Daoke!!!
