Chapter 58: It Really Is Him

Zhang Xiluo murmured Li Mingye’s name, her body collapsing limply to the floor.

Outside the room, hurried footsteps echoed. Li Mingye appeared at the doorway, the light illuminating the space. He saw Zhang Xiluo, her hair gripped tightly by Zhuo Tongtong.

At that moment, Li Mingye seemed like a demon risen from hell, his hawk-like eyes ablaze with fury, the chill radiating from him reaching its peak, his face twisted with violence and murderous intent.

He strode in, knocking Gao Sihai to the ground with a single punch, then grabbing Zhuo Tongtong and tossing her aside.

“You should be grateful I don’t hit women,” Li Mingye’s voice was icy cold. Zhuo Tongtong trembled in terror, her complexion drained of color.

Ouyang Chen and Zhao Chengyi followed, and seeing Zhang Xiluo’s battered state, Ouyang Chen’s eyes darkened with gloom and anger.

Gao Sihai was just struggling to his feet when Ouyang Chen kicked him in the leg, seized his hair, and threw a vicious punch.

“Ah!” Zhou Yao, who came in last, recoiled, overwhelmed by the stench in the room. Seeing Ouyang Chen’s violence, she screamed in fright.

She clung to Zhao Chengyi, clutching his sleeve, her eyes glistening with tears.

“Can you help me take Tongtong out?” Zhou Yao bit her lip, her gaze pleading, so pitiful it would move anyone.

Zhao Chengyi couldn’t resist. He stepped into the room, reaching to pull Zhuo Tongtong away, but Li Mingye barked sharply,

“Don’t touch her.”

Zhao Chengyi’s hand froze midair, trembling, and he withdrew in defeat.

Li Mingye gathered Zhang Xiluo into his arms, a tenderness flickering between his brows.

Zhang Xiluo felt she must be hallucinating again. How could he possibly care for her?

“Thank you,” she managed, her voice barely a whisper. No sooner had she spoken than she collapsed in his embrace, knowing she was finally safe.

When she awoke, she was lying in a hospital bed, Xu Xinyi sitting anxiously by her side.

Zhang Xiluo’s breath caught as she hurriedly felt her lower abdomen, “Xinyi, I…”

“Don’t worry, you’re fine.” Xu Xinyi exhaled in relief, grasping her hand. “Luoluo, it’s lucky nothing happened this time. Your body is too weak, you can’t handle any turmoil, and soon you won’t be able to hide it.”

Fortunately, Xu Xinyi was on duty. If it had been anyone else, Li Mingye would have already learned of her pregnancy.

“What about them?” Zhang Xiluo shared the same concern. This disaster only strengthened her resolve to leave as soon as possible.

“I sent them away, so they wouldn’t disturb your rest.”

“Xinyi, thank you.”

“Say that to me, and you’ll slap my face,” Xu Xinyi pretended to be annoyed, adjusting the infusion rate. “Rest now, I have things to attend to.”

Zhang Xiluo nodded, reassuring her.

Jiang Xueting, disregarding Xu Xinyi’s warning, slipped quietly into the ward. As soon as she saw Zhang Xiluo, she burst into tears.

“Luoluo, it’s all my fault. You were hurt because of me. I deserve to die, my desires led me astray and brought harm to you.”

Full of guilt, Jiang Xueting raised her hand as if to slap herself, but Zhang Xiluo quickly stopped her.

“Xueting, if you dare hit yourself once, I’ll hit myself ten times.” Zhang Xiluo’s voice was still weak. “This isn’t your fault. Gao Sihai is to blame. I’m grateful the one hurt wasn’t you.”

Hearing this, Jiang Xueting cried even harder, “Luoluo, I love you…”

Zhang Xiluo managed a smile, “Alright, that’s enough. Wipe your tears. It pains me to see you like this.”

Jiang Xueting wiped her tears, but continued to sob.

She told Zhang Xiluo that Gao Sihai had been beaten until he was barely breathing, suffering the consequences of his own actions, and would surely spend the rest of his life in prison.

The phone call had come from Li Mingye. Though the call was disconnected, he still heard Zhang Xiluo’s plea for help. Moreover, the card Gao Sihai used for the transfer was Li Mingye’s secondary card, which helped him track down the abandoned farm.

Before Jiang Xueting finished, Ouyang Chen arrived.

Ignoring Xu Xinyi’s warning, they all came one by one to see Zhang Xiluo.

Ouyang Chen’s face was expressionless, but a mysterious emotion flickered in his eyes as he approached the bedside.

“Are you feeling better?”

“Much better.”

“If you ever need anything, you can come to me. I’m quite free, and I drive well.”

Both Zhang Xiluo and Jiang Xueting were stunned. What did Ouyang Chen mean by that?

“This should be eaten while it’s hot. I’ll leave now.” Ouyang Chen placed a thermos on the table, and seeing Jiang Xueting, prepared to leave.

Before he left, he glanced deeply at Zhang Xiluo, his expression somewhat unusual.

Zhang Xiluo’s heart skipped a beat. Something was off about Ouyang Chen!

“Luoluo, does Ouyang Chen have feelings for you?” Jiang Xueting blurted out, not noticing that Ouyang Chen hadn’t gone far.

Zhang Xiluo quickly interrupted, “Don’t talk nonsense!”

Jiang Xueting looked toward the door, and confirming that Ouyang Chen had left, she wiped her tears away and smiled mischievously, “I think it’s quite possible. Ouyang Chen is famous for being wooden, but he’s definitely different with you.”

“I heard that after you came to the hospital, Ouyang Chen got into a fight with Li Mingye. Most likely, it was because of you. You should really consider it—dump that dog of a man and be with Ouyang Chen.”

“You must be crazy.” Zhang Xiluo shot her a glare. The more she spoke, the more absurd it became.

Even if Ouyang Chen hadn’t loved Zhou Yao deeply, he would never fall for her, Li Mingye’s sycophant.

Jiang Xueting stayed with her until nightfall, then took a phone call that seemed to ignite her like a bomb.

“Luoluo, I’m stepping out for a bit. I’ll be back soon to keep you company.”

“Don’t go after that scumbag!” Zhang Xiluo, worried, tried to stop her.

Jiang Xueting shook her head, “It’s not him. Don’t worry, I’ll be back soon.”

“No need. Xinyi is here at the hospital. If anything happens, I’ll find her.”

“Alright, I’ll come back tomorrow then.”

Jiang Xueting stormed out, and Zhang Xiluo watched the door, feeling a wave of disappointment.

That moment when Li Mingye appeared, her long-stilled heart had begun to beat for him once more.

Before she lost consciousness, she’d heard Zhou Yao’s scream, and remembering how they’d always been together, her strange heartbeat gradually returned to calm.

Saving her was only his duty.

He hadn’t come to see her since, proving everything.

Zhang Xiluo forced herself to suppress her feelings, no longer tormenting herself. Closing her eyes to rest, she drifted off to sleep.

She dreamt again of Li Mingye rescuing her, but just as she escaped the cold, foul-smelling room, he placed her in an even more terrifying place. His face blurred, transforming finally into Zhou Yao’s innocent, harmless visage.

“Sister, why aren’t you dead yet? You should be dead. Then you wouldn’t compete with me for Mr. Li.”

“I really hate you. I hated you from the moment I first saw you.”

“Mr. Li can only belong to me. You must die! And that little bastard in your belly must never come into this world.”

Zhou Yao wielded a knife, stabbing fiercely at Zhang Xiluo’s abdomen…

“Ah!” Zhang Xiluo woke with a start, and seeing someone standing beside her bed, she jumped in fright. “You scared me to death! What are you doing here?”