After Xie Bingxia finished her drip and the nurse removed the needle, Qin Feng finally allowed her to get out of bed. She staggered out. Qin Feng wanted to follow, but she stopped him. "I can manage on my own."
Qin Feng thought it over and decided to let it be. If he followed and saw Xie Bingxia flirting with Gu Bei, it would be an eyesore and his fragile heart couldn't take it. Pouting, he stepped out of the ward first and said, "There's a good shrimp and crab casserole restaurant near the hospital. I'll go buy some."
Xie Bingxia walked alone to the door of the next - door ward. This floor was the VIP inpatient area, so it was extremely quiet. Gu Bei was talking to others inside the room. Even though his voice wasn't loud, it could be clearly heard.
"Who is the man who was driving?"
A man replied, "According to our investigation, he was a fugitive suspect. He had committed robbery and murder in the Yunnan - Guizhou region. After being wanted, he fled to this area. Later, he colluded with Li and Zhao to plan and carry out the kidnapping of Xie Bingxia and Qin Feng."
"Was the body retrieved?"
"It was retrieved that night. He was confirmed dead. The subsequent autopsy by the forensic doctor showed that the impact when the car entered the water caused the suspect to hit the steering wheel and lose consciousness. He drowned after the car sank."
"Thank you for your hard work in the investigation."
"We also want to thank Mr. Gu for his active cooperation. You should rest first. If we need your assistance, we'll contact you again."
Then the ward door was pushed open, and two policemen walked out. They were startled for a moment when they saw Xie Bingxia, and then said, "Ms. Xie, are you feeling better?"
"Thank you for your concern. I'm fine."
"That's good. We've already learned most of the details from Mr. Gu. You should rest well."
Xie Bingxia watched them leave. In the conversation just now, there was not a single word about Yan Xiaoyi. She wondered if it was because the police's investigation was incomplete or Gu Bei had suppressed this matter.
Suddenly, a muffled roar came from the ward, "Xie Bingxia, come here!" She trembled in fright. Gu Bei's resentment seemed to be pressing down on her layer by layer. She began to regret coming to see him.
Even though she thought so, she still obediently walked over.
Gu Bei was leaning against the head of the bed, wearing a hospital gown. His face was as pale as the gown, without a trace of color. He patted the side of the bed, indicating for Xie Bingxia to sit there.
Xie Bingxia was awkward and moved her butt towards the chair beside the bed.
"Here," Gu Bei emphasized again, staring at Xie Bingxia without a moment's relaxation. Tens of thousands of alpacas seemed to be running across the green grassland in Xie Bingxia's heart. Judging from Gu Bei's appearance, he must be up to no good.
Sure enough, as soon as Xie Bingxia sat down on the edge of the bed, Gu Bei wrapped his left arm around her waist and gently pulled her. She fell head - first onto Gu Bei's chest. Immediately afterwards, there was a crisp "pop" on her butt, and the pain shot through her brain.
Xie Bingxia was instantly furious and struggled to get up. "Gu Bei, you spanked me?"
"Yes, I'm spanking your—bottom!"
Another "pop".
"One spank is for not listening to me, the second is for not trusting me, and the third is for making me worry..."
Seeing that the third spank was about to land, Xie Bingxia slipped out from the gap in Gu Bei's arm and grabbed his arm. "Are you addicted to spanking?" She glared at Gu Bei. She suspected that he was just taking advantage of her with those seemingly casual spanks!
Suddenly, Gu Bei hissed in pain, his brows knitted together. It seemed that she had hurt his wound. Xie Bingxia quickly let go and said anxiously, "Did I hurt you? I'm sorry..." She held Gu Bei's right hand and saw the bandage wrapped around it from the cuff of his hospital gown. Qin Feng had roughly told her what had happened, but she didn't know many details. She asked softly, "What happened?"
"I broke the car window for you," Gu Bei pulled his hand back, emphasizing the words "for you".
He was looking forward to seeing the guilty look on the little white rabbit's face. However, Xie Bingxia pouted and said, "Who asked you to come and save me? Idiot! Fool! Moron!"
These three negative adjectives hit him hard. It was like she was biting the hand that fed her! Gu Bei got excited. The little white rabbit liked to argue with him. Great, he'd play with her.
Just as he was thinking about how to retort, the little white rabbit drooped her ears and murmured, "What would I do if something happened to you..."
Gu Bei's eyes welled up with tears. The emotions that had been buried deep in his heart surged like a raging flood, making his throat choke. There were so many things he wanted to say, but in the end, there was only one sentence: "Don't be afraid. I'll always be with you."
"Okay," Xie Bingxia obediently lay in the crook of his left arm, her furry little head resting against Gu Bei's chin. He smelled the familiar scent and felt extremely at ease.
Gu Bei hugged Xie Bingxia and said softly, "I'll be with you, but you should also learn to trust others. Don't always bear everything alone. You're not omnipotent."
The head in his arms nodded a few times. "Okay."
"Also, listen to me. If I tell you not to provoke someone, then don't."
Xie Bingxia looked up at Gu Bei unhappily. "Do you want to talk about Yuan Yiyun again?"
Gu Bei didn't want to ruin the hard - won beautiful atmosphere between them. Since they had started talking about it, he might as well make it clearer.
"In today's business circle, a single dominant company can't always stay on top. Companies must form strong alliances to keep moving forward. Otherwise, they'll just be waiting to be defeated. A group of mice can kill a cat. Do you understand?" Gu Bei said earnestly and patiently, "My marriage with the Yuan family is purely for the purpose of moving forward together and obtaining our respective interests. Yuan Yiyun and I are very clear about this. There are many marriages in name only. One more won't matter."
"You don't like her?"
"Where did you see that I like her?" Gu Bei said with a smile. "Tell me, and I'll be more careful next time."
"Humph!" Xie Bingxia turned her head away. Gu Bei ruffled her hair. "My little white rabbit is so smart. You should understand what I just said, right?"
"Understood." She not only understood but was even more determined to bring down Yuan Yiyun and disrupt the strong alliance between Gu Bei and the Yuan family.
Gu Bei was very happy that the little white rabbit was being understanding this time. He couldn't help but kiss the top of her head. Xie Bingxia turned her head and rested her chin on his chest. "Do you like me?"
Uh? Gu Bei was momentarily speechless, and his nose began to sweat slightly. Straight men really weren't good at dealing with this kind of question. If he said no, he would definitely make the little white rabbit angry. If he said yes, then what?
Xie Bingxia loved seeing Gu Bei being flustered by her. After holding back for a long time, she burst out laughing. "I'm just kidding. You're so stupid."
"You..." Gu Bei blushed and raised his hand as if to spank her again. "I think you're itching for a spanking."
Xie Bingxia burrowed into his arms. "Shh... Don't make a fuss. I just want to stay quietly with you for a while... just a little while..." Gu Bei immediately fell silent.
"Later, when Qin Feng comes back with the shrimp and crab casserole from nearby, he'll surely chatter non - stop and give me a headache."
Gu Bei's face darkened. He picked up the phone beside the bed and called Secretary Zhang. "I want you to buy the shrimp and crab casserole from near the hospital within ten minutes. Otherwise, you'll lose your bonus this month!"
On the other end, Secretary Zhang hung up the phone, completely confused. He was walking into the hospital with big and small bags of takeout. The takeout was ordered by the boss himself, including steamed perch from a five - star hotel a few kilometers away, stir - fried Cantonese bok choy with vinegar, and two servings of shark fin soup. They were light and nourishing. Why did the boss suddenly want shrimp and crab casserole?
He didn't have time to think about it. The bonus was more important! Secretary Zhang let out a yell and went back to his car to buy the casserole!
*
A few days later, Xie Bingxia and Gu Bei were discharged from the hospital and returned to the Gu family's residence. Their injuries were not very serious; they had just consumed too much physical energy. After a few days of observation in the hospital with no major problems, they went home to recuperate.
During this period, the media reported on the kidnapping case, saying that a young man had kidnapped a rich second - generation in order to raise funds for his underground band. The suspects were captured on the spot by the police. The names of all the suspects were blurred out. There was not a single bit of information about Yan Xiaoyi or Qin Feng.
Xie Bingxia knew that this matter was over and there was no need to dwell on it. Before preparing a new plan, she could enjoy a carefree life where clothes were brought to her and food was served to her.
Because of her guilt, Xiao Mei treated Xie Bingxia like a Buddha, being extremely careful with her. Sometimes, even Gu Bei would be jealous and compete with her to see who was better to Xie Bingxia.
One day, Xiao Mei happily brought the rock sugar Sydney pears she had cooked to Xie Bingxia, but Gu Bei intercepted them on the way and presented them to Xie Bingxia with a show of flattery. "It's just cooked. Have some?"
Xie Bingxia was nestled on the sofa and opened her mouth wide. "Ah—" It meant she wanted to be fed.
Gu Bei scooped up some with a spoon, blew on it to make sure it wasn't hot, and then fed it into Xie Bingxia's mouth. He got a satisfied smile from her.
Xiao Mei couldn't stand it anymore. She felt like she was drowning in the couple's honey - jar.
He blew on the second spoonful and was about to bring it to her mouth when the butler rushed over. "Young master, outside..."
"Bingxia—Auntie is here to see you!"
Xie Bingxia almost choked on the Sydney pear. Mrs. Qin was here!