Kicked out of her own house, Bai Wenxi didn't even have the time to settle the score with this despicable couple.
She took out her phone and dialed her uncle's number.
"Uncle, it's Wenxi. How could Dad have a car accident?" She tried hard to suppress her painful emotions and asked her uncle about the situation as calmly as possible.
"Which hospital is Dad in now? I'll come to see him right away."
On the other end of the phone, her uncle answered cautiously and quietly, "Awen, have you landed? Did your step - mom text you that your dad is in the emergency room?"
Bai Wenxi was completely confused. "Uncle, what are you talking about? I didn't take a plane. I didn't receive any text from Auntie either."
"Then come to St. Mary's Hospital right away," said Uncle, his voice sounding dejected and anxious.
"I'll be waiting for you at the entrance of the emergency room. You must come quickly."
After hanging up the phone, Bai Wenxi immediately hailed a taxi and rushed to St. Mary's Hospital.
Her heart was pounding all the way. Although she prayed devoutly that her father would be okay, her heart felt as if a heavy boulder had been dropped into it, weighing her down and making it hard for her to breathe.
Without any delay, Bai Wenxi ran all the way to the emergency room. She didn't even wait for the elevator.
Her dress was damp with cold sweat and clung to her back. Her tea - brown curly hair hung loosely on her shoulders, in a messy tangle.
"Awen, over here!" Uncle and Auntie were sitting side by side on the bench in the corridor. Their expressions were equally surprised and uneasy.
"Didn't you take a plane to another province yesterday?" Uncle stared at Bai Wenxi with blood - shot eyes.
"How could that be? Dad said he would hand over the art museum to me and asked me to learn about exhibition arrangement and management from him recently," Bai Wenxi finally couldn't hold back her tears when she saw her closest family members.
"Woo... Dad was fine yesterday morning. How could he suddenly have a car accident?"
Just as Uncle was about to speak, Auntie secretly tugged at the corner of his clothes.
Yao Chunmei's heavily - made - up face poked out from the corner. "Oh, Awen is here. I'm so forgetful. I thought you went out of the province to see an art exhibition last night."
The expensive red patent leather high - heels clicked on the tiles, making an annoying sound.
"I'm so unlucky. I finally had a few good years with your dad, and now he's had a car accident. From what the doctor said, his chances of survival are slim." She pretended to wipe her dry eyes with a handkerchief.
"Auntie, what on earth is going on? Dad had such a serious accident. Why didn't you contact me immediately?"
Looking at this woman who had destroyed her family, taken her mother's place, and always imitated her mother's dressing style, Bai Wenxi forced herself to calm down.
Putting her arm around her step - daughter affectionately, Yao Chunmei explained, "I was so shocked at that time that my memory was all messed up. I thought you were on a plane and couldn't be reached. It's all your dad's fault for driving drunk and causing such a big accident. How are we poor widows and orphans going to live?"
"I don't believe it! Dad would never drive after drinking. He would never break the law," Bai Wenxi immediately retorted and pulled her hand out of her step - mother's grip.
Seeing how stubborn she was, Yao Chunmei immediately put away her smile. She frowned and looked mean.
Just as she was about to speak, Auntie stepped forward gently.
"Sister - in - law, Awen is just a child. Brother is still in a critical condition. The child is heart - broken. Don't argue with her."
"Humph!" Yao Chunmei was about to say something unpleasant when the light in the emergency room suddenly dimmed.
The white door was opened, and the tired chief surgeon walked out.
Bai Wenxi and her uncle and aunt rushed forward and asked anxiously, "Doctor, how is the patient?"
Taking off his mask, the chief doctor looked at the family members apologetically and comforted them sadly, "Please accept my condolences."
"No!" Bai Wenxi let out a shrill scream. She couldn't believe that her beloved father had suddenly left the world.
A body covered with a white sheet was wheeled out by the nurses. She rushed forward and tremblingly lifted the sheet covering her father's face.
Seeing his gray complexion, her heart was filled with grief. She could only scream silently and couldn't make a sound.
Uncle and Auntie quickly stepped forward to support Bai Wenxi, afraid that she would faint from excessive grief.
Yao Chunmei sobbed a few times symbolically and watched as the nurses wheeled the body away.
Then she immediately changed her expression. "I'll be honest with you. I've already called some of the elders in the Bai family. Now that Zhongxun is gone, we have to handle his funeral properly."
Even Auntie, who was usually gentle and weak, couldn't help but blame her. "Sister - in - law, Brother's body is not even cold yet. Is it appropriate for you to talk about these things now?"
"What do you mean?" Yao Chunmei put her hands on her hips and said arrogantly, "No one wanted Zhongxun to have an accident. When a person dies, it's like a lamp going out. Can we live in grief for the rest of our lives?"
"Now that he's gone, I'm the head of this family. Let's get things straight so as to avoid any unnecessary trouble in the future."
Bai Wenxi knew that her step - mother was only after the money. Thinking of her stepsister who had deliberately seduced her fiancé, she slowly raised her head and stared coldly at Yao Chunmei.
"You want to settle the score? Fine. Let's do it in front of the whole Bai family."
On the way back to the old house, Bai Wenxi thought it over and over again and felt that something was very fishy.
Her father was a very humble and law - abiding man. How could he drive drunk after a social gathering? Especially when he knew that she was about to get married, he would never be so careless with his own health.
Stealing a glance at her step - mother beside her, who was eyeing her covetously, Bai Wenxi tightly clutched the phone in her pocket.
Her father's death was too coincidental and sudden. She must call the police and let them investigate this matter.
The living room was filled with the elders of the Bai family. Bai Wenxi even saw her shameless stepsister and her heartless fiancé in the corner.
"Awen, please accept my condolences," the eldest and most senior grandfather of the Bai family comforted her kindly.
"Lawyer Jin, please read out what you sent me in front of everyone. Let's sort things out clearly to avoid any rumors in the future," Yao Chunmei took the initiative as soon as she came in.
Her sudden words caught everyone off guard.
A middle - aged man in a neat suit and gold - rimmed glasses stepped forward quickly and handed a stack of documents to Bai Wenxi.
"Miss Bai, I'm sorry to inform you that the Star Art Museum is on the verge of bankruptcy and will be seized by the bank for auction," he pushed his glasses and informed her expressionlessly.
Bai Wenxi pressed hard on her pounding heart. Her face instantly turned pale. "How could this be? Dad said he would pass the position of the museum director to me a few days ago. The art museum has been operating well and making profits every year. How could it go bankrupt?"
Yao Chunmei immediately snatched the remaining documents from Lawyer Jin and distributed them to everyone present.
"Awen, you still don't believe it. Look, it's clearly written here. Zhongxun was too idealistic. I often advised him that although our family is in the art business, we still have to fill our stomachs before we can pursue elegance."
"Now we're in a difficult situation, and we living people are suffering."
Years of intrigue had made Yao Chunmei a very eloquent speaker.
Her glib talk had already started to shake the minds of many elders who only cared about the reputation of the Bai family.
"How could Brother lose 30 million? I strongly suspect that this document is forged," Uncle Bai was the first to raise his doubt.
He and Bai Zhongxun were real brothers with the same parents. He had always been protected by his elder brother. Now that his elder brother had died mysteriously, he would never allow anyone to smear his brother's reputation.