CHAPTER 46: 046: AT THAT TIME, SHE CALLED HIM BROTHER (1 MORE)

Lai Yang was tall and slender. Though her build wasn’t light, she daintily lifted one leg, causing all her weight to fall onto Ning Guiwan. Ning Guiwan struggled slightly to support her, and fine beads of sweat formed on the delicate tip of her nose.

Quan Yu followed behind them. As they turned on the stair landing, the setting sun outside shone through, making the sweat on the girl’s nose glisten with a crystal-clear sheen.

Her moist skin appeared exceptionally delicate and fair, accentuating the red lips beneath her nose, making them seem even more luscious and enticing.

Upon reaching the first floor, Lai Yang still wanted to go and pay.

Quan Yu finally spoke. "You’re injured; you should rest." As he spoke, he jerked his chin toward the nearby resting area, his tone slightly cold. "Go sit over there and wait."

In the bustling big-city hospital, even past the end of the workday, it was still crowded and busy.

There were queues at the payment kiosks, and it really wasn’t convenient to accompany someone injured. So, Ning Guiwan helped Lai Yang to a seat. "Wait here for a while."

Lai Yang internally resisted.

But catching Quan Yu’s somber gaze, she could only nod her head reluctantly.

Quan Yu stood beside the magazine rack, watching Ning Guiwan carefully navigate through the crowd to line up at an automatic payment machine. When people squeezed past her, she carefully avoided them, unintentionally revealing her wariness of others.

He suddenly thought back to when he had first returned to the country. Everyone had been wary of him, afraid of him—even his closest kin—as if he were some heinous criminal with blood on his hands. Only this little girl, with her bright, clear eyes, had looked at him, unfazed and smiling. "Brother, do you remember me? I’m Ning Guiwan. You used to play with me a lot." Back then, she had called him brother.

His phone suddenly vibrated. Quan Yu paused, pulling his thoughts and gaze back as he took the device out of his trouser pocket.

Looking at the caller ID, he saw it was a call from the United States. He turned to Lai Yang and said, "Sit tight. Don’t wander off," then strode outside to take the call.

Through the glass door, Lai Yang saw him standing by a pillar on the veranda, one hand in his pocket. The setting sun cast his silhouette, making him look noble and imposing.

She shifted her leg, tempted to get up and find Ning Guiwan. But then, remembering Quan Yu’s parting words, she pouted and reluctantly stayed put.

Bored, she asked a man seated near the magazine rack to get her a newspaper. The man initially seemed somewhat impatient, but his expression changed when he looked up and saw a pretty young girl. He smiled and asked, "Do you want the weekly or the daily paper?"

"The daily, please. Thank you," Lai Yang replied with a sweet smile.

She took the paper and flipped directly to the entertainment section.

"...Then I’ll have to trouble you..."

Before she could make out the content, a familiar voice cut through the surrounding noise and reached her ears.

Then she heard that voice say, "...if my sister asks, just tell her she hasn’t fully recovered and needs to focus on resting from now on..."

"If she knew she could never get pregnant again, she would definitely break down..."

Hearing this, a storm surged through Lai Yang’s heart.

She recognized the voice; it was Ning Rongyue’s.

Looking towards the source of the voice, she glimpsed Ning Rongyue through the gaps between the publications. Ning Rongyue was standing face-to-face with a female doctor in a white coat behind the magazine rack. Ning Rongyue looked anxious. She casually picked up an internal hospital magazine from the rack, flipped it open, then closed it, and sighed heavily. "How could it have become so serious?"

The magazine rack was nearly person-high, and Lai Yang was sitting. The rest area was crowded, and Ning Rongyue, preoccupied with her worries, didn’t notice Lai Yang.

"I’m telling you, your mother and you sisters are just too soft-hearted. What Ning Guiwan did clearly constitutes intentional injury! If it were me, I’d make sure she went to jail!"

The doctor, about the same age as Ning Rongyue, wore glasses and had her hair neatly tied back, looking the very picture of an upright and principled person.

Ning Rongyue sighed again. "But she’s our sister, after all..."

"You treat her like a sister, but does she treat you all like sisters? Look at your face! Look at Qinghan’s current condition!" The doctor was filled with righteous indignation, wishing she herself were the judge so she could sentence Ning Guiwan to life imprisonment.

"Alright, don’t be angry. I believe Xiaowan won’t make the same mistake again. Thank you for today. If you hadn’t happened to be working in gynecology here, I really wouldn’t have known what to do."

"Don’t mention it. We’re old classmates, after all."

Lai Yang was still reeling from the shocking news she’d overheard and didn’t notice Ning Rongyue and the doctor leave.

"What are you daydreaming about?" Ning Guiwan’s voice startled her.

Lai Yang snapped back to reality. She peeked around furtively, then pulled Ning Guiwan down to sit, covering her own mouth with her hand as she leaned close to Ning Guiwan’s ear and whispered secretively, "I just overheard..."

After recounting what she had heard, Lai Yang’s eyes lit up. "What do you think? If Quan Xiangru finds out that Chen Qinghan can’t bear children for him anymore, will he still marry her? Then you could..."

Her implication was clear: if Ning Qinghan was out of the picture, Ning Guiwan could seize the opportunity to win back Quan Xiangru’s heart.

Ning Guiwan looked at Lai Yang’s excited expression as she schemed on her behalf and gradually furrowed her brow. "You’re saying Ning Rongyue was right beside you, discussing this with the doctor?"

In her memory, Ning Rongyue wasn’t such a careless person.

Lai Yang nodded. Seeing Ning Guiwan’s serious expression, her own heart gave a little tremble. "What’s wrong? Why do you look so terrifying?"

"Lai Yang," Ning Guiwan said, looking at her gravely, "you are to act as if you never heard anything about this."