Shan Yi finished her work and headed to the location her wife had sent. Before she arrived, her phone rang. It was Shen Tiantian calling. Smiling, she thought her wife was calling to rush her, and she answered on speakerphone.
It was noisy on the other end, so loud that Shan Yi couldn’t hear clearly. Her eyebrow twitched with a sudden sense of foreboding.
After a while, her mother’s voice came through, “Xiao Yi, come quickly, Tiantian…”
“What happened to her?”
“I don’t know. I went to the restroom, and when I came back, she was suddenly clutching her stomach in pain.” Mother Shan’s voice was already tinged with tears, panicked and unsure of what to do. “Someone has called an ambulance. I’ll call Xiao Yue.”
“Call her.” Shan Yi shouted, her hand trembling slightly on the steering wheel, her face turning pale. “Don’t hang up. Use your phone to call. What floor are you on? I’m almost there.”
“We’re on the first floor of the west gate, at a dessert shop.”
Shan Yi gave a heavy “hmm,” then added, “Put Tiantian on the phone.”
Soon, Shen Tiantian’s strained voice came through, “Hello?”
“Don’t talk, just listen,” Shan Yi’s heart clenched, “I’m almost there. For now, breathe in slowly… then slowly breathe out…”
Shan Yi quickly found a parking spot, forgetting she was wearing 8cm stiletto heels. She ran, almost breathless, but still kept comforting her wife on the other end.
Talking as she ran, Shan Yi found the dessert shop surrounded by onlookers. She pushed through unceremoniously and saw her wife slumped weakly on the table, her brows furrowed in pain. Shan Yi rushed over.
“Xiao Yi, thank goodness you’re here.” Her mother’s eyes were red from crying, her voice choked. Seeing her daughter, she couldn’t hold back her tears.
Ignoring her mother, Shan Yi’s focus was entirely on Shen Tiantian. She gently touched her wife’s shoulder and said softly: “Tiantian, I’m here. We’re going to the hospital now.”
“Okay….the baby…” Shen Tiantian struggled to open her eyes, glanced at Shan Yi, smiled weakly, and then lost consciousness.
“Tiantian!” Shan Yi’s voice rose sharply, her heart skipping a beat.
Mother Shan started crying again, asking Shan Yi what to do.
Feeling a surge of frustration, Shan Yi glanced at the time and turned to ask the person who had called the ambulance, “What time did you call?”
The bystander, seeing Shan Yi, was momentarily stunned and didn’t respond immediately.
Growing impatient, Shan Yi saw the ambulance arrive. The crowd, understanding the urgency, made way for the paramedics, who quickly checked Shen Tiantian and put her on a stretcher.
Shan Yi followed, but a suspicious figure caught her eye. Her cold gaze fixed on the panicked face of Li Siying in the crowd.
Realizing why Shen Tiantian’s condition had suddenly worsened, Shan Yi’s expression turned even colder. She walked over, raised her hand, and slapped Li Siying hard across the face.
Li Siying had been trembling with fear since Shen Tiantian started complaining of pain. She had wanted to escape, but the crowd didn’t let her. Now, sitting on the ground in shock, she burst into tears. However, not a single person in the crowd spoke up for her.
“My wife and child are in trouble. If anything happens to them, I’ll make sure you pay for it,” Shan Yi coldly threatened before leaving with her mother, following the medical staff.
The onlookers didn’t disperse immediately, gossiping and pointing fingers at Li Siying.
…..
“The patient is not in serious danger. The emotional turmoil caused distress to the fetus, resulting in abdominal pain. We also discovered a red-purple bruise under her abdomen, likely from an impact. Although she’s past the first trimester, extra caution is still necessary. She should stay under observation for a week,” the doctor’s words weighed heavily on the Shan family.
“What exactly happened? How did this occur?” Father Shan asked quietly after arriving.
Mother Shan, no longer crying but still full of guilt, softly recounted the incident to her husband. “It’s my fault. If I had returned sooner, Tiantian wouldn’t have gotten hurt.”
In truth, she hadn’t seen much of what happened. She had just gone to the restroom, and when she returned, Shen Tiantian was already in pain. She didn’t know how it had happened.
Father Shan scolded: “Why did you go shopping when you know Tiantian’s condition?”
“I…”
Shan Yi didn’t comfort her mother but instead turned to the doctor and asked: “Can I see her now?”
The doctor nodded: “Yes, but she hasn’t woken up yet. It’s better if not too many of you go in at once.”
“Thank you.”
The doctor nodded and left.
“Xiao Yi…” Mother Shan approached, looking remorseful.
Shan Yi glanced at her mother. She had heard the earlier conversation but knew blaming her wouldn’t change the fact that Shen Tiantian was in the hospital. However, she couldn’t bring herself to comfort her mother either. The real culprit, who had repeatedly hurt her beloved, would not get off easily this time.
She turned to her father: “Dad, you should take Mom home. I’ll stay here.”
Father Shan, understanding that staying wouldn’t help, nodded: “Alright, let us know when Tiantian wakes up.”
“No, I want to stay until she wakes up,” Mother Shan insisted, not feeling at ease leaving like this.
Shan Yi gently said, “There’s no need. Go home and ask Aunt Zhang to make some millet porridge for Tiantian. She’ll probably be hungry when she wakes up.”
“Alright then,” Mother Shan agreed, but she kept looking back as her husband led her away.
Shan Yi gently pushed the door open and saw her wife lying on the bed, pale. It felt like her heart was being stabbed repeatedly. She pulled a chair over and sat down, carefully holding Shen Tiantian’s hand, interlocking their fingers and bringing it to her lips for a kiss.
Shen Tiantian didn’t know how long she had been asleep. When she woke up, it was already dark. She looked around and saw Shan Yi sleeping by the bed. She moved her hand, and Shan Yi woke up immediately.
“You’re awake? Are you hungry?” Shan Yi asked anxiously.
Shen Tiantian was taken aback and gently nodded. She slowly moved her hand towards her belly, “Is the baby okay?”
“Yes, she’s fine.”
Shen Tiantian sighed in relief, then glanced at Shan Yi with a guilty look, “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have argued with her, but she said such terrible things and even cursed our baby. I couldn’t stand it.”
Shan Yi subtly furrowed her brows, “Let’s not talk about her. Leave it to me, okay?”
Shen Tiantian nodded softly, “I’m hungry.”
“Mom made some millet porridge for you. It’s still warm. Should I raise the bed for you?” Shan Yi asked gently.
“I want a sip of water first.”
Shan Yi silently twisted open the bottle of mineral water, inserted a straw, and held it to Shen Tiantian’s lips. Once she’d had enough, she set it aside. She then opened the thermos, scooped some porridge into a small bowl, and handed it to Shen Tiantian. The aroma of chicken wafted up, and Shen Tiantian’s eyes sparkled as she licked her lips.
“It smells so good.”
Shan Yi chuckled at her little foodie and lovingly fed her one spoonful at a time.
Shen Tiantian gazed at her, feeling a wave of sweetness despite the recent scare.
“Why are you staring at me?”
Shen Tiantian shook her head with a blissful smile. “Nothing, just feeling really happy right now.”
Shan Yi smiled and continued feeding her porridge.
The tense atmosphere from earlier dissipated. Shen Tiantian’s eyes flickered as she asked: “What are you going to do about it?”
“About what?”
Shen Tiantian saw through her feigned ignorance. “About Li Siying.”
“What do you think I should do?” Shan Yi countered.
“Report her?” Shen Tiantian remembered Shan Yi mentioning it before. Last time, nothing serious happened, but now she was in the hospital. She knew her wife must be furious, even though she appeared calm.
Shan Yi’s index finger gently flicked her nose, a silent confirmation of Shen Tiantian’s suggestion. She had already instructed Assistant Yang to handle the matter while Shen Tiantian was still asleep.
Her silence confirmed Shen Tiantian’s thoughts. Recalling the offensive words, she felt no sympathy left.
“The doctor said there was a bruise under your belly. How did that happen?” Shan Yi asked.
Shen Tiantian remained silent for a moment, then cautiously explained, “She said some awful things, and I got angry and confronted her. I was the one who grabbed her hand first. When she shook me off, I lost my balance and hit the table…”
Shan Yi’s expression darkened. “What did she say?”
Shen Tiantian lowered her head, not wanting to remember.
Shan Yi didn’t press her and continued feeding her until the bowl was empty. “Do you want more?”
Shen Tiantian smacked her lips. “Yes, please.”
Shan Yi scooped another half bowl and resumed feeding her.
Shen Tiantian urged, “You should have some too.”
“I’m not hungry.”
“What did you have for lunch? You must be hungry.” Shen Tiantian looked skeptical. “Have a bite, then I’ll eat.”
Shan Yi, seeing through her intentions, smiled and took a bite herself before continuing to feed her.
Only then did Shen Tiantian eat obediently, and soon, they finished the chicken porridge together.
“I’m so full,” Shen Tiantian sighed, rubbing her belly.
Shan Yi chuckled and cleaned up the table. “I’ll go call Mom and Dad.”
“Okay.”
Perhaps because of the IV, Shen Tiantian yawned soon after Shan Yi left, feeling drowsy again.
When Shan Yi returned, Shen Tiantian had fallen asleep. Shan Yi glanced at the nearly empty IV bag and pressed the call button for the nurse to remove the needle.
It was past ten, and after a long day, Shan Yi felt exhausted too. She undressed, gently lifted the blanket, and lay down beside her wife. Shen Tiantian instinctively snuggled into her arms.
Shan Yi had transferred her to a VIP room with a bed much larger than a regular one, ensuring both comfort for Shen Tiantian and herself. She kissed her wife’s forehead and whispered, “Good night.”
