Chapter 31: Taking Care

Xiao Moyan had been unconscious since being brought out of the operating room nearly a day ago. Xia Lingying stayed by her side, dozing off at the bedside when tired. Her already haggard body was pushed to the limit by the intense stress of the morning. With a pale face and dark circles under her eyes, she still held Xiao Moyan's hand, refusing to leave no matter what anyone said, hoping she would wake up soon.

The doctor came to check on her and reassured Xia Lingying that Xiao Moyan was no longer in danger. As for why she hadn't woken up yet, it could be due to the brain injury needing time to heal. Considering Xiao Moyan's status, the doctor also suggested another reason that made Xia Lingying smile bitterly: Xiao Moyan might not want to wake up. The long-term hard work had strained her body to such an extent that subconsciously she wanted to take this chance to rest.

Xia Lingying watched Xiao Moyan, feeling a pang of pity. They were both fragile women, but while Xia Lingying had unfortunate family circumstances, she had Xiao Moyan's protection, her mother's indulgence, and a father who loved her. What did Xiao Moyan have? She only knew how to foolishly love Xia Lingying, sacrificing everything to be good to her. Yet, Xia Lingying had hurt Xiao Moyan's heart time and time again. Now, with Xiao Moyan injured, Xia Lingying saw her own heart clearly and silently vowed to compensate the woman before her in the future, never letting her get hurt again.

Xiao Moyan did wake up drowsily several times, but she only stared blankly at the white walls, trying hard to make sense of what had happened. However, any deep thought would be met with a sharp pain in her head. The unfamiliar environment made her uneasy, and she struggled to sit up. Suddenly, she felt her left hand being tightly held. She lowered her head and saw Xia Lingying holding her hand, dozing off by her side. With a relieved heart, Xiao Moyan felt dizzy and drifted back to sleep.

After Xiao Moyan was out of danger, the hospital room was never quiet, with people coming and going in waves. Most of the visitors were high-profile individuals, and there was a noticeable trend – most of them were women. In Xia Lingying's eyes, they all had similar characteristics: tall stature, imposing aura, and fashionable attire. Their gazes toward Xia Lingying were filled with hostility and disdain, much like Hu Feifei's. Despite Xia Lingying's indifference, she couldn't help but feel a twinge of bitterness. She could only sigh, turn her head, and look at Xiao Moyan on the bed, still sleeping with furrowed brows.

Xiao Moyan... How many emotional debts do you owe?

In the afternoon, when the room was almost empty, the door was pushed open and Mrs. Xu and A'Sen walked in. Without a word, Mrs. Xu headed straight for the bed, quickly feeling Xiao Moyan's forehead and then her own, furrowing her brows as she muttered to herself.

Xia Lingying sighed softly and said, "Mrs. Xu, she has a skull fracture, not a fever..."

Mrs. Xu continued to stare at Xiao Moyan, completely ignoring her words.

Xia Lingying shifted her gaze to A'Sen, who looked helpless, and whispered, "Miss Xia, rest assured, Mrs. Xu didn't do anything to Hu Feifei."

Xia Lingying remained silent, still staring straight at A'Sen, with a hint of confusion in her eyes. She knew about Hu Feifei's influential family background, and even for the sake of propriety, Mrs. Xu wouldn't do anything to her. She just wanted to know what Mrs. Xu and A'Sen had been doing this afternoon.

Under her gaze, A'Sen blushed again and stammered as he spoke.

"I followed Mrs. Xu's instructions and drove to the Nanyang villa area to find Hu Feifei. Sure enough, we found her in the parking lot. When we saw her, she was already trembling with fear, her eyes lifeless, huddled in the car. We knocked on the window for a long time before she reacted."

At this point, A'Sen glanced nervously at Mrs. Xu, who was completely absorbed in looking at Xiao Moyan with a pained expression, her attention not on them at all, before he dared to continue.

"Hu Feifei looked stunned when she saw us, trembling even more violently. She kept saying she didn't mean it. I was about to say something when Mrs. Xu suddenly burst into tears without warning, glaring at Hu Feifei through her tears. Hu Feifei's face turned pale when she saw this, and nervously stared at Mrs. Xu. I guessed she realized the seriousness of the Miss’ condition from Mrs. Xu's reaction. After crying for a while, Mrs. Xu finally looked up, took out the plane ticket to the United States that I had arranged for her from her pocket, and handed it to Hu Feifei, wiping her tears as she told her that the Miss had already been taken away. Everyone knew what had happened, but after spending so much time together, they had developed some feelings. Mrs. Xu couldn't bear to see Hu Feifei ruin her future like this, so she urged her to leave with the plane ticket."

"She just believed her?"

Xia Lingying looked up, her expression puzzled as she gazed at A'Sen. Hu Feifei might be naive, but that didn't mean she was stupid.

Recalling the scene at that time, A'Sen couldn't help but laugh.

Miss Xia, you have no idea how immersed Mrs. Xu was in the situation. She cried her heart out, wiping snot and tears all over Hu Feifei. After hitting Miss, Hu Feifei was already out of her mind. Upon hearing Miss being taken away, she... Well, she completely lost her sanity, just clinging to Mrs. Xu, and the two of them cried together. Things escalated to this point, and Hu Feifei dared not go to her father anymore. She practically saw Mrs. Xu as her lifeline. Whatever Mrs. Xu said, she did. I reckon she's probably in the United States by now...

"After seeing off Hu Feifei, Mrs. Xu went to the headquarters in Nanyang to find Mr. Hu and explained everything. Mr. Hu was furious and immediately called Hu Feifei. Mrs. Xu, wiping her tears, told him that she had already sent people to investigate. Surprisingly, Hu Feifei didn't even care about her father. After hitting Miss, she left the country without a word. So, Miss Xia, you can imagine how angry Mr. Hu was at that moment... Later, Mr. Hu and Mrs. Xu discussed and decided to take this opportunity to prevent Hu Feifei from causing trouble by returning to the country. As compensation, Mr. Hu will transfer five percent of his shares to the Miss’ name..."

As Xia Lingying listened, she felt a chill run down her spine. She turned to look at Mrs. Xu, who was wiping tears while holding Xiao Moyan's hand and shook her head, choosing not to ask further. Sometimes, she couldn't help but wonder if Mrs. Xu and Xiao Moyan were blood-related.

In the evening, the debate over who would stay to take care of Xiao Moyan continued endlessly. Due to age, Mrs. Xu was excluded, and because of gender, A'Sen stepped back. Eventually, Xia Lingying got her wish and stayed behind.

After everyone left, Xia Lingying sat alone by the bedside, quietly watching Xiao Moyan. Time passed by second by second, her body becoming somewhat stiff. She shifted her position slightly to ease the discomfort, but she didn't feel bored at all. The softness in her gaze towards Xiao Moyan could almost melt away. Compared to before, Xia Lingying preferred the current Xiao Moyan, stripped of her usual dominance and allure. Xiao Moyan slept soundly, pouting like a child, her innocent face drawing sympathy. Xia Lingying often found herself wanting to touch her long eyelashes but always stopped herself midway.

After all, this was a hospital. She couldn't...

Normally, Xia Lingying would obediently accept Xiao Moyan's kisses and caresses without any thoughts of crossing boundaries. She never had any desire to seek or possess her actively. But now, her desire for Xiao Moyan grew stronger and stronger in her heart. She realized that loving someone deeply could make her unconsciously yearn to possess them completely, to have them belong to her alone. Shocked by her own thoughts, Xia Lingying's cheeks burned red, and she lowered her head.

At dinner time, the nurse wheeled in the meal. Despite being out of danger, Xiao Moyan still stayed in the ICU, receiving specialized care. Dinner consisted of light white porridge and a few side dishes, all easily digestible. The nurse removed the IV drip from Xiao Moyan's hand and glanced at her still-sleeping form, lips pressed together. She hesitated, then looked at Xia Lingying. Xia Lingying understood her meaning and nodded.

"I'll take care of it."

"Has Miss Xiao woke up?"

"Not yet."

"Then feed her slowly, and if necessary, we'll use the feeding tube."

"A feeding tube?"

Xia Lingying paused, looking back at the nurse, who smiled with a hint of mischief in her eyes, saying one last thing before leaving.

"The feeding tube might cause some discomfort to the patient and isn't very good for the esophagus, so Miss Xia, try your best to feed Miss Xiao manually."

“...”

For no reason, Xia Lingying's face flushed red. She slowly turned around and looked back at the person lying on the bed. Xiao Moyan was still sleeping, but her brows were no longer furrowed, and there was even a faint smile on her lips. Xia Lingying felt a sense of joy in her heart. She took a few steps forward, leaned over the bed, and anxiously asked, 

"Xiao, are you awake?"

Xia Lingying continued to look at Xiao Moyan with anticipation, but she remained asleep, giving her no response. Xia Lingying's eyes dimmed with disappointment, and she lowered her head for a moment, sighing. She picked up the bowl of porridge from the table, patiently cooled it down, and scooped up a small spoonful. She slowly brought it to Xiao Moyan's lips, which were tinged with a pale dryness. Xiao Moyan didn't make any movements, contrary to her usual cleanliness, allowing the porridge to slowly trickle down her lips. Xia Lingying felt a pang of sadness in her heart. She hurriedly used a tissue to wipe her clean, holding the ceramic bowl in her hand, sitting on the edge of the bed, staring blankly at Xiao Moyan.

After a moment's hesitation, Xia Lingying gathered her courage, took a deep breath, bit her lip, and tilted her head back to take a sip of porridge. Then, she lowered her head and fed it to Xiao Moyan with her mouth. As their lips touched for a brief moment, Xia Lingying blushed, her breath becoming slightly erratic. Nevertheless, she persisted in coaxing Xiao Moyan to open her mouth, forcefully pouring the porridge down her throat.

As Xia Lingying leaned back slightly, her face flushed with embarrassment, she lowered her head with a hint of shyness. Her heartbeats veered off course, yet she couldn't help but feel a sweet sense of happiness. It took her a while to calm her racing heart. She lifted her head and sneakily glanced at Xiao Moyan, who was still asleep. Only then did she relax, repeating the same action until the bowl of porridge was completely finished. With flushed cheeks, she set down the spoon, her deep autumn eyes lingering on Xiao Moyan for a moment. Then, she stood up, placing the bowl on the table opposite to make it easier for the nurse to tidy up.

After waiting for a while, the nurse knocked on the door and entered, smiling at Xia Lingying. She approached Xiao Moyan with a puzzled expression. 

"What's wrong?" Xia Lingying asked softly.

The nurse pursed her lips. "Dr. Zhou said Miss Xiao should be able to wake up by now, why is she still sleeping..." Xia Lingying also felt a bit sad hearing this. Her gaze shifted to Xiao Moyan, her beautiful eyes furrowed slightly, tears welling up again. Seeing her distress, the nurse suppressed her evil suspicions, turned around, and lightly smiled at Xia Lingying, trying to comfort her. 

"Forget it, maybe it's just her constitution. By the way, did Miss Xiao finish drinking the porridge?"

Xia Lingying blushed and nodded.

The nurse looked at the person on the bed, cleared her throat, and spoke up. 

"Oh, that's good. I'll go get the urinary catheter. It'll be time for her to urinate soon~"

Author's Note:

So sweet, so sweet, but when it's sweet, no one leaves comments anymore. Don't be like this /(ㄒoㄒ)/~~. Yezi is in a good mood lately and doesn't want to write anything cruel. For those who want to read a cruel story, kids, wait a bit longer~

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