"Not pleading on his behalf," Qiao Xi faced him, her voice slow and light, "You dirty your own hands by hitting him. It’s not worth it."
Shen Dang gazed intently at Qiao Xi for several seconds, emotions flitting through his eyes. Eventually, he let go of Qiao Zhenbin’s hand and coldly spat out, "Get out!"
Qiao Zhenbin scurried away. With Shen Dang there, he didn’t dare to demand anything from Qiao Xi.
"Why did you co back?"
"Why did you open the door for him?"
The two locked eyes, asking the sa question in unison.
Qiao Xi was the first to lower her gaze, not daring to look at him, "I thought you’d co back for sothing you forgot."
Indeed, there was sothing Shen Dang had forgotten—his wristwatch.
He rembered it only when he reached downstairs. Delayed slightly by waiting for the elevator, he hadn’t expected to encounter Qiao Zhenbin upon returning.
When Shen Dang had first taken the elevator down, Qiao Zhenbin had just co up. The two of them had just brushed past each other—dreadful coincidence.
"Sorry, I was late," Shen Dang said, looking at her face where a trace of tenderness leaked through his otherwise icy voice, "I’ll take you to the hospital now."
"No." Qiao Xi turned her face away, not wanting him to see, "It’s not a big issue. So ointnt will be fine."
Shen Dang’s expression was stern, a far cry from his usual tenderness; his words seed to be squeezed through clenched teeth, a mixture of anger and helplessness, "Qiao Xi, can you stop being so stubborn?"
When would she really trust him?
When would she consider him her safe haven?
Didn’t she want him to stand up for her?
What was this?
Shen Dang, hands on his hips, let out a self-deprecating laugh.
"I’m not being stubborn; I genuinely don’t want to go," Qiao Xi said, her face void of color but still sowhat dazed.
Shen Dang pinched her chin with his fingers, a chilling smile on his lips, "Whether you want to or not, you’re going."
He exuded a domineering attitude, not waiting for Qiao Xi’s consent, directly whisking her into the car and off to the hospital.
The car sped along the road, filled with a heavy silence, neither of them speaking.
It remained so until Shen Dang stopped at a red light.
Shen Dang turned his head, his tongue pressing against his back molar, chuckling in exasperation, "Are you not even going to whimper in pain? And to be beaten for nothing—when did you beco so foolish?"
Shen Dang was truly angry.
She owned what was unanimously agreed upon as the most beautiful face in the entertainnt industry, untouched by any sacrilege.
Now, looking at the horrific scar marring her face, Shen Dang suddenly felt an almost murderous impulse.
That coward Qiao Zhenbin had dared to lay a hand on her?
Qiao Xi didn’t want to answer his question, her head turned towards the car window, "If you’re free tomorrow, co with to the Qiao Family ho."
Shen Dang punched the steering wheel, his usual calm and restraint gone, his breath heavy and repressed, "Why go to the Qiao Family? Waiting to be hit again?"
Others would cry in pain and seek consolation when beaten, but she showed no reaction.
Had she been isolated too long, hidden behind a façade, so that no one was worth lowering her guard for? So much so that she couldn’t even cry out in pain?
Shen Dang was angry with her, frustrated with her, but more so with himself.
It seed like he couldn’t do anything.
This sense of helplessness enveloped him, a thick fog of despair descended on his mind, blocking any glimpse of light.
"No," Qiao Xi said calmly, though her voice involuntarily trembled, "I plan to move out of the Qiao Family registry, to sever ties with them. Whatever they do after that will have nothing to do with ."
Shen Dang took a deep breath and let it out heavily, "So you allow yourself to be hit for nothing? Are you stupid?"
Qiao Xi’s lips quivered, "Although he grew to dislike after his feelings for my mother changed, he ensured I lacked nothing growing up, didn’t short on food, let continue studying, and even gave a life better than most. For the first eighteen years, he did fulfill his duties as a father. But it all went wrong simply because he didn’t love , his daughter. Now that I’ve repaid what I owed him, let it be that way henceforth."
"What ti tomorrow?" Shen Dang asked, his voice still cold, his jaw tense.
"In the morning."
"Hmm."
Shen Dang drove to the hospital, parking the car and leading Qiao Xi upstairs to tend to her wounds, all the while silent.
Half of Qiao Xi’s face was swollen, looking particularly dreadful, and the broken corner of her mouth possessed a startling beauty.
Accompanied by her proud and aloof expression, she kept others at a distance, the demarcation stark.
She was like frost on a cliff face, aloof and unattainable.
As the doctor treated her wounds, she made not a sound, only occasionally furrowing her brows unconsciously.
Watching her thus, Shen Dang was troubled with restless emotions, casting a gloomy mood over him and an air of distance that kept others far away.
Finally, the doctor advised, "Absolutely keep water off your face. Apply ointnt daily and it should heal in a few days. Here’s the prescription; a family mber can collect the dication from the first-floor pharmacy."
Family mber Shen Dang stepped forward, taking the prescription from the doctor’s hand, "Thank you."
"Of course."
After the doctor left, Shen Dang spoke gently, "Rest here for a while. I will get the dication, pay, and then take you ho."
Qiao Xi nodded lightly, "Mm, thank you for the trouble."
Shen Dang nearly exploded, suppressing anger, "It’s no trouble, I’m your family. Don’t say that again; I don’t want to hear it."
Qiao Xi couldn’t help but argue back, "You’re not my family yet."
Shen Dang, unruffled, said with certainty, "Sooner or later, I will be."
Qiao Xi, "..."
So people were quite eager to be soone else’s family.
Shen Dang rubbed the back of her neck, "Alright, just wait here for . I’ll be right back."
"Mm."
Shen Dang turned and walked out of the ward.
Qiao Xi watched his upright figure until the sunlight streaming in from the corridor made her squint, then she withdrew her gaze.
The hospital scent was sowhat unpleasant.
Qiao Xi went to the corridor, resting in a chair outside the room.
Her head bowed slightly, thick lashes casting shadows on her eyelids, contrasting with her porcelain skin.
And her injured face was even more eye-catching.
Wang Wen returned from the restroom, still on the phone as she walked from the other end of the corridor.
From afar, she seed to spot Qiao Xi’s figure, and Wang Wen imdiately halted.
Upon confirming it was Qiao Xi, she hastily ended the call and strode furiously toward her, beginning to berate the mont she pointed at her, "Well, well, Qiao Xi, you’ve got so nerve showing up here! But your timing is just perfect. Co with right now to kneel and beg for Nannan’s forgiveness. Unless you do, our entire family will never forgive you!"
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