Chapter 18: Phoenix Man × Rich White Beauty (Part 8)

Wen Jing’s gaze flickered nervously. She stammered, “Your father—he told me before that he didn’t want you to get married so early. He wanted you to reconsider.”

“But Mom, why didn’t you ever tell me this? If I had known earlier…” Bai Jie’s eyes reddened, and tears began to spill over. “How could I have married him if I’d known? Now that I’m pregnant with his child, what are we supposed to do if he really loses his job?”

Wen Jing felt immediate regret. She had thought Bai Father’s remark was merely a casual expression of concern, never realizing it was meant as a warning to her and Bai Jie. She couldn’t help but feel bitterness toward Bai Father for not speaking more plainly.

Yet she depended on Bai Father’s patronage for her livelihood, so she couldn’t outright fight with him. All she could do was comfort her daughter. “It’s okay, Xiaojie. Your mother-in-law must have set aside quite a bit of money—she won’t be unable to support the baby. Besides, I’ll chip in whatever I can.”

“Even if she has the money,” Bai Jie spat, “what good is that? You know how she is; do you really think she’ll give me a single cent? Not a penny. She wants to keep her son all to herself. You have no idea how much she despises me as her daughter-in-law. Mom, you’ve really put me in a terrible situation.”

As Bai Jie spoke, memories of Bai Yue’s earlier admonishment flashed through her mind. Back then, she had brushed off Bai Yue’s words, thinking Bai Yue was merely envious because she hadn’t found a “good man” for herself. She never expected things to turn out like this.

Wen Jing shifted uncomfortably. “Right—I did check out Gu Yin’s mother’s restaurant. That location alone, plus the décor and monthly rent, must cost at least thirty thousand yuan. And there’s furniture, kitchen equipment, everything. They must have spent a fortune opening it. I figured it had to be Bai Yue’s money backing it. If that’s so, then our family deserves a share of their profits.”

“What if Gu Yin earned the money himself?” Bai Jie asked hesitantly.

“As a low-level doctor, how could he possibly have saved that kind of cash on his own? Don’t worry, leave it to me,” Wen Jing declared confidently.

Still stewing, Wen Jing marched over to Gu Yin’s mother’s restaurant to demand money—an action that left Gu Yin’s mother absolutely exasperated. She promptly called the police.

“This lady keeps coming to my restaurant to make trouble, demanding I give her money!” Gu Yin’s mother told the officers indignantly. “Isn’t that extortion?”

The police officers exchanged glances, unconvinced that such petty domestic squabbling truly warranted their time. Nonetheless, they had to investigate.

“Madam,” one officer began politely, “is it true that you’ve been demanding money from the restaurant owners?”

“I haven’t!” Wen Jing retorted. “They took my money to open their restaurant. Of course I’m entitled to a share of the profits!”

Gu Yin’s mother’s eyes widened. “Give me a break! My son paid for that restaurant—my money, not hers! She’s a total stranger to me. I’d never give her a single yuan!”

The officer cleared his throat as he took out his notepad. “Do you have any evidence that you gave them money?”

Wen Jing bristled. “Of course I do! My daughter gave them the opening capital. That means it’s our money. And I don’t just want profits—I planned to work with them in the business. Who do they think they are, calling the police on me? They owe me either my money back or my share of the profits!”

The officer raised an eyebrow. “Do you have any proof? You know we need evidence to substantiate claims. If your son paid, there should be a record on his phone.”

“I did use my daughter’s money to start the restaurant, you big idiot!” snapped Wen Jing. “My daughter’s name is Bai Yue, not—”

Before she could finish, Gu Yin and Bai Yue arrived at the scene, summoned by the officers. They stood quietly by as the two older women bickered.

“What’s happening here?” Gu Yin asked, taking in the chaotic scene.

Gu Yin’s mother pointed at Wen Jing. “This woman is claiming that she paid for my restaurant. She’s demanding a cut of my profits, or else she wants her money back.”

Wen Jing folded her arms defiantly. “That’s right. I put up the capital!”

Gu Yin sighed and calmly took out his phone. He scrolled to a transaction record and handed it to the officer. “All the startup funds came from Bai Yue and me. My mother had nothing to do with it.”

The officer glanced at the payment history. “Ma’am,” he said to Wen Jing, “you no longer need to cause a disturbance over someone else’s property. If you continue to harass them or call the police on trivial matters, we will have to consider detaining you.”

Wen Jing’s eyes widened, her face paling. “Officer, you can’t believe this woman! The money she used was my daughter’s—our family’s money!”

Bai Yue stepped forward, anger flickering in her eyes. “My mother passed away years ago—just who do you think you are calling yourself my mother? And my boyfriend didn’t use my money at all. He earned every yuan himself. If we didn’t even ask for compensation for lost time, we’re doing better than you deserve. And yet you still have the audacity to make a fuss?”

The police officer looked at both women with weary exasperation. “This is clearly a domestic dispute. I suggest you two go home and work things out together. It’s really not a criminal matter. The evidence is here. If you don’t stop, I’m afraid we’ll have to take you to the station. Your family can come pick you up later.”

Defeated, Wen Jing whispered a half-hearted apology to the officers and slunk away.

Once the policeman had left, Gu Yin’s mother turned to Gu Yin. “Xiao Yin, didn’t you say your money came from Yueyue?”

Gu Yin nodded. “It was jointly saved between Yueyue and me. She doesn’t like managing money, so she entrusted it all to me.”

“Oh.” Gu Yin’s mother exhaled, relieved now that she knew the truth. The incident was over—until Bai Father heard about what Wen Jing had done.

Later, Bai Father pulled Wen Jing aside and berated her: “Does our family really need that money? Do you have to stoop so low as to beg it from someone else?”

Wen Jing answered quietly, “It’s not that our family is short of money, Father—Xiaojie is the one who needs it most. After all these years, do you know how little I’ve ever asked you for? If you won’t give me any, what am I supposed to do?”

Bai Father’s face hardened. “If I don’t give you, you decide to steal or extort from others? Let me make myself clear: I’ve supported you and your daughter for years—I’ve done everything I can. Don’t go after what’s not rightfully yours.”

In his mind, Bai Father already had his own calculations. After all, Bai Yue was his daughter, and Bai Jie—now that she was effectively cast aside—was no longer worth investing in.

Wen Jing stared at him blankly. How had things gone so wrong for her?

…

After Gu Yin was promoted to department head, he became significantly busier. Yet lately, he felt uneasy: Bai Yue’s surgery date was fast approaching.

He found himself drifting, almost unconsciously, to Bai Yue’s department to linger in the hallway. Her colleagues teased him relentlessly, wondering what he was up to. He had begun asking around about one particular patient’s condition, hoping he could convince Bai Yue not to take part in the operation.

During morning rounds, one of Bai Yue’s co-workers said, “His vitals are all normal right now—he meets the criteria for surgery. The attending physician plans to operate on him next Monday. Opportunities like this only come once, and I really want to be on the surgical team.”

“Just make sure you watch his pre-op diet closely,” Gu Yin advised. “He shouldn’t be eating anything before the surgery.”

“Don’t worry. We’ve already told his family and instructed the nurses to monitor him,” they reassured him.

“Don’t let your guard down,” Gu Yin continued gravely. “If anything goes wrong, we’ll all regret it.”

“Understood.” Bai Yue nodded. Because of Gu Yin’s warnings, she made that patient a top priority.

Finally, on the day before surgery, during pre-op rounds, Bai Yue discovered the patient snacking in his room. She hurried over to his bed and called for his family.

“Didn’t you tell him not to eat anything before surgery? Why is he still eating?”

The patient’s daughter replied, “My father insisted. He said, ‘Once I go under the knife, who knows if I’ll make it out alive? At least this way, I’ll have one last memory of enjoying something tasty.’ ”

“If he eats that, he won’t be eligible for surgery tomorrow,” Bai Yue said urgently. “Do you understand? We can’t be sure how much longer he can hold on. If we postpone any longer, we don’t know if he’ll even be stable enough for an operation.”

“What are we supposed to do?” the daughter asked in distress. Bai Yue’s brow furrowed with worry. She immediately called the department director.

“Director,” Bai Yue reported, “if his vitals continue to decline, the success rate of his surgery could drop significantly.”

The director scrutinized the patient’s chart and frowned. “Who’s responsible for watching this patient? Didn’t you inform his family? Where did this food come from?”

A young nurse piped up, “We did inform them. We told the family not to bring outside food.”

“But we’re from the countryside. We eat whatever we want back home.” The patient’s daughter glared. “You doctors keep ordering us to take one test after another, and we’ve spent a fortune already. Now this nonsense? What kind of hospital is this?”

At that moment, Gu Yin, accompanied by a staff member from the Medical Office, marched in. He held in his hand the signed pre-operative notice and the relevant surveillance footage.

“Sir,” Gu Yin addressed the patient’s daughter, “we understand your family’s concerns. However, we did show you the pre-op notice and explicitly warned you not to bring any outside food. The footage clearly shows that someone on your side snuck that snack in. You must bear the consequences.”

The daughter opened her mouth to argue, but Gu Yin continued calmly, “This is still a hospital—our duty is to treat and save lives. We will do our utmost to operate on your father at the earliest safe opportunity. However, we need you to sign a supplemental agreement stating that you acknowledge and accept responsibility for what happened.”

The man quietly realized he was in the wrong, and that his father still needed surgery. Reluctantly, he agreed.

Bai Yue and her mentor performed multiple follow-up assessments. Although the patient’s vitals had declined, the surgery was still feasible three days later.

Gu Yin, however, did not share Bai Yue’s hopeful optimism. He understood that life has an ultimate limit, and he didn’t have high expectations for this procedure. At the same time, he knew Bai Yue, as a physician, could never abandon a patient. So he carefully kept all the evidence at hand—to protect them in case the family made trouble—and quietly urged Bai Yue to limit her involvement with that case. He only wanted to see her continue shining in the field she loved most.