Chapter 13: In the Ward

If the man in front wasn’t Xie Bo, Chi Xicheng would have acted long ago.

Xie Bo was someone he feared to some extent.

The collaboration between the Chi and Xie families involved many projects, with complex interests at stake. If he and Xie Bo fell out, both families would suffer.

Chi Xicheng looked at the girl hiding behind him, a wicked grin forming on his lips. “Bo, this isn’t fair. She caught my eye first. Don’t we always go by ‘first come, first served’?”

“Is that so?” Xie Bo glanced at Lin Yiwei. “What do you say?”

Lin Yiwei glanced at the relentless Chi Xicheng, cautiously saying, “I met Bo first, around August 6th or 7th, at Carmen’s Tavern. We had a great time.”

He chuckled lightly, meaningfully repeating, “That night, we did have a great time.”

Chi Xicheng’s face instantly turned ugly, a shadow of gloom crossing his eyes.

Suddenly, his expression twisted into a forced laugh. “Interesting, how interesting. Since she’s Bo’s woman, why is she meddling in my affairs? Isn’t one Xie Bo enough for you?”

Lin Yiwei bit her lip, unsure how to respond. Xie Bo wasn’t angry, merely stating, “Yes, quite wild, not very obedient.”

His cold gaze swept over Lin Yiwei like a blade. “Even the things I give her, she can sell online. Quite something…”

Chi Xicheng heard about this incident yesterday, seemingly confirming that she was indeed Xie Bo’s woman.

“What should I do, Bo? I really fancy her.” Chi Xicheng shamelessly laughed, adopting a stubborn attitude. “Are you willing to give her up? I’ll trade her for my modified MoXi V8.”

Xie Bo casually chuckled, “Your beaten-up car? I could pick any car from my club, outperforming yours in every aspect.”

“What do you want then?”

“Anything?”

Lin Yiwei’s heart skipped a beat, looking at Xie Bo.

Xie Bo’s eyes were as deep as the night, firmly holding onto Chi Xicheng. “I want all your shares in the West Club.”

Chi Xicheng seemed to hear something fantastical. “Damn it! Xie Bo, you’re really pushing it. How much money have I invested in the West, and you want all my shares in one go?”

Xie Bo casually remarked, “You see, if you can’t bear to part with your club, how could I bear to part with my person?”

Chi Xicheng hesitated for a moment, looking at the girl’s innocent and alluring face behind him. “I’ll give you three percent of the shares, that’s the most.”

Lin Yiwei’s palm grew sweaty, anxiously looking at Xie Bo.”I want all of them,” Xie Bo had no intention of bargaining.

“Xie Bo, you’re pushing it too far for a woman. Are you really going to break ties with me over this?” Xie Bo stepped forward, assertively saying,

“Xicheng, right now, you’re blatantly after what’s mine. Who’s tearing whose face off?”

“You…!” Chi Xicheng couldn’t bear it any longer, his temper exploding in an instant, “You’re just a bastard! Your mother was a whore in the red light district, just like her, both sluts! Do you enjoy playing with this kind of trash?”

Before he could finish, Xie Bo swung a fist, knocking Chi Xicheng into the nearby shelves.

This is not over yet. He walked over and fiercely punched Chi Xicheng’s face several times, each punch carrying explosive force, his eyes cold and hard.

That was a fierceness not usually seen… ruthless.

“Who are you calling a bitch?” Xie Bo squeezed his neck with one hand, almost choking him, “Say it again, huh?”

Chi Xicheng struggled to breathe, nearly passing out, until Yunhui, who was waiting in the car, ran over and dragged Chi Xicheng away from Xie Bo, pulling him out of the convenience store.

“Xie Bo, you just wait for me…” Chi Xicheng gasped for breath, glaring back at him fiercely.

Xie Bo couldn’t be bothered, turning back to Lin Yiwei. The girl trembled slightly, tears welling in her eyes, looking frightened.

It was hard to tell if it was genuine or an act.

Her tears pickled his heart, making it ache, as he wiped them away with the back of his hand for her.

“He’ll tell Chi Xiyu that I’m finished…” Lin Yiwei collapsed to the ground, holding her knees, “It’s all over.”

Xie Bo frowned, “Fighting over a woman with me, and not even winning, isn’t something to be proud of. Don’t worry, he won’t tell anyone about this.”

“Are you… sure?”

“In Chi Xicheng’s eyes, saving face is more important than anything else. His relationship with his sister isn’t great either, he won’t give Chi Xiyu any chance to mock him.” Xie Bo knew the relationship between these siblings like the back of his hand.

Lin Yiwei’s nervous expression eased slightly, and she breathed a sigh of relief.

Xie Bo realized he was actually comforting her.

When was the last time he comforted a woman?

It was bizarre; he had come to settle scores with her.

Lin Yiwei calmed down a bit and went to prop up the fallen shelves.The shelves were heavy, and after a few unsuccessful attempts to lift them, she turned to Xie Bo, “What are you standing there for? Come help.”

Xie Bo was still pondering how to settle scores with her, but at her words, he furrowed his brow, “You want me to do these things?”

“Aren’t you a man?”

“… “

He walked over silently and helped her lift the fallen shelves.

Lin Yiwei rearranged all the goods. Luckily, only a few cups were damaged, and she could afford to compensate for them. It was just the broken surveillance camera.

She would surely be fired.

Well, if she was going to be fired, so be it. Chi Xicheng already knew where she worked; it would be better to change to another convenience store.

She noticed a scrape on the back of Xie Bo’s right hand, grabbed a box of band-aids from the shelf, tore open two, and took his hand.

She unscrewed a bottle of alcohol, dipped a cotton swab in it, and applied it to the scrape on his hand.

As the alcohol touched the wound, it stung intensely. Xie Bo instinctively pulled his hand back, but Lin Yiwei exerted a bit of force, not letting him pull away.

“So you’re afraid of pain.” Lin Yiwei seemed to have discovered a secret, smiling as she asked, “Are you afraid of pain, Xie Bo?”

Xie Bo uncomfortably looked away, “I’m not afraid…”

Before he could finish speaking, she poured the alcohol directly onto his wound. Xie Bo cried out in pain, grabbing the girl’s hand tightly, “What are you doing?!”

“You are afraid of pain.” Lin Yiwei suppressed her laughter, but her eyes couldn’t help but curl up at the corners, “So you do have things you’re afraid of.”

“Damn it, who isn’t afraid of pain.”

“I’m not.” Lin Yiwei often did rough work and had a high tolerance for pain. “Don’t believe me? Try it.”

Xie Bo indeed applied more force, pinching her wrist, but the girl met his gaze without changing her expression.

Suddenly, he bent her index finger backward.

“Ah! Ouch! Xie Bo! It hurts… If it breaks…” The girl grimaced in pain, “You’re doing this on purpose to get back at me!”

“You’re still talking tough.” He chuckled lightly and let go of her.

Lin Yiwei quickly rubbed her right fingers, giving him a disdainful glance.

Xie Bo offered his hand, “Keep going.”

Lin Yiwei pursed her lips and continued disinfecting with the cotton swab, this time not intentionally hurting him anymore. She puffed her cheeks and gently blew on the wound to alleviate the stinging sensation of the alcohol.

The gentle breeze made his heart itch.He looked at her slender, fragile neck and remembered what Chi Xicheng had said earlier—

“She’s just like your mother, both are cheap.”

His hand couldn’t help but clench into a fist.

“Hey.”

Just as Lin Yiwei finished putting on the band-aid, he peeled it off again.

She quickly said, “Don’t clench your fist, relax.”

Xie Bo loosened his fist, and she reattached the band-aid. “There, be careful when you shower, don’t get it wet.”

“Have you made up your mind?” he asked.

“About what?”

“Whether you want to be with me.”

“No.” Lin Yiwei refused without hesitation.Xie Bo looked at her helplessly. “You’d rather be destroyed by Chi Xicheng than be with me, right?”

Lin Yiwei fell silent.

Today was already a stroke of luck in an accident. It was fortunate that Chi Xicheng had a bad relationship with his sister; otherwise, the entire plan would have failed.

Finding Lin Xie… was the most important thing.

“Xie Bo, don’t worry about me anymore, I can handle Chi Xicheng.”

“How will you handle him?””I told you, I’m not afraid of pain.” She looked straight into Xie Bo’s eyes with her bright black eyes, “I’m not afraid of anything.”

“She’s just a bitch, just like your mother…”

Chi Xicheng’s words echoed in Xie Bo’s mind like the whisper of a demon.

His temple veins were about to burst.

“Lin Yiwei, if I help you one more time, then I’m an idiot!”

After saying that, Xie Bo angrily left the convenience store.

—In the boxing gym, Chi Xicheng vented his anger, wearing a racing suit on a punching dummy, pounding it until it was crooked.

Yunhui watched coldly, “Master Xicheng let it go, it’s just a woman. It’s not worth damaging your relationship with Xie Bo. There are so many women in the world, why bother fighting over her?”

Chi Xicheng’s anger flared at these words, and he punched the punching dummy fiercely.

Why, why did he have to yield to him in everything, why did he have to be suppressed by him in everything?

Yes, even though the Chi family was slightly inferior to the Xie family, he, Chi Xicheng, was the only son of the Chi family. As for Xie Bo, what was he? He only relied on being slightly smarter than his older brothers, having good grades, and the few companies he invested in were profitable, gradually showing his business acumen. Xie Sizhao only started to value him in recent years.

In short, he was just a bastard, and he would never be able to wash away this dirty stain in his life.

Chi Xicheng thought of Lin Yiwei’s pitiful face.He really wanted to hear her cry out loud.

He turned to Yunhui and asked, “Is there a game next week for West and DS?”

“Yeah, there’s one, and Xie Bo will be there too,” Yunhui replied.

Chi Xicheng smirked, “Isn’t that unfortunate.”

In the following days, Lin Yiwei observed cautiously, but Chi Xiyu’s demeanor remained unchanged, just as Xie Bo had said. Chi Xicheng hadn’t told her anything.

Only then did she feel relieved.

In the days that followed, Xie Bo didn’t come to school and didn’t contact her again. Lin Yiwei thought he might be angry with her and decided to give up on her, feeling a bit relieved.

Once when she was having bubble tea with Ye Anning, she heard that Xie Bo had an accident while racing, suffering a minor concussion and being hospitalized.

She was shocked, “How did that happen?”

“The driver from the West Club made a reckless move and hit Xie Bo’s car. Luckily, Xie Bo’s skills were good, and he managed to swerve to avoid a fatal blow. The airbag deployed in time, so he only suffered minor injuries. Otherwise, it would have been much worse.”

Ye Anning sighed, “Racing is really dangerous. I’ve advised him several times to quit, but he never listens to anyone. He just loves this sport.”

“Is it… Chi Xicheng’s team?”

“Yeah, Westfall, it’s Chi Xicheng’s team.”

Lin Yiwei couldn’t help but suspect that after that night, Chi Xicheng clearly harbored resentment towards Xie Bo.

If it was true… didn’t she indirectly cause his injury?

“Is he okay now?” Lin Yiwei asked Ye Anning.

Ye Anning sighed, “I don’t know either. He’s in the special care ward at Deke Private Hospital. I wanted to visit him, but Chi Xiyu has been by his side the whole time, and I can’t just go up there. It’s not easy to confront Chi Xiyu directly.”

Although Chi Xiyu wasn’t officially Xie Bo’s girlfriend yet, and their engagement hadn’t been confirmed, many girls at school still avoided her deliberately.

Because they knew that if they clashed with Chi Xiyu, Xie Bo would only stand up for her.

Lin Yiwei felt a pang of guilt, always feeling that Xie Bo’s injury might have something to do with her.

Forget it, she shouldn’t dwell on it.

It was his choice, she had never once begged him, carefree… that’s how she could live well.

She bid farewell to Ye Anning, walked out of the bubble tea shop, and in the distance, a black sedan was waiting in the night.

…..

In the special care ward of Deke Hospital, Xie Bo squinted his eyes, waking up feeling groggy and a bit sore in the head.

Seeing him awake, Chi Xiyu worriedly held his hand, “Xie Bo, are you okay?”

“I’m fine,” Xie Bo calmly withdrew his hand and touched the bandage on his forehead.

“When I watched the video replay, I was really scared, the accident… was so terrifying!” Chi Xiyu said with lingering fear, “Xie Bo, please don’t race anymore, it’s too dangerous.”

Xie Bo smiled at her, “If I don’t race, what should I do? Play house with you?”

“Sure, we can do that.” Chi Xiyu brought chicken soup made by the family’s nanny to Xie Bo, “Have something to eat.”

Xie Bo wrinkled his brow when he smelled the chicken soup, “Xiyu, I want cabbage congee.”

“Oh, I’ll go get it for you!” Xie Bo rarely asked her for anything, so Chi Xiyu hurriedly left the ward.

As soon as she left, Xie Bo jumped out of bed.

He felt dizzy for a moment, almost stumbling, but he steadied himself against the wall, forcefully tore off the bandage on his head, and staggered out.

“Master Bo, what are you doing!” Li Du, who had just entered the room, quickly supported him, “Lie down, you haven’t recovered yet!”

“How long have I been unconscious?”

“It’s been two days.”

Xie Bo pressed his temples, feeling a dull ache in his head.

“My phone?”

“Here.” Li Du quickly took out the phone from the cabinet and handed it to him.

Xie Bo turned on the phone, and hundreds of WeChat messages and many text messages flooded in.

He anxiously scrolled through them one by one but didn’t see any messages from the person he wanted to see.

Li Du looked at the man’s pale and somber face and said, “Master Bo, what are you looking for?”

Xie Bo didn’t answer; he dialed Lin Yiwei’s number directly.

After a long time, the call was finally answered.

“Xie Bo,” the girl’s voice sounded hoarse.

“Are you okay?”

Xie Bo walked to the floor-to-ceiling window of the ward, looking at the distant setting sun dyeing the sky with a golden hue.

He asked eagerly, “During the two days I was unconscious, did Chi Xicheng come to you? Did he bother you? Are you injured?”

On the other end of the phone, there was only the girl’s sluggish breathing, which made him feel uncomfortable in waves.

“Speak, Lin Yiwei!” He was getting a little impatient, “Say something.”

“I… I’m fine, Xie Bo.” Lin Yiwei felt as if she had swallowed an olive, making her throat uncomfortable, “With such injuries, take care of yourself, don’t worry about me.”

“How could I not worry?”

Xie Bo rubbed his temples, thinking of the woman who had been called a slut all her life, the woman who held his hand tightly before she passed away, tears streaming down her face, telling him to make something of himself.

“Remember, don’t go to crowded places, don’t leave the school, wait for me to get better…”

Before he could finish, the demonic voice of Chi Xicheng came through the phone—

“Xie Bo, awake?”