23. Give in

◎Song Qinggui, can you hug me?◎

Xue Lu was driving on the overpass, heading to the West Campus of Lancheng People's Hospital in the suburbs.

As he drove, he pondered, but the doubts in his mind grew darker and larger. At times, he felt that his intuition and guesses were correct, but at other times, he felt that he was being too arbitrary and too emotional.

His intuition told him that Meng Yuxing, who had "raised" Song Qinggui, might not be so kind to Song Qinggui.

Song Qinggui said that Meng Yuxing raised her from the age of five.

However, according to Luo et al.'s accounts, Song Qinggui had no money, no clean clothes, was always hungry, and was even beaten when he was a child... What kind of upbringing is this?

Moreover, the interaction between him and Song Qinggui when they returned to Cangcheng that time was also very strange.

He remembered that Meng Yuxing immediately called Song Qinggui a "cheapskate," to which Song Qinggui retorted, "Isn't this cheapskate of mine a product of your teaching?"

This is at least not a healthy sisterhood, not to mention the obvious mutual dislike between Song Qinggui and Feng Zhe.

But if Meng Yuxing really treated Song Qinggui badly, just as Xue Lu predicted, why would Song Qinggui, with her unyielding personality, be so insistent on treating her illness?

Xue Lu couldn't figure it out, and the more he couldn't figure it out, the more anxious he became. Soon after, the car navigation system issued a "You are speeding" warning.

The city lights shone through the car window onto Xue Lu's face, and his eyelids unconsciously narrowed, revealing a fierce aura emanating from his eyes.

...

Nephrology ward at Lancheng People's Hospital.

Meng Yuxing sat somewhat blankly on the bed, a clear and gruesome scar on his left wrist. Feng Zhe was eating at a table nearby, where there were crayfish, kebabs, and sesame flatbread. Beside him were two bottles of Heineken beer and two empty beer bottles.

Feng Zhe ate with a fierce gusto, his entire jaw straining as he ate, like a millstone, and the smacking sounds from his lips grew louder and louder.

Meng Yuxing looked at him with cloudy eyes: "How many times has the nurse told you not to drink in the ward?"

Feng Zhe scoffed, "So what if I drink? I'm not causing trouble. Besides, is Lawyer Xue really that capable? He can't even handle two nurses?"

"Feng Zhe," Meng Yuxing's voice was lifeless, "Why did you save me? If I die, wouldn't you be rid of one less burden?"

"Ha... damn it!" Feng Zhe took a big bite of the scallion pancake, chewed it roughly a few times, and swallowed it whole. "If you die, who will cook and do my laundry? Who will let me sleep with you? I've spent so much money on you all these years, and because of you and that bitch Song Qinggui, no other woman has come with me, and I don't have any children. If you die, you'll be free, but I haven't even recouped my investment yet! Let me tell you, Meng Yuxing, you'll live until I'm fed up with you serving me. Want to die? You're dreaming!"

Feng Zhe stared at Meng Yuxing with bloodshot eyes, but perhaps due to the long-term illness, Meng Yuxing's tear ducts had dried up. She only felt that her eyes were dry and painful, but she could not squeeze out a single tear.

Looking at the table full of delicious food, she said, "Lawyer Xue has already done more than enough by arranging this hospital for me. Don't spend his money anymore. No matter how hard I try, I will die before you. If I die, you will be burdened with debts you can't repay."

“Heh…” Feng Zhe sneered: “Why should I pay it back? It was President Xue’s own choice! Besides, even if he was unwilling, there’s still Song Qinggui, isn’t there? Let that bitch pay with her body.”

As Feng Zhe said this, the ward door was pushed open, and before he could finish speaking, a cold voice rang out: "Who are you calling a whore?!"

Meng Yuxing looked at the newcomer with some panic, but Feng Zhe remained arrogant: "Song Qinggui. She's been a seductive bitch since she was a child. Isn't President Xue attracted to her precisely because she's a bitch?"

"Feng Zhe, you're asking for it!" Xue Lu kicked Feng Zhe off the chair.

Feng Zhe's body flew out, his back slamming into the wall. A needle-like pain shot from his lumbar spine, instantly engulfing his entire body. Feng Zhe clenched his lips in pain, and sweat beaded on his forehead.

Meng Yuxing struggled to get out of bed and knelt in front of Xue Lu: "President Xue, please, please have mercy."

After saying that, she turned to Feng Zhe: "Feng Zhe! Apologize to President Xue and Qing Gui! Apologize!!!"

Xue Lu's face was like a demon. He unbuttoned the top two buttons of his shirt, then ripped open his cufflinks, rolled up his sleeves, and approached Feng Zhe step by step.

Meng Yuxing kept pleading. The nurse on duty heard the noise and called the security guards to come over. But when they saw that the beer bottles in the ward were broken all over the floor, they were all frightened and dared not move. They just advised Xue Lu to calm down.

Xue Lu walked up to Feng Zhe, squatted down, and grabbed his collar tightly.

"I'm here today to ask you one question," Xue Lu still retained a shred of rationality: "When Song Qinggui was a child, did you abuse her?"

Upon hearing this question, Meng Yuxing's usually expressionless eyes flashed with pain, but Feng Zhe laughed. At first, it was just a low, guttural laugh, but later it grew louder and louder.

Just as Xue Lu was about to run out of patience, Feng Zhe burst into laughter and opened his mouth wide.

His mouth opening movements were exaggerated, almost like the kind of movements you'd only see when you're having a dental checkup at the hospital.

Xue Lu, who was originally in a fit of rage, suddenly froze. Feng Zhe... his teeth...

Feng Zhe has no molars; he only has incisors and canines. Where molars should have grown, there are bare gums covered with food residue.

"Hahahaha." Seeing Xue Lu's stunned expression, Feng Zhe couldn't help but burst into laughter. He raised his hand and pointed to his mouth: "See? My teeth are gone. I had my front teeth installed at a shady clinic later; they weren't there to begin with. Do you know how they disappeared? Someone used pliers to stick them in and pull them out one by one. And another thing, let me show you something else."

Feng Zhe smiled eerily, brushing aside the hair on his temples with both hands. Xue Lu's pupils trembled instantly. Feng Zhe... he has no ears!

“It was cut off.” Feng Zhe said, enunciating each word clearly, as if telling a very bizarre story: “It was a very dull knife, cut off little by little, it took a long time, maybe... maybe twenty minutes.”

After saying that, he raised his hand and showed the back of his hand to Xue Lu. Xue Lu looked closely and found that some of Feng Zhe's ten fingers had no nails, and some nails were severely deformed.

"They were eating barbecue, and the metal skewers for grilling the meat were so hot they were red-hot. They stuck them into my fingers and pried my nails off."

Upon hearing this, Meng Yuxing covered her ears and screamed in pain, startling the nurses and security guards who were watching.

Feng Zhe stared at Xue Lu like a vengeful ghost: "Guess who I look like this for? Huh? President Xue? Hahahaha. I abused Song Qinggui? You underestimate that bitch. With just a little trickery, she can make all men risk their lives for her. President Xue, I was like that back then, and you are now. President Xue, you and I are just like that, nothing more than Song Qinggui's plaything, hahahaha."

The fierceness on Xue Lu's face was gone, replaced by shock and bewilderment.

He had only met Feng Zhe briefly twice before and had not noticed the scars and disabilities on his body at all.

"Who! Who did this to you?!" After a brief moment of mental blankness, Xue Lu suddenly erupted in rage: "What is their relationship with Song Qinggui?!"

Feng Zhe was still laughing, even laughing so hard his stomach hurt a little. He hunched over, supporting his abdomen with his hand, and said, "That person was someone who was bewitched by Song Qinggui and almost became her sugar daddy. President Xue, you should thank me. If it weren't for me, how would Song Qinggui be in your bed? She would have been someone else's kept woman long ago."

Xue Lu was incredulous. He let go of Feng Zhe's collar and stood up unsteadily, trying to appear calm as he looked at Feng Zhe: "I will have someone investigate what exactly happened between you and Feng Zhe ten years ago in Cangcheng. If you tell even one lie today, I will not let you off the hook."

Xue Lu staggered out of the ward, and Feng Zhe also struggled to get up and took a broom from the room to clean up the "battlefield".

Seeing that things had calmed down, the nurse and security guard left, whispering among themselves.

Feng Zhe swept the floor clean and found that there was still a little beer left in the overturned beer bottle. The remaining beer produced a lot of foam from the impact of the bottle, so much so that the last bit of liquid could not be seen.

Feng Zhe picked it up, tilted his head back, and drank the foam.

Meng Yuxing suddenly burst into tears: "Why did you say that?! Why?! Why?!?"

Feng Zhe placed the empty wine bottle on the coffee table, knelt down, grabbed Meng Yuxing's hair, and kissed her lips.

He held her hand so tightly that Meng Yuxing's hair stood on end, and you could see her scalp being pulled taut at her hairline, yet the kiss was incredibly tender.

During this kiss, Meng Yuxing finally shed tears, something she hadn't done in a long time.

Feng Zhe smiled gently and wiped away Meng Yuxing's tears: "Meng Yuxing, isn't this what you've always wanted? You wanted me, you wanted me to only have eyes for you. Congratulations on defeating that bitch Song Qinggui and getting what you wanted. Are you happy? Are you satisfied?"

Meng Yuxing stared at Feng Zhe for a while, then closed his eyes in despair.

However, the next second, she nestled tightly in Feng Zhe's arms.

...

Xue Lu drove home, and he felt cold the whole way; he had never felt so cold before.

Everything that happened today is almost driving him crazy.

According to Luo and others, Song Qinggui was a young girl who remained pure and unyielding in dire straits; while according to Feng Zhe, she was an extremely alluring enchantress who made men risk their lives for her.

So what kind of person is she really? Which version of her is the real her...?

...

Song Qinggui returned home at 11 p.m.

Jingtian Hospital has recently gotten into another problem, related to Zhou Huaizhong, the director of cardiac surgery. Song Qinggui felt like his head was about to explode.

She entered her fingerprint on the door lock, and the door opened immediately.

Song Qinggui didn't rush to turn on the lights, but used the voice-activated light at the door to change his shoes.

She looked down and froze. Xue Lu's shoes were there; he had come back today…

Song Qinggui felt a pang of bitterness in her heart. She and Lawyer Xue had been in a cold war for three months. Even when the property agreement was finally signed, Lawyer Xue had Chen An come to handle the negotiations with her.

Song Qinggui wasn't actually angry with Xue Lu. Even on the day he questioned her relationship with Luo Deng, she was only angry for a short while.

But afterwards, she thought about it and realized that she had a "previous record" of seducing men for money with Lawyer Xue, so it was reasonable for him to be suspicious.

That's true in theory, but it's really hard for people to stay rational all the time.

All she ever fantasized about was gaining Xue Lu's trust and his willingness to yield a little.

She knew that thinking this way was greedy, but human nature is inherently greedy.

Song Qinggui stood in the entryway for a while, then closed the door and walked towards his bedroom.

She walked very quietly. The house was dimly lit, and she guessed that Xue Lu must be asleep.

However, as Song Qinggui passed through the living room, a voice suddenly rang out, startling him.

"Song Qinggui," Xue Lu called her name.

Song Qinggui looked at him. Xue Lu's eyes were unfathomable in the darkness, but Song Qinggui could still sense his emotions. He was dejected, and his tone when he called her was resentful.

Song Qinggui frowned, her heart sinking rapidly because of the trace of resentment she had caught.

However, Xue Lu's next words surprised Song Qinggui: "Can you hug me?"

Song Qinggui was stunned. She didn't understand. She didn't understand what Lawyer Xue meant.

When faced with situations she couldn't handle growing up, her most instinctive reaction was to remain silent and run away.

She paused, then said as calmly as possible, "It's late, go to sleep early."

After saying that, he went back to his bedroom and closed the door tightly.

Xue Lu's eyes reddened in the darkness.

For the past ten years, he has tried his best to get close to her, but he has never been able to.

In this protracted battle of love, the only thing he couldn't let go of was his pitiful self-esteem.

He didn't understand why Song Qinggui could accommodate Cheng Wuliang, tolerate Yan Fengqian, seduce Feng Zhe, and even the sugar daddy who almost took his life, but he couldn't bow down to Xue Lu in the slightest.

This battle was always his own, and the heroine he had chosen was unwilling to even step onto the field.

Over the years, Xue Lu has told himself countless times that as long as she is willing to take a step, he will rush to her.

Today was the same; as long as she said she was a good person and not like what Feng Zhe said, he believed her without hesitation.

But she was always so proud and indifferent to him.

Xue Lu leaned back on the sofa, desperately taking deep, long breaths to relieve the pain in his throat and the soreness in the root of his nose.

However, just when he was about to give up, he suddenly heard the sound of a door opening next to him.

Song Qinggui slowly walked out from the light and went to his side.

Xue Lu couldn't tell if it was a dream or reality; he just looked up at her blankly.

Song Qinggui sighed and reached out to gently pull him into his arms.