Chapter 55

When Guan Ying woke up, her jaw and knees were swollen, and she couldn't even go out to see anyone. There must be some connection between Guangzhou and her fate, otherwise how could she have fallen for Zheng Juyong twice, each time more severely than the last?

The pain intensified when I woke up, and I scrambled to my feet, groaning, "Ouch!" Only to discover Aunt Zheng hadn't returned yet. Could it be that it was still dark? I grabbed the phone next to my pillow and checked the time. It was already past 1 p.m.! I hurried out of bed, hopping on one leg and pulling open the blackout curtains. The glaring midday sun flooded the room. Why hadn't Aunt Zheng returned yet? There was no message on my phone... Guan Ying worried that Aunt Zheng was worried and wouldn't bother her. Without a second thought, she called.

"Hello? Auntie, where are you?" The phone was connected.

"My mom..." Zheng Juyong answered the phone. "Are you awake?"

Guan Ying felt something was wrong: "What happened to Auntie?"

"It's okay, come to the hospital. We're in Ward 205 in the same building as Qiao Qi."

Qiao Qi's ward was on the 8th floor, but he asked her to go to another ward on the 2nd floor. Guan Ying thought that Aunt Zheng had not come back, and he picked up the phone again. She immediately panicked, packed up her things, and ran out.

The wards on the second floor were bustling with people, no different from the wards in a normal hospital. It was not an intensive care floor, so Guan Yingxin relaxed a little.

Ward 205's door stood wide open. There were four beds inside, but only two patients were admitted. Near the bathroom door sat an elderly woman who appeared to have sprained her leg, one leg in a brace. A middle-aged man and woman sat beside her at the head of the bed, accompanying her. Two empty beds separated her from the elderly woman. On the innermost bed, facing the window, Aunt Zheng leaned against a pillow, her head twisted to look out the window.

The one standing at the foot of the bed in a daze was the unshaven Zheng Juyong. He went out without a hat today and changed into light-colored clothes, looking quite pale.

Guan Ying had just walked in when she quietly retreated. There was another person beside Aunt Zheng, crying and holding her hand as she spoke. From the back, it was clear it was Qiao's mother. After all, she was an elder, so it would be rude for her to go in at this time.

Zheng Juyong caught a glimpse of her limping back, followed her out without a word, and stopped her outside the door.

Still shaken by the shock of last night, Guan Ying was startled again when he caught her, and forgot to breathe for a few seconds.

Zheng Juyong dragged her to a public blood pressure and weight measurement area around the corner and sat her down at a round table. When he released her hand, he pointed at her face curiously.

Guan Ying leaned back, took a deep breath, and sucked the mask against her face. She realized he was going to ask her why she was wearing one. Strange, wasn't he asking even though he knew the answer? Last time, he was completely confused, and when he woke up, she'd fooled him into not knowing. This time, he was awake. Even if he wasn't conscious at first, the pain at the end was so piercing that she didn't believe he hadn't been conscious yet!

"How dare you ask me that?" Guan Ying lifted a corner of her mask and showed him her chin! Her lower lip was swollen and a bit overbite... Zheng Juyong was stunned and lowered his head, but his shoulders trembled. Was he laughing? How could he laugh like that? Shameless!

Guan Ying, observing the gazes of passersby, put her mask back on and tilted her head to look at him, only to see his beard. When she lowered her head again, Zheng Juyong shyly turned his head away. It would have been fine if he hadn't dodged, because once he did, it proved he was indeed smiling.

"Pa! Pa!" Guan Ying slapped him twice on the forehead, her almond-shaped eyes glaring at him angrily.

Zheng Juyong had been used to being beaten by her since childhood, so of course he had no intention of fighting back when he was sober. He quickly put on his composure and sat up obediently. His head was slapped against the wall by her, and he looked up at the ceiling, not daring to glance at her. "I'm...I'm sorry!"

Guan Ying had been frightened of him just now, but now that she seemed to be able to hold him, she regrouped and said, "Don't drink alcohol anymore! You bite people the moment you drink. What a terrible drinking habit!"

"Oh...I see...I'm sorry..." He clasped his hands together and bowed to her.

Guan Ying was still not satisfied, so she slapped him on the forehead a few more times before stopping.

"I was drunk last night and didn't recognize you. Why didn't you wake me up and hide yourself?" He touched his red forehead and muttered softly.

Guan Ying was about to strike him again, but Zheng Juyong quickly turned his head and begged for mercy: "I was wrong, I won't do it again! Next time, just leave me alone and let me fend for myself..."

Guan Ying sighed: "Forget it, you pick me up once, I pick you up once, we're even."

"What?" He was a little confused.

Guan Ying glared at him: "What's wrong, Auntie? What did you do?"

Zheng Juyong sat up straight and scratched his knee. "The doctor prescribed blood pressure medication. She'll be fine once the indicators stabilize. I was worried, so I asked her to stay here for a day. Guan Ying, please take my mother back to Jingxi tomorrow."

It sounds like acute hypertension. Aunt Zheng probably got angry after learning the truth. Fortunately, we are in the hospital and the condition was treated in time.

"Aunt knows everything?"

"Well, Qiao Qi and I have broken up peacefully."

Guan Ying raised her eyebrows. Could he do it? She had thought that under his current circumstances, it would be difficult for him to get rid of Qiao Qi, and she had given him such a suggestion. She hadn't expected it to go so smoothly. Why did she feel a little uneasy?

"I just saw Aunt Qiao in there. Is she apologizing on behalf of Qiao Qi? Also, aren't you going back to Jingxi with us tomorrow?"

Zheng Juyong smiled in relief and shook his head: "Tomorrow I will send Qiao Qi back to her hometown in Yunnan. Although we have broken up, we will still hold the wedding during the Mid-Autumn Festival holiday."

"Huh?" Guan Ying was surprised. Even through the mask, one could still tell that she was so shocked that her mouth was wide open.

After a heavy drink, Zheng Juyong seemed to have let go of all his worries, speaking as if he were discussing someone else's family. "Of course my mom doesn't agree. Aunt Qiao is begging my mom inside. I've made up my mind. I won't get a marriage certificate with Qiao Qi, but the wedding invitations have been sent out. We still have to have the wedding. It can be considered a happy end to the four years of love we've invested in each other. You're right, most first loves don't end well, and mine is no exception. But at least it's not without reward. She will at least wear a wedding dress for me once... My first love can be said to have a beginning and an end, haha."

Guan Ying's eyebrows knitted together, and she remained silent for a long time, unable to understand his logic. "You mean, you broke up with her, but you still went ahead with the wedding, but you won't get a marriage certificate with her... Listen to what you're saying, what nonsense are you talking about? Not only Aunt Zheng, I can't understand it either! With so many people attending the wedding, it's as if you two didn't get a marriage certificate! Zheng Juyong, why are you making things so complicated?!"

"Hmm..." Zheng Juyong looked down at the floor. "Guan Ying, you must think I'm a coward, right? Sometimes, even I despise myself... Even if we break up, I hope she can live a good life... Agent Sister Ling told me a lot last night. She said that Qiao Qi is very popular now, and suddenly withdrawing from the competition will trigger a chain reaction, and then we will need new topics to explain. This wedding will be of great help to Qiao Qi. You know, Sister Ling is a professional in this area... Then I will fulfill their wish, and regard it as the last thing I do for her... I didn't get the marriage certificate because I didn't want to drag down Xicheng Steel. You're right, I should have a bottom line."

Guan Ying still disagreed: "But isn't this just cheating, cheating all your relatives and friends?"

Zheng Juyong: "Once Sister Ling and the others have dealt with the public opinion, Qiao Qi and I will announce our divorce by the end of the year. My family and relatives all know that Qiao Qi is in the entertainment industry, unlike us, so they shouldn't be too surprised... I'm just divorced, and as a man, it's nothing to worry about."

Guan Ying: "Oh, it's nothing to worry about. Have you ever thought about how unfair this is to your future wife? Don't tell me that you've been hurt by this relationship, disappointed in love, and have no plans to get married again?!"

Seeing that he remained silent, Guan Ying couldn't help but roll her eyes. "Zheng Juyong, have you been brainwashed by Sister Ling? Whatever happened to Qiao Qi's career was her own fault. What does it have to do with you? Did Qiao Qi, or that Aunt Qiao, say something to soften your heart? You...you are simply confused! You don't even need to be embarrassed. Didn't I teach you that you could just use me as an excuse and give them a taste of their own medicine? What else can they say? It's not worth it for you to do all this for them!"

"What about you, Guan Ying?" Zheng Juyong suddenly looked up at her. "I'm free now, but what about you? I'll handle the problems I caused myself. I can't let you get into trouble again... I'm sending Qiao Qi back to Yunnan tomorrow because she's in a state where she's a little upset, and I'm worried she'll do something stupid. After I send her to her father, uncle, and cousins, I'll return to Saudi Arabia and won't contact her anymore. Sister Ling will contact me about the wedding... Don't worry, go buy a house in Seattle as soon as possible. I'm breaking up with her, and I'm never looking back!"

I don't know what kind of magic potion Qiao Qi had poured into him, but even at this point, Zheng Juyong still wanted to help her one last time. Guan Ying broke up with someone, and she wanted to make a decision immediately, and it would be best if the two of them met again as strangers, and never have any contact. But this guy in front of her, what he said was simply a fairy tale!

Guan Ying reminded him, "Zheng Juyong, when it comes to love, the worst thing is hesitation. If you do this, you will suffer losses sooner or later."

Zheng Juyong smiled bitterly. "Haven't I suffered enough? Guan Ying, have you ever truly loved someone? You said you're very experienced in breaking up, but conversely, aren't you actually inferior to me when it comes to loving someone?"

"Oh, Zheng Juyong, you win." Guan Ying was helpless. After all, this was his personal matter. He had a completely different personality from hers since childhood. It was difficult for him to completely follow her advice even when he was a child, let alone now.

Well, sending Qiao Qi back to her hometown in Yunnan would allow her to avoid the manipulation of the unknown person behind Zhang Rong, which would be a good deed. And Zheng Juyong just needed to return to Saudi Arabia as soon as possible and stay away from Qiao Qi. By the time the Mid-Autumn Festival rolls around, the rap show will be over, and Sister Ling will be arranging the wedding. Neither Qian Shaowei nor Zhang Rong will be attending, so there probably won't be any more trouble.

The ones who are in trouble now are Uncle Zheng and Aunt Zheng, who are bound to be angry about their son's affairs again.

He was quite blatant. In order to have the so-called "beginning and enduring" with Qiao Qi, he put his parents and relatives and friends in a secondary position... In terms of "loving", he was indeed far better than her.

She would never put love before family affection... To a certain extent, she couldn't tell whether Zheng Juyong was wrong or she was wrong.