Chapter 43

Xiao Lin opened the door and came in, followed by three other patients. "Is it my turn, doctor? Is it my turn?"

"Get out, get out." Doctor Wang pointed toward the door. "Come back when your number is called."

Doctor Wang asked Xiaolin to go to the fourth-floor office to get a spare card reader. He pointed at the machine in front of Chen Huan and said, "It's broken. It won't work even after ten tries." He took Chen Huan's card and swiped it again. The screen displayed the error message again. "Did you see it?"

This broken card reader made Dr. Wang more anxious than her embryo that could not survive, so Shen Huan held back her tears.

Xiao Lin responded and trotted out. Dr. Wang entered the serial number on the card one by one. "It worked just now," he pointed at the screen. "Look, the information is all retrieved, so why can't I connect to the payment app?"

Shen Huan stared at the screen woodenly.

Dr. Wang only prescribed medication for acid reflux, saying that the diarrhea and vomiting symptoms had mostly subsided, and since she had no fever and was pregnant, taking more medication wouldn't be beneficial. He told her to go home and drink plenty of water. He told her to buy a prenatal multivitamin and come back during the day.

After being discharged from the hospital and getting in an online taxi, Shen Huan received a call from Li Ting's number. She thought it was Chang Yueqing calling, and watched the phone vibrate until the screen went black. She decided to wait and reply.

The next day, Chen Huan didn't go to the obstetrician's office. She turned on Do Not Disturb on her phone and stayed in bed all day. She wasn't sure if she should still fly to New York the next afternoon. She had blocked Meng Zixuan the night before out of spite, but now she had calmed down. She didn't plan to tell him about it.

The blood sample was still being cultured, and it would take three days to confirm whether it was a Listeria infection. Even if it wasn't Listeria, she had no idea how many bacteria and viruses were hidden in the watermelon juice, avocado, and smoked duck mayonnaise in Jingwan's kitchen last night. She had checked, and even in the absence of any disease, 30% of embryos didn't survive past 12 weeks. This was a particularly unlucky start for her.

If the child could not be kept, it would only increase Meng Zixuan's moral burden in addition to earning her some sympathy and care. The two of them already had too much debt between them, and if there was still one last chance, she didn't want to interfere with his decision in this way.

This was Shen Huan's rational attitude, but her body wouldn't follow it. She felt like she was standing on the side of a highway, watching emotions race by. She saw sadness, disappointment, and helplessness. She lay in bed, thinking that she could eventually be strong, but maybe not today.

Waking up early in the morning, Chen Huan packed her bags for New York. She turned off the Do Not Disturb feature on her phone. Not long after, Li Ting called. Chen Huan assumed it was Chang Yueqing calling again using Li Ting's number. She hadn't had time to say hello to Chang Yueqing since leaving the venue the night before. She picked up the phone and was about to explain when she heard Li Ting's voice on the other end.

Li Ting could speak clearly now, but slowly. He asked Shen Huan if she was going to New York today. Shen Huan didn't know how he knew, but he had her ID number and was legally her husband, so it was easy to find out any information he needed.

Shen Huan is right.

He said, "I just transferred some money to your Chase Bank account."

Chen Huan closed the app to check her bank account. The amount Li Ting had transferred to her was quite large. In the three years they'd been married, he'd never given her so much money all at once. Was this considered a breakup fee? Chen Huan said nothing.

Li Ting remained silent for the next half minute. Shen Huan assumed he was coming to her again to give her instructions on the follow-up after the board meeting had failed two days earlier. She wondered if Chang Yueqing would be able to implement the transfer decision.

Just as Chen Huan was about to hang up, Li Ting stopped her. He spoke slowly, word by word, "You've always been someone who can't handle things. Without someone to discuss things with you, you'll make decisions blindly. Some decisions will affect you for the rest of your life. Don't panic if you run into trouble in the future. If you have any difficulties, come to me."

Chen Huan swallowed and didn't answer. After a few seconds, she ended the call and put the phone down. Her finger lingered on the edge of the screen for a moment before she pulled it back. She stared at the suitcase spread out on the floor, unblinking.

Her mind was in a mess and she had no idea what Li Ting meant by these words.

On the one hand, she thought she was still useful to Li Ting, whether it was for the distribution of property in a divorce or for the company's reputation, and his sudden advances were meant to exchange for something more practical. But on the other hand, even if Li Ting was using her, so what? She needed someone to help her out at this stage, money, or security, and she wasn't so noble as to ignore these tangible benefits.

On the way to the airport, Bei Hong called her and politely asked if she had left that night because of something. Shen Huan said she was not feeling well. Bei Hong briefly told Shen Huan about the board's subsequent decision.

It turns out Meng Zixuan was just that capable. That night, he had simply pushed through the meeting to force Qingyu to buy out her 7% stake at a fair price. It turned out he never needed her cooperation to do these things. With the situation at this point, even Chang Yueqing was at her wit's end. Shen Huan had to sign it, even if she didn't want to. Bei Hong meant for her to sign the shareholder resolution online when it was convenient for her.

Shen Huan agreed.

Looking at the current situation, she couldn't understand why Meng Zixuan needed to force her to express her opinion so forcefully on Jericho's sofa. It might just be a form of obedience training.

Bei Hong continued on the phone, "But the situation is a bit complicated right now. Mr. Li informed me yesterday that he had gone to the Hong Kong City Court to request the preservation of their marital property. So, theoretically, while it won't affect voting and dividends, this property will be frozen."

Shen Huan sighed silently. She didn't know when this would end.

"Normally, a ruling is issued within two days. So the equity transfer has to be put on hold," Bei Hong said. "Mr. Li said he's going to the US this weekend to run some business and will discuss this with Mr. Meng."

While waiting in line at the departure gate for check-in, Chen Huan wondered if Li Ting was planning to delay the divorce a little longer, or if he was simply giving her more leeway so that they could part ways amicably.

Chen Huan checked her luggage, went through security, and arrived at the gate. With half an hour left, she found a corner seat, folded her legs in front of her, and rested her phone on her knees. Chen Huan wondered if Meng Zixian still wanted her to go. If Meng Zixian was simply too busy to mention the breakup, wouldn't she be in such a mess when she got there?

She opened her phone, email, and chat software one by one, pulling Meng Zixuan off the blacklist. As expected, Meng Zixuan hadn't contacted her in the past two days, not even leaving a message.

She boarded a flight to the United States in such an unknown situation.

On the plane, Chen Huan vomited again. She remembered a documentary she'd seen about anorexia. The girl in the documentary had her front teeth sharp as rodents due to years of vomiting and stomach acid erosion. During the sixteen-hour flight, Chen Huan kept thinking about the photo of her front teeth. She went to the restroom and brushed her teeth thoroughly. When the flight attendant passed by, she didn't dare ask for food, only for water.