Chapter 489 You bitch, you still know how to come back
When Cui Xiao led Xiao Nuomi into the inpatient department of the First Hospital, the smell of disinfectant mixed with a faint medicinal smell permeated the cool air.
Unlike the south, where birds are already singing and flowers are blooming at this time of year, City B is filled with a chill in the air.
Most of the ward doors on both sides of the corridor were ajar, and the occasional coughs of patients and whispers of family members could be heard, making the environment even more oppressive.
Little Nuomi clutched the hem of her clothes, her little leather shoes making soft thuds on the clean floor. Her round eyes curiously surveyed her surroundings, yet she couldn't hide her timidity in the unfamiliar environment.
She tilted her little face up, her soft voice tinged with uncertainty, "Mommy, will Grandma like my drawing? I drew a rainbow especially for Grandma."
Jin Ping doesn't even like her, so how could she possibly like the child she gave birth to?
Even so, Cui Xiao still squatted down, gently stroking the stray hairs on her daughter's forehead with her fingertips, straightening the crooked pink hairband, her gaze sweeping over the drawing paper tightly clutched in her daughter's hand, and she managed to force a gentle smile.
"Yes, Grandma will love it when she sees such a beautiful painting."
As soon as she finished speaking, she heard familiar, slightly hesitant footsteps coming from the end of the ward corridor. Her heart tightened, and she looked up.
Walking towards her was her stepfather, Sun Chengjian, whom she hadn't seen for many years.
Sun Chengjian clearly saw Cui Xiao as well. His face, covered with wrinkles and age spots, froze for a couple of seconds before a hint of surprise flashed in his cloudy eyes.
Then, like a firecracker that had been lit, he strode over and his rough, withered hands gripped Cui Xiao's wrist tightly like iron clamps, with such force that he almost crushed her bones, and the calluses on his fingertips rubbed painfully against her skin.
"You bitch, you still know how to come back."
He was spitting and cursing, his voice so loud it startled the people in the next ward who peeked out. He didn't care at all; his eyes were full of greed and malice. "Where have you been all these years? You abandoned your mother and ran off with some other man, didn't you? Do you know how hard our family has been living?"
He became more and more agitated as he cursed, and raised his other hand as if to strike, but paused when he saw Xiao Nuomi behind Cui Xiao, though he continued to hurl insults.
Little Nuomi shrank back in fright at the fierce look, quickly releasing her grip on Cui Xiao's clothes and instead hugging her leg tightly, burying her head in her skirt, her voice trembling with tears, "Mommy... I'm scared..."
Cui Xiao patted her daughter's back tenderly, freeing her other hand to protect her little head, while struggling to free her wrist from Sun Chengjian's grip.
A sharp pain shot through her wrist, but she gritted her teeth and endured it, letting out a cold laugh. "You have hands and feet, do you expect me to support your gambling and your daughter's extravagance like before?"
Her words pierced Sun Chengjian's heart like needles, puncturing his pretense. His face instantly turned bright red, like a cat whose tail had been stepped on. He cursed, "You ungrateful wretch! I raised you all these years and sent you to school, and now your mother is lying here waiting to die, and you won't even pay for her medical bills. You have no conscience! I should never have let you study so much and raised such a heartless wretch like you."
"Medical expenses?"
Upon hearing these three words, Cui Xiao's brows furrowed instantly, her tone turning icy and sharp with disbelief. "Zhou Mubin already gave Sun Lu one million, enough for my mother's surgery, and more than enough for subsequent targeted therapy and rehabilitation. What money are you asking me for now?"
Sun Chengjian was stunned by the number "one million," and the fierce look on his face deflated quickly like a punctured balloon.
Instead, she looked completely bewildered and panicked. "One million? What one million? Lulu didn't bring the money back at all. She just said she couldn't borrow the money and told me to think of another way."
As he spoke, he hurriedly reached for his phone, fumbling in his pocket for a long time before finally pulling out an old phone with a cracked screen. His fingertips trembled uncontrollably with nervousness. "I'll call her right now. The hospital sent a payment reminder notice yesterday, saying that if the fees aren't paid in full today, they'll stop the medication and kick her out. Your mother was groaning in pain last night; if they stop the medication, she'll just be waiting to die."
The dial tone rang monotonously for a long time, and the receiver kept playing the message, "The number you dialed is temporarily unavailable."
Sun Chengjian was so anxious that he stomped his feet and pulled out another number.
That was Sun Lu's backup number, but when I called, all I got was a cold busy signal.
Cui Xiao's heart sank as if it had been doused with cold water, and all sorts of images of Sun Lu's selfishness in the past flooded back into her mind uncontrollably.
When she was seventeen, Sun Lu stole her half-year scholarship money and used it to buy a designer bag, then accused her of losing it herself.
Not long after, Sun Lu secretly took Jin Ping's gold bracelet and sold it, then bought the latest model mobile phone.
Looking back now, it was all a premeditated scam, from Sun Lu crying as she went to Zhou Mubin to borrow money, to her avoiding him after receiving the money.
She felt a wave of dizziness and barely managed to stand by holding onto the wall of the corridor. Her fingertips were as cold as if they had just been pulled out of ice water.
Little Nuomi, noticing her mother's unease, gently tugged at her hand. Her small palm was warm, and her voice was soft with worry, "Mommy, are you feeling unwell? Did Auntie do something wrong, that's why she's afraid to answer the phone?"
Before Cui Xiao could respond to her daughter's question, her throat felt like it was stuffed with cotton, and she couldn't even make a sound. Just then, she heard familiar, somewhat hurried footsteps behind her, the sound of leather shoes hitting the ground particularly clear in the quiet corridor.
She subconsciously turned around and saw Zhou Mubin standing at the end of the corridor carrying a black suitcase.
His well-tailored suit jacket was casually draped over his arm, his tie was loose, a thin layer of sweat glistened on his forehead, and his usually meticulous hair was disheveled by the wind. Clearly, he had come straight to the hospital after getting off the plane without even having time to rest.
Zhou Mubin's gaze swept across the scene before him, first landing on Cui Xiao's reddened eyes and her wrists, which were clenched so tightly that they turned red. His brows furrowed instantly, and a hint of heartache and anger flashed in his eyes.
Then she saw Xiao Nuomi hiding beside her legs, and her gaze softened unconsciously.
The moment their eyes met, Cui Xiao's eyes inexplicably welled up with tears. The grievances, panic, and helplessness that had been building up in her heart seemed to have found an outlet. All her feigned strength crumbled the moment she saw him, revealing a vulnerability that had nowhere to hide.
Upon seeing this, Zhou Mubin immediately quickened his pace, the sound of his leather shoes striking the ground becoming increasingly clear in the quiet corridor.
When he walked to Cui Xiao's side, he deliberately adjusted his posture, straightening his shoulders and back, subtly protecting her behind him, which conveniently separated him from Sun Chengjian, who was still muttering complaints on the side.
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