Chapter 40
As soon as Ding Huihui arrived, Zhuang Zhuoyuan's first thought was to check on Iris. He stood up and had just called out "BB" when Ding Huihui beat him to it, grabbed a beer from the bar, and clinked glasses with him: "Congratulations!"
Zhuang Zhuoyuan stood still, and could only say, "Thank you."
However, what was worse than her clinging to him was that after finishing her drink, Ding Huihui turned around and went to find Iris. Without even considering Zhan Hantao anymore, Zhuang Zhuoyuan instantly became alert, retracting what he was about to say. He walked past the crowd to his fiancée's side, his brows furrowed tightly, his tone almost threatening: "Huihui!"
"I just came to say a few words to Iris." Ding Huihui's smile was slightly stiff, her mood clearly affected by this treatment. Iris didn't have any wine in her hand, so she gestured with her hand and said, "Sorry, and congratulations."
“Thanks.” Iris said thank you in the same tone and manner. Ding Huihui didn’t press the matter further, took the bottle, and went to find her friend. Iris watched her leave with mixed feelings, her interest greatly diminished. After lingering at PC Bar for another fifteen minutes, she decided to go home first.
Xiao Ma saw the passengers off at the airport. Zhuang Zhuoyuan was worried about his girlfriend traveling alone, but Iris didn't want to disrupt their plans. She hailed a taxi, kissed Zhuang Zhuoyuan on the cheek, and told him not to worry: "I'm fine. I'll call you when we get home. Have fun with everyone. There's no time limit for you tonight."
Zhuang Zhuoyuan laughed as soon as he heard this: "Do you have a time limit for me? Okay, I will definitely be home before 11:30. If you are sleepy, go to sleep first. If you are still unhappy, you can chat with your older sister."
"Stop nagging, my little bit of unhappiness will soon disappear," Iris smiled sweetly, got into the car, and prepared to leave. "Have fun, honey, bye~"
The taxi drove away, and as it rounded the street corner, Zhuang Zhuoyuan decided to send a text message to Zhuang Zhuohua, giving her a few instructions. He put his phone away and turned around to see Pauline coming out the door. He tried to brush it off, but Pauline cut to the chase: "Zhuoyuan, tell me, are you and Iris avoiding us because of Huihui? You said Huihui broke up with Tao because she had someone else she liked—is that you?"
Her annoyance was undisguised, and Zhuang Zhuoyuan smiled and reached out to put his arm around her, saying, "Sister Pauline, it's all in the past now."
"What past?" Pauline flung his hand away, even more annoyed by Iris's absent-mindedness earlier. "This idiot, messing around with one woman after another. Doesn't she know that Shi is with you? Doesn't she know that Tao is your brother? What is she up to? Does she want the three of you to completely break up before she'll stop?"
“Huihui isn’t that kind of person, Sister Pauline…” Zhuang Zhuoyuan knew she was angry and tried to find the right words to appease her. However, he was interrupted by Sister Pauline before he could finish his sentence: “Not that kind of person? Then what did she do? She’d run off to you when things were fine, and then come back drunk to find A-Tao when things weren’t. You’re saying she never knows what she wants, right? But then she’s been jumping between you two brothers, interfering in your relationship with A-Shi. Doesn’t she know right from wrong? A-Yuan, that’s not how you help someone!” By the end, she was even exasperated: “Look at Iris tonight! Everyone was having a good time. No matter how generous a woman is, if this happens a few times, it’ll leave a thorn in her side. Don’t take it lightly!”
"I'm on Pauline's side!" Su Wenqiang spoke up from behind. Zhuang Zhuoyuan leaned in and saw a group of brothers standing in the bar's entrance. Zhan Hantao frowned, probably having just found out about this as well. Knowing he was still upset, his mother stepped in to ease the tension and explain, "Everyone was worried because you took so long to see Iris, and then they saw on the security camera that Pauline seemed to be scolding you, so they all came out."
Ah Xing, enraged, clenched his fists and demanded, "Ah Yuan, tell me, did you seduce your sister-in-law? Did you betray Iris?"
Zhuang Zhuoyuan retorted, "Are you crazy?" He was already overwhelmed and wanted to say more, but his phone rang again. Seeing Iris on the caller ID, he quickly answered, but his expression worsened as he listened. He asked for directions and ran towards where the taxi had left. Ignoring his brother's questions, he hurriedly blurted out, "Iris was in a car accident." Everyone was shocked.
After a hospital check-up, the only finding was a hand injury. Zhuang Zhuoyuan was very worried and, after speaking briefly with the doctor, changed the "take the medicine home" to "stay in the hospital for observation overnight." Iris had been reluctant at first, but after going to the restroom, she immediately asked the nurse to upgrade her ward. Accompanied by Su Wenqiang, she came out, took a deep breath, and said to Zhuang Zhuoyuan, "BB, I think I need to have Junjun checked. I just discovered that I have a little bleeding, so I suspect your previous suspicion might be correct."
Zhuang Zhuoyuan hadn't even realized who "Yunyun" was at first, but when Iris mentioned bleeding, he almost jumped up: "Which floor is Dr. Yip on? BB, do you want to sit down first? Should I go find a wheelchair or a transfer bed? How serious is your bleeding? I, I'll call the doctor to come and see you first!"
"Ah Yuan, stop!" Iris was glad that her left hand was fast enough to grab him. She was still in the suspicion stage and didn't want to cause any chaos. "I'm fine now. I only have a drop or two of blood, and my stomach doesn't hurt. You can help me with the procedures to change rooms first, and then come with me to the ward in a little while."
“Okay, then Qiang, could you take care of Iris for me?” Zhuang Zhuoyuan was so excited that even Su Wenqiang could see the sweat on his forehead. She waved her hand: “Go ahead, Dr. Ye will be here soon.”
The result was bed rest for at least ten days, possibly another half a month to a month or more. Throughout Ye Xiuyun's treatment, Zhuang Zhuoyuan's brow remained furrowed. Only after everyone else had left, leaving only the Zhuang siblings, did Iris take Zhuang Zhuoyuan's hand and help him sit down: "Yunyun's words are just an estimate. Everyone's situation is different. I'm young and healthy, and my condition isn't serious. I'll definitely be fine soon. Baby, I promise you, during these ten days in the hospital, I will take good care of myself and our baby, okay?"
"Mmm." Zhuang Zhuoyuan couldn't help but lean down and hug her, his throat seemed to be blocked, and he could only manage to speak with difficulty.
Iris spoke up before he could apologize: "Sorry, BB, I didn't know it was implantation bleeding. I thought it was because I was in a different environment and my sleep schedule was irregular, which caused my period to be abnormal."
Zhuang Zhuoyuan quietly wiped away the tears from the corners of his eyes, got up and tucked the blanket around her again: "I should be the one apologizing, I didn't take good care of you."
His eyes were red, and his voice was nasal. Iris couldn't help but laugh at his silliness: "You've taken such good care of me. I'm the one who's been so clueless. Mr. Zhuang Zhuoyuan, you're going to be a father! Haven't you been looking forward to it for a long time? Give me a smile."
She shook his hand, and he finally smiled. Gazing into those gentle, loving eyes, Zhuang Zhuoyuan was completely captivated. He leaned down and kissed Iris's lips. He said, his voice trembling with equal tenderness, "Congratulations, baby, you're going to be a mother."
Standing to the side, seeing that the two of them had finally recovered and a smile had appeared on their lips, Chong Cheuk-wah stepped forward and joked with them, "It seems like no one has congratulated me yet! This is my first time being an aunt!"
So the three of them held hands. Iris and Zhuang Zhuoyuan said in unison, "Congratulations, sister, on becoming an aunt!"
A group of people came for Iris, and after seeing that she was safe, everyone left one after another, except for Qiu Junxuan, who was the last to leave. It turned out that besides visiting Iris, he had someone else to care about—the driver who was in the car accident, Zhang Po's grandson, Zhong Yingjia.
The taxi crashed at an intersection not far from PC Bar. When they arrived at the scene after receiving Iris's call, the shaken and injured Iris had managed to sit on the side of the road, while Zhong Yingjia, the driver, was unconscious and slumped over the deployed airbag. According to Iris's subsequent statement, shortly after she got in the car, the driver, Zhong Yingjia, began acting strangely. She could see in the rearview mirror that he was constantly pursing and licking his lips, appearing thirsty, but he didn't drink any water and instead kept rubbing his nose with his fingers. Then, he seemed to become disoriented, and the car swerved left and right under his control, eventually losing direction and crashing straight into a wall on the side of the road.
The detailed descriptions led the experienced police officers to guess what crime the man had committed. Therefore, upon entering the hospital, Zhong Yingjia was immediately given a blood test, and the case information was sent to the Organized Crime and Triad Bureau (OCTB). After visiting the patient, Zhuang Zhuohua went to interrogate the suspect and was somewhat surprised to find Qiu Junxuan still there: "You know him?"
“The grandson of an old lady I helped last time,” Qiu Junxuan pointed to Zhong Yingjia, “His grandmother just called me and said the police are looking for her. She’s an elderly woman and it’s inconvenient for her to come over so late at night, so I’ll help her deal with it first.”
"This guy's in deep trouble this time. He still dares to drive like this. He's lucky he didn't die." May shook her head in disgust, complaining in her heart about the still incoherent drug addict. Thanks to him, they still had to stay and work overtime.
Ben inquired about Iris's condition and nodded upon hearing that she was alright. He then said to Zhuang Zhuohua, "Zhong Yingjia probably won't wake up anytime soon, Madam. I think we should question her again tomorrow."
Chong Cheuk-wah did not object.
So he asked again, "Shall I take you back?"
This time, Zhuang Zhuohua refused: "A Yuan will come with me later. He drank tonight and can't drive."
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