Fu Zhiyie hadn’t been gone long before he returned to the hospital room. The first thing he saw was the person on the bed, still lying there exactly as before.
The meal delivered to her sat untouched on the table.
"Cecilia, get up and have something to eat."
Her reply came muffled through her nose, "I’m not hungry."
He sat down by the bed, reaching out to softly stroke her hair. "Just have a little bit, okay? You haven’t eaten in a long time."
Cecilia Ye slowly opened her eyes, gazing up at him.
Those eyes were so gentle, always making her believe he truly loved her.
What am I supposed to do, Fu Zhiyie? No matter what you say, I can never refuse you.
She knew, of course, where he’d been—to see Bai Yuzi. He’d told her Bai Yuzi was also here.
"Alright," she said in a quiet voice, letting him help her sit up.
Fu Zhiyie lowered the little table at the end of the bed and laid out the food. Cecilia Ye managed only a few sips of chicken soup, but that was still better than nothing.
Worried she might throw up again, Fu Zhiyie didn’t push her to eat more.
A knock sounded on the hospital room door, making Cecilia Ye flinch.
The person who came in was a doctor. "Mr. Fu?"
"Yes. Her neck wound needs to be redressed."
The doctor, a man in his thirties, barely approached the bed before Cecilia Ye shrank away.
"No need to change it... It doesn’t hurt..." Her voice was barely audible, trembling just a little.
Fu Zhiyie coaxed softly, "Let me do it, don’t be scared."
The doctor handed Fu Zhiyie the medicine and carefully explained what to do, then left without asking further questions.
Fu Zhiyie gently peeled away the bloodied gauze on her neck.
Cecilia Ye made no complaint of pain, obediently sitting still.
Those broad hands worked with the utmost delicacy, cleaning the wound and carefully applying fresh gauze.
Once he’d finished, Cecilia Ye immediately retreated back under the covers.
Fu Zhiyie stayed with her in the room all morning, only leaving for the office when work called.
*
At the same time, over at Day Off bar, the place was empty in the daytime. Julian Jarvis lounged on the sofa, long legs crossed, two buttons of his black shirt undone to reveal a sharp, elegant collarbone. He held a glass of wine carelessly, his expression relaxed.
Two big, burly men stood respectfully in front of him, no matter their imposing size.
"Boss, the girl you asked us to keep an eye on—something happened to her."
Julian Jarvis frowned. "What happened?"
Noting his boss’s reaction, the subordinate spoke even more cautiously, sensing how much the girl mattered to him.
"She was kidnapped yesterday, and it looked like she was seriously hurt too."
"Kidnapped?" Julian Jarvis repeated. How could anyone kidnap a little thing like Cecilia Ye?
"Explain, from the beginning."
Both men described the incident in full detail.
Julian Jarvis’s Adam’s apple bobbed. In one swallow, he downed his wine and stood up—face clouded with anger.
What rotten luck, marrying someone as fickle as Fu Zhiyie.
Julian Jarvis didn’t even know what he was so upset about. All he knew was that Cecilia Ye was just a girl who made people want to protect her.
*
There was no way Cecilia Ye could let her grandparents find out about the kidnapping. She could only wait until her wounds healed before going back to the old house.
Fu Zhiyie came every day; sometimes, when he arrived early, he even brought his work with him to the hospital room.
Cecilia Ye wondered if he didn’t need to keep Bai Yuzi company. Then again, maybe he already had.
Her wounds were slowly getting better, but her heart was only growing heavier.
She found herself making plans for the future—a future without Fu Zhiyie.
She could open her own art studio, live on her own... No, even better, she could bring Zoey Zhang along. (Zoey Zhang: a possible nickname, could be a younger sibling or child.)
It didn’t matter whether Fu Zhiyie got married or whether Bai Yuzi moved into the Fu estate.
None of it had anything to do with her anymore.
That day, Fu Zhiyie left for work early.
Once Cecilia Ye had woken up and had nothing else to do, she sat sketching absentmindedly in her drawing pad.
Voices drifted in from the hallway outside the hospital room.
She glanced at the door, puzzled. Usually, no one ever came.
Two bodyguards, posted by Fu Zhiyie, stood outside the door.
The door creaked open—and when Cecilia Ye saw who walked in, she froze.
It was Bai Yuzi.
Bai Yuzi clutched her stomach, her eyes icy as she stared Cecilia Ye down.
These last few days, Fu Zhiyie would only spend a few minutes in Bai Yuzi’s room before leaving again.
Ever since he told her he wasn’t interested in romance, Bai Yuzi blamed everything on Cecilia Ye.
She had to see for herself if Cecilia Ye was really hurt by whoever kidnapped her.
Cecilia Ye wanted nothing to do with her.
Bai Yuzi let out a cold, mocking laugh, her face twisted with spite. "Well, Cecilia Ye, so you really did get yourself kidnapped?"
Cecilia Ye ignored her, head down as she kept sketching.
Being so thoroughly dismissed set Bai Yuzi’s rage ablaze. "Oh, I heard it was your brother who kidnapped you. What did he want with you?"
"A face like yours—any man would be drawn to it, right? How could your brother bear to hit you so badly?"
She leaned down, getting close to Cecilia Ye, her words laced with venom.
"Did he kiss you? Touch you? Hmm?"
"I heard Fu Zhiyie had him thrown in jail. When's he getting out next time?"
Watching Cecilia Ye’s face turn whiter and whiter, Bai Yuzi felt a surge of satisfaction.
"Stop. Stop it," Cecilia Ye said, lifting her eyes. They shimmered with a fragile light, on the edge of breaking.
Bai Yuzi sneered to herself. Wasn’t that exactly the look Cecilia Ye used on Fu Zhiyie to keep him away from her?
"Why shouldn’t I say something? I’m just concerned about you," Bai Yuzi said with false sweetness, her rancor leaking through. "A’Ye said so himself—I should look after you. After all, the old master of the Fu family is quite fond of you."
Cecilia Ye shook her head. Did Fu Zhiyie really ask her to come?
Why else would the bodyguards let Bai Yuzi in—was it with Fu Zhiyie’s permission?
"Tell me, how did your pervert brother treat you? I heard his family used to be butchers—he must reek of filth and blood, right?"
Cecilia Ye hurled her sketchbook at Bai Yuzi, her whole body trembling as all those horrible memories rose up again. "Get out. Get out of my room!"
She gripped her pencil so tightly its sharpened tip pointed straight at Bai Yuzi.
But Bai Yuzi didn’t even flinch—she stepped closer, every word a poisonous needle stabbing at Cecilia Ye’s heart, making it bleed.
Again, she caught the stench of that cold, filthy storage room.
Her temple throbbed with pain. In a burst of rage, Cecilia Ye drove the pencil at Bai Yuzi.
But Bai Yuzi made no move to dodge. This time, Cecilia Ye, you can’t say I’m slandering you.
A white, slender wrist stopped her—someone seized her arm hard. The pencil tumbled to the floor, rolling away under the sofa.