Chapter 211: Beautiful Spider Spirit
Liancheng walked around the two small gardens downstairs, but didn’t find Bai Ying’s figure. She sent Bai Ying several messages, but they all went unanswered.
Back upstairs, Bai Ying replied with a wicked grin, “Wait a little longer.”
Liancheng didn’t understand. “I’m not chasing you anymore” and “Thank you for liking me.” Saying those two sentences in every dialect across the country wouldn’t take five minutes, so what was there to wait for?
“Are you serious? A kiss, holding hands, sexual harassment?”
Bai Ying said, “That’s a bit extreme, sister. Have you ever heard of an academic theory that people have a physiological liking for each other, that it’s a genetic choice? When you meet someone, you want to kiss them, hug them, touch them, you can’t control it, and it’s real and intense.”
Liancheng instinctively felt uncomfortable and her tone became harsh, “Stop making excuses for your own actions. There’s no physiological liking, you just can’t control yourself.”
Bai Ying was surprised, “You’ve never felt this way? Not even with Shen Lichuan?”
Liancheng paused, “No. I respect him, and he respects me. Without permission, I never get too aggressive.”
Bai Ying clicked her tongue, “Your relationship is truly ‘heavenly.’ You don’t even have basic human desires.”
Liancheng resisted the word ‘desire,’ as it always reminded her of Liang Chaosu.
On the surface, he was ice cold and stern, never smiling. Sex, desire, lust—they had nothing to do with him.
When they were alone in private, the air was filled with his desire, his aggression, his overwhelming presence.
Liancheng still feared him to this day, his deep eyes, high brow bone, deep eye sockets, eyes like a bottomless abyss in the sea, dark and churning endlessly, erupting with bone-corroding heat that could never be filled or extinguished, never satisfied.
When their bodies weren’t touching, he seemed to want to melt her through the air.
She clearly warned Bai Ying, “You should know when to stop. I suggest Xiao Da go see you, not that you should throw him into a spider’s den.”
Bai Ying laughed it off, “Thank you, you didn’t compare me to a fiery pit. At least you saved me some face by calling me a beautiful spider spirit.”
Liancheng sent another message, but Bai Ying simply read it and didn’t reply.
She waited two more minutes, clenching her phone, ready to go downstairs and look around again to rescue Xiao Da, this modern-day “holy monk.”
Madam Wang came out of the hospital room and happened to see her.
“Liancheng, your brother has a high fever and is hospitalized, why didn’t you tell me and your teacher? We only found out because your brother called.”
As she spoke, she pulled Liancheng along, “Your brother said he had a high fever and was dizzy when he came to the hospital. After the doctor examined him, he wasn’t allowed to move much and had to wait until he finished his IV drip and the fever went down before he could be active. I’m very sorry we didn’t come to visit him immediately.”
“Since the doctor took it so seriously, his fever must have been quite high. You haven’t been upstairs for so long, did you go see your brother?”
Liancheng lowered her eyes, “Yes, but he seemed fine. He could sit, stand, and even move around. It wasn’t as serious as you imagine, so you don’t need to worry.”
Madam Wang heard the emotion in her voice and tugged her towards the elevator.
“What are you saying, child? Being able to move around is a good thing?”
“Your teacher recalls your brother being quite tall and strong before. This time, he’s much thinner. I heard he was injured abroad before the new year and was hospitalized after returning home. Now he has a high fever again. Perhaps it’s a recurrence of the injury. Your bickering is your usual way of interacting, but you need to care for him when he’s sick.”
Liancheng didn’t want to listen, didn’t want to go downstairs, and stopped in her tracks, “He caught a cold. Madam, your teacher can barely get out of bed, he needs someone to help him. You go down to see him, and I’ll go back to the hospital room to look after the teacher.”
Madam Wang disagreed, “The patient next door is playing chess with your teacher. The two bad chess players are locked in a fierce battle and won’t need anyone for a while.”
The elevator doors opened, and Liancheng didn’t get in.
“I have something to tell the teacher.” There were other people in the elevator, and Madam Wang, being gentle and polite, didn’t want to tear into her in front of everyone. Liancheng stood at the doorway and whispered quickly, “Madam, he’s in room 011 of the emergency department in the East Zone on the second floor, next to the fire escape.”
Madam Wang was about to ask what it was, but the elevator doors closed, and Liancheng walked towards the hospital room.
The photo Feng Shien sent was like an atomic bomb, exploding in her eyes for a moment, shaking Liancheng to the point of almost losing her reason.
When Liang Wenfei first returned to the Liang family, she brought a paternity test report herself.
In wealthy circles, there were no shortage of people who showed up every year claiming to be relatives. Nine out of ten were liars, or they used the pretense of recognition to introduce another intermediary. After the recognition was exposed, the intermediary would come to apologize, offering extremely sincere excuses.
“I met him by chance outside. She said she had a connection with you and had evidence left by her mother. So I believed her, but I didn’t expect it to be a lie. I’ve caused you trouble instead.”
The business world is full of shrewd people. In real situations, their words would be much more compelling than this. Some principals would soften their stance, and over time, the intermediary would successfully connect with them, forming relationships they couldn’t have established otherwise.
Later, this tactic became so common that security guards would ask a few questions and take a registration when someone came to claim kinship, then tell them to wait for news.
Liang Wenfei wasn’t stopped when she appeared, partly because she had the paternity test, but more importantly, her face, her eyebrows, her eyes, her contours—though not like Mother Liang’s—resembled Mother Liang’s mother.
At first glance, she was either from the Liang family or the Yao family. The security guards dared not be careless.
Liancheng’s shock from the photo wasn’t just the resemblance, but also the feeling, like an invisible thread was pulled from her heart, one end tied to the photo, sticking like glue.
She never understood why Liang Chaosu always emphasized bloodlines. Now, with this thread pulling, she suddenly wondered if Mother Liang’s fading affection for her was truly just as implied in Liang’s father’s study, and if the reason was Liang Chaosu.
If it hadn’t been for that stormy night, and Liang Chaosu had strictly maintained his role as a brother, could she and Shen Lichuan have successfully eloped?
How long could the Shen family, and Shen Lichuan, have let her go. How long could she have let go of her deep feelings for Mother Liang at that time.
And if she returned to the Liang family again, with the precedent of eloping with Shen Lichuan, would Mother Liang still treat her intimately?
Inside the hospital room, generals were fighting a fierce battle. Professor Wang finished a game and inadvertently saw Liancheng standing dumbfounded at the door.
He immediately coughed dryly, “Liancheng, I haven’t been sitting for long. Your wife allowed me to play chess.”
Doctors’ orders stipulated that after hip replacement surgery, sitting time should not exceed one hour in the first month.
Professor Wang had been lying down for a long time, and now he could stand. Madam Wang wanted to visit Liang Chaosu, fearing he would be restless, so she used chess to appease him.
“I’ll hire a caregiver for you.” Liancheng entered the room.
The patient next door strongly agreed, “You definitely need to hire one for him, so he doesn’t always brag. He has so many relatives and friends visiting him in the hospital, a loving wife, devoted students by his bedside, and even the boss of a group flying in from afar to do him a favor, hiring a skilled doctor.”
Professor Wang said anxiously, “Slander! When have I ever bragged?”
The patient next door chuckled and didn’t argue, packing up the chessboard and leaving.
Professor Wang looked at Liancheng, “There’s no need to hire a caregiver. I can get out of bed now, and I can be discharged in four days. Go back to work with peace of mind, don’t worry about me.”
Liancheng didn’t deny going back to work, “Then you definitely need to hire one. When you’re discharged and return to North Province, it won’t be convenient for my classmates and me to visit you. It will be too much for your wife alone. You don’t like opposite sexes near you, so I’ll hire a male caregiver for you.”
Professor Wang, who maintained his moral integrity and was never worried about Madam Wang’s contact with opposite sexes, said, “You come from the Liang family and have connections. I won’t refuse, but I’ll pay for it.”
Liancheng couldn’t help but laugh, “Have you forgotten? It’s a work-related injury. All expenses incurred due to the injury should be reimbursed by Liang Family.”
