“Alright, stop crying.” Shen Ci handed over a tissue.
Shen Qianqian sniffled, clutching the tissue in her hand as she observed the man’s expression.
“I’m going to the hospital to see Grandma first. Lin Li will arrange other accommodation for you. For the time being, to avoid agitating Grandma, you’ll have to make do temporarily.”
Shen Ci suppressed the irritation in his heart.
If that woman were here, she would definitely have a way to soothe Grandma. It seemed that ever since Yan Shi married into the Shen family, Grandma’s illness hadn’t flared up once.
“Brother Shen, I’ll go with you. No matter what, Grandma being hospitalized is partly my fault. I should—” Shen Qianqian quickly grabbed the man’s arm.
She couldn’t let Shen Ci abandon her at a time like this.
If Old Mrs. Shen said anything more, Shen Ci might waver. She absolutely couldn’t allow that possibility to arise.
“Qianqian, Grandma can’t take any stimulation right now.” Shen Ci frowned slightly, his tone resolute.
If Shen Qianqian truly could soothe Grandma, none of this would have happened in the first place.
Shen Qianqian spoke with a face full of guilt: “I know. Then can I wait outside the hospital for you? I’ll go buy some supplements for Grandma, and Brother Shen, you can bring them in for me. Just let me do something, otherwise I’ll really feel awful…”
She needed to appear innocent enough while also proactively showing concern for Old Mrs. Shen, so she could hold onto Shen Ci’s heart.
Sure enough, Shen Ci hesitated for a few seconds, then nodded.
The car stopped at the hospital entrance. Lin Li followed behind Shen Ci, glancing at the supplements in his hand.
“President Shen, the old lady is lactose intolerant. She probably can’t have these…” If Old Mrs. Shen accidentally consumed them, the consequences would be unthinkable.
“Send them to the nurses’ station.” Shen Ci didn’t pause his steps and went straight into the elevator.
The elevator doors opened, and the hospital director was waiting at the entrance.
“President Shen, the old lady’s condition has stabilized. You can rest assured.”
Huaxin Hospital—the Shen family held a thirty percent stake, and the entire top floor belonged to the Shen family.
“Thank you for your hard work.” Shen Ci knew the way well and arrived at the ward door, softening his movements as he pushed it open.
Hearing the sound, Shen Zhenhua looked up, his face ashen. He glanced at Old Mrs. Shen, who was still asleep, then stood up and walked out of the ward.
Shen Ci sat beside the hospital bed, his gaze deep and unfathomable.
It was a long while before Old Mrs. Shen slowly opened her eyes.
“Where’s Shishi?” Old Mrs. Shen’s eyes were urgent, panting heavily, her breathing somewhat labored.
Shen Ci quickly adjusted the oxygen tube for her. “Grandma, don’t get agitated. Yan Shi went out to play with some friends. She won’t be back for a while.”
He wasn’t good at lying. From childhood to now, there had never been an occasion or a person that required him to lie.
Except for Old Mrs. Shen, who left him completely at a loss.
“Really? Then why are people saying you two got divorced? Xiao Ci, you can’t get divorced. You can’t divorce Shishi.” Old Mrs. Shen gripped the man’s hand, her tone growing agitated.
She had lived to this age, so she could naturally see some things more clearly than Shen Ci. Yan Shi was the one truly suited for Shen Ci.
“Why? When you first met Yan Shi, you insisted I marry her not long after. What’s so special about Yan Shi that makes you like her so much?”
He had been married to that woman for five years, and he still didn’t see anything particularly remarkable about Yan Shi.
But Yan Shi was indeed a woman who wouldn’t cause him any trouble—she wouldn’t demand he remember so-called anniversaries, didn’t need him to spend time with her, and could even take good care of Old Mrs. Shen on his behalf.
In a daze, Shen Ci’s mind surfaced the image of that woman’s face—her grievances and unwillingness hidden within autumn-water eyes, stubbornly refusing to let tears fall.
“It has to be Shishi. Xiao Ci, if you miss Shishi now, you will definitely regret it.” Old Mrs. Shen struggled to sit up, raising her hand to tear off the oxygen tube from her face.
“Grandma, please don’t get agitated. I understand—I’ll listen to you. When Yan Shi comes back, I’ll have her come keep you company.” Shen Ci soothed her in a low voice for quite a while before the old lady settled down, half-convinced.
Walking out of the ward, Shen Ci didn’t see Shen Zhenhua. Only after asking the hospital director did he learn that the man had been called away by a phone call. Shen Ci gave instructions to the doctors and nurses, then left the hospital.
“Brother Shen!” Shen Qianqian approached from the front, a hint of delight in her eyes.
She had truly been afraid that Shen Ci would stay at the hospital to look after Old Mrs. Shen.
“Qianqian, have the driver take you home. I still need to get back to the company for a meeting.” Shen Ci didn’t give her any chance to refuse—he waved his hand, and someone immediately stepped forward to open the car door for Shen Qianqian.
Seeing this, Shen Qianqian couldn’t very well decline, and reluctantly took her leave.
“President Shen, there’s news from overseas. Miss Yan has indeed been abroad all along—she only recently returned to the country. Some of her classmates can confirm this.”
The lead had gone cold, and Lin Li was at a loss as well.
“Spread the news that Grandma is seriously ill and hospitalized.” Shen Ci’s gaze was icy cold.
Wasn’t that woman the one who cared most about Grandma? He’d like to see just how long Yan Shi could keep hiding.
Lin Li’s eyes lit up, and he immediately circulated the news within a small circle.
“Also, look for women who bear some resemblance to Yan Shi. As long as she can take good care of Grandma, she can name her own terms.”
A caregiver—how hard could it be to find one?
Lin Li understood and moved quickly. By the next day, a stack of photos had been delivered to Shen Ci’s office.
But no matter how many they found, none truly resembled Yan Shi in the slightest.
Shen Ci pinched a few photos, losing patience to look through them. He had never noticed before that the woman’s features were exquisitely unique—not striking at first glance, but clean and comfortable.
In the end, Lin Li could only pick out one from the dozen or so photos.
However, two hours later, Lin Li hurriedly left the hospital and dialed Shen Ci’s phone.
“President Shen, Old Mrs. Shen recognized at a glance that the woman wasn’t your wife and kicked her out…” And he had been scolded along with her.
“Then why aren’t you out looking for someone?” Shen Ci ended the call with a single sentence.
A heavy, oppressive atmosphere enveloped the entire office. The project department staff didn’t dare breathe too loudly, stealing glances at the man across the room whose face was as cold as ice.
It happened to be the weekend, and Yan Shi was curled up in the sunroom, studying the business proposal in her hands.
“Miss Yan.” Wang Cheng stood at the doorway without stepping forward, calling out softly with a hint of meaning in his eyes.
The woman sitting on the sofa, bare-faced without a trace of makeup, had smooth and delicate skin—the warm sunlight casting upon her accentuating her soft, gentle features.
Yan Shi lifted her head slightly, and at the same moment, the door opened, and the commotion from downstairs drifted up.
Outside, two voices deliberately lowered, lingering furtively near the entrance of the dressing room.
“What if we get caught?” Yan Shen, who was keeping watch, was full of worries, his gaze constantly darting toward the stairwell, a hint of concern on his face.
“Even if she finds out, she won’t know it was us.” Compared to Yan Shen, Yan Yi was clearly much more composed, smugly clapping her hands together before walking out of the dressing room with a satisfied air.
Yan Shen was about to say something when suddenly a figure rushed up from the stairwell…