Because I Cannot Hurt You

Caihong burst into heartbroken laughter as tears streamed down her cheeks. "He cannot be serious. Xiaosi cannot just think about revenge. He cannot be happy about his condition and be ready to die. We have a daughter. What about Chyou? He cannot be that selfish to leave his daughter behind without a father. Chyou loves him so much. He cannot be that heartless to leave her alone."

Jack Si slowly said, "Sister-in-law. That man doesn't think of anything but you. Chyou is precious to him. She is his angel daughter, and it did break his heart to decide what he did. But the guilt in his heart weighs too heavily. That one night is taking precedence over everything for him. He told me that once he...he will leave Chyou in Mr. and Mrs. Han's care."

Zhiyuan and Xinyi widened their eyes. They looked at each other, visibly stunned.

Caihong trembled. "W-what?"

"Yes. You don't like Chyou because of the past. You hate her and, of course, he didn't want to force you to take care of her in his absence when you don't love her. It would be painful for both of you to live a life like that. He said that Chyou got really attached to Mrs. Han Xinyi as soon as they met on the cruise. Mrs. Han adores her too and would definitely love her like her own child.

So he thought it was for the best to hand Chyou over to them to raise her. That way, you will be free and Chyou will also get a family. He knows that it would be saddening without her biological mother, but he said that if Mrs. Han is there, she will adjust in no time. He has faith in her."

Tears pooled in Xinyi's eyes. Behind his devious and sarcastic smile, she didn't know that Xiaosi was suffering so much.

"It's actually ironic that he wants to put Chyou in the family that he hates so much and was the cause of your ruin. But he saw how much Chyou loves Mrs. Han and thought that only she could fill the gap in Chyou's life. If he wouldn't be alive and you would leave too, Chyou should be with someone who can give her a complete family. He would beg her to accept Chyou."

He sighed in frustration. "I tried a thousand times to talk him out of it! I swear I wanted to kill him myself for acting like a martyr and all. But he was so stubborn that he refused to listen to me. Once he has his revenge, he won't have any aim in his life anymore. But sister-in-law! Now that you know everything, you can stop that idiot friend of mine. Twist his ear hard and smack some sense into him! I will take the next flight to China and come as soon as possible! I am his doctor so I should see to his treatment until the end! Please keep giving me updates about his condition and I will be there as soon as I can!"

Before he hung up, Jack Si said one last thing.

"Sister-in-law. Xiaosi loves you a lot," his voice was a whisper.

Caihong trembled and the tears plopped on her hand.

"He really loves you more than anything else in this world. So only you can stop him from taking any stupid decision. He won't ever reject what you want."

As the call ended, nobody said a word. Xiaosi's suffering in all these years resonated so hard that nobody could gather any words to speak.

Even Zhiyuan who was furious at him until now for trying to harm Xinyi couldn't help but feel heartbroken for his friend. Under that mask of hatred and indifference, there was incredible sadness he had kept hidden from all.

Xinyi, Ah Cy and Zizi hugged Caihong as their eyes were misty too.

She sat in silence for a while. Then she slowly got up and walked towards the OT in a daze. She peered through the window and saw Xiaosi lying on the bed as the doctors worked on his treatment. Jack Si's every word resounded in her ear from the beginning to the end.

Zhiyuan slowly said, "He will be alright, Caihong. He will be just fine."

"...I know," she whispered. "He has to be fine. I am waiting for him to wake up and have a good talk with him."

Liang furiously nodded. "He is being stupid. He is indeed in a delicate condition, but treatment is still possible. Smack him hard like Jack Si said."

She clenched her fist and kept staring at him unblinkingly. Time passed by and the bulb finally switched off.

The doctor stepped out with a nurse. His expression was grim and serious that made Caihong's heart skip a beat.

"How is Xiaosi? He is fine, right?" Her voice shook as if she was reassuring herself.

The doctor gravely said, "Mrs. Zhu, you must be aware of Mr. Zhu's tumor and his condition, right?"

She stiffened. She choked and tremblingly nodded. 

"Mr. Zhu must have gotten headaches and attacks before, but this seizure is completely different. The tumor is in his frontal lobe and in a delicate condition. This time the attack had almost taken his life."

She froze and stared at him in horror. 

"It was a close call, but we were successful in saving him."

Everybody heaved a sigh of relief. But the troubled expression on his face didn't ease.

Zhiyuan asked, feeling that something was still wrong. "Is there something else?"

He nodded. "We have saved him but...When a tumor is in the frontal or the temporal lobe of the brain, it causes problems with the memory too. Patients start forgetting small things like where he kept his car keys."

Caihong remembered the instances when she had witnessed Xiaosi forgetting basic things.

"But this seizure has damaged some vital nerves related to his memory. That's why, probably after Mr. Zhu wakes up, he might not remember anything about you or himself."

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