Contractual Love: Mistaken for True

It was Christmas again. Xia Chen sat alone at the bar, drinking, without any news from Xu Xiaoyou. She seemed to have disappeared; no matter how hard he searched, there was no trace of her. Xiaoyou, where have you hidden? Why won’t you come out and see me?

Chen Zihan was having dinner with Shu Yuqing when he received a call from Xia Chen. He glanced at his phone and hung up. Xia Chen was always a solitary figure who loved to disturb others. When he saw that Chen Zihan wasn’t answering, Xia Chen called again. Just as Chen Zihan was about to hang up, Shu Yuqing suggested he take the call. After all, Xia Chen was alone, and he needed someone to keep him company.

Their nice dinner was disrupted by Xia Chen, and Chen Zihan quickly brought Shu Yuqing to the bar.

“Zihan, you’re here! Come drink with me!” Xia Chen pulled Chen Zihan towards him.

“Enough, Ah Xia, don’t drink anymore,” Chen Zihan said as he took away Xia Chen’s drink.

“What else can I do?” Xia Chen looked at him. “Whenever I go back home, I can’t help but miss Xiaoyou like crazy. I just can’t sleep for thinking about her.”

Chen Zihan understood Xia Chen’s feelings well. When Shu Yuqing left him, he felt the same way, drowning his sorrows in alcohol. Only when he was drunk could he forget.

“Xia Chen, you shouldn’t be like this,” Shu Yuqing said. “Xiaoyou is determined to leave this time. What you should do now is show her that you don’t care about the child, not drown yourself in alcohol here.”

“What should I do? Tell me what I should do,” Xia Chen looked at her earnestly.

After leaving City S, Xu Xiaoyou headed north. It was already winter; it hadn’t snowed in City S yet, but it was snowing heavily in Shenyang¹. She longed to see the beautiful scene of falling snow.

In her leisure moments, she thought of Xia Chen, wondering how he was doing. Although she knew he was aware of the child’s existence, she still couldn’t face that big family. The Xia family couldn’t have no one to inherit its legacy because of her. Xia Chen, even if you love me, even if I love you too, we can’t be this selfish.

Xu Xiaoyou gazed out at the falling snow, recalling the days just before Christmas last year when they walked together in the snow. How beautiful it was then! Now it was snowing again, but she was alone, admiring the winter scene by herself.

Ever since he listened to Shu Yuqing’s advice, Xia Chen had transformed. He no longer drowned his sorrows in drinks every day. He handled Tianchen’s matters well and thought of Xu Xiaoyou as someone who had stepped out for a break, believing she would eventually come back home.

Murong Qing called Xia Chen, asking him to meet up. He was reluctant; just the thought of her made him recall what she had done, filling his heart with resentment toward her.

“Xia Chen,” Murong Qing no longer called him Ah Xia. “I’m leaving here tomorrow, and there are some things I want to tell you before I go. It’s about Xu Xiaoyou.”

Xia Chen thought for a moment and said, “Okay.”

“I’ll be waiting for you at Golden Hour Bistro.”

Golden Hour Bistro was the place where they first became a couple, but it also turned into the place of their separation. Xia Chen thought to himself that this time, she was leaving and would never return.

When Xia Chen arrived at Golden Hour Bistro, Murong Qing was already sitting there, sipping coffee. She waved at him as he entered.

“You said you wanted to tell me something about Xiaoyou. What is it?” Xia Chen asked directly.

“Two days before your business trip, Xu Xiaoyou came to see me, right here,” Murong Qing said while looking at Xia Chen.

“She came to see you? What did she say?” Xia Chen was anxious to know after hearing that Xu Xiaoyou had been to see Murong Qing.

“She talked a lot about the two of you.”

Murong Qing couldn’t forget what Xu Xiaoyou had said that day. Initially, she thought Xu Xiaoyou was looking for trouble, but to her surprise, Xu Xiaoyou had asked her to take good care of Xia Chen in the future.

“Why did you suddenly say that?” Murong Qing had asked her then.

“Because I’m going to leave him,” Xu Xiaoyou smiled faintly. “Like you said, I can’t let the Xia family die out.”

“Did Xia Chen agree?” Murong Qing was surprised. How could Xia Chen let Xu Xiaoyou leave? Why hadn’t he expressed his true feelings?

Xu Xiaoyou shook her head. “I don’t plan to tell him I’m leaving.”

“If Xia Chen finds out, aren’t you afraid he will hate you?”

“If he hates me, then let him hate me. But I don’t think he will,” Xu Xiaoyou wasn’t sure if Xia Chen would hate her, but deep down, she felt he wouldn’t. After all, she was doing this for his own good.

They talked a lot that day, and Xu Xiaoyou explained to Murong Qing why she married Xia Chen. She had never expected that the reason behind their marriage would be like this.

“I never thought we would end up falling for each other in the end.”

Neither did they foresee how fate would play tricks on them. Why did fate treat them this way? If she hadn’t gotten together with Shen Mobai, the kidnapping incident wouldn’t have happened, and she wouldn’t have been unable to conceive. Perhaps by now, she would already be pregnant.

“Xia Chen, have you ever thought that Xu Xiaoyou leaving is because of your family? If you were just an ordinary person, maybe she wouldn’t leave. But you are Xia Chen, with the entire Xia family behind you. She can’t have children-how can she face such a huge family?”

“I saw what you said about her in the magazine, and I was really touched. It’s clear to me now that what’s not meant for me will never be mine. Xia Chen, I’m leaving this time, and I won’t come back. I just want to know, if Xu Xiaoyou hadn’t decided to leave, could we still be friends?” Murong Qing looked at Xia Chen as she asked.

“Do you really think we can still be friends?” Xia Chen countered. “After all these years, haven’t you ever hated me?”

Murong Qing shook her head. “I’ve never thought of hating you, really. During those years abroad, I never once held a grudge against you.”

Xia Chen looked at Murong Qing, the woman he had once deeply loved, the woman who had changed his life. If she hadn’t left, he would never have met Xu Xiaoyou, nor would he have fallen in love with her.

“But I hated you once,” Xia Chen admitted. “The first year you were gone, I hated you fiercely. I wanted to find you and ask why you left me, but Tianchen’s situation left me no time to confront you. Then, when Xiaoyou appeared, I found that my anger toward you gradually faded. That day you showed up at the airport, I could actually look at you calmly without any resentment in my heart.”

“Son, do you have any news about Xiaoyou?” Mom Xia asked over the phone.

Xia Chen was driving and answered the call with his earphones. “Not yet.”

“A few days ago, I spoke with Xiaoyou’s dad. He said Xiaoyou hasn’t called home, which means she likely doesn’t want us to find her.”

Suddenly, Xia Chen spotted someone in front of him who looked very much like Xu Xiaoyou. He thought it was her and immediately stopped the car to chase after her, oblivious to the oncoming traffic. Just then, a car sped toward him, and he realized too late.

“Son… son…” Mom Xia felt a sudden panic as she sensed something was wrong. There had been no sound from Xia Chen’s end of the call. Why had their conversation abruptly gone silent? When she tried to call back, there was no answer.

“Mom Xia, Xia Chen was in an accident…” Half an hour later, Chen Zihan called Mom Xia. He had just received the news that Xia Chen had been hit by a car while crossing the street and was now in the hospital. He quickly drove over and called Mom Xia on his way.

When Mom Xia heard that something had happened to Xia Chen, she felt her hands shake with the phone.

“Zihan, when did Ah Xia have the accident?” she asked, her voice trembling.

“Half an hour ago.”

By the time Chen Zihan arrived at the hospital, Xia Chen had already been taken into surgery. A few traffic officers came to speak with Chen Zihan.

Xia Chen’s surgery lasted a full six hours. The car accident had caused severe blood loss, and several times, blood was taken from the bank to replenish what he had lost.

“Nurse, how is he?” A nurse came out of the operating room, and Chen Zihan pulled her aside to ask.

“The patient has lost a lot of blood and needs a transfusion, but we currently don’t have his blood type available in the blood bank.”

“What’s his blood type?” Chen Zihan asked anxiously. How could there be no blood?

“Type A…”

“I’m Type B…” Chen Zihan frowned in concern.

“Is there anyone in the family who is Type A?” the nurse inquired.

Mom Xia shook her head. She wasn’t Type A; Xia Chen’s father is Type A, and Xia Chen is Type A, but she is Type O.

“I’m Type A,” Shu Yuqing said. “You can draw my blood.”

“Yuqing.” Mom Xia looked at Shu Yuqing, “Yuqing, you’re pregnant. You can’t donate blood.”

“But…” Shu Yuqing looked at everyone who was so anxious, and she was the only one present with Type A blood.

“Don’t forget, I’m also Type A,” Shen Mobai appeared just in time. Jingjing had been in the hospital preparing for her delivery, and he had been right there with her. He had just heard the doctor mention Xia Chen’s accident, but no one had notified him. Was he no longer considered a friend? He had intended to confront Chen Zihan for not informing him but instead heard that Xia Chen needed blood.

“Mobai…” Mom Xia saw a glimmer of hope.

“Shen Mobai, it’s great that you’re here. Since you’re Type A, please go donate blood quickly.”

The nurse took Shen Mobai to donate blood while Shu Yuqing stayed with Mom Xia to wait.

Finally, the doctor and nurse came out, and Mom Xia rushed forward to inquire about Xia Chen’s condition.

“The surgery was very successful; the patient is no longer in danger. However, he did sustain a concussion, so he might not wake up for a while,” Dr. Zhang, his attending physician, said.

“Thank you, doctor,” Mom Xia said as she grasped Dr. Zhang’s hand.

Xia Chen was moved to the intensive care unit for 24-hour monitoring. Mom Xia sat outside, looking through the glass at Xia Chen, whose head was wrapped in thick bandages. The doctor had assured her that it was just a superficial injury that wouldn’t leave any scars, but his right hand had been fractured. Even with rehabilitation, it might not regain its full function.

Mom Xia sighed. If his hand doesn’t heal well, that’s okay. As long as he’s safe, everything else will be fine. Xiaoyou, where are you? Do you know that Xia Chen got into an accident while trying to find you? Could you please come back and see him? Whatever the issue is, we can work through it together.

The day after Xia Chen’s accident, newspapers reported the incident, sparking a frenzy of discussion. Companies that had contracts with Tianchen began to terminate them, and many new artists started to worry about their futures and looked for new opportunities. At this moment, Chen Zihan, who had been in hiding, stepped up to take over Tianchen’s affairs and held a press conference to explain Xia Chen’s situation.

Although Chen Zihan had returned to the country for a while, he hadn’t made any significant moves. As the vice president of Tianchen, ever since he had taken on Chen Ziyi’s identity, he had not appeared as Chen Zihan at any press event. His appearance now naturally caused a stir.

Xu Xiaoyou found out about Xia Chen’s accident when she saw it on television. Chen Zihan’s comments at the press conference were very official, and she immediately understood that if he had chosen to speak out, then Xia Chen’s situation must not be good. She hurriedly packed her things and took an overnight flight back to City S. She wanted to see Xia Chen and find out how he was doing.

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