Chapter 427: Chapter 382: Leaving the Blood Sample Behind
Gu Yunxi had just finished preparing two dishes when Mu Shuoqian returned.
She composed herself and mustered a smile before walking over in small steps: "You’re back."
"Yeah." Mu Shuoqian glanced at her. "Have you had dinner yet?"
"Not yet, I was waiting for you. I learned two dishes and a soup from the maid. Do you want to try them?" Gu Yunxi pointed to the dining table, "They’re just ready and still warm."
"Okay." Mu Shuoqian took off his coat and hung it up. After washing his hands, he sat down at the dining table. Looking at the two dishes in front of him, he suddenly asked, "Where’s the maid?"
Usually, these tasks were carried out by the maid, but today he didn’t see her as soon as he got home.
"She asked for leave because something came up, so I simply gave her a week off. I’ll cook for you these next few days." Gu Yunxi had another reason for learning these dishes; everyone’s cooking has a different taste, and if Mu Shuoqian had tasted Gu Qili’s cooking, he would certainly suspect her. Therefore, this foreign-style cuisine should not expose any flaws.
Mu Shuoqian just nodded, picked up his chopsticks, and prepared to eat. Gu Yunxi was fixated on him, forgetting how inappropriate her current demeanor was.
"Why are you staring at me? Is there something on my face?" Mu Shuoqian frowned slightly, "Aren’t you hungry?"
Gu Yunxi quickly laughed it off. She wanted to see with her own eyes him eating the food, which is why she got distracted. At his remark, she immediately picked up her chopsticks, "Nothing, just thought the groom looked exceptionally handsome today."
Mu Shuoqian had not yet spoken when the phone rang. He said, "I’m going to take the call," and got up to leave the dining room.
Gu Yunxi couldn’t bring herself to eat, her nerves on edge as she stared at the bowl of soup in front of Mu Shuoqian, knowing that as soon as he drank it...
Suddenly, Mu Shuoqian returned and said to the still dazed Gu Yunxi: "I have some matters to deal with. You eat first."
"What’s so important that it can’t wait until after dinner?" Gu Yunxi panicked; she couldn’t let her efforts be wasted.
"It’s an overseas video conference. I’m skipping dinner, you should go to bed early after eating." His voice was gentle and considerate, not like that of someone used to high stature, but Gu Yunxi knew that this attitude wasn’t meant for her but for Gu Qili. She was merely standing in for Gu Qili and receiving the tenderness that didn’t belong to her.
Gu Yunxi did not press further, to avoid arousing Mu Shuoqian’s suspicions, and faintly nodded, "Understood."
After Mu Shuoqian went back to the study, Gu Yunxi had no appetite and disposed of the dishes; the medicine she had was limited, and if wasted like this a few more times, it wouldn’t achieve the results she wanted. Moreover, she didn’t just want Mu Shuoqian to die for Cheng Menghong; she also wanted Qiu Lan to suffer a bad end.
After some thought, Gu Yunxi went to the kitchen, brewed a cup of coffee, and added a gram of the drug into it. This time, she had to succeed, not fail; no matter what, she needed Mu Shuoqian to drink the coffee.
The door to the study was firmly shut. Gu Qili raised her hand and knocked, and Mu Shuoqian’s voice came from inside: "Come in."
Gu Yunxi pushed open the door and saw Mu Shuoqian sitting at the office desk working, the overhead light casting on his chiseled face, turning the man into something like a distant and unapproachable deity.
She steadied her nerves, a warm smile on her lips: "I made you a cup of coffee to refresh you and relieve fatigue. You’ve worked hard today, and still have work to do. It’s tough."
Mu Shuoqian looked up, his gaze casually sweeping over her face, he gestured with his chin toward a spot on the desk: "Just put it there."
"Coffee should be drunk while it’s hot; it won’t taste good once it cools. Try it, the temperature is just right," Gu Yunxi approached the desk, extending the coffee cup with her pale hands.
Mu Shuoqian put down his pen, about to reach out, when suddenly, the doorbell rang outside.
Gu Yunxi cursed inwardly. How unlucky could she be? He gets a phone call when it’s time to dine, and someone rings the doorbell when he’s about to drink coffee. It seemed that nothing was going her way tonight. She decided to wait a bit longer, lest her impatience raises Mu Shuoqian’s suspicions.
Setting down the coffee cup, she smiled and said: "I’ll go answer the door."
"Yeah." Mu Shuoqian nodded, his gaze slowly shifting to the cup of coffee, his eyes deepening.
When Gu Yunxi opened the door, there stood two people who looked like doctors, "Miss Gu, hello."
You, hello." Gu Yunxi thought quickly, guessing that these two might be Gu Qili’s physicians, and immediately said warmly: "Please come in."
Doctor Lu and his assistant entered, and Mu Shuoqian also came out of the study, closing the door behind him. He turned to Gu Yunxi standing to the side and said, "Doctor Lu is here to give you a medical check-up."
"Yeah, okay." Gu Yunxi knew she wasn’t sick, and the stubborn illness she had contracted years ago had been cured during her time in Japan. But to appear more believable, she was willing to cooperate, her only worry being that once the doctors discovered she was not ill, would her masquerade as Gu Qili be unveiled?
What to do? How could she avoid this medical examination?
"Scared?" Just as she was hesitating, a magnetic voice suddenly sounded from above her head. Mu Shuoqian was looking at her with amusement, "No worries, it’s just a simple blood test, don’t be afraid."
Blood draw? If it’s a blood draw, the results won’t come out immediately, right?
"What’s wrong?" Mu Shuoqian asked again, his gaze flickering with a hint of confusion.
Gu Yunxi hurriedly said: "Nothing, just feeling a bit tired from the wedding today and a little dizzy, I’m not sure if drawing blood will have any effect."
"It’s okay, it won’t affect it," Dr. Lü reassured with a smile, "we’ll only take a little."
Gu Yunxi had no choice but to comply, as any more objections would give her away, so she reluctantly extended her arm, "Then go ahead."
"Miss Gu, please come over here and sit," Dr. Lü directed her to the living room.
After seating herself on the sofa, Dr. Lü took out his tools.
Gu Yunxi watched as the slender needle pierced her vein; after the sharp pain, fresh red blood collected in the tube. She felt a bit faint at the sight of blood and quickly looked away. As she turned her head, she accidentally met Mu Shuoqian’s gaze, which was cold, indifferent, and even had a trace of cruelty to it, a stark contrast to how he looked at her before. She felt a momentary daze, and after blinking, when she looked at him again, his expression had returned to its previous tenderness, and he even asked her with concern, "Does it hurt?"
Gu Yunxi forced a smile: "It hurt for a moment, but it’s fine now."
"Mm, rest early later on."
Gu Yunxi thought she must have been seeing things, and the Mu Shuoqian before her now must surely be the real Mu Shuoqian, unable to hide his love for Gu Qili.
After the blood was drawn, Gu Yunxi went back to her room. Upon entering, she saw a large wedding photo hanging on the wall, with the background being Egypt’s Pyramid, ancient and mysterious yet undeniably romantic. The two people in the photo were smiling at the camera, their eyes brimming with the kind of joy that only deep love can provoke, devoid of any impurity or nefarious thoughts.
Just for a wedding photo, they had to go to Egypt, and it surely wasn’t just Egypt alone.
She and Gu Qili were both daughters of Gu Dezhong, so why were their fates so different, one in the heavens and the other on the ground? And all this should have been hers as well, so she wanted all these people who stole her happiness to descend into hell one by one.
Outside the bedroom, Dr. Lü sealed the drawn blood sample in a container, preparing to place it in a specialized medical case, when Mu Shuoqian suddenly said, "Dr. Lü, leave the sample here."
"Ah?" Dr. Lü looked at him, puzzled, "Mr. Mu, this fresh blood has a limited shelf life, and..."
"It doesn’t matter, leave it," his tone leaving no room for debate.
Dr. Lü thought for a moment, but in the end, handed the sample to him. He was just a doctor serving his client’s wishes, and he had no grounds for objection.
After Dr. Lü and his assistant left, Mu Shuoqian took the blood sample, grabbed his car keys, and left.
He drove straight to Luo Shangqing’s research institute. Before entering, Mu Shuoqian saw a young girl loitering at Luo Shangqing’s door with a box in her arms, peeking around nervously.
Mu Shuoqian frowned, and as he passed by her side, he glanced at her lightly. The girl looked about seventeen or eighteen, with clear brows, fair features, a hint of baby fat, and a pair of large eyes that were dark and bright, not appearing sinister.
Mu Shuoqian ignored her, proceeding to the door to input the password.
"Hey, handsome," the girl suddenly brightened up, hurrying over with a beaming smile, "are you here to see Professor Luo?"
Mu Shuoqian did not answer, but instinctively put some distance between them.
"Handsome, could you please give this boxed meal to Professor Luo for me? He has been busy all day and hasn’t had dinner yet." It was a bit chilly in the corridor, and the girl was dressed lightly, her ears red from the cold.
Mu Shuoqian remained silent and naturally did not reach out to take the meal box.
"Handsome, please, I beg you. You’re so good-looking, you won’t say no, right?" The girl forced the meal box into his hands and, like a rabbit, darted off. After getting some distance, she looked back at Mu Shuoqian and blew him a kiss.
Mu Shuoqian’s frown deepened as he stared at the small meal box in his hand and entered the final code to open the door.
Luo Shangqing’s research institute was spotless, befitting a doctor with a serious case of OCD.
Hearing the door open, he knew it was someone familiar and didn’t look up, focusing on the array of precision instruments before him.
A blood sample was placed in front of him, and only then Luo Shangqing looked up, "Why have you come?"
Luo Shangqing was aware that he was anxious for a liver donor, but such things often carriy the more you rush them. However, he couldn’t bear to spell out these realities and add to his despair.
"Test this blood type," Mu Shuoqian handed over the sample, "see if it’s compatible with Qiqi."