Shi Jinsong spoke, his gaze falling on the drip bag tube beside him.
"Xinxin, it's Dad's fault," Shi Jinsong said, filled with guilt. "If it weren't for me, you wouldn't have had to marry Lu Mingyu."
"Who is Lu Mingyu?" Shi Xinxin asked, confused. "Did he bully you? Why does he insist I marry him?"
Shi Jinsong closed his eyes and sighed, "Alas..."
"Dad, can you tell me what happened?" Shi Xinxin asked. "If you don't explain clearly, I'll keep worrying."
Shi Jinsong opened his eyes, looked at Shi Xinxin, and said earnestly, "Xinxin, I'm not actually sick. I'm just pretending to be at death's door to trick that Lu Mingyu."
"What?" Shi Xinxin looked at Shi Jinsong in shock. "Dad, you... you're not sick?"
"Of course, I'm not sick," Shi Jinsong affirmed. "We didn't have a car accident at all. We just decided to advance our plan to make Lu Mingyu let down his guard, kill him, and take back the company."
"But..." Shi Xinxin still felt something was amiss. "But I saw you faint with my own eyes."
"Xinxin," Shi Jinsong sighed lightly. "I'm old and can't stand much trouble. I can only pretend to be unconscious like this to paralyze Lu Mingyu and make him drop his guard."
"So that's how it is..." Shi Xinxin said with sudden realization. "No wonder I dreamed of you two in a car accident. I thought I was just too scared."
"Mm," Shi Jinsong looked at Shi Xinxin with satisfaction. "Xinxin, thank you for taking care of us."
Shi Xinxin pouted, suddenly feeling a surge of emotion.
She had thought she would live alone forever, but she never expected Shi Jinsong and Shen Manrong to be alive.
"Xinxin?" Shi Jinsong called out, seeing Shi Xinxin lost in thought.
"Hmm?" Shi Xinxin came back to her senses and looked up. "Dad, Mom, are you hungry?"
Shi Jinsong and Shen Manrong both shook their heads.
"Xinxin, you haven't eaten properly these past few days. Go eat something," Shi Jinsong said. "And take your medicine too."
Shi Xinxin hesitated and bit her lip. Although she wanted to stay and be with her parents, she nodded obediently. "Okay."
"Dad, Mom, I'm leaving. You both rest well."
"Okay."
"Knock, knock, knock!" There was a knock on the door.
"Come in," Shi Xinxin replied, looking at the nurse who pushed the door open.
The nurse smiled politely at Shi Xinxin, then turned and placed the insulated lunch box on the table, opened it, and served a bowl of porridge to Shi Xinxin. "This is the fish bone porridge I made. Drink it while it's hot."
Shi Xinxin took the porridge. "Thank you."
After the nurse left, Shi Xinxin sat on a chair, picked up the bowl, and took a sip. It tasted delicious.
"Dad, Mom, I'm going to take a bath. I'll come see you again tomorrow morning."
As Shi Xinxin stood up, the bowl in her hand suddenly slipped and spilled all over the floor.
"Xinxin!" Shi Jinsong exclaimed.
"What's wrong?" Shi Xinxin was stunned and crouched down to pick up the bowl.
Shi Jinsong pointed at the bowl on the floor. "Xinxin, my glasses are broken. Can you help me put them on?"
Shi Xinxin quickly bent down to put on Shi Jinsong's glasses.
"Xinxin, hurry up and take a bath," Shi Jinsong urged. "You haven't slept for two days."
"Oh," Shi Xinxin nodded, stood up, and walked towards the bathroom.
Shi Jinsong watched the direction Shi Xinxin left, sighed helplessly, his heart filled with guilt and pain, his eyes turning red.
Shen Manrong noticed Shi Jinsong's abnormality and gently held his hand.
"Wife," Shi Jinsong took a deep breath. "I truly have no face to live in this world anymore."
"Don't talk nonsense," Shen Manrong glared at Shi Jinsong. "Aren't we fine now? Don't worry about it."
"I'm sorry," Shi Jinsong said with shame. "It's my fault that Xinxin had to suffer."
"It's not your fault. Our Xinxin is a good child. She shouldn't have to go through this," Shen Manrong stroked Shi Jinsong's pale cheek and comforted him. "Don't be sad. I think Xinxin will get over it soon."
"I hope so," Shi Jinsong sighed. "Xinxin was spoiled since she was little. Her personality is too stubborn, and she doesn't know how to adapt."
Shi Jinsong paused and continued, "When Xinxin grows up, we must educate her. Girls should be like flowers, beautiful, cute, and kind, not like boys all day, always causing trouble, even fighting with the Lu family."
"You, you're just biased towards Xinxin. I'm telling you, Xinxin is your most precious daughter. You are not allowed to bully her," Shen Manrong warned.
"How could I bear to bully her?" Shi Jinsong sighed. "Xinxin has never been hurt much since she was little. This time, I dragged her down. If I hadn't taken her to Grandpa Lu's birthday banquet, or if I had insisted on stopping Lu Mingyu from marrying Xinxin, Xinxin wouldn't have encountered this."
"Oh, don't think about it so much," Shen Manrong advised. "Anyway, Xinxin and Lu Mingyu are not suitable for each other. Our Xinxin deserves someone better to cherish her."
"But our Xinxin is so excellent, what should we do?" Shi Jinsong looked troubled. "Are we going to find someone worse than Xinxin?"
"That's not necessary," Shen Manrong said. "You also know Lu Mingyu. He's been rich since he was a child, and his family background is good. He's more than enough for Xinxin."
"That's true," Shi Jinsong nodded in agreement. "Although Lu Mingyu is a bit of a scoundrel, he's rich."
"So, our Xinxin doesn't need to worry. We just need to find a rich second generation," Shen Manrong joked. "You'll have to screen them carefully then. Don't just casually find a poor guy for our Xinxin."
"Hahaha..." Shi Jinsong burst into laughter. "Do you look down on your husband that much?"
"How dare I look down on you?" Shen Manrong said with a playful glare. "I'm just worried about our Xinxin!"
Shi Xinxin lay in bed, her mind replaying the scene of Lu Mingyu kissing her that night.
She abruptly turned over, hugged herself, and curled up in a corner of the bed, trembling.
The next day, Shi Xinxin woke up, rubbed her sleepy eyes, put on her slippers, and walked to the window. She pulled back the curtains. Outside, the sun was shining brightly, and birds were singing.
The dream from last night flooded her mind again—
Shi Xinxin was so scared that she quickly covered her ears, ran into the bathroom, and desperately patted her chest. "It won't happen, it won't happen. It's all a dream, just a dream..."
"Shi Xinxin, you're awake?" Shi Jinsong's voice came into the bathroom.
Shi Xinxin leaned against the wall, closed her eyes, and tried to calm her emotions.
No matter how real the nightmare was, it was still just a dream.
After Shi Xinxin finished her bath and changed, she went downstairs. Only Shi Jinsong was in the living room.
"Where's Xinxin?" Shen Manrong asked.
"Xinxin is still sleeping," Shi Jinsong said. "I told her to rest a bit longer."