718 A Life Exchange

"S-Surrogate?" Zhao Huan stuttered as she looked at her husband with a confused look.

"You didn't tell her yet?" asked Xiu. She had expected this to be revealed by the time she woke up. How come these people love to drag things out for so long?

Xin Zemin shook his head, "I was waiting for you to wake up first. I thought it'd be better to clear it up to you all at once."

Zhao Huan held his hand as her heart thumped wildly, "What is going on?"

Xin Zemin patted her hand and said, "I told you, I never had any relation with Carina Novell. And if this girl's DNA matched with mine then there is only one possibility; Wen Ai lied to me back then!"

Finally, Zimen's steps faltered as he closed his eyes. He had long been suspecting that his wife was involved. How was it possible that such a big mess was created and his wife wasn't even involved in it?! Her favorite hobby was to create troubles!

Xin Zemin looked at Xiu and continued, "She is not Carina and my daughter, she's ours. Yours and mine! She is our daughter!"

Zhao Huan's mind blanked out as her eyes slowly shifted towards Xiu. The latter however looked very calm after hearing this. It wasn't as shocking or surprising to Xiu as it was to the rest of the people surrounding her.

Zhao Huan rubbed her forehead as she said, "I don't get it. If she is our daughter, how come I didn't know anything about it?"

"It's Wen Ai we are talking about. If she wants she can conceal anything. She can make anything happen. It shouldn't be a surprise to you that she managed to do such a thing behind your back."

Zhao Huan couldn't disagree with her husband's words. How could she possibly forget what that sister-in-law of hers was like?

Xin Zemin suddenly took a step back and picked up a briefcase he had asked his assistant to bring this morning. When he opened it, he showed all the reports of Carina Novell during her pregnancy. "I only met Carina Novell once and that was when Wen Ai told me about her plan. Because of the constant miscarriages, you're already very down. But when the doctors said you will never be able to conceive again, I watched you break down completely. Obviously, Wen Ai saw your condition as well. I don't know since when had she planned the whole process of IVF but when I met Carina Novell, Wen Ai already had everything laid out."

He took a pause and went on, "I couldn't refuse it. You only wanted a child. I knew we'd be alright without one but you insisted that it wasn't alright. So, I really couldn't refuse this tempting offer she laid out before me. The only condition she gave me was that I was not supposed to share it with you until the baby was born healthy. I'm not sure why she had that condition but I gave in."

He looked up at Zimen whose nails had already dug through his palms, "It was the night Xiulin died... I thought our newborn baby also died in that accident. Because Wen Ai never told me if she was alive or dead."

Zhao Huan covered her mouth, her eyes widened as she recalled something, "So... Xiulin died because Wen Ai was trying to save our daughter?"

"Thump!"

Everyone was startled as Zimen ended up punching the wall behind him.

"Dad!"

Both Xiao Li and Ah-Si rushed over to his side as they saw his hand bleeding. Xin Zimen didn't even feel the pain in his hand, the pain he felt in his heart was overwhelming enough to overshadow such a superficial pain. He already knew that Wen Ai had chosen to save someone else that night instead of their own daughter but hearing it again in this way hurt even more.

Xin Zemin looked at his younger brother and said regretfully, "Little brother, I really didn't know it. For years I thought we both lost our daughters that night. Your wife never told me that she saved one."

This was something even Xiu wasn't very clear about but seeing Xin Zimen face, she felt her heart clenching. She had never seen him on the verge of breaking down. 

"Dad, let's clean up your wound," said Xiao Li but Xin Zimen waved him off.

"It doesn't hurt," he replied in a hoarse voice. 

Suddenly his hand was held by a pair of soft hands and his eyes looked up at Xiu had come to his side and was looking at his hand bleeding with a frown between her brows.

"Let's clean it up, huh?" When Xin Zimen stayed there in silence, Xiu felt apprehensive, "Do you hate me now?"

"What?"

"Since your daughter's life had to be exchanged for mine, you must hate me now?" 

Xin Zimen flicked her forehead saying, "Don't run off that mouth without thinking. No matter how much it hurts, I'd never blame you for it." He placed his hand on her head and added, "And I can never hate you, little lass!"

Xiu felt her eyes sting and hugged him tightly as she said, "I'm sorry!"

"For what?"

"For bringing so much trouble with me," replied Xiu.