"Does everything look okay?" he asked finally.
She nodded, a small gasp leaving her mouth as if she couldn't believe it herself.
"Looks like we're stuck together for the better part of fifty to sixty years," Mo Qingchen said lightly.
She turned to him with a little glare. "Are you complaining?" she asked.
Mo Qingchen shrugged. "You're a handful already. I'm imagining decades of this and wondering if it would be entertaining or horrifying." He was joking but to Qian Meng who didn't have a good image of marriage, it was almost ominous.
She gulped. "I mean… you could initiate a separation at any time… If I get on your nerves. You can afford to lose the house," she said quietly.
Mo Qingchen stared at her. "You have very little faith in yourself," he noticed. "I knew it to an extent, but it seems to be a chronic disease." He didn't know what more to say.
Qian Meng shrugged. "Your reports? Does it hide some deep, dark secret?" she teased, trying to lighten the mood.
"As healthy as a human can be," he commented blandly. Qian Meng's hand gripped his bicep and squeezed it tightly.
"Looks like it. You're built like a stud," she snickered.
Mo Qingchen glared. "That doesn't count as a compliment. But I am as big as one," he said softly for her benefit. She choked on her breath and stared stupidly as he took the reports from her hands and arranged them once again. "I'll put these in the safe at home." He paused. "Just see Mr. Bai once. I met the police downstairs and they wanted to talk to you and Mr. Bai's lawyer," he informed her.
"Why didn't you tell me until now?" she gasped and shot up to her feet.
"You were on the call when I arrived and then I had to show you the reports. I thought it more important. From the looks of it, it is something related to Bai Ye Qing and his shrew of a mother, Chen Yue. It's not important." He waved it away like it was nothing.
Qian Meng sighed. "As much as I want to ignore them, I do have to listen to them. Mr. Bai is particularly soft when it comes to his family. Bai Ye Qing might have tried to kill him, but he still thinks of that monster as his son." She shook her head in disbelief.
"Miss Yun?" someone called her. Her head shot towards the direction and she saw a nurse looking at her with a sense of urgency.
"Yes? Is he awake?" she asked.
The nurse nodded. "The patient is looking for you," the nurse said calmly. Qian Meng nodded and followed her gingerly.
Mo Qingchen picked up her laptop and papers and tucked them under his arm before following her.
He slid the door closed after him and found Qian Meng sitting beside Mr. Bai's bed, his hand clutched in hers.
"How do you feel?" she asked softly.
Mr. Bai tried to gulp and winced at the feeling of his throat burning. "Wat—" he couldn't finish the words, his throat itching dryly.
Qian Meng looked at the nurse helplessly.
"The doctor has ordered no intake of fluids or solids at the moment. I can bring in ice chips to wet the throat, though." She looked at Mr. Bai for his thoughts.
He simply nodded and tried to clear his throat. She spoke to the guards waiting outside the room before walking away.
"Don't try to speak yet," Qian Meng advised. "Your throat will hurt even more if you try to speak," she said softly.
Mr. Bai made a small noise of agreement. The ice chips were brought and Qian Meng helped Mr. Bai in this aspect. She pressed the chips to his lips lightly so that bits of water could reach his throat. After a few minutes of this, Mr. Bai could finally muster some words.
"What about them?" he asked. He had not seen Chen Yue come in. At all. She was his wife. Even if she didn't have legal guardianship of him in this situation, he had excepted her to at least visit.
Qian Meng's shoulder dropped. "Bai Ye Qing is in police custody. And your wife was taken arrested because she assaulted a police officer, resisted arrest, and tried to obstruct justice." She could only break the news to him like this. There was no reason to mince words.
"At least she will protect her child until the very end," he said. He closed his eyes briefly. "I am sure the police want to talk to me," he said.
"They do," Mo Qingchen said finally. "While you were unconscious, they called on Qian Meng. When you are ready to meet them, we can oversee a discussion with them."
Mo Qingchen hadn't liked this man much in the very beginning because of whose family he was. But seeing this man on the bed, trying to put away the man who could have killed Qian Meng… he couldn't help but be relieved.
Relieved that it wasn't Qian Meng on that bed. Relieved that she wasn't dead. Relieved that this time, she had more people playing on her side. Her chessboard was adorned with powerful pieces who would help her with all their might.
This was what she deserved.
Bai Yu was oddly calm when the police came in.
The officer-in-charge had made the trip himself. "Mr. Bai, I'm glad to see that you are doing better," he said. It was good for him that the person they had wired was relatively well. He was already getting reprimanded by all levels of superiors for the scenario. But how could he tell them that they had caught the perpetrator red-handed?
Thank god, Bai Yu was alive.
"I'm sure," Bai Yu replied with a slight smile.
"We have already submitted all the evidence. But we have a question for you… I know it's bothersome, but I must ask you," the officer sucked in a deep breath.