The Stepmother’s Counterattack: Raising a Child in a Bygone Era
Chapter 400 - 399: Waiting for an Apology

Chapter 400: Chapter 399: Waiting for an Apology

"Who hurt you? Did you attempt suicide because of that person?"

Seeing that Zhong Qing remained silent, Shen Mingzhu hurriedly explained, "Qingqing, I don’t mean to pry into your privacy, I’m just worried about you, and I feel terrible for what you’ve been through. Whether as your friend or a fellow woman, I won’t stand by and let such a beast get away with it."

Hearing her anger, Zhong Qing instead took her hand and reassured in a weak voice, "Don’t be angry. Mingzhu, give me some time, I’ll handle everything. When the time comes, I’ll tell you everything without holding back."

Shen Mingzhu hesitated, "But in the meantime, will he hurt you again?"

"No, I will protect myself."

Zhong Qing was in much better shape than when she first woke up, her tone also radiated confidence and resolve.

But Shen Mingzhu was not relieved. On the contrary, she felt even more anxious.

"Qingqing, although I advocate revenge, the premise is that you don’t harm yourself. Don’t use extreme methods to sacrifice your life for such a person; it’s not worth it."

"There are many ways to punish the bad guys. We can use the weapon of the law to make him atone for his sins."

"Yeah, I know."

Shen Mingzhu wanted to add more words of caution, but the nanny came back at that time.

Shen Mingzhu had no choice but to swallow her words and change the subject.

In the evening, Chu Yuqing and Yan Su came to visit Zhong Qing at the hospital one after the other.

Yan Su didn’t ask much in the ward. After she and Shen Mingzhu left the hospital, she then asked about the reason behind Zhong Qing’s suicide attempt.

Shen Mingzhu couldn’t explain clearly, after all, she didn’t know who was behind the mistreatment of Zhong Qing.

Zhong Qing wanted to handle the matter herself, and Shen Mingzhu worried that talking about it might interfere with Zhong Qing’s plans.

So she simply said it was a bout of depression.

Yan Su had no suspicions since she herself had been a victim of depression and understood the pain of losing hope in life.

Before parting, the two made a plan.

They would contact Zhong Qing more often and accompany her through the tough times.

...

Chu Yuqing stood by the window, watching the intimate silhouette of Shen Mingzhu and Yan Su walking side by side, then turned her head and sneered at Zhong Qing:

"This Mrs. Pei is quite capable, managing to charm the Yan siblings to orbit around her without being obvious. Why haven’t you learned a trick or two?"

Zhong Qing retorted, "You yourself are a bad piece of bamboo, yet you expect me to be a good shoot. Don’t you find that laughable?"

Chu Yuqing’s face darkened, "What attitude is this? I am your mother."

"Oh, so you know your role? I thought you fancied yourself a madam."

Chu Yuqing was so angry she wanted to hit her, but then something seemed to cross her mind, and she reined in her rage.

"Yinyin is not like you, she will listen to me for sure."

This time, it was Zhong Qing’s turn to change color.

In disbelief, she stared at Chu Yuqing, "Are you even human? Yinyin is your own daughter! How can you not spare even her?"

Chu Yuqing looked at her, "So what? Aren’t you my own flesh and blood too?"

Actually, Zhong Qing knew very well that Chu Yuqing and Zhong Jiping wouldn’t necessarily harm Zhong Yin; they were just using her as a bargaining chip to threaten Zhong Qing.

But she couldn’t take the risk.

Even if there was only a one in ten million chance.

"Say it, what do you want me to do?"

Seeing her soften, Chu Yuqing smiled satisfactorily, "Since Shen Mingzhu isn’t up to the task, then we will switch to someone else. I’ve already selected a candidate, Shan Yi, the distant niece of Aunt Zhou. I will arrange for her to work at the pharmaceutical factory, the rest is up to you."

"As long as you do well, I naturally won’t lay a finger on Yinyin. Honestly, I can’t bear to. After all, Yinyin is truly a legitimate Miss of the Zhong Family, unlike you, born a lowlife."

Zhong Qing remained silent, but Chu Yuqing was relentless.

"Why aren’t you talking back now? Tsk tsk, you really think you’re something else, trying to save this one and protect that one. Do you think you can wash away your disgrace by doing these things?"

"Zhong Qing, let me tell you, as long as I live, you can forget about getting rid of me."

...

That night, as expected, Shen Mingzhu couldn’t sleep again.

Pei Yang thought she was worried about Zhong Qing, and to comfort her, he whispered, "Go to sleep. The Zhong family and the nurse are taking care of Zhong Qing. Nothing will go wrong."

Shen Mingzhu’s face was buried in his chest as she asked in a muffled voice, "Husband, what do you think of Mrs. Zhong?"

Shen Mingzhu had intended to tell Pei Yang the previous night that she suspected Chu Yuqing might have drugged her, but her conversation was interrupted by the call about Zhong Qing’s suicide attempt.

During the day at the hospital, she didn’t get the chance to bring it up.

Now she didn’t know how to say it; after all it was only her suspicion. She worried it would turn into another misunderstanding like with Yan Yi and cause unnecessary drama.

"Yan Yi said Qingqing suffers from severe depression. When I first met Qingqing, she told me her family was very strict with her, even forcibly meddling in her social interactions."

Pei Yang, holding her, said, "Us speculating here is useless. We can only help if Zhong Qing herself speaks up."

That’s true.

"Sleep now. You didn’t get any last night, and you’re starting to get dark circles."

Hearing him say so, Shen Mingzhu hurriedly closed her eyes.

Pei Yang gazed down at her palm-sized, delicate face, as if he could never tire of looking at her, the tenderness in his eyes almost spilling over.

...

Early the next morning, Shen Mingzhu took a packed breakfast and went to the hospital to visit Zhong Qing.

Pei Yang rode his motorcycle to drop her off at the hospital’s entrance.

When she got off, Shen Mingzhu thought it over and decided to give the man a heads up.

"After I see Qingqing, I’m going to stop by Yan Yi’s place."

Pei Yang sharply turned his head, "What for?"

"Just to talk about something. I’ll come back right after."

Shen Mingzhu hadn’t told Pei Yang about Zhong Qing being abused; naturally, she couldn’t mention her misunderstanding of Yan Yi as the abusive freak. Today, she especially wanted to apologize.

"I’ll go with you."

"No need, you go to the factory. It’s just a few words. I’ll be back soon."

"If it’s just a few words, why not say it over the phone?"

"It’s not convenient over the phone."

Yan Yi had helped her a lot, and instead of thanking him, she mistakenly thought he was a pervert. She felt she owed him an apology, so a face-to-face meeting seemed more sincere.

"Why isn’t it convenient?"

Shen Mingzhu, getting a bit impatient, pushed him forward, "Oh, just go to work. You’re going to miss the morning meeting."

Pei Yang checked his watch and then mounted his motorcycle, leaving reluctantly.

After a chat with Zhong Qing, and seeing the time was right, Shen Mingzhu excused herself to go to Yan Yi’s workplace, but as she stepped out of the inpatient department, she ran into Yan Jun.

He was dressed in a dark grey woolen overcoat, with a scarf in a matching plaid pattern wrapped around his neck, and his hands were buried in his coat pockets, standing tall and straight in front of a blooming red plum tree, rather eye-catching.

Shen Mingzhu mused that once she had some money on hand, she would also get her man a suit like that.

She walked over to greet him, "Dr. Yan, are you waiting for someone?"

Yan Yi turned to her, his face slightly red from the cold, and with a sarcastic tone, said, "Waiting for an apology."

Shen Mingzhu suddenly felt embarrassed, "Why didn’t you go upstairs? It’s freezing outside."

Yan Yi sniffled and chuckled, "Probably because I care about my reputation. It’s the first time in my life someone has mistaken me for a pervert. It’s kind of embarrassing."