The 1970s: Married First, Fell in Love Later-Chapter 192 - 191: It Still Came to This

When Xue Yue and He Lang heard the news and rushed to the hospital, they saw Xue Xingzhou and Zhang Qian sitting on a bench outside the operating room.

Zhang Qian looked unwell, and Xue Xingzhou was gently rubbing her back.

"Brother, what’s wrong with her?"

Zhang Qian shook her head, her eyes red. "I’m fine. I just got so worried that I couldn’t catch my breath."

Xue Yue turned to look toward the operating room. "How is Uncle Zheng?"

Xue Xingzhou said, "He’s still in surgery."

Just then, the door to the operating room opened, and a nurse emerged.

"Which of you are family to Zheng Guofeng?"

Xue Xingzhou and the others all replied in unison, "We are."

The nurse looked at them. "The patient has lost a lot of blood, and the hospital’s blood bank is running low. Who here has type A blood? Also, immediate family members cannot donate."

Xue Yue and He Lang glanced at each other. Neither of them knew their own blood type.

Xue Xingzhou was an immediate family member, and Zhang Qian was pregnant.

Xue Yue stepped forward. "Nurse, we don’t know our blood types."

The nurse looked at them. "Hurry, follow me."

He Lang had type A blood, so in the end, he donated 400 milliliters of blood to Zheng Guofeng.

Xue Yue looked at He Lang with concern. "Are you okay? Do you feel dizzy?"

He Lang shook his head. "I’m fine. I’m a grown man; they could’ve taken another bag and I’d still be okay."

Still, Xue Yue helped him over to the bench by the door and sat him down, then resumed her anxious wait.

When Zheng Guofeng was wheeled out, he was attached to an IV and still unconscious.

"The surgery was a success. The patient should wake up sometime tonight. When he does, don’t give him anything to eat."

Xue Xingzhou nodded. "Alright. Thank you, Doctor."

Once inside the hospital room, they all breathed a sigh of relief at the sight of Zheng Guofeng’s pale face.

Only then did they begin to talk about what had happened to Zheng Guofeng.

Xue Yue had been utterly shocked when she first heard the news. Who would try to kill someone in broad daylight right outside their work unit?

"The security guard at the entrance saw it. He said it was a woman, probably an acquaintance. His work unit has already reported it to the police. For now, all we can do is wait for my dad to wake up so we can ask him," Xue Xingzhou said.

The words "my dad" slipped so easily from Xue Xingzhou’s lips, causing both Zhang Qian and Xue Yue to turn and look at him. Xue Xingzhou pursed his lips.

"A woman? Could it be Li Wanqing?" Xue Yue’s first thought was of Li Wanqing.

Xue Xingzhou narrowed his eyes. ’It’s certainly possible.’

The police came by once during this time. They said they needed to take a statement, but since Zheng Guofeng was still unconscious, they could only say they would return the next day.

As the Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Commerce, Zheng Guofeng was attacked during a critical period of cooperation with foreign investors. The higher-ups were taking this matter very seriously. Being stabbed in broad daylight right outside his work unit was no longer a private affair. The police even suspected it might have been the work of a spy.

That evening, only Xue Xingzhou remained at the hospital to watch over Zheng Guofeng, who was still unconscious.

Zhang Qian was pregnant and He Lang had just donated blood, so Xue Yue took them both home.

Xue Yue was worried about Zhang Qian going home alone, so she had her stay over. She even asked Aunt Ge to go out and buy a chicken, thinking she should make something nourishing for both of them, since He Lang had given blood.

Zheng Guofeng woke up before midnight. The first thing he saw upon opening his eyes was Xue Xingzhou, sitting by his bed and watching him.

"Dad, you’re awake. How are you feeling?"

Zheng Guofeng looked at Xue Xingzhou, still a bit dazed.

’Did that boy just call me Dad?’

Seeing Zheng Guofeng’s stunned expression, Xue Xingzhou hurried to get the doctor.

The doctor came in and gave him a thorough checkup. "He’s fine. No fever. There are still two IV bags left. Don’t give him anything to eat."

"Okay."

After the doctor left, Xue Xingzhou turned back to Zheng Guofeng and found him still staring. ’Of course he’s happy because he heard me call him Dad,’ Xue Xingzhou thought. ’Hmm... it wasn’t actually that hard to say. For someone who’s lived two lives, I guess I was being a little melodramatic before.’

Xue Xingzhou glanced at the IV needle in Zheng Guofeng’s hand and slowly sat down on the edge of the bed.

He asked softly, "Do you remember who hurt you?"

At the mention of this, Zheng Guofeng’s eyelids drooped.

After a moment, he answered in a somewhat hoarse voice, "Li Wanqing."

’So it was her.’

’First Wang Shumin commits suicide by jumping off a building, and now Li Wanqing attacks someone.’ Xue Xingzhou guessed something must have happened to the Wang family. ’But for Li Wanqing to do something like this... she’s clearly digging her own grave.’

The next morning, just after Xue Yue and the others arrived at the hospital, the police returned.

Zheng Guofeng gave his statement, and the police asked a few more questions. He told them everything he could, but he omitted what Li Wanqing had screamed during her breakdown outside the work unit the day before.

That same morning, the police department issued a wanted notice for Li Wanqing. Her sketch was posted all over the streets.

Xue Yue found it hard to believe. Li Wanqing had always seemed so shrewd; how could she have ended up in this situation?

No one could have guessed that Li Wanqing had actually returned to her old home. Ever since Wang Tianzhu’s incident, the house had been affixed with official seals. Li Wanqing had simply torn them off and gone inside.

She was huddled in a corner of the room, arms wrapped tightly around herself, her gaze vacant.

The police soon traced her there. Because the higher-ups were pressing the case, Li Wanqing’s former address was naturally on the list of places to investigate.

Seeing the torn seals on the door, they were certain Li Wanqing was inside. Since she had already attacked someone, the police drew their guns.

But when they found Li Wanqing in a corner of the room, she was already dead.

Her entire body was curled into a fetal position. And just like that, her tormented life came to an end.

Zheng Guofeng received the news from the police while he was still in the hospital.

"She’s dead?"

Xue Xingzhou nodded. "Yes. She tore the official seals on the Wang family’s door."

Zheng Guofeng fell silent.

’I’ve always wanted to know what really happened between Li Wanyi and Li Wanqing back then. Did Li Wanyi leave so decisively because of me, or did Li Wanqing do something to cause it? But now, all of it is a secret. I’ll never have the chance to find out.’

"Xiao Zheng, these are my two daughters. This is Wanyi, your fiancée, and this is her younger sister, Wanqing."

Zheng Guofeng still remembered the words Uncle Li had spoken to him the first time he visited the Li Family.

The two sisters had looked so much alike back then. But Wanyi was gentle and graceful, the very picture of a well-bred lady, while Li Wanqing was mischievous and clever. She used to buzz around them every day, constantly calling out, "Sister! Brother Zheng!"

’But now, both sisters are gone.’ Zheng Guofeng closed his eyes.

With Li Wanqing dead, the police closed the case on Zheng Guofeng’s attack.

Zheng Guofeng spent over a week in the hospital before he was brought home to recuperate. He wouldn’t be able to return to work for a while. Meanwhile, Zhang Qian was approaching her due date, so she had already taken leave from school.

Xue Xingzhou hired a caregiver to look after them, finding a woman who lived nearby.