A Runaway Bride in a Substitute Marriage 40

With a soft creak, the door slowly swung open.

Even from the threshold, the thick, bitter scent of medicine hung in the air, mixed with a lingering metallic tang of blood that seemed to press down on the chest, making it hard to breathe.

Chen Yao pressed her lips together, then stepped inside, making her way slowly toward the bed.

Her gaze instinctively fell upon the figure lying there.

Xie Qingyan lay motionless, his eyes tightly shut. His face and lips were pale—bloodless and haggard, as if all life had drained from him.

Chen Yao pressed a hand to her mouth, her throat tightening. She blinked, and tears spilled down her cheeks.

It took a moment before she could draw a deep breath, biting her lower lip to hold back her sobs.

Then she silently sat on the edge of the bed, reached out, and carefully traced the back of his hand—where veins stood out against his sickly thinness—before gently covering it with her own.

"Xie Qingyan, you have to wake up."

Her voice was choked, her eyes red. "Otherwise, you're going to leave me a widow. I'll remarry, you know—I'll find someone a hundred times better than you, and I'll drive you mad even in your grave."

"And you can finally stop worrying about me not getting pregnant. Once you're gone, that problem in this household will just solve itself."

She rambled on for a while, purposely hurling harsh words.

As she turned to leave, she didn't notice the man behind her—his stiff fingers twitching ever so slightly, almost imperceptibly.

***

The next day, when Chen Yao heard that Xie Qingyan had already regained consciousness, the weight on her heart finally lifted.

Relieved, she couldn't help but think that he was indeed the male lead—even if that title no longer applied, his luck was certainly stubborn.

But the moment she stepped through the door, she heard Madam Xie's shrill, panicked voice for the first time.

"What did you say? The diagnosis must be wrong! Qingyan, how could he..." Madam Xie's voice trembled, full of incredulity and alarm. "How could he be unable to have children anymore?"

"Madam Xie, the arrow that struck the young master not only wounded his lungs and viscera, but also affected his..." Dr. Xue's voice trailed off, swallowing the rest of his sentence. "It may affect his ability to father children."

In the next breath, Madam Xie swayed, as if she could barely stand.

"Madam." Fortunately, her maid Xia-mo reacted quickly, reaching out to steady her.

Chen Yao paused briefly, something flickering in her eyes, but she continued silently toward the inner room.

As soon as she entered, her gaze met Xie Qingyan's from the bed.

His face was still pale, with faint dark circles under his eyes, looking exhausted—but far better than yesterday, when he lay there with eyes closed and no awareness at all.

As Chen Yao approached the bedside, Madam Xie, now steadied by the maid, looked up at her daughter-in-law and instinctively tightened her grip on the handkerchief in her hand.

She shot Dr. Xue a look, signaling him not to speak out of turn, though she wasn't sure if her earlier cry had been overheard by Chen Yao.

Finally, with a hint of awkwardness, she said, "Chen Yao, you're here."

Her manner was notably stiff, yet far gentler than before.

Chen Yao acknowledged with a soft hum, bowing slightly. "Mother."

"Then you should keep Qingyan company and talk with him. I'll go check on the medicinal brew in the kitchen and won't disturb you two."

With that, Madam Xie quickly turned and headed out, gesturing for Dr. Xue and the other servants to follow.

The door was gently shut, leaving only the two of them in the room.

Chen Yao smoothed her skirt and sat down at the edge of the bed. She blinked, watching Xie Qingyan stare at her as if about to speak.

She raised a hand. "You're badly injured, don't talk."

Leaning over, she carefully smoothed away the stray strands of hair from his forehead and pulled out her silk handkerchief to dab at the cold sweat on his temple.

"You look so useless," she muttered with a pout, but still reached out to touch his forehead with the back of her hand. "Good, no fever."

Xie Qingyan's long lashes fluttered slowly, his gaze fixed as if transfixed, his dark pupils filled with nothing but his wife's reflection, not moving away.

Finally, Chen Yao carefully slid her hand beneath his palm. Feeling the faint pressure of his grip, she let out a soft sigh.

"Get better soon," she said, tugging at the corner of her mouth, her voice flat. "Looks like we really don't have to worry about pregnancy anymore."

After all, neither of them could have children now—that was just fine.

Xie Qingyan looked at her, his eyes so tender they seemed to melt into spring water.

"System, how is this such a coincidence? Xie Qingyan gets injured this time, and he just happens to lose his fertility—could it be..."

Back in the west wing, Chen Yao trailed off uncertainly as she spoke to System 04.

"Does it matter? Whether it's true or false, or even if he planned it himself, it doesn't really matter to you," System 04 replied.

"Right, it doesn't matter," Chen Yao said, sitting at the round table and pouring herself a cup of plain water to sip. "It saves a lot of trouble."

"Fools trouble themselves," System 04 quoted, then narrowed its eyes suspiciously. "Host, you're not falling for someone in this world, are you? It feels like after your mission failed, you've been really letting loose."

Chen Yao rolled her eyes slightly, letting out an unhappy snort. "I call it immersive acting, okay?! Where exactly do you get the idea that I've fallen for Xie Qingyan? I'm just normally concerned for someone who's been good to me—that's basic human decency."

System 04 gave a noncommittal "oh." It figured its host was just being stubborn.

Still, since the host was going to spend a lifetime with him in this world, whether she loved him or not didn't really matter.

Besides, once she entered the next world, her memories would be automatically wiped anyway.

***

Not until Xie Qingyan finally recovered completely did the dark cloud hanging over the Xie household begin to lift.

After all, he had saved the Crown Prince and contributed greatly to flood control in Lingdong County, so his official rank naturally rose once more.

At a young age, Xie Qingyan was now a third-rank official serving the Crown Prince—truly a promising future.

Too bad...

"Too bad you can't have children. Otherwise, Miss Xue or Miss Wang—I'm sure Mother would have them lined up for you by now."

Chen Yao deliberately stepped a few paces away, turning her back with a cold snort.