Chapter 215: Schadenfreude
Chapter 215
An Zhiren was taken aback by her audacity. "I didn't take you for a fool, but it seems you've taken me for one."
A scream of despair echoed from the room, unmasked and startling enough to make the neighbors shudder in fear.
From behind the tightly shut door, a faint cry of a baby emerged, barely audible.
An Zhiren was startled and quickly released Wang Caixiang, heading towards the room.
"Don't go..." Wang Caixiang lunged forward, attempting to grab his leg, but he kicked her away, landing a fierce blow to her chest.
As he approached, the sound of the baby grew clearer, but the room was locked.
An Zhiren glanced around, finding nothing within reach. He took a step back and forcefully kicked the door open.
At the moment the door swung open, the faint cry of the baby came from the cupboard.
He quickly opened the cupboard and saw the tiny child, eyes closed and face red from crying.
An Zhiren finally breathed a sigh of relief, carrying the child out of the cupboard and heading outside.
"You can't leave, An Zhiren! You've cornered me with no way out. You can't leave..." Wang Caixiang pointed the bloodstained scissors at him. "If you won't give me a way out, then let's die together. None of us will live!"
Although An Zhiren appeared refined and gentle, his grandfather had served in the military, and he had learned a few moves from his brothers.
As he stepped out, he noticed a crowd of neighbors gathered outside, trying to catch a glimpse of what had happened.
An Zhiren discreetly glanced at the room and feigned weakness. "Could someone please do me a favor and go to the police station to report? Wang Caixiang conspired with the nurses at the hospital and stole my sister's newborn baby. And now she wants to kill us with scissors..."
He held the baby in his arms, who had stopped crying, but blood continued to flow from his chest, staining his clothes.
When Pei Jinglai arrived, the police had already taken Wang Caixiang away, and An Zhiren had received basic first aid. He was about to be taken to the hospital.
He held the child in his arms and looked at the tiny bundle, wrapped in layers of blankets, weighing less than four catties, as if not fully developed, with wrinkled, reddened skin resembling that of an old man.
...
Zhi Xia was awakened by the noise. Wang Yue's loud voice, without any restraint, couldn't be heard clearly in her drowsiness.
Just as she regained consciousness, she heard Zhou Nan mentioning her. "Lower your voice, Zhi Xia is still asleep. She's weak, don't disturb her."
She wearily opened her eyes to find everyone in the room, including the main and second branches of the Pei family.
But as she scanned the room, she didn't see Pei Jinglai's figure.
Feeling somewhat disappointed was unavoidable.
Zhou Nan was the first to notice her and quickly approached. "Zhi Xia, you're awake? How are you feeling? Is there any discomfort?"
Zhi Xia shook her head, looking at Zhou Nan's teary eyes with a sense of confusion. "What happened? Did something go wrong?"
She had simply been too weak from giving birth and had slept for a while. There shouldn't have been any issues, right?
As Zhou Nan looked around the room, it was evident that everyone had been crying. Their faces were somber and filled with sorrow, not a single smile among them.
Suddenly, Zhi Xia realized, "Where is the child? Is there something wrong with the child?"
"No, no, everything is fine. Don't worry, Mom is just too worried about you." How could they explain? Their daughter risked her life in the delivery room to give birth to three children, and they, a group of people standing outside, couldn't quietly swap the babies away.
Until now, they didn't know whether the child was alive or dead, or if they could even find them again.
"Oh, sister-in-law, I don't think you should keep it from Zhi Xia. She will find out sooner or later. You can't hide it from her," Wang Yue said with a sad face, but the gloating in her eyes couldn't be concealed. "Zhi Xia, whether or not the child can be found, don't be too sad. They say multiple births often come with complications. At least you still have two healthy children."
"Wang Yue, get out! My daughter doesn't need you to visit!" Zhou Nan's face turned grim as she looked at the woman in front of her, clearly harboring ill intentions.
Pei JianGuo also came over to pull Wang Yue away. "Mom, at this critical moment, can you please say a little less?"
Their attitudes were different. Although they both disliked Zhi Xia, they had lost his younger uncle's child, and Pei JianGuo sincerely hoped the child could be found.
It was at this moment that he suddenly didn't feel so repulsed by Zhi Xia.
People always subconsciously sympathize with the weak, and he arrogantly thought that Zhi Xia was pitiable.
Old Pei also came over to ask Wang Yue to leave first, but he was deeply disappointed inside.
Wang Yue had some flaws in the past, but Old Pei believed that nobody was perfect as long as they had a good heart.
But she was also a woman, a mother. Could she not understand how painful it would be for a woman who had just given birth to lose her child? Why did she have to say these things at this moment? Did she really think everyone was foolish and couldn't see her gloating?
Although the others didn't say anything, their faces remained solemn.
Wang Yue also realized that she had been too obvious in her behavior and left in a huff.
Forget it, considering how pitiful she is, I won't argue with them for now. Let her have her way for the time being.
She, An Zhi Xia, just wanted to show off that she could give birth, one litter after another, like a pig. Such excessive attention always leads to trouble. Look, now she's facing the consequences, isn't she?
Wang Yue had always treated Old Pei's house as her son's, and Pei Jing had made it clear in the past that he had no intention of getting married.
But ever since An Zhi Xia came and gave birth to twins, she had felt a deep sense of crisis.
And now, the old man wanted to donate the house, and no one could lay claim to it.
Although the duck hadn't been caught yet, it had always been considered hers, and now it suddenly flew away. It was definitely heart-wrenching.
"Now can you tell me what happened?" In the hospital room, Zhi Xia opened her eyes wide and refused to let go of their expressions. "Don't lie to me under the guise of doing me a favor. Whether it's about the child or myself, I want to hear the truth."
After much contemplation, the old lady finally told Zhi Xia the truth.
As Wang Yue had predicted, it was only a matter of time before the truth came out. For now, they could only hope that Pei Jing and the others would be able to bring the child back.
Pei Jing was brought back by An ZhiXian. An Zhiren had been taken to deal with his chest wound and the excessive blood loss.
Upon arriving at the hospital, An ZhiXian went to explain the situation to the police. Fortunately, Liu Jun was among the people who came, so there was no need to worry about anything.
Pei Jing hurried back with the child in his arms and immediately saw his sister-in-law, Wang Yue, standing at the door with a bright smile on her face.
However, as soon as Wang Yue saw Pei Jing, her smile quickly faded.
Without much time to think, Pei Jing carried the child into the room and saw Zhi Xia, who was already awake and sitting on the bed.
He quickly handed the child over and in the face of everyone's barrage of questions, he knew that Zhi Xia had also found out, so he quickly gave a brief response, "It was done by Wang Caixiang. When my brother went to look for her, the child was hidden in a cabinet in the house."
"It's good that you found the child, it's good that you found the child. May God bless us..." Grandma clasped her hands together and bowed in all directions before suddenly remembering something and quickly letting go.
Zhou Nan was also very relieved, but when she saw the child, she still froze for a moment.