Beg Me to Remarry
Chapter 380: Unforeseen Events

Chapter 380: Chapter 380: Unforeseen Events

Being young and impulsive, Xia Cheng couldn’t keep his cool and blurted out first, "Dad, what else is there to ask? Of course, it’s for that reason. No one is stupid enough to pass up on a young person and go after an old man instead."

Xia Ning had been contemplating how to defuse the awkward tension, but to her surprise, Xia Cheng had just dug his own grave. She could only lament for Xia Cheng in her heart for a second—okay, even if He Xing wasn’t here, she definitely wouldn’t bother with Xia Cheng, but with He Xing present, she felt embarrassed by the dog-eat-dog behavior of her father and brother.

Meanwhile, Xia Guoxiong’s chest heaved violently with anger, his face changing colors like a performance of Bian Lian—turning bright red one moment, then purple, then pale blue, and finally, stark white.

Pointing at Xia Cheng, he was so furious that he couldn’t even utter a complete sentence, "You... you ungrateful scoundrel, my... my money... you won’t get a cent of... of my money... don’t even think about..."

Before he could finish his words, his head slumped to the side, and he slid off the chair, unconscious.

Xia Cheng, who had been steeling himself against Xia Guoxiong’s pressure, had intended to retort that all Xia Guoxiong knew was to use money to threaten him, but before he could speak out, Xia Guoxiong had already collapsed to the floor.

The ward erupted into chaos. Xia Cheng and Xia Ning rushed toward Xia Guoxiong, frantically calling his name, but nobody remembered to seek a doctor.

The scene took Qin Nuan by surprise as well, her face turning deathly pale as she sat frozen in her chair, unable to even cry out.

On the contrary, He Xing was the first to rush out. In less than a minute, several doctors and nurses entered the room.

"Back away, quickly move back, crowding around the patient will affect his breathing," the doctor ordered as he pressed on Xia Guoxiong’s chest and shouted at the siblings, Xia Cheng and Xia Ning, urging them to step backward.

He Xing hurried to open the door and the windows, letting the autumn wind blow in immediately.

After several rounds of pressing, Xia Guoxiong’s breathing finally stabilized, although he remained unconscious. At that moment, nurses came in with a stretcher and took Xia Guoxiong away.

In the blink of an eye, only He Xing, Xia Ning, Xia Cheng, and Qin Nuan were left in the ward. He Xing instructed Liang Tao to follow Xia Guoxiong and to call immediately with any news.

Xia Ning slumped onto the floor like a heap of clay. Usually so fastidious about cleanliness, she was now oblivious to how dirty the ground was and how many people had walked over it with their shoes on.

Her large eyes, devoid of any sparkle, aimlessly wandered before finally fixating on He Xing like grasping at a lifeline, "He Xing, brother, Dad... Dad will be okay, won’t he? Won’t he?"

He Xing looked at the now tear-streaked Xia Ning, who had cried off her makeup, and for the first time, he deemed her beautiful, alive with flesh and blood and emotions—not the porcelain doll confined within a glass cabinet.

Time seemed to fold in on itself as he saw Du Wanting lying in a pool of blood, her eyes closed, while little Xiaoning knelt in front of her, sobbing uncontrollably, her shoulders heaving.

This was not He Xing’s imagination; it was a real event from the past.

The day Du Wanting saved his life, when the police came to process the scene, Xia Guoxiong had brought the siblings, Xia Cheng and Xia Ning, who knew they had lost their mother and cried with heartbreaking sadness.

Little He Xing stood not far away, watching their tears. He wanted to cry too, but he knew that Du Wanting died saving him, so he couldn’t cry. He resolved silently to protect Xia Cheng and Xia Ning in place of their mother in the future.

A life-saving favor could only truly be repaid with a life itself. How else could one possibly pay it back?

So, over the years, whether it was various dealings within the Xia Group or the wanton behavior of Xia Cheng and Xia Ning, He Xing had turned a blind eye as much as he could.

Now, however, He Xing suddenly felt he hadn’t done enough. Living with the life owed to Du Wanting, he should bear responsibility for what Xia Cheng and Xia Ning had become—for not properly guiding them as Du Wanting would have. If only he had invested more of himself in them, maybe things would be different now.

He Xing walked over to Xia Ning, crouching down to meet her at eye level, and firmly grasped her shoulders, assuring her with a determined gaze, "Xiaoning, don’t worry, Uncle Xia will definitely be fine."

"Really?" Xia Ning’s tears ceased, but her large eyes were still brimming with them, "He Xing, brother, are you telling the truth?"

He Xing’s own nose turned sour, and he nodded vigorously, as if to reassure Xia Ning, and himself as well, "I promise you, I will do everything I can, and I absolutely won’t let him come to harm."

With a loud sob, Xia Ning threw herself into He Xing’s arms, crying her heart out, her tears and snot smearing her face, a far cry from her usual flawless composure. At this moment, she had dropped all pretense.

This might have been the first time He Xing did not push Xia Ning away. Instead, he held her close—truly treating her like a sister, as his responsibility, with no romantic feelings involved, only duty.

Their embrace was interrupted by Liang Tao’s call. The doctors wanted to discuss Xia Guoxiong’s treatment plan. Xia Cheng and Xia Ning, who rarely had a firm opinion, were now utterly distraught.

Both of them cast hopeful looks toward He Xing, and eventually, the siblings entrusted him with the decision-making authority, allowing him to communicate with the doctors.

After He Xing left, Xia Ning finally realized her makeup was ruined. She hurriedly took out her makeup bag to reapply it. Sitting on the hospital bed, Xia Cheng smiled and waved her over, "Xiaoning, come here, I’ve got something good to show you."

"What is it?" Xia Ning walked over impatiently, but froze the moment she saw Xia Cheng’s phone.

After watching the video, an agitated Xia Ning reached out to snatch the phone, "How did you get this? Send it to me now."

But Xia Cheng had anticipated her move and quickly grabbed the phone back, coolly stating, "Could you at least show some respect for someone else’s hard work? It’s not nice to just grab things from people. Does that seem fair to you?"

"You call this hard work? This is voyeurism," Xia Ning scoffed, but the content of the video was too tempting, and she couldn’t give up. Gritting her teeth, she said, "Tell me what you want to do to give me the video."

What Xia Cheng had shown her was none other than the video of Xia Ning crying in He Xing’s arms. She had been genuinely heartbroken at the time, not thinking about anything else, and had no idea Xia Cheng had recorded it. Xia Ning sincerely thought to herself, "Well done!"

Xia Cheng held the phone tightly, his face—which was barely considered handsome—full of cunning, "Xia Ning, what I have here is valuable. If you want it, you’ll have to pay for it. I’m a bit tight on cash recently, and Dad isn’t going to give me any more. You wouldn’t just leave me high and dry, would you?"

"You’re despicable," Xia Ning cursed, but despite the curse, she still grudgingly took out her own phone. A minute later, she told Xia Cheng, "I’ve always spent what I had without saving. This is all the money I have left in my account. Not a penny more."