The Tycoon's Mysterious Darling Wife
Chapter 214. Breakup, a slap (first update)

Chapter 214: 214. Breakup, a slap (first update)

Fang Tong had just finished speaking when she made to leave, but Ding Minghui grabbed her, pleading, "Tongtong, I really was drunk last night. It wasn’t intentional. Please forgive me just this once. I’ll never drink again, I promise. Forgive me."

Fang Tong lowered her gaze to where Ding Minghui’s hand held her, her expression unchanging, "Let go."

But Ding Minghui didn’t release her. Instead, he dropped to his knees with a slap, "Tongtong, I beg you, don’t break up with me. Don’t leave me, please."

Fang Tong looked down at the man begging pitifully before her, feeling a deep ache in her heart. This man was her first love, a man she truly loved. They had been together for nearly four years, but now they had to separate in the most resolute way. A tear crossed her eyes, "Ding Minghui, we can’t go back. We can never go back."

Her voice was soft, like a whisper of the wind that drifted into Ding Minghui’s ears, yet it was more despairing than any hysterical outcry.

"No, Tongtong, that’s not true. We still have a chance. We can get married in the future, have children of our own, and live happily ever after. I promise, this is the first and the last time. Please," Ding Minghui cried, his first time crying in front of Fang Tong, who averted her gaze, refusing to look at him.

"Ding Minghui, I have never been a generous person. I might remember this for a lifetime. Perhaps one day when I’m in a bad mood, I’ll bring this up, and then we will fight and become exhausted. Is this the life you want? Ding Minghui, let go. Let yourself go, and let me go."

Ding Minghui despairingly let his hand drop, "Can you truly not forgive me this one time?" His plea was a whisper as low as dust. Fang Tong almost agreed; she shook her head and turned to leave.

Ding Minghui didn’t see that the moment Fang Tong turned around, her tears broke free. Nor did Fang Tong see Ding Minghui crying like a child as he watched her retreating figure.

Shen Qinglan stood in the corner, silently watching the scene unfold before her. After a long while, she turned to leave, still holding a coat that was initially meant for Fang Tong.

Fang Tong returned home distraught, locking herself in her room as soon as she entered the house. Fu Fanghua was cleaning and didn’t notice until dinner time when Fang Tong didn’t come out even after being called repeatedly, which alarmed her.

"Tongtong, open the door." Fu Fanghua banged on the door. With such a loud noise, even someone asleep should have been awakened, but there was no movement from Fang Tong’s room.

Panicked, Fu Fanghua took out a spare key to open the door, thankful that it wasn’t locked from the inside.

Fu Fanghua saw Fang Tong curled up on the bed without a blanket, her eyes closed, face flushed. She touched her forehead, and her expression immediately changed—Fang Tong had a high fever.

"Tongtong, wake up." Fu Fanghua gently tapped her daughter’s face, but Fang Tong showed no response. Her forehead was sweaty yet she murmured about feeling cold. Fu Fanghua pressed a bit harder, but Fang Tong still did not awaken.

She hurriedly called Fang Chengzhi, only to learn he was in a meeting. With no other option, Fu Fanghua called Li Bomming.

"Auntie, what happened to Tongtong?" Li Bomming asked urgently as he rushed over.

Fu Fanghua was almost crying, "Tongtong has a high fever and is unconscious. I can’t wake her no matter how much I call. I can’t carry her by myself. Bomming, what should we do now?"

She was at her wits’ end. Normally, despite arguing with Fang Tong, Fu Fanghua would be the most anxious if anything actually happened to her daughter. Usually shrewd, it hadn’t even occurred to her to call an ambulance.

Li Bomming entered Fang Tong’s room and wiped her sweaty forehead, "Auntie, we need to get Fang Tong to a hospital right now." Saying this, he picked her up as Fu Fanghua hurriedly followed, forgetting even to change her shoes.

"Doctor, how is my daughter?" Fu Fanghua asked anxiously.

"It’s nothing serious, just a bit of a high fever. An IV will take care of it."

Fu Fanghua’s heart finally eased, "Thank you, doctor."

The IV was set up, but Fang Tong still hadn’t awakened. Her brows were tightly furrowed, her face pale and nearly transparent, seemingly in great pain. Li Bomming sat by the bed, his eyes filled with sorrow.

"Auntie, I’ll watch over here. You go back and change your clothes," Li Bomming suggested as he looked at Fu Fanghua still in her slippers and house clothes.

Fu Fanghua shook her head, "Let’s wait till Tongtong’s fever goes down. I don’t know what happened to her; she just locked herself in her room as soon as she got back and wouldn’t talk to me. It’s been years since she last had a fever. This sudden illness really scared me to death."

"Auntie, Tongtong will be fine. The fever should break soon," Li Bomming comforted her.

Fu Fanghua smiled, "Bomming, I really owe you a lot today. I was completely out of my senses."

"Auntie, you don’t need to be so formal. Just call me if there’s anything in the future," Li Bomming smiled. "You probably haven’t had dinner yet. Let me go buy something for you to eat."

"Thank you, Bomming."

Fu Fanghua had no appetite and ate very little. Li Bomming stayed in the hospital, not quite at ease until he was sure Fang Tong was alright. Fang Chengzhi had arrived at the hospital.

"Bo Ming, you should head back now, Auntie and I are here. You still have work tomorrow; don’t delay your job," Fang Chengzhi said upon seeing Li Bo Ming sitting in the corridor.

"Uncle Fang, it’s okay, Fang Tong will be done with her IV soon. I can take you guys home and still get back in time. I’m young; staying up a bit late won’t affect my work."

Seeing that he insisted on staying, Fang Chengzhi did not push further though he felt deeply apologetic towards Li Bo Ming. He truly liked the young man, but unfortunately, his daughter did not.

Fang Tong’s fever persisted even after the IV, and the doctor suggested hospitalization for observation. Li Bo Ming then handled the hospital admission procedures. Since they were going to stay over, Fang Chengzhi headed home with his wife to collect some daily necessities.

Li Bo Ming leaned against Fang Tong’s hospital bed, holding her hand that was free from the IV drip, his gaze falling on her face.

"Ding Minghui, I hate you." Suddenly, a few words floated from Fang Tong’s lips, barely audible except to Li Bo Ming.

Li Bo Ming’s gaze darkened; he looked at the still-closed eyes of Fang Tong, especially seeing a tear at the corner of her eye, it felt like a needle stabbed his heart. He reached out, gently wiping the tear away.

"Tongtong, what exactly happened to you?" Li Bo Ming asked softly, but the person who could answer him had not yet woken up.

It wasn’t until late into the night that Fang Tong’s fever finally subsided. The next morning, when Fang Tong woke up, she saw a dark head resting beside her bed, asleep, still holding her hand.

Fang Tong turned her head to look at Li Bo Ming and tried to withdraw her hand, but that woke him up. "Tongtong, you’re awake."

Li Bo Ming, seeing Fang Tong awake, was visibly delighted. "Do you feel uncomfortable anywhere?"

Fang Tong shook her head, "I want some water."

Li Bo Ming stood up, poured her a glass of warm water, helped her sit up, and handed it to her lips. Fang Tong drank a few sips with his help and then didn’t drink any more, her throat felt as if it was burning.

"Do you want more?"

Fang Tong shook her head, "How did I end up in the hospital?"

"It was quite the scare; you fainted with a high fever yesterday. Auntie was terrified. If we hadn’t brought you to the hospital in time, you might have ended up a little silly," Li Bo Ming joked, but Fang Tong couldn’t muster a smile.

"Where are my parents?"

"Uncle and Auntie stayed with you all night. I just sent them home to rest. Are you hungry? Do you want to eat anything? I can go buy it for you," Li Bo Ming offered.

Fang Tong shook her head; she didn’t feel like eating anything.

"Tongtong, how did you suddenly get a fever yesterday?" Li Bo Ming asked, looking at Fang Tong.

A shadow of pain flickered in Fang Tong’s eyes. "I’m tired, I want to sleep," she said as she lay down and closed her eyes.

Watching Fang Tong, who was clearly avoiding the issue, Li Bo Ming’s eyes dimmed as he spoke gently, "Alright, then have a good sleep. I’m right here, just ask if you need anything."

Fang Tong remained silent, apparently falling asleep for real, though the slight trembling of her eyelids suggested she was still awake.

Li Bo Ming sat by her bed, taking out his tablet to handle work emails. The room fell into silence.

Although Fang Tong did not want to sleep, her body was genuinely exhausted, and she eventually drifted off. Listening to Fang Tong’s steady breathing, Li Bo Ming set down his tablet, adjusted her blanket, and sighed softly.

Fang Tong’s phone rang. Li Bo Ming picked it up and saw it was Ding Minghui. Knowing this was her boyfriend, he glanced at Fang Tong, hesitated, then answered the call.

"Tongtong, can we not break up? I know I was wrong; I promise there won’t be a next time. I’m resigning from the company today, staying away from that woman," pleaded Ding Minghui as soon as the call connected. "Please don’t leave me. I can’t be without you, Tongtong, I love you."

Li Bo Ming’s expression turned grim, almost dour. Stepping out of the hospital room, he said, "Fang Tong is not available to take calls right now."

Ding Minghui paused, then demanded, "Who are you, and why do you have Tongtong’s phone?"

"I am Fang Tong’s friend. She’s busy now and can’t come to the phone. Please don’t call her for the time being." Li Bo Ming’s tone was icy as he ended the call.

Ding Minghui stared at the disconnected call, suddenly remembering the man who had come to pick up Fang Tong at the company. Could it have been the same man? Why did Fang Tong’s phone end up with him? Could they have been together last night?

Ding Minghui became increasingly upset, thinking that Fang Tong might have been with another man last night. He wanted to commit murder in his crazed state.

Ding Minghui made another call, but Li Bo Ming hung up on him and turned off his cell phone, throwing it aside, and continued to deal with business matters.

**

Ever since Shen Junyu took Wen Xiyao and Chu Yunrong out for a meal, Chu Yunrong had taken a liking to Wen Xiyao and would sometimes call her. Just this noon, she had arranged to have lunch with Wen Xiyao.

"Auntie, I’m sorry for being late," Wen Xiyao apologized sincerely.

Chu Yunrong waved her hand, "No, it’s me who arrived early. Please sit down. You look a bit haggard; have you been working too hard recently?"

Indeed, Wen Xiyao’s complexion wasn’t very good. She had been busy with a case recently and hadn’t had a proper rest for over a week. She had planned to rest in her office at noon but received Chu Yunrong’s invitation.

"I probably didn’t sleep well last night," Wen Xiyao touched her face and said nonchalantly.

"Girls shouldn’t push themselves too hard. Look how thin you are. I always thought Qinglan was thin, but you are even thinner," Chu Yunrong chattered. "Nowadays, young girls all like to be slim, and I like it too, but you should also take care of your health, understand?"

Wen Xiyao maintained a gentle smile on her face and showed no sign of impatience towards Chu Yunrong, "Auntie, I’m naturally this thin, but actually, I eat quite well."

The two chatted and laughed over the meal, which was very enjoyable. Wen Xiyao was good at making conversation, always saying the right thing at the right time, ensuring Chu Yunrong didn’t feel like she was talking to herself. After a few interactions, Chu Yunrong was very pleased with Wen Xiyao and had mentioned her several times to Shen Qian and Old Sir Shen. Now the entire Shen Family knew about her existence, which irritated Shen Junyu a bit, as there really was nothing between him and Wen Xiyao, but his mother always seemed to want to match them together.

After the meal, Chu Yunrong had intended to have her driver pick her up, but Wen Xiyao offered to drive her, which Chu Yunrong gladly accepted as it meant they could spend more time together.

When they arrived at the gate of the compound, Chu Yunrong saw Shen Xitong waiting at the gate. This was the first time Chu Yunrong had seen Shen Xitong since she had left the hospital.

She waited at the gate but didn’t enter. It wasn’t that Shen Xitong didn’t want to go in, but rather, she simply couldn’t enter. The Shen Family had informed the guards at the gate not to let her in, which was the first time the ever free-to-enter Shen Xitong had been refused entry, making her so angry she wanted to leave immediately. However, considering her own situation, she restrained herself, needing Chu Yunrong’s help.

She had tried calling Chu Yunrong, but the phone was always off, so she had no choice but to wait at the gate.

Chu Yunrong got out of the car, and Li Xitong’s eyes brightened, "Mommy."

Chu Yunrong looked at the woman in front of her, her foster daughter of over ten years, with a complex expression. During this period, she had been reflecting on the past. Whether it was because of transference or the effects of hypnosis, she truly loved her, even though her excessive affection had caused disagreements within the family about her.

She did not know that Li Xitong had fallen out with the Shen Family. Shen Qian had only told her that Li Xitong wanted to live with her biological parents and had moved out, even reverting to her original surname; her name should now be Li Xitong.

Shen Qian had gotten Chu Yunrong a new mobile phone number, so it was normal for Li Xitong to be unable to contact Chu Yunrong during this time. Moreover, the Shen Family was now aware of Chu Yunrong’s situation and had mostly been letting her rest at home. Today was a rare occasion for her to go out for a meal with Wen Xiyao.

"Mommy," Li Xitong called again, her face full of grievance as she looked at Chu Yunrong.

Chu Yunrong’s expression was indifferent, "You’re here, why don’t you come in?"

How was Li Xitong supposed to respond to that? Should she say the Shen Family didn’t allow her in? She even suspected that Chu Yunrong said this on purpose.

"Mommy, I missed you. Why haven’t you been answering my calls?" She felt aggrieved. She thought that even if the Shen Family didn’t want her anymore, at least Chu Yunrong was sincere and wouldn’t ignore her.

Chu Yunrong knew deep down that the change in phone number was Shen Qian’s way of ensuring she didn’t have any contact with Li Xitong. With the scandal so huge online, Chu Yunrong couldn’t possibly be unaware, but she deliberately chose to ignore it, spending her days at home drinking tea, gardening, or playing the piano, completely detached from the outside world.

"Mommy, don’t you miss me?" Seeing no reaction from Chu Yunrong, Li Xitong’s heart felt cold. A flicker of panic crossed her eyes, triggered by the negative press online. Her advertising contracts had been canceled, and she not only lost those but also had to compensate the advertisers a large sum of money. Her savings weren’t enough to cover the costs, and the advertisers, as if they had agreed among themselves, called her daily, pressing her to pay up quickly or else they would take her to court. The atmosphere at home was also suffocating, making this period even more painful than her past twenty-something years.

Now she realized more clearly that after leaving the Shen Family, she was left with nothing, even her position in the orchestra had been taken by someone else. The reason was her current reputation, which was detrimental to the orchestra’s development.

Although the orchestra had been managed by Chu Yunrong, it wasn’t founded solely by her, nor was it a dictatorship. Previously, when Li Xitong was untarnished and her performance was commendable, and with Chu Yunrong wanting to promote her, naturally, people were willing to give face. Now, times had changed. People had heard rumors that Li Xitong was kicked out by the Shen Family, and her subsequent move to live with her biological parents seemed to confirm those rumors, thus she was struggling in the orchestra.

After enduring for a while, she couldn’t bear it any longer and had to seek out Chu Yunrong.

"Mommy, I really miss you. I heard you were sick, and I went to the hospital to see you, but Daddy wouldn’t let me go in. I know Daddy is blaming me, but please believe me, Mommy, what they say online is not true, I didn’t harm my sister, I didn’t do anything to wrong the Shen Family." Li Xitong cried, her expression haggard and her silent crying pitiful. Chu Yunrong felt terrible but didn’t step forward to comfort her as she might have done in the past.

Wen Xiyao had been sitting in the car watching the scene unfold. She naturally recognized this woman but didn’t expect to see her today. Honestly, in person, she wasn’t as pretty as her pictures, this was the conclusion Wen Xiyao drew after seeing Li Xitong.

"Aunt, who is this?" Wen Xiyao got out of the car, looped her arm through Chu Yunrong’s, and asked with a smiling face.

"This is..." Chu Yunrong originally wanted to say it was her daughter, but as the words reached her lips, they turned into "Li Xitong."

Li Xitong’s eyes darkened, her expression beneath her eyes became obscured and unclear, and even her smile seemed somewhat forced.

Wen Xiyao smiled knowingly, "Auntie, let me take you inside, it’s quite cold standing out here."

Chu Yunrong nodded and was about to follow Wen Xiyao to the car when Li Xitong spoke up, "Mom, I’m begging you to help me."

Without caring that there were others present, Li Xitong hastily spoke up, fearing that if she didn’t speak now, Chu Yunrong would really leave.

Chu Yunrong paused her steps and looked at Li Xitong, whose eyes lit up. She knew that Chu Yunrong still cared about her and definitely wouldn’t ignore her.

"Mom, I’m being chased by advertisers for debts right now. They say if I don’t pay up, they’ll sue me. Can you help me out for the sake of the more than ten years we’ve been mother and daughter?" Li Xitong’s posture was very low, and Chu Yunrong felt heartbroken for her as she looked at her. After all, she had raised this girl for more than ten years. It would be a lie to say her heart didn’t waver at all, but when she thought of what she did to Shen Qinglan, that bit of heartache instantly vanished.

"I can’t help you with that," Chu Yunrong spoke in a calm voice.

"No, Mom, you can, if only you’re willing. Mom, do you really believe that the things online were done by me?" Li Xitong’s eyes filled with tears.

Li Xitong shouldn’t have brought up those online issues. Once she did, Chu Yunrong remembered them and stared straight at Li Xitong, "Xitong, reflect on yourself for a moment. How have I treated you over the years? I’ve treated you like my own daughter, but how have you treated Qinglan? She is my daughter. Did you think about our mother-daughter relationship when you did those things to her?"

Li Xitong’s pitiful face faded, and her eyes gradually cooled down, "Mom, in the end, you just don’t trust me, convinced that I did those things. You always say you treat me like your own child, but if you truly regarded me as your own daughter, why would you abandon me now?"

Li Xitong looked at Chu Yunrong and continued, "Do you think your daughter Shen Qinglan is really so innocent? Compared to me, her heart is much crueler. Not only did she steal the love of the man I loved the most, but she also took everything that belonged to me. My current downfall is all thanks to her. Your seemingly kind daughter is actually duplicitous and hypocritical to the extreme."

"Slap."

Li Xitong looked incredulously at Chu Yunrong, "You actually hit me, just because I spoke the truth?"

Chu Yunrong stared blankly at her hand, as if she couldn’t believe she had just hit her. But just now, when she heard Li Xitong speaking ill of Shen Qinglan, anger surged up from the depths of her heart, and her hand swung before she even realized it.

"Xitong, I..." Chu Yunrong’s demeanor softened.

"Auntie, I called Qinglan yesterday, and she seemed to be sick. Is she feeling better now?" Wen Xiyao suddenly spoke, interrupting what Chu Yunrong was about to say.

"Ah?" Chu Yunrong briefly felt lost before realizing what Wen Xiyao had said. Her face became anxious, "Qinglan is sick? How could she suddenly fall ill?"

"I’m not sure, I wanted to invite her for a meal yesterday. When I called her, I found her voice was off, then I found out she had a fever. I thought you knew about it, auntie. It seems I was being meddlesome," Wen Xiyao concluded with an apologetic tone.

Hearing that Shen Qinglan had a fever, Chu Yunrong couldn’t care less about what was going on, "This child, she’s sick, but doesn’t come home, just enduring it on her own." Chu Yunrong muttered, and then thinking it over, recalled that Shen Qinglan grew up in an orphanage and probably endured illnesses by herself since she was a child. She immediately felt immense heartache and forgot all about Li Xitong, grabbing Wen Xiyao and preparing to leave.

"Mom, are you really that heartless?" Li Xitong called out from behind, but Chu Yunrong paused and did not turn around, "Xitong, I have something urgent now, we’ll talk about your matter another day."

Wen Xiyao turned back, smiled at Li Xitong, and followed Chu Yunrong away.

Watching the car disappear from view, Li Xitong’s face darkened entirely.

Wen Xiyao took Chu Yunrong to Jiangxin Garden, and Shen Qinglan was quite surprised when she saw Chu Yunrong, "Mom, what are you doing here?"

Chu Yunrong pulled Shen Qinglan up and down, even reaching out to touch her forehead, "You child, you have a fever and didn’t go to the hospital. Why are you enduring it alone? Don’t you know to call Mom?"

Shen Qinglan was confused, but then saw Wen Xiyao winking at her and mouthing "Li Xitong." Qinglan didn’t quite understand, but guessed that Wen Xiyao had found an excuse, cooperatively saying, "Mom, it was just a little cold, I took some medicine and slept, and now I’m completely fine."

Chu Yunrong had just felt Shen Qinglan’s forehead and knew her temperature was normal, but she was still uneasy, "Should we go to the hospital to check it out? Even though it’s just a small cold, we can’t be careless."

"No need, I really am fine," Shen Qinglan refused, still not quite accustomed to Chu Yunrong’s sudden change of attitude. After thinking, she said, "Mom, I haven’t had lunch yet, I’m hungry now."

Chu Yunrong immediately said, "I’ll make you something to eat, you just wait, Xiyao, please keep Qinglan company."

"Okay," Wen Xiyao agreed, and after Chu Yunrong went to the kitchen, she quickly explained the situation to Shen Qinglan, concluding, "Your foster sister is not going to let it go just like that, she’ll probably approach your mom again."

A hint of a shadow flickered through Shen Qinglan’s eyes, "Thank you, Sister Xiyao, for this incident."