That night, the one who suffered the most was Xiao Liu!
He spent the entire night keeping watch at Cheng Jia's home, while she "comfortably" soaked in the bathtub—all night long—in cold water.
In the latter half of the night, exhaustion overtook her, and she fell asleep.
By dawn, she woke up shivering from the cold, only to realize she had spent the night in the bathtub. Though the effects of the drug had worn off, her head throbbed as if it were about to explode.
Seeing Xiao Liu asleep on the sofa in the living room, memories of the previous night rushed back to Cheng Jia.
On the surface, it seemed like Mo Xiuchen and Xiao Liu had escorted her home together, but in reality, Mo Xiuchen had not even so much as helped her up.
Upon entering the house, he had simply instructed Xiao Liu to drag her into the bathroom. She had felt heartbroken but still knew what she wanted. She had struggled free from Xiao Liu's grasp and thrown herself at Mo Xiuchen, pleading for his help.
In the end, Mo Xiuchen and Xiao Liu had forcibly dragged her into the bathroom and turned on the freezing cold water, drenching her from head to toe…
She couldn't even recall when Mo Xiuchen had left.
Her thoughts were abruptly interrupted by the sudden ringing of her phone. The noise startled Xiao Liu awake. Sitting up, he reached for the phone on the coffee table.
"I'll answer it myself," Cheng Jia said, staggering forward.
Xiao Liu stood up without sparing her a glance. His expression remained indifferent as he said, "Since Miss Cheng is awake, I'll take my leave now."
"Wait a moment," Cheng Jia called out as she glanced at the incoming call and promptly rejected it.
"Is there anything else, Miss Cheng?" Xiao Liu turned around, his face devoid of emotion.
Cheng Jia winced from the discomfort. Emerging from the cold water with her clothes soaked, she couldn't stop shivering. Even her voice trembled as she spoke, "What… happened to me last night?"
"I only know that Miss Cheng kept saying she felt hot. As for the details, I'm not sure. If there's nothing else, I'll be going now," Xiao Liu replied indifferently before striding toward the door without hesitation.
The moment the door shut behind him, Cheng Jia sneezed multiple times. She grabbed her phone and rushed into the bedroom, stripping off her wet clothes and wrapping herself tightly in a blanket before returning the missed call.
At the Mo Residence
Mo Xiuchen and Wen Ran were having breakfast when his phone suddenly rang.
He set down his toast, pulled out his phone, and upon seeing the caller ID, a smirk formed on his lips. Looking across the table at Wen Ran, he asked, "It's Xiao Liu. I assume Cheng Jia is awake. Do you want to hear the latest update?"
Wen Ran's lips twitched slightly before she played along with a smile. "Of course!"
Mo Xiuchen's smirk deepened. He answered the call, put it on speaker, and placed the phone on the table. Taking a sip of milk, he casually greeted, "Hello."
"Master Mo, Cheng Jia is awake, and the drug's effects have worn off. May I return now?" Xiao Liu's voice came through the speaker. He didn't dare leave without Mo Xiuchen's permission.
"She's fine now?" Mo Xiuchen's long fingers idly traced the rim of his glass as his gaze fell on Wen Ran. He asked in a relaxed tone, "She didn't cause any trouble?"
"No, she passed out in the bathtub in the middle of the night and only woke up about ten minutes ago. To put it simply, she looks utterly miserable," Xiao Liu reported in detail, hoping to entertain his master so he could earn permission to return home. Spending the night at Cheng Jia's place, even while napping on the sofa, had been nothing short of torture.
Mo Xiuchen chuckled. "After I left, did she ask you for help?"
"Master Mo, please don't joke about that. She likes you, not me," Xiao Liu replied with a bitter smile.
Wen Ran, in the middle of taking a bite, momentarily paused. Her eyes flickered toward Mo Xiuchen before she quickly lowered her gaze to conceal her amusement.
Mo Xiuchen's face darkened instantly. He ended the conversation curtly, "Come back."
"Thank you, Master Mo! I'll return immediately," Xiao Liu replied excitedly as if he had just received an imperial decree.
Once the call ended, Wen Ran asked curiously, "Cheng Jia spent the whole night in cold water. Won't she catch a cold?"
Mo Xiuchen narrowed his eyes at her. "You're worried about her?"
Wen Ran shrugged and raised an eyebrow. "Why should I care about her? She's your savior. If anyone should be worried, it should be you. Besides, the incident happened at your house, so she'll definitely come looking for you for an explanation."
The Mo Family Mansion
When Mo Zixuan came downstairs, he saw a maid kneeling on the floor, cleaning up shards of a shattered crystal glass. Meanwhile, Xiao Wenqing sat on the leather sofa, her face dark with anger.
"Mom, who upset you this early in the morning? Where's Dad?" Mo Zixuan asked, his gaze sweeping over the mess on the floor before settling on Xiao Wenqing.
Xiao Wenqing looked up at him and said coldly, "Your father left early this morning."
"Then what's making you so angry? You know stress causes wrinkles, right?" Mo Zixuan raised an eyebrow, puzzled by her fury.
"It's that fool Cheng Jia! Last night was the perfect opportunity, yet she failed miserably and ended up soaking in a bathtub of cold water all night!" Xiao Wenqing fumed. If she had known Cheng Jia was so incompetent, she would never have chosen her in the first place.
Mo Zixuan's expression darkened. "You drugged Mo Xiuchen last night? Mom, didn't I tell you to stay out of this?"
Xiao Wenqing scoffed, unconcerned. "If I don't intervene, Mo Xiuchen and Wen Ran will eventually have a child. When that happens, where will your place in this family be?"
Mo Zixuan's face grew even grimmer at her words. Through gritted teeth, he said, "You've been testing Mo Xiuchen for years, and not once has it worked. This only proves that his condition hasn't improved. Even if he stays married to Wen Ran for a year, they'll never have a child."
Besides, he would never let Wen Ran stay with Mo Xiuchen for a full year. He was determined to win her back.
"Mo Xiuchen has a friend, Gu Kai, who comes from a prestigious medical family. He's always experimenting with rare and bizarre remedies. Who's to say he hasn't secretly given Mo Xiuchen a cure? I don't know why, but I have a feeling that Mo Xiuchen's condition has already improved. I need to find another way to test him again."
If Mo Xiuchen were truly impotent, why did he marry Wen Ran?
And how could someone as physically strong as him—who hardly ever got sick—still suffer from such an ailment?
The more she thought about it, the more suspicious she became!
Mo Zixuan exhaled sharply, realizing that no amount of reasoning would stop her. Coldly, he said, "I have things to do. I'm heading out."
"Zixuan! Weren't you supposed to take Zhou Lin to a wedding photoshoot today?" Xiao Wenqing called out urgently.
But Mo Zixuan acted as if he hadn't heard her, striding out the door without looking back.