At the sight of Xiao Wenqing, not only was Wen Ran visibly startled, even a fleeting glint of surprise flickered in Mo Xiuchen's eyes.
Yet it vanished in the blink of an eye, swiftly replaced by a frigid indifference. His chiseled features tightened, cloaked in a steely coldness.
Inside the private room, Mo Jingteng rose quickly upon noticing his son's displeasure, smiling warmly as he greeted them, "Xiuchen, Wen Ran, don't stand at the door—come in. After you left, your aunt happened to visit my office, so I brought her along."
By his side, Xiao Wenqing stood as well, a falsely warm smile on her impeccably maintained face. Stepping forward, she addressed them with exaggerated ease, "I heard your father invited Ranran to dinner, so I came to join the fun. Ranran, don't just stand there—come, have a seat."
In the past, Wen Ran might have politely humored her, but ever since the shark fin soup incident, rage surged within her at the mere sight of Xiao Wenqing. She found it impossible to reciprocate that hypocritical smile.
She no longer had the patience to feign civility.
Mo Xiuchen ignored Xiao Wenqing entirely, treating her as if invisible. Holding Wen Ran's hand, he led her to the large round table and, with gentlemanly grace, pulled out a chair for her. His voice was gentle. "Ranran, have a seat."
"Thank you."
Wen Ran offered him a faint smile, unwilling to let someone else's presence spoil his mood.
Being blatantly ignored, Xiao Wenqing gritted her teeth inwardly, though her face only betrayed a trace of awkwardness. The venom and resentment in her heart remained expertly veiled.
Mo Jingteng dared not rebuke his son's behavior. He merely cast a fleeting glance at Xiao Wenqing, silently motioning for her to sit back down. Then, he turned to Wen Ran and asked, "What would you like to eat?"
Mo Xiuchen rang the bell without waiting. A server entered promptly and respectfully handed him a menu.
Without so much as glancing at it, he recited a string of dishes fluently—each one something Wen Ran favored—then returned the menu with a final command, "That's all. Make it quick."
"Yes, Young Master Mo," the server responded with a polite smile before retreating from the room.
Mo Jingteng had yet to place his order, and the server had already been dismissed. His face tightened with displeasure, though he dared not voice it.
Xiao Wenqing resumed her seat, her smile freshly painted on, eager to portray herself as the gracious and loving elder before Mo Jingteng. But before she could speak, Mo Xiuchen's piercing gaze cut to her, his tone cold and unyielding.
"Thursday night—you invited Ranran to dinner?"
At those words, Xiao Wenqing's heart skipped a beat. Her smile faltered momentarily, but she quickly regained her composure, her voice smooth as silk. "Yes, your father heard Ranran was kidnapped and injured in City F. He was very concerned."
A glint of frost flickered in Mo Xiuchen's eyes. He turned his gaze to Mo Jingteng, his expression clearly deciphering the veiled implication in Xiao Wenqing's words. Though he recognized her intent to shift the blame, fury still surged through him.
Very few people knew about the kidnapping in City F. If Mo Jingteng was aware of it, he surely also knew she had been drugged. Then his sending Xiao Wenqing—was it an act of concern, or suspicion?
Faced with his son's questioning eyes, Mo Jingteng cast Xiao Wenqing a sideward glance and replied slowly, "You live away from home with Wen Ran. I had no chance to check in on you two. So I asked your mother to call Wen Ran and ask if she was recovering well."
"What about the shark fin soup? Whose idea was that?"
Mo Xiuchen couldn't be bothered with their pretense. He cut straight to the point.
Initially, he'd thought it was Xiao Wenqing's doing alone. But now, a dark suspicion crept in—had his father been involved as well?
The thought ignited a furious blaze within him.
Wen Ran had remained quiet, silently observing the subtle changes in Mo Jingteng and Xiao Wenqing's expressions throughout the conversation.
When Mo Xiuchen asked, "Was it your idea?" Mo Jingteng blinked and instinctively avoided his son's sharp, blade-like gaze.
Wen Ran's heart sank like a stone.
Wen Ran's defense
"What are you saying? Do you think I was behind the drugging? That I wanted to leave you childless for life?"
Mo Jingteng paused for a moment before erupting in anger.
Beside him, Xiao Wenqing narrowed her eyes slightly, feigning ignorance. "Old Mo, what's wrong with the shark fin soup? Is there something wrong with it? Why are both of you so upset? It's rare for father and son to share a meal—can't we speak calmly?"
A cold sneer played on Mo Xiuchen's lips, his voice like steel. "Whoever laced the shark fin soup, I will find out. And let me make this clear—anyone who dares to harm my woman, even a little, will pay for it a hundredfold."
With those words, he turned to Wen Ran. "Ranran, we're leaving."
Without a backward glance, he took her hand and led her from the room.
"Xiuchen—"
Mo Jingteng's face turned pale with fury as he watched their silhouettes vanish beyond the door. The sound of it slamming shut echoed like a thunderclap in the silent room. A sharp pain gripped his chest, and he raised a hand to press against it, struggling for breath...
…
Wen Ran was still holding Mo Xiuchen's hand as they exited the club, the icy aura radiating from him making her too afraid to speak.
Once in the car, he leaned in to fasten her seatbelt. She caught his large, warm hand and looked at him with soft concern. "Xiuchen."
He froze slightly, the frost in his eyes cracking with a trace of warmth and surprise. Her delicate features were reflected in his dark, obsidian gaze. His lips moved gently.
"Ranran, I'm sorry."
Her heart trembled. She shook her head at once. "This isn't your fault."
Even if Mo Jingteng had orchestrated it, it had nothing to do with him.
Emotions churned violently in Mo Xiuchen's chest. He turned his hand and wrapped her soft fingers in his palm, just about to speak again when his phone rang urgently.
The caller ID made his expression darken. Wen Ran glanced at the screen and quickly recognized the string of digits—Xiao Wenqing's number.
"Answer it," she said softly. "There might be something important."
He picked up. Xiao Wenqing's frantic voice burst through, surrounded by background noise. "Xiuchen, your father fainted—!"
His face changed at once. Despite his resentment, Mo Jingteng was still his father. He didn't truly wish him harm.
Besides, while he suspected his father might've had a hand in the shark fin soup incident, he couldn't believe he would go so far as to render Wen Ran infertile. That level of cruelty—that had Xiao Wenqing written all over it.
"Go check on him," Wen Ran said quickly, extracting her hand from his.
After ending the call, Mo Xiuchen told her gently, "Wait here for me."
He got out and dashed off.
Wen Ran watched his retreating figure in silence, her lips pressed tightly together.
If Mo Jingteng had truly ordered the drugging, the message couldn't be clearer—he suspected that what had happened to her that night might have left her carrying someone else's child.
…
They went to the hospital.
Mo Jingteng was rushed into surgery. Everyone else was stopped at the door.
The others from the club exchanged a few words with Mo Xiuchen before leaving. He turned his gaze from the tightly shut operating room door to Xiao Wenqing. In his eyes, a sharp glint of danger flickered.
Xiao Wenqing, still facing the operating room, suddenly felt his icy glare. Her heart jolted, and she took an unconscious step back.
Whether out of guilt or fear, she felt as if she'd stepped into a glacial chamber—an icy dread creeping from her heart outward.
Her lips parted, as if to speak, but under Mo Xiuchen's fierce stare, the words died in her throat.
At the end of the hallway, Mo Zixuan came running toward them. Mo Xiuchen turned away with a final, cutting remark: "Everything you've done will one day come back to your son."
Then to Wen Ran: "Let's get lunch."
Wen Ran ignored Xiao Wenqing's now ghostly complexion and looked up at Mo Xiuchen with gentle eyes. She shook her head and whispered, "You stay. I'll get something nearby and bring it back."
"I can't eat in a place like this. Let's just come back later."
He declined. Partly, it was the lingering anger toward Mo Jingteng. Mostly, he didn't want to stay with Xiao Wenqing and her son.
Just then, Mo Zixuan reached them. His gaze swept between the two and then fixed on Xiao Wenqing, his face pale. "How did Dad suddenly faint?"
Xiao Wenqing hesitated, still reeling from Mo Xiuchen's earlier threat. She dared not admit the truth and muttered sorrowfully, "Your father's health is fragile. He and your brother had a bit of a disagreement, and in the heat of the moment, he collapsed."
Mo Zixuan turned a furious glare toward Mo Xiuchen. "Do you have to drive him to his grave before you'll be satisfied?"
In his memory, Mo Xiuchen had never shown their father much respect. And despite everything, Mo Jingteng had always sided with him. That only fueled Zixuan's jealousy.
Mo Xiuchen's face remained stoic. He didn't even glance at Mo Zixuan.
But Wen Ran, remembering how unflinchingly he had defended her earlier, couldn't bear to see him wrongly accused. Her voice was cold and sharp.
"If certain people hadn't had their vile schemes exposed, Chairman Mo wouldn't have passed out."
She said this without even looking at Zixuan, her gaze locked coldly on Xiao Wenqing. The time for pretense was over. After what Xiao Wenqing had tried to do to her, her heart harbored nothing but hatred.
Only after her words fell did she glance toward Mo Zixuan.
A flicker of fury passed through Xiao Wenqing's eyes, but before her son, she dared not lash out.
She didn't know—Mo Zixuan already knew everything.
His face blanched, and his anger faded, replaced by a crushing guilt. He hadn't been present earlier, but he knew Mo Xiuchen well enough.
His father's body, though weak, wasn't that fragile.
And now, recalling what Wen Ran had revealed to him the day before, and her barely concealed fury just now, he could no longer feign ignorance.
Mo Xiuchen, sensing Xiao Wenqing's gaze lingering on Wen Ran, stepped forward and pulled her gently into his embrace. His eyes swept coldly over Xiao Wenqing and Mo Zixuan.
"Anger harms the liver. Don't waste your energy on people who don't matter. Tell me what you want to eat—my treat."
This hospital, Kangning, belonged to Gu Kai's family. Even if Mo Xiuchen wasn't there, he could trust it completely.
Wen Ran smoothed her emotions, then looked up at him with a smile. "I haven't decided yet. I'll let you know once I figure it out."
He nodded, warmth in his eyes. "Let's go."
The tall, elegant man held the slender woman close. They walked in unison, a picturesque sight bathed in gentle light—a perfect frame of love and serenity.
Outside the OR, Mo Zixuan stood frozen like a statue, staring down the hallway. His dark eyes were filled with anguish. Even a cold look from Wen Ran, or a soft smile she gave another man, was like a knife to the heart.
"Zixuan."
Xiao Wenqing's voice was hesitant, guilt and unease twisting inside her as she watched her son's pained expression.
He turned slowly, his eyes now filled with accusation. "Why did you do that to Wen Ran?"
"I don't understand what you mean."
For the first time, she couldn't meet her son's gaze. She averted her eyes.
"You dared to do it—what's the point of denying it now? Even if she's carrying Mo Xiuchen's child, that doesn't justify what you did. As a woman yourself, don't you know how cruel it is to strip someone of the right to be a mother? I wronged her first. She married Mo Xiuchen out of desperation. If you want to blame someone, blame his despicable tactics."
Xiao Wenqing's face went pale. Of course she understood the agony of losing the right to motherhood. That was precisely why she wanted Jiang Huiwen's son to suffer the same fate.
…
Outside the hospital, sunlight poured from above. Wen Ran instinctively raised a hand to shield her eyes. Tilting her face toward the man beside her, she smiled brightly.
"Mo Xiuchen, I want beef noodles."
"Beef noodles?"
He looked momentarily troubled, scanning their surroundings. Had she asked for fine delicacies, he could've taken her anywhere. But beef noodles…
Seeing the crease between his brows, Wen Ran's smile only grew. "I know a place—the beef chunks are huge, the noodles are chewy and perfect. Want to try it?"
As she spoke, her red lips opened and closed, describing the noodles and the warm-hearted shop owner. Her eyes shone with longing, as if the shark fin soup ordeal had never happened.