Chapter 1: The Night of Childbirth, No One Signed the Surgery Consent Form
North City Hospital.
11:00 PM sharp.
"Is Tang Zheng's family here? Tang Zheng's family? Has Tang Zheng's family arrived?" The nurse's voice echoed crisply through the quiet hallway.
Inside the delivery room, Tang Zheng, in so much pain that she was barely able to breathe, could no longer hold back the tears brimming in her eyes. They spilled over uncontrollably.
It was the fifth time. This was the fifth time the nurse had come to the hallway with the surgery consent form, searching for her immediate family to sign it, yet Gu Jingzhou was still nowhere to be seen.
At this moment, Tang Zheng's already frail and cold body felt as if it had been plunged into an ice cellar. The blood drained completely from her pale face.
"Doctor, my husband might be busy. Can I sign the surgery consent form myself?" Her voice was choked and hoarse, making even the obstetrician feel a sting in their nose.
However, some principles were deeply ingrained and hard to override, so the doctor refused firmly and straightforwardly. "That won't do. You're carrying twins, and their positions aren't right. The situation is already very tricky…"
"Doctor, I just remembered that my husband went abroad for a business trip a few days ago, so he really can’t sign it," Tang Zheng said, forcing herself to make the lie sound natural.
She didn’t even know how much strength it took to utter such a blatant untruth.
She only knew that as she spoke those words, her heart tore open once again—a deep gash that no amount of mending could ever fully heal.
Gu Jingzhou. Haha. The truth was, he hadn’t gone on any business trip at all. But that didn’t matter. What mattered was that he wasn’t answering her calls or replying to her messages.
Even as she hovered between life and death in the delivery room, he remained cold and indifferent, completely unaffected.
Tang Zheng laughed bitterly. Laughing so hard that tears spilled over. Memories flooded her mind like a film reel, and she suddenly realized that she didn’t even feel the pain anymore.
So, this was what disappointment and heartbreak felt like—it was like a claw dragging her into a bottomless abyss.
"What about other relatives? Can you call them to come and sign, like your parents?" The doctor’s tone became more urgent as Tang Zheng’s condition visibly worsened.
It wasn’t just about avoiding liability for the hospital. The surgery was indeed unusually complicated. Besides the twins' improper positions and abnormal movements, Tang Zheng's own condition was too poor.
Though no further tests had been conducted to confirm, the doctor could tell from Tang Zheng’s pallor and weakness that she was likely suffering from a severe illness.
This was why the doctor insisted on waiting for her family to sign the surgery consent form. Otherwise, if an emergency arose during surgery, how could they explain it to her family?
Not to mention the increasing instances of medical disputes and unreasonable family demands in recent years, which had left a lasting impression on healthcare professionals.
"I don’t have parents," Tang Zheng said faintly.
The doctor was momentarily stunned but was about to respond when Tang Zheng continued, "I don’t have siblings either because I’m an orphan."
The doctor froze. Looking at Tang Zheng’s expression, a mixture of hopelessness and acceptance, she couldn’t find the words to say.
Tang Zheng smiled bitterly again. "It’s not that I don’t have friends—just that the one I do have isn’t in North City. A distant resource can’t quench a near thirst, and I…"
Ding-ding-ding.
Suddenly, a series of urgent phone chimes interrupted Tang Zheng’s words.
"It’s your phone. Answer it—it might be your husband calling you back," the doctor said immediately, handing the phone to Tang Zheng.
Seeing Tang Zheng's tightly furrowed brow and strained determination, the doctor’s heart ached slightly.
Inside, the doctor was cursing her husband bitterly. An orphan with no parents, no siblings, and her only friend out of town—how could this excuse for a husband abandon her at such a critical moment?
She was a pregnant woman, for heaven’s sake—someone about to give birth at any moment. If he couldn’t be there in person, the least he could do was hire someone to take care of her!
Damn it. This scumbag, who could just walk away after enjoying himself, didn’t deserve to live.
The doctor vowed to give this worthless excuse for a husband a piece of her mind if he dared to show up.
Tang Zheng also thought it might be Gu Jingzhou returning her call. However, when she saw the name "Shan Shan" on the screen, tears poured down her face in torrents.
Her trembling lips hurriedly slid to answer. "Shan Shan, are you back? Hurry, come to North City Hospital and sign the surgery consent form. Save my babies."
Mu Shan Shan picked up the phone, and without saying a word, her mind went blank as if struck by a thunderbolt.
She had initially intended to tease Tang Zheng and make her guess where she was. Who would’ve thought she’d hear Tang Zheng’s tearful, choked voice instead?
"Tang Zheng, what’s wrong? What happened? What surgery consent form?"
"I… I’m about to give birth. The situation isn’t good. Hurry, come quickly…" Tang Zheng’s words were cut off by a sudden busy tone.
Mu Shan Shan panicked. "Hello? Tang Zheng? Tang Zheng, answer me!"
As she anxiously called out, she hailed a taxi and rushed toward North City Hospital.
Inside the car, she shakily took Gu Jingzhou’s number out of her blacklist and dialed it.
"Sorry, the number you are trying to reach is unavailable."
The automated response repeated over and over, but Mu Shan Shan stubbornly kept trying. She called again and again.
"Gu Jingzhou, you bastard, pick up the damn phone!"
Tang Zheng was in the hospital, desperately in need of someone to sign the surgery consent form. Although Mu Shan Shan had immediately gotten into a taxi, the drive from the airport to the hospital would take at least an hour. She feared she wouldn’t make it in time.
Gu Jingzhou was in the city, so he could certainly get there faster than she could.
But…
"Wow, turns out the CEO of Gu Corporation is keeping a mistress! This time he’s been exposed, hasn’t he?" The taxi driver suddenly chuckled as he scrolled through his phone during a red light.
"The CEO of Gu Corporation?" Mu Shan Shan frowned, speaking up. Wasn’t that the same bastard Gu Jingzhou who wasn’t answering her calls?
The driver glanced at her through the rearview mirror, noticing her apparent interest.
"Yeah, Gu Corporation’s CEO. Miss, you’re not from around here, are you? Otherwise, how could you not know about Gu Jingzhou?"
"I’m telling you, Gu Jingzhou is a big shot in North City. Handsome, capable, and ridiculously wealthy—his net worth is in the billions. I heard his overseas subsidiaries are thriving too.
"You can imagine, a man with looks and money like that, what woman wouldn’t want him? And the best part? He’s single!
"To be honest, there isn’t a woman in North City who wouldn’t jump at the chance to marry him."
Mu Shan Shan’s face darkened with anger as she listened to the driver sing Gu Jingzhou’s praises.
It was true that he was rich and handsome, but what was this about being single? Did Gu Jingzhou tell people that? What did that make Tang Zheng?
"Driver, can you go faster? I’m in a hurry to get to North City Hospital," Mu Shan Shan urged while glaring at the trending topic on her phone about Gu Jingzhou and the woman he was keeping.