substitute marriage favor

Chapter 4: Helping Her Out

After that night, Ye Qinru was again pressured by the Ye family to marry, and she had no intention of thinking about taking emergency contraception.

It was too late now, more than twenty-four hours had passed, and even if she took it now, it wouldn't make a difference.

That night she was in her safe period, and all she could do was pray that she wouldn't be so unlucky as to conceive.

"Why are you reacting so strongly?" The old lady looked at Ye Qinru with confusion. "Did I say something wrong?"

"Grandma, Qinru and I just got married, and we want to enjoy our time alone for a year or two," Gu Shenyan said, patting Ye Qinru's back to comfort her. She glanced at him gratefully, not expecting him to help her out.

"Alright, I won't meddle in your affairs anymore," the old lady said, signaling the butler to serve breakfast. "Shenyan, today Qinru is going back home, you should accompany her. As for the wedding..."

"We'll talk about the wedding later. Grandma, Qinru and I have our own plans, so you don't need to worry," Gu Shenyan changed the subject, not wanting to be led by the old lady.

"Grandma is getting old and can't worry anymore," the old lady sighed and didn't continue.

After breakfast, Gu Shenfang took Ye Qinru out.

As the car drove away from the Gu family villa, Ye Qinru bit her lip and glanced at Gu Shenyan, saying, "You can go about your business, I can go back by myself."

She knew her place; since it was a contractual marriage, Gu Shenyan didn't need to accompany her after leaving the Gu family.

"Alright." Gu Shenyan just glanced at Ye Qinru faintly, pursing his lips and focusing on driving.

The atmosphere in the car was quiet, making Ye Qinru feel awkward. Fortunately, after about half an hour, they arrived at the villa area where the Ye family lived.

Gu Shenyan parked the car, and Ye Qinru quickly opened the door and got out. After bidding him goodbye, she walked towards the house with the gift prepared by the Gu family.

Furrowing his brows, Gu Shenyan watched her disappear around the corner before stepping on the gas and driving away.

At the gate of the Ye family villa, Ye Qinru rang the doorbell.

Yao Fen opened the door and saw Ye Qinru holding a gift box. She greeted her with a smile, "Oh, Qinru is back, come in quickly."

The first thing Ye Guoqiang said when he saw Ye Qinru was, "When did the Gu family promise to invest?"

"I brought it up, but Gu Shenyan said there's no rush, we'll talk about it later," Ye Qinru replied truthfully.

"Qinru, the doctor notified me that your mother's condition suddenly worsened. Without the best medicine, she probably won't last more than a few days," Ye Guoqiang's face darkened. The Ye family was in financial crisis, and they had to solve it quickly.

Ye Qinru glared at Ye Guoqiang angrily, knowing exactly what he meant by saying this. She bit her lip and nodded, "Okay."

"Qinru, did that man touch you last night?" Ye Xinyu looked at Ye Qinru with curiosity, asking tentatively, "Is he really incapable?"

"He didn't touch me," Ye Qinru replied truthfully, and Ye Xinyu looked as if she had expected it to be so. "Luckily I didn't marry him, otherwise I would have been miserable."

"Qinru, come and have some fruit." Yao Fen approached with a fruit platter, warmly inviting Ye Qinru, "You have a different status now, as Mrs. Gu, the Ye family will rely on you in the future."

"Humph, just married to a useless man. What's so impressive about that?" Ye Xinyu sneered, not liking Yao Fen's flattery towards Ye Qinru.

"Mom, I want to eat dragon fruit." Just as her hand reached out, Yao Fen slapped it away, "If you want to eat, go to the kitchen and get it yourself. This is for Qinru."

"No need, I'll go upstairs and get my things and leave." Ye Qinru stood up and went upstairs, knowing that Yang Limei's condition worsening would weigh heavily on her.

"Mom, what are you doing?" Ye Xinyu looked angrily at Yao Fen. "Look, you've slapped my hand so hard. You used to ignore me completely."

Yao Fen glanced at her sideways and replied, "What do you know? The Gu family's investment hasn't come through yet. I have to cater to this ancestor."

Ye Qinru stood at the corner of the stairs, listening to the conversation between the mother and daughter, her expression cold.

Yao Fen and Ye Guoqiang, one playing good cop and the other playing bad cop, were just trying to force her to urge the Gu family to invest. Once the task was completed, she would have no value to the Ye family.

Biting her lip, she pushed open the door to her room and took out a bag of acupuncture needles from the cabinet, which her grandmother had left her.

She had been learning traditional Chinese medicine and acupuncture from her grandmother since she was a child, and her interest was profound. This was also the main reason why she chose to study medicine in college.

Perhaps she should try acupuncture to see if it would help her mother's condition.

...

Cixin Hospital

Ye Qinru pushed open the door to the ward, only to find it empty. She nervously ran back to the nurse's station and asked, "Nurse, where's my mother?"

"Miss Ye, Mrs. Ye was transferred to another hospital yesterday, didn't you know?" The nurse looked at Ye Qinru in surprise. "Although the doctor advised Mr. Ye not to transfer Mrs. Ye, as her body couldn't handle it, Mr. Ye insisted, so the doctor had to go through the formalities."

Ye Qinru gritted her teeth. Damn Ye Guoqiang, he hid Yang Limei away disregarding her safety.

In his eyes, were she and her mother just pieces to be used?

Anger surged in her chest, the Ye family was too much.

She took out her phone and dialed Ye Guoqiang's number, angrily asking, "Where's my mother? Where did you hide her?"

"Have you been to the hospital?" Ye Guoqiang seemed to have anticipated Ye Qinru's call long ago and chuckled darkly. "Rest assured, I transferred her to a better hospital. As long as you behave, she'll receive the best treatment. Don't even think about involving Gu Shenyan, otherwise, I'll give up her treatment. In less than half a day, she'll be dead."

"Ye Guoqiang, if anything happens to my mother, I will bury the entire Ye family with her." Ye Qinru's eyes were red with fury. They had endured so much over the years, what had they gained?

Yang Limei was barely hanging on, and Ye Guoqiang still wanted to torment her like this?

The anger in her heart was about to explode, burning her whole being.

"Try me!"

Ye Guoqiang was infuriated, his old face dark with anger. "How dare you speak to your father like this?"

"I'm putting it plainly today, you can try me!" Ye Qinru hung up the phone, gritting her teeth, pondering over which hospital Ye Guoqiang might have transferred Yang Limei to.

There were more than a dozen major hospitals in Ting City, but there were probably four or five that were better than Cixin Hospital. She refused to believe that she couldn't find her mother by checking each one.

Three hours later, Ye Qinru sat on a seaside bench with a disappointed expression, covering her face as she cried.

She couldn't find Yang Limei. Ye Guoqiang was ruthless enough; where on earth had he hidden her?

The melodious ringtone of her phone interrupted her thoughts. Seeing that it was Gu Shenyan calling, she wiped away her tears and answered the call. "Hello."

"Where are you? I'm coming to pick you up to go back to the Gu family."

Gu Shenyan spoke through the Bluetooth as he drove.

"At the seaside."

Ye Qinru's voice choked up a bit, and Gu Shenyan sensed something wrong. "Are you crying?"

"No."

Ye Qinru denied it. "It's windy by the seaside, and sand got in my eyes."

"Wait for me, I'll be there soon."

Gu Shenyan turned the car in the direction of the seaside.

Ye Qinru had calmed down by now. She couldn't let Ye Guoqiang have the opportunity to harm Yang Limei. She had to keep this from Gu Shenyan and find a solution on her own.