"Why are you following me?" Just as they stepped out of the consultation room, Yao Can's cold interrogation came.
"To bring you your lab results."
"Then you can leave now."
"Well, actually, I've seen a condition similar to yours. I can help you."
"Not interested."
Yao Can's keep-away-from-me aura made Xu Wuyan chuckle awkwardly, not knowing whether to stand or step forward.
As for Yao Can, she had no such inhibitions and turned to leave directly.
Xu Wuyan rubbed the back of his head in frustration; he hadn't even gotten the chance to say that he was here to repay a favor.
Just as he was about to leave, Yao Can, walking ahead, gave a start. That made him pause his steps and look straight ahead.
"Isn't this our eldest Miss Yao?"
A dainty voice pierced the quiet of the corridor as Yao Wanqing stepped out from the corner on slender high heels, the camellia brooch on her Chanel suit glinting coldly.
Lin Zhiyue followed closely behind, her well-maintained hand fondling the clasp of a crocodile-skin handbag.
"Wasting medical resources again?" Yao Wanqing glanced at the test report in Yao Can's hand, her newly done acrylic nails sliding across the elevator button.
"I heard you fainted three times last month? What a pity. If Dad knew his precious daughter doesn't even have a complete heart... tsk tsk."
With a "ding," the elevator doors opened at that exact moment.
Yao Can wanted to ignore them and pressed forward.
Suddenly, Lin Zhiyue reached out and pressed down on Yao Can's shoulder, her jade bracelet clacking against the girl's collarbone. "Xiao Can, you must go for your check-ups on time. The thing your dad couldn't let go of most before he fell into a coma was you."
Her fingertips brushed the back of the young woman's neck. "After all, the shares of the Yao Family..."
"Get lost."
"Sister, we're only concerned about you. We are your family, after all," Yao Wanqing chimed in with a light laugh.
Xu Wuyan noticed Yao Can's fingernails sinking into her palms, her body trembling slightly, an unusual pallor on her face. He frowned.
"Xiao Can, you should understand your sister. She just got her Princeton offer, so she's bound to be a bit blunt."
"Heartless wretches." Yao Can's emotional fluctuation was intense; clearly, this was Lin Zhiyue's objective.
Perhaps feeling that wasn't enough, Yao Wanqing suddenly leaned close to her bruised-looking eyelids.
"Want to know why the shareholders all support me?"
She shook her phone screen saver, which was a stolen photo of Yao Can wearing an oxygen mask.
"After all, nobody dares hand the Yao Family over to a sickly invalid who could stop breathing at any second."
"You..." Yao Can's voice choked, and her body couldn't help swaying backward.
Seeing this, Yao Wanqing stepped back while giggling.
"Sister, don't try to pull a scam and pin it on me; I didn't touch you. Mother, you have to be my witness."
"What are you saying, Wanqing? Xiao Can's health is poor, which is common knowledge. She won't blame you."
A surge of anger rose in Xu Wuyan. He strode forward and caught the swaying Yao Can in his arms, forcefully intervening before Yao Can could even react.
"As far as I know, Old Master Yao once drew up a will stating that Yao Can can inherit the Yao Family as soon as she turns eighteen, and Yao Haiyang has no right to interfere—let alone any of his mistresses or side pieces. Am I right?"
"Who do you think you are? Is there any room for you to speak here?" Lin Zhiyue's expression instantly shifted as she rebuked angrily.
"Allow me to introduce myself. I am Yao Can's boyfriend, and also an old acquaintance of Old Master Yao. So, you'd all better rein it in around me, or else I just might hit people."
Yao Can tried repeatedly to push him away, but Xu Wuyan pulled her tightly into his embrace, giving her no chance to brush him off, and even lowered his head to threaten her by her ear.
"Don't move, or your stepmother will just keep coming at you. Calm yourself down, and leave the rest to me."
"Where did this petty nobody crawl out from? How dare you stick your nose into the Yao Family's affairs?"
Yao Wanqing's voice was piercingly sharp. Coupled with the fact that this was a hospital, it quickly drew a crowd of onlookers. Xu Wuyan wanted to retort, but Yao Can's complexion had already turned terribly pale.
With a tight pinch in his heart, Xu Wuyan prepared to take her away, but Yao Can shook her head, supporting her body with difficulty to stand back up on her own, and suddenly spoke.
"According to Article 1147 of the Civil Code—*cough, cough*—"
"Before my grandfather passed away, he drew up a supplementary will at the notary office: if the descendants of the Yao Family reach the age of eighteen and can enter into a legal marriage, they can activate the 30% share proxy agreement."
"Next Wednesday is my eighteenth birthday."
"Sister, are you trying to tell us not to let you live to see 18?" Yao Wanqing's face also went completely cold.
"Forgot to mention, before Father fell into a coma, he added an anti-tampering clause to the will."
"Should I suffer an unnatural death, all shares will automatically transfer to a charitable foundation."
"So you'd better pray I live a long and healthy life."
Lin Zhiyue's crocodile-skin handbag dropped to the floor with a clatter. Yao Wanqing's Chanel jacket brushed against a medical cart by the wall, leaving a map-like stain of saline solution on the silk fabric. The smugness on their faces had been entirely replaced by fury.
Xu Wuyan watched this gleefully, marveling inwardly that Yao Can didn't make a move unless it was a fatal blow.
"Fine! Very well, we'll see about that! I may not be able to make you die, but what man would ever dare marry a sickly weakling like you?"
"Once you're dead, everything belongs to us. I can afford to wait."
Yao Wanqing stared at Yao Can's chest for a moment, then suddenly smiled.
"Oh right, you even brought a bad omen of death to your engagement match. I heard his heart was gouged out. How pathetic!"
Faced with Yao Wanqing's provocation, Yao Can suddenly turned to look at Xu Wuyan, a smile like glacial cracks blooming at the bottom of her eyes.
"Aren't you my boyfriend? Well, I happen to need a legal spouse right now."
This stunned Xu Wuyan. Before he could respond, Lin Zhiyue spoke up again.
* * *
"Young man, you'd better think carefully. There's an addendum to the will: Yao Can's spouse must be a matrilocal husband, and even if she dies, he won't inherit a single cent from the Yao Family."
Yao Can's eyes betrayed her tension. Xu Wuyan knew this was a desperate measure on her part, and he hesitated.
"Room and board provided, plus full social insurance and housing fund benefits," she suddenly leaned close to his ear, her warm breath laced with a medicinal fragrance as she whispered.
"Deal. After your birthday passes, let's go get our marriage certificate and piss that old witch to death."
If you aren't ruthless, you can't stand firm. Faced with this windfall of romantic trouble—and mainly for the sake of the social insurance and housing fund—he agreed on the spot.
"You... you lowlife, just you wait."
"Mom, let's go!"
At this point, continuing the conversation was pointless. Yao Wanqing grabbed Lin Zhiyue, casting a sweeping, disdainful look over Xu Wuyan.
"A toad trying to eat swan meat, completely ignorant of the immensity of heaven and earth. How dare you meddle in the Yao Family's affairs? Prepare to meet your end."
"Damn your grandfather, this young master is going to teach you venomous vipers a lesson today!"
"Stop talking. Let's go."
Yao Can grabbed Xu Wuyan as he tried to rush forward, shaking her head forcefully.
"Alright."
For Yao Can's emotional state, he had to bite his tongue, though he was still thoroughly displeased.
"Your name is Lin Zhiyue, right? You're the mistress later taken in by the current head of the Yao Family, Yao Haiyang, aren't you? Let me tell you, if you're going to be a mistress, keep a low profile. Since ancient times, mistresses never meet a good end!"
He spoke at the top of his lungs. After all, the Yao Family was a prominent name in Lucheng, and media-savvy friends were always interested in such gossip. Already, people in the crowd had pulled out their phones to take pictures—quite a deliberate move by Xu Wuyan to disgust them.
On the other side, Lin Zhiyue was shaking all over with rage. Being publicly berated as a mistress was like stepping on her tail, but this was clearly no longer the place to keep arguing.
Yao Wanqing grabbed her arm, shook her head, and pulled her straight into the elevator.
To Xu Wuyan, this matter was just a minor incident, but to Yao Can, it was undoubtedly a heavy blow. Feeling the trembling body in his arms, he could sense the heartbreaking experiences this young woman had endured.