Chapter 36: She Vomited a Lot of Blood Back Then

On the other side, at the Shi Residence in Lanwan City.

Shi Heng took a long stride, stepped out of the black Maybach, and pushed open the front door.

Inside, candlelight flickered, and a sumptuous dinner was laid out on the dining table. Shi Father, Shi Mother, and Shi Xi were all sitting neatly around the table.

"Heng, you're back!" Liu Wanxin said with a full smile, quickly standing up to pull out a chair for Shi Heng, "Today is the day Shi Xi's performance ended, so we called you over tonight to celebrate. Come over quickly, let's have a reunion dinner as a family!"

Shi Heng's heart sank secretly. He had originally thought that being called home by his mother for dinner today was to celebrate Shi Yi's birthday.

Today was Shi Yi's 23rd birthday.

But it seemed he had overthought it—Shi Yi had been away from home for three full months, and their entire family had never mentioned her, let alone cared about her, as if this second daughter had never existed. He even felt that since Shi Yi left home, the smile on Liu Wanxin's face was more frequent than before.

"Hmm," Shi Heng replied indifferently, then walked to the seat next to Shi Xi and sat down.

"How was the performance?"

Shi Heng asked Shi Xi casually while looking down at his food.

"It was great. This time I was in the center position. After the performance, everyone came to take photos with me, and some people even praised my eyes for being beautiful, hehe."

Shi Xi answered full of pride.

Shi Heng knew that Shi Xi wearing a "prosthetic eye" was no longer a secret at her school. Teachers and classmates were very sympathetic to Shi Xi's situation, and at school, they even treated her as a group pet. Shi Xi was no longer inferior because of this, and had even fully accepted it.

This should have been a good thing, but...

Shi Heng always felt that if that incident back then hadn't happened, his other sister, Shi Yi, should have also had a brilliant and bright youth.

"By the way, Dad, the marriage with Brother Hao Bei... has the Qin family replied?"

Shi Xi suddenly asked, her expression anxious.

Ever since she met Qin Hao Bei three months ago, she had fallen in love with this "fiancé" at first sight. This couldn't be blamed on her being cheap; such a perfect man, he feared there wasn't a woman in the world who wouldn't be moved.

Shi Zhenyuan's face turned slightly pale, "Xi, this matter is probably not something to rush..."

"Then does he have any interest in me at all?! Is it because he dislikes... my eyes?"

"That's not it. The Qin family only said that Young Master Qin doesn't want to get married right now and wants to go abroad for a few years of training. No one knows exactly where he went. But as far as I know, Young Master Qin is indeed not in the country right now."

"Hmph, he dares to dislike our Xi!" Liu Wanxin said sarcastically while peeling shrimp, "In what way is our Xi inferior to that Qin fellow? The Shi Group is now developing in full swing; in what way is our Shi family inferior to that Qin family!"

"What do you know?!"

Shi Zhenyuan scolded coldly: "Although the Qin family is not as wealthy as our Shi family, their foundation in Lanwan and their influence in political circles are things our Shi family cannot reach. Marrying into the Qin family has a hundred benefits for our family and no harm!"

Liu Wanxin secretly curled her lips, "Fine, fine, I know."

"Mom, don't worry about it, I truly like Brother Hao Bei..." Shi Xi pouted.

"I know, don't worry, Dad will discuss it with the Qin family again. I will definitely make you Mrs. Qin," Shi Zhenyuan said with a determined expression.

"Dad, Mom."

Shi Heng didn't want to hear about the mess between Shi Xi and Qin Hao Bei, so he interrupted impatiently: "Have you forgotten what day it is today?"

"What day is it today?"

Confusion appeared on the faces of Liu Wanxin, Shi Zhenyuan, and Shi Xi at the same time.

Seeing the innocent and indifferent expressions on the three faces, Shi Heng's heart, which had been hanging, died completely. He had originally wanted to find an opportunity to tell them what Shi Yi had suffered in prison over the past five years—that she had been beaten, abused, and had one of her kidneys removed!

But now it seemed that even if he told them the truth, none of the three would truly care about Shi Yi.

For the first time in over 20 years, a deep sense of powerlessness surged in his heart, as if no matter what he did, he couldn't change the prejudices in people's hearts—he suddenly understood that this was exactly the feeling Shi Yi faced every day.

That was why, after she was released from prison, she became so cold, numb, and submissive.

"Nothing, I'm full."

Shi Heng put down his knife and fork, stood up, and left the dining table.

"Hey, Heng, why are you full so quickly? You haven't even touched your steak!" Liu Wanxin shouted loudly.

"I'm not hungry."

Shi Heng waved his hand while pushing the door open and walking out. The air here suddenly made him feel suffocated, and he didn't want to stay for even a second longer.

Walking out of the living room, Shi Heng unknowingly arrived at the basement floor, in front of the door to the room Shi Yi used to live in. He was just about to push the door handle when he didn't expect the door to be open a crack, with a warm yellow light shining inside.

"Zhang Ma?"

Shi Heng pushed the door and walked in, discovering it was Zhang Ma sitting at Shi Yi's desk, with a small cake placed on the desk.

"Young Master?!"

Seeing Shi Heng walk in, Zhang Ma quickly stood up, her face full of nervousness: "I'm sorry, today is the Second Miss's birthday, I just wanted to come here to celebrate the Second Miss's birthday..."

Shi Heng's heart warmed, and he nodded: "I know, you can sit down."

Zhang Ma didn't dare to sit down again, so she had to stand by the wall, lowering her head and nervously wringing her hands.

Shi Heng walked over and sat on the chair in front of the desk, his gaze landing on the small white cream cake placed on the desk.

"Can I have a taste?"

"Of course!" Zhang Ma quickly walked over and respectfully placed the small cake in front of Shi Heng, "I made this myself... I intended to leave it here to celebrate the Second Miss's birthday. Since you're here, have a taste!"

Shi Heng took a spoonful and put it in his mouth, "Hmm, the taste is good, very light."

"It's made with yogurt. The Second Miss's stomach isn't very good, so she can't eat anything too greasy."

Shi Heng stopped his movements, looked up, and frowned slightly, "You mean, her stomach isn't good?"

Zhang Ma sighed, then gritted her teeth, as if she had suddenly made a decision, and "whoosh" opened the desk drawer.

"Young Master, the Second Miss's stomach isn't just not good; her body has been tortured until it's riddled with holes. I don't know how much suffering she endured in prison all these years! Look, these are the medicines she usually takes..."

Inside the drawer, it was full of colorful medicines. Shi Heng picked up a medicine box at random and saw it was painkillers; he picked up another and saw it was for treating gastric bleeding...

Shi Heng's brow furrowed deeper and deeper, "Did she go to the hospital to get these back herself?"

Zhang Ma shook her head, a look of heartache appearing in her eyes, and she said with a choked voice:

"These were from that day three months ago; the Second Miss asked me to buy them. That day, that morning, I pushed open the door and saw the Second Miss fainted on the floor alone. I shook her for a long time before I woke her up."

"At that time... I was so scared, because the Second Miss vomited... she vomited a lot of blood." ===== CHAPTER 37 =====