Chapter 253: The Little One Falls Ill

"They're here, the doctor is here."

The servant had just gone out and returned, followed by the Zhu Family's family doctor.

The doctor set down the medical kit, felt the child's forehead, then felt her hands and feet, and could not help but frown.

The words spoken were exactly as Shi Youxuan had predicted: "The fever is still rising; if it continues at this temperature, it will be dangerous. Let's give her a fever-reducing injection."

After the IV was started, Shi Ran's hands and feet gradually warmed up, and the heat on her forehead and body also subsided a little.

The child opened her eyes and saw Mommy and Daddy both guarding her side, feeling very strange: "Mommy, Daddy, why are you both here? Xiaozhu's head is so dizzy, I don't feel well."

The little girl's aggrieved appearance made Shi Youxuan wish she could be the one sick instead of her daughter.

She softly comforted her daughter: "Be good, Xiaozhu is sick, so your head is dizzy. If you listen to the doctor, you will get better very soon."

"Mm."

The little one answered weakly.

Her eyes scanned the room, and not seeing the person she wanted to see, she was very disappointed: "Is Auntie not back yet? If Auntie comes back, Xiaozhu will be better right away."

Shi Youxuan felt a bit soft-hearted; she thought, let's just have Alisha come back.

After all, she took care of her daughter with all her heart; at worst, she would just keep her distance from her in the future.

Just letting Alisha take care of Xiaozhu—Xiaozhu really couldn't do without her!

The fever-reducing medicine the doctor gave Shi Ran contained a sedative, so after talking for a while, Xiaozhu fell asleep.

This time, she was truly asleep.

The doctor asked everyone else to leave so as not to disturb the child's rest, leaving only one servant to take care of her.

Shi Youxuan called Zhu Yiwen to the Study to discuss with him whether they should bring Alisha back, as their daughter really could not do without her.

Zhu Yiwen countered: "It's fine to bring her back this time, but do you want to keep her by your side for a lifetime?"

Shi Youxuan was speechless.

She did not know why, but her face suddenly flushed; it was the kind of blushing that was uncontrollable.

Zhu Yiwen's tone softened significantly, his voice carrying a hint of ambiguity: "Actually, it's nothing; don't suppress yourself too much. I understand this feeling of yours. What I did back then was much more extreme than you, but didn't I still fail to escape the arrangements of fate?"

"I will bring Alisha back, and you two can be together quietly; no one will find out..."

"No, don't say any more. I am doing this entirely for my daughter's sake; where has your mind gone?" Shi Youxuan appeared very angry on the surface, but in reality, she was only trying to cover up the panic in her heart.

Only after Alisha left did she realize how dependent she was on her!

Although her daughter had a fever and she was not suffering physically, the feeling of heartache was something only she knew.

It was so painful, so painful, as if someone were using a knife to carve flesh from her heart. Could this be love?

This realization made Shi Youxuan panic, feel lost, and at a loss for what to do.

She was unwilling to admit it, but deep in her heart, a voice told her: Yes, this is love!

When she first fell in love with Sheng Hanyu, it was exactly this kind of feeling.

Shi Youxuan felt like she was going crazy.

Her expression did not escape Zhu Yiwen's eyes, and Zhu Yiwen did not force her, saying earnestly: "If you are truly doing this for your daughter's sake, you should be ruthless and hold firm now, and never let Alisha see Xiaozhu again in the future."

"Although I am... I hope Xiaozhu can live like a normal person, and when she grows up, she can walk under the sun with the person she loves, proudly introducing him to others."

"Without worrying about people looking at her with different eyes, or even treating her as an outcast..."

Zhu Yiwen's words were sincere and earnest; Shi Youxuan was very moved, and she also knew he was truly doing it for their daughter's healthy growth!

Their daughter was too young now and easily influenced by adults.

He was always careful with his words and actions in front of the child, and would even deliberately keep his distance from Shi Ran, not having too much contact with her.

But he liked his daughter; Shi Youxuan could tell.

"Thank you, sir, I know what to do."

Shi Youxuan returned to her daughter's room, sent the servant away, and took care of her daughter herself.

By evening, although the little one's fever had broken, her lips were dry and peeling.

She used a cotton swab dipped in warm water to moisten her lips bit by bit.

"Thirsty..." the little one asked for water.

Shi Youxuan poured honey water and fed it to her daughter bit by bit with a small spoon.

"Auntie, I miss Auntie!" While drinking the water, the little one suddenly mentioned Alisha again; although her eyes were closed, large teardrops rolled from the corners of her eyes.

Some slid down her cheeks, while others hung on her eyelashes.

"Mommy is here, Mommy is with you." Shi Youxuan softly comforted her daughter, trying her best not to mention Alisha.

This time, Shi Ran's fever came on aggressively, but she recovered very slowly, tossing and turning repeatedly for a week.

In this one week, Shi Youxuan lost ten pounds!

She wasn't fat to begin with, and now she looked as if a strong wind could blow her away.

Shi Ran also lost weight, but after recovering, she was as lively as ever.

She pestered Shi Youxuan for Alisha: "Mommy, can Auntie come back today?"

Shi Youxuan: "No."

Shi Ran counted on her fingers and said: "Then she can come back tomorrow, right? Daddy said Auntie would be back after a week; today is exactly seven days, tomorrow is the eighth day, which is a new week."

Shi Youxuan was speechless and only managed to distract her and change the subject with great difficulty.

Things seemed to be more difficult than she had imagined.

She and the gentleman both thought that children were forgetful and would forget Alisha in a few days, just like she had forgotten Jian Yining back then.

She called Jian Yining Godfather, and when Godfather came, Shi Ran was very happy and loved the gifts he gave her, but after a few days, she only remembered the items and didn't recognize the person.

However, that was not the case with Alisha; this past week, Shi Youxuan's ears had almost grown calluses from the word "Auntie."

The little girl mentioned it incessantly, counting on her fingers every day, hoping for Auntie to come back soon!

The time has come now, what should we do?

Shi Youxuan went to discuss it with Zhu Yiwen, asking him to think of a way, and Zhu Yiwen thought for a moment: "You go back, I will go talk to Xiaozhu in a while."

She was cautious and did not leave immediately, but instead asked him how he intended to tell the child.

Zhu Yiwen said: "I will just say Alisha died in a car accident, to cut off Xiaozhu's longing."

"No."

Shi Youxuan immediately refused flatly: "How can you be like this? Isn't this cursing Alisha?"

Zhu Yiwen said indifferently: "If you want her to disappear from this world forever, that works too, so she doesn't come knocking later, or show up at the kindergarten to find Xiaozhu and give the game away; killing her off would mean permanent safety."

"No, I won't allow you to do that."

Shi Youxuan reacted intensely, standing up abruptly from the sofa, but because she stood up too quickly, she felt dizzy and unstable, falling back into the sofa.

Zhu Yiwen chuckled: "You, how long has it been since you looked in a mirror?"

"What?"

She did not understand why, while they were talking about Alisha, he had suddenly changed to such an abrupt topic.

Zhu Yiwen handed her a small mirror: "Look at yourself, look at how dejected you look; don't tell me you are like this just because you are tired from taking care of Xiaozhu. I think your heart is more tired than your body."

Shi Youxuan remained silent.

He was right.

Over this past week, it wasn't just Xiaozhu who missed Alisha; she did too!

Otherwise, just from taking care of a child, she wouldn't have lost ten pounds.

"How about we just let her come back? After she returns, you two can clarify your relationship and live together; that way, it can also cut off Jian Yining's longing for you."