The Sweetest Marriage Ch.242

Chapter 242 – Like a Dream

Wei Chen had stayed awake all night. Even now, he didn’t feel the slightest bit of sleepiness. He kept close watch on Chen Li’s condition. Every time Chen Li made a move, Wei Chen noticed, instantly tensing up and anxiously looking towards Chen Li.

Chen Li had long eyelashes that were now trembling slightly. Shortly after, he opened his eyes. A sense of confusion filled his wide gaze. When he met Wei Chen’s concerned eyes, Chen Li seemed stunned for a long moment, as if recalling something. Suddenly, he sat up and tightly embraced Wei Chen, as if a drowning person clinging to the last piece of driftwood.

“Li Li, I’m here,” Wei Chen held Chen Li tightly, comforting him with gentle and soothing words.

Chen Li began to cry, suppressing his sobs heavily. Tears flowed like a spring, wetting Wei Chen’s clothes instantly, but he didn’t let out a sound, biting his lip to stifle his cries.

Wei Chen’s hand gently caressed Chen Li’s back, soothing him, quietly staying by his side.

After a while, Chen Li gradually eased from his uncontrollable weeping. He moved away from Wei Chen’s embrace, his eyes red from crying, looking at Wei Chen. A sad expression appeared on his face involuntarily. “Achen, I had a dream. A very long dream where both you and I died in the end. The dream felt so real. If I hadn’t woken up to see you, I would have thought I was still living in that dream, leaving with you.”

Wei Chen’s actions paused momentarily at his words, then he continued to gently stroke Chen Li’s back, saying, “It’s okay. It’s just a dream, a dream that can never come true.”

Like a dream, it dissipated from then on.

Chen Li nestled in Wei Chen’s arms, finding immense comfort in Wei Chen’s presence. He held onto Wei Chen’s waist firmly. “Mm, I know it’s a dream because you’re by my side.”

“I’ll always be by your side,” Wei Chen embraced Chen Li again.

‘This time, I won’t let the scenes from the dream repeat themselves. I will keep holding your hand until we grow old.’

Wei Chen lightly kissed Chen Li’s forehead, filled with deep affection.

Several minutes later, Wei Chen took a shower and walked out of the room, holding Chen Li’s hand.

In the living room downstairs, several people were seated, all worried about Chen Li and waiting for him to wake up.

Chen Li was unaware of what had transpired during the time he was “asleep.” When he saw Lan Xiping, he was evidently surprised. He let go of Wei Chen’s hand, walked over to Lan Xiping, and with widened eyes, asked, “Xiping, how come you’re here?”

Lan Xiping immediately realized that Chen Li was unaware of what had happened the previous night and casually made up an excuse, “Just came to Shanghai for sightseeing with Jiang Ye and found out you were here, so came to check on you.”

“Really?” Chen Li’s eyes instantly lit up, sitting next to Lan Xiping and engaging in an enthusiastic discussion.

Seeing Chen Li in this current state, everyone heaved a sigh of relief. It seemed that Chen Li hadn’t been affected by the hypnosis.

Mr. Reinhert indeed lives up to his reputation.

Grandfather Wei descended from the stairs and upon seeing the scene in the living room, noticing the cheerful Chen Li, he slightly furrowed his brows.

“Achen, come with me!” Grandfather Wei’s gaze then fell upon Wei Chen, sharp and intense.

Wei Chen met his grandfather’s eyes, coolly and icily replying, “Grandfather, if there’s something, you can say it here.”

Grandfather Wei’s brows furrowed instantly in anger. “Wei Chen, what’s with this attitude of yours!”

Wei Chen didn’t respond, just coldly staring at Grandfather Wei.

Grandfather Wei inexplicably felt a sense of guilt. With Housekeeper Zhang’s support, he left in a huff.

He knew – Wei Chen had grown to resent him completely because of what happened the day before.

Grandfather Wei couldn’t understand: What was so special about Chen Li? How could he drive Wei Chen to such madness!

The more he thought, the more agitated Grandfather Wei felt. While going upstairs, his foot missed a step. If it hadn’t been for Housekeeper Zhang’s support, Grandfather Wei might have tumbled down the stairs.

Even so, he ended up twisting his ankle.

The family doctor arrived promptly and examined the Grandfather Wei. Fortunately, there was no fracture, just a minor sprain in the ankle.

However, considering Grandfather Wei’s age, he still needed a period of rest after the slight injury.

*

At Shanghai’s First Hospital,

Mr. Reinhert, after getting the address where Xu Ruru was admitted from Wei Yan, arrived at the hospital.

Upon seeing Mr. Reinhert in front of her, Xu Ruru’s expression was calm but devoid of any emotions. “Teacher! You’re here,” she said, her voice hoarse and very low.

However, Mr. Reinhert heard it all. He placed the fruit he was holding on the table and sat beside Xu Ruru. “I rushed here overnight from Beijing last night. The patient’s condition was extremely critical. If I had arrived half an hour later, the patient might have lapsed into a state of brain death due to the earlier erroneous hypnosis.”

Xu Ruru knew that the patient Mr. Reinhert referred to was Chen Li, whom she had hypnotized the day before. She lowered her head, unable to meet Mr. Reinhert’s gaze.

“Ruru,” Mr. Reinhert said with great seriousness, “Did I ever tell you that you were my most outstanding student?”

Xu Ruru nodded, but now, the title of being the ‘most outstanding’ felt like a colossal slap across her face, making her unable to raise her head.

As a psychotherapist, she was told on her first day of training that the biggest taboo in this profession was to hypnotize others without authorization. Yet now, she had hypnotized someone for her own desires, especially someone who was already mentally unstable due to autism.

“After this incident, I don’t think you should stay in this profession,” Mr. Reinhert said. “You’ve committed the gravest taboo. Did I not tell you that once a psychotherapist makes this mistake, they should permanently step away from this field because they’re no longer qualified?”

Due to Mr. Reinhert’s words, Xu Ruru suddenly looked up at him, her eyes filled with a pleading glimmer. “Teacher… I, I don’t want to leave this profession… Please help me, please help me.”

At that moment, Xu Ruru was truly afraid and deeply regretful.

Mr. Reinhert’s comforting hand fell on Xu Ruru’s head, and he sighed deeply. “I can’t help you. Accept your punishment calmly. When you have such selfish intentions, you must be prepared to face the consequences.”

Xu Ruru tried to say something, but she couldn’t utter a word. Tears streamed down uncontrollably. She genuinely loved this profession and had never intended to harm Chen Li. But the moment she hypnotized him, she realized something was wrong.

Yesterday, she lied. She couldn’t bring Chen Li out of that state he was in.

Chen Li, being an autistic patient, had an extremely unstable mental condition. She couldn’t fathom his thoughts, and recklessly subjecting him to hypnosis resulted in her losing control from the beginning. However, at that time, she was already blinded by her own desires, deepening the hypnosis.

At that moment, she didn’t know if the scenarios she described had entered Chen Li’s mind or if he had sunk into a different mental state. She could handle the former, but she was powerless against the latter.

Xu Ruru admitted that when Wei Chen was choking her, she harbored thoughts of killing Chen Li. She believed that if Chen Li died, Wei Chen would eventually turn his attention to her and develop feelings for her. That’s why she continued to hide and deceive, not revealing Chen Li’s true condition.

However, upon arriving at the hospital, she regretted her actions. Ignoring the doctor’s advice, she called her teacher, Mr. Reinhert, pleading him to come and save Chen Li.

By the time she got through on the phone, Mr. Reinhert was already on Jiang Ye’s private plane.

She knew her crime was unforgivable, yet she didn’t want to leave this profession. She loved this career.

In the end, her professional career was ruined by her own hands. She almost killed someone, using the profession she loved dearly to do so.

Mr. Reinhert watched Xu Ruru sitting blankly on the hospital bed and decided not to disturb her. He got up and left.

Xu Ruru covered her face and wept bitterly, a whirlwind of emotions swirling within her, full of regrets.

At that moment, a doctor knocked on the door. Xu Ruru composed herself, wiped her tears, and welcomed the doctor in.

The doctor came to deliver the results of her examination.

“Miss Xu, your vocal cords have suffered permanent damage,” the doctor handed over the report, expressing some sympathy and silently remarking on the unfortunate situation. Such a young and pretty girl, yet her voice would be coarser than a man’s in the future.

“Permanent damage…” Xu Ruru stared at the words on the medical report, her fingers trembling over those few words. Suddenly, she didn’t understand the significance of those words.

“Miss Xu, you…” The doctor wanted to console Xu Ruru, but she flung the medical report at the doctor, her voice hoarse as she yelled, “Get out! Get out of here!” Her emotions had completely spiraled out of control.

As a psychotherapist, her voice was crucial. A good voice could make patients more receptive and trusting of her. But with this hoarse voice of a male duck, could she continue to conduct psychological therapy for others?

Her voice was ruined; it was as if she had lost her hands!

Xu Ruru sat desolately on the bed, consumed by despair.

What use was her voice now? She couldn’t continue in this profession anymore. What good was this voice for her?

A bitter, self-mocking smile appeared on Xu Ruru’s face, yet tears streamed uncontrollably.

Destroyed. She could have stood at the pinnacle of the world of psychology, but because of herself, she had utterly ruined it. Ha-ha-ha, ruined!

*

In the same hospital, Chen Yunsheng was anxiously waiting outside the intensive care unit. Chen Yu was sent here yesterday. After a round of treatment, she was transferred to the ICU early in the morning. As long as she could make it through today, her life wouldn’t be in danger.

Ten minutes ago, Chen Yu woke up, and the doctor went in to examine her. The Chen family hovered anxiously by the ICU door, feeling time pass agonizingly slow, as if each second equaled a century.

After about another twenty minutes, the doctor finally opened the door of the intensive care unit, removed his mask, and addressed the Chen family: “The patient has passed the critical phase and can be transferred to a regular ward later. But during this time, be cautious and watch out for any potential relapse.”

Du Lixun nodded hurriedly and asked, “Can we proceed with a heart transplant surgery now?”

“It’s not the right time for surgery yet. The patient’s body is too weak and needs a period of recuperation. Besides…”

“And besides?” Du Liqian inquired further.

“Besides, this heart transplant surgery is extremely challenging. Even if we find a matching heart, I can’t guarantee a successful operation,” the doctor candidly admitted. He had been Chen Yu’s primary doctor all along and was well aware of her condition. Even with a matching heart, the success rate of the surgery was less than ten percent.

Du Lixun and Chen Yunsheng immediately furrowed their brows. “What should we do then?”

The doctor pondered for a moment and suggested, “I recommend transferring her to another hospital for treatment. Dr. Wang Kaiji, the director of the Cardiac Surgery Department at Ci’en Hospital in Beijing, is an authority in the world of cardiac surgery. If the heart transplant surgery is performed by Dr. Wang, the success rate would significantly increase.”

“Okay, as soon as Xiao Yu’s condition stabilizes, I’ll arrange for her to be transferred!” Chen Yunsheng promptly decided.

<< _ >>