After I Married the Comatose CEO - Chapter 16

Xie Qiu blinked and reached up to hold the hand covering his face.

His eyelashes were long and thick, resting in the man’s palm like a butterfly fluttering its wings.

He Siyan’s fingers curled again, resting against Xie Qiu’s eyes.

Xie Qiu took the hand down and asked jokingly, “Husband, were you helping me wipe away the water?”

Having experienced similar situations several times now, he didn’t get startled anymore.

As if responding to his question, He Siyan’s hand moved again, his fingertips fumbling upward.

Xie Qiu was a bit surprised. He proactively pressed his cheek against the cool palm: “Husband, are you trying to tell me something?”

But a few seconds later, He Siyan’s hand dropped back down. His fingertips grazed the soft cheek as they fell, as if he were still reluctant to let go.

Xie Qiu pressed his lips together, put the man’s hand back on the bed, and straightened the blanket: “Husband, you should rest.”

He stood up and was about to turn away when the hand nearest the bed was suddenly grabbed.

Xie Qiu froze. Looking down, he saw the man had raised his hand again and gripped his hand.

“Husband?” he asked tentatively. “Do you not want me to leave?”

Getting no response, Xie Qiu could only ask again: “Husband, are you awake?”

The man didn’t answer. Only that pale hand held him firmly.

Xie Qiu felt a bit helpless and negotiated softly, “Husband, I got wet in the rain, too. I want to go back to my room to take a shower. Is that okay?”

After several seconds, the large hand holding him slowly loosened its grip.

This time, Xie Qiu was finally certain: “Husband, you can hear me, can’t you?”

Once is a coincidence, but it can’t be a coincidence every time.

But the man seemed to have fallen back into a deep sleep; no matter what Xie Qiu said, there was no more reaction.

Xie Qiu had no choice but to give up for now and go back to his room to shower.

When he came out after his shower, he walked to the desk while drying his hair and saw his phone screen was lit up.

Xie Qiu picked up the phone and saw seven missed calls, all from Mrs. Yao Man.

This was the first time his foster mother had contacted him since he married into the He family.

Since she had called seven times in a row, he could guess what it was about.

Xie Qiu sat on the end of the bed and continued drying his hair with the towel.

A moment later, the phone began to vibrate again.

Xie Qiu pressed the answer button. Before he could speak, a sharp, piercing voice came from the other end: “Xie Qiu, do you know how many times I’ve called? Why didn’t you answer?”

“I was showering,” Xie Qiu replied simply. “I just got out.”

“Oh, oh…” Yao Man’s voice softened, and her tone changed. “Xiao Qiu, Mom was just so worried about you. I’m glad you’re okay.”

Xie Qiu smiled: “I’m at the He house. Nothing bad will happen to me.”

“Isn’t Mom just worried the He family might bully you?” Yao Man pretended to care. “Xiao Qiu, how is your mother-in-law treating you?”

“It’s just okay.” Xie Qiu lowered his eyelashes, his voice sounding a bit down. “The He family thought my marriage would bring luck and He Siyan would wake up quickly, but…”

“The He family is really ungrateful!” Yao Man started cursing immediately. “They were the ones who begged you to marry him for luck. Your parents only let you marry into the He family after much heartache. How can they blame you for something even doctors can’t fix?”

Xie Qiu: “…”

A 10-million-yuan bride price… that’s some “heartache” alright.

“Even if they blame you for not waking him up, you are still the daughter-in-law the He family officially married.” Yao Man changed the subject, moving toward her real point. “For Grandpa He’s 70th birthday, they surely won’t keep you from attending, right?”

Xie Qiu sighed: “I don’t know yet.”

Seeing that he wasn’t taking the bait, Yao Man spoke plainly: “I see that the Li family and the Wang family have all received invitations to the banquet, but your father and I haven’t. Did your mother-in-law forget us?”

“As you know, I have no say at all in the He family.” Xie Qiu sighed again. “My mother-in-law treats me completely like a caregiver. Every day, I serve my husband in his coma with fear and trembling.”

Yao Man remained silent for a few seconds, her tone becoming impatient: “Fine, I get it.”

Before the call ended, Xie Qiu heard a faint curse from the other end: “Useless thing!”

He didn’t care at all. He turned off his phone and tossed it back onto the table.

Greed knows no bounds. People who could ask for ten million would never be satisfied with just that.

Therefore, the more miserable the Xie family thought his life was at the He house, the better. That way, they wouldn’t come looking for him all the time to force him to ask for more favors.

Xie Qiu dried his hair and replied to a few messages. Then, he slowly walked across the room to the door connecting to the sickroom next door.

He pushed the door open cautiously and walked softly to the bed, observing the man closely.

Unfortunately, his husband lay quietly on the bed. Aside from steady breathing, there was no other movement.

Xie Qiu spoke: “Alright, husband, it seems I misunderstood you.”

Thinking about it, who would want to lie in bed pretending to be a vegetable when they could be a normal person who can run and jump?

Xie Qiu sat in his usual chair and grabbed the fairy tale book, flipping to the bookmarked page: “Let’s see what tonight’s bedtime story is…”

Outside the window, the moonlight was hazy. Inside the room, the sound of gentle storytelling flowed, creating a quiet and peaceful atmosphere.

“Alright, that’s all for today’s story.” Xie Qiu closed the book and tilted his head, looking a bit conflicted. “Husband, do you think I should sleep with you tonight?”

As soon as he finished speaking, he saw the man’s finger twitch.

Xie Qiu narrowed his eyes slightly and answered his own question: “Mhm, I should stay and sleep with you.”

He took off his slippers, climbed onto the bed, and lay down in his usual spot. He covered himself with his small blanket and pulled the man’s blanket up a bit more.

After finishing these movements, Xie Qiu closed his eyes: “Goodnight, husband. Tomorrow is a new day.”

After a long while, something moved under the man’s thin eyelids. Then, the hand resting on the sheet moved too, slowly fumbling to the side.

Just as the large hand touched the hand beside it, Xie Qiu opened his eyes.

He looked down and called out: “Husband.”

Xie Qiu felt the large hand touching him stiffen. It stayed in its original position without moving.

“Husband, have you regained consciousness?” He held the man’s hand back. “You can hear me talking, right?”

Seeing that the man remained motionless, Xie Qiu warned: “Husband, if you keep ignoring me, I’m really going to use my secret weapon.”

After counting to three, he decisively climbed up and sat astride He Siyan’s thighs.

Xie Qiu leaned down, his fingers touching the man’s cool earlobe, rubbing it gently with his fingertips.

As he watched the bloodless ear turn red, his warm, soft fingertips slid along the skin of the neck to the Adam’s apple, brushing against it lightly.

The man’s prominent Adam’s apple bobbed uncontrollably. Xie Qiu teased with a smile: “Husband, is your Adam’s apple a sensitive spot too?”

But he didn’t stop there. His flexible fingers began to unbutton the home clothes, one by one, until they were completely open.

Xie Qiu’s ears turned bright red, but his tone sounded very relaxed: “Husband, since you have no consciousness at all, it shouldn’t matter what I do to you, right?”

He used his pale fingertips to hook the edge of the pajama pants, pulling slightly: “Husband, actually, I’ve been holding back for a long time. Why don’t we just—”

His voice cut off abruptly.

He Siyan’s hand, which had been resting at his side, had risen at some point and grabbed the slender wrist firmly.

Xie Qiu gasped. He tried to pull his hand away, but after several attempts, he couldn’t break free.

Was this really the kind of strength a person in a coma should have?

“Husband, you really have regained consciousness.” Xie Qiu laughed with satisfaction and leaned over to press the call button by the head of the bed.

Soon, the door was pushed open, and the caregiver rushed in: “What happened, Eldest Young Madam?”

As the caregiver pushed the door, He Siyan let go, his hand falling back down weakly.

Xie Qiu climbed off the man and got off the bed: “The Eldest Young Master seems to have regained some consciousness.”

“Really?” the caregiver said in surprise. “I’ll contact Dr. Chen immediately.”

“Okay.” Xie Qiu looked back at the man on the bed. “I’ll go get the Madam.”

Xie Qiu went downstairs, searched around, and found Su Wanrong in the front hall. He told her the good news: “Mom, my husband seems to have some consciousness.”

“What?” Su Wanrong turned around suddenly. “Is it true?”

“Mhm.” Xie Qiu nodded. “We’ll have to wait for the doctor to check him to know how much he’s recovered.”

Without another word, Su Wanrong took his hand and led him toward the stairs: “Come, let’s go see Siyan first!”

When they returned to the room, the caregiver was trying to get He Siyan to perform a commanded movement, but received no response.

Su Wanrong stood nearby, her face full of obvious anxiety: “What’s going on? Why isn’t Siyan reacting again?”

“Don’t worry yet; let’s wait for the doctor,” Xie Qiu comforted her. “I’m certain he really heard me talking just now.”

Su Wanrong had no choice but to be patient: “Alright, Xiao Qiu, I believe you.”

Fortunately, Dr. Chen arrived quickly, but the results of the check-up were still not ideal.

Xie Qiu frowned slightly, not understanding which part went wrong.

“Eldest Young Madam.” Dr. Chen suddenly turned around. “Can you describe in detail what happened just now?”

Xie Qiu froze, a wave of heat rising behind his ears. For a moment, he didn’t know how to describe his attempt to “force himself” on his husband more elegantly.

Dr. Chen seemed to understand something: “Eldest Young Madam, why don’t you come over and try talking to the Eldest Young Master?”

Xie Qiu breathed a sigh of relief, walked to the bedside, and asked softly, “Husband, can you hear my voice?”

Under the gaze of several people, He Siyan’s fingers moved slightly.

Su Wanrong was overjoyed and couldn’t help but cry out, “There’s a reaction! Siyan has a reaction!”

“Madam, please stay calm for a moment,” Dr. Chen gestured. “Eldest Young Madam, you can give the Eldest Young Master a command now—just a simple one.”

Xie Qiu reached out to hold the man’s hand, leaned down, and whispered a secret in his ear.

In the next second, the man flung his hand away, and his breathing became a bit faster.

Dr. Chen immediately pulled back He Siyan’s eyelids. After observing for a few seconds, he reached a conclusion: “The Eldest Young Master is indeed conscious, but this consciousness is still very weak.”

“Finally…” Su Wanrong let out a long breath. “I’ve finally waited for this day!”

“But just like the vegetative state, recovery from a minimally conscious state can be quite slow,” Dr. Chen gave a warning. “Currently, it seems the Eldest Young Master is quite sensitive to the Eldest Young Madam’s voice. You can continue with daily stimulation, and I will create a new plan to help him move out of this minimally conscious state as soon as possible.”

Xie Qiu was a bit confused. “Why is it like this?”

Dr. Chen thought for a moment and replied, “It might be because you usually talk to him a lot, so his subconscious is familiar with your voice.”

Xie Qiu nodded and asked again, “Dr. Chen, does this minimally conscious state stay constant all the time?”

“Of course not,” Dr. Chen explained. “Comatose patients have sleep cycles just like normal people, but this state of minimal consciousness is hard to maintain for long periods, and there’s no pattern to it.”

Xie Qiu responded, “I understand.”

So sometimes He Siyan wasn’t ignoring him on purpose, but his consciousness had simply fallen back into a deep sleep?

It was getting late, so Dr. Chen said goodbye, planning to return tomorrow with the new stimulation plan.

“Xiao Qiu…” Once everyone had left, Su Wanrong held Xie Qiu’s hand with tears in her eyes. “Xiao Qiu, Mom knew long ago that you were the lucky star of our He family…”

Xie Qiu patiently comforted her and urged her to go rest first, saying they could talk more tomorrow.

Su Wanrong wiped away her tears and left. The room became quiet again, leaving him alone.

Xie Qiu pulled over a chair to sit down and began to apologize honestly: “I’m sorry, husband. I really had no choice earlier; I had to resort to that trick.”

The man on the bed raised his hand and made a weak grasping motion in the air.

Xie Qiu immediately grabbed his hand. “Husband, what is it?”

That hand reached for his face and, as if for revenge, firmly pinched his soft and tender cheek, squishing the skin together.

Xie Qiu: “Mmph…”

Support