After I Married the Comatose CEO - Chapter 22

After He Siyan finished his question, he stared straight at the beautiful face in front of him, waiting for an answer.

Xie Qiu snapped out of it and replied firmly, “No, not old at all! You aren’t old one bit!”

He Siyan’s eyes were dark. It was impossible to tell if he was happy or upset.

“A man is in his prime at thirty, and you’re only twenty-eight,” Xie Qiu’s mind raced, and his words were incredibly sweet. “Twenty-seven or twenty-eight is the perfect age!”

Hearing this, the corner of He Siyan’s mouth twitched upward almost invisibly.

Unfortunately, Xie Qiu missed it. He looked down, his eyes landing on their joined hands.

A second later, he let go as if he had been shocked by electricity and took a step back.

No, I really need to break this habit of touching him whenever I want. The man in front of me isn’t a sleeping patient I can do whatever I want with anymore.

Xie Qiu adjusted his posture, looked up, and asked again, “Mr. He, is there anything I can help you with?”

He Siyan shook his head slightly. His hand, which had been heartlessly let go, fell back onto the sheet, his fingers curling slightly.

Xie Qiu asked tentatively, “Then… do you need me to stay here, Mr. He?”

If the conscious He Siyan didn’t want to see him or thought he was in the way, he could take this chance to leave.

He Siyan stared at him for a few seconds. His lips moved: “You… go eat!”

Even though the man struggled to get the words out, Xie Qiu understood immediately. “You want me to go eat breakfast first?”

He Siyan closed his eyes briefly, agreeing with him.

Xie Qiu replied happily, “Okay! Then I’ll go eat breakfast now.”

Whether He Siyan was making an excuse to get rid of him or really wanted him to eat, Xie Qiu felt he had been saved for the moment.

“I’ll call the caregiver in,” Xie Qiu turned to leave. “If you need me for anything, Mr. He, just let me know.”

He was just being polite, of course. Since He Siyan had so many people around him, it certainly wouldn’t be Xie Qiu’s turn to take care of him.

Xie Qiu opened the door and walked out, completely failing to notice the gaze following him from behind.

“Eldest Young Madam, do you have any orders?” the caregiver asked immediately. He had been sitting on a chair in the hallway playing on his phone.

“Mr. He doesn’t need me for anything, so I came out,” Xie Qiu paused and reminded him, “By the way, please don’t call me ‘Eldest Young Madam’ anymore.”

The caregiver asked in confusion, “Why can’t I call you Eldest Young Madam anymore?”

“Because Mr. He is awake,” Xie Qiu explained simply. “If Mr. He hears you calling me that, he might be unhappy.”

The caregiver asked again, “Why would Mr. He be unhappy?”

Xie Qiu: “…”

That question really stumped him. He didn’t know how to explain the current situation to someone else.

The caregiver scratched the back of his head. “Then what should I call you from now on?”

“Forget it, just keep calling me that for now.” Xie Qiu stopped making things difficult for the caregiver. “Mr. He will correct you himself; you’ll understand when the time comes.”

The caregiver seemed to sort of understand. “Alright, Eldest Young Madam.”

Xie Qiu watched the caregiver enter the room, then turned and headed downstairs.

In the dining room, Su Wanrong was talking with Dr. Chen over breakfast. Seeing him come down, she said in surprise, “Xiao Qiu, why are you down so soon?”

Xie Qiu walked over. “Brother Siyan needs to rest, so I came down.”

Su Wanrong immediately noticed the change in how he addressed her son, but she couldn’t say much with an outsider present. She simply waved him over. “Come and have breakfast with us.”

Xie Qiu sat down, and a servant quickly brought his breakfast to the table.

Once breakfast was finished and the discussion ended, Dr. Chen left first.

Xie Qiu swapped a glance with He Jingchen and prepared to stand up as well.

“Xiao Qiu, Jingchen,” Su Wanrong spoke up. “You both heard what was said. It will take some time for Siyan to fully return to his old self.”

Xie Qiu, whose bottom had just left his chair, sat back down and comforted her, “Don’t worry, Mom. With professional rehabilitation at the hospital, I believe Brother Siyan will recover very quickly.”

“Good child, you always know how to comfort me.” Su Wanrong walked to his side and held his hand. “But Xiao Qiu, Mom has one more thing to ask of you.”

Xie Qiu looked up. “Please, tell me.”

“Mom is very busy lately, and I won’t be able to visit the hospital often once Siyan is admitted. I’ll have to trouble you to go there more often,” Su Wanrong said earnestly. “I’ll only feel at ease if you are with Siyan.”

Xie Qiu hesitated. “Mom, maybe we should ask for Brother Siyan’s opinion first?”

Su Wanrong asked back, “What opinion could he possibly have?”

“Maybe…” Xie Qiu chose his words carefully, “Brother Siyan doesn’t want me appearing in front of him all the time?”

“Silly child, what nonsense are you talking?” Su Wanrong patted his hand scoldingly. “You are Siyan’s wife. Why wouldn’t he want you around?”

Xie Qiu gave a forced laugh and reminded her, “Mom, did you forget? When I married Brother Siyan, he didn’t know anything about it.”

Su Wanrong said firmly, “Siyan didn’t say anything against it after waking up, which shows he has already accepted you as his wife in his heart!”

Xie Qiu: “Uh…”

No, first of all, He Siyan’s brain hasn’t fully recovered yet. Second, no one has told him that he somehow ended up with a wife while he was asleep, right?

“Dear Xiao Qiu, just focus on staying with Siyan.” Su Wanrong promised gently, “Don’t worry, Mom will never let you be mistreated—not even by Siyan.”

Since she had put it that way, Xie Qiu couldn’t say anything else. He could only nod and agree, “I understand, Mom.”

“Good boy, so well-behaved.” Su Wanrong smiled with satisfaction. “Go upstairs and pack a few things. We’ll take Siyan to the hospital together in a bit.”

“Alright.” Xie Qiu left the table and walked upstairs.

As soon as he reached the second floor, He Jingchen’s voice came from behind him: “Wait.”

Xie Qiu stopped and turned to look at him. “What is it?”

He Jingchen asked in a low voice, “What are your plans for what comes next?”

Xie Qiu thought he wanted him to leave the He family quickly, so his tone was a bit helpless: “I don’t have any plans. I’ll just take it one step at a time.”

Of course, he hoped he could leave soon, but it seemed Su Wanrong didn’t plan to let him go yet—at least not until He Siyan fully recovered.

He could only hope that Mr. He would forgive him for the one-sided marriage, seeing how hard he had worked during this time.

He Jingchen looked at him as if he wanted to say something, but in the end, he just said, “Fine.”

Once everything was packed, two caregivers helped move He Siyan into the car to head to the hospital.

Before the car door closed, He Siyan’s gaze drifted toward Xie Qiu as if by accident.

“Don’t worry, Siyan. Xiao Qiu is coming to the hospital with us,” Su Wanrong said, catching his look immediately. “We’ll be in the car right behind you.”

Xie Qiu: “…”

Is it possible that a mother can also completely misunderstand her son’s meaning?

He Siyan said nothing and closed his eyes to rest.

About an hour later, the two cars parked one after the other at the hospital entrance.

This hospital belonged to the He Group. Grandpa He’s original goal for starting it was to give back to society, so he established it as a non-profit comprehensive hospital.

After years of growth, the hospital now had very advanced equipment and many famous doctors. Its reputation grew so large that many patients traveled from far away to seek treatment there.

As soon as the car stopped, doctors and nurses arrived with a stretcher to take He Siyan inside.

The morning passed quickly with various medical checks.

Around one in the afternoon, the nurses moved He Siyan into a high-end VIP room to rest.

After a long morning of exams, He Siyan had already fallen into a tired sleep.

Su Wanrong finally let out a sigh of relief. She pressed her hands together and whispered, “Thank God, thank God…”

Soon, someone delivered several luxury meal sets. The three of them sat on the sofa in the patient room’s living area and began their lunch.

After eating, Su Wanrong gave her instructions: “Xiao Qiu, Mom has to head back to the Group for a meeting. I’ll leave things here to you and Jingchen.”

Xie Qiu promised, “Don’t worry, Mom.”

He Jingchen followed, “Don’t worry.”

Xie Qiu walked Su Wanrong to the door of the sickroom. Once they reached the hallway, his hand was held again.

“Xiao Qiu, even though this hospital belongs to our family, Mom is still worried,” Su Wanrong asked once more. “If you see any suspicious people in the room, you must tell me right away, okay?”

Xie Qiu nodded seriously. “Okay, I understand.”

After she left, Xie Qiu went back to the small living room. He and He Jingchen stared at each other.

After staring for a while, they both looked down to play on their phones.

In the evening, a very light cough came from the bedroom.

Xie Qiu stood up instinctively, but He Jingchen was faster. Using his long legs, he took a few large steps and entered the room first.

Xie Qiu: “…”

He sat back down on the sofa and couldn’t help but listen closely to the conversation inside.

He Jingchen’s voice was very low. He kept talking in short bursts. Occasionally, a deep, raspy word could be heard; it should be He Siyan speaking.

This was the first time Xie Qiu had heard the second young master talk so much, and he felt a bit moved.

Actually, the relationship between the two brothers was very good. It was clear that He Jingchen relied heavily on his older brother. If it weren’t for the messy drama caused by the previous generation.

While Xie Qiu was thinking about random things, the bedroom door opened from the inside.

He Jingchen walked out and gave him a strange look.

Xie Qiu sat up straight. “Is something wrong?”

“There is something,” He Jingchen asked. “Can you stay here tonight?”

“Yes, I have nothing else to do,” Xie Qiu agreed quickly. “Go ahead and get to your work. I will notify you if anything happens.”

“Okay,” He Jingchen replied, then added, “Thanks for your hard work.”

Xie Qiu walked to the door and pushed it open gently.

He Siyan was leaning against the headboard, staring toward him with deep, dark eyes.

Xie Qiu spoke softly, “Mrs. He wants me to stay in the hospital during this time. If you don’t want to see me, Mr. He, I can stay in the living room.”

He Siyan raised a hand, signaling him to come over.

Xie Qiu walked closer slowly. He felt he should first explain the marriage clearly. “Mr. He, about me marrying you without your permission—”

He Siyan interrupted his prepared speech with one word: “Water.”

Xie Qiu paused for a second. “Wait a moment, I’ll pour some for you.”

He Siyan’s swallowing was not yet back to normal, so he had to use a straw to drink.

Xie Qiu stood by the side and waited patiently for the man to finish. When he wanted to speak again, the doctor arrived for a check-up.

Xie Qiu: “…”

Fine, it didn’t matter if he waited a little longer.

Even though he was there to help, the room had professional nurses and caregivers, so there was basically no work for Xie Qiu to do.

After dinner, Xie Qiu played on his phone in the living room for a while, then quietly pushed open the bedroom door.

This time, He Siyan was lying down with his eyes closed. He looked exactly the same as when he was in a coma.

Xie Qiu tiptoed to the bedside and looked down at the man’s sleeping face.

To be honest, his feelings were quite complicated.

Since he married into the He family, he spent a lot of time every day with his “vegetative husband.” In his heart, he had already started to see He Siyan as someone very close to him.

After all, there were things he had never even told the orphanage director, but he had told them secretly to his sleeping husband.

But He Siyan didn’t know anything back then. Now that he was awake, his memory was stuck at the time before the car accident. It would definitely be hard for him to accept having a wife suddenly—especially the one person he didn’t want to marry.

Xie Qiu sighed silently and leaned over to tuck in the man’s blanket.

Just as he was about to stand up, he accidentally met those deep, dark eyes again.

Xie Qiu was startled. He instinctively leaned back and started to fall.

He Siyan reached out and grabbed his wrist firmly.

Xie Qiu used the strength of that hand to steady himself. His expression was a bit embarrassed. “Thank you, Mr. He.”

He Siyan didn’t say anything, and he didn’t let go of Xie Qiu’s hand.

Xie Qiu tried to pull away, but he couldn’t. “Mr. He, what do you want?”

He Siyan looked at him, his fingers slowly tightening around Xie Qiu’s hand.

Xie Qiu blinked. “Do you want more water?”

He Siyan shook his head, his gaze still fixed on Xie Qiu’s face.

Xie Qiu thought hard and suddenly had an idea. “Oh, I know! Do you still want to hear a bedtime story?”

He Siyan: “…”

The man didn’t speak, which made Xie Qiu even more sure of his guess.

After all, he had told his husband bedtime stories every day. Later on, He Siyan had gained some consciousness. He probably got used to hearing them, so now he couldn’t sleep without one.

“But I didn’t bring any fairy tale books. What should I do?” Xie Qiu thought seriously. “How about I search for a story on my phone to use for now?”

He Siyan finally spoke, still one word at a time: “No… listen.”

“Huh? You don’t want to hear a bedtime story?” Xie Qiu’s eyes widened slightly. “Then what do you want, Mr. He?”

He Siyan’s Adam’s apple moved twice. He spoke a whole sentence with great effort: “Where are you sleeping tonight…?”

Xie Qiu froze and asked softly, “Are you worried I have no place to sleep, Mr. He?”

He Siyan nodded slightly, admitting it.

Xie Qiu’s eyes curved into a smile. “Don’t worry. There is a sofa outside. I can sleep there.”

Even though he didn’t understand why a VIP room had only one bed and no extra bed for family, he was glad the sofa in the living room was big enough.

He Siyan’s hand slid down, wrapping Xie Qiu’s hand inside his palm. He still wouldn’t let go.

After staring at the man for a few seconds, Xie Qiu gave in. “Alright, I will ask the nurse if we can add another bed.”

Ten minutes later, an extra bed was added next to He Siyan’s hospital bed. The sheets and covers were all brand-new.

Xie Qiu was secretly impressed. As expected of a high-end VIP room, the efficiency was incredibly high.

“Alright, now I have a bed to sleep on, too.” Xie Qiu sat at the foot of the bed and patted the soft blanket. “Thank you, Mr. He.”

But He Siyan seemed tired. He closed his eyes and stopped responding.

Xie Qiu didn’t mind at all and climbed off the bed with a smile.

It seemed Mr. He wasn’t as cold and heartless as he had imagined, and he didn’t seem to hate him that much after all.

Xie Qiu took his pajamas into the bathroom for a shower. Afterward, a question suddenly popped into his head: it seemed Mr. He hadn’t been wiped down yet tonight.

While he was already very familiar with cleaning his “vegetative husband,” wiping down an awake husband was an entirely different matter.

After hesitating in the bathroom for a while, Xie Qiu finally opened the door and walked out.

“Mr. He,” he called out softly. “Are you asleep?”

To his disappointment, He Siyan slowly opened his eyes.

“Um…” Xie Qiu bit his lip and asked, “Should I call the caregiver in to give you a sponge bath?”

He Siyan narrowed his dark eyes slightly and uttered two words in a low, raspy voice: “You… do it.”

Xie Qiu: “!”

Support