I Wish To Never Leave Your Side - Chapter 9

Early the next morning, in a basement tucked away in a corner of the city.

A man was bound hand and foot, gagged, and slumped in a chair. The collar of his white shirt was crumpled, several buttons already missing, revealing the fleshy skin beneath, dotted with fine hairs.

Only half of a ventilation window let in a faint beam of sunlight, casting a pillar of light into the room. Dust particles danced wildly within the beam, stirred by the man’s ragged breaths.

Suddenly, the rusty iron door creaked open, the sound grating and jarring in the deathly silence of the basement.

The man’s breathing quickened. He tried to stand up from the chair, but his bound feet made it impossible. He stumbled and fell to his knees after just one step.

Dragging his knees across the concrete floor, he crawled toward the newcomer.

Muffled sobs escaped his gagged mouth, his neck flushed red with desperation. His entire body trembled uncontrollably.

Mo Lishen found the sight repulsive. She turned slightly to the side and waved a hand, signaling for the dirty cloth to be removed from his mouth.

The man opened his mouth, but no sound came out at first. He worked to moisten his parched throat and tongue with saliva before rasping out, “President Mo, please let me go.”

Mo Lishen casually picked up an iron rod leaning against the wall. The end of the rod was charred black from repeated heating. She tapped it twice against the wall, shaking off the burnt, sticky residue. The sound echoed ominously in the dim basement.

“Zhao Qiulin, you resigned from the Mo Group three years ago. Your own company went bankrupt, so you went to Mo Licheng for a loan.” Mo Lishen’s voice was eerily calm, sending chills down the spine. “How much did he give you to have you follow me?”

The cold iron rod pressed against the man’s carotid artery. He shuddered, imagining it turning red-hot at any moment, searing through his neck.

“How long have you been tailing me?” Mo Lishen’s eyes were icy as she twisted the rod, pressing its sharp tip lightly into his skin.

Fear magnified the pain. The man’s lips turned pale, and large beads of sweat dripped from his forehead.

He wasn’t refusing to talk, he was too afraid to speak. He owed Mo Licheng seven million. Mo Licheng knew everything about his family. If he crossed him, his entire family would suffer.

Seeing his silence, Mo Lishen’s lips curled into a faint, almost exhilarated smile.

She withdrew the iron rod from his neck, letting the tip scrape against the floor as she moved. The screeching sound was like the manic laughter of a demon in the dark.

“No need to rush your answer. Let’s chat first.” Mo Lishen’s smile deepened, like a black hole ready to devour souls. “Zhao Jiaoqing, a little girl I recently met at a kindergarten.”

At the sound of the name, the man’s eyes widened in terror. “Mo Lishen…”

“Gag him.”

Zhao Qiulin’s mouth was stuffed once again with the dusty rag.

Kneeling on the ground, he glared up at Mo Lishen, muffled sounds still struggling past the gag.

“Don’t get worked up. Let me finish.” Mo Lishen leaned forward slightly, as though soothing her captive audience.

“Little Zhao Jiaoqing was praised by her teacher yesterday at kindergarten. Her essay was exceptionally well-written.” Mo Lishen paused, looking down at Zhao Qiulin with contempt. “The essay topic was ‘My Father.'”

Zhao Qiulin knelt on the ground, his head hanging low.

“I can’t remember the exact details, but the teacher rewarded her by sticking a little red flower on her face.”

Mo Lishen picked up the branding iron, pressed it against the man’s chin, and forced his head up.

“Right about here.” Mo Lishen used the tip of the branding iron to carefully trace the position on Zhao Qiulin’s face.

“Tell me, if I invite her out tomorrow,” Mo Lishen said with a smile, her voice soft and deliberate, “and tell her I’ll show the little red flower on her face to her father.”

Mo Lishen began to apply pressure, and beads of blood slowly seeped from Zhao Qiulin’s face.

“Wouldn’t she be thrilled?”

Zhao Qiulin’s face turned red with strain, veins bulging in his neck as he struggled to make a sound, shaking his head frantically at Mo Lishen.

“If you don’t want me to invite the little girl out to play, that’s fine too. You just need to help me get something.” Slowly, as if sketching a work of art, Mo Lishen traced a bleeding circle on the man’s face. The blood seeped out more and more, gathering into small streams that dripped down, soaking Zhao Qiulin’s white shirt.

Seeing the blood, Mo Lishen narrowed her eyes, her lips curling as if she were even more satisfied.

She crouched down, staring at Zhao Qiulin’s disheveled state, a devouring cold gleam flashing in her eyes. “I want the project proposal for the collaboration between Mo Licheng and Jin Su.”

The man swallowed, hesitation flickering in his eyes.

Mo Lishen stood up and casually tossed the branding iron aside. “Enough talking. I’m off to play with Qingqing.”

“Ugh…” The man crawled over, kneeling at Mo Lishen’s feet, looking up and nodding incessantly.

Mo Lishen gave a signal, and someone removed the rag from Zhao Qiulin’s mouth.

“I’ll do it, I’ll do it, President Mo. Please, spare my daughter.” The right side of Zhao Qiulin’s face was already a bloody mess. Mo Lishen lifted her foot slightly, afraid he might dirty her shoes.

“Then I’ll be waiting for your good news, President Zhao.” Mo Lishen took the wet wipe Bai Hua handed her. “But if there’s no good news, that’s fine too. I’m quite close with your daughter, I’m sure she’d be happy to chat with me about her father.”

Mo Lishen smiled, tossed the wet wipe onto Zhao Qiulin’s face, and left the basement.

…

At Qingshui Bay Apartments, Qiu Yan lingered in bed for a while after waking up. Staring at the little yellow duck water cup Mo Lishen had bought for her, she couldn’t help but smile.

After laughing out loud, she felt a bit embarrassed and covered her face with her hands.

She gazed at the cup for a long time, thinking that since Yuanyuan didn’t like drinking water, maybe she should give the cup to her.

As for the rest of the items, Qiu Yan carefully stored them all in her cabinet, treasuring each one as if they were priceless.

Yuanyuan’s surgery was only a few days away, so Qiu Yan had been visiting the hospital frequently lately, worried that Yuanyuan might become emotionally unstable and affect the procedure.

When Qiu Yan arrived at the hospital, Yuanyuan was watching a movie on Aunt Liu’s phone.

Though it was more like watching clips of the movie, Yuanyuan remembered the exact times Qiu Yan appeared on screen and would fast-forward directly to those parts.

Being young, she couldn’t understand the plot, but she could sense the emotions. She knew how Qiu Yan’s character felt in each scene.

If Qiu Yan’s character was smiling, Yuanyuan would feel happy too. As for the movies where Qiu Yan played bullied roles, Yuanyuan would never watch them again after the first time, pouting and saying she hated the people who bullied Qiu Yan in those films.

Yuanyuan dragged the progress bar to the segment where only Qiu Yan appeared on the screen and pressed pause. She stretched out her little hand to show Aunt Liu: “Aunt Liu, look, it’s my mom. She’s making a movie.”

Aunt Liu always played along to make Yuanyuan happy: “No wonder our Yuanyuan is so pretty, she has a beautiful mommy.”

Despite her young age, Yuanyuan already understood shyness. She hid half her face under the blanket and mumbled, “Mommy is prettier than me.”

“Who could be prettier than our Yuanyuan?” Qiu Yan pushed the door open, deliberately teasing her daughter.

“Mommy!” Little Yuanyuan, seeing it was Qiu Yan, quickly sat up and stretched out her arms, asking to be held.

Qiu Yan set aside the small cake and water bottle she had brought for Yuanyuan and scooped her daughter securely into her arms.

“Has your head been hurting lately?” Qiu Yan glanced at the back of Yuanyuan’s head.

Yuanyuan wrapped her arms around Qiu Yan’s neck and replied in her childish voice, “Not too bad, just a little bit.”

Qiu Yan held her tighter. “Be good, everything will be fine after the surgery.”

“Mommy brought you a little cake today, and a new water bottle too.” Qiu Yan set Yuanyuan down and opened the bag to show her.

Yuanyuan immediately spotted the little yellow duck water bottle and looked up at Qiu Yan in surprise. “Mommy, this water bottle is really expensive.”

Qiu Yan was taken aback. “How do you know that?”

“When I watch movies, sometimes there are pictures of this water bottle next to them. If you click on it, it shows the price,” Yuanyuan explained seriously.

Qiu Yan guessed that Yuanyuan must have clicked on it because she liked the bottle. “This was a gift from Mommy’s friend. She hopes your surgery goes smoothly and that you’re happy every day.”

Yuanyuan’s face lit up with delight. “Really?”

“Really. Do you like it?” Qiu Yan knelt down and looked at her daughter tenderly.

“I love it.” Yuanyuan carefully cradled the water bottle in her arms. “Which friend of yours gave it to me? I want to thank her.”

Qiu Yan paused for a moment before replying, “She’s a new friend Mommy made. I’ll pass along your thanks for you.”

Qiu Yan washed the bottle thoroughly and filled it with warm water.

Children will be children, after getting her new water bottle, Yuanyuan carried it with her everywhere and ended up drinking two full bottles of water.

After sharing the cake with Yuanyuan and tucking her in for a nap, Qiu Yan sat by the hospital bed, searching for new film projects she could join while waiting for her daughter to wake up.

Whenever Yuanyuan fell asleep, Qiu Yan always waited until she woke up before leaving. She didn’t want her daughter to experience the insecurity of waking up to find her mother gone.

As Qiu Yan focused on her phone screen, she suddenly felt something soft touch her hand.

Yuanyuan had woken up and was holding Qiu Yan’s finger with her tiny hand.

Her voice was muffled: “Mommy, if the surgery isn’t successful, will I die?”

A heavy weight seemed to press down on Qiu Yan’s heart, making it hard to breathe. She gripped Yuanyuan’s hand tightly. “No, it’s just a minor surgery. There’s no danger to your life at all. Don’t worry, Yuanyuan.”

“Then, can you stay with me the night before the surgery? I’m a little scared.” Yuanyuan was usually very sensible and rarely asked for anything.

The fact that she said this today meant her fear ran much deeper than her words could express.

Qiu Yan’s eyes reddened, and a wave of maternal guilt and remorse washed over her. “Okay, Mommy promises. I’ll stay with you the night before.”

…

After leaving the hospital, Qiu Yan walked with her head down, her heart heavy and suffocated.

She often found herself wondering why it had to be her Yuanyuan who fell ill, and not herself. Yuanyuan was so young, yet so sensible…

If the surgery didn’t succeed, if anything happened to Yuanyuan, how could she find the courage to face the days ahead?

Qiu Yan stood under the bus stop sign, wiping the tears from the corner of her eye with the back of her hand. She let out a sigh and peered into the distance, searching for the signal lights of an approaching bus.