Chapter 63
When they arrived at the hospital, the experts that Su Yunzhe had contacted had already arrived and entered the emergency room.
Ling Sichen and Secretary Wu were waiting outside. Secretary Wu’s hair seemed to have turned much grayer, and Ling Sichen’s face rarely showed such an anxious expression.
As soon as he saw Shen Yan and Su Yunzhe, he immediately walked over. “Sorry, I shouldn’t have disturbed you now that you’re pregnant. It’s just that the old man’s situation is too critical, and the expert who’s been handling his condition has unfortunately been out of the country. I had no choice but to come to you.”
“Stop saying that. How long has it been since they went in?” Shen Yan asked. Her health was fine except for occasional morning sickness; compared to Duan Songtao, she was practically bouncing around with no need for concern.
“It’s been three hours already. The few experts that Su Zong contacted have all arrived and gone in. The nurses have been coming in and out, and their faces don’t look good,” Ling Sichen said, watching the emergency room door with concern.
Shen Yan patted his shoulder reassuringly. “It’s okay, Grandpa Duan is such a good person, he won’t be in trouble. We just need to wait.”
She said this, but inside she was worried too.
But apart from worrying, there was nothing they could do. Besides, the people Su Yunzhe had contacted were certainly the best. With them there, it would be hard for the Grim Reaper to take Duan Songtao.
Time felt unbearably long at moments like this, every second dragging on, until the door of the emergency room opened. Shen Yan felt like it had been a century, though it had only been twenty minutes.
Su Yunzhe immediately walked up to greet a few of the experts he knew and ask about the situation.
“Thankfully, it was just in time. He’s been saved. Now he just needs good rest.”
In an instant, Shen Yan felt the heart that had been clenched in her throat fall back into place. Ling Sichen slumped into the chair, his clothes soaked with sweat, while Secretary Wu, beside him, secretly wiped away tears.
Thank goodness!
Truly, thank goodness!
Duan Songtao was then transferred to a regular hospital room, still unconscious from the anesthesia.
It was only then that Ling Sichen had the energy to explain what had happened to Shen Yan and the others.
As they had suspected, it was all because of Duan Yang’s actions.
Duan Yang’s holding company was suspected of illegal fundraising on a massive scale, with solid evidence. He was facing prosecution by regulatory authorities.
If he could repay the money, it might help reduce his sentence. However, most of the money from the illegal fundraising had been used to buy stocks in the Duan family company.
The old man had known about his malicious attempt to take over Duan Group and, after signing a hedging agreement with an investment bank, had released news about several major projects in Duan Group being canceled to cause the stock price to drop and counteract his hostile takeover.
At this point, Duan Yang couldn’t even break even by selling all his Duan Group stock, and the hedging agreement with the investment bank had failed due to the stock price drop. He would have to pay a large sum of money.
In this situation, he sold all his assets, including his holding company and personal assets, but it still wasn’t enough to cover the illegal fundraising gap.
This afternoon, he went to see Duan Songtao, begging him to help repay the money and to pull some strings to avoid imprisonment.
He kneeled on the floor, crying, snot and tears flowing, slapping his own face and cursing himself like a dog.
But Duan Songtao had already lost all hope for him.
Many years ago, when his father had killed his own brother, Duan Yang had also knelt in front of the old man, repenting and vowing to change.
But what happened?
Duan Songtao’s heart had been shattered. He didn’t believe him anymore and had ordered people to throw Duan Yang out.
Then Duan Yang suddenly went mad, angrily accusing Duan Songtao of being cold-blooded and inhuman. He smashed things around the house and even grabbed an antique vase to throw at the old man’s head.
Thankfully, Ling Sichen was there at the time and kicked him away, but the old man was still so enraged that he went into convulsions, triggering a heart attack.
“Duan Yang must have really lost his mind. When the old man had a heart attack, Secretary Wu tried to give him medication, but Duan Yang snatched it away, threw it on the ground, and stomped on it, saying that he wanted him to die cleanly.”
Ling Sichen, usually a gentle person, shook his head with anger as he recalled the situation. “If he hadn’t ruined the medicine, it wouldn’t have been so dangerous.”
At the time, Duan Yang had indeed lost his mind. Not only did he crush the medicine, but he also blocked the emergency vehicle when it came to take the old man to the hospital. It wasn’t until Ling Sichen beat him up and he collapsed on the ground that things quieted down.
Shen Yan was left speechless by Duan Yang’s behavior.
This was his own grandfather! The grandfather who had pampered him all his life, and he could treat him like this? Was he even human?
Really, when she first heard that Duan Yang’s despicable father had killed his own brother, she didn’t expect Duan Yang to be even worse than his father. It’s true—like father, like son!
Now, the only thing worth being thankful for was that the old man was safe. Thank God he had survived.
But the pain was still overwhelming.
After the anesthesia wore off, Duan Songtao woke up, but he didn’t say a word.
He had always admired Su Yunzhe, and he had liked Shen Yan too. Over the recent period, his grandson, Ling Sichen, had stayed with him, and the three of them were all close to him. Secretary Wu was also his trusted confidant, but still, he didn’t say a word. After waking up, he just stared at the ceiling, his gentle, kind eyes filled with desolation and pain.
Yes, how could he have imagined that the grandson he had loved so much would not only plot against him but also want to kill him?
Such a cruel thing was the heaviest blow for anyone.
Shen Yan looked at him and felt heartbroken. Although she had only interacted with Duan Songtao a few times, she knew he was a genuinely good person. Not just to her, but the old man was someone who always acted with integrity. How could such a person raise a beast like Duan Yang?
“Grandpa…”
She wanted to say something, anything, just to get the old man to vent his frustration and release his bottled-up feelings. Keeping it all inside wasn’t good for him.
But Ling Sichen stopped her, pulling her and Su Yunzhe out of the room. “Let him calm down for a while. It’s getting late. I’ll stay with him. Yan Yan, you should rest now and go home. If there’s anything, I’ll contact you.”
Shen Yan looked at Su Yunzhe, who also agreed, so they left the hospital.
On the way back, Shen Yan leaned against the car window, staring outside, feeling uneasy and guilty.
If it weren’t for her, Duan Yang wouldn’t have ended up in this situation, wouldn’t have gone mad, and Duan Songtao wouldn’t have been in danger today.
She sighed unconsciously. “Thank goodness Grandpa Duan is okay. Otherwise, I don’t think I would ever find peace in this life.”
As soon as Su Yunzhe got into the car, he noticed something was off with her. Hearing what she said, he realized she was blaming herself for Duan Songtao’s experience today.
Su Yunzhe reached out and pinched her cheek hard.
Shen Yan, startled by the pain, snapped back to reality, touching her sore cheek and glaring at him. “You’re quite bold, huh? Don’t want to go to bed tonight?”
Su Yunzhe, however, looked serious. “Don’t keep taking everything onto yourself.”
“But…”
“When you weren’t around, Duan Yang still would have maliciously acquired Duan Corporation. Eventually, Duan Montao would have figured out his intentions. I have a relationship with Old Master Duan, and when I learned about this, I had already planned to tell him. It’s because Duan Yang made his own bed that I chose to expose the situation. Old Master Duan learned through various channels, and afterward, in order to protect Duan Corporation, he would’ve used any means to make Duan Corporation’s stock price fall, preventing Duan Yang from completing his gamble. This would’ve caused his acquisition plan to fail. So, whether you were involved or not, Duan Yang would have ended up like this. And as for Duan Yang’s character, he can’t handle failure. Having been on top for so long, when he realizes there’s nowhere else to go, the pressure becomes too much for him to bear, and he’ll take extreme actions.”
Su Yunzhe rarely comments on people, and even for Duan Yang, he had never openly spoken about him before. But when he did comment on Duan Yang, it was spot on.
Shen Yan also noticed that Duan Yang had this trait. When everything was going smoothly, he was proud and pleased with himself, but when facing obstacles, he exploded with rage.
What Duan Yang was facing this time wasn’t just an obstacle; he was facing imprisonment. He was scared. He clung to Duan Montao as his only lifeline. When Duan Montao refused him, he snapped.
And according to Su Yunzhe, this had nothing to do with Shen Yan.
Shen Yan instantly felt more relaxed. He winked at Su Yunzhe and smiled sweetly, “You’re really good at comforting people, huh, hubby?”
Seeing Shen Yan smile, Su Yunzhe also relaxed. He rubbed his hair and said, “I’m just speaking the truth.”
“Mm, truth is good. Ah!” Shen Yan nodded, then suddenly thought of something. “Do you think Duan Yang will go crazy again? What if he finds out that Grandpa Duan is okay and then goes to the hospital, trying to get Grandpa to help him again?”
At this point, Duan Yang seemed like a madman to Shen Yan. A madman could do anything, and it was impossible to predict his next move.
“It’s fine. Isn’t Ling Sicheng there? And the hospital is very secure, so don’t worry about it. Are you hungry?”
Su Yunzhe gently rubbed his stomach.
Though Shen Yan had packed food on the way to the hospital, he had no appetite.
By now, it was almost midnight. When Shen Yan wasn’t pregnant, he would be having a late-night snack by this hour, but now both of them ate more than before. He had only had soup for dinner, so he was definitely starving.
Shen Yan hadn’t felt it before, but after Su Yunzhe asked, he suddenly became ravenous. He nodded obediently, “So hungry!”
But his appetite had been strange lately. He couldn’t eat anything outside without getting nauseous, so he had to bear it and wait until they got home to eat.
By the time they got home, it was already past midnight.
When Su Yunzhe had left, he had put the food in the pot to keep warm, so as soon as they entered, a delicious aroma filled the air.
Shen Yan’s mouth watered as he changed his shoes and ran straight to the kitchen. Su Yunzhe hadn’t finished preparing the dishes, but Shen Yan couldn’t wait and started eating right away.
Meanwhile, back in the hospital room, Ling Sicheng was still sitting beside the bed.
This room was a suite, and there was a separate area for caregivers. However, Ling Sicheng planned to stay on the sofa next to the bed for the night. He didn’t feel comfortable leaving Old Master Duan alone.
He had no deep feelings for Duan Montao. After all, he hadn’t grown up with him and hadn’t seen him for over twenty years. To claim that their grandfather-grandson relationship was strong would be ridiculous.
However, recently, he had been staying at Duan Montao’s house, initially to explain that he didn’t want Duan Corporation, but Old Master Duan had been depressed because of Duan Yang’s issues. Ling Sicheng hadn’t found the right opportunity to speak, so things had been delayed. However, it did give him the chance to understand his grandfather better.
