Watching Ye Lan leave, Mu Xi quietly exhaled in relief, her pale fingers gently brushing over her neck.
She had bet correctly.
Drinking the Tears of Oblivion was not only a desperate gamble for Mu Xi but also a carefully calculated game of chance.
She knew well what lay hidden in Ye Lan’s dangerous phoenix-like eyes.
That proud and cold woman would never allow her beloved pet to simply disappear.
And the existence of this modern medical facility only strengthened her resolve.
The smell of disinfectant, the blinking instruments, the medical staff on standby at all times—this place’s emergency response was almost a race against death.
She had never imagined she would ever be so brazenly confident in her status as a favored one.
Although Ye Lan’s methods were ruthless, her gaze often sharp and cold, when it came to Mu Xi, that icy mask always revealed a subtle softness beneath.
That faint tenderness was enough to sustain Mu Xi’s gamble.
Li Xin, having just recently narrowly escaped death, should have feared the shadow of death more than anyone else.
Yet in front of Mu Xi, she had chosen poison without hesitation, willing to trade her life just to see Mu Xi once a day.
That resoluteness stabbed Mu Xi’s heart.
If after Li Xin’s sacrifice, she still cowered in fear, it would not only be a desecration of Li Xin’s feelings but also a betrayal of the faint hope in her own heart.
Mu Xi’s fingertips lightly touched the pulse at her neck, feeling the rhythm of life.
A faint, almost imperceptible smile curved her lips.
She had won this gamble.
***
Over the next few days, Mu Xi was cared for meticulously in the hospital ward.
The clean white sheets carried a faint scent of disinfectant, just like the air of this underground hospital—cold yet safe.
Every day, she could hear the familiar click of high heels approaching from afar, followed by Ye Lan’s tall and slender figure appearing at the door.
“How is Li Xin doing now?” Mu Xi asked softly, her fingers unconsciously clutching the corner of the blanket.
Ye Lan smiled faintly, a trace of subtle gentleness flickering in her phoenix eyes.
“She’s doing well. Her legs are still undergoing treatment. It’s not yet decided if amputation will be necessary. We’ll have to wait and see.”
Mu Xi looked up and met Ye Lan’s eyes directly, “Why didn’t you kill her?”
Her heart thudded uneasily inside her chest.
She feared the answer but had to ask.
“If I kill her, what will you do? Seek death again?” Ye Lan’s voice was chillingly calm.
Mu Xi’s lips curled up slightly, “If you can be threatened that easily, then you wouldn’t be you.”
Ye Lan let out a soft laugh and gracefully sat at the edge of the bed.
“Exactly, which is why I kept Li Xin alive.”
She pulled a delicate crystal vial from her pocket and shook it gently.
The colorless liquid inside shimmered with an eerie blue glow under the ward’s lights.
“How about this—for Li Xin’s sake, you take one more drop?”
Ye Lan’s tone was as calm as still water.
“Although you’re just lying in bed this time, I definitely won’t save you again.”
Mu Xi’s heart plummeted.
She stared into Ye Lan’s eyes—those phoenix eyes held no joke, no threat, only cold, hard facts.
If she truly drank the poison this time, Ye Lan would definitely stand by and watch.
Fear climbed like icy fingers up Mu Xi’s spine, but she did not panic.
Instead, she slowly opened her mouth.
Her eyes were calm as still water.
Without hesitation, Ye Lan’s slender fingers unscrewed the vial’s cap and dropped a single bead of liquid into Mu Xi’s mouth.
Mu Xi closed her eyes, bracing for the agony of death, but all she tasted was a gentle sweetness, soft as honeyed water.
“Sweet, isn’t it?” Ye Lan smiled.
Mu Xi blinked in surprise and nodded lightly.
Ye Lan’s gaze softened, “Not as sweet as you.”
Mu Xi was speechless.
A thousand wild horses galloped through her mind.
So all of Ye Lan’s buildup had been for this cheesy line.
The Tears of Oblivion in the vial was nothing but a test, a game to see through her heart.
Mu Xi rolled her eyes silently.
This woman was indeed Ye Lan—cold, cunning, and utterly unpredictable.
Ye Lan effortlessly slid onto the bed and pulled Mu Xi into her embrace, her cool fingers gently caressing Mu Xi’s cheek.
“You’re so soft, little Xi.” Ye Lan’s voice slipped like velvet into Mu Xi’s ear.
Mu Xi froze instantly, her heart racing uncontrollably.
She didn’t know how to respond to this sudden intimacy.
She felt like a trapped rabbit caught in a snare, unable to move, completely at Ye Lan’s mercy.
The sterile smell of disinfectant in the ward seemed to be masked by the faint scent of perfume clinging to Ye Lan, and Mu Xi unconsciously took a deep breath.
Because of the shift in position, Mu Xi’s gaze inadvertently slid down from Ye Lan’s exquisite chin, along her graceful neckline, and finally hesitated on a forbidden sight.
Ye Lan sharply caught her eye, a mischievous glint flashing in her phoenix eyes as her red lips curled into a meaningful smile.
“What, want some?” Ye Lan’s voice carried a teasing tone but more so an authority that brooked no refusal.
“Ah?” Mu Xi uttered in confusion, her mind blank.
That sound, to Ye Lan, was a tacit agreement.
Before Mu Xi could react, Ye Lan’s slender fingers had already deftly undone the buttons of her shirt, revealing a patch of snowy white skin.
Mu Xi’s eyes widened in shock, and as she tried to pull away, Ye Lan held her tightly.
The next second, her face was buried in that softness, her nose filled with Ye Lan’s unique creamy scent mingled with high-end perfume.
“Mm—” Mu Xi felt like she was suffocating, her heart pounding so wildly she thought it might burst out of her chest.
She cursed inwardly.
This was no care for a patient—it was blatant taking advantage.
Ye Lan’s red lips curved up slightly, a teasing sparkle in her eyes as she said, “But it’s a pity, I don’t have milk yet. If you really want to drink, I can…”
Heat flushed Mu Xi’s cheeks, and she hurriedly turned her head away.
“I don’t want that! Besides, I have my own!” Her voice was slightly hurried, and her small hands instinctively guarded her chest.
Ye Lan’s slender fingers gently lifted Mu Xi’s chin, her phoenix eyes locked on the panic flickering in Mu Xi’s eyes.
“But yours isn’t big enough.”
Mu Xi’s heartbeat sped up.
Inhaling the faint scent of Ye Lan’s perfume, she swallowed nervously.
“It will grow!” she said, shaking her head enthusiastically, though her voice was much softer than she’d expected.
Ye Lan sighed, her cold fingers lightly brushing Mu Xi’s cheek, causing a shiver.
The mingling scents of disinfectant and perfume formed a peculiar atmosphere in the white hospital room.
Ye Lan elegantly adjusted her clothes, buttoning each button with her long fingers to cover that patch of snowy skin.
“You’ve been unwell recently, so I won’t trouble you.”
Mu Xi breathed out in relief, but Ye Lan’s next words froze her in place.
“When you’re better, I’m going to make up for this twice over.”
Ye Lan’s voice was like a cold winter wind but carried an undeniable heat that brooked no denial.
Mu Xi cursed silently in her heart.
Her blood seemed to freeze for a moment.
She knew resistance would only make things worse.
She gave a soft reply, a tacit acceptance.
Ye Lan smiled in satisfaction, her phoenix eyes shimmering with a dangerous and enchanting light.