Chapter 302 – My Dear CEO Wife – Hard to Meet, Harder to Embrace (02)
Bai Tang followed the nurses back to the ward. Looking at the boy on the bed, wrapped up like a mummy, he couldn’t help but think bitterly — in this life, was he really doomed to just watch his beloved holding another woman?
Outside the ward, the hallway buzzed with noise. Because Zhu Shuang and Wen Changrou were both witnesses, they stayed behind at the hospital to give their statements to the police and wait while Bai Tang underwent surgery.
When Bai Tang was transferred from the operating room to the ward, Wen Changrou was filled with guilt — it was because of her that the boy had been hit by the car.
Wen Changrou, the younger sister of the Wen Group’s CEO and the Wen family’s second young lady, had both wealth and influence. Without hesitation, she had Bai Tang moved to a VIP hospital room.
They followed the doctor inside and listened as he explained Bai Tang’s condition.
“The patient is temporarily out of immediate danger, but his brain suffered a severe impact… In other words, he’s currently in a vegetative state.”
The more Bai Tang thought about it, the more unwilling he felt — especially when he saw Zhu Shuang standing by his bedside, putting on that fake look of regret.
Even though the original plot said it was an accident, Bai Tang had caught the fleeting smile at the corner of her lips. She had done it on purpose.
While Qiu’er and Xiao A were discussing how to change the plot and gain world energy without the host’s direct involvement, Bai Tang suddenly rushed toward his own body — he wanted to go back, he had to go back.
Without obtaining the world’s energy, Bai Tang wouldn’t be able to return to his body.
He tried again and again, only to be repelled each time.
On the fifth try, he was thrown back hard, hit the wall, and fell to the floor. His eyes reddened, and finally, the boy gave up, sitting on the ground and bursting into tears.
“Tang Tang, don’t cry like that. Just a bit longer, once we collect enough energy, you can go back. Hang in there,” Qiu’er said, feeling awful at the sight of his tears.
“I talked it over with Qiu’er,” Xiao A added. “Even though you can’t return to your body yet, there is a way for you to meet the male lead.”
“R–really?” The boy looked up, eyes still red.
“Really.” To reassure Bai Tang, Xiao A took out a manifestation spray they had exchanged for in the system space. Once sprayed, Bai Tang would be able to appear before others — but only to those he wanted to be seen by.
Xiao A sprayed a light mist over Bai Tang. He didn’t dare hand the bottle to him — using too much could cause aftereffects. The spray consumed spiritual energy to create a temporary physical form.
Bai Tang wiped his tears and broke into a smile.
“Thank you, Xiao A. Thank you, Qiu’er~”
Wen Changhe rushed to the hospital the moment he got his sister Wen Changrou’s panicked call saying she’d gotten into trouble. He left his meeting halfway, anxiety tightening his chest.
He pushed open the ward door — and inside, the doctor, Wen Changrou, and Zhu Shuang all turned around at the sound.
The boy lifted his head at the sound. With Qiu’er and Xiao A’s comfort, his emotions had mostly settled — but the moment he saw Wen Changhe, that fragile calm shattered once again.
His eyes turned red, and clear, bright apricot-colored pupils filled with glimmering tears.
“A… Ah…” He…
The boy’s lips trembled, yet the familiar name caught in his throat and refused to come out.
Wen Changhe looked at the helpless boy huddled in the corner, and his heart clenched painfully.
In almost thirty years of life, he had never experienced anything like this.
He walked toward the boy, and the two little dogs by the boy’s side quickly scampered away.
When Wen Changhe crouched down in front of him, he reached out, wanting to wipe away the boy’s tears.
“Don’t cry…”
But his hand passed straight through the boy’s face. Startled, he stared at his palm in disbelief, tried again — and the same thing happened.
Large tears rolled down Bai Tang’s cheeks. His pink lips parted slightly, trembling in fear.
“I’m scared…”
Though the boy made no sound, Wen Changhe could read the words from the movement of his lips.
“Don’t be afraid. I’m here. Tell me — how can I help you?”
The boy’s silent sobs tore at his heart. Wen Changhe reached out carefully again, as if by doing so, he could somehow wipe away those tears.
The three people by the hospital bed stared wide-eyed, looking at Wen Changhe as if he’d lost his mind.
Zhu Shuang tugged at Wen Changrou’s sleeve.
“Your brother… is he…?”
Crazy? — She didn’t dare finish the sentence aloud. After all, the man was the president of the Wen Group.
Wen Changrou was equally stunned. What was wrong with her brother? Had overwork finally made him hallucinate?
“Brother,” Wen Changrou called softly.
She called him several times, but Wen Changhe didn’t respond.
The boy wiped away his own tears, then smiled faintly under Wen Changhe’s gentle coaxing. He turned his gaze toward the hospital bed, hinting that someone was calling for him.
At Bai Tang’s reminder, Wen Changhe finally turned and looked in their direction.
“Brother, are you too tired lately?” Wen Changrou walked up and slipped her arm through his.
Wen Changhe was always indulgent toward his younger sister.
“What trouble did you cause this time?” he asked gently.
Following her gaze toward the bed, his expression froze.
The person lying there — wasn’t it the very same boy crouched in the corner?
He looked from the person lying on the hospital bed to the boy crouched in the corner — the two faces were identical, except the one on the bed could no longer smile at him.
“It’s because of us… Bai Tang got into a car accident and became a vegetable,” Wen Changrou said softly, lowering her head. The kind-hearted girl nearly caused someone’s death, and she felt deeply guilty toward Bai Tang.
It was his sister who had brought the boy to such a state.
Thinking of that, Wen Changhe’s breath caught. He turned his gaze toward Bai Tang.
The boy’s eyes were timid, his apricot-colored pupils glistening with tears. The sight made Wen Changhe’s chest tighten with pain.
I’m sorry.
Wen Changhe mouthed the words silently to the boy.
Bai Tang smiled faintly and shook his head beside him.
It wasn’t Wen Changhe’s fault. There was no need for him to apologize.
Perhaps it was because Bai Tang’s spirit had lingered too long in the ward — the air inside had turned strangely cold.
Zhu Shuang, wearing only a thin camisole dress with her shoulders bare, began to feel the chill creeping up her skin.
Unable to stand the cold, she walked over to the window and pulled the curtains open with a swoosh. Instantly, bright sunlight poured into the room.
The boy instinctively raised his hand to shield his face, his body curling up in pain as he scrambled back into the corner. His exposed skin turned red where the sunlight struck it directly.
The two little dogs rushed back to Bai Tang’s side, their tongues licking his reddened arm in concern.
Those two dogs were none other than Qiu’er and Xiao A, in their spiritual forms. Since Bai Tang was in a soul state, and the male lead could see him, it was only natural that he could also see the system’s manifested forms.
“Ah… the sunlight feels so nice,” Zhu Shuang said, basking in the warmth.
But before she could finish savoring it, the curtains were yanked shut again with a sharp swish.
Zhu Shuang froze. When she turned around, she met a pair of storm-dark eyes filled with icy rage, making her entire body go rigid.
A moment later, Wen Changhe looked away. The sight of the tearful boy broke his heart — and yet, he was utterly powerless to help.
Wen Changhe felt a deep sense of helplessness.
All he could do was watch the boy cry, utterly powerless to do anything for him.
When the curtains were drawn shut again, Bai Tang finally felt the burning sensation on his skin begin to fade.
Qiu’er looked at his injured arm with heartache and activated the healing function, soothing the burn marks left by the sunlight.
After hearing the full story from Wen Changrou and the doctor — the cause of the accident and the boy’s current condition — Wen Changhe gave an order: use the best medicine available to treat the boy.
Only a fool would refuse to spend money when they had it. As the wealthy president of the Wen Group, Wen Changhe could afford the best treatments money could buy.
Out of guilt, Wen Changrou agreed with her brother’s decision.
Zhu Shuang, on the other hand, had a momentary twist in her expression when she heard Wen Changhe’s words.
If Bai Tang were to wake up at this point, her graduation project would be thrown into chaos again.
In truth, during the car accident that afternoon, she had deliberately pushed Bai Tang into the road. He was just a mute — how could someone like him deserve the professor’s favoritism, or even a personal recommendation letter to join the Wen Group?
Bai Tang’s family lived in the countryside, too far away to reach the city within a single day.
Wen Changhe dismissed the two girls, not wanting them to get in the way any longer.
Wen Changrou, who disliked hospitals anyway, decided to go home. The incident earlier had frightened her enough for one day, and since her brother was handling things, she had no reason to stay.
“Shuang Shuang, let’s go. My brother will take care of everything here.”
She took Zhu Shuang’s hand and noticed how cold it felt, assuming her friend was still shaken by the afternoon’s accident.
“Come to my place. I’ll have Aunt Wang make you some calming tea — her cooking is amazing.”
Wen Changrou tugged the unwilling Zhu Shuang along and led her out of the ward.
Hearing his sister’s cheerful voice, Wen Changhe felt a flash of displeasure. After all, the boy had been hit by a car because of them. How could they so easily put it behind them — even walking off hand in hand, talking about food?
Still, Wen Changhe hid his emotions well. No one could tell what he was truly feeling inside.
The doctor couldn’t stay by Bai Tang’s bedside forever, and once he left, Wen Changhe crouched down in front of the boy. Under the systems’ care, the burns on Bai Tang’s skin had already healed.
“Your name is Bai Tang, right?”
Now that they were alone in the room, Wen Changhe spoke gently, no longer worrying about being seen as insane.
Bai Tang nodded. He still couldn’t speak yet — he’d only be able to heal his muteness after returning to his body and using his healing ability.
But in his current state, he hadn’t fully integrated into this world. The world itself still resisted his existence, so aside from relying on his two systems, Bai Tang couldn’t use any of his abilities at all.
“Why don’t you sit on the bed? The floor’s cold.”
Wen Changhe had heard stories about out-of-body experiences — how people, when on the verge of death, claimed to float above their bodies, watching doctors resuscitate them or reliving fragments of their past.
He wasn’t sure whether the boy’s condition counted as one of those — or if it was something closer to a ghost.
The boy feared sunlight, which meant he could probably still feel temperature.
It was early spring, and the floor was still icy. Wen Changhe instinctively reached out to help the boy over to the empty bed, forgetting that he couldn’t actually touch him. His hand passed straight through, grasping only air.
Bai Tang’s expression dimmed, but he forced himself to smile anyway.
He stood up on his own and walked to the spot Wen Changhe had pointed at, sitting down quietly.
Watching the boy’s half-transparent form, Wen Changhe swore silently to himself — he would find a way to save him, no matter what it took.
Author’s Note:
They’ve finally met — how far can it be now from hugs and kisses?