"We won't get married."
These eight words struck Gu Yan's ears like sharp swords, piercing through her eardrums and plunging into her heart.
She had always known Ye Qichen was against marriage, but hearing him say it directly made her feel incredibly disheartened.
Had she always been just a normal friend in Ye Qichen's eyes?
Even after their intimate moments, he hadn't shown any emotional change towards her?
Not even a little bit!
"I used to admire your mother, but that doesn't mean it was love. Besides, I am against marriage," Ye Qichen said.
Thinking that Gu En was too young to understand the concept of not marrying, he added, "Not marrying means I've decided I will never get married in my life. This decision will not change for anyone, including your mother."
Gu En stared blankly at Ye Qichen. He didn't understand the concept of being against marriage, but he understood the meaning of his words.
Uncle Ye wouldn't marry his mother, nor would he become his father!
All the expectations in his heart were instantly dashed. He suddenly felt deeply deceived, though he couldn't pinpoint whether it was from Duoduo, who had told him that the person he recognized would become his father, or from Ye Qichen, who had treated him so well yet couldn't give him the relationship he desired.
He had never harbored extravagant dreams about the world; for the first time, he just wanted this man to be his father, why was it so difficult?
He felt angry and helpless.
"I understand," Gu En replied with a heavy heart, then walked dejectedly past Ye Qichen. Just as he was about to leave, he spotted Gu Yan in the room and was startled, "Mom?"
Ye Qichen turned his head at the sound, only then realizing Gu Yan had been standing behind them at some point.
Her complexion didn't look good, and both of them guessed she had overheard their conversation.
Gu En clenched his fists, thinking that if he felt so bad after hearing it, his mother must feel even worse.
Ye Qichen merely frowned slightly, but then thought that her hearing it might not be entirely bad.
He knew Gu Yan's feelings for him. He could help her improve her difficult life, amplify her talents beyond being a mere bookkeeper, and even be a godfather to the child if needed. However, the relationship and affection she desired, he could not give.
Therefore, it was better for her to recognize his feelings sooner.
"You heard it all," Ye Qichen said.
Gu Yan took a deep breath. Sometimes she felt Ye Qichen was truly heartless, his heart cold.
She even wondered if he was doing it intentionally.
Intentionally giving her hope to change her mind about leaving, to join him in a partnership to open a company, thus preventing her from leaving Beijing in the short term.
But he had never made any promises to her; everything had been her own wishful thinking. Moreover, she was the biggest beneficiary of starting the company, so how could she blame him?
Gu Yan's mind was in a muddle, and she didn't know how to face them. She simply turned and walked away.
If she didn't leave now, she feared her tears would fall uncontrollably.
"Mom!" Seeing her mother's eyes reddening, Gu En quickly went to chase after her.
Gu Yan didn't want her son to see her cry, so she quickened her pace. She didn't even take the elevator, opting for the stairs, and left the hotel, heading towards the company.
Her mind was a mess, her vision blurred, and she completely failed to notice a car suddenly speeding towards her on the road.
"Mom!" Gu En, who was behind her, ran up quickly.
Hearing him, Gu Yan finally came to her senses, but it was too late. She froze on the road, her mind a complete blank, watching the approaching car.
A loud "Bang!" accompanied by the screech of tires braking urgently.
Gu Yan felt a force push her from behind, sending her falling to the ground. The blankness in her mind was jolted by the pain of her scraped joints.
As she got up from the ground, she saw Gu En lying motionless in a pool of blood. Her already chaotic mind exploded.
"Gu En!" Disregarding the scrapes on her hands and knees, she rushed over, cradling her son, helpless and weeping uncontrollably.
She tried to pick him up, but Ye Qichen, who had arrived, stopped her. "Don't move him! Wait for the ambulance."
Unsure of what injuries the child had sustained, moving him carelessly could worsen them.
The ambulance arrived quickly and took him to the nearest city hospital for emergency treatment.
Gu Yan waited outside the operating room, blaming herself and praying, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, Gu En, I'm sorry. It's all my fault. Please, please be alright, or I don't know how I'll live."
Seeing her palms, elbows, and knees scraped, Ye Qichen asked a nurse to tend to her wounds and then comforted her, "He'll be alright. If the doctors here aren't enough, there's my sister."
Gu Yan looked at him through tear-filled eyes, her lips moving as if to say, "Don't be so good to me," but the words wouldn't come out.
Just then, the operating room door opened, and a nurse emerged.
"How is he?" Gu Yan immediately stepped forward to ask.
"The patient has lost a lot of blood and urgently needs a transfusion. He has RHD-negative blood, and the blood bank doesn't have this blood type. Are the child's parents here?" the nurse asked.
"Yes, I'm his mother. Take my blood!" Gu Yan said, rolling up her sleeve.
"Even if it's the mother, it might not work. It has to be the same blood type," the nurse said.
Ye Qichen paused upon hearing the blood type and then said, "I have RHD-negative blood. You can take mine."
Gu Yan's heart tightened at this.
"Alright, follow me." The nurse nodded and took Ye Qichen to draw blood for testing to confirm if the blood types matched.
Five minutes later, the nurse returned with the results. "Are you the child's father? The blood types match. We need to draw a bit more, so bear with it."
Ye Qichen was stunned. "I'm not the child's father."
As the nurse drew his blood, she smiled and said, "That's unlikely. You both have the rare panda blood, and the blood type data comparison is very close. A paternity test would likely confirm a father-son relationship with over 99.99% probability."
"Then, could you also do a paternity test for us?" Ye Qichen said reflexively, following her lead.
After all, the RHD-negative panda blood of his Ye family was indeed very rare. It was discovered that Ye Zisu was not of their bloodline, and Yu He was, because they happened to have their blood drawn at the same hospital, and the mismatch in blood types revealed it.
The nurse, surprised that he actually wanted a paternity test, asked a colleague to arrange it, and even expedited it.
Two hours later, Gu En's surgery was successful, and he was moved to a ward for recovery. Gu Yan stayed by his bedside, never leaving.
Ye Qichen's paternity test results also came out.
He looked at the last line of the report, which read: "Paternity relationship greater than 99.99%. Confirmed father-son relationship," followed by a red seal. His head buzzed, and his mind went blank.