Shen Yunmian practically slammed open the hospital emergency stairwell door and rushed into the corridor outside the operating room.
Her hair was soaked by rain, a few strands sticking to her pale cheeks. Her breathing was rapid, and her clothes were still stained with drying mud.
"Where is Sheng Sheng? How is she?" She grabbed Su Qingyu, who was waiting at the door, her fingertips ice-cold, her voice trembling uncontrollably.
Su Qingyu was startled by her appearance and quickly supported her. "President Shen! Don't worry, President Yu is fine—her leg was just cut by debris. The doctor is cleaning and stitching the wound. There's no danger to her life."
The words "no danger to her life" were like a pardon.
Shen Yunmian's tightly strung body suddenly relaxed.
She staggered, bracing herself against the wall to stay upright.
The overwhelming panic receded, and her rationality slowly returned.
She took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing her surging emotions, her gaze regaining its usual sharpness.
"How was the accident site handled? Any fatalities? Has the news been contained?"
Su Qingyu reported quickly, "No deaths, a few workers have minor injuries. The site is still being cleared. As for the media…"
Shen Yunmian immediately interrupted her, her tone firm and decisive: "Use all resources to suppress public opinion first!
The 'Smart City' project cannot have any negative press. Take care of the injured workers and their families—all medical expenses and compensation will be covered by us. Immediately organize a third-party expert team to thoroughly investigate the cause of the accident."
"Yes, understood!" Su Qingyu nodded and immediately stepped aside to relay the instructions on her phone.
After handling everything, Shen Yunmian turned her gaze back to the operating room. The commanding presence she had just displayed disappeared, replaced once again with pure anxiety and worry—as if that decisive person had never been her.
Fortunately, at that moment, the operating room doors finally opened, and Yu Sheng was wheeled out by a nurse.
She lay on the mobile bed, her face pale from blood loss, her left calf wrapped in thick white bandages.
Shen Yunmian immediately stepped forward, but seemed hesitant to meet Yu Sheng's gaze, instead anxiously looking at the doctor beside her. "Doctor, how is she?"
"Don't worry. It's just a flesh wound. The cut is a bit deep, but it didn't damage the bones or major nerves. It's been stitched up. With proper rest, regular dressing changes, and avoiding infection, she'll recover quickly," the doctor said.
Only then did Shen Yunmian finally breathe a complete sigh of relief.
Her gaze fell on Yu Sheng's face—greedy yet restrained. Her fingers twitched, but in the end, she clenched them tightly into a fist.
Yu Sheng looked at her with some surprise and said casually, "You got the news pretty fast, showing up so quickly."
Shen Yunmian's heart tightened, and she hurriedly explained incoherently, "No, Sheng Sheng, I didn't… I didn't have people following you again! It was the security staff—they saw the accident and notified me…"
Seeing her so eager to explain, Yu Sheng paused, then realized the misunderstanding.
"I didn't mean anything by it, just a casual remark."
Shen Yunmian froze, realizing she had overreacted, and closed her mouth awkwardly. She followed closely beside the bed into the ward, watching the nurses settle Yu Sheng before cautiously approaching.
"Does it still hurt? Do you feel nauseous? Are you uncomfortable anywhere?"
Yu Sheng shook her head, clearly not focused on that. "Where's Qingyu? How's the follow-up handling of the accident?"
"Don't worry about that, Su Qingyu has already gone to handle it," Shen Yunmian reassured her quickly, her tone softer than she realized. "It will definitely be handled well, I promise. You should eat something first."
Yu Sheng pursed her lips, looking at the still-drizzling rain outside the window. "I don't have much of an appetite."
Shen Yunmian looked at her pale face, her heart aching badly, yet she didn't dare show it too much.
Fortunately, Su Qingyu quickly returned and efficiently reported the results of the handling.
After listening, Yu Sheng was surprised by how far the efficiency exceeded expectations. She looked at Su Qingyu and sincerely praised, "Qingyu, this time it's really thanks to you. The efficiency was incredible."
Su Qingyu didn't take credit. She glanced at the silent Shen Yunmian beside her and said, "You flatter me, President Yu. President Shen had thorough foresight, gave timely instructions, and had sufficient contingency plans prepared. I just executed them as instructed."
Hearing this, Yu Sheng turned her gaze to Shen Yunmian, with a hint of complicated surprise. "Thank you."
A simple "thank you" made Shen Yunmian feel somewhat flattered.
"N-no need, it's only right." She tried to suppress the flutter in her heart and gently reminded, "Now that things are resolved, you should rest well. Eat a little at least, otherwise your body won't hold up."
Perhaps because the crisis had passed, Yu Sheng finally nodded.
A glimmer of light flashed through Shen Yunmian's eyes as she immediately gestured to the assistant waiting at the door.
Soon, someone brought in warm food. The exquisite insulated containers were opened one by one: clear chicken soup, light vegetables, and a small portion of soft rice. Yu Sheng looked at the meal—clearly not from the hospital cafeteria but specially ordered from an outside restaurant—and her expression shifted again.
She didn't refuse. Picking up a spoon, she said to Su Qingyu and Shen Yunmian standing by the bed, "You haven't eaten either, right? Eat a little together?"
Su Qingyu tactfully stepped back, her face carrying just the right amount of apology. "No, President Yu. There are still some details outside that I need to personally oversee. Please, go ahead."
She gave Shen Yunmian a subtle nod, then turned and left the room, thoughtfully closing the door behind her.
The room was instantly left with just the two of them.
The air seemed to grow thick.
Shen Yunmian restrained her gaze that kept wanting to fall on Yu Sheng's face, carefully sitting down in the chair beside the bed.
She picked up another meal box, her movements somewhat stiff. She actually had no appetite, but seeing Yu Sheng slowly begin to sip the soup, she needed an excuse to stay.
Shen Yunmian secretly glanced up and saw Yu Sheng focused on drinking the soup, her profile looking somewhat fragile under the light.
She cleared her throat, trying to break the silence, her voice very soft. "The doctor said you just need a few days of rest. Don't worry too much about work. As for the project… I'll have people keep an eye on it."
"Mm." Yu Sheng responded without looking up.
Shen Yunmian paused, her gaze drifting to the window. "There's been quite a lot of rain this autumn…"
The remark was rather pointless.
Yu Sheng lifted her eyes and glanced at her, replying lightly, "Yeah."
That glance made Shen Yunmian even more nervous, realizing she had chosen a terrible topic.
She lowered her head, silently picking up a piece of vegetable and chewing without tasting it.
After hesitating, she suddenly seemed to remember something and spoke casually, her tone deliberately light: "By the way, your… foreign friend? Why haven't I seen her come to visit you?"
After asking, she immediately lowered her head, lightly poking at the rice in her bowl with her chopsticks, as if it were just a casual question.
Yu Sheng's hand holding the spoon paused slightly. She looked at Shen Yunmian, who had her head lowered, only the top of her head visible. She said casually, "Sophia? She already went back to her country the day before yesterday."
Shen Yunmian's motion of poking the rice suddenly stopped.
An indescribable sense of relief instantly washed through her entire body.
She suppressed the joy rising in her heart, lifted her head, and tried to keep her expression natural. "She went back? That suddenly?" She paused, then added as if covering herself, softly, "But… it's probably good she went back. Otherwise, seeing you injured, she'd be worried too."
The words sounded considerate, yet carried a subtle trace of relief.
Yu Sheng didn't miss the fleeting hint of delight in her eyes, but didn't expose it, only giving a faint "mm."
Having gotten a definite answer, Shen Yunmian felt the oppressive feeling in her chest ease considerably.
Even the bland food in front of her seemed more palatable.
After the meal, a nurse came in to check Yu Sheng's temperature and blood pressure, confirming everything was stable.
Leaning against the headboard, Yu Sheng had regained some color in her face. She looked at Shen Yunmian, who was trying hard to minimize her presence at the side, and said politely, "I'm fine now. If you're busy with the company, you can head back first. Today… thank you."
Shen Yunmian's eyes dimmed almost imperceptibly.
She stood up obediently, suppressing the overwhelming reluctance in her heart, and nodded. "Okay, then rest well. I… I'll go first. If anything comes up… you can call me."
After saying that, she quietly turned and gently closed the door behind her.
Over the next few days, Yu Sheng rested in the hospital.
Shen Yunmian suppressed the turmoil in her heart and didn't appear again to "annoy" her, but every day she would have carefully prepared meals and nourishing soups delivered on time.
At first, Yu Sheng called and said, "Shen Yunmian, there's no need to go through so much trouble. The hospital provides meals."
On the other end of the line, Shen Yunmian fell silent for a moment. Her voice came through the receiver, carrying a trace of barely noticeable nervousness and pleading: "Sheng Sheng, even if we're divorced… we can at least still be friends, right? Between friends, when one is sick, isn't it okay to take care of them?"
Yu Sheng held the phone, listening to the humble tone on the other end, and finally let out a soft sigh, no longer refusing.
"Do as you like."
This tacit approval made Shen Yunmian quietly breathe a sigh of relief.
Three days later, Yu Sheng was discharged and began throwing herself back into busy work.
Because of the "Smart City" project, interactions between the two companies were unavoidable.
Sometimes it was at joint project meetings. Shen Yunmian would sit at the head, listening as Yu Sheng presented plans in a clear and organized manner. Most of her gaze rested on the documents, her expression focused and professional. Only during pauses in Yu Sheng's speech would her eyes quickly and restrainedly sweep over her serious profile.
Sometimes they would run into each other in the company elevator.
Shen Yunmian would stop first, taking the initiative to greet her, her tone gentle yet restrained: "President Yu."
Yu Sheng would also stop and nod in response, her expression calm. "President Shen."
The exchanges were usually brief.
But compared to before—either tense confrontation or one side desperately trying to pull away—this kind of calm interaction with a safe distance already seemed like rare ease.
Shen Yunmian strictly adhered to the boundary of being "friends," not daring to cross the line again.
She simply watched quietly, using Shen Corporation's resources and connections to clear obstacles for Yu Sheng in subtle ways before she could encounter difficult problems or potential risks.
The relationship between the two seemed to have entered a phase where both were relearning and exploring.
—
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