Shen Chi Yan and Song Qi Nian's marriage was a hushed affair, known only to his family and closest confidants. No grand wedding, no public celebration—just a quiet union shrouded in secrecy.
Gong Yuqi had a talent for pressing on sensitive nerves, and mentioning Song Qi Nian instantly darkened Shen Chi Yan's already troubled expression. "Every time I bring up your mute wife, you get this look," Gong Yuqi prodded, his narrow eyes glinting with mischief. "Three years have passed. Tell me, have you even touched her?"
Before Shen Chi Yan could respond, Gong Yuqi continued, a sharp edge to his voice, "With your obsessive cleanliness, you won't even let me get close. So how could you possibly be intimate with a 'little mute'? Is she at least pretty?"
Shen Chi Yan's frown deepened. Against his will, memories flickered—Song Qi Nian's flushed face, tears held back, her eyes misty and vulnerable beneath him. A subtle heat stirred within him, and his expression grew darker still.
"Hey," Gong Yuqi pressed, "I thought we came out to chat. Why so silent?"
Irritation simmering internally, Shen Chi Yan lifted his drink and took a swig. "Aren't the entertainment industry's gossip channels entertaining enough for you?"
"Entertainment industry gossip?" Gong Yuqi scoffed. "Nothing compares to the delicious rumors surrounding Young Master Shen!"
Despite his persistent probing, Gong Yuqi extracted no juicy details from Shen Chi Yan.
Eventually, they left the club together.
Accompanying Shen Chi Yan, as always, were two secretaries and his dedicated driver, Gao Kunlun. As Gao pulled up, Shen Chi Yan noticed an elderly deaf man trying to communicate with another person. The man receiving the signs clearly didn't understand and, growing frustrated, roughly pushed the deaf person away.
Before Gong Yuqi could react, Shen Chi Yan was already moving. He approached the deaf man, who was simply seeking directions. With practiced gestures, Shen Chi Yan provided clear instructions. The deaf man nodded, gratefully signing his thanks before departing.
"Well, well. Look who's being helpful," Gong Yuqi remarked, a hint of surprise in his voice.
Shen Chi Yan remained fixed on the deaf person's retreating figure, lost in thought. "Yuqi..." he said quietly.
"What?"
"Do you know when I learned sign language?"
Gong Yuqi blinked, suddenly realizing that Shen Chi Yan had just communicated fluently with a deaf person. "Uh... didn't you learn it while living with your mute wife?"
"No!" Shen Chi Yan's response was sharp, immediate.
"Then..." Gong Yuqi prompted.
"I already knew sign language when I first met Song Qi Nian."
The truth was strange. He could understand her gestures from the very first time her mother schemed against him, yet he couldn't remember how he'd learned the language. It was a skill that seemed to have appeared out of nowhere.
Gong Yuqi scratched his head. "I've never heard about you learning sign language. You don't have deaf friends. Why would you suddenly pick it up? Were you born with some kind of sign language superpower?"
Shen Chi Yan said nothing, his silence speaking volumes.
Recently, Shen Chi Yan had been returning home more frequently, and the household staff were distinctly unsettled by his presence.
The next morning, when Shen Chi Yan came downstairs, breakfast was laid out meticulously—but Song Qi Nian was absent. This was unusual. Typically, she would be up early, waiting for him without fail. No matter how coldly he ignored her, she would always be there, a silent sentinel of her own hope.
Today, she was nowhere to be seen.
"Where is Song Qi Nian?" he demanded.
A plump servant stepped forward nervously. "We tried to wake the madam for breakfast, but she hasn't come out."
Recalling Song Qi Nian's uncooperative behavior from the previous night, Shen Chi Yan immediately assumed she was staging a protest by refusing to eat. A surge of anger rose within him.
"Get her out here, now!" Shen Chi Yan's voice cut through the morning silence.
Moments later, a servant stumbled up from the basement, panic etched across his face. "Sir, it's... it's bad. The Madam... she's... she might be dead!"
Shen Chi Yan was already racing down the stairs before the words fully registered.
Song Qi Nian lay motionless on the ground, her breathing shallow and labored. Angry red bumps covered her exposed skin, her face swollen and flushed. For the first time in a long time, Shen Chi Yan felt true panic grip his heart.
"Song Qi Nian! Song Qi Nian!" He slapped her cheeks, checked her pulse. She was alive—barely. "Call an ambulance, now!" he roared at the stunned servant.
Hours later, a doctor in her early forties studied Shen Chi Yan with a critical eye. "The patient has a severe food allergy complicated by a cold and fever. She went into shock," she explained. "You're fortunate you found her when you did. Any later, and she might not have survived."
Her gaze hardened. "Sir, regardless of your marital issues, abuse is never acceptable. We've documented multiple injuries—bruises from hitting, pinching, kicking."
Shen Chi Yan's confusion was genuine. "Domestic abuse? What are you talking about?"
The doctor continued firmly, "When your wife regains consciousness, she has the right to report these injuries. We'll support her and contact the women's federation to ensure her safety."
In the hospital room, Song Qi Nian looked fragile beneath the oxygen mask. Shen Chi Yan approached silently, lifting her hospital gown.
Her typically pale skin was now a canvas of bruises—blue, purple, some areas with broken skin. The wounds were fresh, impossible to have occurred anywhere but inside their home.
That afternoon, Shen Chi Yan gathered the household staff, his presence filling the living room with a dangerous intensity. Dressed impeccably in a tailored three-piece suit and red-bottomed leather shoes, he radiated a cold, controlled fury.
His eyes, dark and unreadable, swept across the room. "You all know I don't care for Song Qi Nian," he began, his voice glacial. "Who hit her yesterday?"
Silence hung heavy. Then, seeing an opportunity, the plump servant stepped forward. "Sir, I hit her," he blurted out, hoping to curry favor.
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