Chapter 802 - Hush Now, Darling (2)
Zhang Jiren moved in silence as he went upstairs and gently opened the door to his stepdaughter's nursery room. In the rocking chair next to the crib, Li Meili held her daughter who refused to calm down and continued wailing.
She was surprised when the door opened and saw Zhang Jiren looking at them. Her lips quivered as complex emotions washed through her. Li Meili wanted to yell at him, scold him, and hit him for making her worry about his whereabouts, but she didn't. However, her expression betrayed her as Zhang Jiren understood at once the helplessness he'd seen in her eyes.
Her eyes were rimmed red and held remnants of tears indicating she just had cried along with Leyan. Strands of her midnight hair framed her small face; the strands escaped the messy bun on top of her head.
Zhang Jiren's heart ached seeing her like this. If he could, he wouldn't dare to leave them alone like this.
"I'm back," he said, almost sounded so guilty for not being able to call her— for not being with her for the past weeks.
Li Meili gave him a weak smile, groaning in pain when her daughter's fist hit the side of her face. Her husband immediately came to her side and took the crying babe from her arms.
Zhang Jiren made hushed tones, trying to calm Leyan down. The little girl continued to cry, fat tears rolling down her cheeks as he lifted her to his c.h.e.s.t, his hand patting and rubbing her back in an attempt to stop her from crying.
"How did your 'business trip' go? Is everything alright now?" Li Meili asked, not missing the chance to probe her husband. She knew well that it wasn't just a simple business trip, but Zhang Jiren wasn't willing to tell her.
"Terrible," he muttered. The pain and uncomfortable feeling he had as he lay on the hospital bed, watching his twin sister's crestfallen face plagued his conscience till this day.
Tang Moyu hadn't left his side not even for a moment. She made sure that he knew she was there even when he was wheeled inside the operating room for his first surgery. He knew well how Tang Beixuan's death had affected her and he hated himself for putting his sister through the same situation.
Li Meili said nothing in return, but her lips pressed into a thin line. His answer didn't clear anything for her. It only made her feel frustrated, knowing that Zhang Jiren didn't trust her fully.
"What happened to Leyan? Have you already brought her to her doctor?" Zhang Jiren asked.
"I already did. We just went this morning since she's been burning with fever for two days now. The doctor has given us some prescriptions to lower her fever but she refuses to be fed and wouldn't stop her crying," Li Meili explained.
"Can you prepare a new bottle then? Let me see if I'm able to convince her to have her milk."
Li Meili stared at him for a moment before doing as she was told. She came back with a new bottle in her hands and gave it to her husband.
Zhang Jiren took a seat on the couch and allowed the girl to lie on a comfortable position in his arm before giving her the feeding bottle. Leyan refused to take her bottle and continued her wailing.
"Hush now, darling. Your Uncle Jiren is here now. I'm sorry for leaving you for so long. Please don't be mad anymore," he murmured quietly to the child whose fists still thrashed as she cried.
Li Meili thought that he wasn't only saying these to her daughter but also towards her. Perhaps, Zhang Jiren knew her well by now. He couldn't possibly not know that she was upset at him for being away for weeks without a word.
Leyan's crying only quieted down when she got tired and decided that she was hungry. She held her feeding bottle with both hands, s.u.c.k.i.n.g eagerly for milk while she stared up at Zhang Jiren's familiar face.
"Did you miss Uncle? Uncle Jiren also misses you too," Zhang Jiren continued while Leyan whimpered quietly as if she was telling him that she was still upset with him for leaving her behind.
"I know. I won't leave you again like that. I promise." He chuckled as he watched his stepdaughter finish her bottle eagerly. Once done, her eyes started to droop and Zhang Jiren retrieved the empty bottle from her hands.
Li Meili remained seated and watched her husband pacify her daughter, feeling a little jealous that Leyan could easily get Zhang Jiren's attention while she couldn't. While she was grateful for Zhang Jiren's help and love for her child, it only made her feel that she was lacking as Leyan's mother.
"Now, back to bed, Leyan," she heard Zhang Jiren say to her daughter, watching as he placed the child back in her crib carefully, allowing Leyan to fall asleep on her own. Her eyes immediately shut the moment her head hit the pillow.
"There, there," Zhang Jiren whispered to Little Leyan. "Feel better soon, little one. Uncle Jiren will be here once you wake up."
Finally, the young girl fell asleep, allowing Zhang Jiren and Li Meili to call it a night. Li Meili hadn't said anything to him and chose to lie on the bed with her back facing him. Zhang Jiren sighed, knowing she was upset but couldn't do anything about it for now. He went to the bathroom to change his bandages, making sure to lock the door this time.
When he came back to the bedroom, Li Meili had already fallen asleep and he placed the covers over her. Her body looked delicate as if she had lost some weight during his absence. Her stress from work and taking care of her young child surely took a toll on her body.
Long fingers extended to remove the strands of hair from her cheek; a soft hum slipped from her parted lips.
"I'm really sorry, Meili. I'm sorry," he whispered.
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