Chapter 2 Farewell To The Old Lover

"Doctor, how's my father? Is he still critical?"

As soon as the doctor came out of the emergency room, Vivian rushed to him anxiously. The vicious mother and daughter couldn't help but gaze at him questioningly as well. The doctor waved his hand up in the air, indicating that they should let him speak. Once it was silent, he started,

"Mr. Pei had a stroke. Fortunately, he was sent just in time, so he's not in critical condition now. You must be careful in the future. Strokes can get worse over time."

"Thank you, doctor. We'll be careful," Riley said politely, even if her insides were shaken up after her father's collapse.

Vivian stared at the resuscitation room and said nothing.

She knew that her father had been worrying about the Pei Group, and at this point, she knew for a fact that the financial difficulties they had to overcome was incredibly large. Otherwise, he wouldn't have wanted to marry her off.

She didn't expect that the fight would cause his stroke. Her heart was filled with guilt.

The nurse pushed the unconscious Mr. Pei into the VIP ward. He was later followed by Vivian, Kelly, and Riley.

After entering the ward, Riley quickly stopped Vivian outside the bedroom. She sneered,

"You don't deserve to see Dad. If it hadn't been for your brashness, he wouldn't have had a stroke!"

"Get out of my way. I just want to see him."

Vivian was in no mood to quarrel with her, but as much as she tried to convince her, Riley still refused to budge. Her mocking glare was enough to tell Vivian that she was never going to budge as long as she was there.

"You're feeling sorry for him after you've caused his stroke?" Riley snorted. "Don't pretend to be so innocent."

"You know that your father has been so stressed with what's happening over the Pei Group, and you still went ahead to make him this mad. Are you trying to kill him?" Of course, Kelly was going to use this opportunity to blame her.

Vivian gritted her teeth. They were the ones who caused the fight. Why did they make it seem as if nothing had happened?

When did she become the cause of her father's collapse?

However, it only made her understand one thing. Her stepmother and stepsister had only pretended to be nice to her before, and the loss of her brother must've something to do with them. She was sure of it.

"Well, since we're already here, we might as well make it clear. You were the ones who made my brother disappear so that Alex remains as the only son of the Pei Family. You want him to inherit the fortune of the Pei Family, right?"

Kelly was flustered after hearing her words. Before she could say anything, Riley snapped,

"You think you're so smart in thinking this, but you still need to find evidence for that. Do you? If you don't have any evidence right now, then I suggest you don't speak. Otherwise, we're going to sue you."

"Riley, we're a family. How could we go to court? Consider your sister's feelings,"

Kelly said guiltily. Honestly, she didn't want to make this a big deal, so she held her daughter back.

However, Riley was unafraid as she stepped forward.

"What you said is nonsense. But do you know what's real? Dad was hospitalized because of you!"

"Because of Vivian? What the hell is going on?"

Alex Pei had just arrived at the hospital ward, and he couldn't help but overhear Riley's words.

"Alex, listen to me. It's not like that..."

"Vivian, Dad's in the hospital now. What else do you want to say? I know you're not satisfied with the arrangement, but it's the only thing that could keep this afloat. Vivian, you've gone too far!"

Hearing her own beloved brother say that, Vivian stared at him in disbelief. Although they weren't born of the same mother, she had always regarded him as her real brother.

She couldn't believe that he would automatically side with them without even bothering to hear her explanation.

"Alex, I'm not angry with Dad–"

"Vivian, I know that you don't like my sister and mother's proposal to let you go on a date, but you can't vent your anger on Dad because of this. She may not be your biological mother, but she loved and protected you all these years. How could you have done this?"

Alex Pei rushed out angrily, not even bothering to hear Vivian out.

Staring at his retreating figure and the smug faces of Riley and Kelly, she knew for a fact that she couldn't enter the ward today. She might as well go home and cook up a bowl of porridge for her father than be bullied like this.

Shaking her head helplessly, she left without saying another word.

"I... I don't know how he's going to be after this."

No matter how hard she tried to set Albert's wife and daughter up, Kelly still loved him. It was impossible for her to stay indifferent towards his health.

"Don't worry, Mom. As long as you pay more attention, Dad will recover soon,"

Riley comforted her innocently.

However, Kelly still wasn't soothed. Instead, she leaned against the sofa and sighed.

"After planning Adam's disappearance and seeing how he loves the both of you, I always felt a little–"

"Mom, stop it! Don't mention it again. You have to think that none of it leads back to you. Do you want to get us killed?"

Riley sighed, hating how her mother had always been so softhearted. It seemed that at every bad thing she had done, she would always feel guilty about it afterward. At this point, she should know that there was no turning back. She was either evil or she would die a useless death.

"Well, I just wanted to talk..." At the thought of losing everything, Kelly sighed and held herself together. She had already sacrificed so much to be here today, and she wasn't going to lose one bit.

"Fine, let's stop talking about it. Anyways, how's Jay Du? Is he reliable? Do you think he'll be able to follow you?" Kelly decided to change the topic.

"Don't worry about it, Mom. I'll have a way to make him obedient to me."

Riley was smug. Not only did she liked this man, but she also stole him from Vivian's grasp. Now, Vivian's Prince Charming was her fiance. That obviously meant that she was more beautiful than that bitch.

"Now that you've got Jay and Vivian had slept with Jeffrey, her life would be ruined. Now, you and Alex are the only ones left in this family. Alas, as long as the two of you remain good, I'll do anything to keep it that way."

Suddenly, the door was swung open. It was Alex Pei.

Alex Pei stared at the two people sitting in the room. He gritted his teeth.

"Are you telling the truth?" he demanded.

Kelly scrambled up as she waved her hands helplessly. "Honey, you should know that I did all of this for you."

"How could you have done that? Vivian's my sister! She's supposed to be your daughter! If Dad finds out about this... You make me sick!"

After saying that, he rushed out of the ward without turning back.

Kelly was about to chase after him, but Riley held her back.

"Mom, leave him alone. He's a lost cause. You know how close he is to Vivian ever since they were kids," she sneered.

Kelly sighed. "Give him time then. I'm sure he'll understand."

She decided to go back to the bedroom and stand beside Albert's bed. Not wanting to go in, Riley played with her phone.

Suddenly, someone called her.

Riley picked it up. After hearing what the other person had said, she paled almost immediately.

"Mom!" she shrieked. "Alex! It's Alex...he..."

"What? What happened to Alex?"

Kelly rushed out of the bedroom and held Riley's arms. She was frozen into place as if somebody had placed her into the freezer before pulling her out.

"Alex was hit by a car," Riley stuttered out, shaking. "He's been sent to the hospital."

"What?" Kelly's eyes widened. "No. I want to see him! Stay and accompany your father and–"

"Mom, I'll go. What's more, if Dad wakes up, you can tell him that Alex was hit because he tried to chase after Vivian. Do you understand?"

Riley hurried out with her bag, leaving Kelly alone with Albert. She nodded in a daze.

The next morning, Vivian came to see her father with the bird's nest porridge she had cooked for him. However, as soon as she opened the door, a tea cup flung towards her.

"How dare you? You brat! What the hell are you doing here? If anything happens to your brother, I would never forgive you!"

Albert glared at his daughter.

"Alex? What happened?"

Vivian furrowed her eyebrows, not understanding why his father was so angry.

Kelly sighed. "When you stormed off, Alex tried chasing you because he was afraid that something could happen to you. As he was crossing the road, he was hit by a car. I–I didn't want to tell you these things. It's all my fault."

"How could he have chased me? That's impossible!" Vivian sputtered out. "When I left yesterday, Alex was–"

"That's enough of that. Don't say anything more." Albert rubbed his forehead tiredly. "I've already asked Jay to arrange for your trip abroad. As of this point, you should focus on your studies."

"But, Dad, this really has nothing to do with–"

"Enough! You brat! After what you've done, you have the nerve to refuse? Get out and do as I say!"

Seeing her father's cold attitude, Vivian slouched in defeat. She placed her lunch box on the table and left without saying another word.

Eight days later, she was already in the airport, waiting for her flight.

"I didn't hurt my father or Alex. Do you believe me?"

Vivian stared at Jay Du with expectation gleaming in her eyes, but he simply avoided her gaze. He crossed his arms and stared at the signage.

"Look, your father had only asked you to go on a blind date because of the circumstances with the company. Alex has always been nice to you, you know?" Jay Du shook his head.

"Let's just sit down and get some rest." Vivian couldn't help but burst into laughter as she looked into his eyes. His words were like knives piercing through her heart.

As she stared at the man she had fallen in love with for so many years, she couldn't help but feel disgusted. She sneered. It seemed that her stepsister had really taken it all.

"Are you saying this because you're with Riley now?" she snapped.

"Don't be ridiculous. I'm only talking about the facts. As his junior, I could only respect your father's decision,"

Jay stated as if he was talking to another one of his co-workers. There was no affection embedded in his gaze.

With a snort, Vivian turned away. She wasn't going to give him the satisfaction of seeing her cry.

Jeffrey had arrived at the airport hurriedly. Upon seeing this scene, he couldn't help but sneer.

"What an emotional scene," he said snidely. "It seemed that I came at a bad time."