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He did not consider her credible. He was almost amazed at how good of an actress she was being, and he sneered down at her. "I don't care if you're pretending to be pitiful."

The figure on the ground was motionless.

His brows went up. "Are you done acting?"

She remained motionless for a moment. He leaned forward in his wheelchair, narrowing his gaze and beginning to guess. It was then that he noticed her lips had completely lost their color and her face had turned as pale as a piece of paper.

He felt his heart grow cold when he realized what was happening.

**********

Twenty minutes later, he sat in the wheelchair in the hospital hallway, looking downcast. He was staring out the small window of the room in front of him, watching Joseph talking to a doctor. When he was done, after a few moments, he left the room and approached Clarence .

"What happened to her?" Clarence questioned in a subdued manner.

"The physician stated that she is sick and exhausted, and that she also has a blood deficit. After a brief period of suffering, the child appears to be okay. That's it." Joseph answered.

Clarence immediately shot up his eyebrows and hissed. "Are you acting pathetic? How could the youngster not be harmed by anything like that?"

"Mr. Conrad, Ms. Radomil's health is indeed very bad and this is the diagnosis from the hospital."

Clarence questioned back right away, squinting his eyes at Joseph. "However, if the hospital diagnosis is wrong, what are you planning to do now?"

Clarence called that his prior objective remained unfulfilled. He had given her a tablet, which she puked up. His gaze grew more icier. "Contact the doctor and perform abortion surgery on her."

Joseph fixed his gaze on him. "Mr. Con?"

"Does she think she can keep the child by pretending to be sick?"

"Uh, Ms. Radomil didn't get an abortion?" Joseph dabbed at his temples. “ That is simply excessive. She is now your spouse. Wouldn't you be the cuckold if you allowed this child to exist wholly unnaturally?"

In an instance like this, he couldn't help but picture Clarence’s face going green.

"Do you want to die?"

Joseph woke to the sound of an icy voice, like a basin of cold water. He gently pivoted and gave a nod.

"I will contact the doctor now." Joseph walked out without a second thought.

Clarence swung his wheelchair in the direction of the room, and the wheels silently slid into the white ward. He looked at the figure on the bed, his nose filled with the strong odor of disinfection. The woman's hands were lovingly resting on her chest as she lay on the hospital bed, her small and slender frame. Her lips and face were pallid, despite her lovely, serene look.

Her appearance suggested that she was napping rather than being ill. She was clearly a cunning woman, but in a coma, she had a different appearance.

He moved carefully up to the bedside. His dark eyes nearly held her in place. She's only acting, isn't that right? How else could she have passed out at precisely the right moment? She must believe that she will still be able to keep her adopted child.

He watched as she slowly opened her eyes, lashes trembling. For a brief period, she blinked the sleep from her eyes. At last, she was able to see who was standing before her. Her eyes had the clarity and calmness of a well-kept spring pond, as if they had been painted by an artist. They were warm, heartfelt, and sophisticated.

He was taken aback. The waves of ripples appeared as though a stone had been tossed into the surface of the spring water in the following moment.

Her small frame drew inward against the cushions as she sat up in terror at the sight of him. Trepidation clouded her eyes.

He clenched his teeth and squinted his eyes. "Am I a devil?"

"You scare me more than the devil." In her heart, she silently pondered. She dare not look at him directly, so she lowered her eyes. After a little while, she pleaded softly, "I beg you, let me keep it." Her voice was low, like an animal howling just before it dies.

Though it wasn't powerful at first, it finally moved his emotions. "Are you trying to persuade me to let you keep an illegitimate child?"

She bit her lip till she could say no more.

"You have two options: retain him or remain with the Conrad family. It's your decision."

She lifted her head and gave him a hopeless look. She had obviously not considered any alternatives. She felt helpless and really nervous. The sound of footsteps reverberated through the hallway as the two continued to stare at one another.

Joseph and the doctor showed up in the ward. "Doctor is here."

Her mind raced with questions as she fixed her gaze on their unexpected arrival. For what purpose is this? She realized the problem as soon as she met his icy gaze.

“Are you Radomil, Ms.? Do you perform abortions?"

"No!" She vehemently declined. She did not want anyone to go any closer, so her small frame drew back into the corner.

"Ms. Radomil, if you disobey, it will hurt a lot. If not,..." Joseph said as he was about to conclude his statement when three men in suits with black sunglasses materialized outside, seemingly orchestrated. They threatened to use force to keep her down if she disobeyed. But what the heck? Anyhow, she wouldn't agree.

"Don't even think about it!" She looked at the males, biting her lower lip. "Don't come any closer!"

Joseph futilely shook his head. "Just grab her."

"Yes!" One of them moved forward, making his way in her direction. As they approached, she kicked and punched, already ready.

She was displaying insane behavior. She didn't realize she had passed out less than an hour earlier. She was holding on thanks to her adrenaline until the darkness abruptly erupted in front of her. She passed out fast and collapsed onto the hospital bed.

"Mr. Conrad, she... she fainted again."

Clarence watched the sight for a long while, his sneer growing. "If she's attempting to pull off the same ruse once more, she must be foolish. Remove her."

With a nod, Joseph gave the guys the command to remove her.

As the men dragged her away, unconscious, she was powerless to resist. Her long, smooth hair tumbled around. Her lovely shoulders were exposed by the twisted shirt collar. He felt uneasy at once.

"Let her go."

Their hands began to tremble. Was that Clarence speaking?

"Are you all deaf?" The men immediately responded by putting her back on the bed.

Joseph looked incredulously at the men in front of him. "Mr. Conrad , what's wrong?"

Clarence moved ahead before coming to a stop in front of her. He extended his hand to close the buttons on her shirt that had come loose during her struggle with the males. It dawned on him then what he was doing. Everyone was shocked by his behavior.

Pulling his hand away, he turned to face them. “She is still my woman in any case. If I discover that any of you looked or touched anyplace you shouldn't have, I'll kill you."

The males responded instantly, nodding. "We understand, Mr. Conrad."

Clarence felt a hand tug on the collar of his shirt. He turned back and gazed at her, who appeared to be a small, abandoned animal. His expression was as sorrowful as ever.

Her voice was shaky as she implored. "Clarence , can we keep it?" She passed out for the third time, and the next moment her hand that was holding his shirt fell. There was total silence in the ward.

He sat perfectly still, his entire focus fixed on that stunningly fair face.

Joseph cleared his throat after a time, looking a little puzzled. "Mr. Conrad, do you... do you still want the doctor to do the abortion?"