Substitute Bride to the Crippled Billionaire-Chapter 182: Shock

She gradually approached the door, inching closer to the dimly lit hallway.

The hallway lights were voice-activated; only her speaking could break the silence outside.

But at this moment, Su Qingnuan was extremely nervous, so nervous that she dared not utter a single word.

Her hand touched the door, the icy coldness restoring a sliver of rationality to Su Qingnuan.

"Sob... sob..."

Her footsteps paused slightly as the crying grew closer.

Su Qingnuan’s throat shifted as she swallowed her saliva.

Her gaze sharpened, turning toward the door.

Outside the door was the empty hallway, at the end of which lay impenetrable darkness.

Su Qingnuan leaned against the doorframe, squinting her eyes to look into the distance.

"Who’s there?"

The crying abruptly stopped as the hallway lights flickered to life.

Like a carousel of lights, they flashed one after another, all the way from this end to the hallway’s farthest point.

A shadow darted past the elevator entrance in the distance.

The shadow appeared small and short, its true form unrecognizable.

"Who’s there?" Su Qingnuan shouted harshly.

As soon as her voice dropped, the shadow moved faster, disappearing in the blink of an eye.

Seeing this, Su Qingnuan rushed forward in pursuit.

But after running only a few steps, she stopped abruptly.

Gripping her violently pounding chest, Su Qingnuan resented her body deeply—how could it be so weak?

"Su Qingnuan?" A doubtful voice came from behind her.

Su Qingnuan turned to look back and saw the supervisor standing there with her bag, staring at Su Qingnuan in puzzlement.

Su Qingnuan immediately stood up straight, greeting respectfully, "Good evening, Supervisor."

The supervisor gave her a glance before looking into the distance, smiling faintly. "What are you doing here?"

"I... I’m on duty."

After thinking for a moment, Su Qingnuan chose not to mention what she’d just seen.

"Stay inside while you’re on duty. It’s cold now; turn the heating up for yourself," the supervisor said sternly.

Su Qingnuan nodded quickly. "Alright."

"And remember to keep the door shut while you’re on duty. Don’t open it for just anyone, okay?" the supervisor reminded her again.

Su Qingnuan nodded, then laughed lightly. "Don’t worry, Supervisor. I’m not a kid anymore."

The supervisor shot her another look but said nothing more, walking away with her bag.

Only after the supervisor left did Su Qingnuan take a deep breath, finally calming down.

She cast her gaze again toward the elevator, but it was still empty.

Was it just her imagination?

But such an illusion—with a vividness so lifelike—was really hard to dismiss.

With these thoughts, Su Qingnuan found it impossible to stay composed.

Anxiously awaiting her shift’s end, she left the company as soon as possible.

Standing outside, watching the cars passing by, Su Qingnuan picked up her phone.

Before she could dial, the phone vibrated.

Seeing the caller ID, Su Qingnuan eagerly answered the call.

"Hello! Is this Mr. Fu?"

The excitement in her voice was unmistakable, catching Fu Yihan off guard for a moment.

"Where are you?" he asked.

Su Qingnuan glanced at the quiet building behind her and quickly replied, "I just finished my shift and am outside the company."

"Alright, wait for me."

With that, the call ended.

This wasn’t the first time Fu Yihan had hung up on her. She had long grown accustomed to it.

Standing idly by the roadside, boredom led Su Qingnuan to hop along the tiles of the sidewalk, playing a game of hopscotch.

She had loved playing this as a child, though her mother had scolded her for it and discouraged the habit.

Now, as a woman in her twenties, she suddenly found herself nostalgic for her childhood.

Swept up in her game, Su Qingnuan didn’t notice a black car slowly pulling up nearby.

Through the dark window, Fu Yihan caught sight of the lively figure hopping around.

Perhaps tired from her jumping, Su Qingnuan wiped the sweat from her forehead, her flushed cheeks resembling a ripe apple.

Her movements were so childish, like a kindergartener.

Yet this childishness irresistibly drew Fu Yihan’s gaze, holding him captive.

"Young Master?" Ah Qi turned his head, puzzled by the lack of instruction. "Should I go call the Young Mistress?"

Fu Yihan remained silent for a long while before replying, "Go ahead."

"Understood."

...

Finishing the last square, Su Qingnuan looked up and wiped her sweat. Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted a figure approaching.

Her face lit up with delight, and she waved excitedly. "Ah Qi, I’m over here!"

Ah Qi walked toward her, smiling, "Young Mistress, the Young Master is waiting for you in the car."

Su Qingnuan quickly nodded, grabbed her bag, and followed Ah Qi.

After boarding the car, Su Qingnuan glanced at Fu Yihan sitting beside her, appearing to be in good spirits. She hesitated, wanting to speak but holding back.

Noticing her lips moving intermittently, Fu Yihan raised an eyebrow. "What is it? Do you have something to say?"

Su Qingnuan nodded, then shook her head.

"What do you mean?" Fu Yihan frowned, his impatience showing.

Su Qingnuan hurriedly explained, "I’m not sure how to say this, but earlier during my shift, I think I heard a child crying—like, um..."

As she recounted the story, she animatedly added a series of gestures and expressions, speaking so vividly that even Ah Qi, who was driving, momentarily forgot about his task.

Fu Yihan frowned deeply, staring silently at Su Qingnuan.

Su Qingnuan scratched her head awkwardly. "Mr. Fu, don’t look at me like that. I swear I’m not making this up. If you don’t believe me, I’ll be on duty again tomorrow—you can see for yourself."

Finally, Fu Yihan withdrew his gaze, calmly nodding. "Alright."

"Alright?" Su Qingnuan looked at him in confusion.

Fu Yihan raised an eyebrow. "Tomorrow, I’ll come to see if you’re telling the truth or not."

"..." She had merely suggested it casually—he was actually taking her seriously?

That night, Su Qingnuan dreamed of crying children, waking in terror with a scream. 𝐟𝗿𝐞𝚎𝚠𝐞𝚋𝕟𝐨𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝕔𝕠𝚖

Fu Yihan rubbed his temples, looking at her with evident annoyance. "Another nightmare?"

Su Qingnuan, still dazed and foggy from sleep, stared at Fu Yihan blankly for a moment before snapping out of it and rushing into the bathroom.

Inside, she splashed her face with cold water to clear her mind. Only then did she begin to calmly tidy up, preparing to head to work.

As she left the room, Fu Yihan called out to her.

"Su Qingnuan."

He was carefully buttoning up his shirt, unhurried and methodical.

"Wait for me."

"Huh?" Su Qingnuan looked at him in surprise.

Fu Yihan raised an eyebrow, casting her a meaningful glance. "Didn’t I say yesterday that I’d go with you to see what was going on?"

Su Qingnuan’s joy was obvious but fleeting—moments later, she reverted to her calm demeanor, nodding slightly. "Alright."

Once Fu Yihan was ready, Su Qingnuan couldn’t hide her eagerness and practically pushed him out the door.

At the company, Fu Yihan returned to his office while Su Qingnuan focused on completing her tasks.

It wasn’t until after her shift that Fu Yihan, occupied with his work, heard the clattering of wheels and instinctively looked up.

Ah Qi was wheeling Fu Yihan toward her workstation. His wheelchair stopped just beside her desk. With a faint, enigmatic smile, he looked at her.