Chapter 15
The next morning, Chi Suinian was jolted awake by the noisy voices and call bells in the hospital. As soon as he opened his eyes, he was greeted by Tang Jin’s enlarged face.
“F**k…” Chi Suinian almost fainted again. “…What are you doing getting so close?”
“Curious, of course.” Tang Jin said, “You’ve barely been discharged, and you’re already back here. I wanted to check if your forehead looks ominously dark.”
“…”
“Get lost,” Chi Suinian propped himself up on his elbows, noticing that his left hand was still hooked up to an IV drip.
“You drank too much last night, nearly ruined your stomach,” Tang Jin clicked his tongue and said. “I heard you got into a drinking contest with Cheng Song. Why didn’t you call me? Was it him who drank you into this state? Wait, no—aren’t you two not even close? What’s with this sudden…”
Tang Jin was known for his chatter. Chi Suinian didn’t want to listen to his rambling and interrupted, “Who told you that?”
“Lu Zhiyue,” Tang Jin replied.
Chi Suinian froze.
“You didn’t know?” Tang Jin smirked and waggled his eyebrows. “He called me this morning to pick you up from the hospital. Judging by how he sounded, he must’ve stayed with you all night… You don’t remember?”
Chi Suinian pursed his lips. “No.”
Lu Zhiyue always seemed keen on maintaining their harmonious relationship in front of outsiders. Even in front of close friends like Tang Jin and Lu Heng, he never let anything slip.
With that thought, some fragmented images suddenly surfaced in Chi Suinian’s mind.
A silent and dim hospital room. He hadn’t slept well, caught between dreams and reality, vaguely seeing a familiar figure sitting by his bedside.
That person seemed to have said something to him too?
But what exactly was said, he couldn’t recall.
Before that… there was the drinking contest with Cheng Song at the club, then heading out…
What happened after they left?
Chi Suinian furrowed his brow in thought, but the memories after that seemed to have vanished along with the alcohol, leaving only hazy outlines that he couldn’t piece together.
Rubbing his temples, he gave up trying to remember.
There was still half a bottle of medicine left in the IV drip. Annoyed, Chi Suinian frowned and asked, “When can I get discharged?”
“Let me check…” Tang Jin leaned over to look at the label on the IV bottle. “Oh, this is the last bottle. I’ll call a nurse to remove the needle for you—holy sh*t, are you insane?!”
Before he could finish speaking, Chi Suinian had already yanked out the needle without hesitation and swung his legs over the bed to stand up.
The violent removal of the needle left a small trail of blood seeping from his hand.
Tang Jin winced, “Ugh… Ouch.”
Chi Suinian pressed down on the wound to stop the bleeding, then looked up and said, “Did it stab your hand?”
“I’m feeling it on your behalf!” Tang Jin grimaced. “Why are you in such a rush? Finishing this bottle wouldn’t take long.”
“I don’t like hospitals,” Chi Suinian said impatiently.
He had been weak since childhood, having endured countless needle pricks and pills. After spending three months bedridden recently, just being in a hospital made him allergic—he couldn’t stand it for another second.
The tiny wound quickly stopped bleeding, and Chi Suinian tossed the discarded adhesive into the trash.
Tang Jin clicked his tongue, “You act like you hate hospitals, yet you’re in and out of them all the time. You know your health isn’t good—why do you keep doing things to make it worse? At this rate, you’ll wreck your body completely.”
While putting on his shoes, Chi Suinian said coolly, “The way you talk, I almost thought my grandma had come back to life.”
Tang Jin: “…”
He waved his hand dismissively, “Fine, whatever. If I keep nagging, I’m a dog.”
Knock, knock, knock.
The door to the hospital room was cautiously pushed open.
Standing outside was an elegant-looking woman with a well-groomed appearance. Her precise makeup made her age indeterminate, though the fine lines at the corners of her eyes betrayed her. She held a bouquet of flowers adorned with dewdrops in one hand and a lunchbox in the other, hesitantly standing in the doorway.
“Suinian…”
The expression on Chi Suinian’s face cooled. His tone was neither warm nor cold. “Auntie.”
The woman was none other than the mother of his cousin.
“May I come in?” Zhou Minru asked, looking a little uneasy.
Chi Suinian nodded. “…Please do.”
“I heard you were admitted to the hospital last night,” Zhou Minru approached the bed. “Was it an old injury acting up? I made some stewed black-bone chicken soup with fritillaria. Try it, see if it suits your taste.”
Chi Suinian glanced at the lunchbox on the table, saying nothing.
Zhou Minru was a typical housewife. Her life revolved around her husband, her son, and occasional beauty treatments. News like his drunken hospitalization wouldn’t have reached her ears on its own.
It was obvious who had informed her.
Chi Mingyao was keeping a close watch on him.
And this time, the tactic seemed to have worked.
Chi Suinian could ignore Chi Mingyao’s harsh words, or watch as Chi Yu ended up in jail, but he couldn’t bring himself to be cold toward this aunt.
Chi Suinian had grown up without a mother and with a father who was deeply unhappy with his marriage and family. Until the age of eight, he lived in a nightmare with no one to save him.
Zhou Minru had been the only one to reach out, rescuing the battered child and sending him back to the family estate.
It was the only reason he’d found relief.
Chi Suinian could turn a cold shoulder to anyone—but not to Zhou Minru.
Even though they hadn’t interacted much over the years, he always remembered her act of kindness.
The emergency ward was cramped, and although Lu Zhiyue had pulled some strings to get him a private room, it still only had a bed and a single armchair.
Currently occupied by Tang Jin, the fool.
Chi Suinian kicked the leg of the chair. “Go wait outside.”
Tang Jin blinked, then realized what was going on. “Got it.” He glanced at Zhou Minru and lingered for a moment before saying, “I’ll be right outside. Call me if you need anything.”
After Tang Jin left, Chi Suinian gestured for Zhou Minru to sit.
“…Thank you.”
The two hadn’t seen each other in years and had nothing to talk about. Zhou Minru sat awkwardly for a while, fidgeting with her hands. Finally, after a few moments, she said, “Would you like some soup?”
Chi Suinian shook his head. “No need. Auntie, you’re here for Chi Yu’s matter, aren’t you?”
At the mention of her troublesome son, Zhou Minru’s eyes immediately reddened. “Yes. Xiao Yu has gotten into trouble again. His father and I have tried everything, but nothing works… You know so many people. Can you help us find a way…”
“Auntie,” Chi Suinian interrupted, “What do you expect me to do? Chi Yu broke the law. He got involved with drugs. Even the highest authority can’t save him.”
“No, no…” Zhou Minru waved her hands frantically. “He didn’t touch drugs. He wouldn’t dare. His father and I have always been strict on such matters. His test results were negative.”
“If he wasn’t involved, why did the police detain him?”
“The issue lies with that girl,” Zhou Minru said painfully. “She’s insisting that Xiao Yu was the instigator, and she even produced chat records…”
Chi Suinian paused and understood.
Chi Yu had likely said reckless things while trying to impress the girl during his escapades, giving her ammunition against him.
But for a girl to risk her reputation and go to such lengths to pin Chi Yu down, it was either out of deep hatred or because someone else was pulling the strings.
In any case, it wasn’t a simple matter.
“I know it’s complicated, but his father and I have no other options. He’s your cousin. He’s been in custody for days, and we don’t even know how he’s been treated in there. I’m just…” Zhou Minru’s tears began to fall again as she spoke.
Having grown up without comfort, Chi Suinian didn’t know how to console others. Her crying gave him a headache, so he said, “I’ll hire a good lawyer to look into the case. If Chi Yu is innocent, I’ll help him get out.”
Zhou Minru froze for a moment, then broke into a smile. “Great, great! Thank you, Suinian. I knew you were always the kindest child. Ever since you were little—”
“Auntie,” Chi Suinian interrupted her again. “I’m tired. I’d like to rest now.”
“Ah… Of course.” Zhou Minru stood up. “Sorry to disturb your rest today. I’ll take my leave… Remember to drink the soup.”
Chi Suinian made no promises. Once the room was quiet again, he stared at the stainless steel lunchbox on the table, unmoving.
His brow furrowed slightly.
“Suinian,” Tang Jin opened the door and stepped in. “She’s gone?”
“Mm.”
Tang Jin followed
his gaze to the soup and teased, “Auntie’s homemade soup—it’d be disrespectful not to drink it.”
Chi Suinian shot him a look. Tang Jin shut up.
Then Chi Suinian said, “Book me a flight to Yang City for tomorrow.”
Tang Jin froze. “You’re not going back to Lanjiang?”
“No.”
“Why? You’re going to throw yourself into that family mess?”
Chi Suinian didn’t answer. Instead, he calmly leaned back against the bed and closed his eyes.
“…What are you thinking about?” Tang Jin waved his hand in front of Chi Suinian’s face. “The discharge paperwork is ready. Shall we go?”
Chi Suinian snapped out of his thoughts and sighed. “Let’s go.”
“What about this soup…?”
Chi Suinian stood up.
“Throw it away.”
By the time they left the hospital, it was nearly evening. The sky was painted with a dazzling sunset. A black Mercedes-Benz slowly pulled up in front of them, and a young man stepped out to open the rear door. “Young Master Chi, please get in.”
Chi Suinian looked at the face before him. His memory had always been sharp, and he immediately recognized this was the assistant who had called him “Madam” on the first day he regained consciousness.
One of Lu Zhiyue’s people.
Chi Suinian turned to Tang Jin. “Where’s your car?”
“Huh?” Suddenly being addressed, Tang Jin blinked and said, “I didn’t drive.”
“Then how did you get here?”
“I took a cab! When I heard you were hospitalized, I was so worried I didn’t have the mind to drive.”
“…”
Although he had slept for quite some time, Chi Suinian still felt utterly exhausted and just wanted to find a quiet place to rest. Since Lu Zhiyue wasn’t around, he could enjoy some peace and quiet.
With that thought, Chi Suinian got into the car. Noticing Tang Jin still standing outside, he asked suspiciously, “Aren’t you coming?”
“Well…” Tang Jin scratched the back of his head. “You go ahead. My phone and wallet are still at the hotel. I left in such a hurry…I need to go back and get them.”
Chi Suinian’s tone turned icy. “So, you crawled out of some lover’s bed just to come here?”
Tang Jin’s face turned red. “Hey, they’re just good friends, okay?”
Chi Suinian laughed. “You have enough ‘good friends’ to circle Jin City ten times.”
“…” Tang Jin rolled his eyes, put on his sunglasses, and said, “Nonsense. Do I look like that kind of person? Anyway, as long as you’re okay, I’m relieved. I’m heading off now. Call me if you need anything.”
“Mm.”
As the window closed, Chi Suinian said lightly, “Drive.”
The assistant in the front seat started the car silently.
As the car smoothly pulled out of the hospital driveway, they passed by the parking lot. Chi Suinian caught sight of Zhou Minru, who was beaming as she spoke on the phone. Her excited voice drifted faintly through the slightly open car window.
“…Don’t worry. He never refuses me… Of course, he agreed. Let’s just stay home and wait for our son to come back.”
Chi Suinian’s eyelids twitched as his dark eyes briefly swept over Zhou Minru’s jubilant face.
She looked like she’d just scored some grand victory, completely different from the anxious and nervous demeanor she had shown in the hospital earlier to soften his heart.
Chi Suinian lowered his gaze, concealing the faint mockery in his eyes. This family was ridiculous. Instead of trying to figure out how to help their son who was in jail, they were gloating over gaining some advantage from him. How amusing.
“…Young Master Chi? Young Master Chi?”
The voice from the front seat pulled him back to reality, his eyes still glinting with a trace of coldness. “What?”
“Your phone is ringing.”
Chi Suinian then noticed that his phone had been buzzing for quite a while, to the point where it was almost numbing his leg.
He pulled it out and saw the caller ID: Lu Dog.
Chi Suinian: “…” Annoying.
He hung up without hesitation, but the phone started ringing again a second later.
He hung up again.
Lu Zhiyue called again.
After going back and forth twice, Chi Suinian’s underlying irritation was completely stirred up by Lu Zhiyue. At this point, he just wanted to grab the man and give him a good beating.
“Lu Zhiyue, you’d better have a reason for calling. Otherwise, don’t even think about stepping into the house tonight!”
Chi Suinian was too furious to notice the intimacy hidden in his words.
On the other end of the line, Lu Zhiyue curled his lips slightly and asked, “Discharged from the hospital?”
“Get to the point,” Chi Suinian snapped. “Spit it out.”
“Are you free the day after tomorrow?” Lu Zhiyue asked.
Chi Suinian, his tone sharp and hostile, replied, “No, I’m not free. I’m not free any day. If it’s you asking, I’m definitely not free. Got it?”
“Oh,” Lu Zhiyue paused and then said, “I’ll ask again the day after tomorrow.”
Chi Suinian: “…”
You think asking again will suddenly make me free?
At this point, if Chi Suinian still couldn’t tell that Lu Zhiyue was messing with him, he’d truly be an idiot.
“Lu Zhiyue, you’d better get ready to collect your belongings from the house, because I’m about to burn it to the ground.”
TL: Hi Readers!!! Support me on ko-fi ^-^
