In the dead of night, a young nurse came to take his temperature. Seeing his fever had yet to subside, she soon returned with several bottles of IV medication. He was still forbidden from eating or drinking; Kevin dipped cotton swabs in water, moistening his parched lips from time to time.
By the next morning, He Chu San remained in a half-conscious daze. Suddenly, he heard the bodyguards outside call out loudly, “Master Qiao! You’ve arrived!” Immediately after, the ward door was flung open with a loud bang!
Master Qiao strode in with his adviser, swaggering. Before he even arrived, his coughing came first—hack, hack, hack!—before he rasped in his broken voice, “Brother He, you awake yet?”
After a moment, He Chu San barely managed to open his eyes. He offered a faint, conciliatory smile and said hoarsely, “Brother Qiao.”
Master Qiao cast Kevin a glance, and Kevin tactfully stepped back to the wall. The Dragon Head Boss put on a warm, amiable expression, personally adjusting the bed height and helping He Chu San sit up slightly. Then he and the adviser sat on either side of the bed, fussing over him with exaggerated concern.
He Chu San lacked the strength to speak much. He only nodded weakly, showing immense gratitude with a faint smile. His fever-flushed cheeks lent a strange redness to his pale face, making his dark, moist eyes all the more striking—pitiful yet captivating.
Master Qiao, a seasoned glutton of the pleasure quarters, kept talking in that broken, grating voice, yet his heart skipped: Damn it, no wonder Xia Liu Yi took a fancy to this one. I’m not into men—but if I were, I’d have dragged him back to play with for a while.
After expressing concern for the “ailing beauty,” Master Qiao launched into a lengthy tirade cursing Xia Liu Yi and the people of Xiao Qi Hall, then pretended to invite He Chu San to join He Yi Society as a Deputy Hall Master.
He Chu San appeared overwhelmed with gratitude and declined, saying his seniority was low and his experience shallow—being a mere consultant would already be a blessing. The two went back and forth. Lured into speaking more, He Chu San’s breathing grew hurried, and pain flared in his wounds once again.
He collapsed weakly back onto the pillow. In moments, cold sweat covered his forehead. He raised a trembling hand in apology toward Master Qiao, closing his eyes as he panted.
Seeing his pained state, Master Qiao immediately displayed exaggerated concern. “Brother He! Brother He, are you alright?” He shot a glare at the adviser. “Look at your lousy memory—you forgot! Hurry and take out that ‘special painkiller injection’ we brought for Brother He!”
The adviser swiftly pulled out a kit from his briefcase, retrieving a syringe and medicine. Just as he was about to draw the liquid—his hand was suddenly seized.
Startled, he looked up at Kevin, who had stepped in front of He Chu San without anyone noticing.
Kevin spoke sincerely and respectfully, “Mr. Adviser, Mr. He is still running a fever and on IV treatment. The medicines may conflict.”
“Conflict my ass!” the adviser snapped, trying to shake him off but failing, spitting saliva all over Kevin’s face. “You’re not a damn doctor—what the fuck do you know?!”
Kevin did not move.
At the side, Master Qiao’s sharp gaze swept over Kevin’s pale face, as though seeing through something. His expression darkened.
At that moment of stalemate, He Chu San gathered his strength and called weakly, “Brother Qiao…”
Master Qiao’s face changed instantly, turning gentle and kind. “Ah, Brother He.”
He Chu San lifted his head, drenched in sweat, and spoke with difficulty, “Forgive me for wasting Brother Qiao’s kindness… but injections like that… I absolutely cannot take them… They numb the brain’s nerves, interfere with my thinking and data processing… In finance, if I miscalculate even a decimal point, it could mean losses of millions… tens of millions…”
He paused to catch his breath before continuing softly, “I’ve broken ties with Xiao Qi Hall, I have nothing left… perhaps only this brain is still of use… If even this is ruined… how can I help you, Brother? How can I still be of use to ‘that person’?”
Master Qiao’s narrow eyes rolled, his face blooming into a chrysanthemum-like grin. “Brother He, this is an imported American painkiller—no side effects at all.”
“No need… it’s only a little pain. I can endure it… thank you, Brother.”
Master Qiao smiled again and gestured to the adviser. “Didn’t you hear? Consultant He doesn’t need it. Put it away.”
He shot Kevin a dark glance. Kevin lowered his eyes and stepped back obediently.
After a few more insincere pleasantries, urging him to recover well, Master Qiao finally took his leave with the adviser.
……
Kevin escorted them out. The moment they stepped into the corridor, Master Qiao suddenly swung his cane backward—crack!—slamming Kevin against the wall! The hard tip struck his brow bone. Kevin covered his eye and looked up, only to be pinned in place by Master Qiao’s hawk-like gaze.
Kevin glanced toward the ward and said quietly, “Master Qiao, he holds no ill intent toward you. You don’t need to use such methods.”
“He has none? Then what about you?”
Kevin met his gaze directly, his expression earnest. “I absolutely do not.”
Master Qiao sneered and gestured to the adviser. The adviser took out the same syringe and handed it to Kevin.
“Prove it. Let me see whether you do or not,” Master Qiao sneered.
Kevin’s face turned deathly pale. After a few seconds of silence, he steeled himself, took the syringe, and was about to stab it into his own arm—
Crack! The cane struck again, knocking the syringe flying.
“I know you don’t dare. Just keep a close eye on him for me—don’t you fucking pull that ‘feelings growing over time’ bullshit! And don’t forget—you’ve still got an old mother!”
……
Unaware of what had transpired in the corridor, He Chu San lay inside the ward, eyes tightly shut. After seeing Master Qiao leave, he relaxed his mind and quickly fell back into unconsciousness.
He did not know how much time passed. In a haze of darkness, he felt a warm hand resting against his cold face. That familiar presence nearly brought tears to his eyes.
Like a drop of water rippling across a still lake, he suddenly opened his eyes, a breath escaping him like a sigh.
The room was dim, lit only by faint moonlight. Kevin slept lightly on the spare bed nearby.
Slowly, He Chu San turned his gaze—and in the moonlight, he saw the vague silhouette of Xia Liu Yi. Xia Liu Yi stroked his face, then leaned down, pressing a gentle kiss to his brow.
“Fool,” Xia Liu Yi murmured, his voice trembling as if on the verge of tears. “I don’t want anything anymore… I won’t care about anything… let’s go abroad together, alright?”
His voice weak and hoarse, He Chu San asked, “Then… what about Father?”
Xia Liu Yi lowered his head and kissed his cheek. “We’ll bring Father, Mother, and Xin Xin. We’ll buy a big house and live together. On weekends, we’ll drive to the lakeside, build a wooden cabin in the forest, raise a big dog…”
That lakeside cabin unfolded before He Chu San’s eyes like a painting—clear waters stirred by gentle wind, white trees whispering in the breeze, Father and Mother smiling by the bonfire, Xin Xin laughing as she played with the dog, Xia Liu Yi frowning as he clumsily grilled skewers…
He Chu San’s lips curved into a faint smile.
“You fool, Brother Liu Yi…”
If only it could truly be so…
He smiled like that, and as he smiled, tears blurred his vision. Xia Liu Yi’s figure vanished like mist, leaving only the night breeze stirring the curtains softly.
It was but a fleeting dream.
……
When he awoke again, daylight flooded the room. Kevin still sat by the bed, delighted. “Mr. He, how are you feeling? Your fever has finally gone down.”
After a moment, He Chu San seemed to return to himself. He lifted his gaze. The muddled haze in his eyes of the past days cleared, light rekindling within them. He smiled faintly. “Much better. You’ve worked hard these past few days.”
“It’s what I should do. Mr. He, during the two days you were unconscious, no one has made any moves. What should we do next?”
He Chu San smiled again and gestured for Kevin to lean closer. In a low voice, he instructed, “Find a chance… contact Black Chicken… have him help you find Xiao Ma…”
……
That very afternoon, Kevin led a group of bodyguards back to He Chu San’s data company to retrieve the general manager’s office computer. Meanwhile, Xiao Ma and a group of fighters from Xiao Qi Hall lay in ambush.
Enemies meeting face-to-face—their eyes burned red. In less than three seconds, both sides were already locked in chaotic combat.
Inside the office, white-collar elites screamed in terror, clutching their heads as they hid beneath desks, trembling. The elevator was stuffed with debris and splattered with foul-smelling dog’s blood. The narrow corridors were jammed with bodies, filled with the sounds of fierce pushing and fighting.
Xiao Ma and Black Chicken each wielded a machete, chasing Kevin down the hallway with loud clang-clang strikes, hacking the wooden doors on both sides into splinters.
“Take it easy—don’t hit my people! Go for the guy in red—that’s one of Master Qiao’s men!” Kevin shouted between gasps, pressing the fire alarm as he clutched a computer tower, panting heavily.
“Don’t worry—hah! Already told them—every strike hits the right one! Hah!” Xiao Ma roared, baring his teeth as he chased Kevin down eight flights of stairs, utterly exhausted, leaning against the wall and panting like a dying dog.
Black Chicken wiped his sweat and peeked out the window. “That’s enough, Boss Ma. The fire trucks and the cops are almost here—shall we withdraw?”
“Withdraw, withdraw…” Xiao Ma sighed in relief.
“Wait,” Kevin quickly turned his back. “Give me a slash here—go easy.”
“Easy my ass! If it’s too light, will Qiao the Second believe it? You think my name, Ma Ru Long, is just for show?!”
“I still have to go back tonight to look after Mr. He. If you cripple me, who’s going to take care of him?” Kevin argued.
The moment Xiao Ma heard about the “sister-in-law,” his legs went weak—he was thoroughly terrified of that lunatic who could even stab himself! With a disgruntled snort, he withdrew. “Fine… Chicken, you’re weaker—you do it!” He shoved Black Chicken forward.
Five minutes later, Kevin, his back soaked in blood, staggered into a car by the roadside, clutching the computer case. Another bodyguard in red, drenched in blood and howling in pain, was shoved into the car by his companions.
The car sped off. Xiao Ma led the thugs of Xiao Qi Hall, waving machetes and cursing as they gave chase for show.
In the distance, police sirens wailed. The thugs scattered mid-run, splitting into small groups and slipping into inconspicuous vans, vanishing in an instant into the urban jungle.
Futile Devices Scans 
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