Chapter 86

Chapter 86

Seeing Shen Tingzhou outside the elevator, Yu Jurong raised an eyebrow. "Here to see Zitan?"

Hearing his intimate tone, Shen Tingzhou nodded without a word.

Yu Jurong stepped out of the elevator and, as he passed Shen Tingzhou, said, "He didn't sleep well last night. If you're here to talk business, Doctor Shen, keep it brief."

Shen Tingzhou wasn't sure if it was just his imagination, but he felt that Yu Jurong wasn't reminding him so much as...

He couldn't quite put his finger on what it was, but he had never understood Yu Jurong's attitude toward He Zitan.

Shen Tingzhou took the elevator upstairs and rang the doorbell at He Zitan's place.

After waiting for a full two minutes, the door finally opened, revealing He Zitan, who looked annoyed. "What do you want this time..."

Upon seeing Shen Tingzhou, his expression softened, surprised. "Doctor Shen?"

He Zitan stood there in an open robe, with messy hair, clearly having just gotten out of bed.

Recalling Yu Jurong's suggestive words, Shen Tingzhou felt conflicted. "I need to talk to you about something. Is now a good time?"

"Sure." He Zitan stepped aside to let Shen Tingzhou in. "You can always come by whenever. Would you like something to drink?"

"No, thank you. I'll leave after we talk," Shen Tingzhou replied cautiously.

Fortunately, there was nothing incriminating inside, and Shen Tingzhou sat down on a single sofa.

He Zitan glanced over, exclaiming, "You can't sit there!"

Startled like a frightened bird, Shen Tingzhou immediately jumped up.

He Zitan walked over, retrieved two file folders from the back of the sofa, and then said, "Sit down now."

Shen Tingzhou hesitated before carefully sitting down again.

He Zitan plopped down next to him. "Doctor Shen, what did you need?"

Shen Tingzhou chose his words carefully. "Your brother might be going abroad soon to set up a new company. Did you know about this?"

He Zitan, who never involved himself in company affairs, looked bewildered. "No, when is he leaving? After the New Year?"

Shen Tingzhou asked, "If he wants you to go with him, would you go?"

Without hesitation, He Zitan replied, "Of course!"

Shen Tingzhou wasn't surprised by this answer. "But you'd have to stay there for two years."

At the mention of the duration, He Zitan fell silent.

His silence made Shen Tingzhou's heart sink. Could it be that he had developed feelings for Yu Jurong?

Shen Tingzhou continued relaying He Yanting's message. "Your brother wants you to join the company and help him overseas."

He Zitan's face showed clear hesitation. "Would it be harder for me to come back?"

Shen Tingzhou nodded. "If you get busy, it might not be easy."

He Zitan fell silent again.

Looking at the silent He Zitan, Shen Tingzhou asked, "Are you worried about your mother?"

He Zitan lifted his eyes briefly before lowering them again, speaking softly. "...A little."

It seemed that He Ranjie wasn't the only reason for He Zitan's hesitation. Could it be that he really had developed feelings for Yu Jurong?

Shen Tingzhou rubbed his temples and then heard He Zitan speak in a deeply conflicted tone. "Doctor Shen..."

Shen Tingzhou looked at him questioningly.

"I know I shouldn't do this," He Zitan said anxiously, biting his nails. "But I can't help it."

Although Shen Tingzhou didn't support He Zitan's relationship with Yu Jurong, seeing him like this, he didn't want to discourage him.

Shen Tingzhou patted He Zitan's shoulder. "If this is truly troubling you, follow your heart."

He Zitan's eyes lit up. "Doctor Shen, do you think I should find that bastard?"

What bastard?

Shen Tingzhou was confused.

He Zitan opened the file folder Shen Tingzhou had almost sat on and spilled out a stack of documents.

"It's been too long, but these are all the men we could find who might be... related to her," He Zitan said fiercely. "Once I find him, I'll make him pay!"

It took Shen Tingzhou a moment to realize that He Zitan was referring to his biological father, the man who had impregnated Fang Yunran.

Then a thought occurred to him.

He asked He Zitan, "Have you talked to Yu Jurong about this?"

He Zitan didn't hide anything. "These files were found by Yu Jurong."

Shen Tingzhou instantly understood everything.

No wonder Yu Jurong had suddenly shown up that day during dinner. The previously adamant He Zitan had acquiesced after receiving a message.

It was likely that Yu Jurong had used this as bait, telling He Zitan he could help him find his biological father.

He Zitan was very emotional. Although he hated Fang Yunran, she had raised him for a period of time after all.

That man, on the other hand, was completely different. He only provided a sperm and possibly deceived Fang Yunran.

To He Zitan, he was entirely a stranger. He projected all his hatred towards Fang Yunran and all the grievances he encountered during his growth onto this biological father.

He Zitan wanted to find him and kill that beast with his own hands.

Shen Tingzhou was even more worried. This idea of He Zitan's was worse than falling in love with Yu Jurong; at least he wouldn't end up in jail.

At such a moment, Shen Tingzhou could only bring up He Ranjie, "If you really kill him, have you thought about your mother?"

He Zitan's anger subsided by half.

"Let's do this," Shen Tingzhou suggested a compromise, "Go out and train with your brother for two years. If you're still not satisfied after two years, then go find him and beat him up to vent your anger."

Shen Tingzhou firmly believed that time was a cure-all. If He Yanting could change, Xiao He would gradually mature as well.

Under Shen Tingzhou's persuasion, He Zitan finally nodded in agreement.

Since He Zitan no longer needed to seek revenge against that scoundrel who abandoned them, he naturally didn't need Yu Jurong anymore.

The reason he didn't use his connections to find him was that he was worried it would reach He Ranjie's ears.

Now that Shen Tingzhou had temporarily persuaded him, He Zitan, who could quickly switch emotions, happily packed his things, preparing to leave with He Yanting after the New Year.

Ever since he was young, his dream was to be He Yanting's most capable right-hand man, helping him solve various troubles.

But in the past, He Yanting always thought he was too playful and unwilling to let him join his company.

The next evening, Shen Tingzhou received a call from Su Yu.

Su Yu's first words were, "Doctor Shen, did you offend Yu Jurong again?"

Shen Tingzhou was taken aback, "No, why?"

Su Yu said, relishing the drama, "In the short film Yu Jurong just posted, several doctors died. The one who died the most horribly was surnamed Shen. This is clearly targeting you!"

Shen Tingzhou felt it shouldn't be so. What kind of intersection could he have with Yu Jurong?

Could it be because of Xiao He?

He Zitan chose to go with He Yanting, which meant he had dumped Yu Jurong.

But wasn't being dumped by Xiao He Yu Jurong's fate?

No matter what happened, the He family would always be He Zitan's first choice. This was common sense. There was no reason for Yu Jurong to target him over this, right?

Su Yu was indignant, "Don't worry, Doctor Shen, I'll go confront him right now!"

Shen Tingzhou hurriedly said, "No need."

Su Yu: "I can't tolerate others bullying you like this. Don't stop me, I'm going to find him. Doctor Shen, don't stop me."

Shen Tingzhou: "… I'm on the other end of the phone, I can't stop you."

Su Yu regretfully clicked his tongue, "Okay, then I'll wait until you get here and confront him."

Shen Tingzhou: …

After hanging up with Su Yu, Shen Tingzhou logged into the forum of Hu Qu and watched the latest video posted by Yu Jurong.

Indeed, several doctors died, each with a gruesome death.

But after watching it five times, Shen Tingzhou couldn't find the Shen doctor Su Yu mentioned. Remembering that Su Yu often made exaggerated statements, Shen Tingzhou silently exited the video.

It had been a while since he last visited the Hu Qu forum, but the posts on the front page today were still explosive.

"Hilarious, I knew that once someone leaves Hu Qu, they'd bring back several people during the New Year."

"Good news: I went on a blind date with my crush today! Bad news: My crush has a white moonlight, but they're the same type! They want me to join them, so should I join?"

"Damn, I've always wondered why he's so different during the day and night. I thought he had two faces! Who knew that bastard actually—"

The original poster hid the crucial information, and Shen Tingzhou curiously clicked on the post.

The main post read: "Who knew that bastard actually doesn't have that function, and the person at night isn't him at all!"

Shen Tingzhou was shocked. This was fraud, and a serious one at that!

But Hu Qu's logic was always unique. Everyone left comments—

"This isn't bad, right? Spend his money, raise your own man. Original poster, keep it up, raise a few more."

"In this situation, I usually suggest giving him a few more hats. He seems to enjoy it anyway. You're doing a good deed."

"Is anyone else curious about who the person at night is?"

Each reply continuously challenged Shen Tingzhou's understanding.

Soon, the original poster replied, "I'm not particularly angry, just can't stand being deceived by that bastard. Since he's unkind, don't blame me for being unrighteous."

Hu Qu was indeed a magical place where anything that defies norms happens. Even Su Yu seemed refined and pure compared to these posts.

He merely wanted to find a godfather for his child, a simple and humble wish.

Shen Tingzhou exited the Hu Qu forum and put the tablet away in a drawer.

-

On New Year's Eve morning, Shen Tingzhou and Xu Xun went to Fu Yunyun's house and stayed for lunch.

He managed to keep things fair, and in the afternoon, they both went to the Fu family to visit the matriarch.

The Fu matriarch clearly liked Shen Tingzhou very much, treating him more kindly than her own son and grandson.

As Shen Tingzhou talked with the matriarch, Xu Xun sat beside him playing with his fingers.

Suddenly, the Fu matriarch said, "I remember Fei and Dai played a four-hand duet of *Canon* before, and they even won an award. Wasn't that true?"

Shen Tingzhou instantly felt like the person sitting next to him was Grandma Jia.

Seeing Fu Huaifei's displeased face, Sangyan defended, "Y-You can't say that about Sir."

Shen Tingzhou, fearing Xu Xun might turn into Zhenzi, quickly agreed with Xiao Sang, "Yes... you can't say that."

The Fu matriarch was momentarily speechless, "At this age, still throwing tantrums when taking medicine—can you really say it wasn't learned from a girl?"

Though it was a bit unfair, it was truly amusing.

Sangyan didn't agree with the matriarch's words but didn't know how to refute them, as Sir indeed had trouble taking medicine.

Over the past few days, Fu Huaifei had caught a cold, and each time he needed medicine, Sangyan had to patiently coax him.

Sangyan didn't find anything wrong with this; medicine was so bitter, not wanting to take it was quite normal. Besides, Sir always ended up drinking it.

Shen Tingzhou wasn't as firm as Xiao Sang in his stance; both uncle and nephew disliked taking medicine and getting injections equally.

Of course, Xiao Xu was slightly better than Mr. Fu, at least he didn't secretly shed tears when getting an injection.