Chapter 82

Chapter 82

"Xiao He, why did Henbie get hit on the head?" Madam Du hadn’t had the chance to ask since arriving.

He Lansi, usually carefree, sat up straight when facing women, especially gentle elder women, and said, "My cousin hit him."

The situation played out just like in the original story. He Lansi found the house left to him by his parents—the only proof that they still "loved" him—and should have been overjoyed. Unexpectedly, his cousin was living there.

His cousin was a hot-headed troublemaker, easily provoked. He Lansi held his own in the fight against him.

Until his cousin finally caved, "It really was Auntie who gave me the house! I’ll show you the property deed!"

He Lansi kicked him. "Now get lost."

The property deed was brought out, clearly listing someone else’s name as the owner, not He Lansi’s.

His cousin sneered, "I told you, this is my house. Now get lost!"

He Lansi tore up the deed, his last hope for his parents' love shattered. Seeing red, he started brawling with his cousin. Enraged, his cousin brandished a small hammer.

Neighbors gathered to watch the commotion. Somehow, Du Henbie found his way there and tried to mediate.

In the end, he took a hammer to the head from the cousin, who fled in panic. He Lansi rushed him to the nearest psychiatric hospital.

He Lansi even remarked, "You should be in a psych ward. Who told you to come here? Asking for trouble?"

Du Henbie snorted, "You pick a fight, and I get caught in the crossfire—and you still have the nerve to talk?"

...

Tian Ruan interjected, "You both need your heads examined."

Du Henbie: "..."

He Lansi shrugged indifferently. "Suits me fine. I’ve never stayed in a psychiatric hospital before."

The Dus’ secretary was helping out, and Madam Du lent a hand. Hearing this, she cut Du Henbie a look. "What kind of crap are you talking?"

Du Henbie: "...I didn’t say anything."

"What Xiao He said is as good as what you said. You're the one I'm holding responsible."

Du Henbie sighed. "That's my mom for you."

He Lansi scratched behind his ear with a finger. "I still need to visit my grandfather in the hospital."

Madam Du asked, "Which hospital is your grandfather in?"

He Lansi pointed at Yu Jingmo. "His family’s. Their heart and brain center is one of the best in the country."

"What’s wrong with your grandfather?"

"He’s old. Had a cerebral hemorrhage. He's not got long." He Lansi spoke matter-of-factly, but his eyes betrayed his deep affection for his grandfather.

It’s often said that grandparents dote more on their grandchildren.

"How convenient," Tian Ruan said. "My mom and dad are both at the hospital. We'll swing by to see your grandpa too."

He Lansi refused. "He keeps to himself. Doesn’t like visitors."

Hearing this, even Du Henbie didn’t mention visiting Patriarch He again. People are different—not everyone likes crowds, especially in a place like a hospital.

Everyone returned to the city in their cars. In those few hours, the sky slowly darkened.

A limousine, a Lamborghini, a Rolls-Royce, and a Maserati drove one after another along the quiet suburban highway under dim streetlights, with wisps of smoke rising from distant homes.

Madam Du gasped, “Are there still people burning firewood these days? Or is it a fireplace?”

Tian Ruan rolled down the window to look and said, “Some families around Su City still cook with fire.”

Madam Du reminisced, “When I was little, we had a charcoal stove at home, and the servants often used it to bake bread for me.”

“Is it still there now?”

Madam Du fell silent for a moment. “Back then, I severed ties with my family and went to England, then moved around to several countries. I have no idea how they’re doing now.”

Tian Ruan gazed into Madam Du’s sorrowful eyes and said, “You can’t reclaim the past. If one day you pass by your hometown, you can visit, but you must keep moving forward.”

Madam Du chuckled with a sigh. “You’re so young—how do you know so much deep stuff?”

Tian Ruan thought for a moment. “I read them in books. Books hold golden houses; books hold fair maids.”

“Have you found both the golden house and the beauty like jade?”

“…Yes.” Tian Ruan thought of Yu Jingmo and smiled.

Madam Du and the secretary exchanged a glance and laughed.

Seeing them laugh, Tian Ruan grew embarrassed instead and turned to look out the window as dusk settled in. Among the city’s countless lights, one shone just for him.

Blinding headlights flared toward them, followed by a glowing sports car crashing into the limousine ahead. In the deafening crash, the limousine was rammed onto the roadside, its front severely damaged.

Tian Ruan’s eyes widened in shock as he stared at the “glowing” car hurtling toward him—

He immediately pulled Madam Du close. As the secretary screamed, their car skidded backward violently, colliding with Du Henbie’s Rolls-Royce.

The Maserati at the rear promptly braced against the Rolls-Royce, preventing a more severe pileup.

Smoke curled up from the fronts of several cars. Tian Ruan didn’t feel pain, but everything spun around him. Madam Du called his name repeatedly, but her voice sounded muffled and far away.

He couldn’t hear or see clearly, like being drunk. Yet the slightest movement brought waves of nausea, nearly making him vomit.

He reached out blindly for the car door. “Mr. Yu…”

The limousine at the front had taken the worst hit. Tian Ruan’s hand fumbled for the door and managed to open it, only to collapse into a firm embrace. The familiar subtle woody scent filled his nose. “Mr. Yu?”

Though he couldn’t see, Yu Jingmo’s deep voice cut through the fog in his mind unmistakably. “I’m here.”

“You’re okay… that’s good… ugh…” Tian Ruan gagged, but nothing came up, making him feel worse.

Yu Jingmo carried him to the roadside and set him down. “Don’t move.”

Chaos erupted around them. Aside from the glowing sports car, four or five other flashy sports cars had followed. The driver looked terrified, his face white. “Shit, get an ambulance—now!”

A teenager’s voice cut him off roughly. “We’ve already called one! Go check if anyone’s dead!”

He Lansi, his face icy, examined the unconscious Du Henbie—already injured from the earlier head wound, this collision nearly finished him off. “No one touches him!”

The Yu family’s driver struggled out of the car. After a while, Yu Shang and Lu Qiuyan also emerged, unharmed. They froze briefly before snapping into action.

The hot-rodding punk was about to check on Madam Du when Lu Qiuyan shoved him away. "Scram."

"..."

Lu Qiuyan left Madam Du in Yu Shang's care and went to check on Tian Ruan.

Tian Ruan lay weakly in Yu Jingmo's arms, his fine eyebrows slightly furrowed, his face as pale as paper. "Mr. Yu... am I going to die?"

Tears streamed down as he spoke.

"This is so unfair... I'll haunt them..." Tian Ruan's stomach churned violently, stomach acid burning his throat. "Blargh..."

Yu Jingmo gently stroked his back, his voice deep and soothing. "You’ll be fine. It’s just a concussion."

Tian Ruan feebly asked, "Really? I... I’m not just cannon fodder, right?"

Yu Jingmo wiped away his warm tears. "Tian Ruan, you matter to me."

Tian Ruan's eyes went wide contentedly. "Blargh..."

Lu Qiuyan: "..." Perhaps he shouldn’t have approached.

Yu Shang supported the grieving Madam Du. She had been shielded by Tian Ruan at the critical moment and was unharmed. But when she saw her two sons hanging by a thread, tears fell uncontrollably.

A mother’s heartbreak is always silent. Madam Du forced herself to stay composed, waiting for the ambulance while calling Du Danren.

Du Danren hadn’t seen his wife and children all day and had been waiting like an obedient dog in the hospital room for their visit, even scrubbing his feet clean again. He never expected such devastating news: "...Don’t cry, honey. The ambulance will be there soon."

Madam Du didn’t want to hear nonsense and hung up with a click.

The ambulances arrived quickly—two in total. One carried Du Henbie, the other Tian Ruan.

Before getting into the ambulance, Tian Ruan finally got a clear look at the group and saw only the Du family in misery, which only made him feel more screwed over.

Yu Jingmo accompanied him in the ambulance, while Madam Du went with her eldest son.

The hot-rodders waited for the police, their cars immobilized on the road. Yu Shang and Lu Qiuyan stayed behind to give statements as witnesses.

The cops arrived, processed the accident scene, and asked for the names of the "hot-rodders." "Jesus Christ, it’s lucky no one died. If one or two had, you’d be doing hard time."

One hot-rodder argued, "There weren’t any traffic lights here."

The cop barked, "No traffic lights, but could you not see the solid line? Thought the highway had no surveillance?"

Another youth chimed in, "He’s the sole crash culprit. We didn’t do anything. Can we leave?"

The cop snapped, "Just him? Then why was he driving so fast? No one chasing him? None of you are leaving. You’re all downtown."

"..."

Lu Qiuyan sent the details to Tian Ruan. Radio silence for two solid hours.

After giving their statements, Lu Qiuyan and Yu Shang booked it to the hospital.

Meanwhile, Tian Ruan finished his full workup. The doctor said, "Just a concussion. Rest in bed for three days—no heavy thinking or vigorous exercise."

"What about homework... blargh?"

Puking's fine, but no homework."

Tian Ruan looked terrible, "So I can't go to school either?"

Yu Jingmo said, "Missing a few days won’t hurt. If you’re worried, I’ll have Yu Shang tutor you."

The doctor interjected, "Listening to lectures is also mental activity, Mr. Yu. It’s best if he doesn’t think about anything—acting like a dummy would be best. This is for the sake of better brain recovery."

Yu Jingmo nodded, "Understood."

Tian Ruan: "...I don’t want to act like a dummy."

The doctor: "Then just rest well. You can be discharged now. It’s the end of the year, and hospital beds are in short supply. We appreciate your understanding."

"..."

And so, Tian Ruan was discharged after just two hours in the hospital.

Du Henbie had it worse. Not only did he have a concussion, but he was also unconscious. He Lanshi stayed by his bedside, unsure whether to visit his grandfather first or continue keeping watch here.

Du Danren, the ever-*brilliant* one, kept running back and forth—spending ten minutes with his eldest son before checking on the younger one, then returning to the eldest, like a glitching NPC.

"I’ll go see Tian Ruan."

"I’ll go see Henbie."

That was all he said.

Madam Du said flatly to her husband, "All that back-and-forth is making me dizzy."

Du Danren finally stopped and sat next to her, saying something else for once: "Have you been crying?"

Madam Du: "No, my vision’s just blurry."

"..."

Soon enough, Tian Ruan arrived at the ward. "Big brother... *vomits*... is he... *vomits*... okay... *vomits*...?"

Madam Du hurried to help him sit. "How are you feeling?"

Tian Ruan: "I feel sick... and dizzy..."

"You ought to go lie down," Madam Du said with concern. "I’ll come see you tomorrow."

"How’s big brother doing?"

"Just a concussion—he’ll be fine. He’ll stay overnight for observation."

Tian Ruan figured Du Henbie would pull through, so he left the hospital with Yu Jingmo. Since walking made him too dizzy, Yu Jingmo just picked him up bridal-style.

Passing by the wheelchair rental area, Tian Ruan pointed and said, "A wheelchair would work."

Yu Jingmo held him steadily. "Not necessary."

They kept Sha Meijuan in the dark, so she remained unaware of Tian Ruan’s accident—one less person fretting over nothing. Tian Ruan didn’t want to cause unnecessary concern.

Just as they walked out of the hospital, Yu Shang and Lu Qiuyan came running up.

"Dad, how’s Dad doing?" Yu Shang asked.

Yu Jingmo lowered Tian Ruan into the Maybach and said evenly, "He’s fine. See Lu Qiuyan home."

Lu Qiuyan said to Tian Ruan, "I'll visit you tomorrow."

Tian Ruan nodded excitedly, "I like bananas. Bring me bananas."

"Okay."

Yu Jingmo sat beside him and closed the car door, telling the driver before the car slowly started moving.

Halfway there, Tian Ruan was starting to doze off when he suddenly heard Yu Jingmo say, "Want some bananas? I have some."

Tian Ruan leaned against his shoulder, his voice soft, "Hmm?"

"A really big banana, but you definitely can't handle it tonight."

"Why?"

"When you're sick you should eat more fruit..." Tian Ruan paused... realizing what Yu Jingmo meant by "big banana"... "..."

Yu Jingmo glanced at his face turning red and pulled him closer into his arms, "I'll give it to you later."

Tian Ruan's heart raced, "I didn't want it."

"Oh?"

"...No."

"So you do want my big banana, huh?"

"No, I don't."

Muddled, Tian Ruan kept alternating between admitting and denying while Yu Jingmo kept teasing him, not letting him fall asleep. "Have some porridge when we get home, or you'll get stomachache."

At this point, whatever Yu Jingmo said, Tian Ruan only had two responses—either agreeing or refusing. The concussion must be slowing his thinking. After pondering for a while, he finally said firmly, "I want tofu."

"Whose tofu?" Yu Jingmo asked.

"Yours."

Yu Jingmo's lips curled slightly, "Fine, you can have it."

Driver: "......" Thanks, I'm stuffed on this dog food.