APLTWFMV 5

Dawn.

The morning light was faint, and the entire city was already gradually waking up.

Under the newly risen morning sun, a smoothly driving Ghost¹Transliteration for the Rolls-Royce Ghost, an ultra-luxury vehicle typical for depicting extreme wealth in Chinese web novels. shifting with the light, reflected a myriad of flowing, luxurious light and shadows.

In the back seat of the cabin, the refined and handsome young man answered the phone.

From the other end of the phone came Luo Rong’s voice.

“I just took his temperature. Mr. Xiao Shu’s fever has subsided, and no other abnormalities have appeared either.”

“Mm.” Fu Si’an said, “Take him back to Yuerong Zhuang first.”

The call ended, and the assistant in the front passenger seat opportunely handed over a stack of documents, presenting them to the young boss with both hands.

Fu Si’an took the documents; the assistant quietly glanced at him, finally confirming.

The boss had no intention of resting whatsoever.

It was just daybreak. The assistant had already changed shifts, but the man who had worked through the entire night showed not the slightest trace of fatigue between his brows.

Fu Si’an flipped through the documents in his hand. His phone rang again, but the ringtone this time was a bit different.

The call was from the Fu family.

“Where are you? When exactly can you come back?!”

Fu Shanying’s voice was still loud, sounding like his body was still quite robust.

“What was the matter with Yuerong Zhuang yesterday? Where did you take the person?”

The outline of Fu Si’an’s lips lifted slightly, saying.

“To prepare for marriage.”

“You—”

Fu Shanying was stunned for a moment before reacting.

“You agreed to the marriage, right?”

Only then was he a bit satisfied, his speaking still taking on a habitual commanding tone.

“That’s more like it—come back as soon as possible then. You also know that your grandfather’s condition cannot be delayed. This matter cannot be held up any longer…”

“I have already visited him.”

Fu Si’an’s faint voice interrupted him.

“The old man said it cannot be rushed. The eldest grandson’s marriage is a major event and must be handled properly.”

Fu Shanying was once again caught off guard. “You went to the hospital to see your grandfather?”

However, this time, he was quite in favor. “That’s true. For our Fu family’s wedding, the grandeur cannot be lacking—it must be held on a grand scale.”

By contrast, the other person in the background noise of the phone obviously had a different reaction.

A soft and beautiful female voice carried surprise, impatiently asking in a low voice.

“Who…? Husband, when did Si’an go to the hospital?”

Fu Shanying turned his head to speak with Xu Yunyi. Fu Si’an lowered his eyes, glanced at his wristwatch, and directly hung up the phone.

Although the Fu family was now being managed and taken care of by Fu Shanying, there were still many precious antiques, real estate, and storefronts remaining in Old Master Fu’s hands.

Old Master Fu only had one son, but had two grandsons.

With Xu Yunyi there, Fu Si’an did not think the Fu family’s calls would come in again in a short time.

The put-away phone sure enough remained quiet; Fu Si’an looked back at the documents.

What was printed on the paper was neither the laboratory’s progress nor the company’s daily reports.

It was rather information on the Shu family of Mingcheng.

The people from Assistant Team B had already rushed over from Shencheng overnight, but gathering detailed information still required time.

The version Fu Si’an currently received was still rough, yet it had already been sorted out very clearly.

The Shu family was a jade-carving aristocratic family with nearly a century of heritage, and specialized in jadeite carving. Every generation had master-level figures with exquisite skills.

The jadeite brand “Shu Yuxiang” founded by the family had also smoothly transitioned from a traditional old shop of the last century to a currently popular jade enterprise.

At its most prosperous, the name of Shu Yuxiang was not only famous in Mingcheng, but also had a small reputation nationwide.

However, the Shu family’s population was not considered thriving; reaching the previous generation, Shu Baiqiu’s father had even less interest in jade carving, looking completely unlike someone who wanted to inherit the family business.

The Shu family’s last renowned jade carver was Shu Baiqiu’s grandfather, and seven years ago, Old Master Shu’s passing was exactly the symbol of the Shu family’s decline.

After Old Master Shu died of illness, Shu Yuxiang ceased operations, and Shu Baiqiu’s parents also took their son and moved to another province.

Their family gradually had no more news in Mingcheng.

However, three years ago, Shu Baiqiu’s parents unexpectedly passed away, and sixteen-year-old Shu Baiqiu also suffered a major blow.

While still a minor, he was adopted by a distant uncle and brought back to Mingcheng again.

It was also then that Shu Baiqiu’s condition showed abnormalities, and he began being called “little fool.”

The uncle’s adoption was not purely out of good intentions. After all, Shu Yuxiang had operated for many years and had produced quite a few good materials before.

Even if it had long gone bankrupt, many people also felt the Shu family should have left behind quite a lot of inheritance.

However, Shu Baiqiu’s parents died suddenly, and Shu Baiqiu himself was traumatized and lost his intellect. The uncle’s scheme to seize the inheritance seemingly failed to go as wished.

However, those rumors also spread out starting from this time.

—It was exactly because the uncle forcibly took Shu Baiqiu to many raw material yards, forcing him to touch stones in front of all kinds of people, that the news “the Shu family bloodline can feel the quality of jadeite” spread like wildfire²A Chinese idiom that literally means “to run without legs.” It is used to describe news or rumors spreading rapidly far and wide..

A year later, the uncle passed away. Shu Baiqiu also began to be fought over for adoption by various coveters.

Fu Si’an had no involvement in stone gambling and the jade material industry, but he knew the profits in this line of work could be called exorbitant.

Among the people intending to adopt Shu Baiqiu, there was no lack of desperate outlaws licking blood from the tip of a knife.³An idiom describing people who live dangerously, engaging in cutthroat, illegal, or deadly activities for profit.

Even the death of that distant uncle.

Likely, there’s something else going on behind all of it.

Shu Baiqiu, who was called a little fool, was rumored to possess such a peculiar ability.

His situation was no different from a three-year-old child holding gold in a busy market.A well-known idiom referring to someone who possesses great wealth or a highly coveted asset but completely lacks the power or ability to protect themselves, inevitably inviting disaster and greedy predators.

It was hard to imagine how he survived it.

Even now.

Shu Baiqiu had only just turned nineteen.

Fu Si’an silently flipped through, his line of sight locking onto a page of paper.

On the paper were a few photographs—the photos were all taken in the publicly traded raw material area.

In the frames, there was always the same lone, frail young man.

Between those excessively eye-catching, beautiful brows and eyes, revealed a quietness and bewilderment completely out of tune with the surroundings.

***

After being brought back to Yuerong Zhuang from the hospital, Shu Baiqiu obediently went to rest.

When he woke up from his not-so-peaceful slumber, he found that Luo Rong was still in the villa courtyard.

Shu Baiqiu didn’t have any surprise either.

He had always been watched over by bodyguards before, without interruption.

The difference was, no one was anxious to take him out or bring jade raw materials over this time.

Because of the hospital’s instructions, Shu Baiqiu temporarily did not eat. Under Luo Rong’s reminder, he checked his body temperature and finished taking his medicine, then had no other arrangements.

With no other things to do and having already slept for quite a long time, Shu Baiqiu, after carefully obtaining Luo Rong’s consent, rolled the wheelchair to the warm and cozy floor-to-ceiling windows.

He took a book and was reading it.

Before being discharged from the hospital in the morning, Shu Baiqiu was also reading. He was reading the hospital prevention and treatment manual⁴Standard hospital brochures or handbooks explaining how to prevent diseases or manage recovery (e.g., how to treat a sprained ankle or gastroenteritis). placed in the ward.

What he was holding now, however, was from the living room of Yuerong Zhuang—a magazine placed there decoratively.

The sunlight was just right, falling onto the young man, sprinkling a layer of dazzling golden edges.

Shu Baiqiu’s hair strands were already soft and smooth. Under the backdrop of the sunlight, it even more so presented a fluffy, tempting texture to the touch.

It was such a beautiful and peaceful appearance.

It made it even harder for people to associate him with the title “little fool.”

Shu Baiqiu was reading very attentively, only occasionally covering his lips to cough lowly a few times, therefore not knowing what he looked like in the eyes of others.

It was so much so that not until a voice sounded beside him did he realize with a start that someone was approaching.

“What kind of books do you like to read?”

The person approaching and speaking was surprisingly Fu Si’an, who had disappeared for the better half of the day.

Shu Baiqiu paused in surprise, subconsciously wanting to stand up. However, before he could move, the other party seemed to have already completely guessed his thoughts.

The man’s indifferent voice sounded a step ahead.

“Your foot hasn’t healed yet, don’t move recklessly.”

Shu Baiqiu paused, obediently not moving.

However, his posture was obviously still somewhat constrained and nervous.

Shu Baiqiu habitually lowered his head, then remembered he hadn’t answered yet, so he looked at the book in his hand, then looked at Fu Si’an beside him.

“I… Can’t understand it.”

When asked what he liked, Shu Baiqiu only gave a soft-spoken reply like this.

No expression could be seen on the face of the man standing straight up; he didn’t say anything either, only casting a glance at Shu Baiqiu’s hands.

Shu Baiqiu’s hands were half-hidden in his sleeves. The original scratches on them hadn’t healed cleanly yet, and the needle marks on the back of his hands and wrist bones had blurred out a bruised purple. Touching a book was not convenient, and even when turning the pages, he was somewhat cautious.

“Luo Rong.”

Fu Si’an instructed.

“Go prepare a tablet.”

Reading on a tablet is always a bit more convenient than a physical book that requires turning pages by hand.

Moreover, he can look for his preferences on his own.

However, Shu Baiqiu, hearing these words, did not show any expression of delight.

On the contrary, that frail back tightened a fraction almost imperceptibly.

He didn’t know what the other party wanted a tablet for.

Fu Si’an swept a glance around. On the table, there was only a magazine and a cup of warm water, no other items.

The man perceived something, and asked, “Where is your cell phone?”

If it were anyone else staying in the room, with nothing to do, their first choice would probably be playing on their cell phone.

However, Shu Baiqiu’s situation might be a bit different.

Sure enough, as Fu Si’an thought, Shu Baiqiu paused, and softly replied.

“I don’t have a cell phone.”

The young man’s tone was actually very normal, unable to hear anything unusual.

However, the topic didn’t go as Shu Baiqiu wished, being swiftly glossed over.

Fu Si’an fell silent for a second, looked at him, and asked again.

“Why don’t you have one?”

Shu Baiqiu lowered his line of sight. His excessively slender nape slightly revealed itself, dazzlingly white under the reflection of the sunlight from the window.

“Because I don’t know how to use it.”

He said softly, answering as if making a guarantee.

“I won’t take a cell phone, so please rest assured, mister.”

The surroundings quieted down. Shu Baiqiu kept his head lowered, not knowing whether his words would be satisfactory to the person.

In his lowered field of vision, the man in front of him was still wearing a light-colored long trench coat similar to yesterday’s. However, that cold-toned white was already very hard to give people a mistaken sense of security again.

During their brief time together, this newly-appointed buyer would not shout or yell, nor did he scold or get physical.

His expression was often very indifferent, but he seemed to always be able to easily see through many things.

Shu Baiqiu did not want to be found out by the other party. He was a bit afraid the man would lay down terms like yesterday, absolutely requiring him to speak.

Speaking it out, Shu Baiqiu was afraid of being treated like that again.

With the past few adopters, Shu Baiqiu had never been permitted to use a cell phone.

He was always guarded, especially strictly. The only time he had gotten his hands on a cell phone was when Shu Baiqiu quietly went to touch it while people weren’t paying attention, wanting to secretly call the police.

However, that instance of no one paying attention, was nothing but a meticulously laid, deliberate trap.

Before Shu Baiqiu’s phone call could go through, he was discovered on the spot by someone.

At that time, Shu Baiqiu had scrapes on his legs, the wounds hadn’t healed yet. The person who exposed him sneered and smashed the cell phone in front of his eyes, shattering everything to pieces.

The young man was also grabbed by the hair and slammed onto the ground. His unhealed wounds heavily scraped against the rough, hard floor.

In the brutal summer, long blood streaks were stamped onto the scalding concrete floor.

Shu Baiqiu’s two legs, below the knees, were all dragged into a bloody mess.

His health was originally poor—that injury directly caused Shu Baiqiu to have a recurring high fever for more than ten days.

It was a full two months later before he could walk again.

Therefore, Shu Baiqiu didn’t dare let his wounds be discovered by anyone, and didn’t dare touch any objects with communication functions either.

He hoped even more not to be noticed by anyone, to disappear all by himself.

In the warm sunlight, Shu Baiqiu lowered his eyes, waiting for the other party’s reaction, like waiting for a frequently occurring sentencing.

Only, the man standing in front of him unexpectedly did not press further.

“Prepare the car—get ready to go to the hospital.”

Fu Si’an even turned his head away, speaking to Luo Rong who was walking over.

After finishing speaking, only then did Fu Si’an turn back and say to Shu Baiqiu.

“Go to the study and pick two books to bring. You still need another full day of IV fluids today.”

Shu Baiqiu blinked his eyes a beat too slow, and raised his head in the sunlight.

He saw that Fu Si’an still had that indifferent, refined expression. The fetched tablet was also kept in the man’s embrace, with no intention of handing it over—it was presumably for the other party’s own use.

And not used to test him.

Shu Baiqiu breathed a very light sigh of relief. The warm sunlight seemingly finally dyeing his pale face with a bit of a warm tone.

The young man murmured softly, yet filled to the brim with sincerity.

“Thank you, mister.”

Fu Si’an’s long finger lifted his silver glasses frame.

The slightly reflective, thin and cool lenses blocked his expression; only that deep, cold voice remained calm and steady.

“You’re welcome.”

***

Shu Baiqiu received another round of IV fluids.

Sitting in the wheelchair while staying in the comfortable and warm hospital room, he no longer had the physical sensation of being stuffy, damp, and cold. The accumulated discomfort in his stomach and intestines was also slightly dispelled with the IV drip.

Even the books he brought were securely placed on the small tray table attached to the wheelchair, making it very convenient to flip through and read.

Shu Baiqiu never thought he would have this kind of treatment.

He also didn’t expect that Fu Si’an would truly take him for treatment several times, and didn’t even mention a single word about jadeite and jade materials.

Perhaps the other party only cared about marriage and did not want him to get some illness before the wedding, causing a mishap.

It might also be for other purposes—just that they hadn’t been revealed temporarily.

The road ahead had always been unpredictable; Shu Baiqiu had long been accustomed to it.

He only hoped that the situation could truly continue to gradually improve as anticipated.

It’s because those people who competed for Shu Baiqiu in the very beginning were all insiders single-mindedly focused on stone gambling, deeply immersed in the jadeite industry.

Yet gradually, Shu Baiqiu was discovered to have no use whatsoever.

He changed hands several times. Reaching the previous adopter, the second-generation rich kid Gu Yifeng was already a pure layman.

Now, the Fu family had even more so taken a fancy to his bazi⁵Refers to the Four Pillars of Destiny (birth year, month, day, and time used in Chinese astrology). The Fu family specifically wanted someone whose Bazi matched perfectly with Fu Si’an’s to bring him good luck/ward off bad luck., buying the person merely for chongxi.

Shu Baiqiu’s age had not yet reached the legal marriage age, so they were unable to process marriage registration procedures. The Fu couple had said that for the sake of chongxi, the plan was to hold the wedding ceremony first.

Therefore, the current Shu Baiqiu had already been released from his adoption relationship, and temporarily could not be brought into a marriage relationship either.

The adult Shu Baiqiu no longer had a guardian or adopters.

He was all alone by himself—it was exactly a good time to be forgotten.

These thoughts, Shu Baiqiu did not show them.

On the surface, he still has that appearance of being quiet to the point of being wooden and blank.

However, after receiving continuous IV fluids for two days and also getting to rest well and change his dressings in a timely manner, Shu Baiqiu’s state was indeed slightly better than yesterday when he vomited until the sky was dark and earth was black⁶An idiomatic expression describing doing something to an extreme, overwhelming degree (usually relating to exhaustion, dizziness, or vomiting)..

When Fu Si’an came to check his condition again, Shu Baiqiu also inadvertently discovered—

It turned out Mr. Fu’s glasses were not the rimless glasses he had previously thought, but silver half-rims.

It was just because the silver wire was quite fine, and the luster thin and cool, that they were mistaken for rimless by Shu Baiqiu.

The silver-edged half-rim glasses were low-key and rigorous, quite closely resembling the owner himself.

Elegant and steady.

It looked.

Shu Baiqiu thought.

Mr. Fu indeed very much resembled an outstanding doctor.

Shu Baiqiu actually didn’t look for long, and he still didn’t really dare to raise his head.

However, the man who had lowered himself to check his ankle seemed to perceive his gaze exceptionally sharply; lifting his eyes, he looked right over.

Shu Baiqiu quietly and obediently kept his line of sight lowered, even lightening his breathing a little.

However, he heard a sentence.

“I study medicine, and I have no interest in hitting people.”

Fu Si’an faintly repeated the words he had said last night.

“Only when patients get better, will a doctor be satisfied.”

Shu Baiqiu paused. After a long time, he finally nodded, signaling he understood.

His response still appeared cautious and reserved. In fact, Shu Baiqiu had also never been able to completely guess Fu Si’an’s attitude.

Compared to other past adopters, Fu Si’an looked different from all of them. The man seemed to indeed have no interest in stone gambling.

Even the marriage for chongxi seemed to only be the Fu family’s idea.

Fu Si’an was instead the one being forced.

If that was the case—

Shu Baiqiu thought.

Would Mr. Fu also want to end the relationship early?

Hoping for this, Shu Baiqiu did not imagine further.

He knew too clearly that some things would only ever be extravagant hopes.

Moreover, progress very quickly made people realize.

As a future doctor, Fu Si’an’s identity was different, which also meant there would be actions with a different train of thought.

After finishing his IV fluids in the afternoon, Shu Baiqiu was not put back under watch; he was instead taken to another private hospital.

Unlike the hospital from before during the IVs, the entry checks for this private hospital this time were obviously much stricter, and there were people accompanying the entire process.

It was thorough even to the point of making one somewhat uneasy.

Shu Baiqiu didn’t know what they were coming here to do.

He didn’t even know what this place was—there were no obvious name signs anywhere within the hospital.

However, regarding their arrival, the staff members appeared to value it quite highly. Not only did they accompany the entire process, many doctors wearing white coats also came.

The doctors were currently communicating with Fu Si’an.

“This is the itemized list for the comprehensive examination. The VIP isolation corridor has already been opened, guaranteeing you will not bump into other clients within the hospital.”

The leading doctor handed the examination booklet to Fu Si’an, and his explaining attitude was also very respectful, completely unlike the treatment ordinary guests would have.

Afterwards, the doctor also handed over a folder, slightly lowering his voice while saying to Fu Si’an.

“Everyone present today has already signed a contract, and will maintain strict confidentiality regarding all results.”

On the side, the person pushing Shu Baiqiu’s wheelchair had already changed from Luo Rong to a stranger dressed as a nurse.

Perhaps seeing Shu Baiqiu’s face was too pale, the nurse also bent down, thoughtfully asking.

“Are you feeling uncomfortable anywhere?”

Shu Baiqiu did not speak.

His hands, taped with cotton balls and bandages, curled back into his sleeves. Even his pale, cold fingertips were hidden into the cuffs, pressing with little strength against his thin, frail lower abdomen through his clothes.

There, his weak stomach and intestines that had only just recovered slightly started to faintly churn again.

The nurse was asking, but Shu Baiqiu did not look at her. Through the crowd, the young man’s gaze fell vaguely on a spot not far away, where there was an examination room with a half-open door.

Through the cold, heavy metal protective door, the lights inside the examination room were bright. Right in the middle of the dazzlingly white space sat a composite operating table, and beside it were complex instruments that ordinary patients couldn’t understand. On the bed, there were red positioning marks and black restraint straps.

The restraint straps were a thickened version, wider than an adult’s palm, looking absolutely impossible to be broken free of.

On the other side, the doctors’ lowered voices drifted over lightly and leisurely—they were talking.

“Irrelevant personnel have already been completely cleared out. All items, including special categories and tests requiring anesthesia, can all proceed now.”

Strict confidentiality, special anesthesia.

Shu Baiqiu slowly realized that he had still thought wrong.

This was nothing but repeating the same disastrous mistakes once again.

No one would bring him for a medical checkup—bring him to the hospital.

Everything Shu Baiqiu had envisioned, would only be reduced to the worst possible outcome.

A scent of disinfectant even colder than normal 84⁷Refers to “84 Disinfectant” (84消毒液 – Bāsì xiāodú yè), a very common and famous brand of sodium hypochlorite liquid bleach/disinfectant widely used in China for household and medical sterilization. It has a very distinct, harsh bleach smell. rolled into his heavy, cold stomach along with his breath, and the nurse’s voice beside him also amplified to a fraction clearer.

“It’s okay, you don’t need to worry…”

The nurse gently comforted Shu Baiqiu, thinking this pale and slender patient was merely ordinarily afraid of examinations.

However, she did not expect that the young man abruptly shifted his gaze, a pair of excessively beautiful eyes revealing specks of burning bright, thin light that almost scorched the tip of one’s heart.

The young man looked at her and uttered.

“Please do not dissect me.”

“…?!”

The nurse was abruptly stunned on the spot.

Word by word, the young man spoke to her clearly and softly.

“Please do not dissect and study me, I want to live.”

It wasn’t fear.

He was pleading for help.

“No…”

The nurse was shocked to the extreme, hurriedly wanting to comfort the other party. She knew about the special rumors concerning this patient, but she didn’t expect the other party would say this.

“That’s not it—there’s no dissection. This is just a normal examination…”

There were also doctors on the side paying attention to the situation here. Hearing the nurse’s voice, they all revealed shocked and astonished expressions.

Why would the patient feel he was going to be dissected?

People also quickly came over to comfort Shu Baiqiu together with the nurse, but it was obvious that verbal comfort actually appeared so powerless and pale at this time.

No one knew exactly how severely the young man had been intimidated for him to produce such a heavy shadow.

Not far away, the man in the long trench coat similarly heard the conversation here.

Through the momentarily somewhat flustered crowd, Fu Si’an looked toward the young man in the wheelchair.

His heart also slowly sank.

Forced with a special ability, publicly made into a tool for exorbitant profits, threatened with all kinds of methods, frenzied and deranged to the point of having no bottom line—

To Shu Baiqiu, every minute and every second, fear never ceased.

Even with Fu Si’an being extremely meticulous and thorough.

He ultimately still underestimated the substantial impact caused by the past three years.

He miscalculated the wounds that Shu Baiqiu suffered in this nightmare stretching over a thousand days and nights.

• 1
  Transliteration for the Rolls-Royce Ghost, an ultra-luxury vehicle typical for depicting extreme wealth in Chinese web novels.
• 2
  A Chinese idiom that literally means “to run without legs.” It is used to describe news or rumors spreading rapidly far and wide.
• 3
  An idiom describing people who live dangerously, engaging in cutthroat, illegal, or deadly activities for profit.
• 4
  Standard hospital brochures or handbooks explaining how to prevent diseases or manage recovery (e.g., how to treat a sprained ankle or gastroenteritis).
• 5
  Refers to the Four Pillars of Destiny (birth year, month, day, and time used in Chinese astrology). The Fu family specifically wanted someone whose Bazi matched perfectly with Fu Si’an’s to bring him good luck/ward off bad luck.
• 6
  An idiomatic expression describing doing something to an extreme, overwhelming degree (usually relating to exhaustion, dizziness, or vomiting).
• 7
  Refers to “84 Disinfectant” (84消毒液 – Bāsì xiāodú yè), a very common and famous brand of sodium hypochlorite liquid bleach/disinfectant widely used in China for household and medical sterilization. It has a very distinct, harsh bleach smell.