The Mysterious Night of Beijing

Lin Chuxiu shook her head, wanting to say she was fine, but her throat felt like it was on fire, and she couldn't utter a single word. Then everything went black, and she knew nothing more.

In the end, only one thought remained in her mind: it turns out that people really can faint from being too sad.

……

When she opened her eyes again, she smelled disinfectant. Lin Chuxiu moved her fingers and found a needle sticking out of the back of her hand. The cold liquid was flowing into her body little by little through the IV tube.

It's a hospital.

She turned her head, her vision still a little blurry, but she could still make out the person sitting by the bed.

The man was wearing a simple black T-shirt and was looking down, intently peeling an apple.

His movements were slow and meticulous; the layers of fruit peel remained connected without breaking.

Sitting by the bed was Jiang Chiye.

Lin Chuxiu's body stiffened instantly, and a wave of nausea washed over her. She sat up and reached out to pull the needle out of the back of her hand.

"Don't move!"

Jiang Chiye reacted quickly, grabbing her hand and tossing the half-peeled apple and fruit knife onto the table with a clatter.

"Lin Chuxiu, you have a high fever, do you want to die?!"

His voice carried suppressed anger, but even more so, a tension that Lin Chuxiu had never heard before. Lin Chuxiu didn't bother to look at him, struggling, her voice hoarse beyond recognition.

"open."

"I won't let go."

Jiang Chiye stubbornly held her down, and even tried to feel the temperature of her forehead with his other hand.

"You're so feverish you're almost delirious, just lie down quietly."

"I told you to get lost!"

Lin Chuxiu used all her strength to shout out these three words.

Jiang Chiye froze, staring at her bloodshot eyes and her face flushed an unnatural red from the fever.

A hint of hurt flashed in his eyes, but he quickly covered it up, replacing it with an almost roguish tenderness.

"I'm not leaving."

Instead of leaving, he sat even closer, picked up a damp towel from the side, and tried to wipe the sweat from her face.

"I know you're still angry. We brothers are both bastards, but you know there's no turning back."

"Am I really that inferior to him? Look at me properly. I'll stay with you. You can hit me, yell at me, do whatever you want, just don't hurt yourself, okay?"

His voice was very soft, and the beauty mark under his left eye made him look somewhat pitiful.

If she didn't know him, Lin Chuxiu might have believed that the man in front of her was truly head over heels in love with her, if she hadn't personally experienced those unbearable things.

ridiculous.

Lin Chuxiu turned her face away, not even bothering to give him a glance.

"If you don't get out of here, I'm calling for help."

"Go ahead and shout."

Jiang Chiye decided to give up and sat directly on the edge of the bed.

"You can shout until you're hoarse, it won't do you any good. This is a VIP ward, the soundproofing is excellent."

"Lin Chuxiu, listen to me."

He suddenly leaned closer, his breath warm against her ear, "Believe it or not, I'm not like Jiang Xian'an. He could abandon you in the suburbs for Xu Lengyan."

"No, I carried you from the convenience store to the hospital, and I stayed by your side all night."

"Look, who's by your side in the end?"

Lin Chuxiu's heart skipped a beat, a sharp pain shooting through her. She had to admit that on that rainy night, when she collapsed in the convenience store, it was Jiang Chiye who found her.

But what does that mean? All he did was poison disguised as sugar, meant to kill her.

Seeing that she didn't speak, Jiang Chiye thought his words had worked, and his tone softened even more.

"I know you don't want to see me right now. Fine, I'll go out and stay at the door until you fall asleep before I come back in."

As he spoke, he considerately tucked the blanket around her.

Just then, his cell phone vibrated in his pocket.

Jiang Chiye glanced at the caller ID, frowned slightly, and became a little impatient. He got up, walked to the door of the ward, opened it only a crack, squeezed out to the side, and left the door slightly ajar.

They probably felt that Lin Chuxiu was delirious with fever and that she didn't have the strength to get out of bed.

He didn't even bother to walk to the end of the corridor; he just leaned against the door and answered the phone in a low voice.

"Feed? What the hell is it now? I'm busy right now."

After hearing something said on the other end of the phone, Jiang Chiye chuckled, his roguishness and impatience undisguised.

"What else can I do? I have to appease her, of course. She got caught in the rain last night and has a fever. She's really difficult to deal with."

Lin Chuxiu closed her eyes, pretending to be asleep, but her ears were perked up.

"What? An auction?"

Jiang Chiye raised his voice slightly, then lowered it again, with a hint of smugness in his voice.

"Of course I arranged for someone to move that chandelier. Do you think it was really such a coincidence?"

"I was planning to play the hero and make her fall head over heels for me, but who the hell knew my good uncle would suddenly show up and steal my thunder!"

Lin Chuxiu opened her eyes, her mind going blankly.

Was it him who arranged that chandelier?

It turned out that he orchestrated that accident that almost cost her her life?

The person on the other end of the phone seemed to be flattering him. Jiang Chiye's laughter came through the crack in the door, carrying a disgusting smugness.

"What's the rush? Women are all the same. Lin Chuxiu looks aloof, but she's more slutty than anyone else at heart. She's a thrill to sleep with. Now that things have gone too far, it's perfect. Let her see clearly that no one but me would want a piece of trash like her."

"Don't worry, I have plenty of patience and methods. Once I've coaxed her into a good mood, I can sleep however I want, right?"

"Alright, I'm not going to waste any more time with you. He's awake. I'm hanging up."

Footsteps sounded again outside the door, and Lin Chuxiu felt her blood run cold.

It turns out that it was all a setup from beginning to end. The so-called hero saving the beauty and the so-called midnight protection were just another trap he designed to sleep with her more easily.

In his eyes, she wasn't even a person, just a fun and exciting plaything to sleep with.

No, she can't stay here; she has to escape.

A second before Jiang Chiye pushed the door open and entered, Lin Chuxiu pulled out the needle from her hand without thinking. Blood gushed out immediately, but she felt no pain.

Barefoot, without even putting on shoes, wearing only a large hospital gown, she stumbled and rushed towards the ward window.

This is the third floor. If you jump, you'll be crippled even if you don't die.

When Jiang Chiye pushed open the door, this was the scene he saw: a girl's thin figure standing by the window, the evening breeze blowing her empty hospital gown as if she would be blown away by the wind at any moment.

"Lin Chuxiu! You fucking get down here!"

Jiang Chiye's eyes turned red, and he rushed towards her like a madman. However, Lin Chuxiu only turned around and glanced at him. That glance was expressionless and empty.

Then, without hesitation, she turned around, opened the door to the balcony, not to jump, but to rush towards the fire escape route connected to the other side of the balcony.

She didn't even close the door; she ran downstairs with all her might, disregarding everything else.