Regarding the matter of awakening lightning abilities after transformation

"Excuse me, I have some personal matters to attend to..."

The man waved his hand after hearing this: "You flatter me. Go and take care of your own business. It's rare to find a young person who can come to the research lab every few days." He was just an academic and had no interest in getting involved in the feuds between powerful families. Besides, Su Wanshan had a public office, and it was enough that she had this intention.

Su Wanshan respectfully bid farewell to the old man, walked through the corridor, pressed the elevator button, closed her eyes for half a minute to relieve the soreness, and lit up the screen, which contained an unread message from Su Changqing.

As she scrolled down the title, the man's frown deepened, his slender, willow-leaf eyebrows almost bulging together. After a while, Su Wanshan rubbed her temples, the pulsation of her veins seemingly penetrating her skin and reaching her fingertips.

Chaoyang Hospital... Su Wanxi...

Although he didn't know how other siblings got along, Su Wanshan felt that his sister was a completely different person before and after high school. Before, she would follow him around calling him "brother this" and her voice was sweet and soft. Now, whenever they met, she would talk about work and would cause a lot of trouble.

Who told him to be her brother? Despite her worries, Su Wanshan still wanted to be the first to arrive when he was injured.

As the man entered the hospital lobby, he glanced at his watch before being jostled by the crowd towards the elevator, his neatly tailored suit instantly becoming wrinkled in several places. He had already texted Su Wanxi back at the research institute, but she hadn't replied yet.

"Are you asleep?" Su Wanshan wondered, watching the elevator descend floor by floor. Everyone around her was carrying fruits or gift boxes, but she had nothing but her purse in her hands.

"Should we buy a fruit basket?" Su Wanshan thought for a moment, then squeezed out of the crowd again.

On the other side, in order not to disturb Gu Cheng's rest, Su Wanxi put her phone on silent and waited until the girl fell asleep before she saw the message from her brother.

The information displayed on the screen was from half an hour ago, so she figured it should arrive soon. Su Wanxi typed the specific floor and door number in the chat bar and added a smiling emoticon at the end.

The other party's reply was very brief, consisting of only a flat "hmm," and less than two minutes later, Su Wanxi heard someone knocking on the door.

The woman stood up, her steps light, and gently turned the doorknob, her slender fingers pressed against her lips.

Shh, she's sleeping.

Su Wanshan looked at Su Wanxi, who was tiptoeing in front of her, and then glanced at the tightly closed nursing room. She almost lost control of her expression.

"Is that Miss Gu in the hospital room?"

Su Wanxi nodded, her index finger, which was pressed against her lips, moved slightly upward to brush a strand of dark hair that had fallen across her forehead behind her head, her watery eyes revealing her exhaustion.

Su Wanshan, as her older brother, felt a little jealous that she was so nervous before even getting married, and he was reluctant to even hand her a fruit basket.

"Have you checked him over? Is he injured?"

Looking at her younger sister's listless face and her tattered clothes, a far cry from her usual glamorous appearance, Su Wanshan's anger dissipated by more than half, leaving only pity.

"I'm not injured, but Chengzi broke a rib and cut her thigh." Su Wanxi pursed her lips, the two cherry blossom petals looking pale.

"I'll have the housekeeper bring over a clean set of clothes later." Relieved that she wasn't injured, Su Wanshan finally breathed a sigh of relief, her heart finally at ease.

"Su Wanxi, change your clothes and come with me."

Su Wanxi hadn't heard her brother call her by her full name in a long time, and her gaze was slightly surprised before she quickly hummed in agreement.

......

After Su Wanxi changed her clothes, Su Wanshan had been sitting in the lounge for a while. When he saw the woman come in, he put down his phone and sat up straight.

This is a private lounge provided by the hospital, so there's no need to worry about outsiders overhearing your conversation. Su Wanxi leaned back in the armchair, her legs gently crossed. She had changed into an apricot-colored trench coat over a pure white blouse, and every move she made exuded a natural, noble, and aloof elegance.

"A-Shan, what happened?"

Su Wanxi asked in a soft voice, her tone unusually serious.

Looking at the face that bore a resemblance to her own, Su Wanshan gently moved her lips, her brows furrowed.

"I heard Dr. Yan say that post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) usually takes several years to heal, and the relapse rate remains high..."

Do you know what you've been doing lately?

Shootings and death—Su Wanxi not only didn't avoid these things, but actively sought them out. Su Wanshan's first reaction upon receiving the news was worry, followed by anger; she simply didn't value her own life.

"I know."

To the man's surprise, Su Wanxi showed no remorse whatsoever. This nonchalant attitude caused Su Wanshan's anger, which should have been extinguished, to flare up again. She took a deep breath, and veins on her head bulged slightly.

"Do you know who told me this?"

Su Wanxi tentatively asked, "Uncle Su?"

"Su Changqing".

Su Wanshan emphasized these three words, her handsome face devoid of any gentleness.

"..."

The air in the lounge seemed to freeze for a moment. Su Wanxi bent over, her fingers lightly tapping her knee, her upturned eyelashes seemingly sparkling with light.

“From the time you resigned as vice president to the time Miss Gu moved into the apartment, Father knows everything clearly. Some things don’t even need to be investigated. As long as you are a powerful figure in Kyoto, who doesn’t know that Miss Su is keeping a mistress?”

"But he did nothing. This is the opportunity you should be considering most, and the one you are most likely to seize: bring Gu Cheng home and try to get your father to accept her."

"And what happened? Not only did you not confess, you even went to someone's house in the middle of the night with a gun and killed someone..."

Su Wanshan scolded Su Wanxi with exasperation, while the latter listened silently without saying a word.

"Coming to see you was both my wish and his ultimatum."

Chapter 288, Section 293: Coaxing her to meet the parents

This is Su Wanxi's first time experiencing love. Unlike the descriptions in novels or TV dramas, she and Gu Cheng have never gotten angry over trivial matters in life. On the one hand, the latter has a gentle and kind personality, and on the other hand, their ample material conditions allow them to put more effort into cultivating their love.

Over time, Su Wanxi could only see the sweetest part of love: a creamy cake that leaves a lingering fragrance on the lips and teeth, rather than the slightly sour fruit slices decorated with cream around the edges.

Su Wanshan's words struck the woman's heart like a hammer. One by one, the questions that Su Wanxi had deliberately downplayed surfaced. She didn't know how to respond, or rather, these questions were simply unanswerable.

Su Wanshan is right. Love based solely on reckless courage is unlikely to last. Su Wanxi may not care about the opinions of strangers, but she still hopes that her love can be blessed by her friends and family.

Seeing her younger sister's listless state, Su Wanshan swallowed a few times and finally softened her tone.

“Xiao Xi, I don’t want to force you to make a decision, but if you keep trying to run away, it will only give your father a reason to take his anger out on her.”

Su Changqing was grooming Su Wanshan to be his successor, and the latter knew his temperament all too well. Now that Su Wanxi had put herself in danger, in the eyes of men, her companions already carried an inescapable responsibility.

"I...want to wait until everything is over..."

Su Wanxi's eyelashes trembled slightly, and her voice grew lower. She couldn't figure out Su Changqing's attitude, and she was even more worried about letting Gu Cheng face Lin Shusheng alone. Su Wanshan's words made sense, but they weren't entirely applicable.

“What happened tonight was not an accident. Lin Shusheng killed an elder who was very important to both me and Gu Cheng. Even if it weren’t for her, I had to go to that villa.” Su Wanxi looked up and met her brother’s gaze. Her usually cold face showed a hint of weariness.

"You shouldn't have said that to me."

Su Wanshan frowned and said coldly, his actions and tone exactly the same as Su Changqing's. Su Wanxi subconsciously glanced at him a few more times, her lips pressed into a straight line.

"Then who should I go with? Him?"

Su Wanshan straightened up, her eyes blazing.

"Go talk to your father. I bet he has a lot to say to you. If you think the atmosphere is too tense, you can ask me to break it up..."

Su Wanxi did not respond after hearing this, but turned her face slightly to the right to reveal her smooth and fair swan neck.

"It's been almost ten years. Are you planning to give him the cold shoulder for the rest of your life?"

"..."

After all, they were father and daughter, and their stubbornness seemed to be etched into their bones. Just as Su Wanshan was about to say a few more words, Su Wanxi suddenly released her hands from her knees, leaned forward, and let her ink-black hair fall over her shoulders.

"A-Shan, I understand what you mean."

"In the next few days, once Gu Cheng is feeling a little better, I will take her to see Su Changqing."

Meeting doesn't equate to understanding. Su Changqing was not a good husband, but as a father, he did almost everything he should have done: long-term companionship and a superior environment. Su Wanxi's feelings about being away from Beidu for a long time were far less profound than Su Wanshan's, which is why the two siblings treated their father in such different ways.

Hearing her sister agree, Su Wanshan was overwhelmed with emotion, and all the frustration she had accumulated from her daily work vanished.

"No matter the outcome, it's never a bad thing to try."

Su Wanxi nodded in agreement with the man's opinion, and the tense atmosphere in the lounge finally eased. The two chatted about everyday things. Su Wanshan was destined to be busy, and she received three or four phone calls in less than half an hour.

"I'll be going now. Call me if you need anything."

Busy with official duties, it was already the limit for Su Wanshan to be able to come over. He picked up his purse and said goodbye to Su Wanxi, who chuckled and handed him a small item wrapped in a tissue.

"It's been washed, so you can eat it directly."

Su Wanshan touched it; it was about the size of a palm. Her throat tightened.

"...Having a girlfriend has definitely helped me grow; I've even learned to take care of people."

"Taking care isn't a one-sided process..."

Su Wanxi reached out to straighten Su Wanshan's bow tie, her tone flat: "I've been putting you in the middle, putting you in a difficult position. I'm such a bad sister. Thank you, brother."

This younger sister is truly well-loved. Su Wanshan's facial muscles twitched a few times, her eyes stung slightly, and she tried her best to hide her emotions.

"Xiao Xi..."

"You don't need to pay for the apples; they were taken from the fruit basket."

Su Wanxi left the lounge in a hurry after saying a few words, leaving Su Wanshan standing there alone, feeling moved. After a moment, the man smiled and stuffed the apple into his bag.

Why make things so emotional between siblings?

......

After seeing her brother off, Su Wanxi returned to the ward. Gu Cheng heard the noise and looked towards the door with sleepy eyes.

"Su Wanwan?"

"Well, I'm here."

Su Wanxi placed the cut fruit on the bedside table and turned to sit next to the girl.

"Are you awake?"

She was awake, but not fully awake. The brace was digging into her back and making her feel uncomfortable. Gu Cheng groggily turned over, her messy hair sticking to her cheeks.

She looks like she's sweating a lot. Could she have a fever?

Su Wanxi reached out and placed her hand on her forehead. After a brief pause, she lifted Gu Cheng's short bangs. Unable to feel any temperature difference, and worried that the measurement might be inaccurate, the woman leaned down and gently touched her forehead to hers.

Gu Cheng felt something against her face. When she opened her eyes, she saw a dark shadow and instinctively looked up.

"Bang!" It crashed straight into it.

Gu Cheng: "......"

Su Wanxi: "..."