Xia Chen supported his forehead with one hand. Prolonged fatigue and lingering tension had long since worn him out completely.
An hour before sunrise, he finally could not hold on any longer and drifted into a light sleep.
Shi Yao gazed at Xia Chen's handsome profile. Biting her lip, she instinctively reached out to touch him, but the wide movement pulled at the IV needle in her hand, causing the young girl to wince and shrink her neck.
"Ow, that hurts. Am I dreaming, or did I not die after all?"
Just as Shi Yao was pondering whether she was dead or alive, Xia Chen, sitting in the chair, seemed to sense something.
His handsome eyebrows twitched slightly, followed by a lazy stretch as he gradually woke from his sleep.
Seeing that Xia Chen had woken up, Shi Yao didn't have time to think. She hurriedly closed her eyes, terrified that if he saw she was awake, he would abandon her.
"Brother Xia Chen, please, stay a little longer, won't you? I'm not greedy. I just wish that every day from now on, I could look at you from afar like I did today, and that would be enough."
The young girl feigned sleep while letting her imagination run wild in her mind, completely unaware of the bandage wrapped around her head.
Upon waking, Xia Chen's first priority was to check on the young girl's condition. Only after seeing that her body showed no abnormalities did he finally let out a sigh of relief.
He had just reached out to brush a stray lock of hair from Shi Yao's face when the phone in his pocket rang at the most inopportune moment.
Interrupted, Xia Chen frowned in irritation. He took out his phone, and seeing that the call was from Qi Tong, he managed to suppress the annoyance in his heart.
Qi Tong was the director of the Jiangxia City Public Security Bureau and an old classmate of Xia Chen's father, Xia Zhiyuan. Xia Chen had personally taken the initiative to call and ask for his help this time, solely hoping to put that scum Shi Jing away.
Xia Chen quietly left the ward and went to the hospital rooftop to answer the call.
"Little Chen, you've really caused Uncle a big trouble this time!" As soon as the call connected, Qi Tong's heavy sigh came through the phone.
Xia Chen frowned and said in a deep voice, "Uncle Qi, wasn't that an act of legitimate self-defense?"
Qi Tong took a sip of tea and spoke in an elder's lecturing tone:
"The man you beat is practically in a vegetative state. Self-defense isn't practiced quite like that."
A faint sense of unease stirred in Xia Chen's heart. If the man really had been beaten into a vegetative state, his actions could very well be classified as excessive self-defense.
"Uncle Qi, are you telling me that after I finally did a good deed, not only am I getting no commendation, but I'm actually turning into a murderer instead?" Xia Chen decided to adopt a defensive retreat, replying in a joking tone.
He simply refused to believe it. He had finally done a righteous deed to help others, and instead of a reward, he was going to suffer an undeserved disaster?
Qi Tong was momentarily stunned. He hadn't expected Xia Chen to be able to joke around with him so leisurely under these circumstances.
He chuckled. "How could that be? According to our investigation, that criminal didn't just commit domestic violence; there's a whole series of illegal activities like gambling and soliciting prostitutes. So, you could say your boy performed a righteous act of bravery."
Learning that the other was joking, Xia Chen breathed a sigh of relief, but he still replied smoothly: "I knew Uncle Qi was a righteous policeman who can tell right from wrong and would never wrong a humble ordinary citizen like me. How about this, I'll treat you to a meal another day."
When asking someone for a favor, once it's done, the petitioner always has to show a proper attitude. Having spent two years knocking about in society, Xia Chen knew this principle all too well, even though his relationship with Qi Tong was quite close.
Seeing how meticulous Xia Chen's thoughts were, Qi Tong wore a look of emotional reflection, thinking to himself: "This child really has grown up."
His original intention in using Shi Jing's case to intimidate Xia Chen was to beat him to the punch and remind him not to act too impulsively, lest he be exploited by others.
To his surprise, however, after this exchange, he found that Xia Chen's mental composure was remarkably high, which finally set Qi Tong's mind at ease.
"Alright, stop running your mouth. Though the meal is still on, consider it hush money so I don't tell your dad." Qi Tong stroked his beard, guessing what Xia Chen wanted to say next.
"As expected of Uncle Qi." Seeing how well the other understood him, Xia Chen couldn't help but give him a mental thumbs-up.
"You got it, Uncle Qi. I'll definitely put together a full Manchu-Han imperial feast for you. Just wait in your office for the good news."When Xia Chen said that, he still felt a bit guilty. After all, with his current salary, let alone a full Manchu-Han banquet, even eating at a street food stall would be a struggle. But that was only for now; who could predict what the future might hold?
Afterwards, the two of them chatted casually about family matters. Halfway through, when Qi Tong asked about Shi Yao's custody, Xia Chen brushed it off by saying the little girl had been picked up by her distant cousin.
After hanging up the phone, Qi Tong chuckled to himself. "Who would've thought? Xia Chen really has a strong sense of responsibility. Given time, he'll definitely become a role model for the youth of the new era."
Inside the hospital room, Shi Yao's big doe eyes were wide open as she stared blankly at the ceiling, her clear eyes filled with sorrow.
"Xia Chen has been gone for thirty minutes and seven seconds... no, it must be eight seconds now." The girl let out a self-deprecating laugh, her smile both bitter and helpless.
Just as Shi Yao began to feel a sense of emptiness inside, the ward door was suddenly pushed open by Xia Chen, who had finished his phone call.
Seeing this, the little girl was startled into a panic and could only lie back down to pretend to be asleep. Only this time, she wasn't as lucky as before—every movement the young girl made had been completely taken in by Xia Chen as he walked through the door.
He walked over to the little girl pretending to be asleep and, choosing not to expose her right away, playfully reached out and pinched her cheeks.
"Ouch, so Xia Chen likes pinching my face. I'll definitely have to take good care of it from now on."
Seeing her little face being squeezed this way and that like a piece of dough, Shi Yao wasn't angry at all; instead, she felt a secret thrill in her heart.
Xia Chen hadn't expected Shi Yao to have such endurance, but he didn't want to keep teasing this silly girl any longer because he had something very important to ask her in person.
"Shi Yao, wake up. It's time for breakfast." Xia Chen stopped what he was doing, reached out to gently shake the girl's shoulder, and said softly.
Hearing Xia Chen's call, Shi Yao on the bed really wanted to continue pretending to sleep. But as the saying goes, people are greedy, and she was no exception; she now desperately wanted to open her eyes and look at Xia Chen openly and honestly, plus her stomach was indeed a little hungry.
With that thought, Shi Yao let out a couple of sleepy murmurs, then rubbed her eyes, putting on the appearance of just waking up.
"No way, since when is this girl such a good actress?"
Xia Chen narrowed his eyes, starting to wonder if he had misseen things when he first walked through the door.
When Shi Yao fully opened her eyes and saw that the man wasn't holding any breakfast in his hands, she finally realized she had been tricked. Still, the girl forced her composure and squeezed a sweet smile onto her face. "Xia Chen."
Though Shi Yao's tone was calm, her tightly clenched hands betrayed her current state.
"Yeah." Xia Chen touched her forehead and asked, "Is there anywhere that feels uncomfortable?"
"No, none," Shi Yao said through clenched teeth.
Sensing how nervous the girl was, Xia Chen patted Shi Yao's back and apologized, "I'm sorry. I didn't realize it in time and let you suffer such a huge grievance."
The man's gentle voice pierced into Shi Yao's chest like a sharp blade. She could no longer hold it in, and burying her face in Xia Chen's arms, she burst into loud sobs.
"Xia Chen, don't say that. I was destined from birth to be beaten to death by my brother. My dad hates me, my mom doesn't care about me, and the older neighbor sister who used to care about me has vanished too. You're the only one who cares about me and cherishes me. I'm not wronged—Shi Yao is so happy, so happy, even if I died right now, I'd be so happy."
The girl's tears streamed down her fair, smooth cheeks like an endless river.
Looking at the sobbing little girl in his arms, Xia Chen reached out to comfort her, but his hand stopped mid-air. The purpose of his visit this time was to ask if Shi Yao had any other family members.
Yet looking at it now, aside from Shi Yao, her entire family really did seem to have some rather perverted traits.
"Alright, there, there, Shi Yao, don't cry. Look, I'm here to care about you, aren't I? So you aren't alone."
Xia Chen cupped her little face with both hands, wiping away the tears under the corners of her eyes as he spoke.
Comforted, Shi Yao slowly raised her head. Deep within her eyes, the tears were like a pool of water in spring, completely spotless.
The little girl sniffled, lifted her chin, and with a courage that seemed to muster all her strength, she said to Xia Chen, "Xia Chen, can you take me away?"