The moment Shen Yi learned that something had happened to Rong Qian, he made his way to Qiao Juncheng’s clinic as fast as he possibly could.

Qiao Juncheng saw Shen Yi coming and had just started toward him, ready to explain — only to be shoved aside by Shen Yi, whose expression was drawn tight and ashen.

Shen Yi moved at a rapid pace. With those long legs of his, once he picked up his stride, even Xu Mo trailing behind him had to break into a run every few steps just to keep up.

Shen Yi went straight to Rong Qian’s room.

The moment he pushed the door open, he saw Rong Qian — in her patient’s gown, legs crossed, sitting in a gloriously unrestrained posture on the hospital bed, munching on an apple, watching television, and laughing out loud at whatever was on the screen.

She caught a glimpse of him out of the corner of her eye, and waved cheerfully as he came in. “Shen Yi, you’re here—”

But the words hadn’t even finished leaving her mouth before Shen Yi had pulled her into a tight embrace — so tight it felt like someone who had regained something thought to be lost forever.

Shen Yi had truly been terrified nearly to death by her.

Only now, seeing her safe and unharmed with his own eyes, did his heart — which had been clenched with dread the entire way here — finally ease its grip.

He had been genuinely panicked, genuinely afraid.

Rong Qian was his fatal vulnerability. Even if she scratched a single finger, he would spend days aching over it.

To say nothing of what he had heard — that Rong Qian had been attacked at the hotel and taken to the clinic.

When those words reached him, there had been only one thought in Shen Yi’s head: Rong Qian was in danger.

“Did you think something had happened to me?” Rong Qian said with a smile, seeing how flustered he was. “Have you forgotten what I do? The skills I’ve trained — they didn’t come from nowhere.”

Shen Yi closed his eyes, let out a long, slow breath. “The moment I heard you’d been taken to the clinic, I couldn’t keep my head.”

“That must be because Qiao Juncheng didn’t explain things clearly when he called you. Sheng Wanqing and Ke Wenguang were both brought in too — neither of them is in any real danger. The sedative just hasn’t worn off yet, so they’re still asleep.” Rong Qian patted him on the back, soothing him.

Xu Mo, standing in the doorway of the room, saw the two of them still holding each other — and gave a couple of performative coughs. “Ahem. Ahem.”

“Right — shouldn’t you be asking Miss Rong what actually happened just now, boss?” Xu Mo had no desire to interrupt them, but someone had to get things moving.

Shen Yi was in no great rush to ask. He smoothed Rong Qian’s hair back, held her gaze for a long moment, and then finally asked: “A’Qian — what happened?”

Rong Qian told Shen Yi everything — about Sheng Wanqing coming to take her to meet Ke Wenguang.

At the time, after Sheng Wanqing and Ke Wenguang had each collapsed in succession, Rong Qian had realized the water had been drugged. To keep herself from losing consciousness, she had used a certain method. After that, she had feigned unconsciousness herself.

Not long after, she heard the door open. Several men walked in, pushing an empty housekeeping trolley. It was obvious from their setup that they intended to load the three of them into the trolley and wheel them out.

Rong Qian didn’t let them get that far.

The instant one of the men walked over and bent down to lift her — Rong Qian hooked her arm around his neck, then drove her knee hard into his jaw with a sharp, forceful thrust.

That single blow sent the man crashing down with a mouthful of blood. Rong Qian released her grip, and he crumpled to the floor.

The others, seeing that she was awake, naturally converged on her, intending to overpower her by sheer force. The outcome was, predictably, that Rong Qian disposed of all of them.

After that, she called the police and put in a call to Qiao Juncheng.

“That’s basically all of it. As for finding out who ordered the attack — we’ll need to check with the police station.” Rong Qian recounted all of this in a light, casual tone.

Xu Mo, for his part, was utterly dumbfounded. A slight, slender young woman — single-handedly taking on multiple large, physically imposing men? And winning?

He had nothing but profound admiration for Rong Qian.

Shen Yi’s brow, however, was drawn into a tight furrow. He had latched onto one specific detail. “A’Qian — you said you drank the water that had been laced with a sedative. How did you manage to stay conscious?”

“Well, about that.” Rong Qian had known he would ask, but owning up to it still made her a little evasive, and she offered her answer in a somewhat vague, roundabout way: “Scientific research has established that the human brain’s response to tissue damage in certain parts of the body — or to stimuli that threaten to cause such damage — generates an unpleasant subjective sensation that can effectively counteract drowsiness and help with staying alert.”

“What does that mean?” Xu Mo couldn’t make heads or tails of it.

Shen Yi drew a slow, controlled breath. His expression had already darkened. He said two words: “Pain.”

“Correct — you’re incredibly clever!” Rong Qian applauded him.

Shen Yi looked at her without expression. “Where?”

“My arm…” Rong Qian obediently lifted her arm.

The sleeve of the patient’s gown was wide and loose. When Shen Yi pushed it back, he saw her arm wrapped in gauze. Shen Yi’s pupils contracted sharply. Rong Qian, anticipating that he was going to be angry, rushed to explain: “This is not self-harm — this is self-preservation! Really — it was very practical.”

“A’Qian — I’m not blaming you.” Shen Yi let the sleeve fall back into place. He stood up and said to her: “You rest for a while. I need to go somewhere.”

With that, Shen Yi turned and walked out, leaving Xu Mo and Rong Qian alone, staring at each other in silence.

Rong Qian gave Xu Mo a nudge. “What are you still standing there for? Go after him!”

“Oh — right!” Xu Mo snapped back to reality and hurried to catch up with Shen Yi.

Rong Qian sighed, set down the half-eaten apple on the side table, and thought to herself: she had hoped to keep it under wraps, but he had found out anyway.

Qiao Juncheng, having failed to intercept Shen Yi earlier, made absolutely certain to stop him this time as he emerged from Rong Qian’s room.

Fortunately, this time Shen Yi was willing to halt and hear him out.

Qiao Juncheng told him: “I’ve already looked into things with the police. Those men were after Ke Wenguang specifically — they have nothing to do with Miss Rong or Secretary Sheng. The two of them were just collateral victims.”

“Has it been fully confirmed?” Shen Yi’s voice carried not a trace of warmth.

Qiao Juncheng wasn’t entirely sure what he meant by that question, but answered regardless: “The police said so directly, so yes — it’s confirmed. Those men attempted a kidnapping, got beaten up for their trouble, and the authorities will probably hold them for a while before releasing them.”

Shen Yi understood. He nodded, and then gave Xu Mo his instruction: “Go and get them bailed out.”

“Yes, sure— wait, what?” Xu Mo had already answered before it registered. What did he mean, get them bailed out?

Shen Yi’s mouth curved into the faintest smile. “Didn’t you understand? Bail them out.”

“And — and then what?” Xu Mo had absolutely no idea what he was planning.

Shen Yi glanced down at his own long, slender fingers. He said, in a tone of complete and unhurried ease: “And then — tie them up.”

Shen Yi said it as casually as if he were commenting on the weather. Xu Mo and Qiao Juncheng both held their breath in stunned silence. On their own, the words “tie them up” didn’t sound particularly frightening.

What was frightening was what might come after.

It was clear: this time, Shen Yi was genuinely, deeply angry.