Chapter 26

Chapter 26

"026"

Sensen Mental Hospital.

In the most secluded ward on the first floor, the window's steel bars had been reinforced again, welded even more tightly. Almost no light could enter the room anymore, and the unventilated space reeked of medicine.

A doctor leaned close to whisper a few words to the man, while the rest of the medical staff silently packed up their supplies. Soon, the group filed out of the ward in silence.

The clear glass door slid shut silently.

The ward's door had also been replaced with fully transparent blast-proof glass.

Across from it, on the white wall, a new surveillance camera had been installed, pointed straight at the mattress. Its red light, like an eagle's eye, silently tracked the man's movements.

The man walked over to the mattress and looked down at Lu Ao, both hands in plaster casts. "Who took you out?"

Lu Ao leaned against the wall, eyes down, staring at the snow-white casts, unmoved by Lu Qing's question.

Lu Qing—this body's father—had the same face as Emperor Licheng of Da Li, the third emperor he'd personally poisoned. But Lu Ao didn't care.

His connection to Emperor Licheng had ended the moment the man died. All he cared about now was whether Xiao Lancui had eaten on time tonight.

Xiao Lancui had a weak stomach and never ate on time.

And whether the modern food was to his liking.

Xiao Lancui wasn't picky, but he wasn't completely without preferences either.

How long should he wait before seeing him again?

Lu Ao's restlessness grew, and his arms—already fractured from his own violent actions—began to tremble with his surging emotions.

Lu Qing frowned and raised his voice. "Lu Ao! Answer me."

Lu Qing's voice interrupted Lu Ao's thoughts of Xiao Lancui. Finally, he looked up at Lu Qing.

Lu Qing was caught off guard by that gaze and felt a jolt at the cold cruelty in it.

His youngest son felt like a stranger to him.

Maybe it was because of the bandages—only the eyes were visible—Lu Qing thought, regaining his composure. His face darkened, and he asked again, "I'm asking you—who took you out?"

Lu Ao's escape from the mental hospital had shaken Lu Qing badly. Though he paid no attention to Lu Ao, he knew everything about him.

As Lu Ao got older, that family seemed to be getting restless again.

Or perhaps it was his rivals.

What were they after by rescuing Lu Ao?

Why deliberately injure both his arms?

To expose him and create a scandal?

This was his rise, and a critical time in his fight with rivals for position.

Lu Qing stared hard at Lu Ao, trying to intimidate him into confessing.

Lu Ao just found it too noisy.

In the few memories left in this body, he'd lived alone in a small villa far from the main house, never seeing outsiders and rarely seeing Lu Qing.

On his eighteenth birthday, the villa caught fire for no reason, and he died in the flames.

A dull, insignificant, and powerless life.

If not for Lu Siye, he would never have come back.

Lu Siye—this body's half-brother—was in the same university and major as the current Xiao Lancui. They were classmates.

He could use this identity to get close to Xiao Lancui.

Other than that, he was useless.

Including this so-called father in front of him.

Lu Ao spoke. "Scram."

The movement pulled at the hidden threads in his face, distorting his voice, but Lu Qing didn't notice. He was shocked by Lu Ao's words and frowned. "What did you say?"

Lu Ao never repeated himself—except for Xiao Lancui. But today he was in a good mood, so he was unusually generous. "Scram."

Lu Qing took a deep breath, suppressing the urge to hit him. He stopped looking at Lu Ao, turned, and left.

The room finally went silent. The red eagle-eye on the wall stopped moving, locked on Lu Ao.

Lu Ao got off the bed and walked under the camera. With his height advantage, he raised his less injured left hand and ripped the camera off with five fingers, throwing it to the ground.

The movement wasn't violent, but it still pulled at the fractures in his forearm—especially in his badly injured right arm. Agonizing pain shot through his body. Lu Ao was ruthless—and he showed himself no mercy either.

The hand that had nearly crushed Xiao Lancui's neck—he used it with even more force.

Expressionless, Lu Ao went back to bed. Within two minutes, several fully armed bodyguards ran up to the glass door.

They nervously checked the room, and seeing Lu Ao was still there, they visibly relaxed. They pulled out their phones to make calls but didn't dare enter.

A fully conscious Lu Ao was terrifying.

They knew this from experience.

The blast-proof glass was well soundproofed, so the bodyguards' voices outside were barely audible.

Lu Ao didn't care that they were watching. He took out his phone—there'd been a missed call a few minutes ago.

Zhou Sizhe.

Two seconds later, Zhou Sizhe's excited voice came through. "I just got it—the thing you sent over is—"

"Emperor Li Yingzong's personal sword," Lu Ao said. "I want fifty million. If it's short, you cover the difference; if it's more, it's yours. I'll send you the account number later, and you transfer directly. And no third person can ever know about our cooperation—otherwise, there won't be a next time."

His teacher was brilliant—any trace of evidence would give him away. He had to be extremely careful.

When he said "no next time," he didn't mean no next transaction—he meant no next time for Zhou Sizhe.

Zhou Sizhe naturally didn't know that, still caught up in his excitement. "No problem. But this item of yours is too precious—I need an expert to appraise it. Can I get back to you in five days?"

"Mm." Lu Ao ended the call.

Lu Ao hadn't slept a wink in two days. Now, at last, sleepiness finally hit him. He lay down, just about to drift off, when he felt something odd on the left side of his neck.

He sat up and shoved the covers aside. Under the light, it was a tin medicine box.

Lu Ao glanced over the box.

It was a box of topical ointment.

Probably dropped by the medics earlier. Lu Ao coldly flicked it onto the floor. The tin box rolled twice and came to a stop.

Lu Ao lay back down and closed his eyes, a faint smile escaping him. "Teacher, we'll meet soon."

*

At the Xiao villa, Xiao Lancui pushed open the door.

He hadn't headed straight to Senshan Psychiatric Hospital. The odds that the Lu family's youngest son was Lu Ao had dropped even further.

If it were Lu Ao, those four wouldn't have tied him up and tossed him in the icehouse. It wouldn't have even gotten to that—Lu Ao would've slit his throat or snapped his neck with one hand.

Lu Ao killed fast and clean, which is why he'd made a name for himself within months of joining the army.

His first big kill was twisting off an enemy general's head mid-charge on horseback.

Still, even if the odds were low, as long as they weren't zero, it could still be Lu Ao. After he found out who was behind the kidnapping, he'd make a trip to Senshan.

He took off his scarf, swapped his shoes, and headed inside. As he passed through the living room, he suddenly heard Xie Jingfang laughing.

And Lu Siye's voice.

Even though Lu Siye had called dozens of times with no answer, Xiao Lancui knew Lu Siye and Xiao Anfeng had already gotten intimate—no more need to use his name as an excuse to see Xiao Anfeng. So he naturally headed upstairs.

Not his business.

Just as he passed the living room, Lu Siye trailed after him like a ghost. "A Lan. Why the glasses?"

Then he laughed. "Has anyone ever told you? Glasses make you look like someone worth committing a crime for."

Xiao Lancui kept walking, replying flatly, "You lost the bet."

Lu Siye's expression flickered, then quickly returned to an easy smile as he followed Xiao Lancui upstairs. "Not that easy." He sighed softly. "A Lan, you have no idea how much I used to like you—and now even more so—"

He stared at the sliver of pale neck ahead, his smile turning sly. "I like you more and more."

Xiao Lancui stopped short. Lu Siye nearly ran into his back, catching himself just in time, but his nose still caught a faint whiff of—

Ink?

Lu Siye wasn't quite sure.

Just then, Xiao Lancui turned. Even though he was only one step higher, and Lu Siye was even slightly taller, Lu Siye still felt like he was being looked down on from a great height.

"Is that so." Xiao Lancui's expression was indifferent. "Being liked by you is disgusting. You should just call it off."

Lu Siye wasn't surprised anymore. The amnesiac Xiao Lancui was exactly this arrogant—perfect. He loved proud beauties.

His smile didn't waver. "Is that so? Too bad. I'm used to being disgusting. You can keep feeling grossed out—there's no canceling it."

Suddenly, his smile died.

Xiao Lancui leaned in slightly and whispered in his ear, "You really are used to being disgusting—like the spit you left on Xiao Anfeng."

This time, Lu Siye was sure.

It was ink. Xiao Lancui smelled like ink.

At the same time, his smile disappeared.

Xiao Anfeng had told Xiao Lancui about them hooking up!

Xiao Lancui went upstairs, and this time Lu Siye didn't follow. He went to his room, read and studied as usual, showered half an hour early, soaked for ten minutes, and was in bed by midnight on the dot.

As always, he left the bedside lamp on. Just as he was about to drift off, his phone buzzed.

Xiao Lancui grabbed his phone—a text from Zhou Sizhe.

"Sorry for the late message—it's urgent. I have a sword I need you to appraise. Sending a photo for now; details when you come to the auction house in five days. If you can make it, the fee is 500,000."

Xiao Lancui swiped to the attached photo and shot upright.

Lu Ao's personal sword!

Lu Ao had taken plenty of fine swords on the battlefield, but the one he always wore was a plain iron sword with a black diamond pattern on the blade.

It was the first sword Xiao Lancui had ever given Lu Ao for protection.

Later, when Lu Ao took the throne and wore it at every important occasion, some suggested recasting the sword, decorating it with jade and jewels to reflect the emperor's majesty.

Lu Ao just smiled. "Do you all think my dignity needs a few jade and jewels to prove it?"

The ministers all knelt. "We wouldn't dare!"

Back then, Lu Ao wasn't yet the tyrant who killed a thousand people a day. He smiled. "This sword is the most precious gift my teacher gave me. Don't bring it up again. Rise."

Xiao Lancui found out about this later and had gotten used to it.

Whatever he gave Lu Ao, Lu Ao always kept it in perfect shape.

Once, he'd accidentally found a small box Lu Ao kept, holding the comb he'd used to brush Lu Ao's hair, the first brush he'd given him, the first book, the *Three Character Classic*...

Xiao Lancui zoomed in on the photo, examining the iron sword.

It looked exactly as he remembered—even exceptionally well-preserved, with no signs of wear.

But from a single photo, Xiao Lancui couldn't be sure.

He texted Zhou Sizhe back, "Fine."

That night, Xiao Lancui slept badly again. He woke with a jolt to find faint light outside—dawn had broken.

Only then did he realize that whether it was the old sword from last night or the newness of wearing glasses, he'd forgotten to take them off and had slept in them all night.

When Xiao Lancui came downstairs, Xiao Mian had already eaten. It was too early for anyone else, yet Xiao Mian still kept his cold distance from Xiao Lancui. As Xiao Lancui entered the dining room, Xiao Mian snorted, dropped his chopsticks, and stormed off.

Xiao Lancui was in no rush. He chewed slowly, finished his medicine, popped a hawthorn candy to freshen his mouth, and only then headed out to meet Xiao Mian.

It was colder today. Xiao Mian's face had gone numb from waiting outside, but the moment Xiao Lancui arrived, he perked right up, sprinting over with a big grin. "Where do we start?"

Xiao Lancui was cold too. He coughed lightly, pulled his scarf up to his nose, and said slowly.

"Wu Damin's clinic."