Chapter 5

Chapter 5

"005"

Xiao Lancui once again faced that suffocating pain. The bag of preserved plums slipped from his fingers. He thrashed and struggled, but it was useless—the person strangling him didn't budge an inch.

Why was this person trying to kill him? From the force of it, they were dead set on ending his life. He couldn't even manage a cry for help.

As his consciousness faded, Xiao Lancui quickly ran through the list of people who might have put a hit out on him.

He dismissed that in an instant.

No—he could feel nothing but pure fury and murderous intent from this person. Those people wouldn't come after him themselves.

On the edge of death, Xiao Lancui made a call: this person could easily hoist him off the ground with one hand and stood around 190 cm. He finally managed to raise his left hand—if he could just hit this guy in the eyes, he might still get away. Just then, a scream came barreling toward them.

Two figures came running over. Xiao Lancui couldn't see them, only heard frantic voices: "Quick, pull him off—hard!"

"Can't budge him—someone, help, somebody come save us!"

Through the blur of motion, Xiao Lancui vaguely saw the person's body being yanked backward. His left hand missed too, grazing the person's exposed nose and mouth. And then, he finally saw his face.

His entire head was swathed in tight white gauze, leaving only one bloodshot right eye glaring at him with murderous intent. His upper body was being pulled back, but the hand around Xiao Lancui's neck didn't budge, growing even more vicious, as if it meant to snap his neck right then and there.

They couldn't pry him off at all. "Let him go—" The nurse's voice was already cracking with tears.

Suddenly, the grip around Xiao Lancui's neck let go without any warning. In his field of vision, that wall of white crashed backward. Xiao Lancui slid down the floor-to-ceiling window, instinctively shielding his neck as he finally coughed in deep, ragged gasps.

"Mr. Xiao, are you alright!" Someone rushed over to support him.

Xiao Lancui waved his hand. His gaze, clouded with tears, landed on the person lying right in front of him. The person had collapsed and was lying there motionless, wrapped in stark white from head to toe, except for his bare feet. He wasn't wearing shoes. The hallway was spotless, yet his feet still had a bit of dust on them.

Once Xiao Lancui stopped coughing, he turned to the nurse and asked, "What happened?"

After an incident like that, the nurse had gone pale as a ghost. She was trembling as she held Xiao Lancui up, stuttering as she spoke: "Mr. Xiao, he's a burn victim who's been in a coma. We don't know why he woke up early and came after you..."

Xiao Lancui's long lashes lowered slightly. A burn victim?

The youngest son of the Lu family—so he wasn't dead after all.

Another nurse nearby was on the phone, calling for someone to bring a gurney. The youngest son of the Lu family was startlingly thin, but his frame was tall and broad.

Xiao Lancui caught his breath, picked up the bag of preserved plums off the floor, and gave the nurse a gentle smile. "I'm fine. Let's just forget this happened."

The two nurses were equal parts shocked and relieved. If this got reported to their superiors, every nurse on duty today would get fired. The nurse holding Xiao Lancui up hesitated. "Are you really alright?"

Xiao Lancui gave a small hum of acknowledgment and used the nurse's support to stand. He glanced back—the night was heavy, the city was lit up, and every single snowflake in the thick snowfall was crystal clear.

It was an exceptionally heavy snow.

He turned back and said to the nurse, "Don't worry, I'm fine. Please have a jar of bruise ointment sent to my room when you're done."

Xiao Lancui stepped around the person on the floor and headed back to his room. His neck was stinging with pain. He walked to the mirror and saw two rings of deep purple-red marks clearly left on his slender neck.

Someone who was supposed to die had come back to life. Was it because him entering this book had caused a butterfly effect?

The butterfly effect was another modern theory Xiao Lancui had picked up recently—a tiny change could set off a chain reaction.

But why did the youngest son of the Lu family want to strangle him? More precisely, snap his neck.

Xiao Lancui recalled the original text word by word but found no mention of any interaction between the original body and the youngest son of the Lu family. It could only be in the blank spaces of the story.

The youngest son of the Lu family had survived a great disaster, yet the first thing he did upon waking was try to snap Xiao Lancui's neck in public—an act that could warrant the death penalty under modern law.

It was at the level of a blood feud.

Xiao Lancui frowned. The original body had been forced to become a "foster son" from birth, growing up dependent on others' goodwill, living with the insecurity of being under someone else's roof. He had developed an introverted, timid personality, even trying to please the servants of the Xiao family. How could he have offended the youngest son of another powerful family? Even if that son was an unfavored one.

Before long, the nurse delivered the ointment.

After the nurse applied the medicine, Xiao Lancui probed, "How is that person doing?"

The nurse showed a grateful expression. "Not clear yet. The doctor forcibly administered a sedative, and he's temporarily stabilized. Thank you so much. It was so sudden just now—Young Master Lu had just suffered severe trauma and suddenly woke up in an agitated state, running into you. Fortunately, you're not pressing charges, or else we would have—"

"It's not your fault." Xiao Lancui smiled. "It was an accident." He asked, "Is he staying on this floor?"

"Yes, not far from your room. Room 2106."

The nurse thanked him again and left.

Xiao Lancui's neck had been medicated, cool against the burning pain. He thought for a moment and temporarily set aside the matter of the youngest son of the Lu family.

It was highly possible that the youngest son of the Lu family, having suffered a fire and woken up in a state of terror, had attacked someone indiscriminately. At least for now, the original body's only connection to the Lu family was Lu Siye. His most urgent priority was to recover his health.

As for unrelated people, he would deal with them if they crossed paths again.

*

In the following days, Xiao Lancui received treatment for inflammation at the hospital. He spent his days in his room learning about modern knowledge and also learned about a person—a professor at City University who researched quantum mathematics and physics. That professor had been researching quantum tunneling devices for years but kept failing. In recent years, unable to secure funding, the project had been completely shelved.

He also tried many foods he had never seen before.

Both Chinese and Western cuisine. But his favorite remained the matcha milk pudding ice bread. He would go downstairs to buy one every day.

During this period, he never encountered the youngest son of the Lu family again. It seemed he had been transferred to another hospital.

The doctor approved his discharge a month later—on the first day of the new year, New Year's Day. Xiao Jingli and Xiao Anfeng came to pick him up and take him home.

Xiao Anfeng sat in the passenger seat, eyes lowered, unhappy, frequently glancing back at the back seat where Xiao Jingli was fussing over Xiao Lancui, which made him even more unhappy.

The only outsider in the car was the driver, who was also Xiao Jingli's trusted confidant. Xiao Jingli was still putting on a performance. Xiao Lancui knew why—according to the timeline, the relationship between Xiao Anfeng and Lu Siye was beginning to develop. A few days ago, on Christmas, Xiao Anfeng had stayed out all night for the first time, spending the night with Lu Siye on a small island.

The two hadn't done anything yet—they had been trapped on the same small island due to a series of mishaps. Unsurprisingly, there was only one room left on the island, forcing them to share it. One slept on the bed, the other on the sofa.

But Xiao Jingli was insanely jealous.

The more Xiao Anfeng grew to resemble his biological father, the more uncontrollable Xiao Jingli's feelings toward him became. He was now deliberately being kind to Xiao Lancui, observing Xiao Anfeng's reactions. The more dejected Xiao Anfeng became, the more lovingly Xiao Jingli performed.

There was another reason: Xiao Jingli knew Xiao Lancui might not live much longer.

The doctor had privately informed Xiao Jingli that there was a ninety percent chance Xiao Lancui's lungs would become fibrotic.

The car stopped in front of the Lu family villa. Xiao Jingli observed Xiao Anfeng and proposed an unprecedented suggestion.

"Lan Chui, Dad will carry you into the house today!" Xiao Jingli stopped Xiao Lancui from getting out of the car. "The last time I carried you was when you were in elementary school—you were just a tiny thing back then. Such fond memories."

Xiao Anfeng's nails instantly dug into his palms.

In the past, the original body would never have agreed. He was already the target of the entire Xiao family because of Xiao Jingli, and keeping a low profile was his way of survival.

Xiao Jingli also knew Xiao Lancui would refuse. He had mentioned it casually to make Xiao Anfeng jealous, but then he heard—

"Okay."

Xiao Lancui's dark eyes gleamed, curving into a slight smile. "Thank you, Dad."

Xiao Jingli's smile stiffened for a split second. Xiao Lancui gave him no chance to recover, smoothly climbing onto Xiao Jingli's back.

Xiao Anfeng's face went even darker. He muttered, "Dad, I'll head inside first."

This time, he flat-out ignored Xiao Lancui and hurried inside.

Xiao Lancui murmured in Xiao Jingli's ear, "Dad, Second Brother seems upset. Did I mess up?" He made as if to climb down. "I'll just get down, then."

Since Xiao Jingli had been the one to offer, he had to commit to the act. He frowned and held Xiao Lancui in place. "Don't talk nonsense. He's your second brother; he won't stay mad at you." Maybe there was a flicker of real feeling there—after all, the kid was his blood. "There might not be another chance down the road..."

Xiao Jingli sighed. "You're really not going to tell them about your condition?"

Xiao Lancui said, "Isn't it better they don't have to worry? Besides, it's not even confirmed."

"Yeah, we won't know for three months. Maybe it's nothing at all." Xiao Jingli sighed, getting lost in his own act, looking genuinely pained as he stood frozen by the car.

Xiao Lancui then asked, "Dad, I'm heavier than I used to be. Can you still carry me?"

If it were Xiao Anfeng, Xiao Jingli could carry him easily. But no man likes being told he can't do something, and with his youthful fire reignited by Xiao Anfeng, the comment stung. He strode off with Xiao Lancui on his back. "Of course I can!"

This was Xiao Lancui's first time home since he'd fallen into the sea, and as the car pulled into the estate, plenty of eyes were watching.

Up on the second and third floors, two more pairs of eyes watched from separate rooms.

Xie Jingfang and Xiao Mian both stood by the floor-to-ceiling windows, watching Xiao Jingli carry Xiao Lancui all the way into the house.

Xie Jingfang was livid. She swept an antique flower vase off the side table, then crouched down, covering her face as she sobbed quietly.

Xiao Mian was angry too, but since Xiao Jingli had never brought up his hospital stunt, it meant Xiao Lancui hadn't ratted him out. He felt conflicted. But watching that loving father-son scene between Xiao Lancui and Xiao Jingli, his anger won out. He let out a loud "Hmph" and stormed downstairs.

Xiao Liqin, waiting at the door for Xiao Anfeng, had seen the whole thing up close. He didn't care much—as the eldest son Xiao Jingli trusted and groomed most, his bond with his father was close but guarded. Besides Xiao Anfeng, the only people he cared about were his mother and Xiao Mian.

And he knew Xiao Lancui was his real second brother. He'd always figured Xiao Jingli's kindness toward him came from guilt over the switch.

"Come on in and eat." He greeted Xiao Anfeng, wanting to wipe the redness from the corners of his eyes, but held back, clenching his fists instead, and smiled. "The kitchen made your favorite seafood rice today."

Xiao Anfeng nodded and went inside.

A moment later, Xiao Jingli carried Xiao Lancui in too. At the entryway, he set him down in a hurry.

Two pairs of slippers sat on the floor—one for Xiao Jingli, one brand new. Days before the original owner had been hospitalized, when the death sentence came down, Xie Jingfang had ordered all his things thrown out.

Xiao Jingli wiped his sweat and suddenly smiled at Xiao Lancui. "What are you standing there for? Change your shoes and come eat."

House slippers were personal. He was testing him again—if Xiao Lancui slipped on the new pair without a second thought, it meant he remembered who the old ones belonged to.

Xiao Lancui didn't react, just took off his shoes and asked, "Dad, which pair is mine?"

Xiao Jingli was satisfied, putting on the old slippers. "The blue pair."

Dinner hit another snag when Yungu came in to report, "The mistress is having one of her spells and feels unwell. She says she's lost her appetite and won't eat. Master, please go ahead without her."

Xiao Anfeng stood up. "I'll go check on Mom."

Xiao Jingli sneered inwardly. An old spell, feeling unwell—it was just that Xiao Lancui was home again and she was unhappy. Everyone at the table knew it, except for the amnesiac Xiao Lancui.

Xiao Jingli, still annoyed from having to carry Xiao Lancui for no reason, figured it was fine for Xie Jingfang to make a scene—it would make Xiao Liqin and the others hate Xiao Lancui even more, keeping him in his place. He deliberately fanned the flames, stopping Xiao Anfeng. "If she's not feeling well, she should rest. Sit down and eat!"

Xiao Anfeng clenched his fists, froze for a second, then sat down.

Sure enough, Xiao Mian shot Xiao Lancui a few vicious glares. Xiao Jingli was satisfied. Smiling, he picked up his chopsticks. "Let's—"

The scrape of a chair cut him off. Xiao Lancui stood up. "Dad, I'll still go check on Mom."