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By the time Xia Rong came back from buying breakfast, Xiao Wu had already left. Then contrary to what Xia Rong had expected, Su Chi didn’t say a word at all but just directly picked up the utensils, ready to very self-reliantly eat on his own. Xia Rong really just couldn’t bear to see the other use his hands that were already all wrapped up until they were like two steamed buns to manipulate the utensils that required fine motor skills, so he simply took over the spoon and awkwardly fed the other the entirety of the breakfast one mouthful by one mouthful.
But how could Young Master Xia Rong ever have the experience of feeding someone throughout all his years? So it was either that he would accidentally fill the spoon too full or the spoon completely tilts and spills, which directly caused a mess on Su Chi’s weak and pale but still handsome face. Su Chi was extremely cooperative throughout the entire process. He would open his mouth when told to open his mouth, and even if the spoonful was too much, he would still swallow it all down with difficulty.
After he finished feeding the other the bowl of congee, Xia Rong was also very embarrassed and used a napkin to wipe the other’s face. “I’m sorry, I didn’t feed well, how about- why don’t we hire a caregiver after all?”
“No need for a caregiver,” Su Chi said, “You did quite well.”
“How is it well…” Xia Rong threw the napkin into the garbage can, even he himself was already too embarrassed to see the miserable situation up above.
“As long as you’re the one doing it, everything’s quite well.” Su Chi revealed a small smile to him.
Xia Rong: “…”
He began to regret that he had played it so straightforwardly back at the beginning and just had to directly poke a hole in that thin paper over the window between the two of them, leading to how Su Chi could now be so unscrupulous, throwing all these bare and naked straight balls to tease him… However, the main thing was, he still hasn’t even figured out whether he wanted to actually receive them yet!
Fortunately, Su Chi’s cell phone began to ring at this time, saving him from this predicament that he was in. Xia Rong quickly said, “It’s inconvenient for your hand, I’ll pick it up for you!” He answered the call in a hurry.
The call was from the police. The other side told him that according to the driving route they had provided, they had managed to catch the kidnappers along the mountainside in the outskirts, and with the license plate, “Master Wang” vehicle was also found through an inspection, which allowed them to follow the vine to the melon, getting the original instigator who was waiting for the results as well. The instigator of the kidnapping is already being detained under criminal custody. The police also hoped they could come over to take their statements.
Xia Rong: ???
It’s over just like that?!
The main culprit is caught just like that??
It’s not that he didn’t believe in the efficiency of their people’s police, it’s just that the other side had been planning this for so long, yet they already have everything solved in less than two or three hours? This isn’t in line with the science of what a BOSS(?) is!
However, while his surprise remained what it is, Xia Rong still didn’t neglect to relay to the police their current situation. After hearing that the two of them were both in the hospital and wasn’t able to leave, the police quickly expressed their understanding, saying that the statements could be postponed for the time being and that they would send an officer over to see them first, along with returning the clothes, cell phone and luggage that they had found in the kidnappers’ car to Xia Rong.
Xia Rong was still a little out of it after the call was hung. “They said everyone’s been caught, not one of them managed to escape.”
“Isn’t it good to have caught them all so soon?” Su Chi gently patted Xia Rong on the shoulder to comfort him(XR) with his ‘steamed bun’-like hand. Because of the thick gauze, Xia Rong also didn’t feel too sensitively by the gesture and so didn’t dodge or avoid.
“However…” Su Chi thought for a moment, then said, “The kidnapping this time may not necessarily be the originator1 causing you to become a cat again and again. Moreover, why were they only trying to capture you and not me? Obviously, I too can turn into a cat. There are still many questions that have yet to be answered, let’s wait for the police to come. We can ask and see before deciding.”
“That’s also the only thing we can do.” Xia Rong nodded.
“Well then. Go sleep for a while first, it’s been a whole night already without any rest.” Su Chi’s room was a single-person autonomous ward. The environment was especially nice, having everything from air-conditioning to TV and there was even a small bed prepared for the person accompanying the patient on the side. Seeing that Xia Rong didn’t seem to want to go, Su Chi patted the side of his bed and asked with a smile, “Or do you want to come up and squeeze in with me?”
“…Who wants to squeeze in with you.” Xia Rong quipped a complaint. “Lend me your phone for a bit, I’m going to give my mother a call.”
“Oh.” Su Chi asked, “Hasn’t the cell phone always been with you?”
Xia Rong: “…”
Ignoring the banter in Su Chi’s words, Xia Rong very familiarly used the other’s cell phone to dial his mother’s number. As there would be too many people and pairs of eyes outside and the fact that once they get recognized, the consequences would be catastrophic, Xia Rong didn’t go out to make the call. Instead, he just stepped a bit farther away from Su Chi, making this phone call while standing by the window.
At this time, the day was just starting to dawn, and it was obvious that Mother Xia had just woken up. She answered in somewhat of a muffled daze, “Hello. Who is this?”
Xia Rong called, “Mom!”
This call pulled Mother Xia directly out of her drowsy state. “Xia Rong? What about your own phone?”
Xia Rong answered, “I was kidnapped, my cell phone’s with the kidnappers.”
Mother Xia: !!!
Xia Rong heard the other side’s breathing suddenly turn rapid, only then did he realize the ambiguity in his words just now and hurried to comfort the other, “It’s fine, Mom, everything’s fine now! I’m at the hospital, all the kidnappers have also been arrested.”
“You’re at the hospital?! Did you get injured, what kind of injuries? Which hospital are you at? What room number???”
“No no no, I’m okay. The one injured is one of my…” He originally wanted to say ‘one of my friends’ but after a quick thought, since Su Chi had already registered on his mother’s radar, he might as well take advantage of this opportunity and help him increase his(XR) mother’s favorability of him. “The one injured is Su Chi. In order to save me, he has abrasions all over and there’s even a fracture on his foot requiring hospitalization, whereas I’m completely fine.”
“Su Chi?” Mother Xia said, “Then we’ll have to thank him well. However, how was he able to save you? Why were you two together?”
Xia Rong: “…”
“Mom, that matter is too complicated.” Xia Rong continued, “Wait until I go back home, I’ll give you the full story. I have to take care of Su Chi at the hospital today since he was only injured for my sake, so I won’t be going back tonight.”
“…En.” Although Mother Xia wasn’t all that willing for her own son to again be mixed up with his “ambiguous beau,” the Xia family’s teachings dictate that they shouldn’t be careless when repaying kindness, so she said, “Then you take good care of him, buy more supplements. Which hospital in B City is it? I’ll see if I can directly get the Dean to transfer you two to the best ward.”
“No need! The single room right now is perfectly fine. I’m afraid if we make any further movements, we’ll get recognized by people. By the way, Mom一” Speaking up until here, Xia Rong couldn’t help but quietly take a deep breath first. “The matter with my Pure Yin fate, did you know?”
“…” At this, Mother Xia was silent for a moment before she then asked, “How did you find out? The kidnapping this time had something to do with your fate?”
Which was equivalent to a tacit affirmation. Xia Rong’s heart felt quite heavy, he answered, “Yea, I heard it from the kidnappers’ small talk with each other.”
“…This matter is also very complicated to explain. We can talk about it in detail when you have time to come home,” said Mother Xia.
“En.” Xia Rong let out a sigh. “Oh right, Su Chi, he’s experiencing the same sort of things as I am in certain aspects, which is why we have been so close recently. I suspect that he, that he is also…”
“Do you have in detail his date of birth, or preferably his eight characters2?”
“I don’t…” Xia Rong had been experiencing the wind for a while [at the window]; when he turned his head, he found that Su Chi seemed to have already fallen into a light sleep while leaning against the head of the bed.
The other’s complexion still appeared very pallid. Xia Rong couldn’t bear to wake him up and just said, “He’s asleep right now, it’s not convenient for me to ask…”
“I see. Then next time you come home, try to bring him back together with you.”
“En… Huh?!”
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After ending the phone call with his mother, Xia Rong crept back to Su Chi on tiptoes and found that the other wasn’t sleeping very well while leaning against the head of the bed, evident from the shadow cast by the other’s long eyelashes which still lightly quivered. The other’s two “steamed-bun hands” were outside the blanket, still on a drip, reminding Xia Rong of his own round snow-white paws when he’s a cat.
Xia Rong gently lowered the head of the bed so the other could be a bit more comfortable. When he straightened back up, he found that Su Chi’s drip was almost finished.
Afraid that ringing the bedside bell would wake Su Chi up, he figured it would only be a few steps, so he may as well just go and get a nurse to come to remove the IV. He put his hat on. It shouldn’t be that easy for the surrounding onlookers to recognize him.
Thinking like this, Xia Rong, again very gently, went to push open the door.
Then, he bumped right into the gossip reporters with their long barrels and short cannons who were outside the door, running into them face-to-face.
Xia Rong: “…”
All the reporters: “!!!”