If you can't get into a circle, don't force it — step back.
Xiao Ran tried hard to keep Xu on the ship, but in the end Xu left. "Yu Jingjing, Xu Changqing is an ordinary man — don't touch him or I won't be polite," Xiao Ran warned.
Yu Jingjing answered coolly: "Take care of yourself. Xu is ordinary; he has choices, and he's not you."
Xiao Ran was shaken. She left with a strange line: "Li Anran's brother is coming." It implied that something serious was unfolding.
Back home, Xu breathed a long sigh of relief. "Yu Jingjing is gorgeous, but she's not right for me," he thought. He planned to rest before his Penguin Group interview that afternoon.
Xu's parents had a modest day — no ID, no tickets — but eventually made it and ate breakfast. Dai Lanlan chided Xu Hai and praised their son, the usual mix of worry and maternal pride. They discussed marriage pressure and the village kids — the usual rural dilemmas. Xu slept and woke at five in the afternoon, surprised he'd slept so long.
His stomach growled. He tried to bind the bank card Xiao Ran had given him to his WeChat. The verification code wouldn't come — Xiao Ran had to send it. Once done, he ordered all the takeout he'd been craving. He reveled in the luxury.
A call came from an unknown number. Xu ignored the robotic greeting, hung up, then cursed another call. It turned out to be Yu Jingjing — she'd called to come over. Xu gave her the apartment address and prepared the food; she arrived carrying a white box he'd seen earlier outside.
"Hey, I'm here," she said. Xu was startled — the white box on the doorstep wasn't his. "That box isn't mine!" he blurted.
"This isn't yours? Don't kid me — your name is clearly written on it, Xu Changqing, sign for it!"
Yu Jingjing handed the side with the name on it to Xu Changqing.
"Hey! How strange — I definitely didn't order this delivery. Did someone send it to the wrong place?"
After a closer look, Xu Changqing noticed something different about the package.
There was no address — only a name.
"Senior, there's no address, only the recipient," Xu Changqing pointed out, showing the unusual detail to Jingjing.
"Really? Little junior, think again — could it have been sent by your aunt and uncle?"
"This box is feather-light. Why don't you go to your room and open it? Maybe your aunt and uncle sent you money!"
Yu Jingjing knew Xu Changqing was especially "stingy" — that tidbit came from Xiao Ran accidentally — but she felt the word "stingy" was a bit sharp, so she softened it to "thrifty."
"They probably worry about you and didn't want to alarm you," she coaxed.
"You're always so careful with money — what if it really is from your folks? Wouldn't it be a shame to throw it away?"
Yu Jingjing was a convincing little persuader, and Xu Changqing, after thinking, actually agreed.
What if it really was from his parents? Throwing it away would be a pity. Besides, he didn't believe anyone else in this Love Apartment complex would be named Xu Changqing.
"Senior, you sit here for a bit. I just ordered takeout; I'll go to my room for a moment."
He grabbed the white cardboard box and went into his room, closing the door casually behind him.
"Strange… Should I call Mom and Dad?"
He thought for a long moment and decided against it.
"At this hour my parents are probably on the bus — their tickets would be impossible to change now."
"Senior, eat first. I'll be back soon."
After a quick greeting to Yu Jingjing, Xu Changqing stared at the white box.
At some point his hand had a knife in it; he sliced along the tape seam. The instant he cut, his whole body went rigid and he collapsed onto the bed, fainting.
Unseen, a beam of light entered Xu Changqing's head and shot straight to his central nervous system.
Outside, Yu Jingjing heard nothing unusual and assumed he was fiddling with something, so she didn't pay much attention. By the time she finished her meal and realized Xu Changqing still hadn't come out, she knew something was very wrong.
Because the apartment's interior door was locked and the rental door's lock was especially solid to prevent theft, the door was harder to force open than usual.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
Yu Jingjing didn't spare a second — she pulled out a Desert Eagle pistol and fired at the lock. Thankfully it had a suppressor, so it wouldn't attract too much attention.
"Junior! Junior!"
"Xu Changqing, what's wrong with you?"
Yu Jingjing was terrified — he'd just collapsed and wouldn't wake up, and she, a woman, felt helpless.
"Call Xiao Ran, he should know what to do!"
She already had Xiao Ran's number and dialed straightaway.
"Hello? Miss Yu Jingjing, what do you want?" Xiao Ran answered, still irritated — the morning's scene still bothered him.
"Xiao Ran, Xu Changqing's had an accident. I just sent you the address. Get over here now!"
Without waiting for more questions, she hung up and bent down to perform artificial respiration on Xu Changqing.
Xiao Ran checked his texts and saw the message from Yu Jingjing: "No. 17, Room 1088, Love Apartment, Zhan Tai Lake Bridge — hurry! Xu Changqing's had an accident!"
He was shocked. That was undoubtedly Xu Changqing's address. It looked like he really had been hurt.
He canceled his plans for that evening's "Haitian Banquet" without a second thought.
"Antique, cancel all my events tonight. Nobody comes to see me. Not even my father!" Xiao Ran ordered.
Gu Tianhe, seeing Xiao Ran frantic, asked, "Young master, what's the matter? This contract signing is huge — you can't leave, you know?"
Gu Tianhe depended on him to handle this. Xiao Ran's father, Xiao Shengwei, hadn't yet arrived; if he came back suddenly who would lead? This negotiation had taken a lot of effort and resources.
Xiao Ran was anxious, but he didn't have the luxury to delay.
"Gu, you run the meeting. If the deal goes through, I'll give you all the profit — I don't want any."
In the end Xiao Ran left; Xu Changqing was much more important than a corporate contract to him.
"All right! Go then. I'll explain everything to the chairman personally."
"And don't you dare touch anything illegal, or you'll drag the whole Xiao family down with you," Gu Tianhe warned. Xiao Ran understood. He smiled and nodded.
In the B2 parking garage there were Ferraris, Porsches, Lamborghinis — all of Xiao Ran's rides. Still, he chose a Maserati Quattroporte.
A trip that should have taken twenty minutes was done in eight, running red lights and driving recklessly to reach Zhan Tai Lake Bridge.
"I didn't expect Xu Changqing to really have feelings for Yu Jingjing," Xiao Ran thought — why else would he give her his address? Only true feelings could explain it.
"I'm here — open the door!"
When the door opened Xiao Ran strode in.
"What happened? Did he faint?" he demanded.
"I don't know. I was eating takeout and he went to open a delivery in his room." Yu Jingjing said.
"I didn't even notice until I finished eating."
Yu Jingjing was a little hurt by Xiao Ran's interrogation; his tone had stung.
"You only think about food? You couldn't look after my brother? He treats you like his woman!" Xiao Ran scolded Yu Jingjing harshly.
"You'd better get in the car! Step on it and drive — I'll handle the rest!"
Xiao Ran made a bunch of calls: "Uncle Qin, it's Xiao Ran. I'm at Kanghua Avenue; I'll send you my plate number — can you clear the traffic lights for me?"
"Ok, thanks. I'll come visit next time!"
He made another call. "Why are we stopped?"
He was irritated that even with green lights they were stuck.
"Someone says there's been a traffic accident up ahead. Want to take a detour?" someone told him.
Xiao Ran shouted back, "No — drive straight through! Even if we hit something, we'll make a path!"
He was like a man possessed, using every influence he had.
"Chairman, news came in that Xiao Ran used a lot of connections!" Gu Tianhe reported.
"Why? Gu, are you and Xiao Ran in cahoots?" the chairman demanded.
Xiao Ran had used his connections and was in a hurry — but the chairman couldn't afford to let him go. Gu Tianhe explained that Xiao Ran probably had an emergency and asked to be allowed to pass.
"Let him go," Gu Tianhe pleaded.
Xiao Shengwei, furious, still insisted Xiao Ran stay for the negotiation. But Gu Tianhe persuasively argued this could show the chairman's "authority."
Ultimately they let Xiao Ran go. He had to reach his friend.
He arrived, got the door opened, and rushed in. They bundled Xu Changqing into the car and sped to the hospital — even if there was an accident ahead, they forced a way through.
On the ride, Xiao Ran used all his resources; he called a contact to turn lights green all the way so they weren't slowed, and he arrived as fast as possible.
At the hospital they hustled Xu Changqing in. "Doctor! Nurse! Help him!" Xiao Ran shouted.
The corridor full of patients watched like it was theater. The duty nurse demanded they register, and the doctor asked what had happened. Xiao Ran explained the situation: fainting, no history of heart disease or psychiatric issues, age 27, height 180, weight 75.
"Please help — this is my brother," Xiao Ran begged.
The nurse director took in the worry on Xiao Ran's face and prioritized treatment. After half an hour the operating room light finally turned green.
"Is he okay?" Xiao Ran grabbed the doctor's hand.
"No — previously the monitor couldn't detect his heartbeat. But it's not that he's dead; the heart is beating," the doctor said. "He's likely in a vegetative state — or similar."
The doctor, Fang Yuan, admitted there wasn't much more medicine could promise; Xiao Ran could only brace for the worst.
While the surgeons worked, Xiao Ran sent someone to pay the fees. Yu Jingjing used Xiao Ran's diamond black card to handle the payment — she hesitated, fearing the card would be frozen, but Xiao Ran assured her it didn't matter.
He introduced himself with a flourish: "I'm Xiao Ran, youngest son of the Ao family." The doctor, Fang Yuan, introduced himself as the attending physician.
"Is it true he's likely to become a vegetable?" Xiao Ran asked, unable to accept the possibility.
Fang Yuan shook his head. "We're not magicians. We can try, but you have to prepare for the worst."
Xiao Ran was desperate; he offered whatever it took. "Tell me how much — money's not an issue."
Yu Jingjing left to handle some business at Xiao Ran's request. Before she left, she promised to call if anything changed and to try to contact a certain "Mr. Nian" from M-country — someone rumored to be able to heal the incurable. Xiao Ran offered an annual salary of one hundred million to get him here if possible.
Xiao Ran and Yu Jingjing waited anxiously. In the end, the surgery room's light switched from red to green and the patient was brought out. The medical team moved Xu Changqing to a higher ward with restricted visiting hours.
When they saw him awake, both Xiao Ran and Yu Jingjing breathed a sigh of relief.
"Please contact Mr. Nian," Xiao Ran begged Yu Jingjing. "If he can come, I'll give him one hundred million a year."
"I'll try. If he's willing, great. If not, I'm sorry," Yu Jingjing replied. A hundred million sounded insane to some, but to Xiao Ran — backed by the Ao family — it wasn't an impossible number.
They moved Xu Changqing into the high ward. A week passed, but he remained unconscious. During that time Xiao Ran, his sister Xiao Ya, and Ji Nianfang visited; Ji Nianfang left Yu Jingjing with tears on her face after a private conversation that comforted the killer-turned-girlfriend. Yu Jingjing's feelings for Xu Changqing deepened in those days — she resolved to keep him alive, no matter what.
Eventually, things calmed down and the hospital arranged for observation. News came that the patient had finally wok