Chapter 44

Xu Yan hadn't figured out what was going on yet, but Zhao Tianyu had already spoken up, saying angrily, "Xu Yan, what's going on? Your uncle is in such a state, and you're still playing with fire here? Are you deliberately trying to cause trouble for Xue Ting?"

None of the girls said a word, but their gazes toward Xu Yan were tinged with blame. Gong Xue Ting was hugging her father's hand, sobbing softly, and hadn't noticed what was happening.

Xu Yan, knowing he was in the wrong, said softly, "Sorry, I don't know why the book suddenly caught fire. I didn't do it on purpose..."

Zhao Tianyu pressed on, "How could it be an accident? How could a book catch fire by itself? You must have had something flammable in your bag! Xu Yan, if you had burned any medical equipment or frightened the patient, causing his condition to worsen, could you take responsibility for that?"

Xu Yan was seething with anger—Zhao Tianyu was being too vicious. He was exaggerating a small mistake to the extreme, clearly trying to ruin Xu Yan's impression in front of Gong Xue Ting. As he was thinking about how to respond, Gong Xue Ting suddenly exclaimed in surprise, "Dad's hand... it moved just now!"

Before she finished speaking, the door was pushed open, and several doctors and nurses rushed in, shouting, "Who said there was a fire? Where is it? Where is it burning?"

Seeing the hospital staff arrive, Zhao Tianyu immediately pointed at Xu Yan, "Doctor, it's him. He was playing with fire in this ward just now, almost burning the patient and the equipment!"

He said sternly, "Xu Yan, I'm sorry, but although we came together, your behavior is too恶劣 and dangerous. I have to report it to the hospital. Don't blame me!"

Xu Yan had seen despicable people before, but he had never seen anyone as despicable as this! At that moment, he was so angry that if he had a sword in his hand, Zhao Tianyu would have been cut into pieces!

The doctor stared sternly at Xu Yan and said, "Young man, the hospital is a place to save lives and treat injuries. Fire is strictly prohibited. If you play with fire in the intensive care unit, we can call the police and have you arrested. If it affects the patient and causes any consequences..."

Before he could finish, Gong Xue Ting was already calling out, "Doctor, come over! I felt Dad move just now, and his hand feels much warmer... Look!"

The doctors gathered around, and when they saw the heart rate monitor, they all exclaimed, "The heart rate has increased! It's much stronger than before! Check the records, see when it started?"

"Listen to the lungs... The breathing is much stronger... Take his temperature quickly! See what it is now!"

"Get the latest temperature record—35 degrees. Although it's not normal, it was 33 degrees when he was admitted. The temperature has clearly risen!"

"Look, Director Zheng, look at the black spots on the patient's face. They seem much lighter..."

"Yes, this needs to be recorded. The depth of the black spots on the patient's face is clearly related to the progression of the disease..."

...

The doctors were busy, and Xu Yan and the others were pushed to the corner. No one was paying attention to Xu Yan's fire incident anymore; everyone was focused on saving the patient. Gong Xue Ting clenched her fists, watching the doctors with tension.

Xu Yan held his book bag, touching the hot "White Deer Clan Training Manual." He frowned, deep in thought.

Why did the book catch fire on its own when he approached the patient? And why couldn't the fire be extinguished?

It was one thing for the book to catch fire, but why was it still brand new after burning, as if it had never been burned?

Why did the patient's condition improve so dramatically after this incident?

...

Gradually, Xu Yan had a hunch.

He took a few steps closer to the bed, and a doctor almost bumped into him. The doctor said angrily, "How can you stand here? This will interfere with our work! Move aside!"

Xu Yan apologized repeatedly and moved back to the wall. His rash action drew some blame and even more sarcasm from Zhao Tianyu, but he didn't care—when he got closer to the patient, the "White Deer Clan Training Manual" in his bag became hot again, as if it was about to catch fire.

After this test, Xu Yan had a vague idea. He wanted to test it further but was afraid of causing any negative consequences. He decided to go back and consult Zhu Youxiang first, as she was the true expert on disasters and the demon world.

With his mind made up, Xu Yan remained silent, standing quietly in the corner like the others.

After a while, Director Zheng, who was in charge, found these people standing in the corner to be a bit of an eyesore and decided to kick them out, "Hey, you guys, are you all the patient's family? You can see we are trying to save the patient. Standing here won't help. You should go out—nurse, please escort them out!"

The nurses came over and politely but firmly escorted Gong Xue Ting and the others to the corridor.

After standing in the corridor for a while, Gong Xue Ting regained her composure. She stood up, wiped her tears, and said to the others, "Senior Zhao, classmate Xu Yan, and classmates Chu Yan and Yao Yu, thank you for coming with me. I'm fine now. The doctors are still working on it, and it will take a while. You should go back to class. I'll wait here."

The others knew there was nothing more they could do. They comforted Gong Xue Ting and then left one by one, with Xu Yan being the last to go.

He looked at Gong Xue Ting, hesitating to speak.

Feeling Xu Yan's gaze, Gong Xue Ting looked up. Despite her tear-streaked face, she still looked beautiful and refined. She forced a smile, "Classmate Xu Yan, thank you for today. I'm fine, don't worry. Go back to class."

"Then... I'll leave first. Xue Ting, don't worry too much about your uncle. His condition has improved, hasn't it? He's a good person, and heaven will protect him."

Such vague and insubstantial words of comfort had already been heard by Gong Xue Ting several times today, and she was numb to them. She smiled faintly and nodded, "Yes, thank you, classmate Xu Yan."

Seeing that Gong Xue Ting clearly didn't believe him, Xu Yan decided to give her a heads-up, "Classmate Xue Ting, I'm not just saying empty words. Although the People's Hospital says they can't treat it, that's just their Western medicine perspective. Our country has a long history, and traditional Chinese medicine is profound and powerful. Many incurable diseases have been cured by skilled TCM practitioners.

I've seen a similar strange illness in my hometown before. The patient was very sick, almost on the verge of death, and Western medicine was helpless. But later, someone invited an old TCM practitioner. He diagnosed the patient, prescribed a treatment, and the patient was saved. The patient is now fully recovered and as healthy as anyone else. If you agree, I'll call back to my hometown today and ask that old TCM practitioner about the situation."

Xu Yan spoke vaguely—he thought that with Zhu Youxiang's skills, she could easily deal with a demon that bullets couldn't kill. She should have a way to handle this demon-related illness. But given her cold nature, he wasn't sure if she would help, so he didn't want to make any promises and just mentioned an old TCM practitioner.

Gong Xue Ting's eyes lit up, "Then... I'll trouble you, classmate Xu Yan. If you can really save my dad, I... I will find a way to repay you!"

Being looked at with such expectation by a beautiful girl and hearing such ambiguous and heartfelt words, Xu Yan felt lightheaded, almost floating. Fortunately, he still had some sense and didn't make any rash promises.

After a few more words with Gong Xue Ting, Xu Yan left the hospital. He originally planned to take a taxi home, but when he walked out of the hospital, he saw a red Opel car still parked in the parking lot.

Xu Yan recognized it as Chen Yaoyu's car. He hesitated for a moment, wondering if she was waiting for him.

The Opel's window slowly rolled down, revealing Chen Yaoyu's pale face behind her sunglasses. She nodded silently at Xu Yan, gesturing for him to get in.

Xu Yan quickly got in and saw that Chen Yaoyu was the only one in the car. He was a bit surprised, "Hey, where's classmate Chu Yan?"

Chen Yaoyu kept her eyes on the road, saying coolly, "Chu Yan ran into an old classmate, and they went shopping. Where do you want to go? Back to school or somewhere else?"

This proud and cold beauty was actually waiting for him! Realizing this, Xu Yan felt a bit overwhelmed.

People are not always what they seem. Chen Yaoyu, who looked cold and distant, was actually quite nice. She had offered to drive him earlier, and now she was waiting for him. Xu Yan felt lightheaded again: Could it be that his charm had reached a new level? Could it be that his aura had made this proud and wealthy girl fall for him?

"Classmate Chen, if it's convenient, please take me back to school—Mumei Community across from the school."

Chen Yaoyu nodded slightly, started the car, and drove off.

The car sped down the long street, and soft music played in the car. A woman's voice sang an unknown English song. After a while, Xu Yan asked Chen Yaoyu, "Classmate Chen, do you have something to tell me?"

Chen Yaoyu kept her eyes on the road, and the dappled tree shadows flashed past her sunglasses. Hearing Xu Yan's question, she said coolly, "How do you know I have something to tell you?"

Xu Yan smiled bitterly—his greatest strength was self-awareness. He had seen many girls like Chen Yaoyu, who were proud and selfish. These cold and aloof girls usually treated their suitors like grass. Men were expected to do anything for them, and even picking up a pin for them was a great sacrifice. So, if there was nothing, Xu Yan couldn't believe that a goddess like Chen Yaoyu would wait for him for several minutes.

"Classmate Chen, what is it?"

Chen Yaoyu ignored Xu Yan's question, driving silently. Xu Yan waited until they were out of the city center before he heard the girl beside him ask calmly, "Xu Yan, are you trying to pursue Gong Xue Ting?"

Xu Yan was taken aback, then he smiled bitterly, "Classmate Chen, shouldn't we be more tactful when it comes to matters of the heart?"

Chen Yaoyu's expression didn't change, but Xu Yan noticed her lips twitch, as if silently saying, "You're not worth my tact." She said coolly, "You didn't deny it, so it seems you do have that intention."

"So what if I do? And what if I don't?"

"If you do, I have a favor to ask."

Xu Yan frowned, "What is it? Tell me."

Chen Yaoyu turned her head slightly, looking at Xu Yan with a disdainful gaze. She said coolly, "Don't worry, it's a good thing for you. I'll give you 30,000 yuan, and you can donate it to Gong Xue Ting. Don't let anyone else know. Can you do that?"

Xu Yan was shocked, "What? 30,000 yuan? To Gong Xue Ting?"—When Chen Yaoyu made her request, Xu Yan had thought of many possibilities, but he never imagined that this proud and wealthy girl would ask him to donate such a large sum of money.

Chen Yaoyu frowned, seemingly annoyed by Xu Yan's surprise, but she explained patiently, "You should have noticed that Xue Ting is in a difficult situation and needs money. I don't want her to do something foolish because of it—especially with that senior of hers. He's clearly the type who would take advantage of the situation. If he gets this opportunity, he will definitely try to do something."

Hearing Chen Yaoyu's evaluation of Zhao Tianyu, Xu Yan was overjoyed, feeling that no one understood him better than Chen Yaoyu. He smiled broadly, "Classmate Chen, you're absolutely right! That Zhao guy has ulterior motives and is not a good person!"

"Hmph, so do you!"

Hearing Chen Yaoyu's words, Xu Yan almost choked. Fortunately, she quickly added, "But you're not as bold as him."

Xu Yan smiled bitterly, "Uh, thanks—can I take that as a compliment?"

"Whatever—so, can you do it?"

...