"Her constitution is somewhat unusual. The needle may really be unable to pierce her skin!" Lin Xiaosu chose his words carefully. "There's no need for injections. Just judge from experience whether she's in any danger."
Judging from her vital signs, Hu Ya's vitality was extraordinarily strong.
The breath test showed that her blood alcohol level was actually nowhere near dangerous.
She seemed to be in some strange state of mutation. In the past, doctors would have been unable to recognize it because it overturned the normal laws of life. But now, genetic mutations had become an accepted conclusion in the medical community. Even if doctors had never encountered an actual case, they had seen all kinds of mutations beyond comprehension in the database.
Genetic mutation was a great revolution within the body.
Metabolism accelerated rapidly.
Amid such drastic changes, the brain activated its protective mechanisms. Falling into a coma was normal.
Lin Xiaosu was already relieved.
Hu Ya was not in danger.
She had merely come into contact with that faint glow, and her body had begun another round of mutation.
There were signs that this was not a bad thing. It might even be a good thing!
The ambulance arrived at the hospital, and she was admitted to the emergency ward. But the emergency measures were little more than external examinations. There was simply no way to perform an injection that pierced the skin.
Once the nurses heard of such a strange case, their sleepiness vanished. One after another, they found excuses to wander through the ward, then gathered in corners to whisper among themselves.
Second Uncle and Second Aunt rushed over that very night, frantic with worry.
But Lin Xiaosu pulled Second Uncle aside and quietly explained what had happened. The clouds on Second Uncle's face instantly cleared...
After turning away, Second Uncle whispered in Second Aunt's ear for a while. Her expression kept shifting uncertainly...
After rounds of examinations, discussions, worries, and relief, time passed quickly.
After all the commotion in the ward, dawn had broken outside.
Lin Xiaosu went outside the hospital to buy breakfast. When he returned to the ward carrying a heap of plastic bags, he was startled to find the bed empty. Second Uncle stood by the window, gazing into the sky. Second Aunt sat motionless in a corner, while a beautiful woman in a police uniform comforted her.
That woman was Zhou Mei.
"Where is she?" Lin Xiaosu asked.
"Chang Ye came," Zhou Mei said. "She said Hu Ya's condition was special and took her to the provincial department for treatment."
Lin Xiaosu froze slightly...
"Xiaosu... do you think... is this really okay?" Second Aunt sprang to her feet and ran over to him.
Her daughter was ill with a strange disease. Then someone from the provincial public security department had suddenly arrived and taken her away for treatment. She did not know the person who had come, and she truly could not set her mind at ease. Her husband could not give her confidence, so she sought it from Lin Xiaosu.
"It's fine," Lin Xiaosu said. "For Hu Ya, this isn't a bad thing. It's a good thing!"
"A good thing?"
"Yes. Second Aunt, don't worry. Once she recovers, she'll come back."
Second Uncle turned around. "You believe it now, right? I told you it was a good thing, but this woman just wouldn't listen."
"You stinking Taoist, always babbling mysteries. Who would believe you?" Second Aunt said. "But I believe Xiaosu! Other than us, he's the only one who truly cares about her! If Xiaosu says she's fine, then she's truly fine!"
Lin Xiaosu smiled softly. "All right, Second Uncle, Second Aunt, eat breakfast and head home. I'll settle the hospital bill."
After leaving the hospital cashier's office, Lin Xiaosu's thoughts churned.
He connected all the pieces...
Last night, Hu Ya had suddenly fallen ill.
The hospital could not keep this condition under wraps. After countless nurses passed the story around, it reached the police station. The police were sensitive to such things and immediately reported it upward, so Chang Ye learned about it.
Chang Ye was one of Hidden Dragon, and she had an almost obsessive passion for recruiting talent.
Hu Ya had kicked a Gene Person's crotch so hard that his balls burst earlier. She might already have entered Chang Ye's sights then. Chang Ye had personally come tonight, and taking Hu Ya away for treatment was obviously just an excuse.
What she truly wanted was to see whether Hu Ya had the potential to serve Hidden Dragon.
If the day ever came when Hu Ya joined Hidden Dragon, Lin Xiaosu personally thought it would be something worth looking forward to.
Didn't she always say she was not like a normal woman?
To be honest, being an abnormal outsider was lonely.
But in Hidden Dragon, was being abnormal even a problem?
"Abnormal" was the shared label of every Hidden Dragon member, all right?
There were no normal women in that place!
Wouldn't she have found her own kind there?
She had also complained that she had been born in the wrong era. If she had been born in ancient times, Hua Mulan would probably have been replaced by Li Diandian.
And now, hadn't her opportunity arrived?
If she joined Hidden Dragon, kicking people in the balls would be nothing!
What Hidden Dragon did went beyond conventional worldly rules. Hurting and killing people were everyday matters to them.
All things considered, Hu Ya had found her organization. Or rather, this lone oddball sapling had found a special platform suited for her abilities...
At the hospital entrance, a familiar car was waiting for him.
The window rolled down, revealing two faces.
Zhou Mei was driving, while Chang Ye sat in the back seat.
"Get in. I'll treat you to tea," Chang Ye said.
The car sped to the eastern part of the city. Shengxin Teahouse in the east side had also only recently opened.
On the side near the Yishui River, green bamboo formed the railings and purple clay made the teapots. The spring breeze, catching the tail end of the season, swept past and brought a coolness that seeped through the body.
Tea poured from the pot, carrying a unique beauty in the early morning light.
The tea entered the cup, faintly jade-green.
This was Tashan Qingming tea.
Qingming had just passed, and the new tea had reached the market. Sipping a cup amid the bustling city was roughly what comfort in life felt like...
"Your childhood sweetheart won't have any problems," Chang Ye said, lifting her hand slightly and giving him the answer he wanted.
"Childhood sweetheart isn't quite accurate," Lin Xiaosu said with a faint smile. "But that isn't important. What matters is, have you discovered another business opportunity?"
"A business opportunity?"
"The marketplace is like a battlefield, and the battlefield is like a marketplace. During competition and strategic games, everything in the world is a chess piece on the board. Adding one more piece to your own side is a business opportunity!" Lin Xiaosu raised his teacup and took a light sip.
"Young man, I've noticed that you've changed!" Chang Ye slowly leaned forward.
"How have I changed?"
Chang Ye said, "Before, although you possessed a skill, you still seemed somewhat immature. But after hearing you speak today, I suddenly feel that you have gained a few traces of scholarly elegance. You're a little like Xinyue's father."
"Xinyue's father... is that some kind of joke? Are you saying my bearing rivals the sun and moon?"
Chang Ye burst into laughter. "What joke? Bearing that rivals the sun and moon? You really are narcissistic. Xinyue's father is simply her father, Hidden Dragon's former strategist."
"My bearing rivals Hidden Dragon's strategist. Don't I have the right to be narcissistic? Keep flattering me like that, and I'll really start strutting around!" Lin Xiaosu smiled lightly. "Let's talk about something I care about. Hu Ya... what will happen to her in the future?"
What would happen to her in the future?
That was indeed what Lin Xiaosu cared about.
"What will happen to her... rather than asking me, why don't you keep watch over her yourself?" A mysterious glint flashed through Chang Ye's eyes.
"I understand! After going in circles, we're back on the track from the night before last!" Lin Xiaosu said.
Outsiders would not know what would happen to Hu Ya, nor were outsiders qualified to watch over her.
If he wanted to keep watch, the prerequisite was for Lin Xiaosu to join Hidden Dragon.
Only within an organization could one speak of keeping watch...
This was the choice Chang Ye had brought up to him the night before last...
"Clever and sensitive. You fit the requirements more and more," Chang Ye said. "So, what is your answer? I don't think you necessarily have to wait until the civil service exam begins."
"All right, I'll join." With those five words, Lin Xiaosu set down his teacup.
Chang Ye smiled. "Why are you being so straightforward today?"
Lin Xiaosu stretched lazily. "I suddenly realized that I'm actually the same kind as her. This dirty mortal world cannot accommodate her invulnerable body, and it probably cannot accommodate my peerless bearing that rivals the sun and moon either."
"Hey, that's rather wild... I can only guarantee that I'll lead you through the door. Whether you can establish yourself there, or whether all those geniuses will crush you until you start doubting life, I can't guarantee at all!"
"When do they start crushing me?" Lin Xiaosu leaned forward slightly.
"Right now!" Chang Ye stood up. "Do you want to say goodbye to your mother? Because once you leave, you may not return for a long time."
"Will it take that long?"
"Yes. You won't enter the organization directly. You'll first need to undergo a series of training courses and learn the relevant knowledge. With your learning ability, where even passing a civil service exam is difficult, it won't be quick."
Lin Xiaosu took out his phone and called his mother...
"Mom, I'm staying with a classmate in the county town for the next few days, so I won't be coming home. After the exam, we're planning to go out and have some fun too."
His mother was silent for around ten seconds. "Which classmate? Is it the one who came to our house last time?"
"Yes!"
His mother immediately became excited. "Mom will send you some money. Don't be stingy when you go out to have fun..."
With one phone call, he asked for leave. Not only did his mother grant it immediately, she insisted on giving him ten thousand yuan so he could eat, drink, play, and properly handle the "three companion services." After much persuasion, Lin Xiaosu finally got her financial support down to three thousand.
Three minutes later, his phone notified him that five thousand yuan had arrived.
His mother had still forcibly added another two thousand on top of his amount.
Chang Ye watched curiously from the side. "I couldn't tell. Your mother is quite generous. You don't want it, yet she insists on giving it to you."
"Do you know why she's so generous? Because whether it's five thousand or ten thousand, compared to finding a wife, it's all small money!" Lin Xiaosu said. "So no matter how frugal elders usually are, when their sons go out with girls, they become extremely generous. This is actually an abnormal social phenomenon. It directly fuels the simp economy..."
Chang Ye giggled. "Then after your training ends, do I have to put on a full act with you? Should I bring a box of mooncakes to visit her?"
"Forget it! If you take the act that far, she'll really give you a red envelope, and there's a very good chance it'll truly contain ten thousand and one yuan!"
Chang Ye looked forward to it. "Wouldn't that be perfect? Last time, I gave away ten thousand yuan on a whim and regretted it for more than a month. Getting it back would only be right..."
Lin Xiaosu looked at her with disdain. "You said Hidden Dragon paid well. Now I seriously suspect that was just your big lie. If the pay were really that high, would you feel sorry about bait you threw out while fishing?"
What did she mean by throwing out bait while fishing?
Was she fishing?
How remarkable did he think he was? Did she need to fish for him?
She thought highly of him, which was why she had extended an olive branch!
This brat truly could not tell good from bad...
A pile of words churned in Chang Ye's stomach, but in the end, she merely rolled her eyes...
At midnight, on the rooftop of the county public security bureau, dark clouds covered the moon. A gust of wind passed, and a Maglev Flying Car appeared as if from thin air, utterly silent.
Lin Xiaosu and Chang Ye stepped into the flying car.
They vanished into the night.
Before you continue