Chapter 7

Perhaps feeling that bringing up money directly with a high school student was inappropriate, the man looked around the hospital room and asked suspiciously, "Lu Chi, where are your parents?"

"Lu Chi is a transfer student from out of town. His parents haven't come over yet!" Hearing Qiao Shiyu's father's insincere small talk, Zhang Yang could not help mocking him. "I say, Uncle Qiao, you really don't know anything about your daughter's lifesaver, do you?"

Father Qiao's face reddened as he awkwardly explained, "Everything happened so suddenly. Uncle Qiao was busy running between the school and the police station, so I didn't have time to ask much."

Zhang Yang raised his brows. Then Yue Bin, who had been standing nearby, suddenly asked, "Where are the laptop and backpack I told you to bring for Lu Chi?"

"Bro, I was already at the hospital when you called me. How was I supposed to bring them?" Zhang Yang rolled his eyes at Yue Bin, then tilted his head toward Lu Chi. "But I did bring you a laptop. I even loaded it with some of the hottest games right now. Practice up, and we can team up to grind bosses later!"

Lu Chi smiled and thanked him, but politely declined Zhang Yang's offer.

"Don't!" Zhang Yang frowned and tried to persuade him. "What's so fun about being alone in a hospital room? I heard Yue Bin say you wanted to study. Besides games, this computer has plenty of study notes. Don't let my bad score on this month's exam fool you—I take excellent notes. At least half the students in our school buy my notes as study materials."

"Besides, I specifically went back to the dorm and carried the laptop here. It's so heavy—I don't want to carry it all the way back untouched!" As he spoke, Zhang Yang tossed the laptop onto the sofa without another word.

His careless attitude made Lu Chi's heart leap into his throat. He was afraid the laptop might break from the fall.

Sun Yiping watched the students interact with a smile and advised, "Lu Chi, don't rush yourself too much. Your treatment should come first. Studying isn't something that can be rushed in a day or two. But if you have any problems with your studies, you can ask me. The teachers will come keep you company over the next few days."

Lu Chi smiled at Sun Yiping. "Thank you, Mr. Sun."

Sun Yiping waved his hand and added, "The school has already called your parents. They should arrive in Yanjing around tomorrow night."

Father Qiao immediately chimed in, "I'll send someone to pick up your parents when they arrive. Don't be afraid, kid. We won't let anything happen to you."

Father Qiao was, after all, a busy company president. And he was not some romance-drama CEO with nothing to do except pursue the heroine. He did not have much time to stay in the hospital room. Seeing that everything had more or less been arranged, he took his daughter and left first.

Qiao Shiyu had not wanted to leave, but her father's expression was too unpleasant. She could only follow him reluctantly. Before leaving, she bid Lu Chi a reluctant farewell and said she would come again tomorrow.

As the homeroom teacher, Sun Yiping still had to supervise the students' evening self-study session. Seeing that nothing serious was happening with Lu Chi for the time being, he left as well.

After the three of them left, Zhang Yang took out his phone and clutched his stomach as he complained, "Come on, let's order some takeout! I barely ate lunch, and I'm starving!"

Yue Bin turned to glance at Zhang Yang. "Turn on the laptop for Lu Chi first. He needs to check his email."

Zhang Yang raised his brows and tossed his phone straight at Yue Bin. "Then you call and order the takeout."

With that, he grabbed the laptop bag and sat down beside Lu Chi.

Under Zhang Yang's guidance, Lu Chi used the laptop to grade Lu Miaomiao's homework. He also marked out a review range for her based on how she had done on the assignments. By the time he sent the corrected homework back, it was already seven in the evening.

The takeout Yue Bin ordered arrived as well.

Crucian carp tofu soup, stir-fried peas with mushrooms, shredded green beans with enoki mushrooms, fish paste stir-fried with fresh ginseng and lily bulbs... The dishes looked bright and fresh, but they were all bland and watery. The friends, who normally could not live without meat, immediately wilted.

"Yue Bin, seriously?" Zhang Yang was so angry he nearly jumped to his feet. "All these vegetables—are you feeding rabbits?"

"Lu Chi is injured, so he needs to eat lightly." As Yue Bin spoke, he ladled Lu Chi a bowl of crucian carp tofu soup. "Drink more. It's good for your brain."

Lu Chi smiled and thanked him.

Zhang Yang and the others wailed, "But it doesn't have to be this bland! Lu Chi is injured, but we're fine!"

"Don't you think it would be a little cruel to feast on meat and fish in front of a patient?"

Yue Bin casually glanced at Zhang Yang, who had been protesting the loudest. "Besides, eating light at night is good for your health."

Zhang Yang was so angry he had nothing to say. He could only keep pointing at Yue Bin with one finger as he huffed, "One day, I'm definitely cutting ties with you! Cutting ties!!"

The other friends held their bowls and chopsticks, finding the food tasteless. In the end, they simply put down their chopsticks and curiously asked Lu Chi, "If the people who attacked you really were those thugs harassing Qiao Shiyu, do you remember what they looked like?"

"It was too late that night. I didn't even—" Lu Chi abruptly stopped.

The others immediately looked over. "What is it?"

"Nothing!" Lu Chi came back to himself. When he thought about that night, an image had suddenly frozen in his mind—the scene of him confronting those two thugs in the pitch-black alley.

But unlike the dark, blurry memory, the image in his mind had become extraordinarily clear. Even in the poor lighting, it was enough for Lu Chi to recall the two men's physical features—as though the memory had undergone professional enhancement. He could even remember the tiny hairy mole at the corner of one thug's eye with perfect clarity.

Lu Chi did not know what had happened to him. He instinctively tightened his grip on his spoon and said calmly, "Nothing. I just suddenly remembered what those two men looked like!"

Chapter 7

Based on the criminals' physical features from his memories, Lu Chi drew the two thugs who had kidnapped Qiao Shiyu that night. Then, when the police came to take his statement the next morning, he handed the portraits directly to them.