Rescue

Several speedboats headed out from the coast toward the open sea. Huang Shiren stood aboard one and waved to the tall man on shore, Wei Zelin's icy words still echoing in his mind.

"Don't worry about exposing yourselves. Their safety comes first. Even if blood gets spilled, I'll handle the aftermath."

Even though Wei Zelin had added afterward, "If anything really happens to Mr. Ren's only son aboard that ship, we might get caught in the fallout too. Keep it within bounds. As long as Wei Zexuan takes a fall, we'll have achieved our goal."

Huang Shiren still thought something was off. Wasn't the more badly the Ren Family's young son suffered, the angrier Director Ren would become, and the harder Wei Zexuan would fall?

Besides, there was a good chance both sides would discover their rescue operation. Even with an explanation prepared, they couldn't guarantee they wouldn't arouse suspicion. Given Brother Lin's usual approach, shouldn't he be watching from the sidelines right now?

Huang Shiren mulled it over. Back then, everyone had treated Brother Lin's marriage to Shi Yuan as a joke. Now it seemed that kid really had gotten under Brother Lin's skin.

Their speedboats hadn't gone far before an enormous cruise ship appeared in view.

"Take a look. Is something trailing behind it?"

One of the men aboard said, "Brother Ren, looks like something's tied to a rope."

Huang Shiren slapped him on the head. "You think I don't know something's hanging from it? I'm asking what it is!"

That put the man in a bind. They could see the cruise ship, sure, but it was enormous, and they were still a long way off. All they could make out was a black speck trailing behind it. Who knew what it was?

Huang Shiren grew increasingly anxious. Surely Wei Zexuan wouldn't be that lawless? He remembered the man who had been humiliated last time...

No way. Surely not!

But Wei Zexuan really was that brazen.

Even without traveling at full throttle, the ship moved at an astonishing speed. A thick rope could just be seen trailing from its stern, its other end tied to a wooden plank half a meter wide and two meters long.

Shi Yuan lay facedown on the plank, soaked through by the waves. Both hands clung tightly to the wood, several fingernails torn back. The seawater washed away the blood, leaving his hands white and wrinkled. He held Xiao Rong tightly against his chest, and the boy had long since begun wailing in terror.

Wave after wave crashed into them without end, hitting with the force of heavy logs. Wei Zexuan had someone bind them securely, which was the only reason they hadn't been swept away.

Shi Yuan's already slightly hoarse voice was now a desperate, heart-wrenching cry. "Don't be scared! Keep your eyes closed! Hold on tight to me, understand? Tighter!!!"

Sobbing, Xiao Rong hugged Shi Yuan's waist even harder, his eyes squeezed shut, too frightened to open them.

Meanwhile, Wei Zexuan stood at the stern, roaring with laughter as though he were watching some entertaining toy.

Huang Shiren was racing toward the ship, terrified of failing Wei Zelin's instructions. Bringing back Shi Yuan's corpse would be a disaster. Suddenly, the man steering the speedboat said, "Brother Ren, looks like another ship's coming from the south."

"Holy shit, isn't that a fucking warship? It's even got gun barrels!"

"Don't talk nonsense. What warship? It's a coast guard ship!"

Huang Shiren's eyes bulged with fury. "Who gives a fuck whether it's a warship or the coast guard? Get moving!"

Both men got a slap, then sheepishly signaled the other speedboats to retreat.

They weren't far from shore, and the people aboard the coast guard ship assumed they were simply out boating, so they didn't intercept them. Huang Shiren relaxed. Police always made him nervous.

With the police there, Shi Yuan and the boy stood a much better chance than if he tried to rescue them himself. He stayed at a distance to watch how things unfolded.

Sure enough, the coast guard forced Wei Zexuan's ship to stop. He vaguely made out a small boat being lowered into the water and heading toward the stern, but couldn't see any more detail.

Once Huang Shiren saw that the police had indeed taken control of Wei Zexuan's cruise ship, he told his men to head straight back to shore to report to Wei Zelin.

"The coast guard headed out not long after you left. I suspect Director Ren called the police to rescue his son too."

Wei Zelin's expression was calm, but the turmoil in his eyes rivaled the waves. He didn't ask Huang Shiren how Shi Yuan was doing, knowing there was no point. He had worked hard and earned some money in recent years, but compared with the foundations and connections the Wei Family had built over generations, he still had little influence in Capital City. It was much the same for Shen Duo: however deeply he despised Wei Zexuan, he couldn't openly turn against him.

Huang Shiren gloated. "Wei Zexuan's finally hit a wall this time. Serves him right for always being so arrogant."

"You know how arrogant he usually is. Do you think that's just because of the Wei Family's money?"

Huang Shiren rubbed his blond hair. "I know the Wei Family has people in government, but this is a matter of life and death, and it's Director Ren's only son. Even if it doesn't finish him, he'll pay dearly."

"Finishing Wei Zexuan off would be easy, but I still have other uses for him."

By the time he was rescued, Shi Yuan had already been knocked unconscious by the waves. He had a long, infuriating dream in which he thought he was still preparing for his graduate entrance exams and arguing with his disgusting roommate over who was right.

"You're the one who plagiarized me!" he shouted with his eyes closed. So agitated that he was barely aware of what he was doing, he heaved himself halfway upright, then suddenly fell back hard. A long, strong arm reached across to catch him, and Shi Yuan finally woke.

His long, thick lashes, straight rather than curled, fluttered against each other. His dark eyes were blank with confusion. Opening them to the familiar sight of a hospital again, he suddenly had no idea what year it was.

"What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell anywhere?"

The low, pleasant male voice sounded right beside his ear, its familiarity bringing Shi Yuan back to reality.

"Brother... Brother Lin?"

One moment Shi Yuan was still dazed; the next, his eyes flew wide open.

"Where's Xiao Rong? Is he all right?"

Wei Zelin reassured him. "Don't worry. He woke up before you did. Mr. Ren had him thoroughly examined, then took him home once they confirmed he was fine."

Mr. Ren had originally wanted to wait until Shi Yuan woke up to thank him. After all, without Shi Yuan shielding him, a child that young couldn't possibly have endured the waves head-on and come out unscathed.

"As long as he's all right."

Shi Yuan held his head. "Brother Lin, how long was I asleep?"

"Three days. Your fever kept coming and going. Even after it broke, you still didn't wake up, so I brought in a traditional Chinese medicine practitioner to check your pulse. He said you'd slept so long because you had too much on your mind. What's wrong? Does your head hurt?"

Wei Zelin moved Shi Yuan's hand aside and laid his own over his forehead.

"You do feel a little warm."

Wei Zelin pressed the nurse call button beside the bed. His other arm was still beneath Shi Yuan's waist, bringing them even closer until he was practically holding Shi Yuan in a half embrace.

Illness always made people vulnerable, and since arriving in this world, Shi Yuan had spent more time with Wei Zelin than anyone else.

He had read the original novel and knew Wei Zelin wasn't as gentle and courteous as he appeared. He was calculating and knew how to bide his time. Yet even this feigned tenderness moved Shi Yuan a little now. Unlike the last time he had woken in a hospital, alone in an unfamiliar world, this time he had survived a brush with death and opened his eyes to Wei Zelin's concerned gaze.

Shi Yuan's lips parted and closed slightly, and a shimmering film of moisture gradually covered his dark eyes.

Damn it, I can't embarrass myself in front of Brother Lin. He stared at the ceiling, afraid tears would spill out, his already round, almond-shaped eyes stretched wide.

"Good heavens, what's wrong with the patient?"

The head nurse, who had just entered, nearly jumped out of her skin. With his deathly pale face and those huge, motionless eyes, Shi Yuan looked like a corpse staring sightlessly.

Wei Zelin withdrew his arm and explained to the head nurse with a smile, "He's fine. Just being mischievous."

The head nurse didn't believe him. She came over herself and placed two fingers against Shi Yuan's neck.

Shi Yuan had intended to keep pretending, but the moment her cool fingers touched him, he couldn't help laughing.

"Haha, hahaha! Don't poke me."

Exasperated and amused, the head nurse gave him several firm pokes. "You seem plenty lively to me. Now that you're better, stop hanging around the hospital. You young people recover quickly. Apply the medicine properly to your fingers, and they'll be fine in a few days."

After hearing that, Wei Zelin stood. "Then I'll go ask the doctor for a prescription and take care of the discharge paperwork."

Shi Yuan instinctively reached for his phone. Wei Zelin wasn't well-off right now either, and he couldn't keep imposing on him.

His hand found nothing, and only then did he remember that his phone seemed to have been smashed and lost. By then, Wei Zelin had already left the room. Shi Yuan could only lie there obediently, planning to pay him back once he bought a new phone.

Just as the head nurse had said, the doctor prescribed only medicine for Shi Yuan's injured hands and told him to rest properly at home for a few days.

Wei Zelin drove him back. Unusually, someone was waiting for them at the main entrance.

That really was a rarity. Shi Yuan looked at the elderly but robust butler. Despite having lived here for so long, he had only seen this busy man a handful of times.

"Young Master Zelin, the master asked me to wait here for you."

Bewildered, Shi Yuan looked at Wei Zelin. Why was the butler, who usually greeted people with his chin raised, being so polite today?

Wei Zelin adjusted his glasses and said calmly, "A little something happened in the Wei Family while you were in the hospital."

The butler thought, A little something? The whole place has been turned upside down.

Wei Zexuan had actually been taken into police custody. This time, no one's protection did him any good. Mr. Ren was determined to press charges against him for deliberately attempting to kill a minor.

They had initially kept the news under wraps, and Mr. Ren's side didn't want public attention either. Unexpectedly, someone around Wei Zexuan leaked it, and newspapers and online platforms scrambled to report it.

When had modern internet users ever seen anything like this? [Tying people to a plank and dragging them behind a ship to feed the sharks in a peaceful society? Isn't that something out of a domineering CEO novel?]

[Can rich people really do whatever they want? If he wakes up in a bad mood tomorrow, is he going to blow up Capital City?]

[The Elm Samara Food Company and Xuanxuan Beverages both belong to his family. What if he poisons their products?]

Speculation ran rampant online, and the Wei Corporation Group's stock plummeted, wiping out billions overnight.

The Wei shareholders were all raising hell, and the mistress of the house was worried sick. Yet that wasn't their only headache...

As they entered the beautiful little Western-style house again, the flowers outside were still blooming gloriously, while the inside remained decadent to the point of absurdity.

"Wei Ming! You worthless bastard! Without me, you'd still be earning scraps at some lousy little company! Everything you eat, wear, and use now came from me and my father! The moment he passed away, you brought in that little bastard born to that bitch Qi Ling. I put up with it. The Wei Family can afford another mouth to feed. But what about them? Who are they?"

The moment Shi Yuan stepped inside, he noticed several strangers in the living room. Mother Wei was pointing at Wei Ming's nose and furiously berating him.

Hearing Wei Zelin and his mother being degraded, Shi Yuan instinctively took a step forward. Everyone present was arguing, and no one paid him any attention. Instead, Wei Zelin, who ought to have been angry, remained as calm as ever, as though the "bitch" his stepmother was insulting wasn't his own mother.

Shi Yuan remembered what had happened last time they sat in that same spot. His presumptuousness had swiftly chilled their relationship to freezing point. Remembering that this formidable man had no need for his empathy, he immediately calmed down.

Sensing the change in his mood, Wei Zelin immediately recalled how he had given Shi Yuan the cold shoulder last time. Regret stirred in him. Carefully avoiding his bandaged fingers, he took Shi Yuan's wrist and comforted him. "Don't take those ugly words to heart. They're cornered beasts. Just let them tear each other apart."

This was the first time Wei Zelin had voiced his true thoughts in front of him. Surprise flickered in Shi Yuan's eyes. He really was that guileless: a single seemingly heartfelt remark from Wei Zelin was enough to make him let go of his old grievances.

The two of them were getting along harmoniously, while the living room had descended into chaos.