Jiang Ren was still protesting his innocence as they took him away.
He had knelt for so long that his legs were too weak to stand. Two Special Investigation Bureau officers hauled him up and dragged him outside. The two orderlies hadn't escaped either. The injections, forged admission documents, and unsigned transfer forms were all confiscated on the spot.
The Xu family's living room was brightly lit, but no one spoke.
Xu Chengyuan stood where he was, his expression thunderous. Zhou Man sat at the edge of the sofa, clutching her silk scarf. Xu Mingji kept his head lowered, his face pale, but his eyes kept darting toward Xu Zhihan.
He was afraid.
Yet resentment mingled with that fear.
Xu Zhihan saw it.
He couldn't be bothered.
Right now, he wanted to go back to his room and sleep. This body felt utterly hollowed out. Forcing Jiang Ren to his knees earlier had looked effortless, but his soul vein was actually aching badly.
Lu Wenchuan stood beside him and turned to look at him. "Want to sit down for a bit?"
Xu Zhihan couldn't even be bothered to lift his eyelids. "Want to shut up?"
Lu Wenchuan wasn't offended by the retort. Instead, he chuckled. "Good. Still got the energy to snap at people."
Xu Zhihan ignored him and turned toward the stairs.
Xu Chengyuan finally spoke. "Stop."
Xu Zhihan stopped walking.
Everyone in the living room looked over.
Xu Chengyuan stared at his back, his voice heavy. "Haven't you caused enough trouble today?"
Xu Zhihan slowly turned around.
"I caused trouble?"
His face was pale, but his eyes were cold.
Xu Chengyuan said, "First you brought the Special Investigation Bureau into our home, then you humiliated Director Jiang in front of everyone. Xu Zhihan, have you considered what people will say about our family tomorrow?"
Xu Zhihan listened, then fell silent for two seconds.
Then he said, "That's what you're worried about?"
Xu Chengyuan frowned.
Xu Zhihan looked toward Jiang Ren as he was taken out the door, his tone flat. "There was a Soul-Suppressing Altar hidden in the basement. People from the Sanatorium came to our door with sedatives. You're not worried about who died, who was locked away, or who was harmed. All you care about is what people will say about the Xu family."
Xu Chengyuan's expression stiffened.
Xu Zhihan continued, "Xu Chengyuan, you've certainly made being a father easy for yourself."
Xu Mingji couldn't help lifting his head. "Brother, Dad's doing this for the family too."
Xu Zhihan looked at him. "Want to cry again?"
Xu Mingji instantly shut his mouth.
Zhou Man finally couldn't take it anymore. She stood up, her voice trembling. "Zhihan, will you only be satisfied once you've torn this family apart? You used to be so considerate."
Xu Zhihan glanced at her.
"The considerate Xu Zhihan is already dead."
At those words, Zhou Man's face went white.
Xu Mingji froze too.
This was already the second time Xu Zhihan had said something like that.
The first time, they had thought he was simply resentful and lashing out. Hearing it again now, however, sent an inexplicable chill through them.
Lu Wenchuan looked at Xu Zhihan.
His gaze lingered briefly before he looked away.
Xu Zhihan's words sounded like something said in anger, but Lu Wenchuan didn't think they were.
There were too many things about this person that didn't add up.
His frail body, his unfamiliar soul, his ability to judge evil spirits, and that excessively calm look in his eyes when he studied people.
Lu Wenchuan was in no hurry to ask.
Xu Zhihan wouldn't tell him.
Asking would be pointless.
Xu Chengyuan suppressed his anger. "What exactly do you want?"
Xu Zhihan said indifferently, "You've asked that a lot tonight."
Xu Chengyuan's expression darkened further.
Xu Zhihan slowly descended the last step and stood in the living room again. His body was weak, but he held his shoulders and back straight.
"Who is Xu An? Why is his soul in the basement? Who tampered with my medication all these years? How did He Guilan die? What's Jiang Ren's connection to the Xu family?"
With every question, Zhou Man's face grew a shade paler.
Xu Chengyuan didn't answer.
Xu Zhihan hadn't expected him to answer now anyway.
"Until these things are cleared up, stop bothering me with the word 'family.'"
The living room remained silent for a long time.
Xu Chengyuan finally said, "You have no evidence."
Xu Zhihan looked at him and suddenly smiled.
"You'd better keep thinking that."
Xu Chengyuan's heart sank.
He hated Xu Zhihan's current attitude.
In the past, even when Xu Zhihan felt wronged, he would only remain silent. Now he neither argued nor made a scene, yet he was like a blade hanging over all their heads.
No one knew when it would fall.
Lu Wenchuan broke the deadlock. "Mr. Xu, Special Investigation Bureau personnel will remain at the Xu Residence tonight. The basement will be sealed, and everyone involved will be questioned tomorrow morning."
Xu Chengyuan looked at him coldly. "Are you putting the Xu family under surveillance, Captain Lu?"
Lu Wenchuan smiled. "Surveillance sounds so unpleasant. We're preserving the scene."
"You're not welcome here."
"That's fine." Lu Wenchuan's tone was light. "I've got thick skin."
Xu Zhihan turned to look at him.
That sounded familiar.
Noticing his gaze, Lu Wenchuan raised an eyebrow at him.
Xu Zhihan looked away.
Annoying.
The Special Investigation Bureau officers soon took up positions at the basement entrance and in one corner of the living room. The Xu family's servants were called in for questioning. When an officer took Zhou Man aside to question her, she was trembling all over.
Xu Mingji wanted to follow her, but Lu Wenchuan stopped him.
"You need to be questioned too."
Xu Mingji went pale. "About what? I really don't know anything about the basement."
Lu Wenchuan smiled amiably. "Don't be nervous. Tell us what you know. If you don't know something, just say so."
Xu Mingji had barely breathed a sigh of relief when Lu Wenchuan added, "But don't lie. In our line of work, we're not very friendly to liars."
Xu Mingji's hands began trembling again.
Xu Zhihan watched with some disdain.
So little nerve, yet he still tried to hurt people.
He turned and headed upstairs.
This time, no one dared stop him.
Only after returning to his room and closing the door did Xu Zhihan brace himself against the edge of the desk and cough softly several times.
Blood seeped between his fingers.
He wiped it away without expression. Just as he was about to sit down, two knocks came at the window.
Xu Zhihan looked up.
Lu Wenchuan stood outside the window, holding a bottle of water and a box of medicine.
Xu Zhihan: "..."
He walked over and opened the window, his expression cold. "There's a door. Why aren't you using it?"
Lu Wenchuan climbed in with movements so practiced that this clearly wasn't his first time. "Too many people in the living room. Using the door would've been a hassle."
Xu Zhihan held out his hand. "Medicine."
Lu Wenchuan handed it over and unscrewed the water bottle while he was at it.
Xu Zhihan glanced at him.
Lu Wenchuan immediately explained, "Just being helpful. Nothing else."
Xu Zhihan took the medicine and swallowed it.
It took effect quickly, easing the pain in his chest a little. He leaned against the desk, his complexion still poor.
Lu Wenchuan looked at him. "You pushed too hard today."
Xu Zhihan said coldly, "Is that your business?"
"For now, yes," Lu Wenchuan said. "You're connected to the Xu family, the basement, and Jiang Ren. If you collapse, it'll be a headache for me."
At the word "headache," Xu Zhihan's brow shifted slightly.
"Then stay out of it."
Lu Wenchuan chuckled. "Can't do that. I take my job fairly seriously."
Xu Zhihan said nothing more.
Lu Wenchuan didn't stay long either. Before leaving, he only said, "Xu Chengyuan took a loss tonight. Tomorrow, he might not act out in the open."
Xu Zhihan looked at him.
Lu Wenchuan said, "He can't touch the scene or the Special Investigation Bureau. That leaves you."
Xu Zhihan lowered his eyes. "Let him try."
Lu Wenchuan raised an eyebrow.
Xu Zhihan's voice was utterly indifferent. "The more he does, the more he exposes."
Lu Wenchuan looked at him and suddenly smiled.
"Young Master Xu, you really aren't afraid of trouble."
Xu Zhihan set the water bottle back on the desk.
"I am."
Lu Wenchuan was taken aback.
Xu Zhihan lifted his eyes, his tone cold. "That's why I want to settle it all in one go."
Lu Wenchuan laughed softly.
"All right. Ruthless enough."
With that, he climbed back out through the window.
Xu Zhihan watched the window close. At last, the room fell quiet.
But that quiet didn't last long.
His phone screen lit up.
A message came from an unknown number.
[Xu Zhihan, are you determined to destroy the Xu family?]
Xu Zhihan looked at it for two seconds, then deleted it.
Another message popped up.
[Aren't you afraid people will find out how you're treating Mom, Dad, and Mingji?]
Xu Zhihan's fingertip paused.
A moment later, he gave a soft laugh.
The Xu family really couldn't sit still anymore.
They were preparing to take this public.