Xu Chengyuan stood in the living room doorway, his expression darkening by degrees.
He had just heard what Xu Mingji said.
He Xiaoyun was still alive.
The name drove like a nail straight into the past he least wanted to revisit.
Zhou Man sat on the floor, her hair disheveled and her makeup smeared. She looked up at Xu Chengyuan, her lips moving, but couldn't form a complete sentence.
Xu Mingji stood beside her, his eyes red and his face deathly pale.
There was no one else in the living room.
Zhou Man had already sent the servants away.
But Xu Chengyuan knew it was too late.
If Xu Zhihan could connect to the screen in the Xu Family's living room, he already knew a great deal. He might even have recorded Zhou Man's call with Zhou Qiliang just now.
Xu Chengyuan's first instinct wasn't to ask whether Zhou Man had hurt anyone.
He only wanted to know how much evidence Xu Zhihan had.
"Who told you?"
Xu Chengyuan looked at Xu Mingji, his voice low.
Under his gaze, Xu Mingji took a small step back.
"Just now... my brother made a video call."
Xu Chengyuan briefly closed his eyes.
Just as I thought.
Zhou Man finally recovered a little and reached for Xu Chengyuan's trouser leg. "Chengyuan, let me explain. I really never meant for things to turn out like this. And I couldn't have done everything back then on my own."
Xu Chengyuan looked down at her.
Those words grated more than any plea for mercy could have.
Even now, Zhou Man wanted to drag him down with her.
Xu Chengyuan's expression turned utterly cold.
"Shut up."
Zhou Man froze.
Xu Chengyuan slowly bent down, his voice very soft. "From now on, don't say another careless word."
The look in his eyes sent a sudden chill through Zhou Man.
After so many years with Xu Chengyuan, she knew this man all too well.
He wasn't necessarily frightening when he was angry.
He was truly frightening when he was calm.
Zhou Man trembled as she said, "Are you going to throw me to the wolves?"
Xu Chengyuan didn't answer.
Xu Mingji understood, too.
He looked at Xu Chengyuan in disbelief. "Dad, are you going to abandon Mom?"
Xu Chengyuan raised his eyes to him. "Do you know what your mother has done?"
Xu Mingji fell silent.
He didn't know everything.
But what he had just heard was enough to frighten him.
He Guilan.
He Xiaoyun.
Xu An.
And the medication Xu Zhihan had taken all these years.
Every single thing involved Zhou Man.
Xu Mingji wanted to speak up for Zhou Man, but couldn't get the words out.
Watching his expression, Xu Chengyuan's gaze grew colder. "What you need to do now is keep your mouth shut."
Xu Mingji's eyes grew even redder. "Dad..."
"Crying won't solve anything," Xu Chengyuan interrupted. "You've cried enough these past few days."
Xu Mingji went pale.
Those words hit harder than any scolding.
All his life, crying had been his most effective weapon. Xu Chengyuan would soften, Zhou Man would stand up for him, and even the servants would pity him.
But now, for the first time, Xu Chengyuan had told him plainly that crying no longer worked.
Zhou Man panicked. "Don't talk to Mingji like that! He doesn't know anything. Everything was my-"
Before she could finish, Xu Chengyuan snapped his gaze toward her.
Zhou Man immediately fell silent.
Xu Chengyuan took out his phone and dialed a number.
"Find out where Zhou Qiliang is. And contact the lawyer. Tell him to come to the Xu Family's house immediately."
After hanging up, he looked at Zhou Man again. "Where is He Xiaoyun now?"
Zhou Man's lips trembled. "The Special Investigation Bureau."
That answer darkened Xu Chengyuan's gaze further.
Once someone was inside the Special Investigation Bureau, it became difficult to get to them.
Instead of posting everything online, Xu Zhihan had brought He Xiaoyun back first. That meant he wanted more than to publicly humiliate them.
He wanted evidence.
He wanted the old cases reopened.
He wanted every one of them in the Xu Family to pay their debts.
For the first time, Xu Chengyuan clearly realized that Xu Zhihan was no longer the sickly son they had kept locked upstairs, sustained by medication.
He could wait, lay traps, and find everyone's deepest fears to press down on.
Most troubling of all, he had Lu Wenchuan at his side.
At the thought of that name, Xu Chengyuan's expression worsened.
Still sitting on the floor, Zhou Man sobbed quietly. "Chengyuan, nothing can happen to me. What will Mingji do if it does? You promised me you'd let Mingji marry into the Gu Family..."
"The Gu Family can barely save themselves."
Xu Chengyuan's voice was icy.
"And you're still thinking about them?"
Zhou Man stared blankly.
Standing beside her, Xu Mingji slowly clenched his fingers.
The Gu Family was finished.
The engagement was gone.
His reputation online was ruined, too.
Now even Zhou Man might be in trouble.
Suddenly, Xu Mingji felt the solid ground that had always supported him crumbling away beneath his feet.
He wanted to cling to Xu Chengyuan.
But the way Xu Chengyuan looked at him was no longer as gentle as before.
For the first time, Xu Mingji feared he would be abandoned.
Meanwhile, in the Special Investigation Bureau's medical room, Xu Zhihan leaned against the headboard and watched the screen go completely black.
Lu Wenchuan sat beside him, holding a freshly printed call record.
"Zhou Man panicked."
Xu Zhihan gave a quiet hum of acknowledgment.
He still looked unwell. His chest had felt tight ever since he used He Guilan's resentment.
Song Zhixia had come to warn him earlier.
Her exact words were that if he acted recklessly again, she would tie him to the bed.
Xu Zhihan had given her a look.
Song Zhixia had looked right back, without backing down in the slightest.
In the end, Lu Wenchuan had changed the subject.
At the memory, Xu Zhihan frowned again.
The people on the Medical Team were noisy, too.
Lu Wenchuan set the record on the table. "We've already sent people to arrest Zhou Qiliang. He Xiaoyun's testimony, the Sanatorium's files, and Zhou Man's call just now are enough to hold him for the time being."
Xu Zhihan asked, "What about Zhou Man?"
"We're still a little short," Lu Wenchuan said. "She'll say she only knew about it, and Zhou Qiliang was the one who actually did it. He Guilan died too long ago. There's no autopsy, no evidence from the scene. To arrest her, we need to get her to say more herself."
Xu Zhihan lowered his eyes.
"She will."
Lu Wenchuan looked at him. "You want He Guilan to keep going after her?"
Xu Zhihan didn't answer.
Lu Wenchuan lowered his voice a little. "Xu Zhihan, He Guilan's resentment is very strong right now. Borrowing it once is fine, but if you keep doing it, she could easily lose control."
Xu Zhihan looked at him. "Are you warning me?"
"Yes."
"Are you afraid I'll lose control, or that she will?"
Lu Wenchuan thought for a moment. "Both."
Xu Zhihan was silent for several seconds.
This was what made Lu Wenchuan troublesome.
He never pretended to be completely fearless.
He felt fear, weighed his options, hesitated, and admitted all of it.
That made it harder for Xu Zhihan to simply drive him away.
He said coldly, "I know what I'm doing."
Lu Wenchuan smiled faintly. "Every time you say that, I feel less certain."
Xu Zhihan looked at him. "That's your problem."
Lu Wenchuan nodded. "Fine. My problem."
A knock came at the door.
A young team member poked his head in, his voice urgent. "Captain, we found Zhou Qiliang."
Lu Wenchuan looked up. "Where is he?"
"He was trying to flee. We stopped him at the airport. He had a fake passport on him, along with an old memory card."
Xu Zhihan raised his eyes.
Lu Wenchuan stood, the smile fading from his face.
"What's on the memory card?"
The team member swallowed.
"Lin Wan's medication records from back then, and a backup of the surveillance footage from the day before Xu An entered the Xu Family's basement."
The medical room fell silent.
Xu Zhihan's fingertips stirred slightly.
A moment later, he said, "Bring it here."
The team member didn't move, sneaking a glance at Lu Wenchuan.
Lu Wenchuan looked at Xu Zhihan, too.
"You need rest right now."
Xu Zhihan's face was expressionless. "Bring it here."
Lu Wenchuan sighed.
"Fine, but you only get to watch it once."
Xu Zhihan looked at him.
Lu Wenchuan added, "That's Song Zhixia's limit, and mine."
Xu Zhihan said coldly, "Since when did you have a limit?"
Lu Wenchuan smiled.
"Since just now."