Post-abuse stress response

After hesitating for a long time, Wan Haihui finally made the call.

"Is this Dr. Ji? That young man Fu and I brought in today-there's no one at home for him. Please keep an extra eye on him during these two days in the hospital, and let me know if anything comes up."

Fu Hanchuan glanced over out of the corner of his eye.

Wan Haihui casually tapped the speakerphone button.

"Do you mean Mr. Wen? But he just left," came the puzzled voice on the other end.

Wan Haihui: "..."

"He left!?"

"We were going to admit him, but he said he had something urgent to do, and we couldn't make him stay. He took his medicine and left."

"..."

Wan Haihui swallowed and gave a dry laugh. "All right, understood. Thanks for all your work today."

"It's nothing. Just doing our job. But next time, you should bring him in for a full examination. Has he had stomach surgery before? Has he swallowed any foreign objects, or has someone fed him any? From what I saw, Mr. Wen's stomach and esophagus... have severe ulceration. He probably has some difficulty eating even on a normal day."

"Also, that line on Mr. Wen's abdomen..."

Wan Haihui said, "That's enough! We understand!"

Help! Please stop talking!!!

The young man on the other end fell silent. After a moment's hesitation, his compassion as a doctor won out, and he couldn't help offering one more piece of advice.

"You should still persuade Mr. Wen to come in for an examination as soon as possible. The sooner he gets treatment, the less he'll have to suffer, at least."

The call ended.

Wan Haihui stole a glance at the man beside him.

Fu Hanchuan looked grim, as though he were holding back towering waves, and the air around him had already dropped to freezing.

In an office at the hospital, Ji Shenhuai stared at the examination report on his computer, his brows tightly furrowed.

"Oh, Dr. Ji, why are you still looking at that? Didn't Wen Yanyu leave ages ago?"

A young woman rolled her chair over, holding a cup of goji berry tea. As she did, she casually picked up a ballpoint pen and slipped it into her pocket.

Ji Shenhuai came back to himself and rubbed his temple. "I just keep feeling that something's wrong with that patient's condition."

"Oh, Dr. Ji, you didn't know, did you? That patient's a celebrity. Celebrities probably have to watch their weight all the time, so their stomachs aren't very healthy."

The woman took a sip of hot tea. Remembering how panicked Fu Hanchuan had looked when he brought Wen Yanyu in-the same Fu Hanchuan who supposedly loathed him, according to the internet-she clicked her tongue softly.

Online gossip really couldn't be trusted completely.

Ji Shenhuai shook his head and adjusted the gold-rimmed glasses on his nose. "I suspect he's suffered prolonged abuse."

"!" The woman nearly slid off her chair in shock. "R-really? In this day and age? How is that possible? If he had, wouldn't he have called the police long ago?"

He recalled how, when the man was first brought in and given an injection, he had instinctively resisted and shown fear even in his dazed state, along with his resistance to anesthetics and his adaptation to pain.

And how, when the nurse removed his needle earlier, he had shut his eyes, afraid to look at it, his leg muscles trembling while his upper body went rigid.

To make sure, Ji Shenhuai had asked him a few common-knowledge questions, only to find that he couldn't concentrate at all, that his cognition was disordered, and that he looked anxious and frightened after seeing what Ji Shenhuai was wearing.

It was a very typical post-abuse stress response.

The wound on his waist had clearly been cruelly opened little by little with a blunt instrument, then carelessly stitched shut. The cluster of marks near the wound had plainly been left by cigarette burns, an obvious display of twisted amusement. He had even survived injuries like those.

That person was most likely a "doctor" with strong sadistic urges.

"I'm probably not wrong."

Remembering several patients he had encountered abroad, Ji Shenhuai's gaze darkened slightly. He closed the documents in his hands and noted down the contact information the man had left.

I can't just leave this alone.

Water kept running in the bathroom.

Wen Yanyu curled up in the bathtub and looked through the information Li Lan had sent him.

The lifestyle variety show "Let's Travel Together" had invited him to take part in a month-long livestream, with over three million in pay for one installment. Naturally, there was no reason to refuse.

Filming would begin in three days.

But Wen Yanyu pressed a hand to his forehead. He had left the painkillers he'd finally managed to get prescribed at the male lead's house.

Help!!!

My medicine!!!

I've already caused him so much trouble.

Although he now seemed to be able to control his body freely, who could say what would happen in the future? Throwing himself at the man again would be going too far.

Fortunately, although the doctor this time had been a little strange, he had been very accommodating and prescribed him new painkillers. Otherwise, he wouldn't have known how to endure it.

He had only a little over three years left until his death date in the plot, even counting generously.

Although Bad Dog had said he was free now, past lessons had left him skeptical. Besides, whether this body could even last three years was a question.

Wen Yanyu lowered his eyes and sighed.

I'll make some money and properly enjoy this last bit of freedom.

[Let's Travel Together V]: This installment welcomes @Lu Mingxu V, @Sang Yu V, @Duan Mufeng V, @Jiang Keyan V, @Jiang Wanrou V, and @Wen Yanyu V to live together for the coming month. Tune in to the livestream on Eggplant in three days.

"Bro Lu and Xiao Yu! My ship! They're together!!"

"Hehe, getting to film a variety show with your wife-Lu Mingxu, you must be secretly thrilled."

"...Somebody's fans need to stop. Our Bro Lu only acted in one drama with your fave. How long has it been? Haven't you leeched off him enough?"

"Ooh, someone's mad. His possessive solo fans are panicking now that his real girlfriend's here. Hate her all you like. Your precious idol loves her to death anyway."

"Are you nuts? Try linking them together again, I dare you. Your fandom forced him to issue two statements before, and Bro Lu was so disgusted that he outright refused the role. Go on, try hyping up that childhood friend of your fave's again."

"Wen Yanyu... He's not dead? Great, I can already imagine the trouble he'll stir up on the show. Fu Hanchuan really has it rough, having someone like that pursuing him."

"Where's this installment being filmed? I'm curious."

The show's popularity kept climbing before it had even aired.

At the airport, Wen Yanyu pulled his coat around himself and picked up his luggage, ready to board.

Seeing how frail Wen Yanyu looked, having lost even more weight, Li Lan choked up. "Remember to check that you've packed all your medicine. Once you get to the village, make sure you eat on time and take care of yourself."

Knowing that the organizers couldn't have had good intentions in inviting her artist, yet unable to do anything when this was the only job he could take, Li Lan couldn't help her eyes reddening.

"Mhm, I know. It's only a month. I'll take care of myself." Wen Yanyu hugged the worried woman.

"All right, go on. Remember to call me when you arrive." Li Lan wiped away her tears.

Wen Yanyu put on his mask, waved to her, and turned to walk into the airport.

Not far away, Shen Huainan lowered his phone, then immediately posted the photo in their four-person group chat.

[Shen Huainan: I saw Wen Yanyu at the airport. Looks like he's going to the mountains to film a show. @Fu Hanchuan, your trouble's leaving. You'll have some peace for a while. Happy?]

(Frowning dragon.jpg)

[Gu Fengyao: Why's he wearing so much in the middle of summer? Isn't he hot?]

[Shen Huainan: He's lost a ton of weight, and he's unsteady even when he walks. Probably still hasn't recovered from what happened last time.]

[Gu Fengyao: Must be nice being young. Who's the woman beside him?]

[Shen Huainan: His manager, maybe? They seem pretty close. That woman really cares about Wen Yanyu.]

The two of them began chatting back and forth in the group.

Every so often, they tagged Fu Hanchuan.

[Wan Haihui: You two seem to have a lot of free time lately?]

[Gu Fengyao: I refuse to be a workaholic.]

[Shen Huainan: Older sister above me, younger sister below me. I just collect my dividends and coast.]

[Wan Haihui: Get lost, both of you.]