Chapter 75: Xiao Wu’s Account

When I woke up, all I could hear was the noisy chatter of old men and women talking nearby. They were speaking in a local dialect, and I couldn’t understand a single word.

The bed beneath me was soft, and I wanted to laze around a bit longer, but the sunlight outside the window stung my eyes so badly I could barely open them. I struggled to squint, only to see Xiao Wu cheerfully pulling open the curtains, then dragging a metal stool over to sit by my bed.

Still groggy and confused, I watched as Xiao Wu peeled two pears and said, “Young Master, you’re finally awake. If you’d stayed out any longer, you might’ve missed seeing the Boss again.”

His words instantly jolted my long-dormant brain awake. I sat straight up in bed with a sudden jerk, and the back of my head slammed right into the metal bedframe. The pain made me want to swear out loud.

Just then, a nurse making rounds came in. She walked over, adjusted my IV bottle, and said, “You need to take it easy. Your head is wrapped in four or five layers of gauze. I’ve never seen anyone like you, shooting at a pheasant and managing to hit yourself, and even after ending up in the hospital you still can’t lie still.”

I rubbed the back of my head while Xiao Wu chuckled beside me. “You’re absolutely right. My younger brother is always a handful. Sorry for all the trouble he’s caused you lately.”

Once the nurse stepped out, reality finally clicked into place: we had already made it out of Shennongjia. I quickly turned to look at Xiao Wu, who was spearing a piece of pear with his knife and handing it to me.

I asked, “What happened? Weren’t you with me when we fell into the water?”

Before I could finish, Xiao Wu hurriedly gestured for me to stop. Only then did I realize this was a three-bed ward, and the elderly man and woman in the other two beds were chatting about gossip with their family members. I shut my mouth immediately, watching Xiao Wu push himself up slightly to draw the curtain around my bed.

After drawing the curtain, he sat back down and handed me the fruit knife, telling me to eat. I took the knife and started gnawing on the piece of pear, which was almost half the size of my face.

Xiao Wu leaned in closer and whispered, “Young Master, after you pushed me above the water, the young master of the Lu Clan saved me. I don’t know how he reached the river channel, but anyway, he pulled me ashore and then went back to save you. He told me he found a path that could get both of us up to the surface. I was severely injured, and you were still unconscious, so I agreed.”

What happened next was simple. The cave Lu Ayao had climbed down from was very narrow, so he could only carry one person up at a time. Since Xiao Wu had gunshot wounds and multiple fractures, Lu Ayao planned to take him up first and then come back down for me.

Afterwards, once Lu Ayao brought Xiao Wu up, he went back into the cave. But Xiao Wu waited at the camp for three days without seeing Lu Ayao come back up. Then he remembered a radio frequency Lu Ayao had mentioned to him before leaving, so he used the camp’s radio to tune into that channel.

I asked if he heard anything on that frequency at the time. Xiao Wu said no. The channel was very strange; it wasn’t broadcasting anything, just crackling with intermittent static.

He didn’t dare rest. With a broken leg, he couldn’t crawl into the cave to check either. All he could do was clutch the radio in his arms and wait at the camp. After about half an hour, he vaguely saw an expedition team emerge from deeper in the jungle. Without saying a word, they knocked him out and brought him to the county hospital.

Xiao Wu stayed in the hospital for less than four days. He originally planned to head back in once he had mostly recovered, even if it meant dying in there, just to find my body. But to his surprise, I was brought in too. What shocked him even more was that Fourth Brother had come with me.

Xiao Wu’s memory was crystal clear. Thanks to his account, we now had a basic explanation for why Lu Ayao had appeared at the Bronze Pillar. Xiao Wu said he had been walking upstream along the riverbed from downstream when he heard gunshots and happened to rescue us.

Now that gave us a lot to unpack.

Heading upstream didn’t really fit the basic logic of someone exploring a cave. That’s why I suspected Lu Ayao had already set foot in the Bronze Pillar area and had been exploring it for a while. Maybe he had run out of supplies and was going back up to restock.

Xiao Wu said the rope Lu Ayao carried was badly worn, making it quite a struggle to haul him up. That detail indirectly supported my theory.

Lu Ayao had told me he went back to Nanjing, but there was a good chance he had never gone back at all. Instead, he had probably taken a detour straight to Shennongjia, partnering up with someone else. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have left that strange radio frequency for Xiao Wu to call for help.

But he hadn’t expected me to find this place too, so he had to make up a flimsy excuse on the spot to fool me.

Before I could ask any more questions, the door to the hospital room opened. Fourth Brother came in carrying a large, bucket-shaped stainless steel food container. He yanked the curtain open, glared at Xiao Wu, and set the container on the bedside table with a sour expression.

“I spoke to the doctor just now. You’re mostly recovered. In two days, I’ll get you discharged and buy you a ticket home. Stay put and stop poking around. Your mom couldn’t reach you and called asking about you.” Fourth Brother’s voice was low as he opened the container latches layer by layer.

I wasn’t having it. I’d finally found him and wanted to ask some questions, but now he was in such a hurry to drive me away.

I asked right away, “Where’s Hou Jinshan? I still have questions for him.”

“I already told you, stop poking around. Swallow those questions; you won’t be able to ask him anything.” Fourth Brother didn’t even look up as he shoved the bottom layer of plain porridge into my arms.

“Why?” I said. “Fourth Brother, you can’t do this. I’m an adult now. You can’t keep treating me like a child. What on earth happened? Why are you all so tense?”

Fourth Brother’s hand slipped as he set down a dish, causing the stainless steel container to slam onto the bedside table. I felt the surrounding air instantly turn cold as an ice cellar, startling the old lady next door into lowering her voice on the phone without realizing it.

Chen Si’s expression darkened as he looked at me. In a voice only I could hear, he said, “Hou Jinshan is dead. You won’t be getting any answers from him.”

I was stunned by what he said.

Hou Jinshan… is dead?

Fourth Brother instinctively reached into his pocket for a cigarette, but maybe he remembered he was in a hospital room. He stopped and shoved his hand into his jacket pocket instead. He motioned to me and said, “Eat first. We’ll talk after this IV drip finishes.”

I was still trying to process it. A guy like Hou Jinshan wouldn’t die so easily. Or maybe Fourth Brother was just saying that to get me to drop the idea.

You couldn’t go head-to-head with someone like Fourth Brother. I realized then that I needed to change tactics. I had been too impatient before, asking questions that were far too direct. It came off like I was interrogating him. That loud bang of the metal container earlier had already been a warning shot. I couldn’t cross the line again.

So I decided to set the matter aside for now. Picking up some food with my chopsticks while pretending to be obedient, I asked softly, “By the way, Fourth Brother, did you find Liu Wan when you got out?”

“That’s none of your concern. Eat your food.” As expected, Fourth Brother snapped back at me with a harsh tone.

But this time, I didn’t get into a direct clash with him. Softening my voice even more, I said, “That’s not very nice to say. Liu Wan is basically my future sister-in-law, so why shouldn’t I care? You scored big, so shouldn’t you take good care of her?”

When Fourth Brother heard that, he stared at me for a long moment without saying a single word. I guessed his brain hadn’t quite caught up yet and he hadn’t expected me to bring this up. The guy had never even been in a relationship, so he had no choice but to take the hit on a subject like this.

Xiao Wu overheard us too. He managed to hold it in for three minutes before bursting out laughing. Only then did Fourth Brother’s face turn bright red as he told him to shut up, coughed a few times, and said to me:

“Speaking of which, I actually need to tell you something. I can only bring you food one more time before I have to leave. The project with Xiao Wan and the others still isn’t finished.”

I asked, “Is it still the Nine Rings Project?”

Fourth Brother froze, then snapped, “None of your business! Just focus on recovering.”

Then he placed my phone on the bedside table and added, “Call me when you get back to school. And call your mom too. She’s been worried about you.”

Fourth Brother sat with me for a long time, watching me finish my meal. After my last IV drip of the day was done, he pulled Xiao Wu outside and talked to him for ages before letting him back in. When Xiao Wu returned, he told me Fourth Brother had already left and had bought my return ticket, leaving instructions for me to go back on my own once I was discharged.

It was a familiar feeling. When I was little, my mom left our hometown to make a living. Last time, Tian Yuqing dumped me in Gansu. This time, it was Fourth Brother. Fortunately, none of them had left me completely alone. Back then, I had Grandpa. Last time, I had He Yu. This time, I had Xiao Wu.

“So what, did he tell you to keep an eye on me and report back to him if anything happens?” I looked at Xiao Wu.

I must have hit a nerve. He fidgeted under my gaze, gave an awkward smile, and stammered, “Young Master, the stuff you left at the shop was taken by the boss. The box too. We really shouldn’t wade into these murky waters. It’s too dangerous. Let’s just go back obediently, okay?”

I climbed out of bed and crossed my arms, watching Fourth Brother walk out of the inpatient building. Just as he stepped outside, a black business van pulled up right in front of him. What the hell is this guy up to? If he thinks he can shake me off that easily, he’s dreaming.

Once that rebellious streak kicks in, no one can stop it. I picked up the phone from the bedside, twirled it in my hand, and opened my photo album. Staring at the photos of the murals, an idea struck me. I scrolled through my contacts, found a name, and dialed.

The person on the other end picked up right away. “Who is it? I’m eating. What do you want?”

I grinned. “I’ve got something good I want you to take a look at. Interested? I’ll treat you to some stewed noodles.”