The Fifth Renmin Hospital spanned a thousand square meters, located in the busiest and most prosperous area of the Imperial City. It was one of the medical facilities under the Jiang Family's business empire. The hospital had six buildings, each six stories high, and was only open to members of the Jiang Family.
Knock, knock, knock.
The sound of knocking came slowly, three times, with a cautious undertone.
Mr. Jiang.
Inside the hospital room, a man's voice, sounding frail and irritable, said, "Get out."
The man knocking outside was Ah Wan, Jiang Zhi's bodyguard and assistant, about thirty years old. He had a guileless appearance, dark skin, and muscular build, but both his intelligence and emotional quotients were not particularly high.
It was precisely because Ah Wan was not clever enough that his employer had suffered from the cold wind by the seaside last night before being found. Luckily, they had gotten to him before the real perpetrators who had kidnapped him, or else the consequences… were unthinkable.
"Oh." Ah Wan retreated silently, not daring to provoke his employer any further.
Due to the exposure to the cold wind, the pampered and sickly one inside was now ill, coughing intermittently. The young master's temper was not good, especially when he was unwell, and no one dared to provoke him.
Of course, except for the Xue Family's Second Young Master.
"Brother Zhi~" The voice of Xue Baoyi came first before the man himself appeared, his tone casual.
The hospital room door was pushed open with a bang, and a cup was immediately thrown at Xue Baoyi's feet. Jiang Zhi was clearly upset.
There is a saying that goes, "A frown brings two dimples of sorrow, fragrance silk entwines a body of frailty, tears glimmer, and there are soft breaths."
Xue Baoyi felt these words perfectly described Jiang Zhi. He wiped his head; the head of blue-purple dyed hair from before was now shaved clean, in a neat and tidy buzz cut, making his features look more defined and imposing, with a mischievous grin on his face. "Wow, such a temper."
The very temperamental Young Master Jiang was wearing a hospital gown. The plainly styled gown was loosely draped over him, and his skin was extremely fair, lips pale, appearing weak and delicate.
He was clearly angry, coughing heavily with his mouth covered.
Cough, cough, cough...
With every cough from Jiang Zhi, the rims of his alluring eyes turned red, giving off a weak charm.
His appearance really tugged at Mr. Xue's heartstrings.
"Okay, okay, don't be angry," Xue Baoyi coaxed him gently, his joking tone disciplined, "Your delicate body, if hurt by anger, wouldn't that break my little young master's heart?"
The Xue Family's Second Young Master in the capital had no other vice except his fondness for beautiful people. Jiang Zhi's face, he truly found bewitching. He even admired himself for growing up with such a beauty and still remaining straight. What a feat of iron will.
He immediately stepped forward, raising his hand to comfort the beauty.
Jiang Zhi pushed him away disdainfully, his alluring eyes cold. "Did you find out?"
Xue Baoyi grinned, pulling a chair to sit. "I haven't slept all night." Dare to kidnap his brother, did they think the Young Master Xue was dead?
Jiang Zhi was too lazy to banter with him. "Who?"
"The fourth of the Ming Family. I heard it was an attempt at 'hero saves the beauty,' so they kidnapped you." Xue Baoyi laughed nastily. "That face of yours, really always making trouble."
Although the Ming Family didn't have the same background as the Four Great Families, they were still a prominent family in the Imperial City. The fourth miss of the Ming Family was curvy but not too bright, unable to control her eyes, and had been eyeing Jiang Zhi for a long time.
Xue Baoyi played with a cigarette and lighter in his hand but didn't light it. "This has nothing to do with the Ming Family, it's just that fourth fool of theirs wanting to punch above her weight." He raised an eyebrow, asking Jiang Mei Ren, "What do you want to do?"
Jiang Zhi, feeling sick, nestled deeper, his face paler, suppressing his cough. His pink-hued eyes seemed intoxicated yet icy cool. "Throw her into Canghai."
Canghai was on the outskirts of the Imperial City, and Jiang Zhi had been taken there last night.
Xue Baoyi was just about to say he was a law-abiding citizen when the door was pushed open.
"This is a society governed by law, don't do anything rash."
A pair of long legs stepped in first, followed by a face that appeared both charming and roguish. Deep-set eyes, high nose bridge, and thin lips, a mix of elegance and cold disdain.
He was Qiao Family's son, Qiao Nanchu.
Among the Four Great Families of the Imperial City, apart from the reclusive Lu Family, the Jiang, Xue, and Qiao Families had always been close, with the younger generation from the three families often mingling.
Jiang Zhi lazily added, "Just don't kill her."
Xue Baoyi understood his meaning. A bit of pain, huh? This he was good at. Laughing, he agreed, "Got it, my dear ancestor!"
"What happened?" Qiao Nanchu asked, leaning against a cabinet.
Jiang Zhi coughed, a faint blush spreading on his cheeks.
Qiao Nanchu poured a cup of warm water and handed it to him. "I checked the club's surveillance. Only a glimpse of a shadow was captured before the footage malfunctioned." He smirked, a bit of playful mischief in his eyes. "Do you remember anything about the person who took you?"
Jiang Zhi leaned against the pillow, looking fatigued, his beautiful eyes drooping. "Couldn't see clearly." After thinking for a while, "About 1.7 meters tall, quite thin, very strong."
Cough, cough, cough...
He took a few sips of water before speaking again, "Nice eyes." The person wore a hat and mask, in the humid sea breeze. At that time, everything was foggy; he only vaguely saw an outline, not the voice, just remembered that it was nice but very cold.
Qiao Nanchu, arms crossed, finger brushing his lips. "A bit short." 1.7 meters, wondering where the strength to carry him so far came from.
"It's a woman," Jiang Zhi said.
The tone held an inexplicable mix of irritation, partial unwillingness, and dissatisfaction.
The most cherished young master of the Jiang Family had been brought up with utmost care and pampering, never subjected to such hardships, let alone by a woman.
Usually, Brother Zhi's least favorite was women.
Xue Baoyi laughed disrespectfully. "A woman, huh?" Teasing, he said, "Yet you praised her eyes. What, no longer dislike them now?"
Jiang Zhi was openly gay, something he'd personally admitted. Over the years, he indeed had zero interest in women and not much interest in men either, except for a certain 'white moonlight' of his heart.
Jiang Zhi was unwilling to entertain Xue Baoyi, his brows furrowed with anger. His naturally noble and cool eyes losing their usual allure, simply cold.
"She said she was a professional errand runner."
Qiao Nanchu casually tapped on the cabinet. "I know who it is."
Jiang Zhi raised his eyes to look at him.
"I've been on her trail for half a year, codename Z." Qiao Nanchu put down the empty cup he took from Jiang Zhi, rubbing it thoughtfully. "Gender, female; age, unknown; address, unknown; nationality, unknown; top-notch skills."
Professional errand running, as a job title, had only recently gained popularity.
As long as you paid well, the errand runner could get anything done for you. Whether they would commit crimes was still unclear.
"Interpol has been tailing her for a long time but never caught a glimpse. She only arrived in the Imperial City a year ago, with few missions taken, all at high prices and so far, a zero-failure rate."
Qiao Nanchu was a cop, having worked several years in the Criminal Intelligence Department. This case had piqued his interest.
Xue Baoyi was a businessman, uninterested in such troublesome matters. Seeing a colorful candy box on the bedside table, encrusted with tiny diamonds, one could tell whose it was at a glance.
The delicately ornate box, he took it directly.
Jiang Zhi tapped the table slowly. "Don't touch."
Seeing how he cherished it!
Xue Baoyi snorted. "You, a grown man, eating cotton candy, so girly."
Jiang Zhi picked a pink one, tossing it in his mouth, giving him only a cold look.
Truth be told, the Jiang Family's Brother Zhi had a lot of quirks, a bad temper, disliked roses, women, didn't drink, couldn't stand the smell of smoke, and acted like everyone should treat him as a deity.
His temper might be aggressively dominant, but his preferences were quite the opposite. He loved cotton candy, though he didn't eat it often. It was always kept bedside, in his office, and in his resting room, stored in the most exquisite boxes, not to be touched by anyone.
Outside Yuquan Bay, there was a 24-hour convenience store. At this hour, the sky was draped in a layer of kumquat-colored twilight, the sunset sinking, and the store was nearly empty.
At first glance, at the farthest shelf, someone squatted, wearing a black hoodie with the hood up, her ankles revealing smooth, pale skin due to her nine-point pencil pants being slightly rolled up.
"Pink packaging, with a bunny drawn on it." The squatting person turned to ask the girl next to her, "Is there no more of that cotton candy?"
Her phoenix eyes and boat-shaped lips were both cold and distant. She seemed disinclined to smile, lips tight. Her skin was as white as a sheet, translucent even, the last rays of sunset casting a glow on her lashes, lighting up her pupils like stars in a winter desert—bright, yet lonely; a sense of desolation and barrenness.
She was Zhou Xufang, coming to the store every three or four days to buy that pink-packaged cotton candy.