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Jiang Xue insisted on letting Zhang Qiu return to the hospital to rest. The two of them packed a large bag of food from KFC, including fried fries, corn on the cob, and chicken nuggets. When they met again, both had endless things to say. Jiang Xue hugged Zhang Qiu from behind, resting her head against his back, and softly said, "Zhang Qiu."
"Mm?"
"Now, can you talk to me?"
"I can." Zhang Qiu didn't intend to hide anything from Jiang Xue; in fact, he couldn't hide it at all. "When I returned to the bar at noon and found you weren't there, I immediately realized something was wrong. I thought Chen Hu had taken you, so I brought people to confront Azure Blue Rose and demanded you back. Then a fight broke out. They had more people than us, and we suffered a lot. It only ended when the patrolling police saw us. Thankfully, that heavy rain washed away the traces on the ground; otherwise, the situation would have been much worse."
"What happened next?" Jiang Xue felt a surge of anxiety as she recalled what the police had said to Zhang Qiu earlier; it seemed there was some unspoken implication.
"Then I got arrested. The police were getting closer and closer to us, and someone had to stay behind, so I chose to stay and let Yang Yu take the Brothers away."
"You got caught, right?" Jiang Xue's heart sank; she knew all too well what being caught meant.
"Yes, I was caught. Rui Rui was arrested with me; she insisted on staying. And..." Zhang Qiu paused for a moment. "In the police car, I held Rui Rui."
"Mm." Jiang Xue also paused and asked, "So how did you get out?"
"I sneaked out. The police who arrested me returned to the station, and I happened to know the person who was supposed to guard me. While I was in the hospital recovering from my injuries, the nurse was Wang Jinghan; she helped me get some clothes. Sister Lan informed me about the police investigation, which led to this plan."
Jiang Xue was deeply shocked and after a long while asked, "What will the police do with you?"
"I'm not sure. My uncle called me once and said at least six months." Zhang Qiu sighed helplessly; prison wasn't the scariest part—what terrified him most was his family's disappointment.
After a moment of silence, Jiang Xue asked, "Do you regret it?"
"I don't regret it."
"I feel like I've let you down." Jiang Xue leaned against Zhang Qiu's back, feeling an overwhelming sense of helplessness.
Zhang Qiu held Jiang Xue's hand and chuckled, "Silly girl, don't be ridiculous."
The two walked in silence as Zhang Qiu led Jiang Xue to the county hospital, locking the motorcycle before heading straight to the ward. He had already been out for too long, a full hour longer than expected. The fact that he was able to come out meant that both Wang Jinghan and Liu Hua had taken on significant risks, especially Liu Hua, who was not officially registered. If caught, he could lose his job.
Zhang Qiu hurriedly walked with Jiang Xue, pushing open the ward door. Just as he was about to cheerfully announce, "We're back," he noticed his uncle sitting in a chair, staring at him. Liu Hua and another police officer stood nervously with their heads down, while Wang Jinghan stuck her tongue out at Zhang Qiu.
Zhang Qiu quickly composed himself and called out, "Uncle, you’re here."
He Jun was dressed in casual clothes: a gray short-sleeved shirt on top and black trousers below, with only his shoes being the same white ones he wore to work. After receiving a call from Ma Zhen about Zhang Qiu's arrest, He Jun had been worried. He changed into casual clothes that evening to visit, only to find that Zhang Qiu had "escaped"!
He Jun sternly reprimanded the negligent police officer and sat down with a cold expression after realizing Zhang Qiu would return. More than half an hour passed before Zhang Qiu finally walked in. He Jun immediately noticed Jiang Xue entering with Zhang Qiu but chose to ignore her and said directly, "Zhang Qiu, do you know what the consequences are for escaping during treatment?"
Zhang Qiu knew he was in the wrong and could see his uncle was angry, so he decided not to respond. After all, he had managed to get out and rescue Jiang Xue; as for everything else, there was no need to worry too much.
"Increase the sentence!" He Jun emphasized. "There’s only one month left until the college entrance exam. You won’t make it; just prepare to spend your youth in prison! Let’s see how your parents react when they find out!"
Zhang Qiu remained silent, but Wang Jinghan couldn’t hold back any longer and defended him, saying, "Uncle, Zhang Qiu did this to save me. He didn’t intend to escape; as soon as he saw me, he came back."
"Came back immediately?" He Jun scoffed, eyeing the shopping bag Jiang Xue was holding, which prominently displayed the three letters K F.
Jiang Xue looked embarrassed, holding the shopping bag awkwardly. Zhang Qiu stepped forward and said, "Uncle, all of this is my fault. No matter what consequences arise, I am willing to bear them. Since I did it, I should take responsibility; I have nothing more to argue about. Please don’t make it difficult for others."
He Jun stood up abruptly and slapped Zhang Qiu across the face with a crisp sound. A clear five-finger mark immediately appeared on Zhang Qiu's face. Both Jiang Xue and Wang Jinghan rushed in front of Zhang Qiu and shouted almost simultaneously, "What are you doing!"
He Jun glared angrily at them, his right hand still raised slightly trembling in the air. Looking at Jiang Xue and Wang Jinghan blocking his way, He Jun mocked, "You’re quite popular; so many women are here to protect you."
Zhang Qiu felt a surge of anger rising within him after enduring so much from Chen Hu, Mao Tong, Liu Xiaolong, and Lu Bin; now he had to face this from his own family as well. Nevertheless, Zhang Qiu held back his rage tightly clenching his fists as if he wanted to punch the wall. Suddenly, he began coughing violently and spat blood onto Wang Jinghan's nurse uniform's back, causing a vibrant flower of red to bloom on her pink outfit.
“Zhang Qiu!” Wang Jinghan and Jiang Xue quickly supported Zhang Qiu, helping him lie down on the bed. He Jun hurried to the bedside and asked anxiously, “How is he?” Then he turned to Liu Hua, who was standing by the wall, and shouted, “Go call a doctor!”
Liu Hua acknowledged and rushed out. Wang Jinghan looked at He Jun and snorted coldly, expressing her dissatisfaction. “This is all because of you. Zhang Qiu has multiple injuries and needs to rest; his emotions must not be disturbed.”
He Jun listened like a student being scolded by a teacher, not daring to retort. Despite his anger and frustration, he couldn’t deny that Zhang Qiu was his own nephew. He looked at Wang Jinghan and said, “Please make sure he gets better. I’ll listen to you; I won’t interfere anymore.”
“You can discuss that with the doctor,” Wang Jinghan replied, having seen He Jun slap Zhang Qiu earlier, leaving her with no good feelings toward this uncle.
Zhang Qiu lay on the hospital bed, having stopped coughing. With a half-true, half-fake weak appearance, he said, “Uncle, I want to ask you for a favor. Of course, it’s not about my situation.”
“You!” He Jun saw Zhang Qiu in this state and spoke with urgency. Years of cultivated composure flew out the window; he almost wanted to agree immediately.
“What happened?” Dr. Li entered with a rush, looking at Wang Jinghan and asking, “What’s wrong with the patient?”
“He coughed up blood,” Wang Jinghan replied while turning to show Dr. Li the bloodstains on her clothes from where Zhang Qiu had vomited.
Dr. Li frowned deeply and approached Zhang Qiu for an examination. “What just happened?”
No one answered Dr. Li’s question. Neither Wang Jinghan as a nurse nor He Jun as a family member could respond, nor could Liu Hua as the guard; how could they reveal their own shortcomings?
Zhang Qiu stepped in to ease the tension. “I just went to the restroom; it seems I overestimated myself.”
Dr. Li looked at Zhang Qiu with skepticism. He understood Zhang Qiu's remarkable recovery ability and advised him, “Make sure to rest and don’t move around too much; isn’t there a urinal for using the restroom?”
“Doctor, how is Zhang Qiu doing?”
“He’s fine; coughing up blood seems like an acute reaction. I really can’t figure out how going to the restroom could cause such an acute reaction, but there’s no major issue; you can rest assured.” Dr. Li reassured everyone before looking at He Jun, who had asked him a question, and then at Jiang Xue standing by the bedside looking dirty. He frowned and said, “The patient needs a good recovery environment; there shouldn’t be so many people in the ward.”
Dr. Li looked at Liu Hua, who had called him over, and thought to himself, Aren't you a police officer? He said, "Comrade Police, does your department allow visits for those under custody? I hope that unrelated individuals are not allowed in; the patient needs to rest. If the patient recovers well, you can take him back sooner, right?"
Liu Hua awkwardly glanced at He Jun and introduced him to Dr. Li, saying, "This is our Public Security Bureau's Director He."
"Oh, Director He! My apologies, I didn't realize it was you here." Dr. Li was taken aback and scrutinized He Jun again, saying seriously, "But I must remind you that the patient needs rest; please ask him fewer questions."
"Thank you, Doctor. Don't worry; he is my nephew, and I won't harm him."
Dr. Li cast a suspicious glance at Zhang Qiu and then at He Jun, feeling confused. Zhang Qiu had been arrested for a crime; when did he become Police Chief Wang Guodong's nephew? Would Police Chief Wang Guodong dare to arrest his own nephew? Dr. Li shook his head, thinking that the director must have come to rescue his nephew. With that thought in mind, Dr. Li said, "I have other matters to attend to, so I'll take my leave."
After Dr. Li left, He Jun asked Zhang Qiu, "Zhang Qiu, what was it you wanted me to help with earlier?"
Zhang Qiu turned to look at Liu Hua and forced himself to sit up slightly. Jiang Xue placed a pillow behind Zhang Qiu's back and supported him personally. Zhang Qiu said earnestly, "Uncle, what do you plan to do about Liu Hua and the other two?"
"How to handle it?" He Jun raised his voice; just mentioning those two filled him with anger. There were cases of suspects escaping while under guard—some because the guards were sleeping, some due to unauthorized shift changes, and others because suspects were taken to the restroom and managed to escape—but there had never been a case of actively letting suspects go free. The more He Jun thought about it, the angrier he became; these two had brought shame upon the Public Security Bureau. He Jun exclaimed angrily, "They should be dealt with according to criminal law; like you, they should be detained for at least six months. And that's without causing any major issues; if something serious happens, they could be locked up for several years."
Liu Hua nearby was sweating coldly when he heard Zhang Qiu say, "What I'm thinking is to let them go; just pretend nothing happened."
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