A pond full of blooming flowers, an ultimate addiction.

White walls, white sheets, Jiang Yi lay quietly on them, her face pale, her messy hair scattered on the sheets, one hand wrapped in bandages, the other with an IV drip, her thin body looking even more frail at this moment.

He was still wearing that blood-stained shirt. The nurse said that when Jiang woke up, he clutched the shirt tightly, so they had to cut off the sleeve to perform the surgery.

"Brother Yang, I'll go take care of the rest." Chi Ruiche, who had been silent all along, turned his head away from the pale Jiang Yi. The person who was acting coquettishly just a moment ago was now lying quietly on the hospital bed.

"Okay, thank you for your help." Jiang Yang knew that with Chi Ruiche there, he would help Jiang Yi clean up the mess. "Let's not tell Grandpa about this yet, let's wait until Xiao Yi wakes up."

While Lü Haotian and the others waited outside the operating room, one of them wondered, "Isn't this young master Li from the mayor's family?" He remembered hearing that name at a banquet once.

“He can’t die. If he stabs someone, it will be hard to say who did it. His underlings were all there, and Xiao Yi is the prime suspect.”

The red light went out, and the doctor, exhausted, came out. Mayor Li and his wife rushed over as well: "How is my son?"

"I'm sorry, we did our best." The doctor issued the death certificate: "Your son died at 9:48 PM."

"How could this be? Why? Who did my son offend? Who is so cruel as to want his life?" Mrs. Li threw herself into her husband's arms, and her wailing echoed down the corridor.

Mayor Li Yingwei's expression also turned solemn. His male pride prevented him from venting his emotions. He suppressed his grief over the loss of his son and saw two young men standing beside him.

"Were you the two who brought my son to the hospital?" Li Yingwei calmed himself, suppressing his grief and anger. Having navigated the treacherous waters of officialdom and seen countless people, his intuition told him that things were not simple, and these two people were no ordinary individuals either.

"We just arrived too, and we're not entirely sure what happened." Being shrewd people, Lü Haotian clearly told him not to try and find out anything from him.

"Regardless, thank you both." Li Yingwei wasn't going to be fooled; he knew these two were deliberately hiding something.

"Then we'll take our leave first." They have more important matters to attend to, and given their grief over the loss of their son, they shouldn't linger.

When Lü Haotian and Abu arrived at the ward, only Jiang Yang was there. Jiang Yi was still asleep. The usually boisterous little darling was quiet, which they found unusual. They would rather she were as noisy as before.

Jiang Yi woke up groggily, "It hurts..." The anesthesia wore off, and she started to have a fever. Her eyes were tightly closed, her chapped lips had lost all color, and the excruciating pain in her right arm made every movement extremely difficult.

"Xiao Si, are you awake?" Chi Ruiche rushed over as soon as he finished his work; Jiang Yang was out signing documents and wasn't there. Seeing the person in so much pain on the hospital bed, he called for the nurses at the station.

The head nurse took her temperature. "38 degrees Celsius, a normal post-operative reaction. I'll get her some fever-reducing medication. Her family can wipe her body with warm water to help bring down the fever."

Chi Ruiche moistened her dry lips with a cotton swab, not daring to touch her, and could only continuously wipe her forehead with warm water. The nurse brought fever-reducing medicine, but she couldn't take it, and kept wiping her all night.

The pain pump seemed to have stopped working, and Jiang Yi was tormented by pain all night. Dazed and confused, she slammed her legs against the hospital bed in an attempt to relieve the pain. Uncontrollable tears overwhelmed her endurance, and she tossed and turned in bed, groaning in agony time and time again.

As dawn broke and the sky began to lighten, the morning sun caressed the earth, heralding the arrival of daybreak. Jiang Yi's high fever subsided, the discomfort from the surgery eased, and she fell into a deep sleep.

Lu Haotian and Abu brought breakfast to relieve him in the morning. Jiang Yang and his companion hadn't slept all night; their eyes were bloodshot, clearly indicating they hadn't slept well.

How's Xiao Yi doing?

"I didn't sleep well all night, but I finally managed to fall asleep now." Jiang Yang picked up a steamed bun and chewed it without caring about his image.

"Blood, blood, so much blood, no..." Jiang Yi suddenly screamed and opened her eyes, looking around in horror.

"Xiao Si, don't be afraid." Four people surrounded him, their faces showing signs of exhaustion. They must have been with him the whole time.

"I…."

"Are you hungry? What would you like to eat?" Lü Haotian answered her gently.

"Hiss—" It hurts so much. Jiang Yi tried to sit up, but the excruciating pain in her right hand made her too weak to move. Jiang Yi panicked.

"Don't move." Chi Ruiche pressed her down gently, afraid of hurting her, and his tone was very gentle. "Your hand is broken, you need to rest for a while."

Jiang Yi saw the conspicuous red on her body and screamed anxiously, "Che, how is that person? I was covering his wound, I wanted to save him."

"Xiao Si, it's alright, it's alright." Chi Ruiche always had a face that said he owed her millions, but Jiang Yi was the only one who showed him gentleness. They would always joke, "She's not a girl, she'll just run away once she's grown up."

Chi Ruiche pulled Jiang Yi into his arms and patted her back gently. Jiang Yi's tears flowed like a burst dam, and she sobbed incessantly, like a child who had suffered a great injustice.

"Little Si, tell me who bullied you, and I'll destroy him!" Abu tried to comfort him.

"Thump—thump—"

A knock on the door interrupted them. A uniformed police officer stood in the doorway: "Excuse me, is this Jiang Yi? Someone has testified that you were the cause of this school violence incident and that you intentionally injured Li Yue, causing his death. Please assist in the investigation."

“She killed my son, she’s a murderer!” Li Yue’s mother suddenly rushed over, but the police stopped her.

Li Yue's mother screamed madly, "Arrest her! Murderer! How come you're not dead? Why did my son die? Why my son? Why didn't anyone save him? He was so young!" She was completely out of her mind, as if possessed by a demon. "That knife must have hurt so much! My son! She's covered in my son's blood! Arrest her!"

"Please come with us." The three policemen escorted Li Yue's mother away, speaking solemnly.

“He’s dead. It wasn’t me. I won’t go.” Jiang Yi’s hand trembled as she gripped Chi Ruiche’s, her breathing becoming rapid. She was announcing her unease and fear to the outside world.

"You can leave now." Jiang Yang stood in front of Jiang Yi and gave him the order to leave.

"Please do not obstruct justice." The police officers were instructed by their superiors to take Jiang Yi to the police station today.

"Let's see who dares to come in." Chi Ruiche's bright and deep black eyes, which were as dark as a pool, were faintly cold. His sharp gaze swept over them, and his cold voice rang out domineeringly.

The police officers were startled by his gaze; Chi Ruiche's powerful aura sent chills down their spines. They swallowed hard, not daring to look him in the eye, and forced themselves to speak, "I'm afraid I cannot comply."

"Assaulting a police officer? I haven't tried that in ages. I'll use you guys as practice today." Abu's fiery temper was evident as his fists clenched.

"Who wants to take my grandson away?" Grandpa Jiang, leaning on his cane and sporting a slicked-back hairstyle, spoke with a menacing tone. Youjun followed behind, along with a doctor in a white coat. "Take Jiang Yi home."

The police recognized the old man; he was a legendary figure, and they dared not offend him. If their superiors wanted to blame them, they would deflect the responsibility: "Mr. Jiang, we are just conducting a routine inquiry."

"If you want them, have your Director Guo come in person. Get out!" Grandpa Jiang shouted angrily, his face ashen.

They were shrewd enough to know that continuing would be pointless, so they left shakily.

"You bunch of rascals, you're trying to hide something after it happened? Xiao Yi, don't think you'll get away with it just because you're hiding behind Xiao Che. Come home and see how Grandpa punishes you." Grandpa Jiang gave Jiang Yang a disapproving look.

Jiang Yi's body trembled incessantly, her unease causing her to curl up, one hand covering her ear, her head buried even lower.

Grandpa Jiang looked at Jiang Yixin, who was in a state of turmoil. He tried to take her hand but withdrew it and said sternly, "Take Jiang Yi away. You all need to handle this matter properly."

Grandpa Jiang intentionally used this incident to test them, to see how the children were capable. They were getting old, and it was time for the new generation to rise up. The elders in the family probably already knew this, and Grandpa Jiang relayed the message. This was not only about proving themselves, but also about preparing for the future.