Fu Xiaotang felt the weight in her arms sink, looking at Song Li lying still in her embrace, time seemed to stand still. Her mind reeled, she tried to open her eyes, pushing him in disbelief, “Song Li, Song Li.” Finally, unable to control herself, she cried out in panic, as if trying to salvage something, “Song Li, don’t die, please don’t die, I forgive you, I forgive you, don’t die.”
The surrounding Song Li’s mother and sister, seeing Fu Xiaotang like this, also burst into tears. One called for her son, the other for her brother, the scene chaotic.
Liu Yi, watching Song Li close his eyes in a pool of blood, initially struggled to drop the gun, her face turning pale with fear, not daring to move. Later, hearing the cries, believing Song Li was surely dead, her expression changed several times before she started to laugh maniacally, tears streaming down her face, like a madwoman, “He’s dead, hahaha, he’s really dead, I killed him.”
Fang Junjie pushed through the crowd, squatted down, calmly checked Song Li’s neck pulse, and then looked at his eyes, before finding something to press on his wound to slow the bleeding, whispering with certainty, “He’s fine, he just fainted, he’s still breathing.”
Someone had called the police, and doctors soon arrived, hastily placing Song Li on a stretcher and taking him away, with his mother, sister, and some relatives following in the ambulance. Several police officers briefly assessed the situation and took Liu Yi into custody. She wore a silly smile, offering no resistance as she was led to the police car.
Fu Xiaotang sat alone on the floor, motionless. Cheng Yu stood by her, looking at her with concern, as if wanting to say something to comfort her but not knowing how to start. Fang Junjie, watching, sighed softly, squatted beside Fu Xiaotang, placing his hands on her shoulders, gently saying, “Xiaotang…”
Fu Xiaotang moved slightly, slowly turned her head to look at Fang Junjie, her face expressionless, as if it took her a while to recognize him, like a child who had done something wrong seeing a family member, her lips twitching slightly, “Azun, he’s dead… I, I didn’t want him to die.”
Fang Junjie very gently embraced her, “Silly, he’s not dead, he’ll recover.”
Fu Xiaotang seemed not to hear Fang Junjie’s words, murmuring over and over, “He’s dead, he’s dead, I don’t want him to die.”
Fang Junjie frowned slightly, pushed Fu Xiaotang away a bit, gritted his teeth, and without hesitation, slapped her across the face. Cheng Yu exclaimed, “Why did you hit her?”
Fang Junjie ignored him, forcefully gripping Fu Xiaotang’s chin, shaking her slightly, and growling, “I said he’s not dead, Song Li isn’t dead, do you hear me?” Fu Xiaotang blinked her eyes slowly, and tears began to flow more profusely from her eyes. She sobbed twice before finally bursting into tears with a loud “wah.” Fang Junjie held her, gently stroking her head with one hand and kissing her forehead. “There, there, it’s all right now, it’s all over,” he comforted her. Fu Xiaotang gripped Fang Junjie’s sleeve tightly, crying out loud in his embrace. Song Li had been in emergency treatment all night; although her life was not in danger, due to excessive blood loss and lack of oxygen to the brain, she had not regained consciousness.
Fang Junjie took Fu Xiaotang back to their place for some rest. Fu Xiaotang, looking exhausted but unusually calm, took a bath, ate some food prepared by Fang Junjie, and then obediently went to bed. Seeing her asleep, Fang Junjie felt slightly relieved. He held her hand, lost in thought for a moment, then lightly kissed her forehead before returning to his room. He instructed Situ Nan to keep a close watch on the hospital and report back at any time. Then he arranged to meet with Zhang Rong.
When Zhang Rong saw Fang Junjie enter, he managed a strained smile on his usually gentle face, then struck a cool, handsome, and somewhat helpless pose, throwing himself onto the sofa. Zhang Rong asked, “How is Xiaotang?” “She’s asleep, her mood is relatively stable,” Fang Junjie replied, then suddenly remembered to ask, “What about Liu Shiquan and Liu Yi?” Zhang Rong gave a slight sneer, “Liu Yi seems to have lost her mind, and she’s been arrested by the police for suspected intentional injury. Liu Shiquan has been drinking poison to quench his thirst; if I withdraw the bank financing, I don’t need to do anything else. By next week, Hengqing Real Estate will be no more. This father-daughter duo has brought this upon themselves, but I’m not in the mood to do anything further to them. Their spirit is broken; any more blows would be unchivalrous.”
Fang Junjie nodded, pondering for a while before speaking slowly as if talking to himself, “We were a bit careless in this matter. Everything was under control until Song Li got involved.” Zhang Rong shook his head slowly, “Song Li deliberately provoked Liu Shiquan and his daughter in public, choosing sharp words to incite Liu Yi. There was some intent there. Plus, when I first found out Song Li and Cheng Yu were also investigating this, didn’t we discuss this? I forced Song Li to marry Liu Yi. If Liu Yi were Fang’er’s daughter, deeply in love with Song Li, I’d fulfill her wish. If Liu Yi was lying, and Xiaotang is Fang’er’s daughter, then this would be punishment for Song Li for making Xiao Ji so heartbroken.”
Fang Junjie gave a faint smile, lowering his voice, “But getting shot… isn’t that a bit much? He’s still between life and death. If he dies because of this, it would be a real loss.” Zhang Rong, also feeling heavy-hearted, tried to lighten the mood, teasing, “When did Young Master Junjie start to be so fussy? Even if someone was shot to death in front of you, you never frowned.” Fang Junjie smiled, but his eyes were icy, “You think I’m regretting it for Song Li? For me, a hundred Song Lis wouldn’t matter, especially since he brought it upon himself. But for Xiaotang,” his gaze darkened, “she will never forget him.”
Zhang Rong looked at Fang Junjie for a moment, “His tactic of risking everything to survive is quite unconventional. Have you thought about what you would do if Xiaotang really can’t forget him?” “If she forgets him in an instant, love comes and goes quickly, I wouldn’t care. But if she’s always entangled with past emotions, unable to let go, it wouldn’t mean much to me either. Actually, I have confidence in Xiaotang; I can feel her sincerity and effort. But,” Fang Junjie paused, slightly furrowing his brows, “I’m not afraid of Song Li dying or living, I’m just afraid of him being half-dead. You know how women usually are, especially Xiaotang.”
Zhang Rong fell into a slight melancholy, murmuring after a long silence, “It all depends on fate. Like Fang’er and me, we loved each other more than life itself, yet due to external factors, we missed each other, and now we’re separated by life and death. You shouldn’t worry too much; just do your best and leave the rest to fate.”
Fang Junjie sensed the sadness and helplessness in Zhang Rong’s voice. Here was Zhang Rong, the revered tenth brother of the Zhang family, commanding respect and awe, yet in matters most dear to him, he was powerless. Fang Junjie, always believing in controlling his own destiny, felt that the more uncertain and challenging the path, the more it spurred his relentless spirit. He was determined not to let his love life end in regret like Zhang Rong’s. He decided he would carve out a future for him and Fu Xiaotang with his own hands!
The next day, Fang Junjie had planned to take Fu Xiaotang to the hospital to see Song Li, but to his surprise, she refused outright. Her expression was cold and detached, a stark contrast to her near breakdown before. Fang Junjie knew the more she acted this way, the more she cared about Song Li’s fate, not wanting to see him in a bad state. Despite his heavy heart, he did not force her to go.
