“Still need to bring someone along to see me? Are you that afraid of me?”
Zhao Chunjun said this to Lin Qiao as he approached her, completely ignoring Xu Jie’s presence. Even though his words mentioned a second person, his demeanor suggested that no one else existed.
Lin Qiao felt he was standing too close to her. The way he looked at her made her feel violated. She stepped back a few paces, but Zhao Chunjun directly grabbed her wrist. The cold, emotionless edge of his white coat brushed against her wrist, sending a chill through her.
“Don’t move, or don’t blame me for being impolite. This is my territory. Even if you bring a policeman, it won’t help,” Zhao Chunjun whispered close to her ear, his breath nearly touching her face, his body almost pressing against hers. Helplessly, Lin Qiao looked toward Xu Jie for help.
All of this happened in the blink of an eye. As Xu Jie reacted and moved to help Lin Qiao, Zhao Chunjun merely glanced at him, unimpressed by his approach. Instead, Zhao turned his gaze to behind Xu, and just as he was about to act “recklessly,” hospital security “promptly” arrived.
“Sir, please calm down,” the security guard said, his words chilling rather than comforting. Lin Qiao, still held by Zhao Chunjun, was caught between him and Xu Jie, swaying back and forth, as if she had returned to the day Fang Zheng brought her here.
Unable to endure this manipulation any longer, Lin Qiao screamed, “Enough!”
Whether it was the effect of her two words or the scream itself, everyone froze the moment she stopped speaking, turning their gazes toward her in unison.
Without acknowledging the others, Lin Qiao emotionlessly said to Zhao Chunjun, “Let’s talk. Make them leave.”
Zhao Chunjun released her wrist, smiling gently as he said, “Then have your friend go back first. I’ll take you home, I promise.”
Lin Qiao frowned as she looked into his eyes. His gaze was just as cold and hard as glass, hurting both others and himself. Yet, at the bottom of his eyes, there was an unusual glimmer of sincerity, making her momentarily believe he was telling the truth. But as soon as she snapped back to reality, she didn’t believe him anymore.
Zhao Chunjun, as a chief physician in psychiatry, had extensive experience observing people’s reactions and expressions. He noticed every subtle expression of Lin Qiao’s, naturally not missing her current fear and doubt toward him. He wasn’t upset, simply tossing out a “decide for yourself” before turning and heading upstairs. His pace was surprisingly fast, and in an instant, he disappeared at the stairway. Lin Qiao’s vision still seemed to linger on the fluttering of his white coat.
“What now?” Xu Jie glanced at the security guards following Zhao Chunjun and whispered to Lin Qiao, “Let’s go back and plan carefully. Although he knows my identity, we haven’t reported to the superiors yet, and we can’t arrest him. He obviously won’t tell us anything either. We’re useless here. Let’s go back to the station and discuss.”
Lin Qiao shook her head, “No, Captain Xu, you go back first. I’ll go up and find him.”
Xu Jie was surprised, “Aren’t you afraid he might…?”
Lin Qiao interrupted him with a frown, “I am afraid, but I have no choice but to take the risk. Qingzhou asked you to protect me, and you’ve fulfilled your duty. It’s my own decision to go up, nothing to do with you.”
The disappearance of her child and mother-in-law had indeed shaken Lin Qiao’s composure. The look Zhao Chunjun gave while leaving clearly showed he knew everything. He even knew Xu Jie was a policeman, so he must have a way to help her find her daughter and mother-in-law.
Determined, Lin Qiao stepped onto the stairs and went upstairs without looking back. Xu Jie stood at the bottom watching her disappear around the corner. After a moment’s thought, he called Shen Qingzhou.
Unaware that Shen Qingzhou already knew she had gone alone to meet Zhao Chunjun, Lin Qiao kept thinking about what she would do if something unexpected happened. The layers of white building made her feel unsafe, which reminded her of her daughter. So small, now with a stranger. She didn’t know if someone had fed her, if she had cried, if she was tired, or if she might be sick.
A new mother who had lost her child at this moment, Lin Qiao’s guilt nearly drove her to collapse. Now, she couldn’t rely on anyone but herself. She had to be strong.
When she reached the upper floors, Lin Qiao asked a nurse where Zhao Chunjun’s office was. After receiving directions, she headed straight to the fifth floor. On her way to his office, Lin Qiao entered a water room by the corridor. Looking around, she noticed a somewhat dirty glass in the corner. Thinking for a moment, she picked it up, walked to a corner, and hit it with moderate force. The glass cracked with a significant fissure. She hit it a bit harder, breaking it further, and slipped one of the shards into her backpack.
Taking a deep breath, Lin Qiao stood up and prepared to find Zhao Chunjun. However, as she turned around, she saw a tall figure standing against the light at the doorway of the water room. The man wore an immaculate white coat, backlit so she couldn’t clearly see his expression, but she knew exactly who it was.
“What are you doing?” Zhao Chunjun’s voice came coldly, stepping forward as he spoke. As he moved out of the light, his expression became barely visible.
Lin Qiao couldn’t describe how terrifying his half-smile was. He gave her an unprecedented sense of danger.
“Let’s go,” Zhao Chunjun didn’t seem to intend to question what she was doing. After speaking, he turned and walked ahead, indicating she should follow.
Lin Qiao took a short breath and tightened her backpack, following him. Under the curious gazes of the medical staff, she entered his office with him.
Zhao Chunjun’s office was extremely clean and neat. The cabinets were polished to a mirror shine, the desk free of any fingerprints, and even the leather on the chair was spotless.
After Lin Qiao entered, he closed the door, locked it, and Lin Qiao, hearing the sound of the lock, turned around alertly and immediately asked, “Why did you lock the door?”
Zhao Chunjun looked at her, a faint smile on his lips, his tone light, “To keep others out, not to keep you in. You can rest assured.”
How could Lin Qiao feel assured? She insisted firmly, “Unlock it, or I’m leaving right now.” She tightly gripped her backpack as though it were a lifeline.
Zhao Chunjun looked at her for a while, thoughtfully glancing at her backpack. After a moment, he actually unlocked the door.
As if to avoid suspicion, after unlocking the door, Zhao Chunjun raised his hand, his expression sincere, asking, “Is that okay now?”
Lin Qiao moved closer to him, carefully checking the lock. After confirming it was indeed unlocked, she nodded, “Thank you.”
Zhao Chunjun smiled, “You’re welcome.” He then stood up, walked to the window, slightly pulled the pristine curtain aside, and half-turned toward her, “Let’s get to the point. I know you’re in a hurry.”
Lin Qiao didn’t hide her urgency, nodding, “Please tell me where Fang Mingjun took my mother-in-law and daughter.”
Zhao Chunjun looked back at her, narrowing his eyes with a menacing gaze, “That’s a good question. I do know, but why should I tell you?”
Lin Qiao was momentarily at a loss, then said after thinking, “You’ll benefit from it. My husband will come to talk with you.”
“Shen Qingzhou?” Zhao Chunjun slightly raised his lip in disdain, scoffing lightly as he sat down on the chair by the bed, crossing his legs and pointing to the adjacent sofa, “Sit down and talk.”
Lin Qiao didn’t want to move far from the door, but Zhao Chunjun assumed a stance that he wouldn’t continue unless she came over, so she reluctantly sat down.
“That’s better.” Zhao Chunjun looked at her in satisfaction, his fingers leisurely tapping on his knee, “I’m naturally willing to accept the benefits from your husband, but what price are you willing to pay for that?”
Lin Qiao sensed something unusual and hugged her backpack tightly, asking, “What do you mean?”
Zhao Chunjun suddenly stood up and moved closer to her. Instinctively, she leaned back, but he reached out and grabbed her throat, pressing her against the back of the sofa. His entire body pressed tightly against hers, his voice cold and soft, “Isn’t my meaning clear enough? This place is safe. No one will know what happens behind this door. Even when your husband returns, he’ll only know that you came to see me, not what we did. You can fully let go, huh?”
His words chilled Lin Qiao to the bone. He held her throat, making it hard for her to breathe. She struggled slightly, which seemed to anger him. In an instant, she was pinned down onto the sofa.
“Ugh!” Lin Qiao grunted, pushing her hands against his chest. Under her hands, the lean, hard chest of the man exuded immense strength, making her mental defenses nearly collapse.
Zhao Chunjun’s face was sharp and stern. As he watched Lin Qiao weakly resist him, his eyes were fixed on her emotionless face, not noticing that she had shifted one hand to be between them while the other reached for her backpack, which had fallen to the floor during their struggle.
“Look at me,” Zhao Chunjun’s voice was right above her, his hands restraining her. The touch of his body felt like icy water.
Lin Qiao forced herself to stare at Zhao Chunjun, drawing his attention to her face, while her hand successfully retrieved the glass shard she had prepared earlier from her backpack. The shard was sharp, and as she held it, she cut her finger from the pressure, but she didn’t care. She stabbed the shard toward Zhao Chunjun’s chest. Zhao Chunjun suddenly realized what was happening and hastily pulled back, trying to distance himself, but it was a bit too late. His white shirt was cut, and blood slowly began to stain it. He frowned at Lin Qiao, who held the shard and faced him palely. After a moment of staring at each other, he suddenly laughed.
“You really surprised me,” Zhao Chunjun said ambiguously, then turned his back to her, “Actually, the answer you want is very simple. Fang Mingjun didn’t take them to any hard-to-find place. Go check Fangshi Group.”
At the moment she took out the shard, Lin Qiao thought she would never get the information about her daughter and mother-in-law. But now Zhao Chunjun told her. She was extremely surprised but had no time to think about his motives. As soon as she got the information, she turned and left without hesitation, not staying for more than ten seconds.
Zhao Chunjun stood in place, holding the wound on his chest, watching the half-closed door with a low laugh. He walked alone into the office’s inner room, took off his white coat and shirt, and began to bandage his wound. Actually, his intention was very simple: to make Shen Qingzhou fully focus on the conflict with Fang Mingjun due to Fang’s actions. Adding the court case on top of that, Shen would definitely have no spare energy to deal with him.
At that time, it would be much easier for him to do whatever he wanted, and it would also be simpler for him to harm Shen. He was Fang Mingjun’s partner on the surface, yet secretly he would make the relationship between Shen Qingzhou and Fang Mingjun even more strained. When Fang Mingjun and Shen Qingzhou fought each other, they would inevitably both be weakened. In the end, only he would benefit as the third party. Fang Mingjun would have no time to come after him for betraying their partnership, and Shen Qingzhou would also have no energy to trouble him. Only after both of them were severely weakened would be his time to make his move.
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