“Mr. Xiao,” the woman chuckled, “you should still remember me, right? We met at a business dinner. I’m Xiao Hui’s older sister, He Yining.”
"Oh..." Xiao Liran was taken aback for a moment, then greeted her with a smile, "So it's Miss He, I remember you."
"Is my brother having another attack?"
"What?"
Xiao Liran and Song Wan exchanged glances, both seeing confusion on each other's faces.
Just as He Yining walked in and made eye contact with He Nianhui, Song Wanqing clearly saw the gloomy face and clenched fists of the sunny young man.
However, He Nianhui loosened his fist not long after.
Just as Xiao Liran was about to ask her what she meant, she suddenly noticed that there were several medical staff following behind He Yining.
She was even more confused. "Miss He, what is this...?"
"Get out of my way!" He Nianhui suddenly erupted, roaring as he swung the sketchbook at the group of people. "Get out! All of you, get out of here—"
"Xiao Hui, don't do this!"
He Yining gave a wink to the doctors, and they immediately stepped forward and restrained He Nianhui.
He Nianhui struggled desperately, but he was no match for their numbers. He was like a fish on a chopping board, pinned down and screaming almost frantically.
The office erupted into chaos. Xiao Liran and Song Wan were startled and quickly backed away. A doctor swiftly produced a syringe, expertly rolled up He Nianhui's sleeve, and inserted the needle into his vein!
"ah--"
He Nianhui let out a scream!
Song Wan shuddered. His appearance reminded her of the past; she too had once been so frantic, and had been forced to sit there and injected with sedatives...
"Miss He!" Xiao Liran shouted sternly, "This is my office. What exactly do you want? If you want to discipline your brother, go home and do it yourself!"
"I'm so sorry, Ms. Xiao." He Yining looked at her, still maintaining her politeness and respect. "My younger brother is still undergoing treatment and cannot sign a contract with your company to become a professional illustrator. Please understand!"
"What did you say? What treatment?"
"As you can see, he is now..."
"He Yining!" He Nianhui was already exhausted, but she still mustered all her strength to clench each word tightly, "You pervert, you lunatic! You..."
"Sister Ran, Sister Ran, save me! I'm not crazy! I..."
Before he could finish speaking, the drug must have taken effect, because He Nianhui immediately closed his eyes and fainted.
The chaotic scene finally quieted down, and several medical staff carried He Nianhui out, leaving only a mess in the office.
He Yining apologized again and bowed deeply before leaving. "President Xiao, I sincerely apologize for the trouble I've caused you. I'll have someone clean this up."
Xiao Liran frowned and glanced at her with some disgust.
Song Wan, standing next to her, was shivering with cold hands and feet.
"Wanwan?" Xiao Liran noticed her pale face. "Are you alright? You don't look well..."
"I'm fine," Song Wan said weakly.
Xiao Liran called Rachel over and asked her to take Song Wan to the conference room to rest for a while. She then secretly called Lin Zhaojiang and asked him to come and pick up Song Wan.
Lin Zhaojiang was deeply surprised when he heard what had just happened. He rushed to the publishing company, picked up Song Wan, and after settling her in, he thought it over and decided to call Huo Junyang.
"Uncle Lin?" Huo Junyang's voice was still loud and cheerful, and his hearty laughter came through the phone. "So, why did you think of me? Wait a minute, I'm painting... The signal in the studio is bad, I'll find a better place to talk to you!"
Then there was a rustling sound on the phone. After a while, Huo Junyang chuckled and said, "Uncle Lin, this place is great, we can have a good chat now! Did you need something?"
"Hmm..." Lin Zhaojiang considered for a moment, "Has Yuan Yuan grown taller recently? I've been away from Yangcheng for so long, I miss the little one quite a bit."
"Uncle Lin, are you confused? I'm Yuan Yuan's uncle, not her father! If you want to know about Yuan Yuan, you should ask my brother!"
"Oh," Lin Zhaojiang paused, "How are my sister and brother-in-law doing lately?"
"Aunt Yuqing and Uncle Ashan?" Huo Junyang was puzzled. "Why don't you just call them and ask?"
"I..." Lin Zhaojiang smiled. He felt awkward about all those roundabout ways, so he decided to just say it directly.
So he got straight to the point: "Yangyang, I called to see you."
"That's more like it!" Huo Junyang laughed. "What do you need?"
"I want to ask you about someone..." Lin Zhaojiang said in a deep voice, "You're an artist too, do you know someone named He Nianhui?"
"He's from Yun City." Huo Junyang said, both amused and exasperated. "Uncle Lin, what's wrong with you today? The He family is so famous in Yun City, you should know him better than I do!"
Lin Zhaojiang understands the He family, but he can only see the superficial prosperity of the He family.
He had no idea what undercurrents lurked beneath the calm surface of the water.
He had always thought that He Nianhui was the most beloved youngest son of the He family, and that He Yining was the right-hand man of the old man He and an indispensable figure in the He family. He never expected that the He family had such an unknown side.
Lin Zhaojiang took a deep breath and said softly, "Xiao Liran must have contacted you about Song Wan's book... Her book needs to be published as a comic book, and President Xiao will choose between you and He Nianhui to illustrate it."
"Yes, that's true." Huo Junyang nodded. "However, I don't think it's very likely that I'll be chosen, since my previous works were mainly fantasy, which doesn't match the style of Song Wan's novel."
"Oh?" Lin Zhaojiang continued, "Then it matches He Nianhui's style? What kind of style does he have?"
Huo Junyang said frankly, "Young Master He is quite famous in the artist circle. His painting style is unique, and he seems to have a bit of a split personality."
Lin Zhaojiang didn't understand. "What do you mean?"
Huo Junyang chuckled: "Sometimes his paintings are warm and touching, with particularly beautiful lines and colors, making people feel the most sunny side of the world. But sometimes his paintings are frighteningly gloomy, like entering the underworld, giving people goosebumps just by looking at them. So in our little circle, everyone thinks that Young Master He has schizophrenia."
“However…” he added, “the line between genius and madness is often very thin, and perhaps the more mad a person is, the deeper their artistic attainments will be.”
Lin Zhaojiang narrowed his eyes, a strange feeling creeping into his heart.
After a long pause, he asked in a low voice, "If I told you that Young Master He is really a madman, would you believe it?"
"Why don't you believe me?" Huo Junyang said naturally, "He really has been to a psychiatric ward!"
"What?"
"I saw it in an artist group. They discussed He Nianhui's illness, and he also has a very responsible older sister who brings a doctor to help him whenever he has an attack. Of course... I only saw them discussing it like that, and I don't know if it's true! In short, many things about Young Master He are rumored to be incredibly true in the artist circle!"
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