The sunlight was blocked from the ward by the closed door, leaving only the cold artificial light in the quiet corridor.
Xu Shiyue followed Lu Shize out of the room, the quiet atmosphere filled with the faint smell of disinfectant.
Lu Shize stood by the chair opposite the ward, his wristwatch-wearing hand casually resting on the back of the chair.
He stared at the person standing opposite him, his voice even lower than it had been in the hospital room, filled with a chilling tone: "I need an explanation for what happened today."
Xu Shiyue knew that Lu Shize would definitely come looking for her after what had happened. She was prepared, and her voice did not tremble with fear or timidity as she apologized, "I'm sorry, it was because of me, Lu Shizhen, that I fell into the water. Lu Shizhen became the one who took my place."
Upon hearing this, Lu Shize raised his eyes slightly and questioned, "Xu Shiyue, what did you promise me back then?"
As if afraid of disturbing the person still asleep in the room, he deliberately lowered his voice even further: "Your second uncle wants you dead, what do you think of me?"
The thin lenses couldn't hide the anger in Lu Shize's eyes, and his voice was full of threats.
The bodyguards standing guard on both sides of the ward tensed up, and couldn't help but worry about the seemingly vulnerable girl beside them.
Lu Shize cherished his younger sister and assigned those who had always been by his side to Lu Shizhen.
But even after all these years with him, they had never seen Lu Shize so angry as he was today.
The man's tall figure cast a dark shadow in the corridor, making the surrounding atmosphere feel oppressive.
Xu Shiyue stood opposite him, her oversized hoodie making her look exceptionally thin. It wasn't just the height difference that made it seem like Lu Shize would tear Xu Shiyue apart at any moment.
Li had already prepared himself for Lu Shize to fly into a rage and rush over to protect Xu Shiyue, but then he heard the seemingly vulnerable girl calmly say, "Mr. Lu's greatest desire is for the culprit to die."
Perhaps because she couldn't see, Xu Shiyue showed no fear of the fierce-looking man in front of her, and her calm voice remained unchanged from when she was at home.
What was clearly a one-sided, oppressive situation of being held accountable was subtly balanced in that instant.
The storm that was about to erupt subsided in an instant, and Xu Shiyue looked up at Lu Shize with her empty and desolate eyes.
Lu Shize paused for a moment, his eyes, hidden behind his glasses, narrowed slightly, as if scrutinizing the person in front of him.
Then, he chuckled inscrutablely, "Heh."
Xu Shiyue's answer was indeed unexpected by Lu Shize, yet it was very much in line with her usual calm and composed demeanor.
Lu Shize raised an eyebrow, seemingly not very satisfied with Xu Shiyue's somewhat cunning answer, and elaborated on his question: "I've already taken those people back, including your classmate with Zhenzhen. The shipment your second uncle brought from the south will also be in trouble. Don't you think you should also pay some price?"
cost……
They all thought she had escaped without paying any price, but she wished she had been the one who fell into the water.
Xu Shouxian has already taken away the two most important people in her life, and almost took Lu Shizhen away as well.
Disgust and hatred grew like unruly vines, climbing all over Xu Shiyue's heart, their barbs piercing her skin with every breath.
She couldn't accept that this almost happened, and beneath her calm voice was a undercurrent of turmoil: "Mr. Lu, I know that Lu Shizhen is not a commodity in your game. Promising you shares in the future would be an insult to Lu Shizhen. I can only assure you that I will bring Xu Shouxian down as soon as possible and make him pay the price for affecting Lu Shizhen."
Lu Shize felt he shouldn't believe Xu Shiyue's words. She was blind, and her whole body was pale and weak; she didn't look like someone who could accomplish anything.
But he knew, by some twist of fate, that she could do it.
Lu Shize was angry; he was absolutely furious when he heard the details of Lu Shizhen's accident.
Although he knew who he should be pointing his finger at, he couldn't help but want to hold everyone accountable who had almost caused his sister's death, even if it was another victim.
Lu Shize wasn't entirely at ease with Xu Shiyue. He could sense a kindred spirit in her; he knew Xu Shiyue was the same kind of person as him.
They will use what they can to their advantage, and they will ruthlessly eliminate those who deserve retribution.
Lu Shize never felt that such a person was safe around Lu Shizhen; he worried that Lu Shizhen was also within her retaliation range.
But later, after hearing Li's accident report, he couldn't believe it, yet he was forced to accept the confirmation from the surveillance footage before him.
It was that frail girl, who looked like she might break at any moment, who rescued his sister from the water.
She did what Li couldn't.
The water surged over Xu Shiyue's body, submerging her head, only to be broken through by her.
The biting cold seeped through the water, stripping away the body heat. The hands that were tightly embracing the person next to them were taut with veins, glowing an unusual red.
In that instant, Lu Shize saw Xu Shiyue's weakness in the distorted image.
"Oh."
A laugh escaped from Lu Shize's nose.
Therefore, they are of the same kind.
“Those useless fools failed. If I were your second uncle, what would I do next?” Lu Shize asked.
Xu Shiyue didn't speak, and Lu Shize didn't give her a chance to speak either, then said, "I will kill Zhenzhen as well, she's too much of a hindrance."
Xu Shiyue knew that they almost did that this time.
If Li and his team hadn't caught the person hiding in the water, she and Lu Shizhen might have been deliberately drowned.
Xu Shouxian has already decided to kill her; it is very dangerous for Lu Shizhen to be by his side.
only……
Xu Shiyue frowned slightly, as if she had thought of something illogical.
Lu Shize gave her an answer: "The day before yesterday, your uncle suddenly fell seriously ill at night and was rushed to the hospital. It looks like he won't be able to get up."
Xu Shiyue suddenly realized.
If you're going to do something, do it thoroughly; indecisiveness is not Xu Shouxian's style.
He had countless opportunities to die before this, from the fire, from the moment he was admitted to the hospital for emergency treatment, even from the drugs injected into his body, but he didn't, because he thought Xu Shoude was there.
After what happened last time, Xu Shiyue finally understood that her uncle only wanted harmony and prosperity for the Xu family.
Fairness and truth are things that can be ignored by him if they would disrupt the harmony he, as the leader, has worked so hard to maintain.
He never imagined that the harmony he was trying so hard to preserve through compromise would also vanish into thin air.
Xu Shouxian wanted wealth and power.
He had already decided to kill, and didn't care if he would have another brother or relative's blood on his hands.
All the collateral branches were dealt with, leaving only one branch – wasn't that what his elder brother wanted for family harmony?
Xu Shiyue found it all laughable.
Those who aid and abet evil will only be devoured by the wicked.
"He is currently preparing for a capital consolidation."
Xu Shiyue was still thinking when Lu Shize's voice brought her back to reality.
"In order to solve the problem of the shortage of primary, secondary and high school teaching resources, the government plans to build a large community in the eastern suburbs next year. There will definitely be land purchase and bidding. The land will be determined in the first quarter of next year, and the bidding will be conducted in the second quarter."
As he spoke, Lu Shize looked up at Xu Shiyue across from him and said, "I don't have that much time, and I don't want to see Zhenzhen in any danger again. I wonder what Miss Xu thinks."
Lu Shize appeared to have given himself two options, but in reality, there was only one.
Xu Shiyue knew that buying land was a high-stakes gamble.
These days she has looked at a lot of real estate information in S City. The eastern suburbs have not been developed in large quantities. The development of various community projects supported by the government would be very convenient. However, if capitalists buy land and develop it on their own, it would be a waste of money to start a new development.
This gamble could be incredibly profitable if you win, or you could lose everything if you lose.
Some may even go bankrupt and be embroiled in even more embarrassing troubles.
It's less of a gamble based on luck and more of a game of strategy.
It's about who can get the most information, who can make the most accurate judgments, and who can stay calm and focused.
Unlike bidding, which offers her no financial loss, this was a risky gamble where failure would lead to utter ruin.
so……
“I’m the same as Mr. Lu,” Xu Shiyue said firmly.
Perhaps because the bones become armor, when a rib is born, the whole person has to go through the pain of the bones being broken open.
Xu Shiyue was even more unwilling to let Lu Shizhen be in any danger than Lu Shize. She needed new bones to protect this weakness, and she also needed to remove the spear aimed at her and her weakness.
Lu Shize's tense face finally showed a satisfied expression at this moment.
“However, our current partnership is out in the open. Even if Xu Shouxian is stupid, he can understand what you’re trying to do. You need another company to hide your true involvement,” Lu Shize reminded him.
“I know.” Xu Shiyue had just thought of that too. “I will use my father’s network of connections to find a suitable partner for us.”
"You answered all the questions I assigned you very well. I hope you won't disappoint me in the actual test," Lu Shize said, like a teacher instructing his most promising student.
He paused for a moment, then sounded a warning in Xu Shiyue's ear: "If you can't even get involved, I won't return the Xu family's property to its rightful owner."
"Don't worry, Mr. Lu." Xu Shiyue nodded slightly; she understood.
She and Lu Shize are now just partners with the same goal.
If she is not qualified, then once they get rid of Xu Shouxian, she will have another enemy.
She stripped her of everything, including Lu Shizhen, from her world.
The empty world was filled with the smell of disinfectant. When Lu Shizhen opened her eyes, she saw a square wall standing in her line of sight.
The window she painted hangs quietly on one side of the wall, surrounded by blooming flowers outside, the only embellishment in this desolate scene.
She returned to that small, square room.
Lu Shizhen's heart skipped a beat, and she instinctively wanted to leave.
But as soon as she took a step, she found that her legs could not support her body and she suddenly fell to the ground.
The lightweight wheelchair was hit by the impact, and the pain spread from her lower back.
Then it abruptly stopped at the groin.
Lu Shizhen stared blankly at her hands, which had shrunk by more than half, and realized that she was in the same small body she had been in as a child. A moment of sorrow crossed her eyes.
She had once calmly and serenely accepted the fact that she could not walk, but now she finds that she can no longer go back to the past. She has adapted to life with legs and longs to stand up and walk.
Loneliness and helplessness surged towards Lu Shizhen from the walls, which were permeated with the smell of disinfectant, as if to engulf and devour her.
Lu Shizhen didn't want to be overwhelmed by this feeling, so she struggled and awkwardly stood up, supporting herself on the wheelchair beside her.
"Thump! Thump, thump..."
Something seemed to fall off the table. As soon as Lu Shizhen sat down in her wheelchair, she saw a bright red apple rolling on the floor.
For some reason, the ward door wasn't closed, and the apple rolled along, eventually passing through the door frame and rolling into the corridor.
Lu Shizhen had forgotten what special meaning this apple held for her when she was a child. Her body instinctively pushed her wheelchair in pursuit, her childish voice filled with anxiety: "Apple..."
Just as she reached the door after chasing the apple, she saw a pair of hands in the distance catch the apple that was rolling further and further away.
Those hands were small, and under the dim light of the corridor, the bright red apple made them appear exceptionally white, like snowflakes.
Lu Shizhen paused for a moment, then looked up to see the person who had helped her hold the apple.
But at that moment, the entire corridor suddenly twisted and contorted, along with the hands that were holding the apple.
The flattened incandescent light was stretched and deformed, piercing straight into Lu Shizhen's eyes.
"!"
The blinding light was unbearable, and Lu Shizhen suddenly opened her eyes.
The warm sunlight rushed toward her, and then a hand holding an apple appeared in her line of sight.
The crimson apple was round and beautiful, making the hand holding it appear exceptionally fair.
It felt just like that dream I just came out of.
Lu Shizhen was still staring blankly at the hand when she heard a calm voice ask, "Want an apple?"
Lu Shizhen looked up in surprise.
A thousand times brighter sunlight than the artificial light in the four-sided room filled her vision, and the autumn scenery rustled outside the window.
Xu Shiyue, who had asked the question, was sitting upright on the edge of her bed, slowly peeling an apple.
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