Chapter 24 Taking care of her had become a habit for him...
After saying that, without caring what Jing Lin thought, Lu Ran took the clothes and went into the guest room bathroom.
His physical condition is quite formidable. Therefore, the hole on the back of his head, after being treated last night, is almost completely healed today. Touching it, the wound reveals a thick scab.
The icy water splashed on his head, accompanied by a dull ache, and Lu Ran thought about what happened last night.
He made Ah Ci angry.
"Bang."
Frustrated, Lu Ran slammed his fist against the bathroom wall.
How can I appease her?
And that kiss...
As he washed, his head drooped lower and lower, and as the water flowed down, Lu Ran's exposed ears turned red.
...Can this kiss be made up for?
After quickly taking a shower and changing into casual clothes, Lu Ran walked out of the bathroom, his sharp features softened considerably.
Jinglin, now back to normal, leaned over and asked, "Brother Lu, why are you smiling so happily?"
Lu Ran: "..."
"Have you figured out how to deal with your sister-in-law's anger?" Jinglin blinked.
"No."
Lu Ran thought for a long time in the bathroom, but couldn't come up with an effective solution. He had started to panic before, but remembering how Ah Ci always tried to calm him down when he was acting crazy…
That kiss that never happened.
Stop.
Does this mean she cares about him more?
The moment this association came to mind, it instantly filled Lu Ran's entire brain, leaving him in a dazed state.
So when Jinglin asked him, he had been trying to suppress his smile, but it was too late; he couldn't control himself, and the corners of his mouth began to turn upwards. Later, realizing his lapse in composure, he coughed, turned his head to the side, and said succinctly, "There won't be any major problems."
Jinglin: "..."
Jing Lin had expected this to happen when he smashed Lu Ran yesterday, but experiencing it firsthand still made him feel disgusted.
What's there to be secretly pleased about?
You really think the goddess cares about you?
They're not all goddesses' dogs; who's more noble than whom?
After relentlessly belittling and slandering others, Jinglin finally managed to balance his emotions.
“Since your sister-in-law cares about Ye Qingyu, I will keep an eye on Ye Qingyu’s side. Brother, you should think about how to appease your sister-in-law.”
Lu Ran was already extremely annoyed by Ye Qingyu. Being friends with her was fine, but only in front of A Ci. If A Ci wasn't watching, Ye Qingyu would be as far away as possible.
Jing Lin's suggestion was exactly what Lu Ran wanted to hear, so he agreed to the request.
After getting ready, Lu Ran called Pei Ci with a heavy heart.
As expected, the call did not go through.
...Are you angry?
Because he frequently visited the Pei family, Lu Ran obtained the contact information of everyone in the Pei family.
At that moment, he dialed Shao Ying's number.
But Shao Ying brought him news he never expected.
Upon hearing the news, Lu Ran didn't even have time to say goodbye to Jing Lin before grabbing a car and heading straight for the Pei family.
The sun is shining brightly at this moment.
Cars came and went in front of the Pei family's gate, the sunlight making the large black iron gate shine. The trees on either side of the gate, however, were faded and drooped lifelessly in the sun.
"Excuse me, Mr. Lu, you can't go in." The security guard at the door stopped him.
"Get out of the way!!" Lu Ran said with a dark expression.
No matter what he said, the security guards wouldn't let him pass. Seeing the young master's brow veins bulging, the guards sensed something was wrong. They exchanged glances, and finally one of them stepped forward and said:
"Young Master Lu, I'm so sorry, if I could just let them go, I would have done so already. There's really no other way."
"Of course, we know we can't stop you, but if things really get out of hand, it will inevitably disturb Miss's composure, which would be a loss."
"Young Master Lu, we're all doing this for Miss's own good. Can we each take a step back?"
The last sentence struck a chord with Lu Ran. Lu Ran pursed his lips, ultimately saying nothing. But as he walked a little further away, he kicked a tree.
He crouched under the tree, flipping through his phone and searching for something; the light from the screen made her face appear indistinct.
Seeing that it was almost time, Jing Lin, who had been watching for a long time, came out from the shadows and stood in front of Lu Ran.
Lu Ran was surrounded by fallen leaves that he had kicked down, and even his clothes were covered in them.
Jing Lin noticed a bead of sweat on Lu Ran's chin. He leaned forward slightly, trying to see what was on Lu Ran's screen.
"Brother Lu, what's wrong?"
Lu Ran then looked up from his phone.
Pei Ci has fallen into a coma.
Jinglin's pupils suddenly contracted.
*
Pei Ci's illness can be said to be something she was born with. Based on current medical knowledge, Pei Ci has been diagnosed with congenital heart disease and bipolar disorder, but there are many other illnesses that remain unconfirmed.
In short, from the moment Pei Ci appeared in the public eye, she was sickly, pale, and haggard, as if a gust of wind could carry her away.
Such a disease is like a death sentence from birth, but fortunately she was born into the Pei family and was pampered, so she survived to adulthood.
But her illness followed her like a shadow. The most serious time was on that dimly lit night after the school festival, when Pei Ci took out a cigarette and burned a scar on the noble young master Lu's body, and then fell into a coma.
She was then taken abroad.
He was mainly treated by the Zhou family.
He did not return to Anta for three years.
"How is her condition?"
Lu Ran will "accidentally" run into Pei Chi and casually ask about this matter.
Pei Chi simply frowned and said, "He's still recuperating."
The Zhou family mainly operates in the pharmaceutical industry, with a global chain. Due to their advanced medical technology, they have directly monopolized the industry.
Lu Ran didn't understand why Pei Ci had to be left so far away in a foreign country. He casually suggested, "It might be better for her to recuperate at the Zhou family's main residence."
"The Zhou family can't get that person to come."
That one?
Who is it?
Unfortunately, Pei Chi remained tight-lipped about this person and said no more. He tried several times to probe indirectly, but only received one sentence—
"Xiao Ci cannot return to China without that person's consent."
Although Lu Ran knew that the Zhou family had superb medical skills, he was still astonished that Pei Chi could show such genuine respect.
Who is so powerful?
Driven by curiosity, Lu Ran gathered some information.
The doctor who treated Pei Ci was the younger brother of the current head of the Zhou family, and this person was probably the most skilled doctor in the entire Zhou family. However, he had an eccentric personality and did not stay within the territory of Anta.
Speaking of which, there are two people Lu Ran hates the most.
One is An Yinyou, and the other is Zhou Jiyue.
An Yinyou is just a pretentious charlatan, a convincing one at that, a silver-tongued smooth talker, as disgusting as his hypocritical father. Ironically, he's hailed as a role model by a bunch of idiots. In reality, he's just a social butterfly. I really don't understand why Pei Chi thinks he's alright.
Zhou Jiyue is just a little smart, but she's good for nothing else. She's taciturn, has a deadpan expression, and doesn't like socializing. To put it nicely, she's aloof; to put it bluntly, she's a high-achieving but low-ability idiot.
The outside world actually rates him higher?!
...Is it because he has a mouth but doesn't use it?!
This is simply incomprehensible!
However, Lu Ran had a slightly better impression of Zhou Jiyue than An Yinyou.
At least Zhou Jiyue had some self-awareness and recognized her own level, so she withdrew from the competition for the Pei family's banquet after his warning.
But to be honest, Lu Ran was genuinely surprised at that moment. After all, Zhou Jiyue was studying medicine, and he wasn't necessarily sure he could beat him.
Surprisingly, he withdrew voluntarily.
"Why?" Lu Ran asked, a rare question indeed.
All Zhou Jiyue said was, "I'm not interested in dating."
……Well.
What do you mean by staring at Pei Ci from time to time?
Unfortunately, before Lu Ran could determine whether Zhou Jiyue was his rival in love, Zhou Jiyue had already left decisively.
Not long after, he completed the transfer procedures, left Anta School, and went abroad to Kenlin to further his medical skills.
According to the known information from the investigation, Zhou Jiyue went to study under his uncle.
Unfortunately, Zhou Jiyue's uncle was so mysterious that Lu Ran couldn't find any information about him.
However, thinking about it, Pei Chi, who is such a sister-obsessed person, wouldn't do anything to harm A Ci.
Lu Ran had no choice but to force himself to relax.
In fact, Lu Ran had always assumed that Pei Ci's return to the country must have been due to someone's permission. Therefore, he thought that Pei Ci's health should be better than before, but he never expected it to be like this.
She fell into a coma again.
So, is she going abroad again this time?
Once again, we're back to being out of contact, just like before.
They could only exchange text messages and make phone calls occasionally, and video chat very rarely.
Just thinking about it made Lu Ran feel a tightness in his chest.
Jing Lin, who was standing to the side, had the same thought after hearing Lu Ran's words.
They couldn't see or touch him; they could only get sparse information from Lu Ran.
He didn't even experience a honeymoon phase with his wife.
Why do we have to leave our homes and go to the battlefield to work?
This is so unfair!!
*
Meanwhile, Pei Chi, who had rushed back from out of town by plane, launched into a tirade against Shao Ying.
"Unconscious??"
"How did he suddenly fall into a coma???"
"Is this how you take care of people?!"
"Do you think I'm supporting you guys just to eat?!"
The more he talked, the angrier he became. The icy man kicked Shao Ying to the ground.
Shao Ying didn't dare to breathe.
Actually, she didn't know how to say it.
The young ladies used to be easy to take care of. They wouldn't do anything that was bad for their health. They would obediently follow their arrangements, living just to survive, like delicate dolls that could be manipulated at will.
But after returning to China, the young lady changed. She developed her own ideas and did a series of unimaginable things. It was hard to tell what was going on in her head.
But it must be said that it is more energetic.
Shao Ying could certainly report the truth, but given Pei Chi's temperament—he couldn't stand the slightest disturbance—it would surely interfere with what the young lady wanted to do, so she usually just covered it up.
Pei Chi went out last night, and she should have reported it.
But she didn't.
Despite some setbacks, it ended perfectly. The young lady, as always, went to bed and drifted off to sleep.
But to her utter surprise, when she went to wake the young lady the next day as usual, the young lady did not respond at all.
The sickly girl lay in bed, her brows furrowed as if she were worried about something, her face paler than usual.
She lay in bed, time seemed to stand still, as if waiting for her prince to kiss her awake.
After a few seconds of stunned silence, Shao Ying suddenly fell to the ground in a panic.
Her Miss...
He actually fainted!
As the instigator, she will naturally be held accountable.
That is, right now.
Shao Ying lowered her head at that moment, perhaps she would no longer be able to stay in the Pei family.
However, there was one question she still wanted to know.
"Mr. Pei, Miss, Miss... are you alright?" she asked hesitantly.
Pei Chi, who had kicked Shao Ying a few times, had now regained his senses. However, the thought of the girl still lying in the hospital bed still caused him angina.
He was six years younger than Pei Chi, and initially, he had no feelings for his sickly younger sister. Of course, he wasn't close to his parents either.
He was born a cold and selfish person.
Even blood ties cannot bind him.
Until he first saw Pei Ci, a small, pale-faced girl with eyes just like his own and an indifferent expression.
For some reason, they felt that they should be the same kind of people.
Indifferent, selfish, and incapable of empathy.
Unfortunately, her younger sister was too young and too easily influenced, unable to recognize her own true nature, and still retained some useless qualities. But that's alright, he will teach her.
Teach her to truly know herself.
With this in mind, Pei Chi took the initiative to approach her. Over the years, his sister had become sometimes cold and sometimes gentle.
He didn't know if he had achieved his initial goal, but Pei Chi knew clearly that taking care of his sickly younger sister had become a habit.
Rubbing his brows, Pei Chi was too lazy to bother with these trivial thoughts.
He was going to make a phone call to that person.
It's time to go back home.
-----------------------
Author's Note: One adult and one child, which one should I bring back to China? [doge emoji]
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