The pain in his abdomen made Ah Can’s neck veins bulge, and he quickly realized something was wrong. As he tried to rise and resist, a chair smashed toward him.
The solid wooden chair shattered as it struck his back.
Ah Can fell to the ground once more.
He truly was a tough guy. Even with heavy blows to his chest and back, and the pain unbearable, he still struggled to get up.
But the intruders were not kind souls either.
A shoe, soaked and slick from the rain, arrogantly stepped on his head. No matter how hard he tried to struggle, it was futile; gradually, his face was pushed against the floor, forced to look toward the door in a most humiliating position.
Through his line of sight, several more people walked in, yet their features were unclear.
"Mr. Jiang, can you let Ah Can go?"
It was Dao Ge’s voice!
"Dao Ge, who are they?"
Ah Can, lying on the ground with his temples protruding and breathing heavily, asked.
Jiang Chen didn’t even glance at the man on the floor; his gaze shifted toward the bedroom, and he walked over.
At the entrance to the bedroom, he paused, then entered the room.
The uneasy Fang Qing heard approaching footsteps, looked up nervously, and saw a smile she hadn’t expected.
"Tsk, quite a unique style," he remarked.
Fang Qing was taken aback. Her composure and calm crumbled instantly under his mocking tone, and for no reason, her eyes reddened.
Sometimes the fragility and strength of a person far exceed their own expectations.
Jiang Chen seemed not to notice as he approached the bedside.
"Well-fed and watered, the treatment is quite good. Had I known, there was no need to rush over," he said.
Fang Qing glared at him. "Now untie me."
Jiang Chen, as if he hadn’t heard the choking in her voice, sat down beside the bed and began untying the ropes from Fang Qing’s feet.
"For a lawyer who hasn’t taken a single case, to get kidnapped first, you’re probably setting a precedent in your profession!" Jiang Chen’s annoying banter was as unbearable as ever. At a time , he wasn’t comforting but instead mocked her misfortune.
Unable to restrain herself, Fang Qing reached out to grab his waist.
"Keep talking and see if I don’t strangle you!" she threatened.
"Okay, I’ll stop," he acquiesced.
Jiang Chen tossed the ropes aside and finally showed a bit of concern. "Are you hurt?"
Fang Qing shook her head, her eyes seemingly redder.
Jiang Chen, feigning ignorance, looked over his Qing Mei and was nearly certain she was unharmed.
"Let’s go," he said as he stood up.
Fang Qing got out of bed and followed him.
The living room was a mess.
Tang Xiaosheng, handcuffed, forced out an ugly, tearful smile.
Fang Qing glanced at these people, her gaze sweeping over the pinned hostage-taker, then followed Jiang Chen out without a word.
Jiang Chen didn’t explain as he walked outside.
Fang Qing quietly followed.
As they exited the building, Jiang Chen opened the car door.
Fang Qing nodded and sat down inside.
Jiang Chen closed the door and took the driver’s seat.
Watching the swaying windshield wipers, Fang Qing couldn’t help asking, "Aren’t you going to deal with them?"
"Someone will handle it," Jiang Chen said simply as he drove away from the old neighborhood.
Jiang Chen turned on the music and randomly chose a song. It turned out to be "Rainy Day," which was quite fitting for the situation.
"Why so quiet, scared?" he glanced at Fang Qing and asked with a smile.
"No, that kidnapper was actually quite polite to me," Fang Qing commented truthfully, though she made no plea for him.
She was well aware that the kidnapper’s politeness did not mean he was particularly kind-hearted.
"How did you get here?" she finally asked.
"I arrived yesterday, but when I went to your place and found no one home, I couldn’t get through to you on the phone either. I checked the surveillance of your neighborhood and discovered you were in trouble," he explained.
"How did you find this place?"
"I had a friend help out," Jiang Chen said succinctly and nonchalantly.
Seeing he was unwilling to elaborate, Fang Qing didn’t press further.
In the vast Capital City, with a population well over ten million and an area so large it was easy to lose oneself and feel displaced,
to have found Dao Ge and pinpointed this spot within less than twenty-four hours was beyond comprehension.
"You’re becoming more and more mysterious now."
Jiang Chen laughed, then quickly changed the subject, "I just saved you from the tiger’s den, how come I can’t even hear a thank you?"
Fang Qing replied swiftly, only her tone wasn’t very sincere, and she even turned her head to look at the rainy scenery outside the window, not even glancing at the man she had watched grow up from childhood.
"What’s with that tone, too perfunctory, isn’t it?"
Jiang Chen was dissatisfied.
It was as if Fang Qing hadn’t heard, no response came from her.
While driving, Jiang Chen turned his head to look and discovered that the girl had unknowingly fallen asleep.
He couldn’t help but smile, said no more, and even turned down the music.
Upon reaching Fang Qing’s apartment complex, Jiang Chen woke her up.
The two went upstairs into the apartment.
"Lawyer Ding knows too, give him a call to let him know you’re safe," he said.
Fang Qing entered the bedroom, made a call to Ding He, then came back out.
"Did you tell him to switch lawyers?"
"Yeah, isn’t your case going to court tomorrow? It would be a big joke if the lawyer didn’t show up."
"I told him there’s no need to switch."
Fang Qing sat down beside him, seemingly having recovered from the harrowing kidnapping ordeal.
"Are you sure you still want to appear in court?" Jiang Chen asked.
"Why not go? I am a witness to the case and have been handling it all along; no one understands it better than I do."
Jiang Chen shrugged his shoulders. "If you insist, I have no objections."
"Can you not be so frivolous," Fang Qing said.
"Haven’t I always been ?"
Jiang Chen smiled nonchalantly.
Fang Qing didn’t continue the conversation, "Go get some sleep."
Before Jiang Chen had a chance to reply, Fang Qing looked into his eyes and said softly, "Your eyes are as red as if they’re bloodshot; haven’t slept all night?"
Jiang Chen shot back, "Your eyes aren’t looking much better."
Fang Qing grabbed a throw pillow from the sofa and threw it at him.
"Alas, the degeneracy of the times, the decline of humanity. Nowadays, saving someone doesn’t even warrant nice words, and you even get hit."
Jiang Chen shook his head and sighed deeply.
"I’ve already thanked you!"
It seemed the weight of that "thank you" was incredibly heavy.
Comrade Jiang Chen, generous in spirit, didn’t lower himself to argue with a woman, and nudged Qing Mei with his elbow.
"What are you doing?"
Fang Qing was puzzled.
"Move over, how can I sleep if you’re sitting here?"
"Who told you to sleep here!"
Fang Qing scolded playfully, "Go take a shower and sleep in the bed!"
It should be noted that this was a single apartment with only one bedroom, which also meant there was only one bed.
"This... seems a bit inappropriate, right?"
If Tong Dan was here, she might not have been able to keep her hands to herself, but Fang Qing tried to be more ladylike, even though Jiang Chen wasn’t spared her torment during their childhood.
"The court session is tomorrow, and I still have work to do. Go in there and sleep, and don’t disturb me."
Saying this, Fang Qing took out a laptop from under the coffee table.
"Are you sure you want to work now? Won’t you rest for a while?"
"What? You want me to keep you company while you sleep like when we were kids?"
Fang Qing turned her head.
Jiang Chen’s face froze in an instant, lost for words.
Living door to door, wearing split pants, they had indeed slept in the same bed before, and not just a few times; when their parents weren’t home during kindergarten and elementary school, entrusted to the care of each other’s parents, they would also sleep together.
Jiang Chen didn’t dawdle any longer and quickly went into the bedroom.
The surrendering Jiang Chen wholly missed the slight blush on Fang Qing’s cheeks.
Upon hearing the closing door behind her, Fang Qing breathed out softly, adjusted her emotions, and opened the laptop.
Apart from her father,
only one man had ever slept in her boudoir.
It was him in her childhood,
and it was still him now.
Outside, the rain drizzled on.
Having just gone through a kidnapping, Fang Qing quickly immersed herself in work, sitting on the sofa, tapping at the keyboard.
The screen emitted a fluorescent glow, reflecting Fang Qing’s serene face.
instead of writing an analysis of the case or a defense speech, she began by typing out a sentence.
"Where this heart feels at peace, there is my hometown."