Chu Xia’s nose instantly turned sour, and tears could no longer be held back.
She hugged her father’s neck tightly and cried bitterly:
“Dad, I’m sorry, it’s my fault, it’s all my fault. I’m the one who harmed you.”
After the incident involving Jiang Cixing, the police quickly locked onto a suspect—Li Chiqi, the warehouse guard.
Because of Shen Siren’s interference and manipulation, along with pressure from the Jiang family, an investigation that normally would take three months was completed in just three days, and he was sentenced.
At that time, Chu Xia was still in the hospital, being watched by Shen Siren’s people and unable to leave. She couldn’t even access the news. When Shen Siren came to pick her up from the hospital, she only then learned that her father had already been sent to prison.
She broke down completely, crying and arguing with Shen Siren. But he told her that if she went to visit her father in prison now, not only would her father be wrongly punished, but she would also be dragged into it by the Jiang family. By then, both father and daughter would truly be dead ends.
“At least if you stay safe outside, he will be at ease. He still has hope. As long as you’re doing well, you still have a chance to save him.”
Shen Siren’s words were like a tightening spell, making it impossible for her to break free.
So after that incident, she never saw her father again. Even later, when she asked Sheng Jing Shi to bring him out of prison, she still couldn’t reunite with him because of the Jiang family’s pressure. Instead, she placed him in a nursing home and only received his videos and photos periodically.
But in the videos from the nursing home, her father looked fine—so why now did he not even recognize her anymore…
“I heard from the prison guards that your uncle was hit in the head during a fight in the cell before, and later didn’t receive timely treatment, so he likely has aftereffects and can’t remember many things. In addition, the nursing home staff… are rather rough in their management, so his condition is very reactive and unstable.”
Chu Xia collapsed to the ground upon hearing Jiang Suizhou’s words.
“Rough management?”
Jiang Suizhou looked at her red eyes and couldn’t bear to tell her the truth—that in the nursing home, elderly people were sometimes sprayed directly with cold water hoses when bathing, and meals were force-fed regardless of whether they were eating or not. If they hadn’t finished swallowing, the next spoon would already come.
Li Chiqi was far from being unable to take care of himself, so his treatment was relatively mild—but he repeatedly tried to escape. Each time he was caught, he would be electroshocked.
At that moment, Chu Xia saw her father crawling on the ground, desperately trying to retrieve the black cloth bag from her hands and putting it back on his head—only then did he seem to regain a bit of security.
Jiang Suizhou helped her up from the ground. Chu Xia refused to leave, so he persuaded her:
“Your father also needs time to adapt to a new environment. You should adjust your own condition first.”
Fifteen minutes later, Chu Xia finally calmed down.
Jiang Suizhou had arranged her father in a guest room. When she pushed the door open, Li Chiqi was curled up in a corner, still wearing the black cloth bag on his head.
He hugged his knees, looking like an abandoned child.
Chu Xia walked over and squatted one step away from him. She held back her tears and put on a paper bag she had prepared in advance. She cut three holes in it for her eyes and mouth, just like his black bag.
As expected, when Li Chiqi saw her wearing the paper bag, he gave a silly laugh.
Timidly, he took a piece of candy from his inner pocket and carefully handed it to her:
“Eat… you eat.”
Chu Xia peeled off the wrapper and put the melted, misshapen candy into her mouth.
Her throat ached, her eyes were wet, and just as she was trying to hold back her emotions, she heard her father from the corner say:
“Xia Xia likes candy… give it all to Xia Xia.”
Chu Xia could no longer hold back and choked out:
“Dad…”
At that moment, Li Chiqi suddenly seemed to recognize her. He scrambled up, grabbed her wrist, and pulled her outside while shouting:
“Xia Xia go! Xia Xia go! Dad is here, don’t be afraid!”
He pushed her out of the room, then locked the door from the inside, trapping himself alone.
Chu Xia frantically knocked on the door and shouted for Jiang Suizhou.
He came over, opened the door with a key, and as soon as he entered, he saw Li Chiqi holding a table lamp high, smashing pillows on the bed until feathers flew everywhere.
His emotions were extremely agitated, like a sudden outbreak of strength. Four or five trained bodyguards struggled for a long time before finally restraining him. In the end, a private doctor injected him with a sedative, and the room finally fell silent.
“Miss Li, I suggest that before the trigger source is found, you should not interact with the patient again, to avoid worsening his condition.”
Jiang Suizhou held her hand and asked the doctor, “His behavior is very abnormal. My people never told me he had this condition.”
“Preliminary judgment suggests it may be traumatic flashback, related to past memories. You may want to recall whether the patient had similar behaviors before.”
A light flashed in Jiang Suizhou’s eyes. He frowned at the destroyed pillow, deep in thought.
He saw Chu Xia quietly curled up beside her father’s bed, so he silently closed the door for her.
Then he went to the terrace and picked up the phone:
“Send me the photos of the crime scene from Jiang Cixing’s case back then, and the autopsy report.”
Not far away, in the heart of Beijing…
The Shen family residence.
Lin Muting was looking at herself in the mirror, confirming her makeup was elegant and appropriate. She waited expectantly toward the staircase.
Soon, footsteps sounded. Her eyes lit up, but dimmed again when she saw Shen Fuyu instead.
“Sister Lin, why are you here? My parents aren’t home today.”
“I’m not here to see them,” Lin Muting smiled.
“Oh~” Shen Fuyu’s eyes turned sly. “You’re here for my brother, right?”
“He just came home today for ancestor worship. You’re lucky.”
Lin Muting smiled and asked, “Is he coming down?”
Just then, Shen Siren walked down the stairs.
He was dressed casually, not in uniform. His hair was loosely combed back, a few strands falling over his brow, making him look less stern and more relaxed.
“Brother, look who’s here!”
“Sir Ren,” Lin Muting greeted shyly.
Shen Siren paused slightly, lowered his gaze, and nodded briefly.
Lin Muting didn’t mind his coldness and approached him eagerly:
“Last time you didn’t come to the airport—were you busy? My friend came to pick me up later. He invested in an art gallery. Do you want to go see it together?”
“Sorry, not interested.”
He walked straight to the dining room.
Lin Muting’s expression dimmed. Shen Fuyu quickly tried to ease the awkwardness.
“It’s just an exhibition organized by Lou Fan and his girlfriend. I think it has good taste.”
“Lou Fan?” Shen Fuyu scoffed. “With his record of changing girlfriends, that gallery won’t last a month.”
Lin Muting smiled. “I thought so too, but he seems serious this time. That girl is very capable and pretty. He’s been really anxious for her lately.”
“Who is she?” Shen Fuyu got curious.
Lin Muting thought for a moment.
“I think… her name is Chu Xia.”
Crash—
A sharp sound of breaking glass came from the dining room. Servants rushed over.
Lin Muting turned around and only saw Shen Siren’s back—his head lowered, shoulders tense, still holding the position of gripping a glass.