The two men exchanged a glance, and the tension that had filled the room evaporated in an instant.
All this posturing and squabbling over territory—yet the girl only had eyes for money. What a ridiculous affair.
You Ziqian realized he had been played. Twirling his keychain, he kicked off the floor and, feet moving like wind, was about to confront someone.
The hospital room door, previously ajar, was pushed open—but suddenly came a loud clang!
Bai Lang, his forehead freshly re-injured, collapsed to the floor, lips trembling in a desperate whisper: “Chu… save me…”
You Ziqian froze, shocked, and hauled him to his feet. “How is it you?”
Bai Lang weakly spat up some blood. “You have the nerve to ask? You backstabber, helping enemies instead of friends—get out of the way!”
You Ziqian, ever the obedient one when persuaded, let go quickly. “Oh, fine.”
Bang!
Dizzy and dazed, Bai Lang’s feet slipped again, and he hit the floor once more.
Finally, Shang Shixu couldn’t stand it any longer. He deigned to step in, helped Bai Lang into the hospital bed, and even arranged another bed so he could lie beside Qiao Chu.
“Unexpected,” someone muttered. “Young Master Shang is remarkably magnanimous.”
Regarding You Ziqian’s sarcastic behavior, Shang Shixu remained composed. “Taking care of your fiancée’s friends is part of your duty as her future husband.”
He had heard the rumors about Qiao Chu and Bai Lang. At eighteen or nineteen, one was bound to be playful. Since Qiao Chu liked socializing, he wouldn’t interfere too much.
His fiancée could have many companions outside. At home, she would learn that wealth and power were the real supplements to marriage.
Of course, beyond that, he maintained his own fitness and grooming habits, making him the perfect husband in every way.
After settling Bai Lang, Shang Shixu didn’t leave. Hands usually reserved for signing contracts now held a fruit knife, peeling apples and pears.
He handed a slice to Qiao Chu, she bit it; he handed another slice, she ate it. The crisp sound of biting into the fruit was mouthwatering.
Bai Lang, reminded of the kiss in the car, swallowed heavily.
You Ziqian asked, “Want some?”
Bai Lang couldn’t admit what he was thinking in front of her fiancé, so he just nodded as if nothing had happened.
You Ziqian shoved the fruit knife and a bright red apple into his hand. “Peel it. Peel plenty—I want some too.”
Bai Lang, the patient and injured, wanted to stab this guy with the knife so badly.
You Ziqian, the same racing buddy he knew, had always been a mischievous friend. Normally, backstabbing was one thing—but today, in such an important matter, he had stabbed him in the back for Shang Shi’an!
Bai Lang couldn’t think of any reason You Ziqian would do this except to deliberately go against him.
Thinking of being betrayed by a friend, injured in a crash, and then seeing Qiao Chu fawning over her fiancé, Bai Lang felt his blood pressure spike.
Fortunately, Qiao Chu still cared about him.
She handed him all the pear slices she didn’t want.
Bai Lang, overwhelmed, ate them all without realizing it. Though he didn’t like pears, these were different somehow—sweet, juicy, and delicate.
After finishing, he noticed You Ziqian sitting at the foot of the bed, watching him with a smirk like a mocking observer.
“I remember you hated pears as a kid. One in the fruit plate, and you’d swear never to touch it.”
Bai Lang’s temple veins throbbed. Pointing it out in front of Shang Shixu was practically the same as exposing him for being seduced—or even worse, accused of stealing someone else’s woman!
He hadn’t even started any flirting, yet he was already getting the blame.
“You stay silent, no one thinks you’re dumb!”
“You and I haven’t seen each other for months. Can’t we just catch up? We agreed back then—whoever found love first is a dog. Now someone’s betraying that agreement…”
Qiao Chu watched the exchange, amused. “I get it. You’re secretly in love with Bai Lang, aren’t you? He said he doesn’t like pears, and you still remember all this time.”
You Ziqian: “…Stop being disgusting.”
He was just a little annoyed. For the first time, he was interested in something other than racing—a girl who already had a fiancé and was acting ambiguously with his childhood friend.
Pretty messed up.
His professional instincts made him sensitive to timing. Since Bai Lang had entered the room, Qiao Chu’s attention on him had surpassed the combined attention he and Shang Shixu had received.
Male pride is often unreasonable and badly timed.
In reality, You Ziqian was overthinking it.
Qiao Chu staring at Bai Lang was mainly because he had been unlucky—of the three involved in the crash, only he had been seriously injured.
And it was hard not to feel pity for a once lively, strong “big dog” suddenly reduced to a fragile, delicate state.
“I’ll head off first. Call me if you need anything.”
The room’s atmosphere had become so strange that You Ziqian felt his brain might short-circuit if he stayed. He decided to leave first.
Learning from past experience, he pushed the door open gently this time, avoiding Jiang Yixuan who happened to be behind it.
“You’re leaving? Want something to eat? I just bought some boxed lunches downstairs.”
You Ziqian didn’t answer, only gave her a cold look before walking away briskly.
Jiang Yixuan’s eyes burned with frustration. Why did no one like her? She had followed the plot exactly, yet the results were the opposite of what she expected.
As the story progressed, she realized that the male leads’ dislike for her diminished her heroine aura.
Without it, her once-sharp mind dulled, her once-easy life was full of obstacles.
Without the heroine glow, she became invisible, forced to siphon the luck of supporting characters to maintain her aura.
But a supporting character is still a supporting character—no matter how much luck she stole, it couldn’t compare to a single hair of a male lead. She needed the male lead’s love.
It was a vicious cycle: the weaker her aura, the fewer who loved her, the less luck she gained, and the dimmer her aura became.
Time was short. She needed to secure at least one male lead’s affection quickly.
Jiang Yixuan composed herself, rubbed her reddened eyes, ensured the tear tracks on her lashes looked pitiable, and pushed open the hospital room door.
“Big Brother Shang, you haven’t eaten lunch yet, right? I brought you some—”
Seeing Qiao Chu safe and sound in the room, she froze. Summoning courage, she stepped inside, only to find Bai Lang was there too.
She had only brought two meals—one for You Ziqian and one for Shang Shixu—and hadn’t accounted for Qiao Chu being awake.
Qiao Chu had already eaten, assisted by Cheng’s assistant, who had brought boxed meals and chicken soup from a five-star hotel kitchen.
She didn’t say anything, just waiting to see what the heroine would do.
Jiang Yixuan quickly calculated the risk: one meal for Shang Shixu, one for Bai Lang.
After all, Qiao Chu wasn’t her target, and there were still many grudges between them. Clearly, her current misfortune was Qiao Chu’s doing.
“Big Brother Shang, Bai, why aren’t you eating? Is it that the meals I bought aren’t to your taste?”
Even with Shang Shixu’s usual refined manners, it was hard to show her any warmth when facing the one responsible for Qiao Chu’s accident.
“Miss Jiang, I should have told you before—you’re not welcome to visit here.”
Jiang Yixuan, eyes brimming with tears, pleaded.
“Big Brother Shang, you’re still angry with me, right? I didn’t expect this to happen. I can atone, really.”
“No matter if you want me to personally take care of them or compensate for the damages, I will comply. I only ask for a chance to make amends.”