After the injured engineer was wheeled back to his hospital room by the medical staff, Jiang Zhou returned to the room with the manager from Ruigi.
He arranged for a professional caregiver to be assigned to the engineer, repeatedly instructing the caregiver to provide attentive care so that the injured could recover peacefully without worrying about work matters.
Once everything was settled, Jiang Zhou left the hospital first and drove back to the Huo Corporation.
He walked straight to the door of the CEO’s office and knocked twice, neither too lightly nor too heavily.
Inside the office, Huo Zhili was wearing only a dark-colored shirt, buried in reviewing documents on his desk. Without looking up at the sound, he uttered a single word in a low voice: “Enter.”
Jiang Zhou, dressed in a crisp black suit, pushed the door open and stepped inside, standing in a formal posture:
“Mr. Huo, the injured engineer’s thumb has been successfully reattached. The surgery was performed by Ms. Yu.”
Only then did Huo Zhili look up, his gaze heavy as he looked at him, his tone flat:
“Will there be any permanent disability after the surgery?”
Jiang Zhou stood even straighter and reported truthfully:
“I specifically inquired with Ms. Yu about the situation. She said it ultimately depends on the recovery after the surgery and did not explicitly state that there would be a permanent disability.”
Huo Zhili slowly leaned back in his chair, lightly tapping the armrest with his fingertips, and instructed in a deep voice:
“Let Ruigi handle all the follow-up matters. The top priority now is to ensure the injured receives the best treatment. Everything else can wait.”
“Yes!” Jiang Zhou responded loudly, then asked, “Mr. Huo, do you have any other instructions?”
Huo Zhili pointed at the stack of documents on the desk and said succinctly: “Take them out.”
“Alright.” Jiang Zhou stepped forward, neatly gathered all the documents, turned, exited the office, and gently closed the door.
The office returned to quietness. Huo Zhili lazily leaned back in his chair and glanced at his wristwatch.
A moment later, he stood up, picked up the jacket hanging on the back of the chair and his phone from the corner of the desk, and walked straight out of the office, with Jiang Zhou immediately following closely behind.
At that moment, Li Junyao walked toward them holding a stack of documents. Seeing this, he raised an eyebrow and teased: “Heading out?”
Huo Zhili responded indifferently: “I have an appointment to play ball.”
Li Junyao didn’t ask further and directly handed the documents to him: “Perfect timing, take a look at this document. If there are no issues, sign it.”
Huo Zhili casually took the documents, quickly flipping through the pages with his fingertips, scanning ten lines at a glance.
In less than two minutes, he finished reviewing the content, took the pen Li Junyao handed him, and with a swift stroke of his wrist, signed his name. He then returned both the documents and the pen.
When Huo Zhili arrived at the tennis club, his business partner and friend Liang Jingtao was already there.
Huo Zhili had changed into a refreshing sportswear outfit: a white polo shirt on top, paired with khaki casual pants, holding a professional tennis racket in his hand.
Liang Jingtao was also dressed in sportswear and said with a smile: “Young Master Huo, haven’t seen you in a while. Still as spirited as ever.”
Huo Zhili glanced at him briefly, his tone devoid of emotion: “You’ve gotten uglier.”
“Would it kill you to compliment me?” Liang Jingtao immediately pretended to be displeased.
Just as the two were about to step onto the court, Liang Jingtao spotted Lou Minghe and Yu Qingyu, who had also come to play tennis, and immediately raised his hand to greet them:
“Young Master Lou, here to play tennis too?”
Lou Minghe turned his head at the sound, looked at Liang Jingtao, and nodded in response:
“Yes, here to get some exercise.”
Liang Jingtao’s gaze fell on Yu Qingyu beside him. She was wearing a pure white short sports skirt, looking neat and refreshing. He smiled and said:
“Dr. Yu, long time no see. You’ve become even more beautiful.”
Yu Qingyu had previously had a meal with Liang Jingtao, so they were acquainted. She politely responded:
“Long time no see!”
Liang Jingtao glanced sideways at the expressionless Huo Zhili beside him and took the opportunity to invite:
“How about playing together? It’s more lively with more people.”
Lou Minghe then turned to look at Yu Qingyu and asked softly, “Shall we join them?”
Yu Qingyu nodded calmly on the surface. “I’m fine with it.”
But inwardly, she was grumbling. If not for fear of embarrassing everyone, she had no desire to play on the same court as Huo Zhili.
In the end, the four decided: Lou Minghe and Yu Qingyu would team up for a mixed doubles tennis match against Huo Zhili and Liang Jingtao.
Lou Minghe agreed readily, but he had a hidden agenda. The balls he hit today were never intended to be “well-behaved.”
Right from the start of the match, Lou Minghe served with fierce and sharp intensity. The ball was so fast it stirred up a gust of wind. Fortunately, Huo Zhili was extremely agile, steadily receiving the ball and cleanly hitting it back with a backhand.
Tennis happened to be a sport Yu Qingyu excelled at. Gripping her racket tightly, she swiftly swung and counterattacked, sending the ball steadily back to the opposite side of the court.
The white tennis ball shuttled back and forth above the net, and the match grew increasingly intense. At the last moment, Lou Minghe suddenly exerted force, swinging his racket with a fast, precise, and fierce motion. The ball flew straight toward Huo Zhili’s shoulder, unavoidable.
The ball was extremely fast and packed a powerful impact. Caught off guard, Huo Zhili was hit and couldn’t help but let out a muffled groan.
Lou Minghe, however, remained expressionless and casually tossed out a remark, “Sorry, the ball has no eyes.”
Liang Jingtao stepped forward and patted Huo Zhili’s shoulder, smoothing things over with a laugh:
“Are you alright? Getting accidentally injured by your own buddy, you’ll just have to accept it.”
Huo Zhili could clearly see Lou Minghe’s intentions. From the moment he agreed to play on the same court, it was aimed at hitting him.
He rubbed his numb shoulder, his expression unchanged. “I’m not that weak.”
On the other side, Lou Minghe handed his racket to the waiting ball boy, then turned and took a bottle of water, passing it to Yu Qingyu.
Yu Qingyu unscrewed the cap and took a few sips. Looking at Lou Minghe, she said with a smile, “Brother, your skills are still so impressive. Seems like you’ve been practicing a lot.”
Lou Minghe also unscrewed his mineral water and took a sip, his tone flat. “He didn’t dodge it himself.”
A flicker of coldness passed through Yu Qingyu’s eyes as she spoke lightly, “He brought it on himself.”
“Hmm, that shot was letting him off easy.” Lou Minghe looked up at Huo Zhili and Liang Jingtao approaching and said in a low voice.
Liang Jingtao quickly laughed and tried to lighten the mood, praising:
“Mr. Lou’s skills are truly as renowned as they say, genuinely impressive. I have much to learn.”
But Lou Minghe didn’t acknowledge the compliment. His gaze went straight to Huo Zhili as he said calmly, “The real expert is the one beside you.”
Huo Zhili had always been exceptionally gifted in sports, mastering various disciplines with skill and depth. Unfortunately, his talents in painting and medicine didn’t inherit from his mother, Li Sheng. Instead, he fully took after his father, Huo Shiyan.
In contrast, his sister, Huo Songyi, perfectly inherited her grandmother and mother’s artistic talents, showing great aptitude in the arts.
Huo Zhili picked up a towel nearby and casually wiped the light sweat from his temple. Looking at Lou Minghe, his tone carried a hint of coldness:
“Later, I’ll spar with Young Master Lou again and learn how to make the ball ‘not see clearly’.”
Lou Minghe immediately retorted without hesitation: “You don’t need to learn—poor eyesight is already your strong suit.”
Liang Jingtao, standing nearby, struggled to hold back his laughter. The corners of his mouth twitched uncontrollably, yet he dared not make a sound. He didn’t even dare bring the mineral water in his hand to his lips, afraid he might spit it out and choke on the spot.