In the dim light of the bar, the corner lamps cast a hazy, ambiguous glow, barely illuminating the figures. Dai Yuan’s amber eyes remained clear as he slapped the person, his expression unchanged, as if the one who violently struck someone wasn’t him at all.
Hou Youqing was so shocked by the scene that he let out a slight gasp, a sound so faint that even he could barely hear it amid the noisy background music.
Before he could hide in the shadows to observe more, he saw Dai Yuan get kicked in return. Dai Yuan seemed to lose his balance or buckle from the pain, tumbling down the stairs.
The kicker, one of the people standing next to the slapped man, chased down after Dai Yuan, landing a brutal kick to his waist. Afterward, he seemed to notice someone nearby and turned his gaze sharply toward Hou Youqing. “Who’s there?!”
Hou Youqing didn’t move. Dai Yuan, curled up in pain from the kick, also noticed him. His eyes widened, and his long eyelashes fluttered like butterfly wings as they trembled in pain, making him look incredibly pitiful.
Hou Youqing slowly spoke, “Shouldn’t I be the one asking? Why are you beating someone like this?”
“What’s it to you? If you’re not afraid of dying, keep standing there,” the attacker threatened coldly.
After a moment of silence, Hou Youqing lifted his leg and began walking away.
As he passed by Dai Yuan, he glanced down and saw that Dai Yuan was staring at him with wide eyes. His pale fingers, dirtied by dust, seemed to want to grab Hou Youqing’s pant leg but hesitated, either not wanting to cause trouble or for some other reason. In the end, his fingers didn’t touch him.
Hou Youqing withdrew his gaze and walked out without looking back. After leaving, he found a bar staff member and briefly explained what he had just seen. Once he saw the staff heading in the direction he pointed out, Hou Youqing left the bar.
It was hard to get a cab outside the bar, so while waiting, the scene he had just witnessed played over in his mind.
There were several reasons why he didn’t try to rescue Dai Yuan on the spot. First, even though Dai Yuan was someone he knew, to him, he might as well have been a stranger. Second, even if he wanted to help, he wasn’t capable of doing so alone; calling the bar security was a better option. And third, there was something strange about the whole situation. The man who kicked Dai Yuan seemed threatening, but he also seemed scared.
Scared of what?
Hou Youqing couldn’t understand, and he had no idea what kind of relationship Dai Yuan had with those people.
At that moment, a uniformed staff member came out of the bar. His gaze swept around until it landed on Hou Youqing, who was still waiting for a cab.
“Sir,” the staff member ran over to him, “it’s good you didn’t leave. Your friend has fainted. Do you want to take him to the hospital?”
Noticing Hou Youqing’s confusion, he let out an “Ah” and explained, “The person you told us about, the one who was beaten—we went to check, and there was only one person left. We wanted to take him to the hospital, but he described you and said you were his friend. Then he fainted.”
Hou Youqing understood the implication. They had come to him, hoping to avoid any extra trouble, likely to avoid paying for medical expenses.
“Wait a moment, I’ll make a call,” Hou Youqing said with a smile, then turned away and dialed a number.
It wasn’t until the third ring that someone answered.
The voice on the other end was noticeably irritated. “What do you want?”
“Dai Yuan fainted,” Hou Youqing said bluntly, then gave the location.
The person on the other end immediately sounded angry. “What did you do to him this time?”
“I didn’t do anything. If anything, I was acting out of goodwill. Dr. Qiu, I suggest you come quickly,” Hou Youqing replied, then hung up the phone. He turned back to the staff member with a polite smile, “I’ve called someone. He’s a doctor and can take good care of the person who fainted. But until he arrives, could you help look after him?”
The staff member blushed for some reason when he saw Hou Youqing’s smile. Nodding dumbly, he watched as Hou Youqing got into a cab and left before realizing he had probably messed things up.
The manager had specifically told him to make sure that guest didn’t leave no matter what.
***
Back at his cousin’s house, Hou Youqing greeted him briefly before heading off to take a shower. Afterward, as he came out, his phone, resting on the table, buzzed repeatedly.
It was Qiu Wenfei calling and texting him, bombarding him with questions about what he had done to Dai Yuan.
Hou Youqing ignored the messages without batting an eye, instead sending a quick note to his new colleagues saying he wasn’t feeling well and had gone home early. He told them to have fun.
After sending the message, he turned off his phone and went to sleep.
What he didn’t expect was someone pounding on his cousin’s door in the middle of the night.
Both he and his cousin were jolted awake. His groggy cousin opened the door, only to be shoved back as Gong Lang barged in, radiating hostility.
Gong Lang hadn’t come alone.
Hou Youqing’s remaining drowsiness vanished in an instant. Realizing what was happening, he turned to retreat to his room to call the police, but before he could reach it, Gong Lang blocked his way.
Hou Youqing was forcibly taken to the hospital.
In the cold moonlit hospital room, a young man laid quietly on a pristine white bed. Gong Lang shoved Hou Youqing into the room and coldly said, “You leave when Little Yuan wakes up. That is, if you haven’t actually harmed him.”
Gong Lang was initially in the hospital room, but a phone call pulled him away. He left his bodyguards to watch over Dai Yuan, or more accurately, to keep an eye on Huo Youqing.
Huo Youqing had been brought from home wearing only pajamas, with slippers on his feet. Feeling extremely irritated, he sat on the couch. Without his phone and with nothing to do, he glanced at the person lying on the bed.
For some reason, the scene before him felt strangely familiar, like something he’d experienced before.
—“You see, as long as I’m hurt, no matter where you try to hide, your friends will always bring you back to me.”
