Chapter 665 - Back Then
Shen Zhijin was taken to the operating theater.
The cut was very deep. The only blessing was that there was no fracture. Ning Li stood in the corridor and leaned against the cold wall. Her head was lowered slightly, and people came and went around her. When Lu Huaiyu arrived, this was what he saw.
His heart ached, and he quickly walked over.
“Ah Li.”
Ning Li slowly raised her head.
“Second Brother.”
Lu Huaiyu frowned.
“How are you? Are you hurt?”
Ning Li shook her head.
“I’m fine, it’s just that Teacher Shen...”
She pursed her lips.
“His arm was cut.” Lu Huaiyu hugged her tightly, his chin pressed against her forehead as he caressed her back.
He closed his eyes to hide the violence in his eyes and tried his best to make his voice sound gentle and calm.
“Good girl, it’s okay now.”
Ning Li raised her arms and wrapped them around his trim waist, rubbed her face against his firm and flat chest.
The familiar cedar fragrance filled the tip of her nose. The tense string in her mind finally relaxed a little.
The chill in her body seemed to be dispelled.
Lu Huaiyu said, “I’ve already called Chief Liu. Those three people have already been detained. The results of the interrogation will come out as soon as possible.” Those three people had obviously come prepared, but Ning Li did not know them.
However, there was a high probability that someone had hired them.
As for who that person was... She could already make a rough guess. Now, they could only go through the process.
Ning Li replied with a “Hmm”. Her voice was very soft.
Lu Huaiyu stepped back a little and kissed the space between her eyebrows. He looked into her eyes and coaxed her in a low voice.
“Ah Li, be good. Don’t think about that anymore. Just leave it all to me, hmm?”
Ning Li nodded.
She grabbed his clothes and said softly, “... I’m just a little worried about Teacher Shen.”
Shen Zhijin had paid such a painful price for saving her.
He had not even hesitated at all to step in front of her.
Lu Huaiyu looked in the direction of the operating theater.
The sound of hurried footsteps could be heard. “Ah Li.”
Ning Li turned around and saw several people rushing over.
The person in the middle was Xu Yin. Ning Li knew the people beside him. They were also the leaders and teachers of Xijing University.
Ning Li had been ambushed a few hundred meters away from the school and Shen Zhijin had also gotten injured.
The nature of the attack was bad, and its impact was huge.
“Teacher Xu.”
Ning Li withdrew from Lu Huaiyu’s embrace.
Xu Yin scrutinized her first. Only after making sure that she was safe and sound did he heave a sigh of relief.
“How is Zhijin now?”
Ning Li told him about Shen Zhijin’s injury.
Xu Yin sighed.
“Then let’s wait first. I hope the surgery goes well.”
He looked at Ning Li again and advised, “Ah Li, don’t blame yourself too much over this matter.”
Ning Li paused and nodded lightly.
The waiting time seemed to be exceptionally
long.
More and more people came over, yet Ning Li still did not see any of Shen Zhijin’s family members.
After a long while, she could not help but ask, “Teacher Xu, why is Teacher Shen’s family
not...”
Xu Yin was momentarily stunned before he spoke with a softer voice.
“Zhijin is the only child. Ever since the academician Shen and his wife passed away a few years ago, he has always been a loner.”
Ning Li was stunned but did not ask any further questions.
However, Xu Yin looked at her hesitantly.
Ning Li noticed it.
“Teacher Xu, what... Did you want to say something?”
Xu Yin looked at her with a complicated gaze before letting out a long sigh.
“It’s nothing. I just feel that Zhijin is...”
Ning Li pursed her lips slightly.
She could actually guess what Xu Yin meant.
Although she was currently following Shen Zhijin on his experiments, in reality, she was not truly his official student.
However, he did not hesitate to help her.
Ning Li recalled the words that Shen Zhijin had said to her a few days ago when he had asked her about her birthday.
She said, “Teacher Xu, I believe that the reason Teacher Shen helped me like this is because his daughter and I share the same birthday.”
Xu Yin was shocked and his brows were tightly knitted together. After a long while, he slowly said, “No wonder...”
Ning Li still felt that something was amiss.
“But, it’s only because it’s the same birthday...”
“Ah Li.”
Xu Yin interrupted her and looked at her with a complicated gaze,
“There’s one more thing that you might not know. Zhijin’s child was also born in Lincheng.”
The lights in the operating room were finally extinguished.
Shen Zhijin was then sent to a normal ward.
Xu Yin asked Lu Huaiyu to send Ning Li home first. After all, she had suffered quite a shock today, and it would not be good for her to continue to stay at the hospital. Ning Li knew that she would not be of much help even if she stayed here. After confirming that Shen Zhijin’s surgery had been completed successfully, she followed Lu Huaiyu back to Rongyue Residence.
That night, she did not sleep well.
The next morning, she made breakfast and accompanied Lu Huaiyu to First Affiliated Hospital.
The door of the ward was ajar, leaving it open a crack.
Ning Li was about to knock on the door when she heard a voice from inside.
“Zhijin, you saved her because she looks similar to her, right?”
Ning Li recognized the owner of the voice: Shi
Ying.
She paused.
Shen Zhijin’s voice was slightly hoarse, but it was still calm and clear.
“I want to rest. You can go back now.” Shi Ying looked at the man in front of her and suddenly felt powerless.
“It’s been so many years. Zhijin, you–“
She did not complete her sentence.
After a moment of silence, Shi Ying turned around to leave.
When she opened the door and saw Ning Li and Lu Huaiyu, her expression froze.
Her gaze lingered on Ning Li for a moment, as countless emotions seemed to be surging in her eyes. However, in the end, she did not say anything and left.
Ning Li looked into the ward.
Sitting by the bed, Shen Zhijin did not seem to realize that they had arrived. The morning sun shone through the window, casting a layer of light on his handsome and clean face.
Dressed in a hospital gown, his lips were a little pale, and the usual coldness and alienation had faded a little.
His head was lowered slightly as he stared at the watch quietly. His expression was fragile and serious.
It was as if time seemed to have stopped.
Ning Li recalled Xu Yin’s words from yesterday.
The fire had burned so badly that almost the whole building had been destroyed. Among the three people who had died, one was Zhijin’s wife, and the other had been his daughter, who had been born just a day earlier. After the fire had been put out, the firemen had found the bodies of her and her daughter. It was said that they had suffocated to death.
She had been found with extensive burns on her body, with the child still held tightly in her arms. There were no burns on the child’s body, but it was a pity that she had not survived either.
–Later, Shen Zhijin attempted to commit suicide by slitting his wrists in his home.