Chapter 491: You’re Free
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Huo Shaoheng glared at Chen Lie and spoke to a direction behind him. “Dr. Ye, please help me send Nianzhi to her room.”
Chen Lie went pale immediately. He stood there not knowing what to do—he didn’t dare to turn around and stood there like a wooden puppet. He looked at Huo Shaoheng, who was smiling, and walked past him slowly.
Chen Lie only snapped back to his senses after Huo Shaoheng sent Gu Nianzhi into her room. He turned around and realized that there was no Ye Zitan at all! Huo Shaoheng had tricked him!
Chen Lie was quite pissed off and ran to Gu Nianzhi’s door, raised his fist, and wanted to bang on her door. However, he stopped. He remembered that Ye Zitan’s room was directly beside Gu Nianzhi’s! He couldn’t take this lying down, though, so he folded his arms and stood outside Gu Nianzhi’s room, waiting for Huo Shaoheng to come out.
Huo Shaoheng placed Gu Nianzhi, who was sleeping soundly, onto the spacious bed in the room. Even though Barbados was a tropical country and was really hot right now, there was an air conditioner installed in the room, so it was still cool.
Huo Shaoheng wiped the beads of perspiration off Gu Nianzhi’s forehead and covered her with a silk blanket on the bed. He only left the room after that.
Even without turning to look, he knew that Chen Lie would be leaning against the wall, feeling upset. Putting his hands in his pockets, Huo Shaoheng said calmly to Chen Lie, “You’re trying to have double standards now?”
“Would I dare to?!” Chen Lie felt extremely wronged. “I’m the peasant, and you’re the minister. You’re able to set the bars, and I wouldn’t be able to not follow. Happy?”
“Sure. Let’s consider us as equals today, then.” Huo Shaoheng turned around and became serious. “Chen Lie, this is really important. Please treat it as such. Anything can happen, and snipers can appear anytime.”
“So serious? Who’s that person?” Chen Lie interest grew. “Why are we so careful?”
“Aren’t you tired?” Huo Shaoheng looked at his watch. “It’s very late. Shall we talk tomorrow?”
“Oh, please! You’d keep someone hanging like that? You think I can sleep like this?!” Chen Lie grumbled unhappily. His rant was not loud, as he remembered that Gu Nianzhi and Ye Zitan were sleeping in the rooms nearby.
Huo Shaoheng nodded. “Sure. Since you’re unable to sleep, follow me. I’ll show you something.”
Huo Shaoheng brought Chen Lie into his room and showed him the documents. “This is your mission this time around. You’re to bring Gu Xiangwen back to the Hua Xia Empire in the position of a health doctor.”
Chen Lie only managed to digest the information and react after a while. “Gu Xiangwen?! That Gu Xiangwen?! You’ve finally found him?! Didn’t you say that he’s become a vegetable? How?”
Huo Shaoheng folded his arms and replied, “According to sources, he became like that after the MH210 accident.” He paced around the room, looking through the leads again. “What we know is that everyone except for him died. His daughter, Gu Yanran, managed to save him. However, he hasn’t been able to wake up.”
“Hold on!” Chen Lie was extremely confused. “How would Gu Yanran be his daughter?! Isn’t his daughter Nianzhi?! You’ve always said that Nianzhi’s father is Gu Xiangwen, haven’t you?!”
“Yeah, Nianzhi’s father is indeed Gu Xiangwen. However, he is also Gu Yanran’s father.” Huo Shaoheng stopped in his tracks and saw Chen Lie’s chubby face turning red with stress. He laughed. “You’re shocked as well?”
“…Gu Yanran and Nianzhi are not biologically related, but she’s Gu Xiangwen’s daughter? Then Nianzhi…” Chen Lie frowned, and his eyes turned into a thin line as his brow furrowed.
“Can’t get it?” Huo Shaoheng shook his head. “Forget it. Let’s not torture you further. There is such a thing as a sibling relationship that isn’t biologically related. Just think outside the box—outside the box of being related by blood.”
Chen Lie finally understood. “One of them isn’t the biological daughter of the Gus! Gosh! So that’s it! I’ve been so blurred by everything.”
To be honest, that shouldn’t have been thought of as being blurred. It was because Gu Nianzhi was in a more complicated situation. She had lost her memories before she’d turned 12. Therefore, the only thing in the past to prove her identity was to test for DNA. If her DNA did not match, who would be able to say something such as that they were sisters who are not biologically related?
It was because of He Zhichu’s help this time around that more leads to Gu Nianzhi’s past had been discovered.
Huo Shaoheng sat down on the sofa opposite Chen Lie, supported an arm on his knees, and continued letting him know about Gu Xiangwen: “…On the day I arrived at Barbados, the Gus were raided by masked snipers. Their intention was to get Gu Yanran to reveal the whereabouts of Gu Xiangwen. However, Gu Yanran refused to let them know no matter what. After that, I gave chase and saved her. Therefore, she decided that she wanted me to help her send her father to America.”
“To America? Not to our country?” Chen Lie sat up straight. “Why are you beating around the bush?”
“I’m not beating around the bush; the things that happened in between were complicated. Anyway, eventually, she got the army to help her, but the only condition was that Gu Xiangwen had to be sent to Hua Xia empire instead of America.” Huo Shaoheng sighed. “Eventually, even though Gu Yanran had agreed to the terms and conditions set by the army, she was rather reluctant. Therefore, she had been delaying the progress. I had no choice but to get Nianzhi here. I got you here as well, just in case.”
Chen Lie finally understood the entire episode. With his chin in one hand, he contemplated for a while. Then he shook his finger. “Then it looks like we’ll have to prepare more equipment and more people in order to keep this safe.”
“Yes, and regarding this, I’ll give you all authority for decisions. I’ll get the person and bring him here and look out for his safety. You’ll be in charge of the patient’s condition along the way, making sure that he remains as he is and does not have any worsened conditions along the way. It’d be best if you could think of a way to wake him up.” Huo Shaoheng pinned extremely high hopes on Chen Lie and looked at him firmly.
Chen Lie nodded eagerly. “Of course I’d think of something. Don’t worry. But finding the person is of the utmost importance right now, isn’t it?”
“Yes.” Huo Shaoheng folded his arms and leaned back on the sofa. “Barbados isn’t a big place. There’s only so much land. Where can Gu Yanran hide her father?” Huo Shaoheng asked, feeling clueless.
“Even the local snipers couldn’t find him. You’re a foreigner here and aren’t familiar with everywhere. How would you find him?” Chen Lie shrugged. “Why don’t we just wait patiently?”
“I’ll push Gu Yanran again tomorrow. If she still refuses to relent, then don’t blame me for not having patience.” Huo Shaoheng is someone who had many backup plans. He was merely trying to see how Gu Yanran wanted to play her game.
Gu Yanran was currently driving her car, returning to the villa in the suburbs from the city.
Her phone rang. Putting on her Bluetooth earpiece, she answered the call. “It’s you? Yes? You’re still here?”
There was nothing but silence on the other end for a while before the voice came again: “Yanran, I’m afraid I’ve really implicated you this time.”
“What’s wrong?” Gu Yanran stopped in her tracks. She intended to step on the brakes but stepped on the accelerator instead. Thankfully, there weren’t many people on the road. If not, she’d have bumped into the car in front.
“…Huo Shaoheng and his guys are still after my whereabouts. I’ve just received news that they’ve already gotten information on the Yamaguchi-gumi,” the voice said worriedly, showing her displeasure.
“What? How could that be?” Gu Yanran got a shock as well. “What does Yamaguchi-gumi have to do with you? Don’t scare yourself.”
The person on the other end remained silent for a while. She could not explain to Gu Yanran what had happened in detail, so she finally said, “We have to stop contacting thoroughly and not allow people to know that we’ve been in touch. If not, it’ll be the end for the both of us.”
“It’s that serious?” Gu Yanran didn’t believe it. She giggled. “This isn’t like you at all…”
“It’s really serious.” The person on the other end sounded grave. “I’ve escaped twice, but I don’t know if I’ll be able to do it again a third time. If I can’t…” The person paused. “Then just pretend you never had me as a friend, and forget you ever knew about my existence in this world.”
“What?!” Gu Yanran stepped on the brakes and stopped her car on the shoulder of the road. “You’d better make yourself clear. What the hell is going on?! What have you done?”
“The less you know, the safer you’ll be. You sure you want to know?” The person on the other end laughed wryly. “Just don’t try to find out any more. Yanran, you’re my friend. I’ll never let anything happen to you. Just be careful these few days…”
The person mumbled some more things on the other end, then hung up.
Gu Yanran frowned and looked at the road in front of her. Was going to Hua Xia Empire the only way out for her now? But she really wanted to go to America more. It’d be easy if she were to go alone, but if she were to bring a human vegetable, it wouldn’t be possible to go there in secret.
She sighed and leaned on her steering wheel. After a while, she dozed off.
After a while, a black Mercedes SUV stopped in front of her. A tall and masculine man exited the car and knocked on Gu Yanran’s windows. “Miss Gu? What’s wrong?”
“Oh, it’s you.” Gu Yanran turned to look at the familiar face and opened the door.
The man sat down in the car. “Miss Gu, do you have some things you’re unable to solve? I can help you.” The man’s eyes were bright, eager, and innocent. He looked like an innocent boy.
Gu Yanran touched his face gently and traced her finger down his arms, then held his hand. She looked at the hand—the hand that had helped her countless times. It wasn’t exactly clean, and it was splattered with blood. However, he was the only person she could depend on at that point in time.
However, this pair of hands couldn’t help her anymore this time around.
Gu Yanran shook her head. “You don’t have to stand by us anymore, Ye Xuan; you’re free now.”