Volume 1, Chapter 57 (A Major Climax of Punishing the Scum): Zhou Jinghuai, I don't want to see you!

Beijing First People's Hospital.

In the dead of night, Ye Wu lay in a pristine hospital room, still fast asleep. Her face and body were covered in abrasions, and a large, dark purple bruise marred her lower back.

Fortunately, there were no severe internal injuries.

The doctor called it a miracle.

After arranging everything, Zhou Jinghuai kept vigil by the bedside, waiting for Ye Wu to wake up.

Elder Zhou walked in leaning on his cane. Seeing him in this state, he couldn't help but sneer, "Putting on this affectionate display, but unfortunately there's no audience! Get outside with me."

Zhou Jinghuai glanced at Ye Wu, rubbed his face, and followed him out.

Once outside, Elder Zhou looked at his most prized grandson with a stern expression, "Jinghuai, as the CEO of Rounge Group, you did nothing wrong; giving up the signing would have left thousands jobless. But Jinghuai, besides being the CEO of Rounge, you are also Ye Wu's husband. I know you had your judgment, believing that Jingyao wouldn't do anything foolish, but unexpected accidents always happen. If you truly loved her, you wouldn't have hesitated for a single second, nor would you have been willing to take even the slightest risk."

"Put yourself in her shoes. If you were in danger, I believe Ye Wu would have chosen you without a second thought."

"Think about it carefully. If you truly don't love her, stop wasting her time."

...

Elder Zhou had always tried to bring them together, and speaking to him like this now meant his heart was thoroughly broken.

Zhou Jinghuai remained silent.

Knowing his mind, Zhou Yanli gently patted his son's shoulder, "Take good care of her. Explain things properly once she wakes up."

Zhou Jinghuai nodded.

Zhou Yanli accompanied the elder downstairs.

At that moment, the eastern sky was turning a pale, hazy white, framed by a ring of colorful clouds.

Elder Zhou stood in front of the black limousine, gazing blankly at those clouds, and spoke in a low voice, "Jingyao can't be saved. I just wonder how many years he'll get, and how his parents will ever bear this blow."

Zhou Yanli felt no better, remaining silent for a long time.

The elder sighed softly, "Accompany me to the detention center. Yanyu is in no position to show his face."

Zhou Yanli bent down to open the car door, "Get in, Grandfather."

Arriving at the detention center before visiting hours, the elder, who had been proud and unyielding all his life, patiently waited at the entrance. It wasn't until 8:30 in the morning, after Zhou Yanli had navigated the bureaucracy, that they were granted a private audience with Zhou Jingyao.

Over the course of a single night, Zhou Jingyao had lost all his usual prestige.

The deep blue prison uniform looked restrictive on his 1.85-meter frame. He had no way to shave his freshly grown stubble, and his eyes were bloodshot and deeply red. He looked thoroughly haggard.

Elder Zhou's cane struck the floor with heavy thuds, revealing the genuine heartache within him.

With a flick of his wrist, he delivered several hard slaps across his eldest grandson's face—

"Zhou Jingyao, has your mind been clouded by lard? What relation is Ye Wu to you? She is your sister-in-law, the one who served you tea and called you eldest brother."

"Yes, that lunatic is the one who planted the bomb."

"But you kidnapped her, and this prison sentence is unavoidable. As for that lunatic, once she is caught, I will skin her alive."

...

Zhou Jingyao took the slaps in complete silence.

When Elder Zhou had finally vented his anger, Zhou Jingyao looked straight into his eyes, "How is she? Is she seriously injured?"

The elder said indignantly, "Fortunately she's fine! Otherwise, you'd be finished."

Thank heaven for watching over them; if Su Qihong hadn't called Gu Jiuci at that moment, and if Gu Jiuci hadn't rushed over to prevent the tragedy, their Zhou family might have lost a life.

Zhou Jingyao fell silent once more.

As they were leaving, Elder Zhou said in a deep voice, "Jingyao, don't blame me for being ruthless; you going in is the only way to appease the shareholders' fury. Besides, I have no way to face your second uncle's family. Jinghuai was a young man who almost lost his wife, and this is entirely your doing."

"Also, you've always felt it was unfair."

"But Jinghuai was in favor of leaving that ten percent of shares for you."

...

In an instant, Elder Zhou seemed to have aged significantly. He knew his eldest grandson would face at least three years in prison.

As the elder was leaving, Zhou Jingyao blurted out anxiously, "Tell her... I'm sorry."

Elder Zhou shook his head gently.

He stepped out of the gloomy detention center, his heart aching with a dense, dull pain. A dark red figure stood in the corner outside.

—It was Su Qihong.

Elder Zhou had anticipated this.

He walked up to her, his voice low and hoarse, "I must thank you for saving the entire Zhou family. Without your call, Ye Wu would have lost her life, and the Zhou family's reputation would have hit rock bottom."

Zhou Yanli, standing beside him, handed over a real estate deed.

Weighing the deed in his hand, Elder Zhou deliberated before speaking, "Jingyao is certain to serve time in prison. As for whether you stay or go, you should decide for yourself. But as Jingyao's elder, this is a token of my sincerity."

The elder had gifted her a flat in Beijing, worth over a hundred million.

Su Qihong refused to accept it, saying through tears, "I genuinely love Jingyao. I am willing to wait for him to get out."

Elder Zhou felt deeply saddened. After a long while, he said in a muted voice, "That wretched scoundrel isn't worth this kind of devotion from you."

Yet, matters of the heart could not be decided by reason alone.

With no other way, Elder Zhou could only make up for it materially, insisting on putting the apartment under Su Qihong's name to provide the young woman with some security.

...

In the quiet hospital room.

Zhou Jinghuai sat in the single-armrest sofa by the bed, his forearms resting on his knees, his fingers steepened and pressed against his chin. He had showered and changed into clean clothes; his well-tailored shirt fit neatly, accentuating his fine physique.

He stared fixedly at Ye Wu's face, terrified of missing the moment she woke up.

Everyone told him to let Ye Wu go.

Yet, he was unwilling to give up. At the time, he had been certain Zhou Jingyao wouldn't dare go through with it. It wasn't that he didn't care about Ye Wu's life or death, but now that things had come to this, he had no way to explain.

Suddenly, Ye Wu let out a faint murmur.

Zhou Jinghuai leaned in closer immediately. Ye Wu suddenly grabbed his arm tightly, muttering in a continuous stream of nightmares—

"Zhou Jinghuai, it's dawn. Will you come to save me?"

"Zhou Jinghuai, it's dawn..."

...

She repeated it over and over, trapped deep within a nightmare.

Zhou Jinghuai's heart ached fiercely. He gently stroked his wife's pale cheek, pulling her into his embrace, and murmured softly and tenderly, "Awu, I'm back! Zhou Jinghuai is back."

Ye Wu slowly opened her eyes. Tears still stained them as she stared quietly at Zhou Jinghuai, as if seeing him for the very first time.

After a long while, she gently pushed him away, "I want to go see Gu Jiuci. Where is Gu Jiuci?"

Ye Wu remembered it was Gu Jiuci who had shielded her tightly, blocking that wall of fire for her.

Gu Jiuci, where was he?

Struggling to sit up, Ye Wu yanked the IV needle out of the back of her hand and scrambled out of bed, rushing toward the door.

Heartbroken, Zhou Jinghuai caught her from behind, pulling her into his arms and whispering, "He is out of danger now. He's in the sterile ward."

Even so, Ye Wu insisted on seeing Gu Jiuci.

She broke away from Zhou Jinghuai with all her might and ran toward the hallway. Skirting around several corridors, she finally reached the entrance of the sterile ward. Through the transparent glass panel, she saw Gu Jiuci lying quietly, half of his arm wrapped thickly in white bandages.

Ye Wu pressed her palm slowly against the glass, her eyes brimming with tears.

Guian had been lingering nearby. Hearing the commotion, she ran over and cried out, "My brother's left arm is completely shattered. The doctor said it will take more a dozen surgeries for him to recover. And... my brother's left ear has lost its hearing."

Ye Wu trembled all over...

Suppressing her tears, she hammered softly against the glass.

What she owed Gu Jiuci could never be repaid in this lifetime.

Behind her, Zhou Jinghuai turned deathly pale.

At that moment, a profound agony gripped his heart.

In the past, Ye Wu's heart held only him, but now a fracture had formed in Ye Wu's heart, and Gu Jiuci had stepped into that space.

Whether out of gratitude or something else, Ye Wu's heart now held Gu Jiuci—another man.

Zhou Jinghuai took a step forward, wanting to hold her.

Yet Ye Wu spoke in a soft, cold voice—

"Don't touch me! Never come looking for me again. I don't want to see you."

"Zhou Jinghuai, I don't want to see you. Did you hear me clearly?"

"If not, I'll say it again: I don't want to see you!"