Chapter 39: The Small-Time Star and His Short-Tempered Sugar Daddy (Part XXXIX)
The news of Cheng Nuo’s attempted murder causing serious injury to the victim quickly set off a storm of public opinion across major media outlets.
Although the video footage was a bit blurry, the process was captured comprehensively. For some reason, the fingerprints on the fruit knife in Xiao Ji’s back hadn’t been washed away by the rain and perfectly matched Cheng Nuo’s.
With both human testimony and material evidence present, Fang Yinnian’s legal team was already working non-stop, pulling strings to secure the outcome Fang Yinnian wanted.
Xiao Ji lay in the ICU for thirteen days. During this period, he was rushed back to the emergency room four times, and five critical condition notices were issued.
Fang Yinnian arranged for Xiao Ji’s parents to travel over a thousand kilometers overnight to reach Su City.
Because he wasn’t qualified to sign the critical condition notices.
Watching Xiao Ji’s father’s hand tremble uncontrollably as he signed the notices, Fang Yinnian felt he had never endured such suffering in his life.
He was numb from head to toe, devoid of sensation.
When Xiao Ji’s mother held his hand with tears streaming down her face to thank him, he felt only that his sins were heinous and unforgivable.
If not for his impulse, recklessly walking onto that mountain path, Cheng Nuo wouldn’t have had an opening, and Xiao Ji wouldn’t be lying in the ICU with his life hanging in the balance for so many days.
On the fourteenth day post-surgery, when Xiao Ji finally passed the critical stage and was transferred to a regular ward, everyone breathed a sigh of relief as if a heavy load had been lifted.
Xiao Ji’s mother, whose nerves had been taut for half a month, relaxed and fainted on the spot.
“We will slowly pay you back for Xiao Ji’s medical expenses.”
Inside the single ward, Xiao Ji’s father looked at Fang Yinnian—who was sitting by the bed, looking haggard, having guarded Xiao Ji constantly—and spoke wearily.
Fang Yinnian shook his head. “No need. I am responsible for Xiao Ji’s accident.”
These past few days, Fang Yinnian had guarded the hospital almost without sleep or rest. He had arranged everything for the Xiao couple’s food and accommodation personally, making it impossible for them to refuse.
The cost of the ICU was not low. Since the injury involved the heart, the total medical expenses amounted to nearly seven figures.
Naturally, Cheng Nuo would bear this cost later, but until the verdict came out, Fang Yinnian was advancing the money.
And to be honest, if spending money could ensure Xiao Ji was safe and healthy, Fang Yinnian would rather go bankrupt than let Xiao Ji suffer this.
Xiao Ji’s father had been around the block. At first, he thought Fang Yinnian was just a good boss who cared deeply for his employee.
But now that half a month had passed, if he still couldn’t see the clues, he would have lived his life in vain.
“You and my son…”
He stopped mid-sentence, wanting to ask, but feeling the timing wasn’t right given the situation.
Fang Yinnian rubbed his face. He didn’t deny it, but took all the responsibility onto himself:
“I’m sorry. It was one-sided on my part. It has little to do with Xiao Ji.”
Xiao Ji’s father had seen Fang Yinnian’s suffering these past days. Anyone with eyes knew that Cheng Nuo was the one who hurt people, and Fang Yinnian was also a victim.
It was just that his son had chosen to protect the man in front of him.
If Xiao Ji really hadn’t made it, Xiao Ji’s father might have directed his anger at Fang Yinnian, refused his apology, and never wanted to see him again in this life.
But now that Xiao Ji was out of danger—a huge blessing—Xiao Ji’s father had a bit more understanding for Fang Yinnian.
However, he still found their relationship somewhat hard to accept.
He couldn’t help asking Fang Yinnian, “Did you force Xiao Ji?”
Fang Yinnian shook his head and didn’t speak.
After a long time, he took the initiative to say to Xiao Ji’s father, “I want to transfer Xiao Ji to Haicheng. The medical conditions there are better than in Su City. If there are any complications post-surgery, it’s easier for me to pull strings there.”
Xiao Ji’s father knew that Fang Yinnian’s suggestion was the best choice for Xiao Ji right now.
But Xiao Ji’s parents hadn’t reached retirement age yet. With Xiao Ji’s condition, and not knowing when he would wake up, the medical expenses out of town were too high, as were the living costs. It wasn’t sustainable for the couple to stay at the hospital all the time; just the cost of three meals a day was double that of their hometown.
It was unknown when Cheng Nuo’s compensation would be realized. Xiao Ji’s father didn’t want to trouble an outsider too much, so he refused:
“We’re just ordinary people. I heard the cost of living in Haicheng is even higher than Su City. We…”
“I have plenty of money. You know what needs to be done for Xiao Ji’s good. I don’t care about anything right now; I just want Xiao Ji to get better quickly.”
Fang Yinnian interrupted Xiao Ji’s father. Although his voice was terribly hoarse, it carried an irrefutable dominance.
Xiao Ji’s father wasn’t a forceful character. He had been a nice guy all his life and wasn’t good with words; Xiao Ji’s mother made all the decisions at home. Now that she had collapsed, hearing Fang Yinnian speak like this, he didn’t know who to discuss it with and could only choose silence.
When Xiao Ji’s mother woke up in the evening, he discussed the daytime matters with her and asked her to talk to Fang Yinnian.
Xiao Ji lay on the hospital bed. His consciousness was clear; his soul was slowly reintegrating with this body from a semi-detached state. But when he would wake up depended on the body’s condition.
He could feel Fang Yinnian guarding him every step of the way, and he could hear what Fang Yinnian said to his father during the day.
He wanted to touch Fang Yinnian’s face and tell him to go back and get a good sleep, but he couldn’t do anything.
Xiao Ji’s mother walked into the ward, peeled an apple for Fang Yinnian, and handed it to him:
“Child, thank you for your hard work.”
Fang Yinnian took the apple, his eyes feeling hot. He shook his head, unable to speak.
Xiao Ji’s mother looked at Fang Yinnian. “Xiao Ji’s dad told me. But our conditions are limited, and we can’t keep troubling you. We thought, if Xiao Ji doesn’t wake up in two days, we’ll take him home first.”
“You shouldn’t be young anymore. With your conditions, finding a girl to marry and live a good life isn’t a problem. We never had high expectations for Xiao Ji, but we still hope he can walk a proper path.”
“With this incident, neither his father nor I blame you, but we also don’t want you two to delay each other any longer. Do you understand what I mean?”
These words were very direct.
But Fang Yinnian couldn’t accept it no matter what. “I want to watch him wake up. If this is the result he wants too, I can let him go, but I want to hear him say goodbye to me personally.”
Fang Yinnian’s request wasn’t excessive.
Xiao Ji’s mother knew that with Fang Yinnian’s status, if he wanted to use power and money to pressure people, they would have no power to resist.
And most importantly, Xiao Ji hadn’t woken up yet.
After going through this, Xiao Ji’s mother actually understood that as long as her child was alive and healthy, everything else was a minor problem.
It was just that Xiao Ji had never shown tendencies in this direction before. Like his father, she was worried about whether Fang Yinnian, with his domineering nature, had forced Xiao Ji.
Moreover, Fang Yinnian had said earlier that it was one-sided on his part.
Xiao Ji’s mother was afraid that Xiao Ji didn’t want to be too involved with Fang Yinnian.
But now that Fang Yinnian had stated his attitude, Xiao Ji’s mother could only take a step back:
“We are very grateful for your dedication to Xiao Ji, but we also hope you can keep your word and respect Xiao Ji’s wishes.”
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