Chapter 42: The Budding of Love

Du Bin drifted along with the current, clinging to life by the faint power of his necklace. The necklace had expended much of its strength to keep him alive and was now nearly at its limit. At that moment, a girl dove into the water and swiftly pulled him from the rapids to the shore—it was none other than Li Ning, who had been tailing them all along.

For the average person, a few minutes in the water would have meant certain death, but Du Bin had managed to survive nearly half an hour, which astonished Li Ning. By chance, she caught sight of the necklace peeking from beneath his clothes. Unconsciously, she reached out and took it in her hand. The stone shimmered with a red glow under the sunlight, a signal no one else could decipher—a message of connection between it and Ye Tang.

With Ye Tang ensuring their safety, they retraced their steps from the cave and took a different path. As they made their way along the mountain trail, they inadvertently noticed traces of a motorcycle. Following the tracks to a small creek, they came to a halt. Hu Guozheng, observing the marks where someone had lost their footing, declared with certainty, “I understand now. Old Du must have tried to jump the ravine on the motorcycle, but lacking the skill, he ended up in the water. Tsk, all for the sake of showing off.”

When they finally found Du Bin, they discovered Li Ning was with him as well. This prompted the barely conscious Hu Guozheng to make a few wild guesses. Later, Ye Tang entrusted the injured to Li Ning’s care and, reclaiming the necklace, set off alone to clean up the aftermath. On the way back to the city, Li Ning drove them at reckless speed, desperate to reach the hospital in time. Du Bin was deeply worried seeing Hu Guozheng’s terrible condition, but the man fell into a deep unconsciousness as soon as he lay down.

After half a day of emergency surgery, the lights in the operating room finally dimmed. Du Bin and Zheng Shasha hurried to question the attending physician, who seemed at a loss for words before finally saying, “The patient is out of danger. Fortunately, you got him here in time—otherwise, the consequences would have been unthinkable.”

Du Bin breathed a sigh of relief, thinking how close he had come to never seeing that fat fool again.

“The patient has a remarkable will to live. Surviving such injuries is rare, but he’ll need to stay in the hospital for about three months to fully recover.”

“Three months? That’s far too long!” Since they only had a year for training, losing three months was a disaster for them.

The doctor explained, “For torn muscles and broken bones, three months is the minimum. If anything, he’s lucky it’s not longer.”

Watching the doctor leave, Du Bin sighed, entered the ward, and gazed at the sleeping Hu Guozheng. Noticing Zheng Shasha caring for him by the bedside, he tactfully withdrew.

Du Bin sat in the corridor, smoking. Before long, Li Ning approached and said, “At last, things are settled for now.”

Du Bin knew she had saved his life. “What are you doing here?”

“Why shouldn’t I be here?”

“You were following us.”

“Hmph, you wouldn’t talk about the necklace, acting all mysterious. That’s why I followed you,” Li Ning replied, pouting in annoyance. Du Bin could only sigh helplessly.

“The more you know about this, the less good it will do you. The two of us got into trouble precisely because we knew too much.”

“I know now. I never imagined there were people with special powers in this world.”

“Yes. Li Ning, thank you.”

“It’s nothing. I’d save anyone in danger. By the way, how’s that guy doing?”

Seeing that Li Ning wanted to go inside and check, Du Bin stopped her, “Hold on, maybe it’s not the best time to intrude on his private matters.”

Both recalled the same incident and burst out laughing. Li Ning remembered how she had tried to give him mouth-to-mouth resuscitation, thinking he was drowning, only to realize it was unnecessary. Their eyes met, and feeling duped, she unconsciously slapped him. The memory now brought a flush to her cheeks.

Two days later, Hu Guozheng woke up. Zheng Shasha hurried to his bedside, and he, excited at her presence, nearly jumped up, forgetting his broken leg until she pressed him down.

“Don’t get so worked up. You’re injured, be careful.”

Hu Guozheng nodded obediently. “The doctor says I have to stay here for a few months.”

“It’s fine. Just a few months. I’ll come visit you often.”

“Hey, looks like I’m the lucky one.”

Zheng Shasha rolled her eyes at him. Suddenly, he recalled something and asked, “Shasha, you insisted on going to the research institute despite the danger. Was it really just to honor your father’s memory?”

She stopped smiling. “I needed to retrieve my father’s diary.”

“Why?”

“Five years ago, my father was working with a colleague on genetic research. At first, everything seemed fine, but then he found out his friend wanted to pursue unethical genetic experiments. He protested, and died under mysterious circumstances. I only learned of the suspicious nature of his death when I found his farewell letter while moving house recently. That’s why I came here in search of his diary.”

“What was your father’s name?”

“Zheng Kaiyuan,” she replied. Hu Guozheng was taken aback. Shasha noticed his reaction. “What’s wrong? Did you know my father?”

“No, I didn’t know him personally, but I never imagined you were his daughter. I once investigated him as a trainee reporter. He was a great professor—he even solved a viral outbreak—but soon after switching to genetics, he died suddenly in his office.”

“You’re a reporter?” Shasha smiled, clearly pleased to hear about her father’s achievements. She had hated him once, after misunderstanding him, but now things were different. She wouldn’t have risked her life for the diary otherwise.

“Hearing your story, I personally don’t believe your father’s death was an accident.”

“Why are you so sure? Wasn’t the case already closed?”

Hu Guozheng shook his head. He didn’t buy the official story; too many questions remained. “Back then, I almost took over the investigation myself, but as a newcomer, the publisher Lin Xiuwu assigned someone else.”

Shasha, eager, pressed on, “Did they find anything?”

Hu Guozheng shook his head regretfully. “One went missing, and the other lost his mind.”

Shasha sighed, disappointed, but felt sympathy for the two investigators.

“After that, Lin Xiuwu never assigned anyone to follow up again,” Hu Guozheng said.

After their conversation, Shasha decided to return to Shanghai. Before leaving, she asked Hu Guozheng to keep investigating. At the airport, Hu Guozheng reluctantly saw her off as she boarded her flight.

The affair at the research institute finally drew to a close, but many mysteries remained. As for training, Hu Guozheng, thanks to Ye Tang’s medicine, recovered enough to walk within just half a month, astonishing the doctors.

He and Du Bin resumed their training—now with Li Ning joining their team. Although Ye Tang wouldn’t teach her directly, she quickly became an indispensable companion.

Once Shasha returned to Shanghai, Hu Guozheng reverted to his boastful old self, making their journey livelier than ever.