The day after Bruce passionately responded to questions about Haitian, Weilan Biotech sued Haitian for trade secret infringement and defamation.
Weilan Biotech wasn’t the scary part—what was terrifying was the Ji family’s infamous legal team behind it, a group that made corporations tremble in fear.
Meanwhile, Ji Xi, the so-called "pharmaceutical genius" previously hyped up by domestic influencers, was now embroiled in a "fraud" scandal. Public opinion had flipped, with many media outlets criticizing him for being unscrupulous at such a young age. He had even stopped attending school.
Of course, the main attraction was still the heated discussions about the "repair serum."
Many online users were intensely curious about this serum, as it sounded like a genuine breakthrough in modern medical history.
Weilan Biotech’s team dutifully responded to public inquiries about the product on their official website.
Some of the funnier comments nearly made Ji Nian laugh herself into the ocean.
"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"
Hearing the burst of laughter beside her, Shen Qingtang paddled over on her inflatable duck float and leaned against it. "What’s so funny?"
Ji Nian showed her.
Shen Qingtang peeked—
"TheRainyNightISawMyBoyfriendSellingHimself": Wait, if it works on scars, does that mean I can remove the tattoo of my boyfriend’s name?
"RandomUser1234": Why remove it if you haven’t even broken up yet?
"TheRainyNightISawMyBoyfriendSellingHimself": ……………… Because his full name is Dick Hair.
Realizing this was borderline inappropriate just as Shen Qingtang was about to see the boyfriend’s name, Ji Nian suddenly yanked her phone back.
"Huh???"
She was just getting to the good part.
Meeting Shen Qingtang’s confused gaze, Ji Nian pointed at Gu Xiuyuan on the shore. "He Xiang’s about to beat Gu Xiuyuan to death."
With two chuunibyou-level idiots in their group, their outings inevitably involved games straight out of anime.
For example: Beach Watermelon Smash.
Blindfolded and wielding a wooden sword, He Xiang inched forward, his target being a watermelon placed somewhere ahead.
Or, in this case, Gu Xiuyuan, who had been buried in the sand with only his head sticking out.
Watching He Xiang creep closer, the unlucky Gu Xiuyuan—who’d drawn the short straw—couldn’t make a sound.
Lu Jinghuai, lounging on a beach chair in sunglasses, sipped fresh coconut water and dutifully refrained from interfering.
Shen Qingtang climbed onto Ji Nian’s float, lying opposite her and basking in the sun, completely indifferent to Gu Xiuyuan’s fate. "Be my guest."
They had arrived on the island just a few days into their vacation, following tradition.
The island was a gift from Ji Tingzhou for Ji Nian’s ninth birthday.
By the way, the neighboring islands were also hers.
They usually spent summer breaks here, and this year, Lu Jinghuai had joined them.
He Xiang’s grandmother had come too. Her health had been stable lately, and since the island had medical facilities and doctors, Ji Nian had suggested bringing her along for a change of scenery.
After a week of wild fun, Ji Tingzhou was already pressuring Ji Nian to return.
Haitian was suffering, and Ji Xi had practically vanished amid the scandal.
Ji Nian suspected it also had to do with the photo Ji Tingzhou had posted after picking her up that day.
It was from an album titled "Nian Nian’s Growth Diary", a collection of Ji Nian’s childhood photos. Ji Tingzhou had only shared one—a picture of ten-year-old Ji Nian asleep with a dog.
Ji Nian vaguely remembered that day. She’d been so mad after arguing with Ji Tingzhou that she’d stormed off to sleep in the dog’s kennel. The next morning, she’d woken up in her own bed—clearly, someone had carried her back.
No caption was needed. The photo alone shattered all the rumors about the "Ji family heir’s return."
’It’s been years since we last saw the young miss! You can tell Chairman Ji adores her—she even has her own dedicated photo album!’
’Nian Nian… what a cute name!’
’Her profile looks just like Chairman Ji’s! And I heard she inherited his eyes too. My god, what an intimidating father-daughter duo.’
’I get it now. Chairman Ji’s saying his daughter only needs to live happily—being a genius doesn’t matter, right?’
’Who still cares about sons over daughters in this day and age? Whether Ji Xi becomes heir or not is irrelevant. Our Nian Nian was acknowledged as the next queen centuries ago.’
Remembering those comments, Ji Nian couldn’t help but laugh.
Queen?
How embarrassing…
After her short break, Ji Nian made an announcement at dinner: "When school starts, I’m applying for the exchange program. I want to study at Hainuo for a week."
"Dad?"
Ji Tingzhou’s gaze lingered on the red-dressed girl standing behind Ji Nian—a phantom holding a rose-engraved dinner knife poised above the girl’s head, smiling at him.
Only when Ji Nian called him again did he calmly meet her eyes. "I heard you."
"Do what you want."
No further questions. Not even his usual dry remarks. Ji Nian wasn’t satisfied.
"You’ve been so distant lately. Do you have another kid out there or something?"
She put down her chopsticks and grumbled.
Ji Tingzhou smirked. "What kid?"
"Just a little chick who won’t eat properly."
Ji Nian scoffed, tossed her chopsticks, and stormed off.
Watching her tantrum, Ji Tingzhou sighed. "Such a bad temper."
A nearby servant thought: I wonder who spoiled her… such a mystery.
While Ji Nian was holed up in the lab, a man with a briefcase entered the Ji residence and was ushered straight to Ji Tingzhou.
"The medicine doesn’t work."
Ji Tingzhou hurled a bottle at him.
His voice was rough, emerald eyes burning with barely restrained fury. The usual composure was gone, replaced by something terrifying.
"Are the hallucinations still vivid?"
The man picked up the bottle and asked calmly.
Ji Tingzhou nodded.
Ever since that day, he’d been seeing visions of Ji Wanting as a teenager—sometimes fleeting, other times lingering for minutes. Occasionally, he even heard her voice.
Like now. The red-clad girl sat barefoot on the doctor’s lap, mockery dripping from her eyes as she stared at Ji Tingzhou.
She either called him Xiao Zhou or Zhou Zhou.
Once, the delusion had been so real that Ji Tingzhou lunged forward and choked it—only to realize he was strangling a servant, who’d already started turning blue. If he hadn’t snapped out of it, the man would’ve died.
After sending Zhiliao to compensate the servant with a hefty sum, Ji Tingzhou sat alone for hours.
Even at his worst—during his most sleepless, volatile phases—he’d never hurt anyone like this.
"Mr. Ji, you can’t afford to be careless anymore. You need intensive treatment."
"Otherwise, if we continue to let this go unchecked, the next person harmed might be someone you hold dearest."
The image of a black-haired, green-eyed child surfaced in Ji Tingzhou's mind. He closed his eyes briefly, and when he opened them again, his gaze had cleared considerably.
