Jiang Si was also troubled by the same matter.
So much so that during lunch with Chris, she seemed absent-minded the entire time.
"What's wrong with you?" Chris devoured over twenty Peking duck rolls in one go and, noticing Jiang Si's dazed expression, couldn't help but wave a hand in front of her face.
Jiang Si snapped out of it. "Nothing, just thinking about work."
Chris placed a freshly rolled duck into her bowl. "Eat up before it gets cold and loses its flavor."
Jiang Si smiled faintly, feeling as though her line had been stolen.
"By the way, do you have anything else to do after lunch?" Chris asked.
Jiang Si swallowed her food before replying, "You're the one with something to do, aren't you?"
Chris admitted it outright.
She did have something in mind.
On her way here, she’d noticed that the hospital where Chi Heng was staying wasn’t far.
He’d been hospitalized for several days now, and Chris wanted to visit him.
Jiang Si didn’t object, though in Chinese tradition, visiting patients in the afternoon was considered improper.
But then again, they’d gone late at night last time.
One more unconventional visit wouldn’t hurt.
Seeing her nod in agreement, Chris let out a relieved sigh.
However, showing up empty-handed didn’t seem right either.
So after lunch, the two stopped by a state-run grocery store near the hospital to buy some fruit.
When Chris wasn’t looking, Jiang Si quietly swapped the purchased fruit for some from her space.
As soon as they reached Chi Heng’s floor, Jiang Si spotted two unfamiliar faces lurking suspiciously in the hallway.
Holding newspapers, they stood guard near the stairwell, one on each side.
After their last run-in with the Comrade Policeman at the police station, the team assigned to monitor Chi Heng had become noticeably more subdued.
This time, when Chi Heng was hospitalized, they’d spent a long time arguing over who should go.
In the end, these two unlucky souls were chosen.
Though their task was surveillance, they kept their distance, wary of being mistaken for suspicious characters by the hospital nurses.
Perhaps they’d received prior instructions, but when they saw Jiang Si, they barely reacted—just a quick glance before looking away.
"You go in first," Chris suddenly whispered as they neared the ward, stopping in her tracks.
Before Jiang Si could respond, Chris winked at her dramatically and clutched her stomach.
"Oh no, my stomach’s acting up. Where’s the restroom?"
"Over there," Jiang Si pointed in the direction.
"Got it!" With that, Chris dashed off like a gust of wind.
Watching her disappear, Jiang Si couldn’t help but chuckle.
Hearing the commotion outside, the ward door swung inward the next moment.
Uncle Da’s face lit up at the sight of Jiang Si. "Miss Jiang, what brings you here?"
The moment the words left his mouth, he realized how silly the question was.
Of course, Miss Jiang had come specifically to see the young master.
He quickly stepped aside. "Young Master, Miss Jiang is here to see you."
Chi Heng had just had medicine applied to his back and was lying face down on the bed. At Uncle Da’s announcement, he instinctively pulled the thin blanket over himself.
The sudden movement tugged at his wounds, making him hiss in pain.
Despite Chi Heng’s quick reflexes, Jiang Si caught a glimpse of the uneven scars on his back.
Last time, he’d been injured on purpose.
But this time? She had no idea why.
Clearly, Chi Heng didn’t want her to know.
Otherwise, he wouldn’t have stayed in the hospital for days without sending her any word.
"What brings you here?" Once he’d steadied his breathing, Chi Heng spoke, his tone laced with genuine surprise.
Jiang Si didn’t hide anything. She briefly summarized the events of the past two days before adding, "Chris told me. She’s sharp—figured I had something to discuss with you and made up an excuse about stomach pains to give us privacy."
Chi Heng frowned and glanced toward the door.
"Secretary Tan is dead. With no living witness, will this case just fade away?"
"Probably not," Jiang Si said firmly.
She’d interacted with Minister Zhao long enough to know he wasn’t one to sweep things under the rug.
His final glance at Secretary Yan had spoken volumes.
Speaking of glances, Jiang Si couldn’t help but recall the few seconds she’d locked eyes with Secretary Yan earlier.
She used to believe a person’s eyes revealed their true nature.
But that only worked on ordinary people.
For a spy skilled in deception, their eyes were just another layer of disguise.
Otherwise, she wouldn’t have felt that unwarranted pity.
Shaking off these thoughts, she admitted, "With the current evidence, convicting him might be difficult, but a reassignment is inevitable."
"That’s good enough," Chi Heng said, visibly relieved.
Jiang Si studied him. "I’ll keep you updated. For now, focus on recovering."
She still had work in the afternoon, and lingering here wasn’t appropriate.
Besides, Chris was still in the restroom.
In this summer heat, passing out from the fumes wouldn’t be ideal.
Fortunately, her worries were unfounded.
When she reached the restroom, Chris was leaning against the sink, cotton balls stuffed up her nose.
Clearly, she’d come prepared.
"Done already?" Chris blinked in surprise. "That was barely ten minutes."
Jiang Si nodded. "Yeah, we’re done."
"Alright, let’s go then."
Jiang Si gave her a skeptical look. "Aren’t you going in to see him?"
They’d come all this way and even bought gifts.
Standing in the restroom for over ten minutes only to leave without a visit seemed like a waste.
"No." Chris hesitated briefly but ultimately shook her head.
Yet, just a few steps out of the restroom, she couldn’t resist asking quietly, "Is he... okay?"
Recognizing the conflict on her face, Jiang Si answered honestly, "I’m not entirely sure. He didn’t go into details, but judging by his complexion..."
She didn’t need to finish.
At those words, Chris’s body moved faster than her mind.
Back in the ward, Uncle Da was reapplying medicine to Chi Heng’s back.
The initial dressing had been in place, but Chi Heng’s frantic grab for the blanket had reopened some wounds.
BANG!
The door suddenly flew open—or rather, it sounded like a kick, though it was just Chris’s exaggerated motion.
The noise startled both Uncle Da, who was focused on the wounds, and Chi Heng, who’d been resting with his eyes closed.
They froze, taking a moment to process what had happened.
By then, Chris’s gaze had already landed on his scar-riddled back.
Unlike the Chinese emphasis on propriety between men and women, such notions didn’t exist in Chris’s dictionary.
Before they could react, she’d marched to the bedside, eyes fixed on Chi Heng’s injuries.
"You said it was just an asthma flare-up and you needed rest. What is this?"
Without waiting for an answer, she demanded, "Who did this to you? Was it those two outside?"
As soon as she finished speaking, Chris turned and walked toward the door.
"Chris!"
Chi Heng called out to stop her. "This is my family matter! You can't interfere!"
He said "you can't," not "you shouldn't."
To Chris, these two phrases carried a fundamental difference.
At the same time, she sensed something off in his words.
"Was it your mother who arranged this, wasn't it?"
She had met Chi's mother before, and frankly, she didn’t like the woman at all.
Before, she had always assumed that Chi's mother was so harsh on him because she loved him deeply—that strictness came from care.
But after coming to China and truly experiencing the culture here, especially after learning the saying, "Parents who love their children plan for their future," she realized with painful clarity that Chi's mother might not love him at all.
She was just treating him as a convenient tool.
"Is this about the arranged marriage?" After some thought, Chris concluded this was the only possible reason.
She had received the news about the two families' planned union a week ago.
Hearing it had left her with mixed emotions.
After all, she had liked Chi Heng for years, and deep down, she still held a sliver of hope for him.
But out of respect, she had told him about it anyway.
Unsurprisingly, Chi Heng had refused again.
He had also said he would handle the matter himself.
Yet since that day, he hadn’t shown up at the embassy.
Thinking about it now, Chris was almost certain—the injuries on his body must have been caused by the engagement.
Chris fell silent for a long while, so long that Chi Heng thought she wouldn’t say anything more.
But then, with eerie calmness, she spoke a single sentence.
Just five words.
Yet their impact was no less than a thunderclap on a quiet plain.
……
Jiang Si had no idea what happened in the hospital room afterward.
She sat on a bench downstairs for a while, and when Chris still hadn’t come down, she pretty much guessed the outcome.
The next few days kept Jiang Si extremely busy.
Surprisingly, Secretary Yan’s disciplinary notice arrived much faster than she had expected.
As anticipated, due to insufficient evidence, they couldn’t prove that Secretary Tan’s actions had been directly ordered by him.
On top of that, Secretary Yan’s health was indeed in poor condition.
After considering all factors, the higher-ups ultimately transferred him out of his position under the guise of medical retirement.
Of course, the matter wouldn’t end so abruptly.
After all, a life had been lost in the process.
To that end, a special team was assigned to monitor him around the clock.
The moment he slipped up, they would settle both old and new scores together.
One day, as soon as Jiang Si stepped out of the office building, she saw Chi Heng and Chris arriving together.
"Together" might not be the right word.
Her gaze flickered between the two before finally landing on their intertwined hands.
Jiang Si couldn’t hide her surprise. "You two… are together now?"
