At this moment, no one was more anxious than Doctor Liao. However, forcibly interrupting hypnosis was strictly forbidden, especially for someone like Huo Tingzhou, who was in a deep hypnotic state. He could only follow the established steps to gradually awaken his consciousness.
After more than twenty minutes, Huo Tingzhou finally regained awareness. Doctor Liao didn’t dare to speak, silently sitting to the side. Only when Huo Tingzhou’s eyes slowly regained focus did Doctor Liao let out a long sigh of relief.
That was close!
He had been terrified earlier. After all, this was the military’s top pilot—if anything happened to him, how could he possibly explain it to his superiors?
“Don’t think about anything right now. Just lie down and rest for a while.”
“If you have time tomorrow morning, remember to come back. I’ll give you a psychological debriefing.”
With that, Doctor Liao patted Huo Tingzhou’s shoulder and handed him the recorded notes.
“These are all the details from the hypnosis session. I hope they’ll be helpful to you.”
“Thank you, Doctor Liao.”
Huo Tingzhou only glanced at the notebook before returning it.
Doctor Liao was taken aback but quickly understood. “Have you remembered everything from the past?”
Huo Tingzhou fell silent for a moment, his expression unreadable, before finally nodding.
“Yes.”
He had recalled everything from before he was six and a half years old.
Not only that, but even the unnoticed details from the hypnosis session had surfaced in his mind.
The person who had abducted him was around 170 cm tall.
He had a Tangshi accent.
Before being taken, the last place Huo Tingzhou had been was the Zhengyangmen East Railway Station, and the abduction likely occurred around 3 p.m.
Thanks to accompanying his wife, Jiang Si, to her painting lessons over the years, Huo Tingzhou had developed a habit—observing people’s facial features first and instinctively memorizing them.
So, he remembered the man’s face clearly.
Additionally, the man’s legs were covered in bluish-purple, snake-like markings—likely severe varicose veins.
Most importantly, his right hand had only three fingers.
In the underworld, he was known as Third Master Yan.
After reviewing all the details in his mind multiple times and confirming nothing was overlooked, Huo Tingzhou made a call early the next morning—to the Western Hills Compound.
It was then that Jiang Si learned he had secretly sought out a psychologist for hypnosis.
They say you should never pity a man—pitying men brings misfortune.
But at this moment, knowing the truth, Jiang Si’s heart ached uncontrollably.
He had only been six years old. What could a six-year-old possibly understand?
Those people were downright monstrous.
“Huo Tingzhou.”
“I’m here.”
After a long pause, Jiang Si finally spoke. “Life can be bitter before sweet, or sweet before bitter. You’ve already endured all the bitterness this lifetime has to offer. From now on, everything will go smoothly, and you’ll live peacefully to old age.”
As for those who had harmed him—what goes around comes around.
Heaven sees all.
One day, they would face retribution.
Even though he knew she couldn’t see him, Huo Tingzhou nodded firmly.
But his testimony alone wasn’t enough. “Sweetheart, I’ll need you to help me draw a portrait of that man.”
This man had too much blood on his hands—dozens of children and women from the same batch of abductions as Huo Tingzhou.
If he wasn’t brought to justice, Huo Tingzhou would never feel at peace.
“It’s no trouble at all.”
Understanding the gravity of the situation, Jiang Si agreed without hesitation.
However, with thousands of miles between them, Huo Tingzhou couldn’t verify the accuracy of the portrait in person.
Moreover, she worried his descriptions might not be precise enough.
So, Jiang Si suggested an alternative approach. “When you describe him later, be as detailed as possible. If you’re unsure how to phrase it, just tell me whose eyes his resemble—whether they’re larger or smaller than that person’s.”
“Apply the same method to the rest of his facial features.”
With reference points, Jiang Si could paint with more confidence.
But she had underestimated Huo Tingzhou’s ability to articulate.
He seemed to understand her painting style perfectly, always providing the exact details she needed.
In about forty minutes, Jiang Si completed the portrait.
After double-checking the specifics with Huo Tingzhou, she handed the drawing to Father Huo.
Father Huo acted swiftly—within less than a morning, every police station and district bureau in the capital had received the information.
His reasoning was simple: a criminal like this, active for so many years, might already be behind bars.
So, the first step was to confirm whether he had been arrested.
However, in this era, all criminal records were handwritten. Without knowing the man’s name, identifying him based solely on physical descriptions was undeniably challenging.
After two days with no useful leads, Jiang Si decided to leverage her connections through Third Uncle.
She remembered him mentioning that one of his subordinate branch leaders was based in the capital.
Sure enough, when she asked Third Elder Uncle, it turned out to be true.
"You're saying it was that bastard Third Master Yan who messed with Huo Tingzhou?"
"Third Elder Uncle, um, his name is Huo Tingzhou."
Hearing this, Third Elder Uncle immediately exclaimed, "Oh my!" and clicked his tongue for a long while. "So you're defending him now?"
Jiang Si didn’t deny it. He had protected her for so many years.
It was only fair she protected him once.
Seeing Third Elder Uncle teasing her, Jiang Si quickly played her trump card.
"My mother-in-law said she wants me and him to go back to Hu City with you all for New Year’s."
"What? You… you’re coming back for New Year’s?"
"That’s right."
Besides celebrating the New Year, Jiang Si also planned to take this opportunity to bring Third Elder Uncle and Uncle Zhong back to Qiongzhou Island.
Hearing this, Third Elder Uncle’s voice trembled with excitement, but he quickly waved his hand.
"No need, no need. I have Uncle Zhong with me, and plenty of juniors below me too."
"You stay in the capital peacefully. No need to come all the way back just to celebrate with us—it’s too much trouble."
Uncle Zhong glanced at Third Elder Uncle and thought to himself, The only thing tough about you, old man, is your mouth.
He’d cried more than a few times missing Miss Jiang Si.
But he couldn’t say that.
This was the first year of Miss Jiang Si’s marriage. If she returned to Hu City for New Year’s, there’d inevitably be gossip.
Grandma Huo, who had been sitting nearby, listened to the conversation between the two and took the receiver.
"Dear Third Elder Uncle, hello. I’m Huo Tingzhou’s grandmother."
Hearing it was the in-law grandmother, Third Elder Uncle responded with full courtesy.
"Dear Grandma Huo, hello, hello."
After exchanging greetings, Grandma Huo smiled and said, "Third Elder Uncle, we actually share the same thoughts. As long as the young couple is happy, we truly don’t mind these things."
Grandma Huo knew that in the south, there was a custom of ancestral worship on the morning of New Year’s Eve.
Even now, this tradition was unofficially tolerated.
She continued, "This is the first year of their marriage. Huo Tingzhou should, by all reason and courtesy, return to Hu City to personally deliver this good news to Old Master Jiang and his late mother-in-law."
"It’ll just be a bit of trouble for you, Third Elder Uncle, to look after them for a few days."
"No trouble at all! None whatsoever!" Third Elder Uncle couldn’t be happier.
"Then it’s settled?"
With Grandma Huo saying so, what else could Third Elder Uncle do but nod in agreement?
Seeing the matter resolved, Grandma Huo handed the receiver back to Jiang Si.
Jiang Si immediately gave a thumbs-up. "Grandma, you’re amazing."
Grandma Huo’s lips curled up, her expression brimming with pride.
Then, Third Elder Uncle’s voice came through the phone again. "Jiang Si, give me that bastard’s details. I’ll have news for you by tomorrow morning at the latest."
"Daring to lay a hand on your man? He’s reached the end of his days."
"Don’t worry—alive or dead, even if that bastard’s turned to ashes, I’ll dig his bones out of the coffin."
Jiang Si: "..."
That might be a bit excessive.
But with Third Elder Uncle’s assurance, she did feel much more at ease.
Tomorrow happened to be Sunday—the day of the family division.
Two days passed in a flash. Early that morning, Jiang Si received a call from Third Elder Uncle.
Once she learned the target’s whereabouts, she wasted no time and immediately relayed the information to Father Huo.
Father Huo and Mother Huo hadn’t returned these past few days, busy investigating the Yang family’s connections.
Father Huo said, "Good, I’ll notify them to take action. See you at the old house later."
"Alright."
After Jiang Si hung up, the old master immediately looked over.
"Well? Any news?"
"Yes."
Jiang Si nodded firmly.
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
After breakfast, Guard Chen drove them to the Huo family’s old residence in the western district.
As if fate had a twisted sense of humor, the moment Jiang Si helped Grandma Huo out of the car, she spotted a few unwelcome faces—
Author’s Note: Checking back, I said I’d write up to this point, or else gain 30 pounds. This counts, right?
I swear I’m not deliberately cliffhanging, dear readers. If you check, today’s two chapters add up to over 5,200 words.
Lastly, to all who’ve read this far—may 2015 bring you endless wealth and lasting happiness.
Today is 520 (a play on "I love you" in Chinese). Happy 520!
