Chapter 63

Chen Guozhi was quite fortunate. The bullet fired by the assailant didn’t hit any vital organs, and thanks to his good physical condition, he recovered most of his vitality in less than a week.

Later, Li Teng and Ruan Nianchu visited him once more.

That day was a Friday, and the weather in Yuncheng was clear. It was the warmest sunny day since the beginning of autumn. In the evening, the setting sun painted half of the sky in a warm orange hue.

In the hospital room, Chen Guozhi’s attending physician was making his rounds.

“Other than the pain from the wound, do you have any other discomfort?”

“No.”

“Are your bowel movements normal?”

“Yes, normal. A few times a day for the small ones and once a day for the big one. My digestive system is absolutely top-notch.”

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“Officer Lei…”

“Shut up!” Lei Lei finally lost her patience, suppressing her anger. “Chen, let me tell you, our SWAT team is only here to protect you until we catch the armed criminal. We’re not your servants. If you keep ordering us around, I’ll make sure your other arm gets crippled too.”

Chen Guozhi immediately backed down, laughing awkwardly. “We’re all so familiar with each other. I’m just joking, why take it so seriously?”

Lei Lei squinted her eyes. “If it weren’t for the need to catch Washa and Duan Kun through you, I wouldn’t care if you lived or died.”

Chen Guozhi was silent for a few seconds, then moved his lips. “Well…”

“From now on,” Lei Lei interrupted, threateningly, “if I hear another word from you, I’ll tear your mouth apart.”

Chen Guozhi looked innocent and muttered, “I just wanted to ask you one question. Just one.”

Lei Lei frowned, fearing it might be something related to the case, and said impatiently, “Just one question. What is it?”

Chen Guozhi looked mysterious. “Do you have a boyfriend?”

Lei Lei was stunned, her frown deepening. “I’m single. Why do you ask?”

“Just a guess,” Chen Guozhi switched to Cantonese, wearing a suddenly enlightened and relaxed expression. “You’re so fierce, only a blind man would dare want you.”

“Poof.” The young SWAT officer drinking water nearby couldn’t help but burst into laughter.

“You… damn it,” Lei Lei was so infuriated by this rascal that she nearly spat blood. She gritted her teeth, clenched her fists, and swung at Chen Guozhi’s face. He raised an eyebrow and dodged nimbly, but the movement caused pain in his arm wound, making him gasp in pain.

At that moment, a voice came from the side, saying, “Enough fooling around.”

Both Chen Guozhi and Lei Lei froze in their tracks.

“Just idle?” Li Teng, sitting on the sofa, lifted his gaze, his cold eyes sweeping over the two of them. His tone was heavy, “One is supposed to be solving the case but hasn’t caught a single ghost in months. The other came to deliver a message without any preparation and almost lost their life. Is this the time for you two to be messing around?”

Chen Guozhi cleared his throat, scratched his head, and adjusted himself back to a proper lying position on the hospital bed.

Lei Lei also took a few steps back, remaining silent.

The room fell quiet.

Seeing them calm down, Ruan Nianchu sighed and said, “I know you two aren’t on the same page and can’t stand each other, but given the situation, whether you like it or not, you’re in this together. Whatever opinions or feelings you have, just hold them in for now. Once this is all over, you can go your separate ways and never have to see each other again.”

Just as she finished speaking, the door to the hospital room opened from the outside.

Everyone’s eyes turned to see a man in an air force uniform entering. He held his hat in his hand, his steps urgent yet steady, clearly having rushed over. It was Yang Zhengfeng.

“Brother Yang,” Li Teng nodded lightly at him and introduced the others in the room, “This is Officer Lei from the Yun City Public Security SWAT team, and this is Chen Guozhi.”

“Hello,” Yang Zhengfeng’s rugged face broke into a smile as he shook hands with Lei Lei and Chen Guozhi. “I’m Yang Zhengfeng, a member of the Political Department of the Chinese Air Force Airborne Brigade, former captain of the Falcon Team. Nice to meet you both.”

Lei Lei smiled, “Commander Yang, I’ve heard so much about you.”

Chen Guozhi also smiled, “For such an important figure to come see me in the hospital, I’m not worthy.”

“What important figure? We all have the same eyes and nose. No need for formalities. Chen Guozhi, take good care of yourself. If you need any help, just let us know,” Yang Zhengfeng said, then turned to Li Teng, “Let’s step outside to talk, so we don’t disturb the patient.”

Li Teng nodded, stood up, and left the room.

Lei Lei signaled to the young SWAT officer to keep a close eye on Chen Guozhi, then she also stepped out.

Ruan Nianchu knew they needed to discuss important matters and felt it wasn’t her place to stay, so she remained seated on the sofa. However, the next second, she heard Yang Zhengfeng call her, “Sister-in-law, you come out too.”

Her eyes flickered with suspicion, but she got up and followed them out.

The four of them left the inpatient building and stood in an open area behind the hospital cafeteria. There was no one around. In the distance, only half of the setting sun remained visible in the western sky.

Lei Lei was the first to speak, apologizing, “Commander Yang, I’m really sorry. I couldn’t leave, so I had to trouble you to come here.”

“It’s nothing. I just came from the Public Security Bureau nearby, so it was on the way,” Yang Zhengfeng’s expression grew more serious. “Officer Lei, to be honest, we came to you because we want to propose a collaboration between the military and the police. You need to catch Wasa and Duan Kun, and we need to catch their boss. It’s a perfect fit.”

Lei Lei was a bit surprised and smiled, “Such a significant matter as a military-police collaboration is above my pay grade.”

Yang Zhengfeng said, “Before coming to you, I already spoke with your Director Song. He has no objections. He even told me that you’ve been directly handling the Washa and Duan Kun case. He said I could contact you directly. By tomorrow morning at the latest, you should receive a call from Director Song.”

As he spoke, Lei Lei’s phone rang. She frowned slightly, took out her phone, and saw it was from the “City Public Security Bureau Office.”

She smiled and answered the call. It lasted less than a minute before she hung up. Looking at the two men standing opposite her, she asked, “What are your instructions?”

Li Teng lowered his eyes, lit a cigarette, and said coldly, “What you need to do now is go arrest someone immediately.”

“Who?”

“A student from Cambodia studying in China. His name is Lain.”

Lei Lei hesitated for a few seconds and then nodded. “But there must be a legitimate reason to arrest him.”

Li Teng flicked the ash off his cigarette and said coolly, “The reason is that he is suspected of intentional injury and of shooting Chen Guozhi.”

Hearing this, Lei Lei was taken aback. “Is it really this Lain?”

Li Teng smiled slightly. “If it is really him, then things might be easier.”

Lei Lei was confused. “If Lain isn’t the culprit, why arrest him? Isn’t that just arresting people randomly?”

“Arresting him now is actually saving him. I don’t have time to explain further,” Li Teng said. “Just follow my instructions.”

Lei Lei didn’t ask further. “Okay. Give me the address, and I’ll arrange for the police to move out immediately.”

Yang Zhengfeng handed Lei Lei a piece of paper with the address written on it.

She took the note and walked away to make a phone call.

As she left, Yang Zhengfeng’s phone also rang. He stepped aside to take the call.

Only Ruan Nianchu and Li Teng remained in place. Sensing something, Ruan Nianchu pursed her lips and looked at Li Teng with a complex expression. “Once Lain is ‘caught,’ the play we are putting on for Da En should be complete. But I wonder if he will take the bait.”

Li Teng smiled and gently patted her head. “The play still lacks one crucial step.”

Ruan Nianchu was puzzled. “What step?”

He bent down, his voice unconsciously lowering to a tender tone as he moved closer to her. “Nian Nian, do you remember that we are supposed to be having a cold war?”

“Of course I remember,” Ruan Nianchu nodded. “In Da En’s eyes, we have already had a big falling out because of Lain.”

Li Teng said, “The missing step is giving the enemy an opportunity to exploit.”

Ruan Nianchu didn’t understand at first, but after thinking for a moment, her eyes brightened. “I get it. The final step is for us to break up! That way, the ‘ghost’ will take the opportunity to act, and we can catch them.”

Li Teng pinched her cheek and corrected her, “A fake breakup.”

“Ah, I see.” Ruan Nianchu clapped her hands in admiration, giving him a thumbs up. “Commander Li, your brain is really amazing. I truly admire you.”

Li Teng smirked lightly. “Your man has many talents. The most impressive isn’t even my brain.”

She exclaimed, “Oh? Then what’s your greatest talent?”

Li Teng replied casually, “My waist.”

She blushed, scolding him softly, “Can you be serious for more than three minutes?”

He raised an eyebrow. “What’s wrong with having a strong waist? Miss, do you know why I said my waist is strong?”

Realizing she had walked into his trap, her face turned even redder. Pouting, she muttered, “It’s just that thing.”

Li Teng lazily responded, “Wrong.”

“So, am I the one with a dirty mind?” She was both amused and annoyed, demanding, “Then what do you mean?”

He answered with a smirk, “You.”

Sure enough, when it came to having no limits, he never lost.

By the end, Ruan Nianchu’s face was as red as a tomato.

When Yang Zhengfeng and Lei Lei returned, they saw the girl’s flushed and angry expression and were confused. Yang frowned at Li Teng, chastising him in a low voice, “You brat, bullying her again.”

Li Teng remained calm, looking at Ruan Nianchu, teasing her, “Hey, tell them, how did I bully you?”

She was too embarrassed to say. After a moment, she bit her lip and finally said reluctantly, “He didn’t bully me.”

In her heart: Ugh, shameless rogue.

Her expression was a mix of grievance and helplessness, making her look pitiable. Li Teng glanced at her a few times, his mood unexpectedly improving.

Actually, aside from in bed, Li Teng couldn’t bear to bully Ruan Nianchu.

And when he did, it wasn’t just making her blush and get angry; he often made her cry.

*

Their fake breakup was a crucial part of the plan.

On one hand, Ruan Nianchu felt a bit anxious—there would be a big argument before the breakup. Although they had pretended to argue before, the pre-breakup fight needed to be convincing. Too much emotion would seem exaggerated, while too little would appear fake. She genuinely believed that once Da En was caught, she could probably apply to the Central Academy of Drama.

On the other hand, she was a bit excited—during the fake breakup, she would move out, meaning she could finally achieve her “great goal” of sleeping separately from Li Teng for a while.

Setting aside the man’s roguish words, his self-awareness regarding his robust waist was indeed accurate. Each morning, she would wake up with aching and sore muscles all over, exhausted to the point of feeling deformed.

Having been worn out for so long, she felt that getting a break was a gift from the heavens.

Ruan Nianchu’s joy lasted until she returned home that evening.

Then, her joy faded.

“Hey…” Ruan Nianchu lay on the bed playing PUBG, kicking Li Teng with her foot while playing, and asked in a somewhat expectant tone, “Captain Li, when are we going to act out the breakup?”

Li Teng, looking down at his phone, was texting Yang Zhengfeng. Without lifting his head, he replied, “Tomorrow.”

Ruan Nianchu’s eyes lit up suddenly. “So soon?”

A few seconds later, Li Teng finished his text, tossed his phone onto the bedside table, and looked up at her with a neutral tone, “Are you really that happy about our fake breakup?”

Suppressing her inner joy, she pouted and earnestly said, “Not at all.” Placing a hand over her heart, she exaggeratedly said, “Just thinking about being apart from you for a few days makes my heart ache. I can’t bear it.”

“Hmm. I can’t bear it either.” Li Teng pinched her chin. “So let’s make the most of our time.”

Ruan Nianchu blinked, confused. “Huh?”

“Be good,” he said, leaning closer to kiss her cheek and nose, his voice soft and coaxing, “It’s still early. If I put in some extra effort, seven times should be doable.” The thought of not being able to touch her for a while made him feel pained.

“…This kind of thing can be made up for?” She was genuinely shocked. “Doing it more times today and then even more later, you think it’s like making up work before and after a public holiday?”

Li Teng bit her ear, “Listen to me.”

Within seconds, Ruan Nianchu’s face and neck turned bright red. Grabbing a pillow, she shoved it into his face and scolded, “You do this every day… aren’t you afraid you’ll wear out your waist?”

He laughed, kissing her lips. “Taking care of you is worth it, even if it breaks my waist.”

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