There was only one primary school on Liucheng Island, situated at the western foot of the mountain near the pastures, a considerable distance from the bustling main road. By the time Lu Linjiang arrived, dragging Jiang Cheng along, they happened upon the scene of Cui Xiaoye covering her face and weeping bitterly before Cui Bin.
The four of them ducked behind a cluster of shrubs. Yang Bo whispered, "You finally made it. She’s already finished three rounds of crying."
"She’s been crying that long?" Lu Linjiang asked.
"Yeah." Shen Lei’s legs were going numb from crouching. "I don’t know if they were discussing something vital or if it’s just pregnancy hormones, but the woman started crying not long after they met."
"Pregnant?" Lu Linjiang glanced at Cui Xiaoye, who was sitting on the edge of a flowerbed. Her figure was slender and her belly appeared flat. "Are you sure?"
"Positive," Shen Lei said. "You can't tell while she's sitting like that, but from the way she walked over earlier, she’s definitely expecting. She’s just not very far along."
"Is this woman the daughter-in-law of that Boss Cui?" Yang Bo asked softly. "Then why is she crying in front of Cui Bin? Could it be that those two... had a thing?"
"Xu Sichen sent word just now. They were likely a couple before; Cui Bin even helped pay for her tuition."
Yang Bo clicked his tongue. "Impressive. House, savings, even his girlfriend—all snatched away by his uncle’s family. That’s a deep grudge."
"So, whose child is it?" Shen Lei asked quietly.
The three of them exchanged looks for a moment before Lu Linjiang said in a low voice, "Most likely Cui Wenxing’s." The other three turned their eyes toward him, waiting expectantly for an explanation.
Lu Linjiang spared them a glance, his eyes fixed on the two people in the distance. "Cui Bin’s motive for returning certainly isn't simple, and he definitely knows something. The fact that he didn't speak up when we questioned him means he has reservations."
"Cui Xiaoye is likely his reservation. If the child she’s carrying were Cui Bin’s, he could have simply won her over by now. There would be no need for all this weeping."
Before the three could fully weigh the logic of Lu Linjiang’s theory, a figure came charging from the roadside like a whirlwind.
"Cui Wenxing is here!" Yang Bo, sharp-eyed as ever, was the first to spot him.
To avoid being seen, Cui Bin and Cui Xiaoye had specifically chosen a spot behind one side of the school’s large landscaped flowerbed. It was massive enough to hide Lu Linjiang’s group of four with room to spare, but the concealment came at the cost of a clear line of sight. It was currently winter break, so no students were in class. It was unclear whether the pair simply hadn't expected anyone to find them or if they were too caught up in their emotional conversation, but their guard was dangerously low.
Cui Wenxing’s face was a mask of fury, his white chef’s coat still stained with grease. Cui Xiaoye’s sobbing had been intermittent, and though she had consciously kept her volume low, Cui Wenxing had still heard her.
By the time the two noticed him, Cui Wenxing had already lunged in front of them. Immersed in her grief, Cui Xiaoye couldn't react in time. Cui Wenxing’s fist was already swinging. Sitting further in, she let out a scream and threw her arms wide, shielding Cui Bin. Cui Bin’s reaction was only a fraction slower than hers; he shoved her aside with one hand while instinctively raising the other to guard his face.
"You damn lingering ghost! See if I don't beat you to death!" Cui Wenxing had lost all reason. Taking advantage of the moment Cui Bin was distracted by protecting Xiaoye, his fist slammed hard into the other man’s head. Having taken the blow, Cui Bin also lost his temper. Ignoring Xiaoye’s desperate attempts to pull them apart, he lunged forward and the two devolved into a brawl.
The moment they started fighting, Lu Linjiang vaulted over the flowerbed and sprinted toward the two grappling men. Before he could cover the distance, the two men, blinded by rage, had already collapsed onto the ground in a heap. Cui Xiaoye, crying out "Stop it!" repeatedly, tugged at Cui Wenxing’s clothes, trying to separate them. Driven by mindless fury, Cui Wenxing grew irritated by her interference and shoved her back violently with his elbow. Cui Xiaoye shrieked as her feet slipped, and she fell hard to the ground. Simultaneously, Cui Bin’s foot, intended for Wenxing, missed its mark and struck Cui Xiaoye squarely in the abdomen.
This time, Cui Xiaoye couldn't even make a sound. She collapsed on the ground, clutching her stomach and curling into a shivering ball.
Lu Linjiang reached them just then. He delivered a kick to each of them, barking, "Stop fighting! Something’s happened!"
Their rage only began to cool when they saw Lu Linjiang scoop Cui Xiaoye up. She was drenched in sweat, her face deathly pale, trembling violently in his arms.
"Xiaoye!" Both men cried out her name, shoving each other as they scrambled up from the ground. Lu Linjiang ignored them entirely and sprinted away with her. There was a small clinic on the island, located between the village and the coast, some distance from the primary school. Having scouted the area, Lu Linjiang and Yang Bo had memorized the terrain. Carrying her, he took a shortcut, covering the distance in a single breath.
The clinic was empty save for the two doctors and nurses on duty, who were huddled over their phones. The sudden intrusion startled them; they looked up at Lu Linjiang like a pair of spooked marmots.
Lu Linjiang, panting, laid the semi-conscious Cui Xiaoye on the examination bed. "Doctor, she..." The two medical staff were rendered speechless. Lu Linjiang’s navy shirt and jeans were now stained a dark, wet color, and the white sheets of the bed were quickly blooming with red.
The two dropped their phones and rushed forward, quickly wheeling her into the inner room. Lu Linjiang had the sense not to follow. He sat by the door to catch his breath, and only then did the rest of the group arrive on an electric sightseeing cart.
"Where’s Xiaoye? Where’s Xiaoye!" Cui Wenxing shouted before he even cleared the doorway.
Lu Linjiang pointed toward the hallway. Cui Wenxing tried to rush inside but was caught by a quick-handed Yang Bo. "What are you going in there for? Don't make things worse!"
Cui Wenxing was frantic. Only then did he realize it was a small operating room. He stared at the door for a moment, stunned, before suddenly spinning around and slamming a fist into Cui Bin. "It’s all because of you, you jinx! You come back and turn everything upside down! What the hell do you want!"
Cui Bin seemed to have lost his soul, taking several punches without resistance. But once Yang Bo and Lu Linjiang subdued Wenxing, he suddenly snapped back to reality and struck back without hesitation. "You’re the jinx! You people took everything from me! Why did you have to take Xiaoye too!"
Lu Linjiang and Yang Bo each pinned one man down. Seeing that the two were still stubbornly trying to attack each other, they unceremoniously slammed them against the wall. "Both of you, knock it off! Where do you think you are? You think you can just start a riot here?"
Zhao Zhijie arrived quickly. Before Lu Linjiang’s voice had even faded, he walked in. "Captain Lu, what’s the situation? Someone called it in saying you were seen charging toward the clinic carrying someone covered in blood."
Having been disciplined by Lu Linjiang and seeing Zhao Zhijie, the two men finally regained a shred of sanity. Lu Linjiang pointed at them. "A brawl. The victim is inside."
Zhao Zhijie looked at the two suspiciously. Though their clothes were torn and their faces bore various bruises, they didn't look seriously injured. "Who else was fighting?"
"Cui Xiaoye. She was trying to break it up and got kicked by them," Yang Bo said. "I don't know if the baby can be saved."
As soon as he said that, both Cui Wenxing and Cui Bin froze. Cui Wenxing’s expression turned stiff as he asked, "What did you say? What baby?"
Yang Bo looked at him in surprise. "What, your wife didn't tell you she was pregnant?" Seeing Wenxing’s face full of disbelief, Yang Bo added, "She really didn't?"
Cui Wenxing was completely lost now. He stood there, panicked, muttering to himself, "A baby..."
Lu Linjiang scanned them; Cui Bin wasn't faring any better. His mouth hung slightly open, and the color had drained from his face. "No wonder... no wonder..."
Just as Lu Linjiang was about to question them, these two men, suffering from intermittent loss of sanity, jumped up again, clashing like fighting roosters. "It’s your fault! It’s all your fault!"
A torrent of foul insults and curses erupted from their mouths as they attacked each other with frantic desperation. It took all the strength Yang Bo and Zhao Zhijie had to pin the two half-crazed men down.
"Are you insane!" Zhao Zhijie had no choice but to pull out handcuffs. He fairly gave them one each, shackling them to the main door and the diagnostic table respectively.
His uniform collar was loose and his hat was askew. "Are you done? I’m telling you, everything you broke just now, you’re paying for it at full price! Not only that, you’re going into detention. Daring to fight right in front of me—I don't care who tries to pull strings for you!"
Zhao Zhijie took a breath to suppress his anger. "Officer Lu, how is Cui Xiaoye?"
Lu Linjiang shook his head. "The doctor took her in..." He looked down at the large stain on his clothes. "The situation might not be optimistic."
Zhao Zhijie finally noticed the massive amount of blood on Lu Linjiang. He gave Cui Wenxing a worried look and walked out with his phone. For a while, no one spoke in the clinic; everyone’s eyes were fixed on the emergency room door.
A moment later, Zhao Zhijie returned with an elderly couple who were wailing and lamenting. They only spared a single glance around before heading straight for Cui Wenxing. They flanked him, asking in a peculiar tone that was half-crying, half-speaking, "What did you do to my daughter? Where is Xiaoye? Hasn't she come out yet?"
Before the old woman could finish, she plopped down onto the floor. She slapped the ground repeatedly with her hands, howling, "Why is my child’s life so bitter!" Her whole body writhed as if she were a strand of seaweed.
Lu Linjiang raised an eyebrow slightly. Zhao Zhijie’s face darkened completely. He seized a gap in her wailing to bark, "Your daughter is inside having surgery! What are you doing? Get up, now!"
The old woman ignored him entirely. Instead, her voice rose another octave. For a moment, her noise was the only thing that could be heard in the clinic. Cui Wenxing, handcuffed to the counter, had to lean awkwardly. The look of disgust on his face as he watched his mother-in-law’s performative grief was missed by no one.
"Mom..."
The old woman, who had just been lamenting her daughter’s bitter life, immediately turned sharp. "Don't call me Mom! I gave you a perfectly healthy daughter, and now she’s in the operating room!"
"That’s enough!" Zhao Zhijie said. "Zhang Di, that’s quite enough. This is a hospital, be quiet!"
"What about the hospital? Is a person not allowed to cry in a hospital?" Zhang Di wiped her face. "I want to ask you lot—my daughter was fine, how did she end up in the hospital?"
Just as Zhao Zhijie was about to answer her, the operating room door suddenly opened. All eyes converged on it. The doctor walked out. "Are the family members here?" He looked at the handcuffed Cui Wenxing and then at Cui Xiaoye’s parents, nodding with understanding. "Cui Xiaoye is out of danger, but the baby couldn't be saved."
***
| Chinese | English | Notes/Explanation |
| :--- | :--- | :--- |
| 张娣 | Zhang Di | Cui Xiaoye's mother. |
| 连江 | Lianjiang | A place name mentioned in the context (where Cui Bin bought a house). |
