After the case analysis meeting concluded, Zhang Yi'ang declined his subordinates' company and returned alone to his hospital room, where a nurse changed his dressing and disinfected his wound.
Not long after the nurse left, Li Qian quietly entered the ward carrying a thermal lunchbox. Zhang Yi'ang was lying on his stomach on the hospital bed, watching videos on his phone to pass the time. Seeing her tiptoe in, he couldn’t help but ask curiously, "Li Qian, what brings you here?"
"Chief, I brought you some late-night snacks—porridge I made myself," Li Qian said with unusual gentleness.
"Weren’t you working on the case all day? We just had a meeting. When did you have time to make porridge?"
"Well... I used the rice cooker’s timer."
"Oh, so it didn’t take much effort."
Li Qian looked slightly disappointed but quickly put on an eager smile. "Here, eat it while it’s hot. Try my cooking."
She opened the thermal lunchbox and placed it on the bedside table. Zhang Yi'ang leaned over to look and was surprised. "What kind of porridge is this?"
"Pork knuckle and millet porridge."
"There’s such a thing as pork knuckle and millet porridge?"
Li Qian giggled. "Since your... uh, your butt is injured, I specially bought pork knuckles to make this porridge for you."
It was late at night, and Zhang Yi'ang, exhausted from a long day, suddenly felt ravenous. He propped himself up to grab a spoon, but Li Qian snatched it away first, smiling. "It’s hard for you to turn around. Let me feed you. Open wide."
Zhang Yi'ang stared at her in shock. Li Qian blushed and lowered her head, blowing lightly on the spoon a few times before gently bringing it to his lips. At such close range, watching her lips part and close, Zhang Yi'ang instinctively felt his pants tightening. He shifted slightly to loosen them, took a bite of the porridge, and found it surprisingly tasty. Who knew Li Qian could cook?
She scooped another spoonful, blew on it, and offered it to him again. Zhang Yi'ang took another bite, but the atmosphere was starting to feel strange. If this continued, he might commit a fatal political mistake. After all, she was the niece of a deputy minister—this wasn’t something to take lightly. After a few seconds of deliberation, he took a deep breath and said, "I need to use the restroom."
"Let me help you."
"No, no, no!" Zhang Yi'ang quickly refused, grabbing his crutches and hastily retreating from the stifling ward to cool off and figure out how to handle the situation.
A few minutes later, Zhang Yi'ang swung the door open and limped back inside, immediately locking the door behind him. He reached for the light switch and turned off all the lights, plunging the room into darkness.
Li Qian’s heart raced nervously. "What... what are you doing—"
"Get down."
"Here? But you’re injured!" Her face burned in the dark as she muttered under her breath, but she obediently lay down on the bed—though she ended up lying on her back, arms crossed nervously over her chest, head turned to the side, eyes slightly closed.
Zhang Yi'ang turned back and, by the dim light from the window, saw Li Qian "getting down" like this. He strode over and yanked her up. "I meant under the bed!"
"Under the bed?"
"I saw Huo Zheng. He’s looking for me." He pushed her off the bed, and once she was hidden underneath, he straightened the blanket into a human-like shape before ducking behind the curtain beside the bed with his crutches.He had just hidden when a soft knock came from the door. After a few seconds, Huo Zheng's face appeared in the glass window of the door. Seeing the room pitch black, he assumed the person inside was asleep and reached to turn the handle. To his surprise, it was locked. After trying twice without success, he turned and left a few seconds later.
The two inside held their breath, listening as the footsteps faded down the corridor of the late-night hospital ward, the sound eerily unsettling.
"Is he... gone?" Li Qian whispered from under the bed.
"For now. Stay put. Do you have your phone on you?"
"Yes."
"Call Song Xing—tell him to get people here fast!" Zhang Yi'ang knew Huo Zheng was ruthlessly violent. With his injured hip limiting his mobility and Li Qian hardly a fighter, neither had weapons. If Huo Zheng got in, they'd be in grave danger. He couldn't afford to let his guard down.
Li Qian, too, sensed the peril. She immediately dialed Song Xing and whispered, "Hey, it's me. Huo Zheng's at the hospital. Come quick—"
Before she could finish, footsteps rushed back toward them. She hastily repeated the message in the faintest voice. The steps halted outside, followed by the sound of a key turning in the lock. The door swung open, but neither of them moved from their hiding spots.
Huo Zheng didn't charge in recklessly. Instead, he scanned the room first. The abundance of flowers and fruit confirmed this was Zhang Yi'ang's ward. Calmly, he shut the door, drew the curtain over the glass window, and pulled out a gleaming dagger. Step by step, he approached the bed. With a swift yank, he threw back the covers—only to find it empty.
Frowning, he tensed. The locked door meant they were still inside.
Just then, a voice from a phone crackled: "Hello? Li Qian, speak up! Which hospital? Hello—"
Li Qian desperately muffled the speaker, but the sound had already escaped. She hung up, but it was too late. Looking up, she met Huo Zheng's pale face as he dragged her out from under the bed. In the dim light, he frowned—a female cop?
In that split second, a noise behind him made Huo Zheng whirl around just as a massive crutch came crashing down on his forehead. The single-handed strike from Zhang Yi'ang lacked force, leaving only a dull pain. Seizing the moment, Li Qian wrenched free and darted to Zhang Yi'ang's side. Without pause, Zhang Yi'ang jabbed the other crutch straight into Huo Zheng's gut, sending him stumbling into the corner.
Gripping both crutches like extended arms, Zhang Yi'ang threw punch after punch. But his injured lower body made his stance unsteady, and the blows lacked power. After dodging the first few strikes, Huo Zheng quickly regained his footing. With a snarl of "Screw you!", he grabbed one crutch with his left hand and slashed at Zhang Yi'ang with the dagger in his right. At the critical moment, Zhang Yi'ang seized the opening—his free crutch thrust straight at Huo Zheng's eyes.Huo Zheng instinctively closed his eyes, but the excruciating pain from the cane made it impossible to open them. He hurriedly shielded his head with both hands, instantly losing his strength. At this life-or-death moment, Zhang Yi'ang's adrenaline surged. He threw one of the canes to Li Qian and, gripping the other with both hands, charged at Huo Zheng, striking him squarely on the head. Huo Zheng dodged while grabbing random objects from the hospital room to fling at Zhang Yi'ang. Though hit multiple times and injured in several places, Zhang Yi'ang felt no pain under the adrenaline's influence. The two men fought fiercely by the hospital bed—one armed with a dagger, the other with a cane.
An inch longer, an inch stronger; an inch shorter, an inch deadlier. Zhang Yi'ang suffered several cuts, blood streaming from his wounds. Despite being struck countless times, Huo Zheng, a hardened criminal, remained formidable. Li Qian, initially frozen in shock, soon joined the fight but could offer little help.
In the chaos of those few seconds, Huo Zheng quickly devised a plan to end the fight swiftly. Raising his arm to block Zhang Yi'ang, he leaped onto the hospital bed and lunged at Li Qian behind him. As he descended, dagger aimed at Li Qian, Zhang Yi'ang threw aside his cane and tackled Huo Zheng, grabbing his left hand with one hand and desperately gripping his knife-wielding right hand with the other. Both men crashed to the ground. Huo Zheng slashed wildly, leaving multiple gashes on Zhang Yi'ang's arms and chest, staining his clothes red with blood.
Huo Zheng was more skilled in combat, but Zhang Yi'ang had the advantage of height and strength. Using all his might, Zhang Yi'ang held Huo Zheng's hands to prevent further harm. The two struggled for several seconds until Huo Zheng suddenly twisted his head and sank his teeth into Zhang Yi'ang's arm. "Ah—" Zhang Yi'ang felt as if a chunk of flesh was being torn away. Fortunately, Li Qian jabbed Huo Zheng's stomach with the cane, forcing him to release his grip. Seizing the opportunity, Zhang Yi'ang bit down on Huo Zheng's right arm. "Ah—" This time, it was Huo Zheng who felt his flesh being ripped off. His right hand weakened, and Zhang Yi'ang swiftly snatched the dagger, thrusting it into Huo Zheng's open mouth. He stabbed several times, mangling his tongue, then slashed violently, splitting his mouth open to the ear. With another stab to the thigh, Huo Zheng passed out from the unbearable pain.
Zhang Yi'ang stood up, covered in wounds and drenched in blood. The injury on his buttocks had long since reopened. Only now, as the adrenaline faded, did he feel his muscles convulsing. Unsteady on his feet, he collapsed against the wall, gasping for breath.
By the dim light from the window, he saw Li Qian unharmed and managed a relieved smile.
Seeing his condition, Li Qian rushed over and hugged him tightly, tears streaming uncontrollably—whether from fear or overwhelming emotion.
Zhang Yi'ang patted her back, panting. "It's okay, it's okay. Don't be afraid anymore."
Li Qian gazed up at his chin and murmured, "You saved me again. From now on... my life is yours..."More than an hour later, all the leaders from the Public Security Bureau and the main officials of the Three Rivers Estuary government rushed to the hospital to visit Zhang Yi'ang. The night-shift security guard was immediately fired by the mayor on the spot, the hospital director was suspended, and the nurse on duty—despite explaining that "the assailant claimed he wanted to visit Director Zhang and asked which ward he was in before stealing the keys to enter"—was also suspended. The entire nursing team had their monthly wages deducted. Ignoring Zhang Yi'ang's protests, the leaders forcibly arranged a team of six special police officers to guard his ward in three shifts until his discharge.
In his life-and-death struggle, Zhang Yi'ang had sustained over a dozen injuries. Though covered in blood and looking gruesome, most were superficial wounds. The only serious injury was the bite mark from Huo Zheng on his arm—a ring of teeth puncturing the skin, with the entire muscle turning black and purple. The pain was excruciating, and even the doctor remarked that the tissue had nearly necrotized. The hospital urgently summoned their best surgeon overnight to clean and suture the wound. As everyone watched the doctor treat him, they couldn’t help but tease when he cried out in pain: "Director Zhang, who subdued the desperate Huo Zheng with just two crutches, actually yells from a little pain?"
Zhang Yi'ang's reputation soared to new heights. Having just captured a gang of criminals bare-handed, he had now, despite severe injuries, subdued a knife-wielding fugitive with only crutches. If Director Zhang hadn’t been injured, even ten Huo Zhengs wouldn’t stand a chance against him.
After a while, the leaders left one by one after offering their well-wishes, leaving only the criminal police team inside the ward, with the special police standing guard outside.
Once Zhang Yi'ang calmed down, he began asking about Huo Zheng’s condition.
Huo Zheng had suffered even more injuries—half his face slashed open, a deep stab wound in his thigh that would leave him limping if he ever got out. But he wouldn’t get the chance. Even without tonight’s incident, his prior convictions alone would warrant the death penalty.
"Why did Huo Zheng come to the hospital for me?" Zhang Yi'ang asked.
Wang Ruijun replied, "We all thought Huo Zheng had fled. Who’d have imagined he’d dare come after you at the hospital? He really had a death wish."
"Interrogate him. Get his statement. Find out what he was thinking—and report back to me immediately."
"In his current state, he can’t give a statement, can he?" Wang Ruijun winced, recalling Huo Zheng’s mangled face.
"Are his hands broken?"
"No."
"Then have him write it! Interrogate him overnight!"
Song Xing interjected, "He’s in really bad shape. Maybe we should wait until tomorrow?"
"You’re awfully concerned about him, aren’t you?" Song Xing’s comment only stoked Zhang Yi'ang’s anger. "Song Xing, Song Xing—do you have a grudge against me? You nearly got me killed. Should we rename you ‘Song Ming’ (delivering death)?"
"What? Song Xing almost got the director killed!" The others glared at him furiously.
Li Qian quickly recounted the incident with the emergency call, and poor Song Xing was berated mercilessly by his teammates. First, he’d nearly let Liu Bei kill Li Qian, then lost Mei Dong during the chase, recklessly let Fang Chao and Liu Zhi escape while chasing glory, and now showed zero vigilance with the emergency call, almost costing Director Zhang and Li Qian their lives. "Song Xing, are you a mole planted by the criminals in our team?!"Song Xing's face flushed red as he rushed out of the ward and headed to the temporary holding room where Huo Zheng was kept. Ignoring the nurses' humanitarian objections, he pulled Huo Zheng up from the bed and used every means possible to force him to gather his wits and write down the whole story. In the end, the reason turned out to be quite simple—Zhu Yifei had once saved Huo Zheng's life. After Zhu Yifei was arrested this time, Huo Zheng, valuing loyalty, wanted to rescue him. Knowing full well that storming the police station had zero chance of success, he came up with the idea of taking Zhang Yi'ang hostage at the hospital to exchange for Zhu Yifei. However, he had already prepared himself for capture before taking action—truly a man of principle.
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