The hospital's examination results confirmed it: a stroke caused by a fall from the building.
Zhu Mengmeng slammed her hand on the table, her eyebrows furrowed: "My dad has been as strong as an ox for years, he can run ten kilometers in the morning, and he could kill a pig with one punch! You're telling me he had a stroke?!"
The doctor said helplessly: "Miss, even if you don't trust our medicine, you should trust our equipment..."
"Trust you my foot!" Zhu Mengmeng roared: "Have you ever seen someone who's been unconscious for this long after a stroke? Can your equipment tell me when he'll wake up?"
The doctor looked embarrassed; the equipment really couldn't tell.
Based on experience, he also felt this stroke was strange; at least, it didn't usually result in such a coma. And if it was a fall causing brain damage, the equipment hadn't detected anything wrong. But there's really no other explanation besides a stroke; it can't exactly be said that his soul was stolen…
It was Qiu Wuji, who had just returned from outside, who stopped the agitated Zhu Mengmeng: "Mengmeng, don't worry, I can wake Uncle up."
The doctor was about to say something when Chu Ge interjected, "My girlfriend was just offering comfort, trying to help you out of this predicament."
The doctor paused, then smiled wryly, "Thanks, but please try to persuade this family member… You could try talking to the patient more about what he cares about, see if that works."
After much persuasion, the doctor and nurses were finally persuaded to leave. Zhu Mengmeng hesitated, "Qiuqiu, are you really just trying to comfort me? I feel like you might actually be able to…"
Chu Ge laughed, "Hospitals definitely can't let outsiders treat patients casually. Don't make things difficult for the doctors, and we don't need to stage some kind of 'urban dragon king doctor' drama, right? We can do it secretly ourselves."
Cai Zhijian clapped and laughed from the side, "Chu Ge is very empathetic; your girlfriend is lucky."
His gaze fell on Qiu Wuji, seemingly very interested in Qiu Wuji's ability to wake Old Zhu up.
But Qiu Wuji simply extended a finger and gently touched Old Zhu's brow.
A soft light seemed to flash, and seemingly nothing happened, the unconscious old man slowly opened his eyes, his cloudy eyes filled with confusion.
Zhu Mengmeng was overjoyed, hugging Qiu Wuji and jumping up and down, laughing, "Qiuqiu, you're so amazing!"
Qiu Wuji smiled, "Uncle's soul sea is just injured and disordered; a little cleansing will calm it down..." He had previously thought the doctor could cure him and didn't want to reveal too much of his ability. Since the doctor couldn't cure him, saving his life was the priority; lying there for too long might cause more problems.
"You two..." Old Zhu began, somewhat confused, "Have we met before?"
"Uncle, you've seen us boating, you might even have taken pictures," Qiu Wuji said with a smile. "I'm Mengmeng's friend, Uncle, don't worry, just rest well."
Zhong Yi peeked over from the side: "Do you still recognize me?"
Old Zhu said irritably, "I haven't lost my memory, seeing your ugly face makes me sick."
Zhong Yi: "You... never mind, so what kind of injury did you suffer? How did they attack you?"
Old Zhu was also a little confused: "Attacked? I was just playing chess with someone. Then, I don't know how, I woke up here."
Zhu Mengmeng said, "Daddy is..." "I collapsed unconscious in the park, and an old man I know called me." Zhong Yi asked seriously, "Did you feel any virtual attacks during the chess game? For example, if you felt yourself entering the Chu River and Han Border, and he moved his knight, would you really feel a knight leaping at you? Or is it another kind of game where the outcome is decided by wins and losses, and if you lose, it's equivalent to being defeated, unconscious, or even dead?" Old Zhu thought for a moment, "I didn't feel the former... maybe the latter, I lost." At this point, he finally realized, "Damn it! I was tricked by someone's superpower? Oh my god..." Seemingly because of anger, the old man got up, felt dizzy, and then fell back onto the pillow, breathing weakly.
Qiu Wuji said, "Uncle, rest well. I only sorted out the disorder in your soul sea, but the damage to your soul sea is still there. It can't be healed by external forces; you need to rest yourself. You'll need to lie down for half a month..."
The old man said weakly and slowly, "Thanks, six... uh..."
Qiu Wuji turned his head away awkwardly.
"Looks like they're not stupid; they figured you guys were Calabash Brothers."
"Shouldn't they improve the Calabash Brother disguise a bit more? Even the clothes... No, the Calabash Brother clothes are too tacky."
Zhong Yi's face was grim. He asked in a low voice, "Do you remember what the person you played chess with looked like?"
Old Zhu shook his head: "An old man playing chess in the park. I saw him and started playing. He wasn't a familiar face..."
"Did anything unusual happen before?"
"A CEO from Shanghai came over, wanting to buy the mine, but I refused. This happens often." Old Zhu's voice lowered as he spoke: "This mine... was actually the source of the trouble. I shouldn't have been stubborn... The methods now are so many and cunning, unlike back then... What if it hurt Mengmeng..."
Zhu Mengmeng held her father's hand, sobbing.
Even the most oblivious person could hear the father's love. He had protected the family business his whole life, and in the end, he regretted it and didn't want it anymore, not because he was hurt, but because he was afraid something would happen to his child.
But then Cai Zhijian said, "Dad, I'll protect Mengmeng." Zhu Mengmeng turned to look at him with delight, her tearful eyes filled with joy.
Old Zhu didn't answer.
Over there, Chu Ge was asking Zhong Yi, "Have you made a judgment yet?"
Zhong Yi was silent for a moment, then sighed, "I'm basically sure. He said he wouldn't cause any trouble, just look for clues himself. It seems he couldn't hold back for long."
Chu Ge looked at him without speaking.
He didn't want to reveal that he knew Du Lianfeng. The source of the information was hard to explain, but Zhong Yi's meaning clearly referred to Du Lianfeng.
He also thought of some other things…
For example, was Zhong Yi's association with Old Zhu mainly to investigate the source of spiritual energy? After all, the mineral deposits were underground. Zhong Yi's friendships and Du Lianfeng's forced purchase of the mines weren't for friends or the mines, but for the secrets underground.
So Mom said Zhong Yi had wide connections, good relationships in both the legitimate and underworld circles… he was just looking for something.
The formation of the "dark room," gathering a bunch of seemingly useless superhumans for mutual support, is likely part of this goal: to investigate various special abilities and their origins.
But how to put it… Chu Ge doesn't object to this approach. Everyone has their own purpose, and since he hasn't done anything wrong, there's no reason to be critical.
Especially since there's no harm without comparison—that Du Lianfeng, he's only been in Nanjiang for a few days and he's already causing trouble.
So what if he has superhuman abilities?
Zhong Yi pondered for a moment, his expression shifting between light and shadow, before finally sighing to Chu Ge, "The other side has complex forces and isn't easy to deal with. You shouldn't get involved rashly, or you might really mess up your lives. I'll try to handle it first, and if necessary, I'll ask for your help."
Chu Ge felt quite comfortable hearing this. Regardless of Zhong Yi's other intentions, he was generally a good friend and considerate of others, which was one of the reasons he was so popular.
Qiu Wuji asked from the side, "Should we keep watch? What if someone tries to harm Uncle in secret..." Zhong Yi shook his head, "No need. They won't do anything openly in a hospital. Mengmeng and her husband can take care of Father. You can go back and rest." Chu Ge nodded, not being coy, and said directly, "Then Qiuqiu and I will go back first and wait for your news." Zhu Mengmeng reluctantly held Qiu Wuji's hand, her eyes brimming with tears, "Qiuqiu..." Qiu Wuji comforted her, "It's okay, we'll come see you again tomorrow."
"You must come tomorrow..."
"Good girl..." Leaving the hospital, Qiu Wuji turned back to look at the ward window and whispered, "Chu Ge, you said that Cai Zhijian doesn't have any special abilities?"
Chu Ge was stunned, "I didn't notice, and neither did Yueying."
Qiu Wuji smiled, "That only proves... he hid it well, and his level of ability development is even higher than Yueying's." Ge's heart skipped a beat: "He really has superpowers?"
"Yes," Qiu Wuji said with certainty, "How could such a special spiritual sea possibly escape my notice!"
"Damn... this little guy is pretty cunning..."
"But it seems Uncle Zhu's matter has nothing to do with him, no need to overthink it," Qiu Wuji said. "Besides, I don't trust the claim that others wouldn't cause trouble in the hospital, so I secretly cast a defensive spell on Uncle."
Chu Ge laughed: "I did see that."
Qiu Wuji was quite surprised: "You couldn't even see that Cai Zhijian has superpowers, but you saw through my hidden tricks?"
Chu Ge smiled and hugged her: "It's just because I know you too well. You can tell what you're doing just by moving your finger."
"You're trying to find actresses from Cai Zhijian's company, afraid I'll find out, right!"
"Haha..." Chu Ge was too lazy to even argue, hopped on his electric scooter, and patted the back seat. Qiu Wuji naturally sat down and wrapped her arms around his waist.
"He's trying to win you over, offering to help you with copyrights or something, why aren't you paying attention?"
"Because... no actress can portray my Qiuqiu's beauty."
"Get lost..." The electric scooter sped away, quickly turning the corner of the long street and disappearing from sight.