Mu Jianhua and Kuang Ye were gone for half an hour. Downstairs in the living room, Mu Wan paced anxiously, her eyes frequently glancing toward the study on the second floor.

Mu Yanci, annoyed by her restlessness, finally spoke. “Dad’s not a big bad wolf, and Kuang Ye’s not Little Red Riding Hood. Can’t you, as a young lady, show some restraint?”

Wang Lan chimed in, “Don’t worry. Your dad’s just having a conversation with Kuang Ye. Wan wan, come over and look at the bracelet Xiao Ye bought for me—it’s such a beautiful purple and so transparent. It’s gorgeous.”

Distracted, Mu Wan responded, “Of course! I knew most of your clothes are in light colors, and purple matches well. That’s why I helped him pick this one. I also brought back some gifts from abroad for all of you…”

She began unpacking the items one by one. There were accessories and bird’s nest soup for her mother, tea leaves for her father, and coffee beans for her brother. She added, “Mom’s bird’s nest is fine to eat anytime, but don’t drink the tea or coffee too late at night, Dad. It’ll keep you up.”

Mu Yanci looked at the premium coffee beans his sister handed him and thought to himself, Looks like even I, as her big brother, get to enjoy my future brother-in-law’s offerings.

—

After a while, the study door finally opened. Mu Wan’s heart, which had been hanging in suspense, finally eased when she saw Kuang Ye return intact.

Mu Jianhua, however, felt hurt by the suspicious look his daughter gave him. He sighed and said, “It’s true what they say—daughters are hard to keep once they grow up. Now all Wan wan does is worry about her boyfriend, never sparing a thought for her dad.”

Mu Wan felt guilty for a moment but blushed from being teased in public. She quickly picked up a freshly brewed cup of tea from the table and playfully acted coy. “That’s not true! I care about you, Dad. I even made you this Da Hong Pao tea myself.”

Mu Yanci chimed in, “Didn’t you just say he shouldn’t drink tea at night because it would keep him awake?”

Mu Wan: “…”

Mu Jianhua wasn’t about to let her words go to waste. He took the tea cup and said, “A small sip won’t hurt. Besides, my tea supply at work is almost gone. I’ll bring this along and let those old guys at the office envy me properly.”

Mu Yanci quipped, “Go ahead and spoil her!”

Mu Jianhua shot back, “You’re one to talk! If you didn’t spoil her, you wouldn’t have given her a supplementary credit card. I cancel her card, and you give her one right after—are you two exploiting bugs in my system?”

Mu Wan, surprised, asked, “Dad, you know what it means to exploit a bug?”

Mu Jianhua proudly replied, “Of course! I’m keeping up with you youngsters!”

Wang Lan immediately exposed him, saying, “He learned it from TV captions. It’s from that show you went on in New York.”

“He was so proud of himself that he posted several clips of you on his social media.”

Mu Wan let out a noise of surprise and pulled out her phone. “How come I didn’t see them?”

Mu Yanci smirked. “Dad was embarrassed and blocked you. I knew it when I saw his posts didn’t have your likes.”

Having his secret exposed, Mu Jianhua became embarrassed and angry. “Mu Yanci, I’m still lecturing you! Don’t try to change the subject…”

What followed was a back-and-forth between the father and son, while Wang Lan and Mu Wan watched the lively scene unfold with amusement.

Kuang Ye, observing this noisy yet happy atmosphere, felt the scars from his childhood slowly being healed.

—

In less than two days, Wang Lan managed to find a traditional Chinese medicine doctor who could treat Kuang Ye’s hand injury.

The doctor, Kuang Honghe, was in his forties and operated out of an old district in S City. His clinic was modest, even shabby, making it hard to imagine that such an unassuming place housed a skilled and renowned doctor.

When the two arrived at the clinic and found Kuang Honghe, he examined Kuang Ye’s bones and reviewed his scans from Germany before giving a definitive answer.

“With acupuncture and herbal baths, it can be completely healed.”

Both Kuang Ye and Mu Wan were overjoyed. “Really? It can be fully cured?”

Kuang Honghe nodded and added, “But it will take about a year. During this time, your hand cannot undergo any high-intensity training, and participating in competitions is absolutely out of the question.”

The two of them: “…”

Kuang Ye narrowed his eyes at Kuang Honghe and asked, “Doctor, you’re not secretly taking bribes from Grandfather Kuang to convince me to ‘see the light,’ are you?”

Kuang Honghe: “… If you don’t want treatment, just step out the door and turn right.”

He was simply a straightforward doctor with no interest in meddling in the tangled grudges of wealthy families. If Wang Lan hadn’t paid him such a generous sum, he wouldn’t have wanted to risk offending the Kuang family.

Mu Wan quickly patted Kuang Ye on the back of his head and then turned to the doctor with a friendly demeanor. “Doctor, my fiancé has a professional global championship in half a month. Could we start with conservative treatment first?”

Kuang Honghe gave a definitive no. “You’ve already undergone conservative treatment in D Country. It can indeed ensure that your hand injury doesn’t relapse in the next one or two months.

“But I’ll be honest—when I say I can completely cure your hand, it’s based on its current condition. One or two months later, whether or not I can still guarantee a full recovery is something no one can promise.”

Kuang Ye fell silent. The doctor’s meaning was clear: if he wanted his wrist to heal completely and continue his esports career, he couldn’t participate in this global championship.

“I need to discuss this with the ST team members,” he said after a moment.

Privately, he of course wanted to heal his wrist and aim for a second, third, and countless more global championships in the future. But suddenly withdrawing now would be incredibly irresponsible to the entire ST team.

After leaving the clinic, Mu Wan asked Kuang Ye, “Are you planning to come clean with the ST team members?”

Kuang Ye nodded. “It’s impossible to hide it anymore. It’s fine—if they try to hit me, I’ll hide behind the manager and coach. They’re in the loop too.”

Mu Wan: “…”
Are your confidants just there to be your human shields?