Chapter 12

At that moment, a few people who had jumped into the lake to rescue someone surfaced. One of them wiped his face and shouted, “We didn’t find him. He might have sunk!”

Hearing this, Zhang Qiling immediately dove into the lake, swimming toward where his instincts led him.

The lakebed was dark, making it difficult to see. He swam downward for a long time but couldn’t find anyone. Out of necessity, he resurfaced to take a breath—he had rushed down too quickly without storing enough air.

He returned to the lakebed and continued searching. Four minutes passed, and one by one, the other rescuers started coming up to the surface.

Zhang Qiling kept searching relentlessly. The more time passed, the more panicked he felt.

In a corner of the lake, a figure floated lifelessly, seemingly without breath.

Upon spotting him, Zhang Qiling swam over as fast as possible, reaching out to check Wu Xie’s breathing while attempting to give him air. Holding Wu Xie tightly by the waist, he started swimming upward.

Just then—

“Mmhh—”

Zhang Qiling suddenly felt a sharp pain in his lower back. He looked down and saw a knife embedded in his body. Blood quickly dispersed in the water, staining the surrounding lake red.

Raising his head, he locked eyes with Wu Xie, who was now wide awake. His gaze was cold, filled with killing intent—but in a fleeting moment, there was a flash of regret, something Zhang Qiling caught onto.

Yet, instead of anger, Zhang Qiling gave him a gentle smile, as if he were looking at a mischievous child—full of patience and indulgence.

After surfacing with Wu Xie, Zhang Qiling pulled the knife from his back and discreetly hid it in his hat.

But his wound was still bleeding, the droplets falling into the lake—and onto Wu Xie’s heart.

Ignoring the curious stares and questions from bystanders, Wu Xie grabbed Zhang Qiling and led him to the nearest clinic for treatment.

Throughout the process, Wu Xie remained silent. He offered no explanations, and Zhang Qiling didn’t ask for one. But when they returned to Wu Shan Ju, Fatty erupted.

The plan had failed. Although they had caught the person who had been tailing and monitoring them, the mission was ultimately deemed a failure.

Wu Xie covered his ears, refusing to listen to Fatty’s relentless rant about how he shouldn’t have hurt Little Brother, how stupid the two of them were for falling into the lake, and how it was a waste of their exceptional skills.

Fatty knew deep down that Wu Xie was behind this. But seeing the wound on Zhang Qiling’s lower back, he could only sigh heavily—he needed to make something nourishing to replenish Little Brother’s blood.

Wu Xie, on the other hand, felt the price was too steep. He needed to come up with a plan that didn’t result in any injuries.

“Fatty.”

“Fatty!”

“Huh? Little Tianzhen, you finally recognize me? You don’t think I’m fake anymore?”

“Shut up. Is there anything you’ve always wanted to do but never dared to?”

“Mmhh—”

Wu Xie glared at him. What the hell was that noise?

“You told me to shut up just now, didn’t you?” Fatty smirked, cracking open some sunflower seeds and spitting the shells all over the floor.

“Speak.”

Fatty, still in a playful mood, was met with Wu Xie’s cold, emotionless gaze.

“Streaking. Running a lap around West Lake naked.” Fatty fantasized about his muscular figure dazzling countless women.

Wait a minute—was he really going to have to streak?! … If it meant getting out of this illusion, well… maybe… it wasn’t completely out of the question…

Fatty watched as Wu Xie got up and started walking away.

“Hey, hey, hey, where are you going now? What nonsense are you up to?”

“Streaking.”

Fatty was so shocked that he dropped his sunflower seeds all over the floor. Then, excitedly, he ran out after Wu Xie.

When they reached the West Lake district, Wu Xie stood in a pavilion, feeling the wind brush past him as he contemplated life.

Maybe he had been too impulsive. What if streaking didn’t break the illusion? That would be way too humiliating. Worse, what if Second Uncle thought he had gone insane and had him committed to a hospital?

“What’s wrong, Little Tianzhen? Getting cold feet? If you’re scared, just go home—we still need to make dinner later.”

Wu Xie sneered at Fatty’s words. Trying to provoke him? Not a chance.

“Where are you going now? Are you seriously going to strip?”

Fatty’s voice was way too loud, drawing the attention of passersby.

Wu Xie’s face burned with embarrassment. Without another word, he turned and bolted back to Wu Shanju.

What a disgrace!