Chapter 32: Fu Zhengnan Rescues Jiang Qingqing

Everyone believed that Jiang Qingqing was doomed.

Some timid onlookers had already covered their ears, squinting their eyes, afraid to witness a gruesome scene.

But in the next moment—

A large, well-defined hand snatched the gun from the old policeman.

The expensive silver watch on the wrist made the old policeman’s heart skip a beat. The nails were neatly trimmed, the skin pale and smooth, with veins and tendons clearly visible beneath the surface.

Fu Zhengnan swiftly unloaded the weapon.

Watching the figure turn and run toward the stairwell, he spoke in a deep voice, “Jiang Qingqing.”

Jiang Qingqing heard someone call her name and hesitated for half a step.

But she did not look back.

Without a second glance, she disappeared into the stairwell. In her panic and desperation to escape, she didn’t even recognize Fu Zhengnan’s voice.

She kept running up the stairs, gripping the leather whip tightly. Her palms were drenched in cold sweat, terrified that the weapon from earlier would harm her. If that happened, she would truly be dead.

Fu Zhengnan watched her disappear, his gaze dark and heavy.

Who would have thought that a character from a game would appear in reality?

Even though he had suspected it before, it had only been a suspicion. The Bai family had kept their secrets airtight, and he had never imagined that he would actually meet Jiang Qingqing in real life.

And even more unexpectedly…

He had grabbed her wrist in the bathroom.

If he had arrived just a moment later…

The thought sent a chill down Fu Zhengnan’s spine.

“Mr. Fu, what do you mean by this?”

The old policeman stood nearby, confused about why Fu Zhengnan was at the hospital—let alone why he had intervened and taken his gun.

Fu Zhengnan lowered his gaze and glanced at him coldly.

“Misuse of a firearm—perhaps you should go back and study the regulations again.”

With that, he strode forward, heading in the direction Jiang Qingqing had run.

Chen Xiaoyue was surprised to see Fu Zhengnan. She had thought he was there to supervise the police investigation.

But she never expected that he would actually help that woman.

From the way he spoke, they must have known each other. And not just as acquaintances. But if their relationship was truly that deep, why had that woman been arrested at Jin Yu International and brought to the hospital?

Chen Xiaoyue pondered this.

Seeing Fu Zhengnan about to chase after Jiang Qingqing, she called out to him.

“Zhengnan, where are you going?”

“Grandfather Fu invited me to the old house for dinner in a few days. Will you be there as well?”

She didn’t expect Fu Zhengnan to respond. She was merely trying to showcase her connection in front of the curious crowd.

But to her surprise—

Fu Zhengnan actually turned around.

His usually indifferent gaze was sharp and piercing, his words icy and cutting.

“I believe I should remind you, Miss Chen—you have no connection to the Fu family, and I have no intention of marrying you.”

“As for how you choose to portray yourself in public, don’t drag the Fu family into it.”

The crowd, who had been eagerly watching the drama unfold: ???

So this wasn’t about catching a mistress?!

Chen Xiaoyue didn’t mind Fu Zhengnan’s coldness and still tried to hold onto him.

But Fu Zhengnan had already walked away, disappearing up the stairwell.

Meanwhile, in the Livestream Chatroom:

“The male lead has appeared! A shocking twist! The ‘official girlfriend’ isn’t actually the official one—the supposed mistress might just be the real deal.”

“This plot… is this some kind of movie?!”

“I have to say, the way that man snatched the gun was so handsome! I have a thing for suits—who else can relate?! Total uniform temptation!”

“This is such a slap in the face—if I were her, I’d be so embarrassed I’d want to disappear.”

“……”

Fu Zhengnan quickly reached the stairwell entrance, but Jiang Qingqing was already gone.

“Jiang Qingqing, it’s me.”

His thin lips parted slightly, his cool, steady voice echoing through the empty stairwell.

“Where are you? Can you hear me?”

The old stairwell had clearly not been cleaned in a long time, with a thin layer of dust accumulated on the steps.

The footprints on the ground led upward.

Fu Zhengnan followed them to the hospital rooftop, but it was completely empty.

His mobile game could be opened again.

A new notification popped up:

[Game data has been restored. The premium account owner has been changed to Fu Zhengnan.]

—

At that moment, Jiang Qingqing felt as if she had entered a strange loop.

She kept climbing the stairs, yet she never seemed to reach the top. Every step felt like a cage, as though she were trapped in a world meticulously arranged by someone else.

She moved forward numbly—until the next moment, her watch flashed.

She missed a step.

And suddenly, she was falling—

Crashing onto a patch of grass.

“Princess!”

Jiang Yu, who had been waiting in the bushes, rushed forward as soon as he saw Jiang Qingqing appear out of thin air again.

Noticing her dazed expression, he waved his hand in front of her eyes, his voice filled with concern.

“Princess, what happened? Did you go inside the house?”

Jiang Qingqing stared at him, her unfocused gaze slowly clearing.

When she finally saw his face clearly, the fear and uncertainty in her heart faded. Without thinking, she reached out and hugged him.

“I was scared.”

Looking at the surroundings, she realized she had finally escaped from that strange place.

Jiang Yu’s face instantly turned red. He stood stiffly, frozen in place.

The Liang dynasty was relatively open-minded, but he had grown up in the military and had little experience with people.

He stammered, “Uh… um… what… what happened?”

Jiang Qingqing hadn’t been inside the house for long. Given her previous disappearances, he hadn’t assumed the worst.

She quickly let go, realizing her inappropriate reaction.

Shaking her head, she denied it.

“It’s nothing. There’s something strange about that house.”

Instinctively, she didn’t want to tell him about her bizarre experience. If she had to confide in someone, she felt she would rather tell the divine being.

“We should disguise ourselves and head into the city.”

She stood up, looking toward the city gates.

They had to hurry.

She had stabbed Liu Xubai and was now wanted by the Empress Dowager. The longer they delayed, the more dangerous it would become.

Besides, the house was now inaccessible. Who knew when she would see the divine being again?

Jiang Yu understood their urgency.

The Jiang family was on the brink of execution. They had to move faster.

They quickly smeared mud on their faces and clothes, disguising themselves as refugees fleeing from another province.

At the city gates—

Jiang Qingqing and Jiang Yu exchanged glances before staggering forward, pretending to be weak and exhausted.

They slipped a gold ingot into the hands of the city guards.

“My lord, please have mercy. My brother and I have traveled all the way from Yingzhou, just looking for a place to settle down.”

The guard had never received such a thick gold ingot before. He glanced at them briefly, then let them pass.

“Go, go—so filthy, don’t block the way.”

Just as Jiang Yu was feeling relieved about how smoothly things had gone, his gaze landed on a notice board near the city walls.

Two wanted posters were displayed there.

The faces on them—

Were his and Jiang Qingqing’s.

But the bounty wasn’t for gold or silver.

It was for what the people of Yuzhou needed most—food.

Ten sacks of fine flour, five baskets of eggs.

A large crowd had already gathered around the notice board.

The moment they heard the court was offering food in exchange for capturing fugitives, the starving citizens rushed out of their homes.

They didn’t care about some “princess” or “general” or whether they had committed crimes.

All they knew was—

If they caught these two—

They could survive.