Chapter 42

Even though there was no doctor on board, the ambulance was still diligent. Upon hitting the highway, it immediately sounded its siren and swiftly transported Shang Yan to the best private tertiary hospital in City C.

The emergency department of the receiving hospital had already been notified by the school. The attending physician who was supposed to be on rotation had specially returned to the office.

Two young doctors were specifically instructed and meticulously examined Shang Yan.

But apart from the fact that burns are somewhat prone to pulling at the wound site and are not conducive to recovery, the severity was indeed not a major concern in the emergency room.

One of the doctors wrote the diagnosis while the other went to report to the director.

“Not serious?” the director asked.

“Not much, really,” the young doctor said helplessly. “And I must say the emergency treatment was done exceptionally well. Even if it weren’t for our hospital, a small clinic could have handled it.”

The director behind the desk narrowed his eyes and lightly tapped the table. “What kind of talk is that? Every patient matters!”

The doctor fell silent.

The young doctor kept his head low, too intimidated to speak.

This young doctor was considered the protege of the department head, so after a brief coldness, the department head softened his tone.

“You, you’re good in many ways, but your temperament is too restless—do you think if there was nothing urgent, I would abandon my vacation, rush back to the hospital, and specifically instruct you to examine a minor burn?”

The doctor remained silent.

The young doctor paused for a moment, blinked, and asked with a hint of speculation, “Could it be that this patient has some special background? …But that shouldn’t be the case, they just seem like two students. Oh, but they do look a bit like that little celebrity. Half of the nurses in our department seem to be constantly ‘passing by’ that patient’s bed.”

The department head’s face darkened halfway through hearing this, and by the end, he couldn’t tolerate it any longer.

“Later, make sure they focus on their duties and stop causing trouble!”

“Uh…” The young doctor received a stern scolding and deflated, “Director, but what’s the identity of this patient anyway?”

The department head paused for a moment. “You don’t worry about that, just focus on treating your patient!”

The young doctor nodded thoughtfully and left the room.

As soon as the young doctor left, the director’s expression changed slightly. After hesitating for a while, he took out his phone and dialed a number that had called earlier.

Once the call connected, a flattering smile appeared on the middle-aged director’s face reflected in the mirror on his desk.

“Director, the patient has arrived. The burn is minor, nothing major, and it’s already been taken care of by the staff.”

“Oh, I see. Well, I don’t have any other business, but I heard it was a student. Why bother you, Director, to call me personally?”

“Hey, I wasn’t prying into their affairs, Director. Please don’t misunderstand.”

“Alright, I’ll make sure they do their job properly. You can trust me.”

After a while, the call ended.

The department head stared at his phone in confusion and muttered to himself, “Who exactly is this kid, hiding so securely…”

….

Inside the emergency room:

After the curtains around the bed were drawn, Su Miao Miao finally breathed a sigh of relief.

—

The emergency room was always bustling with people, and the constant stream of gazes directed at them was somewhat overwhelming for her.

Especially the enthusiastic nurses in this hospital, they seemed to want to inquire about the patient’s condition every minute.

By the end, the girl seemed a bit annoyed by his “unreasonable behavior.”

After raising her voice slightly, Su Miao Miao finally realized what she had done. Her cheeks warmed, and she awkwardly averted her gaze.

Shang Yan was stunned for a moment, then smiled wryly.

“How do you always manage to surprise me, kid?”

“…” Su Miao Miao let out a muffled hum.

Clearly, he was the one who wouldn’t cooperate, always teasing her and contradicting her…

As Su Miao Miao was silently complaining in her heart, her phone suddenly rang.

Su Miao Miao was startled, a bit puzzled about who would contact her at this time—and when she checked, it was an unfamiliar number with no saved name.

After a moment’s hesitation, she decided to answer the call.

“…Hello?”

On the other end was an unfamiliar male voice. Upon hearing her voice, he seemed to choke up for some reason.

“Um… are you Su Miao Miao?”

Su Miao Miao responded hesitantly, “Yes, I am. Who is this?”

“I’m Shang Yan’s sister—… ahem, friend. Is Shang Yan with you? Could you please let him take the call?”

Su Miao Miao was silent for two seconds, her dark, beautiful eyes showing a hint of cautiousness.

“…Who are you? How do you know Shang Yan is with me?”

This time, there was an even longer pause on the other end.

After a while, the person seemed to laugh helplessly, “Tell Shang Yan that I’m Bo Yi.”

Hearing the straightforwardness in the voice, Su Miao Miao mostly believed him and felt a sense of relief.

She turned to the boy on the hospital bed, “Master, someone called me asking for you. He introduced himself as Bo Yi.”

Shang Yan squinted slightly.

“Don’t know him. Hang up.”

Su Miao Miao: “…?”

Bo Yi on the other end of the phone: “?????”

Bo Yi: “Is your family’s dog’s personality hereditary!!??”

The voice was almost loud enough to come through the speakerphone, clearly showing how furious the person on the other end was.

Shang Yan signaled Su Miao Miao to put the call on speakerphone and then smiled lazily.

“I recorded that.”

“Tomorrow, I’ll send it to Shang Xiao. Let’s see if he’ll ever let you into the Shang family again.”

Bo Yi: “……Damn you.”

Shang Yan remained unbothered: “My dad is an only child. Didn’t you know that? In that case, I’ll send this to Shang Xian.”

“……”

“Oh right, you just mentioned something about family traits, didn’t you? I’ll make another copy and send it to your future father-in-law.”

Bo Yi: “……I was wrong, Dad Yan.”

Shang Yan chuckled softly.

“Got the generation wrong, son.”

“……”

Bo Yi was almost furious enough to ascend on the spot.

After the commotion, Bo Yi reflected, “I must have interrupted you, you beast, and your little apprentice’s private—”

Halfway through his sentence, Shang Yan quickly turned off the speakerphone.

Seeing Su Miao Miao’s confused look, he reached out and took the phone.”—world.”

Bo Yi, hearing the significantly reduced background noise, couldn’t help but feel smug about gaining the upper hand.

“Why did you turn off the speakerphone, Dad Yan? Feeling guilty?”

Shang Yan let out a faint, mocking laugh.

“Stop corrupting my apprentice.”

Bo Yi: “…She’s already caught your attention, what chance do I have to corrupt her?”

Shang Yan narrowed his eyes slightly, “I can, you can’t.”

Bo Yi: “…”

Bo Yi: “Fine, fine, you just keep being inhuman. I heard your apprentice’s voice just now, and it definitely sounded underage.”

“She hasn’t reached adulthood yet.”

As Shang Yan spoke, he turned away from the phone and asked Su Miao Miao, “When is your birthday?”

Su Miao Miao was taken aback but answered honestly, “July.”

Shang Yan did some quick calculations and sat back down, regretfully.

“Hmm, one year and eight months to go.”

Bo Yi: “…Why do I sense a tone of impatience in your voice?”

Shang Yan’s lips curved into a smile, entirely insincere.

“You heard wrong.”

“Then why did you ask how long until she becomes an adult—what are you planning?”

“…”

Shang Yan bit the inside of his lip, suppressing a low, inhuman laugh.

He lifted his eyelids, his dark eyes fixing on the dazed girl.

After a two-second pause, his eyelashes lowered again.

His voice dropped, becoming both husky and provocative.

“Hmm… devour, whole, alive?”

Bo Yi: “…………………..”

Bo Yi: “How the hell did you manage to make such a terrifying phrase sound so erotic??”

Shang Yan burst into laughter uncontrollably.

He reached out to support his forehead and covered his eyes, unable to contain his amusement.

Standing by the bed, Su Miao Miao could only hear Shang Yan’s one-sided conversation.

Therefore, she had no chance of understanding the intricate details between them, just looking at Shang Yan in such a state, feeling even more puzzled.

Bo Yi said, “…Just think about such a young girl, following you every day, innocently calling you master, this beast in human skin…”

Bo Yi lamented, “How could you bear to harm her?”

Shang Yan chuckled and sighed.

“Do you think my current dilemma is about whether I can bear it or not?”

“What else could it be?”

“It’s about whether I can resist.”

Bo Yi: “…………”

Bo Yi: “If you keep this up, I’ll call the police!”

Shang Yan had temporarily had his fill of the inappropriate fun and smiled as he suppressed his emotions.

His expression returned to its casual demeanor as he leaned back against the headboard. His tone became lazy.

“Go on, you called me, surely not just to hear my apprentice’s voice.”

Bo Yi also became slightly serious.

“I heard you were injured.”

Shang Yan’s smile faded for a moment.

After a pause, his eyes narrowed slightly, and he glanced at the girl’s phone in his hand.

Sensing the breath receding, Bo Yi sighed, “Don’t worry, it’s not like I’m eavesdropping on your little apprentice’s phone— I’m even keeping her identity a secret from your sister and the Shang family for you, aren’t I being a good brother? … If Xianxian found out, she’d probably skin me alive.”

Shang Yan: “Then how did you know about my injury?”

With just a shift in his thoughts, Shang Yan guessed the answer.

A faint smile appeared on his clear, cold, and handsome face, and he furrowed his brows slightly.

“Did the school inform Xianxian?”

“What else? With such a serious injury, do you think the school would dare to keep it from the Shang family?”

“…”

Shang Yan’s eyes darkened.

“But don’t worry, Xianxian has been busy with a big project lately. She probably won’t have time to bother you these days.”

Shang Yan: “‘These days’?”

Bo Yi: “Of course, do you expect her to act like nothing happened forever? Xianxian isn’t as patient as your eldest brother. It’s already impressive that she can hold back for these few days… Be prepared.”

“?”

Bo Yi sighed and got straight to the point.

“Hide your little apprentice.”

Shang Yan didn’t respond, but his lips twitched, and he scoffed lightly.

The mockery was tinged with disdain, and his gaze carried a hint of coldness.

Bo Yi tapped his head.

“Oh right, almost forgot one thing—lower your voice, don’t let your apprentice overhear.”

The call ended, and Shang Yan handed back the phone.

Shang Yan lowered his eyes, hearing the girl curiously ask as she put away her phone, “You just asked about my birthday and said there’s one year and eight months left, what does that mean?”

While pondering over the things Bo Yi had revealed during the phone call, Shang Yan answered without much thought, “It’s the time until you reach adulthood.”

Su Miao Miao was taken aback.

Shang Yan also paused his thoughts, annoyed at himself for a few seconds, then looked up to see the innocent look on the girl’s face, and couldn’t help but chuckle.

Su Miao Miao was even more puzzled, “Why calculate the time until adulthood?”

“Hmm…”

Shang Yan chuckled inhumanly.

“Being an adult, you can do many things.”