Chapter 111

Song Huihua and Zhu Hongyu reached the school gate and quickly hailed a taxi. At this moment, Counselor Jin, panting, caught up with them. The three of them got into the taxi together, heading directly to the hospital where Song Haowen was being treated, as recommended by the security office.

Seeing the arrival of the patient’s family, and confirming the patient’s identity, the hospital breathed a sigh of relief. They immediately provided a report on the patient’s condition and the measures taken for treatment.

Upon hearing that the bullets had been removed from Song Haowen’s body, and despite still being in critical condition, Song Huihua cried like a waterfall, and Zhu Hongyu consoled her while shedding tears.

Meanwhile, the police briefed Counselor Jin on the case and inquired about any conflicts or disputes Song Haowen might have had. Counselor Jin, not being aware of such details, waited until the two girls calmed down a bit before trying to gather information from them.

However, the two girls were also perplexed and couldn’t provide clear answers. By the afternoon, news of Song Haowen’s have been hospitalized had created a stir throughout the city.

The school leaders and his classmates, including Ren Hua, Qian Youlai, Wang Li, Su Yan, Tian Nana, Tian Pengxiang, Tian Pengfei, Lin Min, Zhong Lizhi, Jenny, Wang Bolong, Tang Wen, Miao Chong, He Hu, Zhao Meng, and many others, rushed to the hospital to inquire about the situation.

Additionally, hundreds of fans gathered at the hospital gate, shouting for justice and punishment for the assailants.

On the day of the incident, Gu Ziwei had an interview assignment. She only learned about the situation when she returned to the newspaper agency before the end of her workday. Shocked, she almost fainted on the spot.

Vaguely, she sensed a connection between Song Haowen’s assault and herself, deepening her sense of self-blame and sadness.

When she arrived at the hospital, it was already dark. Outside the ICU, she saw a tearful Song Huihua. Learning that Song Haowen had not yet emerged from danger, she felt deeply concerned.

At this moment, Song Haowen’s parents were still unaware of the situation. Initially, Song Huihua thought of informing her family immediately, but considering the circumstances and realizing that their presence wouldn’t be of much help and might only increase their worries, she decided to wait until the critical period had passed.

The ones who stayed overnight at the hospital were Song Huihua, Zhu Hongyu, Ren Hua, Qian Youlai, and Wang Li. Later, Gu Ziwei also joined them.

Su Yan and Tian Nana had performances at the music studio in the evening and had to leave early. Tian Pengfei and Lin Min needed to work the next day, so Song Huihua persuaded them to go home.

The film crew had initially considered leaving someone to take care of Song Haowen, but Song Huihua firmly rejected the idea.

The group that stayed at the hospital had almost gone a whole night without sleep. Unable to hold on any longer, they took turns sitting in the corridor chairs, catching a brief nap.

Feeling guilty, Song Huihua tried to persuade them to go home, but they were unwilling to listen. In the end, she decided to go along with them.

For lunch and dinner, everyone fended for themselves. Only Song Huihua managed to eat, as the others brought food for her. After more than thirty hours of emergency treatment, Song Haowen’s vital signs finally returned to normal, and he regained consciousness a little after ten in the morning.

Those waiting outside the ICU, including Song Huihua, finally breathed a sigh of relief. Meanwhile, after two days of intense manhunt, the two assailants had been captured. However, they were stubborn and refused to reveal the mastermind behind the assassination attempt.

Moreover, their motive seemed insufficient, as they had no prior connection with the victim and no apparent conflicts of interest.

The police hoped to gain some insights from Song Haowen about the perpetrators or the reasons behind the attack, but he also couldn’t provide any information. He was unaware of why someone would want to harm him.

Fortunately, Song Haowen’s recovery was remarkably swift. On the second day after regaining consciousness, he was transferred from the ICU to a regular ward and could consume a small amount of food.

At this point, Song Huihua finally found time to go home and inform her parents about his situation. Shocked, they rushed to the hospital together.

Lying in the hospital bed, Song Haowen kept wondering who might want to harm him. Over the past two years, his progress in Beijing had been smooth, but he had encountered severe conflicts with Yang Wei, Hei Xiong, and Cui Hai.

While the first two had faced legal consequences and were imprisoned, the possibility of revenge from their associates couldn’t be ruled out. As for Cui Hai, who had been showing signs of restlessness lately, he couldn’t be excluded as the mastermind.

During her analysis of the case with Song Haowen, Gu Ziwei firmly believed that Cui Hai was the prime suspect. However, she couldn’t fathom the idea that he could be so ruthless, especially using a firearm – a significant taboo considering strict gun control laws in China.

Upon returning to school, Gu Ziwei wasted no time confronting Cui Hai, accusing him of orchestrating the attack on Song Haowen.

Cui Hai vehemently denied the allegations, pledging his innocence with an oath. However, Gu Ziwei couldn’t simply dismiss her suspicions based on his desperate denial. She reported the situation to Song Haowen, who found himself in disbelief over the accusations against Cui Hai.

Song Haowen advised her not to worry about this matter for now. He suggested letting the police investigate first and trusting their ability to solve the case. If that didn’t work out, they could consider other options.

In short, the bottom line was not to let the villain who harmed him escape. To everyone’s surprise, Song Haowen’s injuries healed exceptionally fast. In just five days, he was almost completely recovered.

Against the hospital’s advice, he insisted on leaving and was instructed to rest at home for some time. However, he only stayed at home for two days. Just when everyone thought he was giving up on the postgraduate entrance exam, on the third day, he secretly appeared at the exam venue set by the city authorities and successfully completed four exams over two days.

When he finished the last exam and shared the news with Zhu Hongyu and Ren Hua that evening, both of them were astonished.

The day after the entrance exam, Song Haowen went to the music room. When Tian Nana saw him lively and appearing in front of her, she doubted whether he had truly suffered a fatal gunshot wound. She even forced him to take off his clothes to check the wound, making him blush for a good half day.

However, Song Haowen knew that even though his injuries were mostly healed, he still couldn’t exert himself too much. It would take some time before he could return to stage performances and shoot films.

To reassure the film crew, on the third day after the entrance exam, Song Haowen visited the set. His presence brought relief to the crew members who were worried that the movie might not be completed on time.

Upon seeing him, Wang Bolong was first surprised, then overjoyed. He immediately stopped shooting, walked up to him, and gave him a big hug.

Then, the head instructor Miao Chong, athletes He Hu, Zhao Meng, and other actors came over to greet him one by one.

While shooting with makeup on, Zhong Lizhi also saw Song Haowen. Tears welled up in her eyes instantly. Unlike others who rushed to greet him, she stood in place, staring at him with a mix of emotions – joy, heartache, and pity.

After exchanging greetings with everyone, Song Haowen suddenly realized that someone seemed to be missing from the scene. He anxiously looked around and through the crowd, finally spotting Zhong Lizhi standing alone under a tree. Their eyes met from a distance.

Song Haowen was momentarily stunned but immediately walked up to Zhong Lizhi. Just as he was about to shake hands with her, to everyone’s surprise, she disregarded the many onlookers and threw herself into his arms, silently crying.

Song Haowen felt a heartache, realizing how worried she had been. He resisted tears, gently patting her back with his hand and comforting her with a smile, “Why cry? I’m perfectly fine. It’s embarrassing with so many colleagues watching!”

Zhong Lizhi quickly reacted, released her hold on Song Haowen’s waist, blushing, and said, “It’s all your fault!… Is your injury completely healed?” Song Haowen deliberately swung his left arm and hopped on the ground.

“See, do I look like a patient?” Zhong Lizhi immediately burst into laughter, radiant and stunning Song Haowen.

He foolishly stared at her, momentarily lost for words.

“Are you two filming a scene or something?” Jenny suddenly shouted from somewhere, startling the two dreamers.

Song Haowen, looking at Zhong Lizhi, whose face was now all red, felt a bit embarrassed. He turned to Jenny and smiled, “Hello!”

“Hello, my *ss!” Jenny, for some reason, blurted out a curse in front of Song Haowen for the first time.

“How could you have such enemies? Directly using knives and guns, making Miss Zhong sad for so many days? Tears have flowed like rivers… and you, laughing carelessly, completely unaware of how worried and frightened she has been…” Jenny continued her scolding.

“Jenny!” Zhong Lizhi immediately stopped Jenny from going on, somewhat embarrassed, and said to Song Haowen, “Don’t mind her nonsense; she’s exaggerating…”

Seeing Zhong Lizhi’s visibly thin appearance, Song Haowen’s heart inexplicably ached. Tears that he had been holding back finally streamed down.

He quickly covered up, saying, “Where did the sand come from? It got into my eyes…” But no matter how he wiped, tears kept flowing like a spring.

Witnessing Song Haowen’s emotional display, both Zhong Lizhi and Jenny were startled, sensing that this big boy in front of them might be harboring too many grievances, unable to control his emotions.

Zhong Lizhi tenderly patted Song Haowen’s shoulder, silently offering comfort. After a moment of shock, Jenny, realizing the situation, laughed, “You big man, if there’s sand in your eyes, just rub it out. Why cry? You’re worse than us girls!” Before Jenny could finish her sentence, Song Haowen and Zhong Lizhi burst of laughter erupted, dispelling the awkward atmosphere. Jenny immediately grabbed Song Haowen’s hand and said, “Come with me, I want to show you something.”

Intrigued, Song Haowen followed her to a place away from the shooting scene. Ignoring Zhong Lizhi’s attempt to stop them, Jenny forcefully opened her purse, pouring out a pile of origami cranes, then said with a half-smile, “Mr. Song, your miraculous recovery and escape from danger this time must be attributed to Miss Zhong’s prayers. Look at how many origami cranes she folded for you. These are just a small part; there’s a bunch more in the dormitory.”

Song Haowen was deeply moved and felt a bit guilty, saying, “Thank you for your kindness!” He then bowed deeply to Zhong Lizhi.

Zhong Lizhi immediately chuckled and said, “It’s nothing. You don’t need to feel bad. While you were in the hospital fighting for your life, we couldn’t help, so we could only do these little things to comfort ourselves…”

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