Chapter 277: Better to Intercept Than to Search (Part 2)

“Alright, she’ll be okay for a little while. I’m going out to find a first-aid kit. I just saw the doors and windows on the management office’s prefab building were still intact, so they should have one…”

Workers on construction sites are always getting hurt, so the management office usually keeps medical supplies for external injuries, as well as disinfectant and bandages, on hand.

“Wait here.”

Perhaps because she was injured, Ye Qingniao was being unusually docile. Lin Fan fished two sugary drinks out of the beverage pack, twisted the caps off, and placed them by her hand. He then reached out and patted her head.

“Drink this to get your energy back.”

With that, he prepared to squeeze back out through the hatch.

Just then, the effects of his potion wore off. To the naked eye, his entire body suddenly “deflated.”

His once-tight tracksuit became much looser. In the blink of an eye, he transformed from that “devil-muscled man” back into a regular young man.

“Phew… So much better.”

Lin Fan stretched his joints, no longer strained by bulging muscles. This “deflated” sensation actually made him feel much lighter. He nimbly grabbed a handhold and, like a swift, slipped easily through the very hatch that had snagged his shoulders moments before. With a WHOOSH, he dove into the raging storm.

Watching Lin Fan’s receding figure, Cheng Qi felt as if a great weight had been lifted from his shoulders. He let out a long sigh and turned his head, speaking quietly to the person in the back seat:

“I knew you’d be fine, but the moment I saw Colonel Lin return… I don’t know why, but it’s like that rock in my gut just dropped. It feels like we have our backbone again.”

“Mmm…”

Ye Qingniao cupped the bottle of plum green tea in her hands and took a small sip.

The sweet drink spread through her mouth, washing away the coppery taste of blood in her throat. Even though she’d only given a simple reply, Cheng Qi could tell that the tension inside her had eased as well.

At first, they had been wondering why Lin Fan hadn’t asked who was responsible when he returned. Or why he hadn’t asked how she got injured.

But on second thought, judging by how confident Lin Fan had seemed—he even had the presence of mind to look for drinks—they figured that crew, or rather, that entire meat processing plant, had probably already been turned upside down by him…

Knowing his petty nature, there was no way he’d have come back so calm and composed if he hadn’t already gotten his revenge.

“Well, well. So ‘Colonel Lin’ makes you feel all safe and secure, does he?” Ye Qingniao said, taking a sip of her drink. Her eyes swept over him before she broke into a wicked grin. “How about I play matchmaker for you two…?”

“…Screw you!” Cheng Qi gave her a massive eye-roll and snapped, “I guess you’re not hurting that much after all!”

He had been worried sick. Just moments ago, she’d looked like she was at death’s door. But the second Lin Fan returned, she was suddenly bursting with energy. Even her absurdly large muscles seemed to have more of a sheen. She was clearly fine.

Since she was fine, Cheng Qi stopped blocking the narrow passage between the cockpit and the crew cabin. He wriggled back into the driver’s seat, closed his eyes, and listened peacefully to the rain.

「Less than two minutes later.」

THUD! A dull thump echoed from the roof of the vehicle. It was followed by the GRIND of scraping metal as the hatch opened once more.

A gust of damp, cold air and rainwater flooded the cabin. Lin Fan, soaked to the bone, slid down the handholds while carrying a white plastic first-aid kit marked with a red cross.

“Found it. It’s pretty well-stocked.” He shook the water from his hands, walked over to Ye Qingniao, and sat down beside her. He placed the first-aid kit on his lap and opened it with a CLICK. Povidone-iodine, hydrogen peroxide, gauze, scissors, medical tape… it had everything.

Lin Fan picked up a bottle of hydrogen peroxide and a pair of scissors, but his hands froze in mid-air.

He stared at the bloody, mangled bullet wound on Ye Qingniao’s chest. After a three-second pause, he suddenly whipped his head around and shouted toward the driver’s seat with a grave expression, “How do you treat a gunshot wound?”

“Huh? Aren’t you a doc—” Cheng Qi froze, then instinctively turned his head to ask, “Cyan Bird, how do you treat a gunshot wound?”

“…Don’t bother. Just let me die.” Seeing the two utterly clueless men before her, Ye Qingniao leaned weakly against the seatback, rolled her eyes, and spoke with a voice full of despair and exasperation.

“Alright, turn around first…” ‘My entire career as a veterinarian, and I never learned how to treat a gunshot wound.’ But seeing as those two were even more clueless, Lin Fan decided he’d just have to figure it out himself. He reached out, took Ye Qingniao by her broad shoulders, and turned her so her back was to him.

The seconds ticked by. Outside, the downpour seemed to be tiring itself out. The sound of rain on the armored roof changed from a dense drumroll to a sparse patter, making the cabin feel all the more quiet.

The silence lasted for a full three minutes. Lin Fan remained motionless, his hands hovering in the air as he stared at Ye Qingniao’s broad back.

Cheng Qi, in the driver’s seat, finally couldn’t take it anymore. He poked his head around and asked, “What are you two doing? Meditating?”

“What are YOU doing?”

Even Ye Qingniao couldn’t resist turning back to look at him, her expression completely baffled.

Ever since Lin Fan had turned her around, he’d just frozen up, not making a sound or a move. She’d assumed he was carefully examining the bullet’s path, but when she turned around, the guy was just staring blankly into space.

“Huh? I’m waiting for you to change back…”

Lin Fan said it as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. He reached out a finger and poked the latissimus dorsi on Ye Qingniao’s back, which was as hard as granite. It made a solid TAP-TAP sound.

“You’re built like a bear right now. If I bandage you up, and then you shrink down in a little while, the bandages will just come loose. All my work would be for nothing, right?”

“…” Ye Qingniao was speechless.

“…” Cheng Qi pulled his head back.