Chapter 66: Collecting Some Interest

By the time Guo Lei walked out, feeling refreshed, Wu Ming was inside, barely breathing.

Guo Lei had the doctors from the corporate clinic bandage Wu Ming up, then sent a photo of the man's injuries to Mu Lin.

'Since I can't beat the old man, I might as well take it out on his son first.'

Mu Lin figured he would show the photo to Qiao Canhua later; he was sure to be delighted.

But for now, Mu Lin had other things to worry about.

It was ten o'clock. Apart from not coming home at all, he'd never returned this late.

And as for staying out all night, that had just happened yesterday.

The two infractions combined doomed him to a fierce barrage from Li Xue.

Taking a deep breath, Mu Lin prepared to face the storm.

He pushed the door open. Even the maids were already asleep. Li Xue was sitting on the sofa, legs crossed, her gaze fixed icily on him.

"Late again? What were you out doing?"

Mu Lin said, "You wouldn't understand even if I told you. Mind your own business."

Li Xue stomped her foot in anger. "So it's being nosy for me to ask, is it? Fine! I won't ask!"

Suddenly, Li Xue's gaze froze. She strode over and peered at him.

Mu Lin felt his skin crawl under her scrutiny. Unsure where to look, his eyes landed on her fair neck and the alluring hint of skin visible beneath her loose shirt.

Li Xue brushed something off Mu Lin's arm and held it up. It was a very long, chestnut-colored hair.

"Where did this come from?"

Mu Lin remembered that Hu Xi's hair was chestnut-colored. It must have gotten on him during the chaos at the bar.

"I don't know where I picked it up. Maybe it's from one of the girls in the special group? Zhou Yu, or maybe Sun Lele?"

"Zhou Yu dyed her hair back! And Sun Lele has short hair now! Don't you dare try to blame someone else. I'm asking you, where did this come from?!"

Mu Lin sighed. "I really don't know! I'm exhausted. Can I please just get some rest?"

"You're not going anywhere until you explain yourself!"

"I have no obligation to explain anything to you."

With that, Mu Lin walked into the bathroom.

Li Xue was driven mad with anger, but at the same time, she found it very strange.

'She and Mu Lin clearly had no real relationship, so why did she care so much about this stuff?'

'I'm just torturing myself. I'm not going to bother with him anymore! He can do whatever the hell he wants.'

Fuming, she stomped upstairs and slammed her door.

When Mu Lin came out of the shower, he saw a long string of missed calls on his phone.

They were from the Holy Medicine Hall's landline.

Mu Lin was immediately on alert. 'One missed call might just be Zhao Ling'Er thinking of me.'

'Two missed calls, and Divine Doctor Zhao is probably trying to recruit a son-in-law again.'

'Three, and maybe Madam Qiao is feeling unwell.'

'Four means someone's life is in danger.'

Mu Lin immediately threw on some clothes, rushed back out, hailed a cab, and sped toward the Holy Medicine Hall.

The taxi was just pulling up to the Holy Medicine Hall when Divine Doctor Zhao came rushing out to meet him.

"Mu Lin! Ling'Er and Hu Xi were bathing in the hot spring, but Hu Xi just fainted for no reason! Ling'Er is inside with her, but she can't handle it alone. Could you please...?"

"Right, I understand!" Mu Lin said. "It's likely poisoning. Please prepare an energy-restoring tonic. Have Hu Xi drink it as soon as we get her out, and then take her to the hospital."

As soon as the words left his mouth, he slipped off his shoes, set them aside, and walked barefoot toward the hot spring.

Normally, Zhao Yang would have thrown a fit at the mere mention of a Western hospital. After all, as a Divine Doctor, how could he possibly hand a patient over to Western medicine?

But under the circumstances, he had no other choice.

'Hydrogen sulfide poisoning... Traditional Chinese medicine had no real answer for that.'

Mu Lin reached the entrance to the hot spring and called out, "Ling'Er!"

"Brother Mu, you're here! Quick, Hu Xi is almost gone!"

Mu Lin rushed through the door. A few quick strides brought him deeper into the hot spring area, where he saw Zhao Ling'Er crouching on the floor, completely naked, holding a single towel over her chest.

She was mortified to see him.

'But to save a life right now, there was no other choice.'

'If he has to see, then he has to see!'

Mu Lin frowned, took off his jacket, and draped it over Zhao Ling'Er. Then, he shucked off his button-down shirt and tossed it to her. "Cover Hu Xi with this!"

Only after Zhao Ling'Er had done so did Mu Lin step forward.

Now he was bare-chested, his muscles on full display.

Zhao Ling'Er's eyes went wide.

Though Mu Lin looked lean, his muscles were like steel plates plastered to his body, taut and brimming with power.

Half of Hu Xi's body was still in the hot spring. 'This is bad,' Mu Lin thought. 'If it were hydrogen sulfide poisoning, she would already be dead.'

But when he reached out to check, he found she was still breathing.

So it wasn't the worst-case scenario. But immediately, another question surfaced.

'If it's not that, what else could it be?'

Mu Lin took Hu Xi's hand to check her pulse. It was extremely faint, but on the whole, it was stable.

Zhao Ling'Er pressed, "Brother Mu, what's wrong with Hu Xi?"

Mu Lin frowned. "Her pulse is completely normal, she's just a little dehydrated. She might've just been exhausted and fell asleep..."

It was a false alarm.

"I'll carry her out. You get her dressed, then let her rest in a cool place for a while. She should be fine."

After speaking, Mu Lin pulled Hu Xi from the water, and Zhao Ling'Er quickly covered her vital areas with a towel.

Mu Lin scooped Hu Xi up into his arms, strode quickly to the changing area, and laid her down on a bench.

"She's all yours now," Mu Lin said. "I'm really sorry for seeing... so much. I hope Hu Xi won't hold it against me!"

Zhao Ling'Er quickly shook her head. "Of course she won't! You saved her!"

Mu Lin gave a wry smile, said nothing more, and walked out.

Zhao Yang was pacing anxiously outside. Seeing Mu Lin emerge bare-chested, he rushed over. "Mu Lin, how is she?"

Mu Lin replied, "It wasn't hydrogen sulfide poisoning; her life's not in danger. I'm guessing she's just been under too much academic stress. Her body was exhausted, and the hot spring put too much strain on her system, so she passed out."

"I've already carried her to the changing area. Ling'Er is getting her dressed now."

Zhao Yang let out a long sigh of relief. "Thank heavens, thank heavens. It was just a false alarm. If something had really happened to her, I have no idea how I would've explained it to Mayor Hu!"

Mu Lin paused. "Huh? What mayor?"

Zhao Yang realized his slip of the tongue and quickly tried to laugh it off. "Oh, nothing! I just meant her parents."

Mu Lin mulled it over for a second but didn't give it much more thought. It wasn't his place to comment, anyway.

About ten minutes later, Zhao Ling'Er came out, dressed in a simple set of pajamas.

"I've changed her. Could you help me carry Hu Xi out, Brother Mu?"

Zhao Ling'Er pursed her lips and gave Mu Lin a pitiful look.

"Sure," Mu Lin said.

He went inside. In the changing room, Hu Xi was now dressed in a very thick, oversized robe.

Mu Lin scooped her up and carried her out.

Zhao Ling'Er had set up a folding lounge chair in the courtyard. "Here, put her down here. There's a nice breeze."

Mu Lin laid Hu Xi down. "Divine Doctor Zhao, the medicine!"

Zhao Yang hurried over and poured the energy-restoring tonic he'd prepared into Hu Xi's mouth.

Hu Xi subconsciously swallowed the tonic, sip by sip.

Zhao Ling'Er asked, "Is Hu Xi okay? Is she suffering from qi deficiency?"

Mu Lin waved a dismissive hand. "No, it's just to get some warm liquid in her. If it replenishes her energy, great. If not, whatever."

'He's so casual about it...' Zhao Ling'Er pouted.

"Ling'Er, you should go do your homework," Zhao Yang said. "Mu Lin and I will look after her."

Zhao Ling'Er remembered her homework, and her expression immediately soured. "Okay!"

'No one likes doing homework.' Her eyes lit up with an idea. "Could Brother Mu help me with it?"

'How could that be right?' Zhao Yang thought. 'Homework should be done independently, of course.'

'But then again,' he mused, 'is homework what she's really interested in? Obviously not.'

'At the end of the day, she's after the man himself. If I could make him my son-in-law, then even if Ling'Er doesn't study medicine and just settles down as a wife and mother, that wouldn't be a problem at all.'

"Alright then, take him with you! Go get a plate of grapes from the kitchen. You two can snack while you study!"

Zhao Ling'Er happily scampered off.

Mu Lin called out, "You go on ahead, Ling'Er. I'll be there in a bit!"

He first needed to find Boss Qiao and show him the pathetic state of Wu Ming.

'Can't deal with the father, so take it out on the son. Nothing wrong with that.'