Qiao Ying brought Qiao Yi to the school infirmary to clean his wounds.
Qiao Yi's face and nose were bleeding, his eyes were swollen, there was a bruise on his forehead, and there were multiple bruises on his body.
But for Qiao Ying, who had undergone extremely cruel training since childhood, getting shot was a daily occurrence, while also being the world famous genius doctor Doctor Seely, this was not considered an injury.
There was no need to make a special trip to the hospital for this.
Qiao Yi took two anti-inflammatory pills and sat quietly on the edge of the bed, holding a steaming cup. He occasionally spaced out, or sneakily looked at Qiao Ying, then secretly pondered.
"Did I scare you?" Qiao Ying asked.
Qiao Yi immediately looked up at her - Qiao Ying had her arms crossed, her posture languid and casual as she leaned against the doorframe, completely unlike Qiao Yi's impression of her in the past decade or so.
He wanted to say something but hesitated.
"Seeing me break someone's leg, you think I'm scary?"
"No." Qiao Yi quickly said.
"Then what is it?"
He just had so many questions he wanted to ask, and didn't know where to start, so he first asked what concerned him most: "...Sis, is this over just like that?"
Qiao Ying: "What, do you regret letting those other guys off?"
Qiao Yi didn't know if Qiao Ying had violent tendencies or just had eccentric thinking that made her misunderstand what he meant.
"No, I mean, they won't bother us again, right? We're fine now, aren't we? Mom and Dad won't know either."
"I said, even if you blew this place up today, I could still smooth things over for you. I never make empty boasts."
Qiao Yi was quiet for a while, before finally remembering what he wanted to ask: "Sis, do you know our city mayor?"
"Not very well."
"Then how did he..."
"Our esteemed city mayor is happy to help. This is a blessing for the people of Yun City, isn't it?" Should she tell him it was on Qin Yuchen's orders? There was no need to waste time explaining this to someone she wouldn't have future dealings with.
"..."
"Any other questions?"
"Yes."
"?"
"Sis, how are you so good at fighting? When did you learn? How come I never knew?"
"There's a lot you don't know, you'll find out in the future."
Qiao Yi nodded as if he understood and yet didn't.
"No more questions?"
Qiao Yi nodded, then shook his head. "Sis, where are you going on leave?"
"To the Capital City, to get something."
"Go to Capital City to get something?" Qiao Yi was puzzled. His big sister had never even left Jiangxia District before, how could she have something in Capital City?
Before Qiao Yi could say anything more, Qiao Ying suddenly bent down to reach for the left leg of his pants. Qiao Yi was shocked for a moment, as if some prohibited area had been touched. His whole body tensed up and he shot to his feet.
He reacted intensely, moving very abruptly, even spilling some of the water from his cup. His whole body became taut. "Sis, what are you doing?"
His expression changed as he spoke, and he twisted his body to hide his left foot behind him. In an instant, his whole body bristled, as if what Qiao Ying wanted to touch was not his pant leg, but to strip him.
"Let me see your foot." Qiao Ying said directly, her tone as always carrying an arbitrary dominance.
That was just her personality, uncaring of human relationships or propriety, not ingratiating or false. At the slightest disagreement she liked to use force to shut people up. She was far colder-blooded than the outside world knew.
"No need, my foot isn't injured."
"I want to see the old injury."
When Qiao Yi heard this from Qiao Ying, he froze as he looked at her.
Ever since becoming disabled, no matter when, Qiao Yi always kept himself bundled up tightly. Even in the hottest summer, drenched in sweat from a broken fan, he still refused to wear shorts above the knee. Even seven-eighths pants that revealed his ankles, he never went to the basketball court. Even just passing by outside, he habitually avoided crowds.
For Qiao Yi, he would rather be beaten black and blue, bones broken, than have anyone pull up his pant leg.
Qiao Yi, who kept his distance from anyone and anything, unexpectedly felt warmth from Qiao Ying, the one person he trusted. But now, he was being asked by the only one he trusted to expose his scars.
She clearly knew this was what concerned him most.
Qiao Yi felt he couldn't accept this. He frowned, his hands clenched tightly on his pants. For a long time he didn't speak.
Seeing the hurt in Qiao Yi's eyes, Qiao Ying also remained silent, just watching him steadily.
After a while, Qiao Yi sat down. Wordlessly he pulled up his pant leg, his knuckles white from clenching the fabric so hard.
Seeing this, Qiao Ying's eyebrows twitched imperceptibly, even more satisfied with this adopted brother that had fallen into her lap.
"It's very ugly, isn't it?" Qiao Yi gritted his teeth, thinking: will it frighten her?
Qiao Ying crouched down to take a look, then suddenly reached out to pinch Qiao Yi's calf. Qiao Yi's pupils constricted violently. Before he could think to flee or ask what Qiao Ying intended, he heard her say: "The muscle atrophy isn't too serious yet, it can still be treated."
Qiao Yi froze, looking sharply at Qiao Ying, disbelief written all over his face. "What did you say?"
"I said I can cure it." Qiao Ying raised her hand to pull his pant leg down further, and said, "Do you believe me?"
Qiao Yi: "The doctor said..."
"Just say, do you believe me or not?"
Qiao Yi looked at Qiao Ying's face, always calm and unruffled, seemingly unfazed even if the sky fell.
"I believe you." He didn't believe he could become normal again, but he believed in Qiao Ying.
"I'll bring back some medicine from Capital City tomorrow, if the treatment goes smoothly your leg will be like a normal person's by the end of the year."
Qiao Yi stared blankly at Qiao Ying, not showing much reaction outwardly, but a storm already raged in his heart.
Feng Teng still didn't feel reassured, so he came in person after all.
Although he already knew that the one who helped them was the mayor of Yun City, when he truly saw the high official and public figure appear before his eyes, interacting with Qiao Ying so courteously yet with concern, Qiao Yi still felt it was unbelievable. He was nervous and didn't dare speak casually.
Seeing how respectfully Feng Teng treated Qiao Ying, how enthusiastic he was, it was obvious Qiao Ying had lied saying Feng Teng was purely good-hearted.
After leaving the school, Feng Teng immediately took out his phone and started making calls.
Seeing Feng Teng's name, Qin Yan still couldn't remember who this person was, fortunately he had added a few extra notes - Mayor of Yun City.
Feng Teng didn't dare take credit, purely wanting to increase his presence and goodwill. Like a seasoned politician, he took the initiative to apologize for not taking better care of Qiao Ying.
The tactic of retreat as advance was handled skillfully.
Qiao Ying was Qin Yuchen's life-saving benefactor, and Qin Yuchen had specifically urged him to protect her well, so Qin Yan didn't dare take it lightly. As soon as Qin Hanyue was free, he told him about the matter.
"She broke their legs?" Qin Hanyue lifted his eyes, this was the first time he'd seen such a fierce girl dare to be so ruthless.
"Yes." Qin Yan had the same reaction when he heard about it.
"Looks like she knows some kung fu." Otherwise a girl wouldn't have the chance to break a boy's leg.
Qin Yan was extremely surprised that Qin Hanyue would chat about this girl, and could only dryly reply: "She probably learned some taekwondo or something."
Qin Hanyue: "Did she have any message for us this time?"
