Chapter Two: Unable to Hold On for Even a Quarter of an Hour!

"Qingran, you're awake?" Seeing that Xu Qingran had come to, Xiao Chen was overjoyed and hurried over.

At the sound of Xiao Chen's voice, Xu Qingran instantly withdrew the hand that Jiang Yichen was about to grasp.

She glanced at Xiao Chen and asked coldly, "What are you doing here?"

"I heard from Mom that you were kidnapped, so I came to rescue you." Xiao Chen walked to Xu Qingran's side, concerned. "How are you feeling? Are you alright?"

But before Xu Qingran could answer, Xu Qianran, standing nearby, had already sneered, "Rescue? It was Brother Yichen who saved her. What does it have to do with you? Stop trying to take credit for yourself."

"While Brother Yichen was preparing the ransom, who knows where you were fooling around. You weren't even home then."

"That's not true." Xiao Chen didn't care what Xu Qianran thought, but he did care about Xu Qingran, and he couldn't let her be deceived by Jiang Yichen. He hurried to explain, "Qingran, listen to me. The whole kidnapping was arranged by Jiang Yichen. He wanted to play the hero and win your favor."

"What a joke." Xu Qianran scoffed. "If Brother Yichen wanted to please my sister, he has plenty of opportunities. Why would he need to stage a kidnapping? Unlike you, who knows you can't compete with Brother Yichen, so you resort to these despicable tricks to slander him. Shameless!"

"Let me ask you, didn't you say you saved my sister? Then why did we get here first? The first people she saw when she opened her eyes were us. What does it have to do with you?"

"I..." Xiao Chen was about to explain that he had gone after another kidnapper.

But at that moment, Xu Qingran slapped Xiao Chen hard across the face, her voice icy. "Despicable."

Xiao Chen was stunned.

"We're leaving!" Xu Qingran looked at him with utter disappointment, then rose and walked straight out of the abandoned factory.

Jiang Yichen glanced back at Xiao Chen with smug satisfaction, then quickly caught up with Xu Qingran, with Xu Qianran following.

Rubbing his stinging cheek, Xiao Chen forced a bitter smile and walked out of the derelict factory as well.

It was already late. The area was so remote that there was no way to hail a cab, so Xiao Chen had to walk all the way home.

By the time he got back, dawn had already broken; it was six or seven in the morning. Sweaty and reeking, Xiao Chen was just about to rest a little before showering when he saw Sun Ling, Xu Qingran, and Xu Qianran hurrying out of their rooms.

"Xiao Chen, Qingran was kidnapped just last night, and you were out all night again? You still have the nerve to come home?" Sun Ling couldn't contain her anger at the sight of him.

"It's not like that, Mom. I went to look for Qingran last night. That abandoned factory was really remote. I couldn't find a ride and had to walk home. I just got here," Xiao Chen explained hastily.

But Sun Ling wouldn't listen and was about to start scolding him.

"Mom, enough. What's the point of talking to him? Grandma's situation is urgent; we can't be delayed," Xu Qingran cut in coldly, shooting Xiao Chen a frosty look.

Sun Ling snapped back to her senses and angrily barked at Xiao Chen, "What are you standing around for? Go get the car! The old lady suddenly fell seriously ill and was hospitalized. If we don't hurry, your uncle's family will find another excuse to criticize us."

Xiao Chen quickly agreed, grabbed the car keys, and went to pull the car out of the garage.

Before long, Sun Ling and the others came out, ready to leave. But as they reached the car, Xu Qianran balked, wrinkling her nose in disgust. "He stinks. I'm not sitting in a car with him. If anyone I know sees me, I'll die of embarrassment!"

Sun Ling immediately turned to Xu Qingran. "Qingran, you drive."

Then she looked at Xiao Chen coldly. "You take the bus. Remember, it's the third floor of the inpatient department at Renmin Hospital. If you're late, you'll regret it."

Helpless, Xiao Chen got out of the car, watched Xu Qingran drive the family away, and hurried to the bus stop.

Soon he arrived at Linzhou Renmin Hospital by bus. Remembering that Xu Qingran and the others had left in such a rush that they probably hadn't eaten breakfast, he bought some steamed buns and soy milk downstairs and carried them upstairs.

As he reached the third floor of the inpatient department, he saw a crowd gathered outside a hospital room, with Sun Ling, Xu Qingran, and the others among them.

"Mom, Qingran, Qianran, have something to eat," Xiao Chen said as he hurried over, offering the buns and soy milk.

But before they could take them, Uncle Xu Zhongshan sneered, "Really, sister-in-law, the old lady is seriously ill, and Chengyang is inside giving her acupuncture, and you people still have the appetite to eat? Do you even care about her at all?"

"Honestly, you all are completely out of line."

"Grandma has always been good to you, and this is how you treat her?" Others chimed in as well.

At their words, Sun Ling and her daughters awkwardly withdrew their hands.

"You're right, big brother. It's all Xiao Chen's fault for being so thoughtless," Sun Ling said quickly, shooting Xiao Chen a furious glare. "Useless! Can't do anything right! Throw that stuff out. All you do is make things worse!"

If it weren't for this good-for-nothing buying breakfast, her brother-in-law wouldn't have had an excuse to lecture them. If this stigma stuck, their family, already out of favor, would find life even harder.

"Must caring mean starving oneself?" Xiao Chen retorted, indifferent to outsiders though deeply concerned about Xu Qingran’s feelings. "Besides, Uncle, you might want to wipe the grease from your mouth before lecturing us."

Xu Zhongshan instinctively wiped his mouth, only to find it clean, which made the surrounding crowd burst out laughing.

Realizing he'd been played, Xu Zhongshan was about to explode with anger when the hospital room door opened and a young man in a white coat stepped out. He bore a strong resemblance to Xu Zhongshan: this was Xu Chengyang, his son, and the director of Traditional Chinese Medicine at Renmin Hospital, disciple of the famed Master Chen. He had just finished treating the old lady.

"Chengyang, how is she?" Xu Zhongshan hurriedly asked, not bothering to argue with Xiao Chen. If his mother was saved, his branch of the family would have an even better chance of controlling the family’s affairs.

Xu Chengyang smiled. "The acupuncture is finished. Grandma will wake up soon."

Everyone rushed to flatter him. "Chengyang, you really are talented—already a renowned young doctor in all of Linzhou."

"That's right. Grandma's illness was beyond anyone else’s ability, but with you, it was cured in a snap."

Xu Zhongshan was delighted, and the group filed into the room.

On the bed lay an eighty-year-old woman, sleeping peacefully. Seventeen slender needles were embedded at various acupuncture points on her body.

"Hmm?" Xiao Chen stepped forward and, upon seeing the needles, frowned deeply.

Noticing this while enjoying the crowd’s flattery, Xu Chengyang glanced at Xiao Chen with a mocking smile. "What is it, Xiao Chen? You know acupuncture too?"

"Him? I’d believe he knows how to serve tea and sweep the floor, but acupuncture? He probably hasn’t even seen it before."

"I hear he's nothing but a househusband, useless in every other way," several people scoffed, looking at Xiao Chen with contempt.

Sun Ling and Xu Qingran's faces flushed with embarrassment. Compared to Xu Chengyang, Xiao Chen was beneath contempt.

But Xiao Chen nodded. "I do know a bit of acupuncture. The technique you used is called the Lingxi Method, known for its gentle and delicate approach—perfectly suited to Grandma’s condition."

"However, your needling was too forceful. Grandma is elderly and can't withstand such aggressive manipulation. Instead of helping, if you don’t remedy this immediately, she won’t last fifteen minutes!"