SFTD -Chapter 428 Feeling Sorry for the “Car”

Hu Nan jumped in fright and shot to his feet. The peeled balut egg in her hand flew straight out. On the bed, Xu Biao suddenly sprang upright, trying to leap down and catch the egg. But the violent movement made his head spin. His burly body swayed unsteadily before he quickly grabbed the bedside and sat back down.

Zhou Hai had already caught the fallen balut with a plate. He stood up and looked at Xu Biao on the bed, his face full of excitement.

“You’re awake?”

Xu Biao nodded miserably.

“Yeah. I don’t even know if this is real or just another dream. Either way, I couldn’t sleep peacefully at all! All kinds of food kept floating in front of me—fried chicken, beer, oden, grilled oysters, cheese-baked shrimp, teppanyaki squid skewers, spicy clams, and even this fried balut. How was I supposed to sleep soundly with all that?”

Zhou Hai laughed. Only then did Xu Biao notice the injury on Zhou Hai’s neck. He swung one leg off the bed, staggered over while holding the bedside for support, and stared at Zhou Hai in shock and confusion.

“What happened to you? After I got taken down, did you go fight Yang Duxiu in Room 401 or something?”

Pressing his lips together, Zhou Hai nodded firmly. Under Xu Biao’s relentless questioning, he briefly recounted how they captured Yang Duxiu and removed the bomb. Of course, he glossed over the most dangerous parts. Even so, both Hu Nan and Xu Biao listened in stunned disbelief.

Xu Biao grabbed the balut Zhou Hai had just seasoned and shoved it straight into his mouth, devouring it quickly. After swallowing, he wiped his mouth and fingers clean. Since he had eaten too fast and nearly choked, he pounded hard on his chest before finally managing to force the egg down.

“Hurry and let me eat another balut to calm my nerves! I was only under anesthesia for a little while, and I somehow missed such an incredible show. What a waste!”

Zhou Hai patted Xu Biao on the shoulder without saying anything, quickly peeling and seasoning another balut for him.

Xu Biao ate far less elegantly than Hu Nan, wolfing it down in moments. His appetite instantly returned, along with his strength, and he slid off the bed while holding onto the bedside.

“I’m choking here. Give me some herbal tea!”

Hu Nan curled her lips and shoved an opened can of herbal tea into his hands. Xu Biao tilted his head back and gulped down half the can in one go. After a loud burp, he glanced at the IV needle still stuck in his arm.

“Haizi, I’m scared of needles. Hurry and take this thing off me, or it’ll interfere with my eating!”

The moment Hu Nan heard that, her first reaction was to pull the fried chicken bucket protectively into her arms and start eating furiously.

Xu Biao looked utterly wronged. Before Zhou Hai could speak, the door opened and Doctor He walked in carrying a tray. Seeing Xu Biao sitting at the bedside, he froze for a moment.

“You… woke up?”

He quickly set the tray down and hurried over to examine Xu Biao thoroughly. Meanwhile, Xu Biao’s eyes never once left the fried chicken bucket in Hu Nan’s hands. When Doctor He kept fussing over him without end, Xu Biao finally got annoyed.

“Am I not alive and kicking already? If you keep pulling my eyelids around, they really won’t open anymore. Hurry up and take this thing off my hand. I haven’t eaten in over twelve hours, okay? Fat people can’t handle starvation!”

Doctor He smacked the back of his head but still removed the IV needle as requested.

The second the needle came out, Xu Biao lunged toward Hu Nan, snatching a drumstick from the bucket and stuffing it into his mouth. Doctor He sighed helplessly while helping press down on the needle mark.

“I’m telling you, Xu Biao, this clearly isn’t anesthesia aftereffects. You’ve just got a hunger disease, don’t you?”

Xu Biao had no time to answer him. Right now, the most important thing was fighting Hu Nan for food. That girl showed absolutely no intention of yielding to a patient—in fact, she was eating even faster.

After all, eating with forensic doctors had one major downside: when it came to food with bones, they understood skeletal anatomy far too well. Watching them eat completely ruined anyone else’s appetite. So he absolutely had to strike first.

After the whirlwind feast, even Zhou Hai had eaten his fill. Doctor He had already treated Zhou Hai’s wounds. Since two cuts on his neck had damaged blood vessels, they required six stitches, while the other injuries were simply disinfected and bandaged.

Hu Nan cleaned up the hospital room, and Doctor He prepared to leave. After all, staying in a hospital meant there was endless work waiting. Zhou Hai patted him on the shoulder and walked him to the door.

“Get going. Thanks for today.”

Doctor He rolled his eyes at him.

“You being this polite really doesn’t suit you. Anyway, go back and talk with Xu Biao. I know you still have a lot to deal with afterward. Since you’re my friend, I guess I’ll just accept my bad luck.”

Zhou Hai smiled.

Watching Doctor He’s departing figure, he suddenly felt that Dongnan was truly a wonderful place. The family and friends he cared about were all here. That sense of belonging made even the early autumn night feel exceptionally refreshing.

Taking a deep breath, he returned to the room and saw Xu Biao enthusiastically gesturing while talking to Hu Nan. Zhou Hai interrupted him.

“Get some proper rest today. We can talk tomorrow.”

Xu Biao curled his lips.

“That’s too much. Can’t you at least let me play the hero for once? I finally acted brave for a change, and before I can even spread my glorious deeds around, you’re already trying to end things. Is that really okay? Besides, I still don’t know how I was rescued, how you got hurt, or any of the details. You glossed over everything earlier. How am I supposed to sleep peacefully without hearing the full story?”

Hu Nan curled her lips and muttered softly,

“You were sleeping pretty soundly just now. If it weren’t for the food, you probably wouldn’t have woken up until tomorrow.”

Xu Biao waved the hand still covered with medical tape in front of Hu Nan.

“Hey, Forensic Hu, have some conscience when you speak, alright? Look at my hand—I just finished an IV drip. I’m the patient here!”

Zhou Hai dragged over a chair and sat down across from Xu Biao, separating the two of them.

“Tell me, how did you end up ordering food from that old hometown restaurant?”

At the question, Hu Nan immediately stopped talking and turned to look at Xu Biao as well. Xu Biao pouted and pointed his chin toward a phone on the table.

“Yesterday after lunch, I grabbed one of their delivery cards.

Then the owner gave me a coupon, saying the restaurant was celebrating its fifth anniversary with a promotion. The coupon was worth fifty yuan and could be used on purchases over fifty-one yuan, no restrictions.

I figured even buying two packs of cigarettes with it would be worth it, so I kept it. Then everyone got hungry that evening, and when I went outside, I suddenly remembered that place, so I headed there.

Right after I placed the order and got back into the car, someone pressed a knife against my neck. Instantly, I thought of Yang Duxiu. I also realized the flyers and the restaurant had all been arranged by him. So I didn’t move at all.

I looked at him through the rearview mirror and immediately noticed the embroidered Agricultural University logo on his shirt pocket, so I quickly marked the letters ‘L S’ on my phone.

Yang Duxiu asked me if I knew who he was.

I said, more or less—I at least knew there was someone named Yang Duxiu.

Then he tapped my face with the knife and told me not to move around, saying he had bombs strapped to him. Right after that, he lifted his shirt so I could see. That’s when I saw rows upon rows of explosive tubes across his chest.

I immediately thought of Zhang Mingquan. Back then, he only had a few sticks of explosives, yet his whole body was blown apart, and the second floor of the club collapsed completely. It was horrific.

But Yang Duxiu had so many explosives strapped on him that I couldn’t even count them all. The power had to be several times greater. The entire street could’ve been caught in the blast. Once I realized running was useless, I decided to just play along and stall him.

Then, seeing that I didn’t try to run, he put away the knife and told me to throw my phone out. So I did.

After that, he made me drive forward and turn north at the first small intersection. Fine, I turned. After winding around several corners, we arrived beside a bamboo grove in a residential area.

But the moment I parked the car, he stabbed a needle into my leg. My leg started feeling numb, though otherwise I didn’t feel much.

He smiled and said it was safer this way. I had no idea what other tricks he still had up his sleeve, so I didn’t dare struggle.

After all, it was a residential district, and those old neighborhoods were densely populated. At that moment, I really regretted not crashing into a utility pole or something while I was still on the road.

If he was going to use me as a hostage, wouldn’t all of you have been threatened too?”

Hu Nan immediately coughed twice and leaned forward.

“You were just worried about the ‘car’!”