DF Chapter 45
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The police, fed up, picked up the phone: “Yao Feng’s diagnosis shows he’s mentally sound. All his behavior is just an act. He’s not cooperating with the arrest, so we’re requesting backup from the First Psychiatric Hospital. Damn it, the guy even ate vomit and garbage to fool us. He totally tricked us!”
He was furious, his voice loud.
Hearing this, Yao Feng clung to his last hope like a drowning man grasping at a straw, wildly pointing at Yan Ge and screaming, “I’m insane! I’m really insane! I actually have a mental illness! The doctor’s just incompetent! He’s the one responsible for this! I’m really crazy, I swear!”
“…” At that point, even Zhen Yi knew for sure—he definitely wasn’t crazy.
Another officer, who had doubted Yan Ge’s diagnosis, looked like he was about to explode with frustration.
“I’m sick! I’m really sick!” Yao Feng screamed. In an instant, he turned into a lunatic, swinging a chair around, attacking anyone nearby. Doctors and nurses dodged out of the way. But suddenly, he changed direction and charged toward Zhen Yi.
Zhen Yi’s hair stood on end, realizing she was standing by the exit. Yao Feng was trying to escape!
She stood frozen, mentally reviewing the clumsy self-defense moves she knew. As he came closer, she clenched her fists tightly.
But just in that moment, a force yanked her aside.
Her heart skipped a beat. In the next second, she found herself crashing into Yan Ge’s arms. The familiar yet unfamiliar warmth enveloped her, making her breath catch. She stared wide-eyed at his face, now so close, her heart seemingly stopping altogether.
Before she could even react, Yao Feng’s chair came down hard on Yan Ge’s back.
There was a loud, heavy thud, the impact so strong that Yan Ge stumbled, falling to the ground with Zhen Yi still in his arms.
Zhen Yi was pinned beneath him, her entire body breaking out in goosebumps.
She curled up in his embrace, her nose brushing against his jaw, and his faint, clean scent filled her senses. Dizzy and bewildered, she felt no pain, only the odd realization that he was fully on top of her!
The physical sensation was so subtle and strange that her heart seemed ready to leap out of her chest.
But the next moment, over his shoulder, she saw Yao Feng raise the chair again, aiming straight for the back of Yan Ge’s head.
All the sweet, pink bubbles burst in an instant, and terror gripped her, freezing her to the core.
“No!” Zhen Yi screamed, instinctively flipping herself over to shield Yan Ge beneath her.
There are times when a person’s first reaction in a critical moment defies all logic.
In that split second, Zhen Yi’s mind went blank. She threw herself over him, wrapping her arms tightly around his head, her entire body tensing like a frightened ostrich. In reality, she was scared out of her mind.
She hugged him so tightly, as if trying to burrow into his heart. In the process, his head bumped against the floor.
Without warning, a rush of memories flooded Yan Ge’s mind: he was walking quietly, she was bouncing around him, chattering non-stop; she suddenly lay down in the middle of the road, asking him to look at the stars; he lay down beside her, the night sky was beautiful, and her face appeared in his line of sight…
The memories played like a slideshow, quickly flashing before his eyes. In a split second, the scenes froze and merged with the present moment.
Right now, she was fiercely protecting him, her body rigid, trembling.
That year, she had lain on his chest, with the eternal, brilliant stars behind her. Her eyes were full of emotion as she softly said ten words:
“Yan Ge.
“Tell me you love me,
“Even if you’re lying.”
And he had remained silent.
“Stop!” Zhen Yi’s scream seemed to still echo in Yan Ge’s ears. He hadn’t expected her to protect him.
Seeing the chair about to come down again, for the first time in years, he felt that familiar emotion—fear, terror. He rolled to the side, pulling Zhen Yi with him.
The chair hit the ground with a loud crack, and Yao Feng let out a cry of pain. Zhen Yi, confused, peeked out from Yan Ge’s arms and saw Yao Feng on the ground, with several people rushing to restrain him. Nearby, Mei Mei was holding a chair, glaring at Yao Feng with a pout.
“Hmph, Doctor Yan is on our side!”
On the other side, Zhi Zi glared at Zhen Yi and yelled, “Dr. Xu, this new girl is stealing my man again! Are you going to do something about it or not?”
Zhen Yi was still pinned under Yan Ge. “Are you okay?” she asked, genuinely terrified after seeing how hard the chair had hit him.
“I’m fine.” He tried to get up but felt some resistance. Zhen Yi’s arms were still wrapped around his waist… and their position…
He glanced down; Zhen Yi froze and, as if electrocuted, quickly let go. Yan Ge stood up, straightening his now wrinkled clothes.
“Are your back bones broken?” Zhen Yi leaned forward, inspecting him from all angles.
“If they are, will you compensate me?” he asked, his expression unreadable.
“…” Was he joking? She couldn’t tell, and without the mood for humor, she quietly fiddled with the corner of her shirt, whispering, “I’ll compensate you if they’re broken.”
Yan Ge looked slightly taken aback but didn’t say anything.
Their hushed conversation was overheard by the doctors and nurses around them. After witnessing Yan Ge’s selfless act of protection, many began to speculate. After all, while Dr. Yan was known for his professionalism, he was not known for being the protective type.
He was the kind of person who could work late into the night on research, but if a colleague was about to fall, there was no chance he’d offer a helping hand.
Zhen Yi, too, was surprised. Wasn’t he with An Yao? Why would he make such an intimate move toward her? Could she have misunderstood something?
“Yan Ge, you…” She was just about to ask when a police officer approached. “Dr. Yan, could you come to the station with us to give a statement about Yao Feng’s condition?”
“Sure.” Yan Ge nodded slightly, then looked at Zhen Yi. “What were you going to say?”
“Nothing important, you go ahead.”
Yan Ge left with the police. Zhen Yi continued her volunteer work, but at some point, when she thought back on what had just happened, her heart tightened inexplicably. In that critical moment, her subconscious instinct had taken control.
Oh no, she realized. She still had feelings for him!
That evening, Zhen Yi drove her grandfather to her cousin’s house. Tomorrow would be his 70th birthday, and her cousin Cui Fei and cousin-in-law Qi Xingyuan were preparing a birthday celebration for him. Qi Xingyuan’s elders had all passed away, and on Cui Fei’s side, only her mother (Zhen Yi’s aunt) and grandfather remained.
