As dawn broke, a speeding car screeched to a halt beneath the county hospital's main building.
The car door opened, and Qin Chuan, Qin Yang, Zheng Chengdao, and Yao Dong alighted, their hurried steps leading them into the inpatient department.
"Boss! You're here!"
"Morning, Dao Ge!"
"Morning, Yang Ge!"
"Morning, Dong Ge!"
In the corridors of the inpatient department, employees of Yaoshi Real Estate's security division greeted them loudly, their faces filled with respect.
Besides them, numerous police officers also made way as Qin Chuan and his entourage approached.
The group nodded slightly, then pushed open the ward door. They saw Bai Xiaoguang lying in the hospital bed, his eyes open after a deep sleep, with Chen Jinyu by his side.
"Xiaoguang!"
Zheng Chengdao and Yao Dong rushed to the bedside first, their eyes filled with immense anxiety.
The brotherhood between them was genuine, forged from the heart. Though not blood brothers, they were closer than kin.
"I'm fine... just a mosquito bite, it'll heal quickly!"
Bai Xiaoguang grinned weakly, his face ashen and extremely frail.
At this moment, Qin Chuan and Qin Yang also arrived at the bedside.
"Yang Ge!"
Bai Xiaoguang called out.
Qin Yang stepped forward and clasped Bai Xiaoguang's hand tightly, comforting him, "Xiaoguang, don't worry about anything. Just focus on recovering from your injuries!"
Bai Xiaoguang nodded with a smile, then his gaze fell upon Qin Chuan, and he weakly called out, "Boss... Thank you!"
Before he lost consciousness last night, he clearly remembered Qin Chuan carrying him into the car. Qin Chuan's anxious demeanor was deeply etched in his memory, a sight he would likely never forget.
"Thank your sister for what? We're brothers, we don't talk about such formalities!"
Qin Chuan scoffed playfully.
"I have good news for you. The people who attacked you last night have all been captured. Not a single one escaped!"
"We're just waiting for you to recover so you can get your revenge and settle your grudges!"
Hearing this, the previously weak and listless Bai Xiaoguang's eyes immediately blazed with sharp brilliance, and his entire demeanor transformed.
Chen Jinyu was also immensely pleased and quickly asked,
"Where are those scoundrels?"
"They're being held at our usual spot, waiting for Xiaoguang to heal so he can exact his revenge personally!"
Zheng Chengdao replied.
"Good! Good! I will do my utmost to recover and be discharged as quickly as possible!"
Bai Xiaoguang gritted his teeth, clearly still seething over last night's events.
The attack by Xue Lang and his group had been too sudden, catching Bai Xiaoguang off guard. He hadn't even had a chance to react before being struck!
Otherwise, in a direct confrontation, Bai Xiaoguang's strength would have ensured a very different outcome.
"Don't worry, once it's morning, I'll arrange for a professional caregiver to look after you," Qin Chuan added.
"Boss, that's not necessary. We have so many brothers around, just assign a couple of them..." Bai Xiaoguang began.
"How is that the same? We're all big, burly men. Who knows how to take care of someone? They're good with a blade, but when it comes to this, they're far from it!"
"Besides, you're bedridden now, unable to even relieve yourself. Do you want your waste to stink up your own brothers?"
Qin Chuan's words brought a rare blush of shyness and embarrassment to Bai Xiaoguang's face.
This scene made Zheng Chengdao, Yao Dong, Qin Yang, and Chen Jinyu, who were standing around, burst into laughter.
"You don't need to worry about anything. Just follow my arrangements!"
Qin Chuan said finally.
Bai Xiaoguang could only nod in agreement, resigned.
Just then, a knock sounded at the door. Yao Dong opened it to find Xiao Guodong and Zhou Congrong standing outside.
Upon seeing them, Qin Chuan rose, and the two parties exchanged greetings.
Zhou Congrong and Xiao Guodong had come to inquire about the situation and to take detailed statements, as the incident was quite significant.
Qin Chuan did not conceal anything, recounting the entire sequence of events from last night to them.
After all, they were the victims in this matter.
"We heard you pursued the escaping assassins last night. Did you catch them?" Xiao Guodong asked.
"No, they got away!"
Zheng Chengdao gritted his teeth, his expression one of resentment. Yao Dong, Qin Yang, and Chen Jinyu wore similar looks.
Qin Chuan, on the other hand, remained as calm as still water.
Zhou Congrong and Xiao Guodong exchanged glances, as if signaling each other. Neither of them said anything further. Before leaving, they offered a perfunctory remark: "If you encounter those assassins again, be sure to notify the police first."
They recalled the four individuals who had been brought in not long ago, tortured to the point of being unrecognizable. Those men had wept and wailed upon seeing the police, pouring out accusations of wrongdoing against Qin Chuan's group.
They described the torture, the brutal methods, being fed worse than swill, and denied any sleep. Their tales were pitiable.
From those accounts, Zhou Congrong and Xiao Guodong learned that Qin Chuan's group had apprehended the culprits long ago but had not handed them over. Only after torturing them sufficiently did they send them to the police station's doorstep.
Who could guarantee that a similar course of action wouldn't be repeated this time?
However, when it came to the matter of the Han family in Longcheng, both Zhou Congrong and Xiao Guodong adopted an extremely cautious stance, or perhaps a "wait and see" attitude.
They could not afford to offend the Han family of Longcheng, yet they had a very good relationship with Qin Chuan's side. Therefore, they passively adopted an attitude of "laziness," allowing Qin Chuan's group to handle things as they saw fit.
The final outcome of the matter was left to fate.
After Zhou Congrong and Xiao Guodong departed, Qin Chuan, along with Qin Yang, Zheng Chengdao, Yao Dong, and Chen Jinyu, also left, withdrawing many of their men from the hospital.
With Xue Lang and his six associates either dead, injured, or captured, their forces were effectively wiped out. Coupled with the police presence, the danger was minimal, negating the need for extensive manpower. They had other matters to attend to.
After leaving the hospital, the five of them had breakfast together. Qin Chuan entrusted Chen Jinyu with the task of finding a caregiver and then packed some congee and a large bag of nutritional supplements for the hospitalized Bai Xiaoguang.
Following breakfast, Qin Chuan led his group back to the construction site.
He intended to present Liu An, who was far away in Longcheng, with a substantial gift.
From interrogating three of Xue Lang's men last night, he had obtained crucial information. This included the misdeeds they had committed over the years for Liu An, such as discreetly dealing with competitors and engaging in various forms of extortion and coercion—explosive details, to say the least.
Some of the factions and individuals involved, by name alone, were not simple to contend with. He needed to investigate these forces thoroughly before presenting Liu An, that old fox, with a grand gift.
Reciprocity is the way of courtesy!
Liu An's two assassination attempts, each more audacious than the last, had inflicted significant damage and finally enraged Qin Chuan, prompting him to retaliate.
He intended to make that old scoundrel, and indeed the entire Han family, pay a heavy price for this transgression!