The dean wore a wry smile, then tried to persuade him earnestly, "Commander Gu, aren't you making things difficult for me? I indeed cannot afford to offend you, but the girl's father explicitly instructed that outsiders should not disturb her. Why trouble the dean of such a small hospital? Besides, aren't outsiders always watching the situation here? If they discover you doing this, won't it bring more trouble to Miss Chen?"
Gu Xingdong nodded in agreement. "I am not an unreasonable person. How about this, I will come back at three o'clock in the morning. Everyone will be asleep then, and no one will be paying attention to what's happening here!"
Three o'clock in the morning…
With things reaching this point, the dean could not refuse. After a moment of hesitation, he finally nodded, resigned to his fate and said, "No matter what, I cannot handle this perfectly. Consider it doing you a favor. I only hope that if you need any help in the future, Commander Gu will not refuse!"
Gu Xingdong's lips curved upwards slightly, and he nodded, saying, "You've done me a huge favor. If there's anything you need in the future, even if it means going through fire and water, I won't hesitate."
After settling this matter, Gu Xingdong left the hospital with Sinian.
Back home, the two did not rest. Instead, they sent Su Nian out to scout the situation and find out how many paparazzi were tailing them.
About an hour later, Su Nian entered through a side door. "I took a quick look outside. There are about six paparazzi following us, and they are all stationed by the main entrance. We can sneak out from the side door tonight. I've also asked Xiao Hei and the others to investigate how many paparazzi are at the hospital. We should get results within half an hour."
As soon as she finished speaking, Xiao Hei's call came in. He said from the other end, "The situation at the hospital is rather grim. I've been squatting there all morning and found people lurking in every corner. They've completely surrounded the hospital from all sides. Judging by their coordination, one might think it was pre-arranged."
Hearing Xiao Hei's speculation, Su Nian hesitated for a moment, then replied with certainty, "They might have really planned it in advance! What should Brother Gu do?"
Gu Xingdong walked to the floor-to-ceiling window and watched as the sky slowly darkened. He took a deep breath and said meaningfully, "I'm not entirely sure what to do next. We can only play it by ear."
----
At three in the morning, Gu Xingdong received a rather unexpected call.
The person on the other end asked, "Commander Gu, I'm all set here. Why haven't you shown up yet?"
Gu Xingdong replied, "I'm truly sorry, Dean. We've just left. We sent some of our men to check near the hospital to see if those lurking paparazzi are still there. Only when we confirm that the surroundings are safe and will not cause you any trouble will we come to the hospital."
The dean asked with some surprise, "Paparazzi? They haven't rested at this hour? How many are there? I know the hospital's layout well, perhaps I can help you find a way!"
"You could say the area around the hospital has been surrounded by them. I plan to have my men create some noise to lure them away."
Hearing this, the dean suddenly said, "There's no need for that. My home is nearby, and there's a path that leads directly into the hospital. You can wait for me near my house."
Gu Xingdong, who had been troubled by this, suddenly his eyes lit up. Without delay, he rushed out of his home with Su Nian.
Not long after they left, a person suddenly emerged from the room. Qin Yue narrowed her eyes and took out her phone to report the situation.
However, as soon as she pulled out her phone, a sharp question came from behind her, "What are you doing?"
Qin Yue seemed not to expect anyone to be out at this late hour, and was startled. The phone in her hand dropped to the ground. "Auntie, why are you up so late?"
"I asked who you were calling!" Mother He demanded, moving closer to Qin Yue. She had long known this woman was not as honest as she seemed, so she had arranged for a trusted person to monitor Qin Yue's every move in the surveillance room. If anything seemed amiss, she would be contacted immediately. Tonight, she had finally caught her red-handed.
Just as she bent down to pick up the phone and see who was orchestrating all this, a voice filled with guilt and apology came from the doorway. "Auntie, Yueyue was calling me. I'm truly sorry, I didn't expect everything in China to be so interesting compared to abroad. I was out playing too late and didn't pay attention to the time. Yueyue might have been worried about my safety and called me! As you can see, I just got your call and came back. What's wrong? Did we make too much noise and disturb your sleep? I'm really sorry. I promise you, I won't be out playing so late again!"
Hearing Meng Lei's explanation, Mother He's icy gaze softened slightly. "You know, you are an adult. Theoretically, what you do is your freedom, and I have no right to interfere. However, Auntie kindly advises you not to be consumed by pleasure and neglect your duties. The Meng Corporation needs you!"
Meng Lei's lips curved upwards, a look of obedient and sensible smile on her face. As she gently pushed Mother He back towards her room, she said, "I know, I know. I know Auntie is doing this for my own good. I won't disturb your sleep anymore. Please go back to your room quickly, and I'll take Yueyue to rest as well."
"Mm," Mother He nodded, waved at them, and closed the door.
Watching Mother He's retreating back, the smile on Meng Lei's face slowly turned cold. She grabbed Qin Yue's hand and roughly pulled her into the room.
"You... What are you doing? You're too strong, my hand hurts!" Qin Yue struggled and cursed Meng Lei as a scoundrel.
Back in the room, Meng Lei let go of Qin Yue's hand, closed the door, and slapped her across the face. "Who exactly were you on the phone with just now? Don't forget, you are a pawn in my hands. You'd better do what you're supposed to do and don't have any ulterior motives for things you shouldn't be doing!"