Awake

Lin Xuan gazed at Su Hua's pale face, his hand tightly gripping hers.

"Hua Bao, you’ll be fine. You’ll be okay."

He would never allow anything to happen to Hua Bao.

At this moment, Lin Xuan was consumed by self-loathing for his own helplessness.

He stood by the window, watching Su Hua for a long time before suddenly bending down and pressing a kiss to her colorless lips.

"I’m sorry, Hua Bao. I can’t stay with you anymore."

As if steeling himself for something, Lin Xuan abruptly straightened and strode out of Su Hua’s room.

"Master Lin, where are you going?" Jiang Qing stopped him.

Lin Xuan gave a bitter smile. "I’m going to find Zhao Long."

"Master Lin, are you planning to agree to his demands—to let President Su return to the Shadow Organization and become an assassin again?" Jiang Qing frowned.

"No. I’ll go myself." Lin Xuan clenched his fists. "If I join the Shadow Organization, maybe Zhao Long will give me the antidote."

The Shadow Organization was the source of Hua Bao’s nightmares.

He would never let her go back there. But he couldn’t bear to see her suffer either. With no other choice, this was the only decision he could make.

He could only hope his skills would impress Zhao Long.

So be it if he had to become an assassin.

As for the feud with the Lin family—if Lei Hui couldn’t handle Starlight Group on his own, Lin Xuan could always eliminate anyone who stood in his way.

"Master Lin, don’t worry."

Jiang Qing waved a small bottle in her hand. "We sent people to retrieve the antidote from the Shadow Organization."

Antidote?

Lin Xuan snatched the bottle from her and sniffed it.

His eyes lit up.

No mistake—this was the real antidote!

Aside from acupuncture and herbal remedies, the only other way to save Hua Bao was to concoct the antidote.

But refining this pill required a rare herb from the Celestial Mountains, freshly picked, followed by ten days and nights of preparation. There was no way to complete it within three days.

That was why he had abandoned the idea.

"Where exactly did you get this antidote?" Lin Xuan couldn’t help but ask.

Jiang Qing replied, "We raided the Shadow Organization’s stronghold. The losses were heavy."

Of course, that was a lie.

After President Su was brought back to the Su family at eighteen, she had secretly established a medical research lab. The antidote to the Shadow Organization’s signature poison was the first thing her Midnight Rose Lab had focused on.

Five years later, they had finally succeeded.

The antidote had always been stored in the lab, ready to be delivered whenever needed.

Jiang Qing had once wondered why President Su was so determined to develop an antidote for the Shadow Organization’s poison.

Now she understood—it was because of Su Hua’s past ties to them.

With the antidote in hand, Jiang Qing hadn’t panicked when Su Hua was poisoned by the Shadow Organization’s unique toxin.

In fact, it was precisely because of the antidote that Su Hua had deliberately allowed herself to be struck by that arrow.

"Really?" Lin Xuan eyed Jiang Qing skeptically. "Is that truly what happened?"

Something felt off.

Even if the Shadow Organization had been weakened after their last confrontation, was their stronghold really that easy to raid?

"Master Lin, why would I lie to you?" Jiang Qing answered without a trace of guilt.

"Fair enough." Lin Xuan nodded, deciding not to press further.

After all, he couldn’t think of any other way they could have obtained the antidote.

"Master Lin, since you’re skilled in medicine, could you verify if this antidote is genuine?"

Jiang Qing feigned concern. "I’m afraid this might be a trap set by Zhao Long."

"This is definitely the real antidote," Lin Xuan confirmed firmly.

"That’s a relief."

Jiang Qing pretended to exhale in relief.

"Then I’ll leave the task of administering it to you, Master Lin."

With that, she quickly made her exit.

Thankfully, she had plenty of experience covering for President Su’s schemes, so she hadn’t slipped up in front of Lin Xuan.

For his sake, President Su was willing to do anything—playing the victim, acting innocent, even deliberately getting injured.

Tsk, tsk, tsk.

With all these tactics, it was no wonder Master Lin had fallen so hard for her.

To outsiders like Jiang Qing, Su Hua’s manipulations were obvious. But as they say, love is blind—Lin Xuan remained completely oblivious.

Inside the room, Lin Xuan looked at the woman lying on the bed, his eyes involuntarily reddening.

Thankfully, they had found the antidote.

He couldn’t bear to lose Hua Bao.

Gently, he helped Su Hua sit up, letting her lean against his shoulder as he placed the pill in her mouth.

Then he carefully gave her water to swallow it.

Only after watching her take the medicine did Lin Xuan finally relax.

He checked her pulse again.

Feeling the toxins gradually recede from her body, the tension that had gripped him these past few days melted away.

He settled beside the bed, holding Su Hua as he waited for her to wake.

Meanwhile, at the Shadow Organization’s hideout—

Zhao Long sat leisurely in his golden nanmu chair, fingers tapping the armrest as he waited for Su Hua’s people—or Lin Xuan—to arrive.

"Have they set out yet?"

He kept his eyes closed as he spoke, his tone indifferent.

"No," his subordinate answered.

"Still not?" Zhao Long checked the time, his brow furrowing deeply. "Are you certain they haven’t left Yundu City?"

"No," the subordinate repeated.

"How is that possible?" Zhao Long’s frown deepened enough to crush a fly.

By now, they should have been on their way. If they hadn’t left yet, they wouldn’t make it in time to deliver the antidote.

Unless… they already had it?

He immediately dismissed the thought.

This was the Shadow Organization’s exclusive poison. There was no antidote. Even if they had a treatment, three days wouldn’t be enough.

"Keep investigating. Find out what’s really going on," Zhao Long ordered through gritted teeth.

Another possibility crossed his mind—

What if Lin Xuan had simply abandoned Su Hua to her fate, waiting for her to die so he could take over the Su Corporation?

If that were the case, Zhao Long would personally kill him.

Su Hua—his most prized assassin, the one he had trained himself—had betrayed him and developed emotions. Even if she were to die, it should be by his hand.

Not some outsider’s.

Zhao Long twisted the Buddhist beads in his hand, his gaze darkening.

Two hours after taking the medicine—

Su Hua slowly stirred awake.

Taking in her surroundings and the man beside her, her hand instinctively reached up to touch Lin Xuan’s face.

Lin Xuan, who had been dozing, immediately woke at the cool touch and saw her staring intently at him.

"Hua Bao, you’re awake." His face lit up with joy.

Su Hua’s delicate brows knitted together. "A-Xuan, am I… okay?"

"Yes, you’re fine." Lin Xuan pulled her closer. "Jiang Qing led a raid on the Shadow Organization’s base and brought back the antidote. It worked, so you’re safe now."

"Really?" Su Hua murmured softly.

"Hua Bao."

Lin Xuan picked up the tonic on the bedside table. "This is a restorative brew. Drink some—it’ll help you recover."

"Mm."

Su Hua nodded.