The moment the man collapsed inside the apartment, everything changed.
The quiet warmth from just minutes ago shattered without warning. In its place came something sharp and suffocating, a tension that pressed into the space and refused to leave. Jun Wei's scream still echoed faintly, thin and frightened. He clung tightly to Suo Ran's sleeve, his small fingers twisting the fabric as if it were the only thing keeping him steady. His body trembled, eyes wide and fixed on the figure near the door. "Gege… he's… he's bleeding…"
Suo Ran didn't respond right away. His attention had already shifted, instinct overriding everything else as he moved forward quickly. The man was slumped against the doorframe, barely conscious, his breathing uneven and shallow. Blood soaked through his clothes, dark in some places, still wet in others.
"…Hey," Suo Ran said as he crouched down, his voice lower now, controlled but tight. "Can you hear me?" There was no response.
Lian Ziho stepped closer, his movements measured, his expression composed but serious. His gaze swept over the injuries with quiet precision, taking in more than he said aloud. "…This isn't normal," he murmured under his breath.
Suo Ran frowned immediately. "What do you mean not normal? He's injured of course it's not normal." "I mean this isn't an accident," Lian Ziho clarified, his tone calm but firm.
That made Suo Ran pause. Behind them, Anxin stood still. He hadn't reacted the way the situation demanded not outwardly. His gaze rested on the injured man, steady and observant, too calm for what lay in front of them. Slowly, he stepped forward and lowered himself beside the man. His fingers hovered near one of the wounds, not touching, just assessing. Something flickered in his eyes. Recognition.
It was brief but suo ran noticed.
His brows drew together slightly, unease settling in. "What happened to him?" he asked, his voice sharper now, tension creeping in with each word. "Who is he?"
No one answered. And that silence irritated him. It stretched too long, too heavy, like something being deliberately held back.
Elsewhere, the call came without warning.
Cai Lang glanced at his phone, a faint crease forming between his brows when he saw the name. He answered immediately. "What happened?" On the other end, Anxin's voice came through calm, but not entirely steady.
"Come home." Cai Lang stilled slightly. "What happened?"
A brief pause followed.
"You come first," Anxin said. "You'll know."
The line went dead. Cai Lang lowered the phone slowly, his expression unreadable but his thoughts were anything but still.
What happened?
Why did he sound like that?
His grip tightened faintly around the phone.
Dad…?
The thought surfaced without invitation.
Did something happen?
His gaze shifted, distant for just a moment.
Suo Ran…
Before the thought could settle, he was already moving. By the time Cai Lang reached the apartment, his steps had unconsciously quickened. He pushed the door open without hesitation. His eyes moved immediately, searching. They found Suo Ran first. He was standing unhurt.
For a brief second, relief cut through everything else.His shoulders eased, just slightly. He exhaled then his gaze shifted to injured man.
Cai Lang's expression hardened instantly.
"What happened to him?" he demanded, stepping forward quickly, his voice sharper than usual. "Why is he so injured? Why is he like that?" Anxin straightened slightly, meeting his gaze without hesitation. "I don't know. He just came here like this."
Suo Ran turned at once. "Can you please tell me who he is?" His voice carried frustration now, barely restrained. "And why he's here? Do you know him?"
Cai Lang didn't response. Suo Ran felt something snap, just a little.
"You brought someone yesterday," he continued, words coming faster now, the irritation no longer hidden. "Now this? What's going on? Why is everything suddenly.."
"Suo Ran." Cai Lang's voice cut through sharply. "Can you please stop being curious?" he said, the edge in his tone sharper than intended. "I'm already tense. Please just stop."
The words landed harder than they should have. Suo Ran stilled for a second, he just looked at him. Then his expression changed.
"…Okay," he said quietly.
"I'm fed up with this." He stepped back, gently pulling his sleeve free from Jun Wei's grip. "I'm going."
Jun Wei froze for a second, then immediately grabbed his sleeve again, his eyes widening. "Gege… where are you going?"
Suo Ran paused.The grip on his sleeve was small, warm, stubborn in a way only children could manage. Jun Wei's voice wavered slightly. "Please don't go… you promised you never leave me…" That stopped him just for a moment. Suo Ran's gaze softened before he looked away, as if steadying himself. A faint exhale left him, almost tired.
"I'm not leaving," he said gently, crouching slightly so he was at Jun Wei's eye level. "I'm just going to buy you something delicious."
Jun Wei blinked, processing that slowly.
Suo Ran added, quieter, "If I don't come back, then you can be angry at me. Deal?"
Jun Wei shook his head immediately. "No… I don't want to be angry." A small pause.
Then, softer, almost hopeful "Can I come with you?"He tilted his head, lower lip pushing out slightly in a perfect little pout.
Suo Ran looked at him for a moment, then sighed faintly, the tension in his shoulders loosening just a little despite everything.
"No," he said firmly, though not unkindly. "You can't come." Jun Wei's pout deepened instantly. "But why…"
"Because I'll be back soon," Suo Ran replied, brushing a hand lightly over his hair. "Stay here. Be good."
Jun Wei hesitated, still looking like he wanted to argue, then finally let out a small, reluctant breath. "…Okay," he mumbled. Then quickly added, as if negotiating, "But you must bring something very delicious." A faint smile finally touched Suo Ran's lips. "Very delicious," he agreed.
Only then did Jun Wei step back, satisfied enough to release him. Suo Ran straightened, gave him one last look, then turned and left. The door closed softly behind him. Lian Ziho exhaled slowly, glancing at Jun Wei. "Well," he said lightly, "that escalated quickly." Jun Wei looked up at him, still a little sulky. "Gege left…" Lian Ziho crouched slightly, patting his head. "He didn't leave. He went on a mission." Jun Wei tilted his head. "Mission?" "Yes," Lian Ziho said seriously. "The mission of finding delicious food."
That earned a blink… then a small giggle.
"Really?"
"Very serious mission," Lian Ziho nodded. "Dangerous too. Lots of choices to fight through." Jun Wei's eyes widened immediately. "Wow…"
He seemed to accept that logic instantly.
Lian Ziho stood up, offering his hand. "Come on. Let's go to the guest room for a bit. You can tell me what kind of delicious thing he should bring back." Jun Wei immediately grabbed his hand. "I want chocolate!"
"Noted," Lian Ziho said solemnly. "Chocolate is a top priority." Jun Wei walked beside him proudly now, swinging their joined hands slightly. "Gege will bring it." "Of course he will," Lian Ziho replied, smiling faintly.
And just like that, the heaviness in the room softened just a little carried away by a child's certainty that everything would return the way it should.
And somehow, that silence felt worse than anything else. Suo Ran turned and walked out. The hallway felt different. His footsteps echoed faintly as he moved forward, his jaw tightening slightly with each step.
What is this…? His thoughts refused to settle, circling the same frustration over and over.
Why does he always do this? (....)
The irritation hadn't faded it had deepened, sinking somewhere heavier, more difficult to ignore. Like I'm not even supposed to ask. (....)
His pace slowed slightly.
Like I don't have the right to know anything. (....)
He let out a quiet breath, the tension still sitting tight in his chest.
Why does that bother me? (....)
The question lingered, unanswered, as he kept walking without looking back.
Meanwhile, inside the apartment, the injured man stirred. It was subtle at first a slight shift in his breathing, uneven and strained, followed by a faint tightening of his fingers against the floor. The movement was small, almost easy to miss but Anxin noticed immediately. "He's waking up," he said quietly. Cai Lang stepped closer without hesitation, his attention sharpening. Lian Ziho straightened as well, his posture shifting from passive observation to alert focus.
The man's eyes fluttered open, unfocused and strained, as if even the effort of awareness was too much. His lips parted slightly, breath catching. "They…" he whispered. Cai Lang leaned in just enough to hear him clearly, his voice low but firm. "Who?" The man's gaze didn't settle. It drifted, unfixed, as if searching for something that wasn't there. "…Already…" he managed, his voice breaking between words.
Anxin's eyes narrowed slightly, something sharper settling beneath his calm exterior.
"Find…" the man continued, barely audible now. "…Qiao Shiyan…" The name fell into the space between them. For just a moment, Cai Lang's expression shifted something flickering beneath the surface before it was buried again. It was brief, controlled, but not missed. Lian Ziho noticed.
His gaze moved from the man to Cai Lang, studying him carefully. "…Who is that?" he asked quietly. Cai Lang didn't answer.
The injured man's breath faltered again, his body going slack as whatever fragile hold he had on consciousness slipped away. His head tilted to the side, and the tension left him all at once.
The kind that pressed into the room, filling every corner with unspoken questions.
Lian Ziho exhaled slowly, his expression tightening just slightly. "…That didn't sound good." "No," Anxin replied, his voice quiet but certain. "It didn't." Cai Lang said nothing.
But his mind was already moving, faster than his expression ever showed.
Qiao Shiyan.....
His gaze lingered on the unconscious man for a moment longer before shifting, distant and unreadable.
So it's reached this point. (....)
Elsewhere, Suo Ran wasn't paying attention.
He turned the corner without thinking and collided lightly with someone. The impact wasn't hard, just enough to pull him out of his thoughts. "Oh sorry."
"Sorry." They spoke at the same time.
A brief pause followed, both of them caught in the small coincidence. Then, almost instinctively, a faint, amused smile passed between them light, unspoken, gone just as quickly as it came.
They moved past each other without another word, footsteps fading in opposite directions, and the moment ended as simply as it had begun.
Suo ran saw Book Store. ' let's find something to distract.' Suo Ran stepped inside, the familiar scent of paper and ink settling around him, grounding in a way nothing else had been that day. He moved slowly between the shelves, his gaze drifting across rows of books without really seeing them. He picked one up looked at it then put it back. He took another nother then another nothing held his attention.
He exhaled softly, running a hand through his hair. "…Nothing interesting." After a while, he gave up trying. He moved toward a corner and sat down, leaning back slightly, one arm resting against his knee. For a moment, he just stayed there, still, his thoughts circling back to the same place no matter how much he tried to ignore it.
The silence in the bookstore was gentle but his mind wasn't. The owner noticed.
An older man, quiet and observant, the kind who didn't ask questions without reason. He stepped closer, his tone calm. "What's wrong?" Suo Ran shook his head slightly, not looking up right away. "Nothing. Just… can't find anything good."
The man studied him for a moment, as if weighing something unseen. Then he turned, walking back toward a shelf tucked slightly out of view. After a few seconds, he returned, holding a single book. He extended it toward Suo Ran. Suo Ran glanced at it, his fingers pausing before taking it. The title was simple.
"The Silence Between Waves."
Something about it felt… different.
He didn't question why. He opened it.
His eyes fell to the first page.
"Some storms do not arrive with noise only with silence, and by the time you notice, they have already changed everything."
For a second, the words didn't just stay on the page they lingered somewhere deeper, settling into a place he hadn't expected.
He turned the page then another slowly his thoughts began to quiet.
Back at the apartment, a knock broke through the heavy silence. The door opened almost immediately after. "Wen Yao… you?" Cai Lang said, a faint trace of surprise slipping into his otherwise controlled tone.
"Move." Gu Wenyao stepped inside without hesitation, already focused, his attention locking onto the injured man. "Let me see."
He didn't wait for permission. He didn't waste time.
Dropping to his knees beside the man, his hands moved with steady precision, checking wounds, assessing damage, his expression sharpening with each passing second. Cai Lang shifted slightly, his gaze flicking toward Anxin. His voice was low, barely above a whisper. "Why is he here? Why did you call him?" Anxin didn't even look at him. "Why?" he replied calmly. "He's a doctor. Who else did you expect to come?"
Cai Lang didn't respond..He didn't argue.
He simply fell silent again, his attention returning to Wenyao.
Within seconds, the doctor's expression changed. The calm focus remained, but something else settled beneath it something more serious. "This isn't a normal wound," Wenyao said. Cai Lang stood nearby, unmoving. "Who did this?" Wenyao asked, not looking up, his hands still working efficiently. No one answered.
" Okay. " Doctor Gu said.
The silence stretched, but he didn't press. He simply continued, controlled and methodical, as if he already expected the lack of response. "Hold this," he instructed suddenly. Cai Lang stepped forward immediately, taking over without hesitation. Their eyes met briefly just for a second.
Outside, after everything had been stabilized as much as possible, Gu Wenyao stepped toward the door. Cai Lang followed him out, closing it softly behind them for a moment, neither spoke then Wenyao glanced at him, his tone quieter now but edged with something sharper. "What trouble have you caused this time?" Cai Lang didn't answer right away. "What is your relationship with him?" Wenyao continued, studying him more closely now. A pause.
"He…is lu zhen" Cai Lang started.
"He...is lu zhen? " wenyao repeated.
"yes." Cai Lang said. Wenyao watched him for a second longer then asked " is he same lu zhen I know?"
"yes"
" can he be trusted ?" Then he exhaled softly, the tension in his shoulders easing just slightly. "…Be careful," he said.
There was no lecture and then he turned and left.
Cai Lang remained standing there for a moment longer, his gaze lingering on the empty hallway before slowly turning back toward the apartment.Back inside the apartment, the silence didn't ease even after the bleeding had slowed. Gu Wenyao had already done what he could for now. Cai Lang stood near the couch, his gaze fixed on the injured man. Anxin remained a step behind him, quiet but alert, his presence steady yet unreadable. Lian Ziho leaned lightly against the wall, arms crossed, his attention less on the man and more on the two standing beside him.
"…You both know him," Lian Ziho said finally.
It wasn't phrased like a question.
Cai Lang didn't look up. "Not well." Anxin let out a faint breath, almost amused but there was no warmth in it. "That's one way to put it." Lian Ziho's eyes narrowed slightly. "So you do know him." Silence stretched between them, thin but unbroken.
Cai Lang exhaled slowly, as if weighing how much to say. "…His name is Lu Zhen."
Lian Ziho repeated it under his breath, testing the sound of it. "Lu Zhen…" "And?" he added after a moment. Cai Lang's gaze didn't move. "…He working with me."
"Work with you?" Lian Ziho echoed, shifting his weight slightly. "Or for you?"
A brief pause followed. "…Does it matter?" Cai Lang replied. "It does if he ends up like this," Lian Ziho said, glancing toward Lu Zhen's bloodied state. "People don't crawl to your door half-dead without a reason."
Anxin's gaze flicked briefly toward Cai Lang before returning to Lu Zhen. "He didn't come here randomly." "No," Cai Lang said quietly. "He didn't." A faint movement broke the tension. Lu Zhen stirred. It was subtle at first his fingers twitching, his breath shifting unevenly. His brows drew together as if he were dragging himself back through something heavy, something that didn't want to let him go. "He's waking up," Anxin said.
Cai Lang stepped forward immediately.
Lu Zhen's eyes opened slightly, unfocused at first. His gaze drifted, struggling to anchor itself, before slowly painfully it settled on Cai Lang. For a brief second, something flickered there. It was recognition. "…You…" he whispered. Cai Lang leaned in slightly, his voice lowering. "Who did this to you?"
Lu Zhen's lips parted, but the words didn't come easily. His breath hitched, uneven and fragile. "They…" he managed.
Cai Lang's brows drew together. "Who?"
"Already…" His voice broke, the word barely holding together as it slipped out.
Anxin's expression sharpened almost imperceptibly, something colder settling beneath his calm. "Find…" Lu Zhen forced out, each syllable dragging against his weakening breath. "Qiao Shiyan…" Cai Lang's eyes darkened just for a moment. Lian Ziho noticed immediately. "Who is that?" he asked quietly.
Lu Zhen's gaze drifted again, unfocused until suddenly, it shifted towards room for a split second fear then gone. No one didn't react.
"…Too late…" Lu Zhen whispered. Cai Lang's voice tightened slightly. "What do you mean?" "You stayed…" Lu Zhen's voice trembled faintly, each word thinner than the last. "you shouldn't have…" A strained breath escaped him. "They're already close…"
Lian Ziho straightened at that, his posture sharpening. "Inside?" But Lu Zhen didn't respond his gaze flickered weakly, struggling to remain conscious. "…Scroll…" he murmured. "…they know…" This time, Cai Lang reacted.
A tightening of his jaw. A shift in his stance.
Lian Ziho caught it. "…What scroll?" he pressed. No answer came. Lu Zhen's focus was already slipping again but just before he fell back into unconsciousness "Qiao Shiyan…" he whispered once more, quieter now, almost lost. "don't trust…" The words cut off.His body went slack.
Unconscious again. Lian Ziho let out a slow breath, dragging a hand through his hair. "…That didn't sound like something we can ignore." "No," Anxin said quietly. "It didn't."
Cai Lang didn't speak. But his thoughts were already moving, faster than before, threading connections he didn't want to acknowledge.
"…You're not going to explain any of that, are you?" Lian Ziho asked after a moment.
Cai Lang didn't look at him. "Not now."
"That's getting repetitive," Lian Ziho replied calmly.
Before the tension could rise further, Anxin spoke. "Even if he explains, it won't change what's already happening." Lian Ziho turned his gaze toward him. "And what ihappening?"
A brief pause followed. Then Anxin said quietly, "Something that doesn't stop once it begins." "That's vague," Lian Ziho said.
"It's accurate," Anxin replied.
Cai Lang finally moved, stepping back slightly. His gaze drifted toward the door, then toward the window calculating, thinking, measuring something unseen.
When he spoke, his voice was low.
"We don't have much time."