Li Yundong didn't wait for the elevator; he sprinted up the stairwell himself. In moments, he had shot up to the nineteenth floor. Unable to locate Cao Kefei and Liu Fei’er’s room immediately, he began shouting down the hallway, “General Manager Cao! General Manager Cao! Liu Fei’er, where are you!”
Li Yundong’s loud shouts startled the entire floor. A few curious faces peered out from their doorways, muttering to themselves in wonder, "Liu Fei’er? Could that be the big star, Liu Fei’er?"
Just as they were speculating, a door suddenly burst open, and a girl rushed out, wrapped only in a bathrobe, her hair disheveled, her expression panicked as she waved wildly at Li Yundong. She screamed, “Li Yundong, in here! General Manager Cao is dying, hurry!”
Li Yundong immediately rushed toward her, demanding urgently, “What happened? Where is General Manager Cao?”
Liu Fei’er ignored the fact that she might have been seen. She grabbed Li Yundong and pointed toward the room, her voice thick with fear and a heavy undercurrent of tears. She choked out, “I don’t know what happened. I came out after showering, and Sister Cao was just like this!”
Li Yundong stepped into the room and saw it was a spacious, luxurious double room, fully equipped with appliances, and featuring an attached bathroom and a balcony.
The floor-to-ceiling window leading to the balcony was open, allowing the night breeze to gently billow the curtains. The bedside lamp between the two beds cast a dim glow, outlining Cao Kefei’s figure as she lay sprawled on one **, eyes tightly shut, hands clutching her chest, her face contorted in pain.
Li Yundong reached her side and felt for her pulse, finding it extremely faint, almost nonexistent.
He then tested her breathing and found she had no breath at all.
A knot tightened in Li Yundong’s stomach. He asked in a low voice, “You know General Manager Cao has heart disease?”
Seeing Li Yundong’s calm and collected demeanor amidst the chaos, Liu Fei’er managed to relax slightly and replied, “Yes, I know.”
Li Yundong pressed, “Then why didn’t you give her the medicine?”
Tears welled in Liu Fei’er’s eyes. “I did, but she couldn’t swallow it. I managed to force some down with water, but it didn't help.”
Li Yundong frowned and asked, “Did you call 110? What about 120?”
Liu Fei’er wiped her tears and shook her head. “No. When I came out, Sister Cao was still conscious. Seeing her clutch her chest in agony, I assumed it was a heart attack and quickly looked for her medicine. After I finally managed to get her to swallow it, she struggled and said someone was trying to kill her, begging me to find you because you could save her.”
Li Yundong’s brow furrowed deeply. He noticed not only a puddle of water near Cao Kefei but also a few drops of blood not far away. He dabbed some of the blood onto one finger and brought it to his nose to smell, while keeping his other hand on Cao Kefei’s pulse. He asked sternly, “Did she say who was trying to kill her?”
Liu Fei’er shook her head.
Li Yundong asked again, “Did you see the attacker?”
Liu Fei’er shook her head violently, her eyes wide with terror, as if to say: If I had seen them, wouldn’t I be lying here too?
Li Yundong pondered for a moment, then inquired, “Do you have any enemies?”
Liu Fei’er shook her head. “No.”
Li Yundong stated, “Think carefully. I mean, any particularly unusual enemies, the kind who might possess a bit of special ability, like mine.”
Liu Fei’er couldn’t help but sob again. “Sister Cao is kind to everyone; how could she have enemies?”
Li Yundong countered, “But didn’t I see someone demanding payment from her last time?”
Liu Fei’er replied, “Sister Cao paid that debt off long ago.”
Li Yundong fell silent. He slowly began channeling his Primordial Yang Qi into Cao Kefei’s body, desperately trying to sustain the last lingering spark of life within her. He asked further, “Wait, didn’t you return to Tiannan City privately? Who else knew your movements?”
Liu Fei’er said mournfully, “The film crew might know we returned to Tiannan City, but they shouldn’t know where we are staying.”
Li Yundong’s brows tightened even further. Just as he was about to press on, Liu Fei’er suddenly began to wail, “Hurry up and save General Manager Cao! Can you save her?”
Li Yundong offered a faint smile. “Don’t worry, she’ll be fine, it’s just…”
As Li Yundong was about to explain Cao Kefei’s current condition, he abruptly heard a commotion outside: “What? Liu Fei’er is here? Where? Where?”
The commotion had drawn the attention of other guests, and several star-struck fans, hearing Liu Fei’er’s location, immediately gathered, craning their necks to peer into the doorway. Some pointed toward Liu Fei’er’s figure and exclaimed loudly, “Yes, that’s Liu Fei’er!”
“Ah, Liu Fei’er, I love you!”
“Liu Fei’er, sign an autograph for me! I love watching your movies and TV shows!”
Liu Fei’er had dealt with countless fans before, but clearly not in a situation like this. She froze momentarily, at a complete loss for what to do. Agree, and they would overrun the scene, disrupting everything, and how could she possibly entertain these frenzied fans in this crisis? But refuse, and if the story got out, it could lead to damaging gossip columns about her.
Liu Fei’er stood there blankly, like a plaster statue, watching the crowd of fans surge toward her.
Just as she was about to be engulfed, Li Yundong’s voice cut through with a sudden, sharp command: “Stop!”
Though not loud, the low roar carried authority and power, causing the fans to instantly freeze in place. They followed the sound and saw a young man squatting by the bedside, looking at them with cold eyes, like a lion surveying the herd. His face was calm, showing little emotion, yet an imposing aura of inherent authority emanated from his brow.
Li Yundong spoke with slight anger, “Someone is dying here, can’t you see? Get out! If someone dies, are you going to take responsibility?”
The crowd snapped back to reality. They looked at the beautiful Cao Kefei collapsed on the bed, then at the panicked Liu Fei’er, and finally their gaze settled on the handsome young Li Yundong. A torrent of speculative scenarios immediately flooded their minds, quickly giving rise to countless suggestive, gossipy tales.
Chinese people love a spectacle. Seeing such a suggestive situation unfold, these individuals grew excited. While they dared not advance further, they certainly didn't retreat either. They clustered by the doorway, enthusiastically snapping photos with their phones.
Li Yundong frowned deeply. He said to Liu Fei’er in a low voice, “Get them out!”
Liu Fei’er blinked, stammering, “W-what?”
Li Yundong shot her a glare. “Do you want General Manager Cao to die? Get them out of here now!”
Liu Fei’er jolted back to reality and pleaded with the crowd, “Please, everyone, could you make some room? I promise I’ll sign autographs for all of you later.”
The crowd responded with cheerful agreement, but their feet seemed rooted to the spot.
Liu Fei’er’s eyes filled with anxious tears. Just as she was about to speak again, she suddenly heard a woman shouting her name loudly from outside. Liu Fei’er paused, then instinctively called out loudly, “Sister Hong? I’m here!”
Moments later, a tall woman dressed in black professional attire, wearing black-rimmed glasses, squeezed through the crowd. The instant she saw Liu Fei’er, intense anger flashed across her face. But after glancing around, she forcibly suppressed her emotion, walked up to her, and murmured, “Fei’er, you’ve gone too far this time! Sneaking away from the set! Do you know how terrible the impact is? The whole crew is saying you’re throwing a diva fit!”
Seeing that the woman was her manager, Sister Hong, Liu Fei’er rushed toward her as if she were a savior, grabbing her hand and asking with relief, “Sister Hong, how did you find me?”
Sister Hong saw she was avoiding the question and coldly snorted, temporarily setting aside the previous issue. “I have my ways! But where is this Cao Kefei? How could she be so reckless? Running off on her own, and dragging you with her? Where is she?”
Liu Fei’er pointed worriedly at Cao Kefei, who was still lying on the bed, and said sadly, “Someone tried to kill Sister Cao; she’s almost gone.”
Sister Hong was startled, but she couldn’t help but say gruffly, “That woman is nothing but trouble; humph, this is her karma!”
Liu Fei’er tugged at her arm and whispered, “Sister Hong, don’t say that. I was the one who wanted to go out with Sister Cao; it’s not her fault.”
Sister Hong glared at her. “You’re still defending her!”
Tears were close to spilling from Liu Fei’er’s eyes again. She choked out, “Stop talking. If anyone should be scolded, scold me. It’s all my fault that Sister Cao ended up like this.”
The anger in Sister Hong’s brow softened slightly. She glanced at Li Yundong, who was intently focused on channeling vital energy into Cao Kefei, and asked, “Who is this man?”
Liu Fei’er whispered, “A friend of Sister Cao’s.”
Sister Hong frowned. “What kind of friend?”
Liu Fei’er hesitated before saying, “Just an ordinary friend.”
Sister Hong inquired, “Is he a doctor?”
Liu Fei’er stammered, “I don’t know.”
Sister Hong’s brow furrowed deeply. She turned to Li Yundong and barked, “Hey, are you a doctor?”
Li Yundong didn’t turn his head, replying flatly, “No.”
Sister Hong immediately became furious. “You’re not a doctor, so what the hell are you doing here! Do you know you could cause a death? If Cao Kefei really dies, whose fault will it be? Hey, answer me! Move aside quickly! You’re not a doctor, what are you doing? Hey, hey…”
Li Yundong turned his head slightly, casting a cool glance at the manager. He said, “Then why don't you find someone else to treat her?”
Sister Hong was momentarily stunned, but quickly retorted with embarrassed anger, “Who do you think you are, talking to me like that?” She quickly pulled out her phone from her bag and snapped at Liu Fei’er, “Did you call emergency services?”
Liu Fei’er, caught in the middle, looked helplessly between Li Yundong and her manager, then shook her head in resignation.
Sister Hong gave her a sharp glare and was just about to dial when someone outside suddenly shouted loudly, “I’m a doctor! I’m a doctor!”
Sister Hong was overjoyed. She shoved the phone into Liu Fei’er’s hand and said quickly, “Hurry and call emergency services! Don’t let this guy of unknown origin mess things up! If the person isn’t saved, we’ll all be dragged down with the trouble!”
Saying this, she quickly moved toward the onlookers and called out loudly, “Which one of you is the doctor?”
At that moment, a tall, distinguished young man stepped out of the crowd and smiled. “I am a doctor.” He then took out his identification from his pocket. “This is my medical license.”
Sister Hong glanced at it and exclaimed in surprise, “You graduated from Harvard University?”
The young man swiftly glanced at Liu Fei’er on the side, then carefully concealed the momentarily stunned look of admiration. He smiled and said, “Yes, I hold a Ph.D. in both Pharmacology and Neurology from Harvard University, and I currently work at the North Carolina State Hospital. I know a little bit of medicine, perhaps I can be of some help.”
Sister Hong’s face broke into a warm smile, and she laughed sweetly. “A dual Ph.D. only knows a little bit of medicine? Heh, you are so modest. Not like some people who pretend to know things they don’t and just cause trouble!” With that, Sister Hong turned and gave Li Yundong a hard, resentful glare.
The young man smiled faintly and asked very gentlemanly, “May I go in and take a look?”
Manager Sister Hong quickly moved aside, laughing, “Of course, of course.”
The young man approached Li Yundong, involuntarily glancing at Liu Fei’er beside him. He cleared his throat and asked, “Hello, may I examine her? I am a doctor, a professional doctor.”
Li Yundong looked up at him and asked plainly, “Then do you know her current condition? Is she alive or dead?”
The young man immediately felt a surge of anger. He thought to himself: This guy clearly isn’t a doctor, so why is he putting on airs? Could it be that I, a dual Ph.D. graduate from Harvard Medical School, am inferior to some quack doctor? Who does he think he is, acting so arrogant in front of me—it’s like reciting the Classic of Filial Piety in front of Confucius, or practicing swordsmanship before Guan Yu!
========================================= Too many social engagements; sorry for the late update~D