Chapter Twenty-Nine: Hostage

"Stop looking so glum, have a drink."

Han Letian snapped his fingers in front of the dazed Li Sheng and poured him a glass of peach-flavored sparkling water.

It was Saturday afternoon, inside a VIP suite at a high-end karaoke lounge in Yin City. The weekend gathering had been planned long ago. Aside from Li Sheng, Mu Yulu, and Han Letian, several other classmates were present, including Shao Wangshu.

Theoretically, minors were not supposed to be in a karaoke lounge alone, but Han Letian’s father was a long-time friend of the owner, so a single phone call was all it took to get them in.

"I’m going outside for some air."

Li Sheng forced a smile, waved his hand, and walked out of the suite. He pulled the soundproof door shut behind him, crossed the gilded hallway, reached the end, and pushed open a window.

Outside, the sky was vast and clear, as if it had been washed clean. In the distance, tower cranes resembled the arms of giants, hoisting steel and concrete to construct towering skyscrapers.

Li Sheng took a deep breath. As the cold air rushed into his lungs, he suddenly covered his mouth and began to cough violently. He skillfully pulled a tissue from his pocket and wrapped up the large, black clot of blood he had coughed out.

He had been taking gene inhibitors for two weeks now. The medication was highly effective; he hadn't experienced another near-total physical collapse, and the cycle of genetic hunger had been halted. As for the side effects, they likely included over a dozen complications, ranging from hematological and cardiac toxicity to pulmonary and liver damage.

"Isn't it cold standing out here?"

A girl’s voice came from behind. Li Sheng turned to see Shao Wangshu, dressed in a blue striped shirt and a navy pleated skirt, bouncing toward him. She handed him a throat lozenge, likely having heard his coughing.

"I'm fine," Li Sheng said, taking the lozenge and smiling. "Why did you come out?"

"I was a bit tired."

Shao Wangshu tilted her head, standing opposite him. "Why did you stop singing? I’ve already sung a few songs, and I was actually looking forward to hearing yours."

"Haha, you’d better not. I’m definitely not as good as you."

Li Sheng shook his head with a smile. Shao Wangshu had sung three songs earlier: "The One I Miss," "Little Lucky," and "Bubble." Even with his limited knowledge of music theory, he could tell her vocal skills were exceptional—her pitch was perfect, her voice was clear and beautiful, her breath control was stable, and her high notes were bright and transparent, with a rich and natural transition between vocal registers.

"How would you know if you haven't heard it?"

"No, no, I’m strictly karaoke-level."

Li Sheng scratched his head, then thought of something. "Oh, by the way, our class's New Year’s performance is going to be a rock song. We have a guitarist, a keyboardist, a drummer, and a bassist, but we're missing a lead singer. Do you want to try out?"

"Huh?" Shao Wangshu blinked, hesitating. "But I’ve never performed on stage before."

"Just give it a try? The worst that happens is you wear sunglasses so you can't see the audience—that way you won't be nervous," Li Sheng suggested.

This was from his own experience. In elementary school, when his teacher required every student to perform a unique talent, Li Sheng, having nothing else, lied and claimed he knew sign language. He stood on stage for ten minutes performing Naruto hand signs and managed to pull it off without being exposed. Later, during the school’s centennial celebration, he was even recruited to be the sign language translator for the commemorative documentary, appearing on camera throughout the whole thing, "translating" the principal's speech with ninja hand seals.

*Ding-dong.*

The sound of the elevator arriving echoed nearby. A group of men and women in sharp suits, wearing Bluetooth headsets and looking somber, stepped out of the lift, followed by a grim-faced Wei Caiyan.

"We’ve found Miss Wangshu."

The lead man in the suit tapped his Bluetooth headset to report to his superior and led the team toward the end of the hallway.

Li Sheng watched the aggressive group, his brow furrowing involuntarily. Shao Wangshu’s face turned pale.

"Miss Wangshu, your father is on the line."

The man in the suit took out his phone and handed it to her. A weary, apologetic voice of a middle-aged man came from the other end: "Wangshu, at home... we’ve run out of blood."

"But I only gave 400cc last week."

Shao Wangshu stepped away, turning her back so Li Sheng couldn't hear the conversation. Her voice held a note of pleading. "Can you give me a few hours? I’m out with friends right now. If it’s really an emergency, there’s still some old blood in the cold storage."

"..."

The middle-aged man on the other end remained silent. Then, a young man’s arrogant, overbearing voice cut in: "Cough, cough. You brat, just give the blood, quit the whining."

"The effect of old blood isn't as good as fresh," added a lazy voice from a young woman. "Do you think the monthly allowance we give you falls from the sky? Cough, cough—"

The man and woman began to cough violently, as if they were trying to cough up their own lungs.

"Wangshu, don't mind what your brother and sister are saying. They’re just in a bad mood," her father said bitterly.

"...It’s fine. I understand."

Shao Wangshu lowered her eyes and bit her lip, hanging up the phone.

When she looked up again, she had put on a bright smile. She handed the phone back to the man in the suit and turned to Li Sheng with a smile. "Sorry, could you wait for me a little while? I have some family matters to take care of. It shouldn't affect our plans for later tonight."

"...Sure."

Li Sheng nodded hesitantly. Even though Shao Wangshu had lowered her voice and moved away, his enhanced physical senses had allowed him to hear the entire conversation. It seemed her family situation was even more complicated than he had imagined.

"Let’s go, then."

Shao Wangshu smiled, took Wei Caiyan’s hand, and led the men and women in suits into an empty suite.

Li Sheng stood where he was, leaning against the window sill, staring at the patterns on the ceiling.

***

"Can we do 200cc this time?"

Shao Wangshu sat in a chair by the door and habitually rolled up her sleeve, revealing a fair arm covered in ugly scars. Wei Caiyan’s face was tense as she prepared the equipment for the blood draw.

The man in the suit shook his head indifferently. "No, the plan is to take 500cc."

"500?"

Wei Caiyan spun around, staring at him, furious. "National blood donation regulations state 200–400cc with at least a six-month interval. Is the Shao family treating their daughter like a mobile blood bag?!"

"If there were other options, Mr. Shao would not wish for this either," the man in the suit replied coldly, unmoved.

The two sides remained at a stalemate until Shao Wangshu broke the silence. "Sister Wei, please move aside."

"But..." Wei Caiyan wanted to say more, but Shao Wangshu simply shook her head.

Seeing this, Wei Caiyan had no choice but to step aside, allowing the men in black suits to seize the needle.

Cold iodine was wiped across the skin, and the sharp needle glinted under the lights.

*Bang!*

The sudden sound of the door opening made everyone in the room freeze. All eyes turned to Li Sheng standing in the doorway.

"I don't know what you're doing here," Li Sheng scanned the room and looked straight into Shao Wangshu’s eyes. "I just want to know one thing: you hate this, don't you?"

He pointed to the blood-drawing equipment already set up and said calmly, "Just nod or shake your head."

Shao Wangshu looked at the men in black suits, then at Li Sheng. For some reason, she summoned her courage and nodded firmly.

"Kid, don't stick your nose where it doesn't belong," the lead man in the suit said, clutching the syringe with a deep frown. "This is a family matter for the Shao family..."

Li Sheng didn't listen to a word he said. He reached out, grabbed Shao Wangshu’s hand, pulled her up, and bolted out the door.

"Huh?"

Once in the hallway, Shao Wangshu found herself inexplicably sprinting alongside Li Sheng, her voice rising an octave in surprise. "Huh?!"

*Bang!*

The suite door was kicked wide open. The bewildered men in suits rushed out, the leader shouting, "Stop! What are you doing?!"

The group swarmed after them. Wei Caiyan followed behind, watching Li Sheng and Shao Wangshu racing down the corridor, a smile involuntarily spreading across her face.

"You think I'll stop just because you told me to?"

Li Sheng muttered, pulling Shao Wangshu into the fire escape. He slammed the iron door shut, slid the bolt, and pulled a fire hose from the wall cabinet, wrapping it several times around the door handle.

Then, he grabbed the girl's hand and sprinted toward the upper floors.