A Bad-Hearted Doctor is Unbearably Beautiful - Chapter 63

From the moment Lu Xiao and Shen Zhao entered Zhai Hongtian’s home, the atmosphere felt suffocating. The live-in housekeeper acted with timid subservience, and every square inch of the massive flat seemed steeped in Zhai Hongtian’s overbearing authority.

Watching Zhai Hongtian rattle off bureaucratic platitudes with a fake, joyless smile, Lu Xiao wanted to roll his eyes at him eighty-eight times on the spot.

“Where is Xiao Cheng now?” Lu Xiao asked.

Zhai Hongtian smiled, though it didn’t reach his eyes. “You seem very concerned about my son. However, I don’t believe I need to report my family matters to the two of you. He is doing very well.”

Lu Xiao said coldly, “I still have matters regarding the case that require communication with the victim. Please cooperate.”

“You certainly are persistent,” Zhai Hongtian said with a playful lilt. “But I’m afraid Xiao Cheng’s current physical and mental state is truly unsuitable for meeting… outsiders.”

Just then, footsteps sounded from the spiral staircase.

Their eyes turned toward the stairs. A slender woman in a well-tailored white dress descended slowly, her hand resting on the railing. Her expression was flat, her makeup exquisite and appropriate. Despite her frail frame, every movement suggested she had been raised with strict etiquette.

Her fingers lightly brushed the emerald bracelet on her arm. “Old Zhai, we have guests. Why don’t you let them sit down and talk?”

“An Yan, you’re overstepping.”

Zhai Hongtian looked up, a flash of ferocity crossing his eyes. The woman immediately fell silent. A forced smile touched her lips as she gave the two visitors a slight nod, then turned back toward the stairs.

Lu Xiao’s voice rang out: “Madam, did you know your husband has another child out there?”

The woman’s steps halted. Her lips trembled slightly, but she said nothing.

They observed An Yan’s reaction. Her face showed a split second of bewilderment before she immediately replaced it with a standard, “happily married” smile. “Whatever my husband does, he has his reasons. Even if the situation you describe exists, to me, that child is merely a stranger.”

With that, she walked up to the second-floor loft.

The look of disdain on Zhai Hongtian’s face deepened. He leaned back against the sofa, staring at the visitors as if he had just finished watching a particularly entertaining farce.

The two were shaken. Did she really not care? Or did she simply have no voice in her relationship with Zhai Hongtian?

Lu Xiao’s expression turned icy, his eyes like frozen shards as he scanned Zhai Hongtian. “As far as I know, the kidnapper contacted you after taking Xiao Cheng. I need to know the channel through which he reached you and what kind of messages he sent. I expect you to cooperate with the police investigation.”

Zhai Hongtian slowly stood up and walked toward them, his body language signaling that the visit was over. “Oh? That’s news to me. I never received any messages from a kidnapper, so I was completely unaware of my son’s abduction from start to finish.”

Lu Xiao let out a cold laugh, his gaze deep and piercing. “Fine. I truly hope you were indeed… unaware.”

The two men locked eyes, neither flinching. The tension was at its breaking point, a storm brewing in the narrow space between them.

Seeing that no progress would be made, Shen Zhao took a deep breath. “Mr. Zhai, thank you for your cooperation. However, we still need to take a statement from Xiao Cheng. We hope you will work with us to set a specific time.”

Zhai Hongtian narrowed his eyes. “Cooperate? That is our duty as ordinary citizens. But you might have to wait quite a while. After all… the doctors said my son’s body needs a long time to recover.”

The car engine emitted a low, muffled roar as they prepared to head to the address of Cheng Nianchuan’s biological mother. Outside the window, sunlight cast flickering patches of light and shadow through the greenery, swaying with the movement of the car.

Lu Xiao held the steering wheel with his right hand while his left rested on the window frame. His left index and middle fingers were positioned as if holding a cigarette, tapping rhythmically against the ledge.

“If it’s bothering you, open the window and have one. It’s fine,” Shen Zhao said, breaking the heavy silence.

Lu Xiao blinked, glancing at his left hand. “This… it’s just a habit when I drive. I’m fine. What’s a cigarette compared to that guy? He lied through his teeth without blinking; if I can handle that, I can handle a craving.”

Shen Zhao frowned, still replaying the scene at the Zhai house. He hadn’t seen any children’s clothes or shoes in the foyer. It seemed Xiao Cheng wasn’t there. That meant he was either with his biological mother or at a hospital.

If it was a hospital, given Zhai Hongtian’s style, he would likely have placed the boy in one of his own. The Zhai Group owned or held shares in eleven private hospitals… without Zhai Hongtian’s help, finding him would be a needle in a haystack.

Lu Xiao squinted at the road ahead. “Do you think there’s something… weird about Zhai Hongtian’s appearance?”

Shen Zhao, who was looking up Zhai Group data on his phone, asked, “What do you mean?”

“I can’t put my finger on it. He has this sinister, eerie vibe. I felt a chill just being near him.”

Shen Zhao looked down at his screen. “Zhai Hongtian is fifty-two years old.”

“What!” Lu Xiao’s eyebrows shot up. “Shit, now I know what’s weird! His face is tighter than yours! His skin looks like he gets anti-wrinkle and whitening injections every day. Damn, does his family own a plastic surgery clinic?”

Shen Zhao shook his head. “I checked. Zhai’s hospitals focus on high-end medical systems, but their projects are very similar to general hospitals. They don’t have large-scale cosmetic surgery departments.”

“Then—”

Before Lu Xiao could finish, a black motorcycle suddenly surged from the side of the car at a terrifying speed. The rear of the bike fishtailed, narrowly grazing their front bumper as it sped past.

“Fuck!” Lu Xiao yanked the wheel in a reflex, and the car swayed violently. Shen Zhao gripped the handle in the passenger seat.

Beep—!!

Lu Xiao slammed the horn repeatedly at the motorcycle, but the rider, clad in a helmet, showed no intention of slowing down.

A second later, they saw something glinting as it fell from the back of the motorcycle. Shen Zhao leaned forward, squinting to stabilize his vision. “Watch out!”

“It’s nails!”

Lu Xiao twisted the wheel instantly, but it was too late.

BOOM!!

The car shuddered violently. Simultaneously with the loud explosion, the vehicle began to sway uncontrollably. Lu Xiao gripped the steering wheel tight, not daring to jerk it further. The display screen on the dashboard flashed a red warning: the rear right tire had blown out.

There were two consecutive sharp turns ahead, and the car was already half-out of control!