Four Years Ago, Her Husband Cheated on Her Body - Chapter 25

The sky was just beginning to brighten when Lu Min’s fingers twitched with great effort, and he opened his eyes blearily.

He could no longer feel the pain from the wound in his waist.

Dully, he thought: I’ve heard that the dead feel no pain, so I must be… dead.

So this was what the world after death looked like: stark white walls, and air filled with the pungent scent of disinfectant. It looked a bit like… a hospital?

Just as Lu Min tried to prop himself up to observe the “afterlife” more closely, a hand suddenly pressed down on his shoulder.

“Lie down. Your wound was just stitched up.”

“…!”

Hearing the familiar voice, Lu Min looked up. Seeing Jia Qiao sitting right beside him, his tears burst out instantly.

Why has the Master come to the world of the dead too!!!

He was so powerful, so young, and so beautiful…

Lu Min opened his mouth in a panic, emitting short, airy gasps, his hands gesturing wildly.

He was a mute while alive, and he still couldn’t speak even in death.

He wanted to cry even more!

Seeing him weeping so piteously, Jia Qiao raised a finger to press the nurse’s call button and said succinctly, “The anesthesia has worn off.”

The professional and gentle voice of a nurse came through the intercom: “Understood, I will bring the pain pump over immediately.”

An—Anesthesia?

So the reason he couldn’t feel pain wasn’t death, but the medicine?

Lu Min suddenly calmed down. Through his tear-filled eyes, he scanned his surroundings and realized this really was a hospital.

He wasn’t dead!

Help, I want to find another world to live in! (Out of embarrassment).

Confirming that Lu Min was out of danger, Jia Qiao rose elegantly. “I need to go to the police station to give a statement.”

Stepping toward the door, Jia Qiao suddenly paused and turned back to instruct: “The house feels a bit empty. Once you’ve recovered, hire a few more security guards.”

“!!!”

In truth, given Jia Qiao’s own abilities, there was absolutely no need for security.

It went without saying who he was making this arrangement for.

Lu Min was overwhelmed with gratitude; his tears cascaded uncontrollably, frightening the nurse who had just walked in with the pain pump.

“Does it hurt that much? Don’t cry, don’t cry, I’ll help you manage the pain right away.”

She couldn’t help but mutter to herself: When this man was brought in, he was so badly injured yet hadn’t shed a single tear. Why is he crying so hard now that he’s on pain meds?

From last night until now, Jia Qiao’s name had been pinned at the top of the trending searches.

Even after the police issued a statement declaring the victim safe, the traffic didn’t diminish in the slightest.

Countless netizens stayed up all night, terrified of missing a single update regarding Jia Qiao.

Media reporters, with a sense of smell sharper than hyenas, naturally wouldn’t let this heat go to waste. Hearing that Jia Qiao would be going to the police station in the morning, they flocked there to stake out the location.

Every reporter was armed with professional equipment, waiting with bated breath—a scene comparable to a red-carpet event for a superstar.

The morning breeze was slightly chilly. Jia Qiao, wrapped in a thin blanket, slowly stepped out of the car.

After last night, everyone knew what kind of ordeal he had endured. Seeing his slender, frail frame made everyone feel a pang of pity; their hearts ached for him.

Although Jia Qiao didn’t spend much time online, he knew the kidnapping had caused a massive stir.

The management of Qianhe—usually calm, steady, and profit-driven—had even risked a total financial collapse to offer an astronomical reward.

When he arrived at the hospital, even the surgeons were discussing the matter between operations; while reporting on Lu Min’s condition, they kept asking if Jia Qiao was hurt.

Despite his usual distance from the world, Jia Qiao knew they meant well. He paused specifically to face the cameras and said:

“I am fine. Thank you all for your concern.”

【Waaaah, Jia Jia is truly so gentle, he’s so haggard himself but still worries about us.】

【His complexion is so poor, his hair is a mess… What on earth did those villains do to our Jia Jia!】

【I’m so relieved he’s okay. But wait, how exactly did he escape? The kidnappers were four burly thugs!】

As the news of his escape spread, some netizens began to re-examine the details, finding things a bit eerie.

The live stream showed Jia Qiao’s hands cuffed behind his back with reinforced handcuffs that required two keys to open simultaneously. Even if the power went out and Jia Qiao got lucky enough to take down one kidnapper and get the key, he still shouldn’t have been able to free himself.

Insiders revealed that there were four kidnappers in total: one guarding Lu Min and three guarding Jia Qiao, all with extensive criminal records.

In particular, the one codenamed “Red Pole” had been a thug since middle school. He had committed countless crimes and only avoided prison by being sent to a psychiatric hospital, from which he had just been released.

With Jia Qiao’s pampered and fragile appearance, falling into the hands of those maniacs should have left him no chance of escape.

“Mr. Jia Qiao, we are all very concerned! We want to know how you managed to get out!” a reporter shouted.

“I don’t remember clearly,” Jia Qiao lowered his eyelashes, casting a shadow over his eyes, and said vaguely, “Perhaps… Zhu Nanyu saved me.”

“Huh?” The reporter doubted their own ears.

Zhu Nanyu?

Jia Qiao’s husband who had passed away four years ago?

This wasn’t an urban ghost story; how could such a thing happen?

“That…” The reporter tried to smooth things over, confirming again, “Are you saying… it was a friend of Mr. Zhu, or something he left behind, or perhaps a kind of strength he gave you that supported your escape?”

Jia Qiao looked at the reporter, the corners of his lips curving into a smile that could captivate the world.

“Perhaps.”

The reporter breathed a long sigh of relief; their professional integrity and refusal to delve into the supernatural were preserved.

But the netizens watching were in an absolute frenzy!

【Who said Jia Qiao was only after Zhu Nanyu’s money? He clearly loves him deeply. Did you hear that? He. Loves. Him!】

【I didn’t come here to ship a couple, but I just got fed a mouthful of sugar.】

【Who says life and death is the ultimate “Bad Ending”? Our S+ tier couple is clearly super sweet~】

【Uh, am I the only one who finds this creepy? The police report says three of the kidnappers surrendered themselves. It’s not like Zhu Nanyu’s ghost convinced them to turn themselves in, right?】

However, before the confused reporters could ask more, Jia Qiao had already entered the station wrapped in his blanket.

Of the three kidnappers who surrendered last night, the man in the headscarf was in the hospital for a waist injury, leaving only two currently under interrogation.

By the time Jia Qiao arrived, the interrogation was nearing its end.

The police officers, who had been busy all night, greeted him with concern, rushing to the door.

“We heard you just came from the hospital. Did you get a forensic injury assessment?”

Jia Qiao shook his head and said softly, “Forget it.”

Kidnapping was already a severe crime, but if the victim was injured during the process, the sentencing would be even harsher.

Hearing that Jia Qiao hadn’t done the assessment, the receiving officer sighed, thinking he was simply too kind.

Repaying evil with kindness; how then shall one repay kindness?

Jia Qiao sat on a rest chair, took a cup of hot tea from a female officer, and looked toward the still-lit interrogation room.

“What did they say?”

“Rest assured, they’ve confessed everything. This case is heinous and has a huge impact; we will definitely handle it with the maximum severity!”

The officer paused, omitting the gruesome details of the crime, and shared what could be disclosed.

According to the two suspects, the kidnapping wasn’t masterminded by the eldest Elder Zhu.

They confessed to their crimes and produced evidence of the conspiracy involving the brothers Zhu Xingwang and Zhu Fulu.

Previously, the police had investigated the Zhu family. But those two brothers had insisted that everything was the eighty-year-old patriarch’s plan and that they were completely in the dark. Without evidence, the police could do nothing but keep them as key suspects.

With the new evidence, the police immediately applied for arrest warrants and brought the brothers in for questioning.

The “good brothers” who usually stood together and shared every scheme put on a spectacular “dog-eat-dog” performance in the interrogation rooms.

At first, Zhu Fulu remained tight-lipped: “I won’t say a single word until my lawyer arrives!”

Zhu Xingwang, seeing the ship was sinking and knowing his son Zhu Ke had escaped for now, dumped all the guilt onto Zhu Fulu to try and get a reduced sentence as an “accomplice.”

Pressure and bluffing are common interrogation tactics.

The presiding officer played the recording of Zhu Xingwang’s confession for Zhu Fulu.

Zhu Fulu, who had been relatively composed, immediately lost his cool.

Without waiting for his lawyer, he spilled the entire process of the crime, pointing the finger directly at Zhu Xingwang and his son.

The police doubled back and played Zhu Fulu’s recording for Zhu Xingwang.

Hearing that his brother was dragging his precious son into the mess, Zhu Xingwang dropped all pretenses of brotherhood and began exposing every dirty deed Zhu Fulu had ever done.

Through this, the police not only secured evidence for the kidnapping but also uncovered a massive financial crime they had carefully planned over ten years ago to carve up their eldest brother’s inheritance!

“…We learned that Zhu Ke was also involved in this criminal operation and immediately sent officers to arrest him. However, strangely, despite cordoning off the Zhu residence beforehand, Zhu Ke has disappeared.” The officer frowned, saying seriously, “He must have been tipped off and fled. But don’t worry, we’ve issued a wanted notice. We will get you justice!”

“Thank you.” Thinking about Zhu Ke’s actual whereabouts (being held by him), Jia Qiao felt a flicker of guilt and changed the subject. “What about the kidnappers?”

“They were hired muscle, doing it for the money. They don’t know much else.”

Jia Qiao probed, “The injuries on them…”

“Oh, they said you were unconscious at the time, so you wouldn’t know!” Speaking of this, the serious officer couldn’t help but laugh. “The power in that building suddenly cut out. They were trying to go downstairs in the dark to check the circuits, but they tripped and tumbled down the stairs. The accomplice left upstairs thought they’d been discovered, panicked, and fell onto another accomplice’s knife. Then, the other guy’s hand slipped while pulling the knife out and nearly stabbed him to death!”

“…” Jia Qiao sipped his tea in silence.

So much for ‘professional criminals’; their cover stories are terrible.

“It is quite mystical. We were even joking that maybe your husband really is protecting you from heaven! Hahaha!”

Just as he finished, there was a knock on the door, and Officer Zhang from the household registration office poked his head in.

“Jia Qiao, are you alright?”

Jia Qiao said politely, “I’m fine, thank you for your concern, Officer Zhang.”

“That’s good, that’s good.” Officer Zhang followed up, “About… Zhu Nanyu’s household registration…”

Upon hearing this, Jia Qiao’s eyes dimmed slightly.

Officer Zhang looked away and lightly slapped his own mouth, correcting himself: “I mean, I’ll apply for a few more days for you. Come and handle the cancellation of his registration whenever you have the time.”

Cancellation of registration represented legal death.

The signal Jia Qiao had received while trapped in that room flashed through his mind.

Using flickering lights to transmit Morse code wasn’t that unusual.

But—

Zhu Nanyu.

The letters you pulsed out last night weren’t J-Q…

It was Jiao Jiao .