I Snatched the Overbearing President’s Canary [Transmigration] - Chapter 29

Chapter 29: Love

Shenyu’s mind went blank. He stared at the official notification until his vision blurred, finally forcing himself to regain some semblance of calm.

“Check the earliest possible flight for me,” he said, his voice hollow.

The assistant looked at him in shock. “You’re going there now? It’s dangerous, Director. You should stay here and wait for news…”

Shenyu shot him a sharp look. “I know it’s dangerous. It’s because it’s dangerous that I have to go. Forget it, I’ll check the flights myself. Just help me file for leave.”

He walked back into his office, his fingers moving mechanically as he booked the first available ticket. Inside, he was paralyzed by an extreme, bone-deep panic. The airports near the epicenter were closed; he would have to fly to a neighboring city and find a way to transfer. Who knew how much time he would lose?

He grabbed a few essentials from his office cabinet and headed for the door.

“Are you really going, Director?” the assistant asked, his voice thick with disbelief and worry.

“Don’t waste time. Drive me to the airport and bring the car back,” He Shenyu commanded.

They stepped out of the hospital into the searing afternoon sun. The heat inside the car was stifling, almost making him recoil, but He Shenyu sat in the passenger seat and buckled his belt, completely numb to the physical discomfort. Seeing the assistant dither, he frowned. “Start the car. Now.”

As the car sped toward the airport, He Shenyu frantically refreshed the news. His mind was a chaotic mess of guilt and terror.

This was an accident. A complete anomaly!

There was no earthquake in the original novel. Shenyu didn’t remember every detail, but a disaster involving the protagonist in a modern urban romance was something he would have remembered.

His logical brain told him that as the “protagonist” and the cornerstone of this world, Ning Chen would likely survive. But a darker fear gnawed at him: Did my arrival break the world? By changing the romantic plot line, had he violated the “operating rules” of this reality? Was this disaster a punishment from the “Plot God”?

He had sensed the subtle influence of the plot before. He had once asked Fu Hengzhan why he was so obsessed with Ning Chen, and the CEO had replied, “I just find myself thinking about him unintentionally.”

Shenyu had almost blurted out the truth then—that a cosmic force was controlling him. But he had stayed silent. If he were to tell anyone, it would be Ning Chen. Between Ning Chen and Fu Hengzhan, the difference in character was night and day. If a man like Fu Hengzhan knew the world revolved around him, there was no telling what kind of monster he might become.

But now, He Shenyu felt utterly lost. If his meddling had put Ning Chen in mortal danger, he would never forgive himself. In the original book, “The World” wasn’t particularly kind to Ning Chen; suffering was his baseline, ending even in blindness. Shenyu had tried so hard to change that, only to trigger a brand-new catastrophe.

His advantage as a “transmigrator” had vanished. He was just a man who couldn’t reach the person he cared about. Every failed call and every unread message felt like a physical blow to his chest. His heart felt like it was being squeezed by an invisible hand—tightening, loosening, then tightening again until it went numb.

“We’re here, Director.”

Shenyu snapped out of his trance. He checked the time and nodded to his assistant. “You go back now.”

“So… you’re actually serious about Ning Chen, aren’t you? It’s not just for fun…” the assistant muttered.

Shenyu frowned. “Where did you hear such nonsense?”

“A-Assistant Fang told me,” the assistant stammered, realizing he’d overstepped. “Director, don’t be mad. He just said it as gossip. I didn’t believe it, really…”

Shenyu sighed. Assistant Fang was Fu Hengzhan’s head assistant. If Fu Hengzhan knew something, his assistant would too. The man just had a big mouth. He didn’t have the energy to argue; he grabbed his bag and headed into the terminal.

…

After a long flight and several transfers, He Shenyu finally reached the vicinity of the science center where Ning Chen had been competing. It was evening. The area was slightly better off than the city center, but the air was thick with dust and the metallic scent of blood.

Unable to read the local language, he relied entirely on a translation app and his GPS. The streets were a nightmare of collapsed buildings and desperate cries. He instinctively wanted to help the injured, but a rescue worker stopped him, using a translation app to warn him: DANGER! Aftershocks possible. Civilians must leave!

He didn’t want to get in the way. He found a local resting by a wall who pointed him toward the competition venue.

He navigated through the rubble and twisted metal. People were frantic—searching for belongings, looking for loved ones, or fleeing. Shenyu began walking in circles, using the most primitive method possible: looking at every single face.

Not him. Not him. Not him…

He circled the shattered venue three times. No sign of Ning Chen.

A cold dread spread from his heart to his limbs. He didn’t want to think about the worst-case scenario, but his eyes kept drifting toward the search-and-rescue teams working on the rock piles. He saw things a doctor should be used to, but for the first time, he felt a wave of nausea. His throat burned with bile, and tears fell without warning.

His heart stopped. He lunged at a slab of concrete, digging frantically at the dirt because he saw a flash of red—dust-covered, but unmistakable.

He recognized those beads. Every carving was one he had hand-picked. It was the bracelet he had made.

He clutched the bracelet in one hand and kept digging with the other, oblivious to the blood seeping from under his fingernails. He was too terrified to think. He just repeated the motion mechanically.

A woman with a strange accent spoke to him in broken Chinese, telling him to move so the rescuers could work.

“Do you know where the rescued people were taken?” he managed to ask.

She pointed in a direction, but He Shenyu’s heart sank. He had already been there. Not a single person there spoke Chinese. Seeing him stand there, paralyzed, the woman rolled her eyes and left.

Shenyu stared at the bracelet in his hand, his vision blurring again. He knew the bracelet had likely just fallen off, and the slab was too small to be crushing a person. But where was Ning Chen?

“Student? Are you part of the representative team?” A hand tapped his shoulder.

The woman had brought a young man over—one of the students from Ning Chen’s group. Shenyu wiped his eyes. “Do you know Ning Chen? Do you know where he is?”

“Ning Chen? The one from the programming competition?”

“Yes! Have you seen him?” Shenyu gripped the boy’s sleeve.

The student looked startled. “I saw him earlier, but not since the quake.”

Shenyu’s hand dropped.

“But our professor and the other students are gathered over there,” the boy added. “Come with me, you can ask them.”

“Okay.” Shenyu followed him like a man clutching a lifeline.

Just as they turned to leave, a raspy, distorted voice came from the shadows of the ruins:

“Shenyu!”

Shenyu’s entire body jolted. He froze, wondering if he had finally lost his mind and started hallucinating. He turned around with agonizing slowness, holding his breath.

Against the backdrop of the setting sun, a figure came stumbling toward him. In an instant, his emotional dam broke. Tears poured down his face.

It was him. It was Ning Chen.

The scent of dust and blood enveloped He Shenyu as he was pulled into a crushing embrace. He could barely breathe.

“Shenyu… why are you here?” Ning Chen’s voice trembled with the shock of survival and disbelief.

After a long moment, Ning Chen realized the person in his arms wasn’t moving or answering; he was just shaking uncontrollably. Ning Chen pulled back to look at him, seeing a face drenched in tears.

“I scared you. I’m sorry, Shenyu.” Ning Chen gently brushed the wet hair from He Shenyu’s forehead and wiped his cheeks.

He Shenyu sobbed, holding out the red bracelet. He wanted to say a thousand things, but his throat was blocked by tears. All that remained were his silent sobs and the recovered gift.

“You found it?” Ning Chen was surprised. “It was so chaotic… I realized I’d lost it, but I couldn’t find it.”

Shenyu gripped Ning Chen’s hand, looking up at him with red-rimmed eyes. “Ning Chen… from now on, you are not allowed to go far away from me.”

“Okay,” Ning Chen nodded solemnly.

He hadn’t expected He Shenyu to cry like this. It was as if… as if he actually mattered. Important enough for He Shenyu to cross oceans and risk his life. Would someone do this for a mere “plaything”?

Ning Chen wiped a fresh tear from He Shenyu’s eye. Overwhelmed by the moment, he finally asked the question: “Shenyu… am I that important to you?”

Shenyu squeezed his hand hard, took a deep breath, and looked him straight in the eye. He spoke clearly, every word weighted with truth:

“Of course you are important. Without you, this world would have no meaning to me. It has to be you. You cannot get hurt, Ning Chen…”

Otherwise, I would hate myself forever… for changing your life.

“I understand, Shenyu.” Ning Chen pulled him back into a tight embrace, burying his face in the doctor’s neck. His heart finally found peace.

The long-standing doubt was gone. Shenyu loved him. He didn’t have to wonder anymore.