Captured By The Cold Detective (BL)-Chapter 407: You Have To Hurry!
He Juan and Marius shared a glance, then they gestured for her to speak.
"I can tell you everything I know. Not only that, I will also help you to the best of my ability. Even if you want to use me as bait to draw those people out, I will gladly comply but..." she took a deep breath to steel herself for what she was going to say next. "But please do not separate us! Me, Xiao Gu and the others... we must stay together in one place. I would also like to receive constant updates about them whenever I am away. That’s my condition."
She clenched her fists and waited with bated breath for the two men’s reaction. She was prepared for a rejection, because no matter from which angle she saw it, having them gather in one place was just making it easier for the enemy force to take them out at once. She knew that it would be best to go on their own way if they wanted to survive longer, but... she could not do it. She could not leave those children to fend for themselves. She would not be able to forgive herself if anything happened to them!
"...Is that all?"
She raised her head in shock, "Huh?"
He Juan had an inscrutable look on his face as he asked, "Your condition, is that all?"
Ye Qiu nodded with slight hesitation. "Is it not possible after all...?"
He Juan palmed his forehead and let out an exasperated chuckle. "Little Missy, I really don’t know what kind of people you have met before this, but don’t worry, what you fear will not happen. We will never force you to separate. Right, M?" he turned to the blonde man, earning him a firm nod.
He Juan had a helpless smile on his face as he told Ye Qiu, "How can I do that, after seeing how much they rely on you? Even though all of you are not blood-related, they have taken you as their big sister – their precious family member. So how can I make you guys stay away from each other? But if this will reassure you, Little Miss Ye, then I give you my word. You will always be together from now on."
"Oh..." this time, Ye Qiu was unable to hold back her tears. She quickly wiped them away, yet more and more rolled down her cheeks to wet her face. Seeing that, Marius took out a handkerchief from his pocket and handed it to her, which she accepted with a choked sob. "T–Thank you so much..."
She had never cried, not even once. She did not cry after they escaped from the facility to embrace real freedom for the very first time. She did not cry when they were constantly on the run, struggling to live each day under the looming threat and danger. She did not even cry when they needed to huddle together for warmth in the middle of winter because they could not afford to pay for the electricity bills, and when they had to share a few meager pieces of bread among themselves for the whole day.
Yet now, she could not seem to stop her tears. It was as if this little warmth shown to her had pierced a crack on her armor that had stood firm and unbreakable until now.
It was true what they said, humans tend to become stronger when confronted with adversity, yet they would grow weaker when showered with kindness.
The girl’s muffled and miserable sobs echoed in the living room, while He Juan and Marius were staring at each other awkwardly. The two men who effortlessly commanded dozens of subordinates, who would pave roads with their enemies’ flesh and blood, whose stomp of feet would create chaos in the entire underworld, found themselves utterly powerless in the face of the weeping girl.
He Juan mouthed at him, ’Do something!’
Marius gave a tight-lipped smile and shrugged, ’I have already given her the worst first impression. What do you expect me to do?’
He Juan showed a helpless look. He would have hugged her or patted her in comfort if not for his current condition. He could feel blood slowly seeping out of his bandage, and he knew that he did not have much time left. He had to go to Doctor Jia’s clinic as soon as possible before he died of excessive blood loss. But before that...
"Little Missy..." He Juan cleared his throat and tried to distract her from whatever was making her cry so miserably. "Before that, can you at least tell us where you come from?"
That one question managed to snap Ye Qiu back to her senses in an instant. She was an Alpha, after all and showing such vulnerability in front of these two men made her feel ashamed.
Her eyes were still bloodshot and wet, and her voice was nasally when she said, "...I’m sorry, I should have told you this earlier. Now that they have witnessed you taking us away, you have to hurry and get there as soon as possible before the news can reach the higher-ups... before they can get rid of any evidence! That’s the only way we can bring them down!"
Marius’ face turned grim, and his brilliant blue eyes gleamed in a deadly glint like a sword that was finally unsheathed. "Where is it?"
"Hebei," she gritted out with a flicker of anger and vengeance in her eyes. "It’s the underground floor of a hospital in Hebei. That’s the place where we escaped from."
"Hebei... I will tell my men to secure the location first! XIU, you—" Marius stood up and was ready to make a call when he caught sight of He Juan’s pale complexion and ragged breathing. Eyes widening in shock, he rushed forward and tugged He Juan’s suit jacket aside to reveal his bleeding stomach. "Damn it, XIU, why didn’t you say anything?!"
"Go..." He Juan tried his best to keep his consciousness afloat. He grabbed Marius’ arm and stared at him right in the eye. "You have to go there personally and make sure that everything goes well. And also..." he let out a frustrated chuckle when his vision started to be dotted in black. "I forgot... I have a dinner plan with Xiao Ze... tonight..."
"XIU!" Marius was quick to catch him when he went limp.
***
"Ow..." Mu Yuze let out a light wince when he accidentally cut his finger when slicing the potatoes. Blood oozed out of the wound, and he hurriedly put the finger into his mouth to suck on it.
The warm scent of sauteed onion and olive oil wafted from the pan, and he could not help the slight smile on his lips. "Come home soon, Juan-gege..." he murmured under his breath. "I can’t wait for you to try this potato stew. You will definitely love it."
At that time, he still had no idea that their casual goodbye in the dojo would be their last interaction in a long while, and when He Juan left this time...
...he would be gone for more than a year.
