Chapter 174: Get Her Up Quickly and Have Her Work for Me
Nancity.
Mond Academy.
The weather was poor today, with rain starting last night, so outdoor activities were canceled.
Ye Zhen walked slowly across the playground, holding an umbrella.
[Host! Ye Fuli is in trouble—big trouble!]
The system emitted a sharp, piercing alert.
Ye Zhen's footsteps halted abruptly.
Confusion spread across her face, but panic stirred within her heart: "What could possibly happen to Ye Fuli? Isn't she strong and healthy? No matter what she does, she shouldn't be in mortal danger, right?"
[Not life-threatening doesn't mean she can't get hurt! Her luck might save her from death, but it can't keep her young and healthy forever. She'll still experience birth, aging, sickness, and death…]
"Then… what's her situation now?"
The system briefed her on Ye Fuli's current situation.
In short, Ye Fuli had fallen into an ambush while trying to save her biological father.
The assailant was a drug addict, so destitute he had nothing left but his life. For money, he'd do anything. Bai Ruoting paid a sum to buy him off, instructing him to attack Ye Fuli and her father.
Bai Ruoting! Bai Ruoting! This was the male lead from the original manga!
Ye Zhen had long known he wasn't a good person, but she never imagined he could sink so low.
Of course…
Ye Zhen also didn't know that the Bai Ruoting of today was no longer a whole man, nor did she know the desperate straits the Bai family had fallen into.
When pushed to the depths of despair, the evil within one's nature becomes infinitely magnified.
His madness had been brewing for a long time.
"Bai Ruoting's primary target is Ye's father."
"He knows Ye Fuli's fighting skills, so he won't easily attack her…"
"Ye Fuli easily took the knife meant for Ye Dad, but she never imagined this half-dead junkie had a second move prepared."
"The toxin in that syringe induces relentless fever, skin eruptions, and gangrene—a slow, agonizing death."
[Host, if you don't save her, she won't die. At worst, she'll become a disfigured vegetable, confined to a hospital bed for the rest of her life.]
The dog system delivered a timely jab.
Ye Zhen stared at the sky in frustration.
After all this time together, she knew the Dog System well, and the Dog System knew her just as well.
She would extend a helping hand even to a kitten nearly frozen to death at the factory gate—how much more so to a living person like Ye Fuli?
Standing in the rain for a long while, gazing at the mist-shrouded track and the distant horizon, Ye Zhen felt only a chill creeping up her spine.
A thousand thoughts swirled through her mind.
She wasn't truly heartless. Ye Fuli had been by her side for so long, making so many changes for her sake—she had seen it all.
A person like that deserved to live well, to see more of the world's beauty.
"If she just lies in a hospital bed until she dies, then I won't have to worry about her killing herself and forcing the world to restart! Huh, that would be a good thing for me, right?"
Saying this, Ye Zhen snorted again, her eyes darkening.
She gave a self-deprecating chuckle.
"But for this world, it wouldn't be a good thing at all. If she goes down, what happens to Ye Corporation? What about the thousands of employees? Ah, come to think of it, it wouldn't be good for me either… Damn it, I just hired that new receptionist!"
[Tsk tsk tsk, tough talk, really tough talk…]
"Shut up, you damn system."
Her footsteps carried her forward.
This time, she headed toward the school gate.
"Honestly, I never imagined that such a selfish person would one day find herself in such a desperate situation for someone else."
Her perception of Ye Fuli was once again shattered today.
"Better get her up and working for me."
……
…
Returning to the city where the shadow of the Ye Group loomed everywhere, Ye Zhen felt a sense of unfamiliarity.
The day she left, she had sworn never to return.
She vowed to sever all ties with the Ye family and return everything that belonged to Ye Fuli to her.
Whether it was wealth, familial affection, or status…
Ye Zhen had taken nothing with her—not even Ye Fuli's twisted, obsessive affection.
Those memories now felt distant and faded.
Deep within her memory lingered the lingering fear and pain of being controlled, but it would no longer be her nightmare or shackle.
"In the world of comics, people handle things in such extreme ways."
Ye Zhen hailed a taxi by the roadside and headed to the hospital where Ye Fuli was staying.
During the ride, Ye Zhen suddenly realized that the dog system's permissions seemed to be expanding? Before, it hadn't been able to find out what happened to others so quickly, nor could it investigate in such detail.
Ye Zhen directly asked the system about her confusion.
The dog system smugly snorted in response, confirming it had indeed reclaimed a small amount of authority—not much, but effective.
"That's great! Looks like I still have hope of clinging to your coattails in the future."
[(ˉ▽￣～) Pfft~~]
The hospital corridor was eerily quiet.
Ye Fuli remained in the intensive care unit, surrounded by beeping machines. Her face was as pale as paper, looking absolutely terrible.
"I'll have to wait a few more days to see her, huh? Ugh, if I'd known I wouldn't be able to see her yet, I wouldn't have rushed back so impatiently! I could've at least grabbed a bowl of noodles before coming."
Even through the thick glass, the exact situation remained unclear.
Holding the life-saving herb, Ye Zhen felt helpless. She could only step back for now and see how things unfolded later.
What she hadn't anticipated was bumping into Ye Dad head-on in the first-floor lobby.
Ye Dad's heart skipped a beat.
"Ye Zhen…?"
He called out her name.
His eyes locked onto hers, his own eyes suddenly reddening.
"Ye Zhen, it's Zhenzhen! You are Zhenzhen, right? You are Zhenzhen… You must be Zhenzhen…"
The anxiety, worry, and regret he'd endured these past days had nearly driven this father mad.
He grabbed Ye Zhen's shoulders, leaning in to look closely.
This face was different from the Ye Zhen he remembered.
Even if she had somehow healed all those scars, she wouldn't have become this beautiful… But if she wasn't Ye Zhen, then why was she here?
Ye Zhen opened her mouth, struggling to move her lips, yet still lacking the courage to admit she was Ye Zhen.
Between father and daughter, layer upon layer of thick barriers had already formed.
Many events from the past were difficult for Ye Zhen to explain rationally.
As for returning to the Ye family…
That was something Ye Zhen simply couldn't do.
Deep within her heart, she held a steadfast conviction: she must not take anything that belonged to Ye Fuli. She must return everything to Ye Fuli and allow their lives to return to their original paths.
That was her conviction, and she acted accordingly.
However.
The very next moment, Ye Dad suddenly dropped to his knees at her feet with a thud, leaving Ye Zhen utterly flustered.
"Don't do this! Please… please don't do this…"
Ye Dad's eyes welled up with tears.
His hands trembled.
After Ye Zhen forcibly helped him up, he choked out, "Even if you aren't Ye Zhen, I beg you—please help her, help my daughter! You don't need to spend money or do anything complicated. Just… just come visit her often. That's all it takes!"
It was only at this moment that Ye's father would force himself to place hope in someone else.
Ye Zhen's heart trembled.
Unable to bear it, she turned her head away and replied softly.
"Alright."