Chapter 91: A Life for a Life

The moment she heard those words, the relief on Zhao Huiyun’s face froze into utter stillness.

Her eyes widened in disbelief. Her breathing turned ragged at once, and her face drained of all color.

"No... impossible..."

Qiao Xi’s voice trembled so violently it was nearly unrecognizable. She swayed, almost collapsing to the floor.

"Impossible?"

Lu Yanzhi laughed like a madman, his finger hovering above the remote’s button.

"You can try!"

"Right now, your mother’s life is in my hands. As long as I press this just once..."

He fixed Qiao Xi with a savage stare.

"Come with me, Xi Xi. Leave here with me now!"

"Otherwise... I’ll make you watch your mother... boom!"

Before he could finish, a dull thud rang out from the head table.

Zhao Huiyun, unable to endure the terror and shock, rolled her eyes back and went limp.

She slipped straight from her chair and fainted to the floor.

"Mom!"

Qiao Xi let out a piercing scream and lunged forward, only to be held back tightly by Fu Yanzhen.

She stared at her mother lying motionless on the ground, and a wave of devastating grief and despair swallowed her whole.

Her strength left her entirely, and she nearly collapsed in Fu Yanzhen’s arms. Tears poured down her face, but no sound came out.

The entire hall erupted into chaos and panic.

The guests fled in every direction, scattering in fear.

Security tried to restrain Lu Yanzhi, but hesitated, afraid to act rashly.

Fu Yanzhen held Qiao Xi close as she nearly broke apart, his face dark with fury, the veins at his temples bulging.

A storm of rage and killing intent churned in his eyes, yet he forced himself into absolute calm.

A flash of ruthless determination crossed his gaze. He took a deep breath and spoke in the steadiest voice he could manage.

"Lu Yanzhi."

"Let Xi Xi and my mother go. I’m your target, aren’t I?"

He gently pushed the nearly drained Qiao Xi toward Zhou Ze, who had arrived in time to support her, then stepped forward to stand face-to-face with Lu Yanzhi.

"Take my life in exchange for theirs. I’ll go with you. Do whatever you want with me."

At those words, Qiao Xi jerked her head up, tears blurring her vision, her face filled with terror.

"Yanzhen, no!"

Lu Yanzhi seemed briefly stunned by Fu Yanzhen’s sudden surrender. In his crazed eyes, a flicker of doubt and hesitation appeared.

But it was quickly replaced by even greater, twisted delight.

"Heh... Fu Yanzhen, so you can be brought to this too!"

"All for them, you’d even give up your life? Fine. Good!"

"Come here. Walk over slowly, and raise both hands!"

Fu Yanzhen obeyed, slowly lifting his hands and moving step by step toward Lu Yanzhi.

His expression remained calm, while his eyes swiftly tracked every motion and every shift in the man before him.

He was calculating the distance, the angle, and that one chance thinner than a strand of hair.

"Yes, just like that... a little closer..."

Completely absorbed by the approaching Fu Yanzhen, Lu Yanzhi’s fingers trembled faintly on the remote from excitement and tension.

All of his vigilance was fixed on Fu Yanzhen.

Now.

When he was only three steps away, Fu Yanzhen pretended to catch his foot on the carpet. His body lurched forward with perfect realism.

Lu Yanzhi instinctively took half a step back.

His hand with the remote extended forward on reflex, as though trying to keep the distance.

In that split second of lightning.

Fu Yanzhen steadied himself and lunged like a leopard, fast, precise, and merciless.

His left hand locked onto Lu Yanzhi’s right wrist, the one gripping the remote, while his right hand came down in a vicious knife-hand strike straight to the side of the neck.

Lu Yanzhi had never imagined it was an elaborate trap. Pain shot through his wrist, and the remote flew from his hand.

The blow to the side of his neck made his vision go black for an instant, throwing him off balance.

But Lu Yanzhi was no easy opponent. Acting on instinct, he drove his elbow backward in a savage smash.

Fu Yanzhen gave a muffled grunt and took the hit head-on, yet his grip on the wrist did not loosen in the slightest.

The two of them crashed into a violent struggle at once, overturning a nearby flower stand with a tremendous crash.

"Zhou Ze!"

Fu Yanzhen barked sharply in the middle of the fight.

Zhou Ze and several bodyguards, who had been waiting for the signal, sprang forward like arrows loosed from a bow.

Working together, they finally pinned the wildly thrashing, howling Lu Yanzhi hard to the floor.

Zhou Ze quickly dislocated both of Lu Yanzhi’s arms, stripping him of any chance to resist.

At the same time, he picked up the remote that had rolled away and checked it carefully.

Fu Yanzhen rose, panting heavily. His suit jacket had been torn during the fight, and blood had seeped at the corner of his mouth.

But he paid it no mind and immediately turned toward Qiao Xi.

"Xi Xi!"

Qiao Xi had already shaken off the people supporting her and rushed into his arms.

Her trembling hands touched the blood at the corner of his mouth, while tears continued to spill down her face. "Yanzhen! Are you all right? You scared me to death..."

"I’m fine. Don’t be afraid. It’s over now..."

Fu Yanzhen held her tightly and kept soothing her.

Yet his eyes were sharply scanning the subdued Lu Yanzhi and the emergency treatment being given to Zhao Huiyun.

"Quickly, call the doctor. Treat my mother first!"

The scene remained in chaos, but the crisis had finally been temporarily defused.

Fu Yanzhen held Qiao Xi even more tightly.

Fu’s mother and father, along with Fu Qinghuan and the others, rushed over in anxious alarm.

Fu’s mother pulled both Qiao Xi and Fu Yanzhen into her arms at once, her voice shaking. "You nearly scared me to death! Are you two all right?"

Fu’s father’s face was ashen. While directing the medical staff to save his in-law, he ordered in a deep voice, "Seal off the scene at once. Investigate every accomplice thoroughly!"

Fu Qinghuan was furious, her eyes red as she glared fiercely at the departing Lu Yanzhi.

"What a lunatic!"

"It’s all my fault... it’s all my fault..."

Qiao Xi’s body trembled endlessly in Fu Yanzhen’s embrace, her voice shattered beyond repair.

"If it weren’t for me, Mom wouldn’t have... and Lu Yanzhi wouldn’t have..."

Fu Yanzhen cupped her tear-streaked face.

"It’s not your fault, Xi Xi. Look at me."

"Listen carefully. The one who is always wrong is the abuser, never you."

He gently wiped away the tears that kept falling from her eyes with his thumb.

"I told you before, as long as I’m here, if the sky falls, I’ll hold it up for you."

"Don’t be afraid... I’m here."

Looking at Fu Yanzhen, Qiao Xi felt as though she had survived a catastrophe by inches. Tears surged anew, along with boundless reliance and gratitude toward him.

...

Lu Yanzhi was arrested again. This time, faced with overwhelming evidence, he gave up resistance entirely and confessed to every crime in full.

He admitted that, under Karl Miller’s orders, he had carried out the kidnapping, the framing, and the details of implanting the dangerous device into Qiao Xi’s mother’s body.

His testimony became crucial evidence for Interpol’s warrant for Karl Miller’s arrest.

Miller and his criminal network were placed under a worldwide manhunt.

With the protection of a top-tier medical team arranged by Fu Yanzhen, Zhao Huiyun successfully underwent surgery, and the lethal device in her body was safely removed.

In the hospital.

Qiao Xi closed the door to the ward and turned around, only to fall into a warm embrace.

"Mom’s asleep now. The doctor said her condition is stable."

Fu Yanzhen had been waiting outside all along. The moment he saw her emerge, he pulled her into his arms.

"Mm, I know."

He answered softly, tightening his hold on her.

"You’ve worked hard, Xi Xi."

"Yanzhen."

Qiao Xi called his name softly, her eyes growing warm again.

"...Thank you. If not for you..."

"There is no if."

Fu Yanzhen cut her off, his fingers brushing the faint redness at the corners of her eyes.

His tone was firm.

"Protecting you and Mom is my duty, and more than that, my instinct."

"At any time, I will be here."

He lowered his head and rested his forehead against hers, his gaze burning as it locked onto her eyes.

"All you need to do is trust me and lean on me."

Qiao Xi lifted her face. Tears shimmered in her eyes, but so did a brilliance of trust and love beyond measure.

"Yanzhen, from now on, no matter what the future brings, I’ll stand by your side and face it with you."

"I won’t be frightened so easily anymore. I’ll work hard to become stronger, strong enough to deserve your protection, and to... protect you too."

At her words, waves surged through Fu Yanzhen’s eyes.

"Foolish girl, you don’t need to become stronger."

"As long as you stay well, safe and happy by my side, that is the best protection you could ever give me."

He made a solemn vow by her ear.

"I, Fu Yanzhen, hereby swear that for the rest of my life I will keep you safe, spare you fear, spare you suffering, and give you a lifetime of peace and worry-free days."

Qiao Xi smiled, unable to help answering in a soft voice, her tone equally resolute.

"Yanzhen, I, Qiao Xi, also swear here and now..."

"That for this life, I will stand beside you through wind and rain, sharing every storm, never leaving, never abandoning you."

Looking at her, Fu Yanzhen could no longer restrain the surging tide within him. He lowered his head and kissed her lips deeply...

Tender and lingering, overflowing with devotion.

Chapter Ninety-Two: Quiet Years, Everlasting Radiance