Chapter 142

That little girl was none other than herself!
It was her—Eva!
Watching the small, frail girl huddled beneath the eaves with a rope around her neck, a wave of intense agony surged through Eva's mind. Her internal organs felt as though they were being violently twisted, her face instantly turning deathly pale. Her figure gradually blurred, and once again, pitch blackness consumed her vision as she lost consciousness entirely.
Yet, at the very moment she collapsed, she seemed to catch a glimpse of the girl’s cold, hollow eyes gazing up at the azure sky above.
--- Thoughts Interwoven ---
"How is she? How is she doing?" an urgent male voice called out in a low whisper beside Eva's ear.
A doctor cast a deeply grave look at Eva, then turned to the anxious man who was wiping away tears nearby. "I believe this young lady should be immediately transferred to a hospital for systematic treatment!"
"Can't it be done here?" Shi Lei furrowed his brow, showing some reluctance to send Eva to a hospital.
Seeing this, the doctor had no choice but to lay out the stark reality. "I think you had better send her to the hospital as soon as possible. Her current neurological condition is extremely poor. If this continues, it won't be long before her brain can no longer withstand the overwhelming agony, and—"
The doctor did not finish his sentence, but Shi Lei understood completely. He was well aware of Eva's current physical state; ever since he had found her, almost every single event in her daily life had been under his constant surveillance—except for this time, only this time!
Damn it, it was just a moment of carelessness on his part that had reduced her to this condition.
Strictly speaking, Eva could still manage to live a healthy life under her present circumstances, provided she did not force herself to recall the blank spaces in her mind.
However, how could that possibly be?
For an ordinary person, bad memories might fade, driven away by a conscious effort to forget. But Eva's situation was entirely different. Her lost memories had not merely been deliberately erased by someone; they had been forcibly excised. At their most severe, someone had injected an unstable biological agent into her body, forcibly altering her brain's internal structure and leaving behind patches of blank cerebral cortex!
At this thought, Shi Lei's originally clear violet eyes instantly turned pitch-black and fathomless, a terrifying, world-destroying tempest brewing in the depths of his gaze.
Damn it, that person deserved to die! The person who had made her endure such agony deserved to die!
Seeing Shi Lei suddenly shed his gentle and refined demeanor, turning icy and radiating a murderous aura, the doctor stiffened. Yet, upholding his professional ethics, he offered the advice most beneficial to the patient. "Sir, I still strongly advise you, for this young lady's safety, to have her transferred to a large hospital for treatment as soon as possible. I'm afraid that if things continue this way, she will either suffer a complete nervous breakdown or fall into an eternal, unawakening sleep."
Shi Lei's expression remained exceedingly gloomy. He did not immediately reply to the doctor, but the oppressive aura surrounding him slowly began to subside. The housekeeper standing nearby glanced at Shi Lei, instantly grasping his master's intent. He stepped forward and said firmly and politely to the doctor, "Sir, we understand your meaning. We will make a decision as soon as possible. This way, please." As he spoke, the housekeeper gestured toward the doorway with his right arm.
The doctor cast one last look at Eva on the bed, then at Shi Lei beside her, and said no more. After all, this was someone else's family business, and how they chose to handle it was none of his concern. Without lingering, he packed up his medical instruments and walked out.
After the housekeeper escorted the doctor away, Shi Lei sat down on the edge of the bed. Looking at Eva's somewhat haggard features, his eyes filled with heartache as his slender fingers gently brushed her pale, delicate face. Turning to the returning housekeeper, he instructed, "Place a call to 'Home,' get me the old master, and let me know when the line is connected."
"Yes, Master," the housekeeper replied respectfully, lowering his head. Before leaving, he cast a lingering, sympathetic glance at the girl on the bed.
*Ah, poor young lady, please wake up soon, or the master will surely blame himself to death.*
Eva's eyelashes fluttered gently, and she slowly opened her eyes. A dazed expression filled her violet irises.
Seeing her wake up, Shi Lei's eyes lit up with joy. "You're finally awake."
His voice drew Eva's gaze toward him. She looked at Shi Lei with clear eyes, yet there was not a trace of familiarity in them. Even if she had not known who she was before, she certainly wouldn't have possessed this current emotionless detachment. Shi Lei's heart grew cold, and sure enough, Eva spoke.
"Who... are you?" Eva's voice held a slight hoarseness, her gaze as calm as stagnant water. Before Shi Lei could answer, she asked again, "And... who am I?"
Shi Lei froze completely in place. Looking into Eva's eyes, he found himself utterly unable to utter a single word, while his hands clenched tightly into fists at his sides.
How could this be? How could it turn out like this?
Could it be that her condition had begun to deteriorate further, and her memories were already plunging into chaos?
"Who... on earth are we?" Eva asked once more, seeing that Shi Lei remained silent.
Staring at her tranquil, rippleless expression, Shi Lei forced a faint smile and said gently, "My name is Shi Lei, and you are called Zi Xiao."
"Zi Xiao? Shi Lei?" Eva frowned, softly murmuring the names to herself.
At that moment, the housekeeper walked over holding a telephone. Stopping beside Shi Lei, he lowered his head and said respectfully, "Master, the line is connected. The old master wishes to speak with you."
Shi Lei glanced at the housekeeper, then turned back to give Eva a tender smile. "Xiao Xiao, be a good girl and rest a little longer. I'll come back to accompany you shortly." With that, he leaned down to press a light kiss to her forehead, then stood up, picked up the phone, and walked out of the room.
In the study, Shi Lei stood by the window, gazing out at the calm river below. Respectfully, he spoke into the receiver, "Grandfather, it's Shi Lei. Xiao Xiao's condition is not looking good. She fainted again yesterday, and when she woke up today, she had forgotten everything that happened before. Her memory is in complete disorder now, and her brain injury is severe—we can no longer delay. Furthermore, her physical state is unsuited for a plane ride back. Please send Grandfather Gongyang here; I'm afraid waiting any longer will harm Xiao Xiao." Without pausing or giving the person on the other end a chance to interrupt, Shi Lei laid out all the details of Eva's situation.
The person on the other end did not speak immediately after he finished. The atmosphere grew somewhat oppressive, as if orders were being given to someone nearby before a response was finally returned to Shi Lei. "Xiao Lei, Grandfather understands. I will send Old Shen right now to fetch Dr. Gongyang, and I'll dispatch a private jet to bring him over. You can go meet him when he arrives."
"Yes, Grandfather. Please make sure Dr. Gongyang is brought here as quickly as possible; I am deeply worried about Xiao Xiao's illness."
"I know. My situation here is rather unique, so I may not be able to visit Xiao Xiao in person. Once she recovers, you must bring her back to see me immediately!"
"Yes, Grandfather, I understand." Clasping the phone, Shi Lei made a solemn promise before hanging up and letting out a soft sigh.
***
At the Huai Special Villa, Arthur and the other two sat quietly in the living room, their expressions uniformly grave. The only person capable of plunging all three of them into such heavy concern was Lan Yingyue.
Yet once again, Yingyue had vanished silently right under their noses. The only comforting thought this time was that she was supposedly not in any immediate danger.
"Arthur, have you found out who took Yingyue away?" Xiahou Yu asked anxiously, his mind deeply unsettled.
Feng Qingquan glanced at Arthur. Seeing the latter's obvious vexation and helplessness, Feng remained silent. He knew that while Xiahou Yu asking was one thing, if he pressed as well, Arthur would only feel worse. To begin with, failing to protect the woman he loved and losing her yet again—and this time without a single shred of a clue, unlike the previous occasion—was a heavy blow. It demonstrated the sheer formidable power of their adversary and, naturally, wounded their pride once more. Arthur was thoroughly displeased.
"Arthur, should I send my men over to help you investigate?" Feng Qingquan ultimately spoke out of concern for Arthur. "I have a feeling that this matter might not have originated from the British side," he said calmly, his brows deeply furrowed. However, the implication of his words caused the other two men to instantly raise their heads, their expressions turning even more solemn.
"What do you mean?" A crucial piece of information flickered faintly in the back of Arthur's mind, but he failed to grasp it. Hearing Feng Qingquan's words, that fleeting thought resurfaced, as though the answer was right before him, dying to break free!
"Given your connections in Europe, if you still can't turn up any clues, unless high-level entities are involved, the forces behind this are likely no longer in Europe."
Feng Qingquan's words instantly broadened Arthur's train of thought. His expression lost its earlier heaviness as he sank into deep contemplation, weighing the possibilities.
Meanwhile, upon hearing Feng Qingquan's words, a flash of insight struck Xiahou Yu's mind, though it slipped away before he could catch it. Yet, precisely because of this, he inexplicably felt a sense of relief. It seemed as though that fleeting realization was undoubtedly good news. Furthermore, he harbored a lingering intuition that whoever had kidnapped—or rather, taken Yingyue away—shared a profound connection with her, one that was unknown to them, and perhaps even unknown to Yingyue herself. Yet, this very connection was highly likely to bring glad tidings to everyone!
Thinking thus, Xiahou Yu discarded his previous depression and worry, breaking into a light smile with a relaxed and leisurely demeanor.