Rain lashed against the windows of the black armored SUV as Han Dong cradled Xia in his arms. Every drop felt like a condemnation of the life she had been forced to endure. The world outside was a blur of neon and shadows, a stark contrast to the icy resolve hardening within her. Lin Xia is dead. The words echoed in her mind, a mantra of rebirth. She closed her eyes, letting the reality sink in. The old Xia, broken and obedient, had dissolved into the storm. A new self was being forged in the crucible of grief and vengeance.
Inside the hospital, chaos reigned. The power outage had plunged the sterile hallways into near darkness, punctuated only by the flashing emergency lights and the frantic cries of nurses. Zhenting woke with a jolt, the lingering effects of the sedative clouding his senses. His hand throbbed, a sharp counterpoint to the dull ache in his head. He looked around, disoriented, the image of Belle's triumphant face flashing in his memory. A cold dread gripped him. Xia.
He ripped the IV from his arm and staggered out of the room, his vision swimming. He demanded to know where Xia was, where her mother had been moved. The staff, flustered and evasive, offered only vague explanations about the storm and the emergency protocols. Something was terribly wrong. He pushed past them, his heart pounding against his ribs like a trapped bird. He needed to find her, to see her, to know she was safe. He followed the trail of panicked whispers and increasingly suspicious glances towards Xia's mother's ward.
The room was empty. Stripped bare. No monitors, no medical equipment, no sign that anyone had ever occupied the space. He felt a sickening wave of disbelief wash over him. "Where is she?" he roared, grabbing a passing nurse by the arm. "Where is Lin Xia and her mother?"
The nurse stammered, her eyes wide with fear. "They... they were transferred during the storm, Mr. Lu. To a different facility. For their safety." Her voice wavered, betraying the lie. Zhenting knew, with a certainty that chilled him to the bone, that something terrible had happened. He released the nurse, his mind racing, piecing together the fragments of the night.
He knew Belle was behind this; her desperation, her lies, the look in her eyes. But the question now was what did she do? He stalked toward the security office, his presence radiating an aura of lethal intent. He would tear down walls, bribe every official, and move mountains to find the truth. No one would lie to him. No one would hide anything. And if Belle had dared to harm Xia… the thought alone sent a jolt of icy rage through him.