The words didn't fade.
They stayed.
Echoing.
"Someone already tried to make sure she didn't wake up."
Xiaoyu stood frozen beside the bed, her fingers slowly curling into her palm as if holding onto something invisible.
"That's not possible," she said, but her voice lacked certainty.
Lu Shen didn't respond immediately.
He watched her.
Not with cold distance this time—but with calculation sharpened by something deeper.
"Denial doesn't change facts," he said quietly.
Her heartbeat grew louder in her ears.
"You're saying someone… tried to kill her?" she asked.
"Yes."
The answer came without hesitation.
That made it worse.
Xiaoyu shook her head slightly. "No… no, this doesn't make sense. We don't have enemies. We don't have anything left for anyone to take."
"That's where you're wrong."
His voice was calm.
Too calm.
"There are things people want even after everything is gone."
She looked at him. "Like what?"
Lu Shen held her gaze.
"Silence."
The word settled heavily between them.
Xiaoyu felt something cold crawl down her spine.
Seven years ago.
The collapse.
Her father's death.
The debts.
Everything had ended so quickly, so completely.
Too completely.
"You think this is connected… to that?" she asked slowly.
"I don't think," Lu Shen replied. "I confirm."
Her breath hitched.
"How can you be so sure?"
"Because the same people who erased your family back then…" he paused, his eyes darkening slightly, "…are trying to erase what's left now."
The room suddenly felt smaller.
The steady beeping of the monitor now sounded louder.
Sharper.
Her mother shifted slightly in her sleep, and Xiaoyu instinctively stepped closer to the bed, as if her presence alone could protect her.
"This doesn't make sense…" she whispered.
"It will," Lu Shen said, "once you stop looking at it as coincidence."
A sudden knock on the door interrupted them.
Both of them turned.
The same nurse from earlier stepped in.
"I need to check the patient again," she said.
Her tone was polite.
Professional.
Normal.
Too normal.
Xiaoyu's eyes narrowed slightly.
Lu Shen didn't move.
But his presence changed.
Subtly.
Dangerously.
"Go ahead," Xiaoyu said, stepping aside.
The nurse walked in, her movements steady as she checked the IV and the monitor.
Lu Shen's gaze followed every motion.
Precise.
Unblinking.
"Everything looks stable," the nurse said after a moment.
Xiaoyu nodded slowly.
"Good."
But she didn't relax.
Not anymore.
The nurse turned to leave.
"Wait," Lu Shen said.
His voice wasn't loud.
But it stopped her instantly.
She turned back, her expression calm. "Yes?"
"Who authorized the medication change?"
The question landed like a blade.
Xiaoyu's eyes widened slightly.
The nurse hesitated.
Just for a second.
But it was enough.
"There was no change," she replied.
Lu Shen stepped forward.
Slow.
Controlled.
"Then explain why the dosage in the chart doesn't match the standard post-surgery protocol."
Silence.
The air tightened.
Xiaoyu felt her pulse spike.
The nurse's calm expression didn't break—but something behind her eyes flickered.
"I'll need to check with the doctor," she said.
"You won't need to," Lu Shen replied.
Another step closer.
Now the distance between them was minimal.
"You already know the answer."
The nurse didn't respond.
But she didn't leave either.
That was the mistake.
Xiaoyu's breath grew shallow.
"What's going on…" she whispered.
Lu Shen didn't look at her.
"Go stand by your mother," he said quietly.
Something in his tone made her move without arguing.
She stepped closer to the bed, her eyes locked on the nurse now.
Fear was no longer distant.
It was here.
In the room.
The nurse suddenly smiled.
It was small.
Almost polite.
But completely wrong.
"You're very observant," she said.
The shift in her voice was subtle—but unmistakable.
Lu Shen's expression didn't change.
"Who sent you?"
Straight to the point.
The nurse tilted her head slightly.
"That's not something I can answer."
Xiaoyu's heart slammed against her chest.
"What do you mean—" she started, but her voice trembled.
The nurse's gaze flicked toward her.
And for the first time—
There was no warmth in it.
Only calculation.
"You should have stayed quiet," the nurse said softly.
The words weren't loud.
But they hit hard.
Before Xiaoyu could react—
Lu Shen moved.
Fast.
He grabbed the nurse's wrist just as she reached toward the IV line.
The movement was sharp.
Precise.
Controlled violence.
The nurse struggled, but his grip didn't loosen.
"Security is already on the way," he said coldly.
A lie.
But a convincing one.
The nurse's expression finally cracked.
Just slightly.
That was enough.
Xiaoyu's legs felt weak.
Her mind struggled to catch up with what was happening.
This wasn't suspicion anymore.
This wasn't doubt.
This was real.
"Why…" she whispered, her voice barely audible. "Why would someone do this…?"
No one answered.
Because the truth was already forming—
And it was far worse than she imagined.
Lu Shen tightened his grip slightly.
"Tell them," he said quietly, his voice dropping lower, more dangerous, "that I'm involved now."
The nurse's eyes flickered.
Fear.
Real fear.
Then—
She smiled again.
But this time, it was colder.
"You shouldn't have stepped in," she said.
Silence.
Heavy.
Unavoidable.
Because now—
This wasn't just Xiaoyu's problem anymore.
It had become his.