63: Chapter 63 is so complex that everyone who hears it feels overwhelmed.

While the Phoenix Legend concert was bustling with excitement, Guan Zhizhi was alone in her cold, quiet room, waiting anxiously.

Zhou Shihui hadn't returned even though it was already so late. He had left in the morning and sent a message at noon saying he was eating out, but there had been no word from him since.

As evening approached, Guan Zhizhi tried to contact Zhou Shihui. However, he didn't reply to her texts or answer her calls. She then called Huang Zhenhua, but he was at the noisy concert and couldn't hear his phone ringing at all.

Just as Guan Zhizhi was getting so anxious she was about to jump, a sudden knock sounded at the door.

She hurriedly ran to open it.

The smell of alcohol hit her nose, and a drunken man collapsed in front of her—it was Zhou Shihui.

“Why did you drink so much?” Guan Zhizhi hurriedly pulled and dragged him into the room, her brow furrowed deeply.

Zhou Shihui didn't just reek of alcohol; his clothes were also stained with traces of vomit. His glasses were nowhere to be found, and there were several injuries on his face, though it was unclear if they were from a fall or a collision.

“Zhou Shihui!” Guan Zhizhi patted his face. “Just how much did you drink?”

Zhou Shihui’s eyes were hazy. He stared at Guan Zhizhi for a good while before suddenly bursting into tears: “Zhizhi, I’ve failed you! I’m heartbroken!”

Guan Zhizhi was stunned, feeling like her brain couldn't keep up. But seeing him like this, she just took it as drunken rambling.

“Zhizhi, I’m heartbroken... I’m in so much pain... I’m sorry, I’ve failed you!” Zhou Shihui wailed, his face covered in snot and tears.

Guan Zhizhi sighed and rubbed her forehead in frustration: “That bastard Huang Zhenhua! I’m absolutely not letting you go out with him next time! Hurry up and lie down on the bed for a while.”

“Ugh—” Zhou Shihui suddenly opened his mouth and vomited a large amount of blood, then began to cough violently, with blood foam constantly bubbling at the corners of his mouth.

“Old Zhou!” Guan Zhizhi was startled. “What’s wrong with you?”

Zhou Shihui coughed and cried at the same time, blood continuously spilling from his mouth.

Guan Zhizhi didn't dare delay. She rushed out and pounded on the neighbor's door, asking for help to carry Zhou Shihui down to the car, then floored the gas and sped toward the hospital.

...

At this time, Zhao Yang had already met up with the Huang family and was walking out with the crowd. Huang Jianzhi and Wu Yuejiang were constantly thanking Zhao Yang for letting them attend such a wonderful concert.

It was then that Huang Zhenhua finally took out his phone. He saw no fewer than a dozen missed calls, almost all of them from Guan Zhizhi, with the most recent one being from five minutes ago.

“Strange, why is Guan Zhizhi looking for me so urgently?” Huang Zhenhua muttered.

Huang Yimei raised an eyebrow. “Oh? Didn't you say you didn't have a target? Who is Guan Zhizhi? Sounds like a woman.”

“Don't talk nonsense, Guan Zhizhi is Old Zhou's fiancée! There might be some emergency.” Huang Zhenhua glared at her and called back.

The call was answered quickly. Before Huang Zhenhua could speak, Guan Zhizhi’s roar came from the other end.

“Huang Zhenhua! You bastard! Is this how you act as a friend? How could you get our Old Zhou this drunk?”

Huang Zhenhua’s eardrums were ringing from the noise, and he quickly moved the phone away a bit. “What happened? What’s wrong with Old Zhou?”

“You have the nerve to ask me what happened? Were you and Old Zhou out together today?”

“Yes!”

“Then it was you! I’m telling you,” Guan Zhizhi’s voice choked up, “our Old Zhou drank so much he has a gastric perforation and is in emergency surgery right now! If anything happens to him, I’m not done with you!”

“No... Sister-in-law, what exactly is going on with Old Zhou? He was perfectly fine when we parted ways, how did he get a gastric perforation?”

“Perfectly fine? Could he be like this if he was fine? Huang Zhenhua, Old Zhou is your best friend, is this how you treat your friends?”

Huang Zhenhua found it hard to defend himself and frowned. “Don't worry, Sister-in-law, I’ll head over right now to check. Which hospital is he in?”

“At the Third People's Hospital, not far from my house!”

...

Hanging up the phone, Huang Zhenhua said, “I have an urgent matter. Dad, Mom, Rose, you guys take Zhao Yang’s car back.”

“What happened? You look so worried,” Huang Jianzhi asked.

Huang Zhenhua sighed. “Old Zhou somehow drank too much and has a gastric perforation. He’s in the hospital. I’m going to see him.”

“Then go ahead. Be careful on the road and drive slowly!”

“Okay!” Huang Zhenhua turned and ran toward the parking lot, but he stopped after just a few steps.

It was currently the peak time for people leaving, and the parking lot entrance was completely jammed; the cars inside couldn't get out at all. If he tried to drive now, there was no telling when he’d be able to leave.

“Brother, why don't you take a taxi?” Huang Yimei suggested.

Huang Zhenhua gave a bitter smile. “Everyone just left the concert; how could I possibly get a taxi right now?”

“Zhenhua, which hospital?” Zhao Yang suddenly asked.

“The Third Hospital near Old Zhou's place.”

“My car is in the internal parking lot in the back; it's not congested over there. Let's all take my car,” Zhao Yang said. “We’ll drop your parents off first and then go to the hospital. It’s not much of a detour anyway.”

“That... works!”

...

Afterward, Zhao Yang drove and first took the Huang couple to the Shuimu Faculty Housing. Huang Yimei used the excuse of “visiting Master” to follow along. However, anyone could see that visiting her Master was just a pretext; she simply wanted to spend more time with Zhao Yang.

Since no one pointed it out, she was allowed to go.

By the time the three of them reached the hospital, Zhou Shihui had already come out of the emergency room, but he was still unconscious due to his intoxication.

Upon seeing Huang Zhenhua, Guan Zhizhi immediately rushed over aggressively, pointing at his nose and demanding, “Tell me, why did you let Old Zhou drink so much? I’m baffled—it was just looking at some interior designs, did you really need to drink like this?”

Huang Zhenhua looked completely wronged. “Sister-in-law, what on earth are you talking about? When did we drink? What exactly happened to Old Zhou? I’m still in the dark myself!”

Guan Zhizhi studied Huang Zhenhua. Seeing that his expression didn't seem fake, she suppressed her anger and said, “He went out with you this morning, only sent one message at noon, and then went silent! I couldn't reach him no matter how I tried. Then, an hour ago, he came back drunk and started crying the moment he got home! He was even talking nonsense!”

Huang Zhenhua swallowed hard. “Sister-in-law, you have to listen to my explanation, and I’m not trying to dodge responsibility. Old Zhou and I parted ways right after lunch. I originally wanted to drop him off first, but he said he had things to do and got out of the car. He wasn't with me at all this afternoon!”

“Hmm?” Guan Zhizhi looked at him with scrutiny. “Really?”

“Yes!” Huang Zhenhua pointed at Zhao Yang. “This is Zhao Yang, he can testify for me! We were just helping him look at a house.”

Zhao Yang had an impression of Guan Zhizhi from the show—she was a woman with both looks and class, and she was also very strong. He smiled slightly. “Hello, Young Miss Guan. Mr. Zhou Shihui did indeed part ways with us after lunch. There happens to be surveillance on that stretch of road; if you need it, I can ask a friend to help pull the footage.”

Looking at the bright and handsome Zhao Yang, even though Guan Zhizhi was anxious, she was momentarily dazed. Furthermore, Zhao Yang’s tone carried a certain authoritative air, making him sound highly credible. Her anger toward Huang Zhenhua mostly dissipated as she muttered, “Then that’s strange. Why did Old Zhou end up like this?”

Just then, a nurse called out, “Is Zhou Shihui’s family here?”

“Here! Over here!” Guan Zhizhi quickly responded.

“The patient vomited again. Come over and look after him.”

“Coming right now!”

Guan Zhizhi hurriedly ran into the ward to help, and Huang Zhenhua’s group followed.

They saw Zhou Shihui clutching a bucket and vomiting while wailing at the top of his lungs.

“Zhizhi, I’ve failed you! I’m heartbroken! I’m in so much pain! Zhizhi, I’m sorry... I’m heartbroken...”

While patting Zhou Shihui’s back, Guan Zhizhi said to Huang Zhenhua, “See? He’s been like this since he got back. Tell me, how could I not be worried?”

Huang Zhenhua also felt his head spinning. He clutched his hair and asked, “Sister-in-law, Old Zhou said he’s heartbroken and in pain... Did you two have a fight? Or... are you breaking up?”