VGAB Chapter 43

Steward Sun Yi was filled with regret for missing his young master’s victory in the race. However, when Qi Rui reassured him that there were still relay races and basketball matches to come, Sun Yi immediately perked up.

Unfortunately, during the relay race, there was a mishap during the baton exchange, causing the relay baton to fall to the ground and waste precious time. Even though Qi Rui gave his all in the final leg of the race, they only managed to secure third place.

Sun Yi felt exceptionally disappointed about this. “If only we had arrived a bit earlier, it’s all because of that traffic light.”

In the afternoon, the class basketball competition took place, and coincidentally, Qi Rui’s class was pitted against Zhao Ting’s class once again.

Both teams confronted each other on the basketball court, and Zhao Ting spoke up first.

“Qi Rui, this time I won’t show any mercy.”

Qi Rui dismissed him with a few disdainful clicks of his tongue. “Enough with the grandstanding. When have I ever needed your mercy? Haven’t I defeated you fair and square every time?”

“Sarcastic as ever,” Zhao Ting grumbled.

“Qi Rui.” An Ruoxi walked up to the two of them and spoke in a sweet voice. “I bought you a bottle of water.”

Qi Rui turned his head, pretending not to see her. Seeing this, An Ruoxi’s smile gradually faded.

“Do I annoy you that much?” she asked.

“Qi Rui, Ruoxi is talking to you!” Zhao Ting couldn’t stand seeing his crush upset and spoke through gritted teeth. “Is your upbringing teaching you to ignore others’ kindness?”

“I don’t need that kind of kindness. Sending water, my family’s servants are perfectly capable, why should a stranger come and bring it?” Qi Rui finally looked at An Ruoxi with a somewhat impatient gaze. “Alright, the game is about to start, you can go down now.”

After saying this, Qi Rui muttered quietly to himself, “No manners at all, so annoying.”

But he neglected the fact that his low-volume muttering was audible to everyone on the field. An Ruoxi clenched the mineral water bottle, and a moment later, she turned and ran out.

“Qi Rui, apologize to her!” Zhao Ting was furious and made a move as if he was going to grab Qi Rui’s collar but was held back by his classmates.

“Let it go, Zhao Ting, we can deal with it after the game.”

…

Next to the basketball court.

“Master,” Steward Sun Yi quietly approached Qi Heng, “I’ve noticed that Young Master seems to have some issues with a classmate named Zhao Ting.”

“That’s because Qi Rui attracts unnecessary attention,” Qi Han said coolly. “He talks too harshly, and the flower protector feels bad for her.”

“Handle it,” Qi Heng calmly said, but his eyes gave off an eerie vibe. Qi Han listened but couldn’t determine whether his brother meant dealing with the issue with Zhao Ting or the issue with the persistent admirer. He wondered what exactly “handling” entailed.

However, Sun Yi understood and respectfully left.

“I’ll make the arrangements.”

The basketball game on the field had become one-sided, with Qi Rui’s team dominating. Qi Heng thought about leaving, but Qi Han stopped him, saying, “Elder Brother, if you’re tired, go back to the car. I’ll wait here for Qi Rui.”

As he said that, another goal was scored, sealing the game. 

…

“Thanks for the match,” Qi Rui said, clapping the dust off his hands and smiling triumphantly at Zhao Ting and his friends.

Zhao Ting’s face turned dark, and he remembered the incident before the game. He picked up the basketball and hurled it toward Qi Rui, who was walking away with his back turned.

“Qi Rui—”

“Be careful!”

People who witnessed this scene gasped in shock.

However, Qi Rui had honed his reflexes during the month under Qi Heng’s guidance. When he heard the wind behind him, he instinctively spun and dodged the basketball.

“Zhao Ting, are you out of your mind?” Qi Rui was furious and turned around to teach Zhao Ting a lesson.

However, there was a loud crash from behind.

“It hit someone!”

As an innocent bystander, Qi Han suffered the consequences of this incident.

“Third Master! Family Head!” The maids and bodyguards on the opposite side, holding clean handkerchiefs, water, and small fans, tossed their things and quickly ran across the basketball court to where Qi Heng and the others were.

Qi Rui sensed that something was wrong and turned to see his third uncle lying unconscious on the ground, while the basketball rolled away slowly not far from him.

“I-I didn’t mean to hit him…” Zhao Ting stammered, “I just wanted to hit Qi Rui.”

“Take him to the hospital.” Upon hearing the commotion, Qi Heng turned back and coldly instructed the bodyguards, “Also, restrain him.”

In this case, “him” referred to Zhao Ting.

Given that he was just an ordinary high school student, the bodyguards had little trouble restraining him. They even silenced Zhao Ting’s mouth.

“What are you doing?” The shocked members of the Zhao family finally snapped out of it. The woman holding the megaphone threw it away and rushed to Zhao Ting’s side. She pounded on the bodyguards who were restraining Zhao Ting and exclaimed, “Release our Zhao Ting!”

The school leaders hurried to the scene, and after the principal listened to the account of the incident, he took a deep breath.

Zhao Ting could have targeted anyone with that basketball, but he ended up hitting Qi San Ye, right in front of Qi Corporation’s chairman. Would the chairman of Qi Corporation let this slide?

“Chairman Qi.”

“Calm down. The child doesn’t know any better. It’s the school’s failure in discipline that led to this impulsive act by the student.”

“Uncle.” Qi Rui walked dejectedly to Qi Heng’s side. “I didn’t know that Third Uncle would be behind me.”

In reality, he could have blocked that ball, but he instinctively chose to avoid it.

At this point, it was too late for regrets. Even the principal, who was treated with the utmost respect, paused in astonishment as he saw the formidable man. He glanced at the woman who had been pounding the bodyguards and then at her son, feeling a sudden wave of sorrow.

“Zhao Ting! Why do you always get into trouble like this!”

She stopped pounding the bodyguards and instead began to cry and shout while looking at her son. She was overwhelmed with grief.

“What are you doing? Are you out of your mind, hitting my grandson?” An elderly man stepped forward, trying to pull the woman away and even attempting to loosen the bodyguards’ grip on Zhao Ting’s fingers in an effort to free him.

However, the man’s strength was no match for the bodyguards who had undergone rigorous training. After his futile attempts, the elderly man started to beg in front of the bodyguards.

“Release him. If you need someone to arrest, take me, an old man. I’m the one who encouraged him to throw it.”

“Deliberate harm,” Qi Heng’s voice was ice-cold. “If it was accidental, I wouldn’t have minded. But that shot was clearly intentional.”

The elderly man holding Zhao Ting argued, “How much money do you want? We’ll compensate you. He’s just a child, what kind of force could he have had? A grown man like you getting knocked out by a child’s shot?”

He was implying that Qi Han might have faked the incident for extortion. The woman next to him hurriedly covered the elderly man’s mouth.

“Dad, please don’t say anything.”

The principal felt a headache coming on. The Qi family wasn’t exactly in need of money, and besides, how could they not know that Qi San Ye had health issues? He sighed again. They had to protect this student, or else it would harm the school’s reputation.

“Mr. Qi, please come to the meeting room for a discussion.”

Qi Heng withdrew his gaze and nodded indifferently.

…

In the hospital, Qi Han lay in bed, and when he sensed no movement around him, he discreetly opened one eye.

No one was there.

Qi Han opened his eyes and sat up on the hospital bed, taking in a sharp breath as he reached up to touch the part of his forehead that had been hit.

It hurt for real, and he felt like he almost got a concussion from the impact. But what was even worse was that getting hit by that basketball had triggered memories he had long forgotten.

This is getting really awkward.

Whenever Qi Han thought about the foolish things he had done during this period, he felt like he couldn’t show his face to anyone. He even wished for another basketball to hit him and erase his memories again, just to avoid facing this cruel reality.

How could he, after losing his memories, become so successful? Successful to the point where he completely shattered the carefully maintained image of himself! And he even had the audacity to compete with that wretched kid, Qi Rui!

So, during this time, he hadn’t lost his memories; he had definitely lost his sanity!

Qi Han was unwilling to accept the reality. When he thought about all the things he had to face next, he felt like life had no meaning.

“Oh, Mr. Qi, you’re awake?” A nurse passing by the ward with a cart inadvertently looked into the room and was pleasantly surprised.

“I’ll go notify your family.”

Oh no.

Qi Han’s body tensed up, and his expression turned as serious as someone facing the gallows.

“Third Uncle!” Like a gust of wind, a young man rushed into the room from the hallway. Qi Han fixed his gaze and realized that it was none other than his nephew, the one who seemed to compete for favor with him.

Wait, he wasn’t competing for favor.

Qi Rui saw his uncle staring at him blankly and got anxious. “Third Uncle, your head is okay, right? The doctor said it’s a minor injury, and he didn’t say it damaged your brain or anything!”

‘You’re the one who damaged your brain.’

Qi Han thought silently, his face growing colder.

“I’m fine, just a bit of a headache.”

Qi Rui blinked, finding his third uncle’s words a bit unusual. Wasn’t he supposed to retort at this point?

He had prepared himself mentally to be a punching bag for his uncle before coming to the hospital.

“You should go back; I need some rest,” Qi Han spoke, mimicking the way he talked when he pretended to have amnesia. “I’m okay. Tell my elder brother that he doesn’t need to make the trip. I’ll be discharged tomorrow.”

“But Uncle wanted me to keep you company and talk to you,” Qi Rui replied, holding a piece of fruit.

“I also bought some apples. Do you want one? I can peel it for you.”

Qi Han’s eyes flickered. “Sure.”

It was rare to see Qi Rui trying to please him.

Qi Rui quickly set the apple aside, took out one from his pocket, and then retrieved a fruit knife he had just purchased. He began to peel the apple with a serious expression.

Although the way Qi Rui was peeling the apple didn’t look very neat, as he often removed chunks of the flesh along with the skin, it was the fact that he was doing it that mattered. Qi Han reluctantly took a bite.

“Uncle, I’m really sorry. That ball was actually aimed at me,” Qi Rui looked at the red mark on Qi Han’s forehead, feeling guilty, and expressed the apology he had prepared in advance.

“Well, I don’t blame you,” Qi Han replied. He quickly finished the apple and tossed it into a nearby trash bin.

Qi Rui touched his head, genuinely reflecting, “I thought I could dodge it, and I assumed you could too. I just didn’t expect you to be so frail. If I had known, I would have reached out and blocked it. I have tough skin and a strong body; even if I got hit, I wouldn’t have passed out.”

Qi Han’s previously calm and composed expression disappeared. He now felt that Qi Rui must be deliberately mocking him, and he had no evidence to support this belief.

Upon seeing Qi Han’s expression, Qi Rui quickly slapped his own mouth and said, “I misspoke, Third Uncle, please don’t be angry. I’m just used to arguing with you.”

Qi Han remained silent.

“It’s not your fault. I have a headache and need some rest. Qi Rui, you can go back for now,” Qi Han said wearily.

Qi Rui hesitated for a moment and then stood up. “Alright, Third Uncle, please rest well. Uncle and I will come to visit you again tomorrow.”

“Good.” Qi Han lowered his gaze, but in his mind, he was contemplating the possibility of buying a plane ticket and leaving town overnight.

Qi Rui, that naive kid, might not have noticed that he had regained his memory, but his older brother was so intelligent and cautious that he would instantly recognize something was amiss when he arrived. During the period when he had amnesia, he had done so many embarrassing things. Just the thought of his older brother discovering his memory recovery filled him with embarrassment.

No, he simply couldn’t bear to stay any longer.

Determined, Qi Han quickly took out his phone and booked a flight ticket to Africa. After securing the ticket, he got out of bed and went into the bathroom to change out of his hospital gown.

After completing all of this, Qi Han left the hospital room and walked to the nurse’s station.

“Could you please help me with the discharge procedures?”

The next day, Qi Rui arrived at the hospital, only to be informed that Qi Han had already been discharged. When Qi Rui had someone check Qi Han’s movements, they discovered that he had booked a flight ticket to Africa before leaving the hospital.

This seemed like he was trying to escape from something like he was avoiding trouble.

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