Chapter 08#
You Said You Wanted to Save Him#
Ji Landong caught this scene red-handed.
System: “…”
Fortunately, these two people are half-brothers. Ji Ran’s uncle is not Ji Landong’s uncle.
Ji Landong didn’t seem to have any objection.
He was quite cooperative and clapped his hands at the right time.
The system was embarrassed and popped back into a mushroom.
…Whether it’s talent or talent, even if he’s sick, Ji Landong’s unique temperament is still beyond Ji Ran’s reach even if he tries for several lifetimes.
Just looking at the posture, without looking at this patient’s gown, you’d think it’s some star-studded award ceremony.
Movie King Ji condescended to visit and congratulate the system mushroom on winning the “Best Award for Locking the Door After Scolding Someone”.
“Ji Landong.” The system was even a bit shy, collecting the certificate that Ji Landong had casually written, “Do you still want to make a comeback?”
Ji Landong tore up a few blank checks. Since he was idle, he used them for origami: “Mhm?”
The system really wants to help him: “I have some authority and can open a back door.”
The system is a villain redemption system. For them, money is just a number. Just modify a few parameters in a Swiss bank or dig up tens of thousands of Bitcoins, and there will be another mysterious and elusive big boss behind the scenes in this world.
Even the identity was pre-arranged by Li Xingyun—Li Yang, Ji Landong’s hardcore fan.
Just throw money at Ji Landong to make him rise again.
What’s the use of hate, what about insults, boycotts, or even curses? In the face of money, it’s just powerless rage. As long as the money is in place, with Ji Landong’s talent, he can easily become popular again on a few big screens.
After asking, the system was a bit embarrassed. This time, it opened a back door for its own selfish reasons: “I… still want to see you act.”
Ji Landong’s acting is really good.
The system brushed through all his movies in one go, but still felt unsatisfied. It didn’t dare to watch the remaining works so fast, so it had to save them bit by bit to satisfy its cravings.
Ji Landong smiled: “I’m acting.”
The system froze: “Really?”
Ji Landong was clearly in the psychiatric department of the hospital for treatment. He has made some progress these days. Although the redemption points are slow, they increase by 0.1 at a time.
There are no filming sets and no cameras.
How can it be said to be acting?
The system didn’t understand. Seeing Ji Landong reach out, it jumped into the pale palm and was placed in a folded paper flower pot.
“I’ll take a break.” Ji Landong said, “See you in the next scene.”
Ji Landong covered it with a white towel: “Good night.”
“Good…” The system replied subconsciously, then reacted, “It’s daytime now, Ji Landong, you said it wrong, it’s good morning.”
Ji Landong leaned carelessly against the head of the bed, his bangs scattered between his eyebrows.
He was so thin that even though his bone structure was still good, his body was already as thin as a skeleton, and his patient’s gown was empty.
His slightly lowered eyelids covered a flat arc.
The system was suddenly uneasy: “Can I find someone for you? I’ll find a strategyist, a business tycoon, a conglomerate tyrant, or a bloody soldier king. Which one do you like?”
It found that Ji Landong had no reaction. This silence originated from the exhaustion of this round of “fuel”. Ji Landong no longer moved or spoke.
His slightly open eyes had no focal point, his vision had no focus, and it was dim and hollow. Nothing could be reflected in them.
The system said softly: “Ji Landong.”
It turned out the data of “Li Yang” again, jumped out of the paper flower pot to the side of the bed, and reached out, wanting to hug Ji Landong and lay him down, or at least give him a hug.
No, it couldn’t hug him. It used the data in Ji Landong’s brain, and all the settings were made by Ji Landong himself.
The system grabbed its hair forcefully. It was so anxious that it paced back and forth, reaching out repeatedly. Ji Landong was clearly thin to only a pile of bones, but the data contact would collapse with a little force.
In the ward, the red-haired young figure was furious, squatting by the bed and burying his face in his arms.
The system is not human and doesn’t understand many human emotions, but at this moment, it at least understands one thing—Ji Landong probably doesn’t want to make a comeback.
Ji Landong fell asleep while sitting, or fell into some kind of tired stillness, and no pain could be seen.
Ji Landong was still trapped in countless auditory hallucinations. These noises didn’t let him go, as if there would never be a day of peace.
The system squatted by the bed and looked up. Ji Landong forgot to close his eyes. Under the thin eyelids, his pupils were lightless. The system took the opportunity to invade Ji Landong’s consciousness and searched through Ji Landong’s brain, but couldn’t find such a setting.
—“When you are suffering, you can hug.”
“When you are in pain, you can love.”
There is no such setting.
Pain is pain. There will be no end, and no redemption. This is already a conclusion that Ji Landong is completely used to and accepts. Everything that doesn’t conform to this logic is an illusion, a vanity, a dream before crossing the river of death.
…
Li Xingyun came to pick up Ji Landong from the hospital.
This was abrupt, because Li Xingyun woke up abruptly. He seemed to have had a terrifying nightmare and struggled to wake up from the machines.
“…Ge.” Li Xingyun’s eyes were red, and he grabbed the nursing worker who was taking care of him, “Where is my brother?”
The nursing worker was startled and looked at him blankly.
Li Xingyun panted heavily, escaping from death. He seemed like a completely different person. Even though he was very weak just after recovering from serious injury, he couldn’t hide the gloom spreading from his eyes.
“Ji Landong.” His voice was extremely hoarse, and he carefully uttered the name, “I mean Ji Landong.”
“The person who was in a car accident because of me.”
“The person who pushed me out and was crushed under the scaffolding.”
Li Xingyun had been in a coma for too long, and it was still difficult for him to speak. He forced himself to spit out one word after another. His throat was filled with a strong bloody smell, and his chest fluctuated.
“You mean him?” The nursing worker finally got the name right and hurriedly replied, “It’s okay, it’s okay, he’s not seriously injured! It’s just…”
Li Xingyun’s pupils contracted, and he looked at the hesitant nursing worker: “Just what?!”
The nursing worker hesitated for a long while and told the truth.
Without a guardian, Ji Landong could only stay in the psychiatric department. From the day of the accident until today, it has been more than half a month, and he has not been allowed out.
Li Xingyun tore off the sensor wires from his body. He was seriously injured, with a broken leg and damaged organs, and had been staying in the ICU. At this moment, however, he grabbed the iron railing of the bed and was about to get out.
The nursing worker was scared out of her wits and hurriedly stopped him. Ji Ran, who was lingering outside the door, also heard the movement and came in in a hurry.
Li Xingyun’s gaze seemed to be flaying him alive.
Ji Ran’s face was pale. The manager behind him cursed him for being useless, and pushed the wheelchair over with a smile: “President Li, President Li.”
“Our Xiao Ran went to see Movie King Ji. He went every day and visited many times.” The manager claimed credit for Ji Ran, “He took good care of the person, don’t worry.”
The manager said: “There’s just one thing that Xiao Ran happened to bump into. I don’t know if I should tell you…”
He seemed to hesitate.
The deputy general manager of Liyang Media, who came in with them, scolded: “Just say it, why are you playing tricks in front of President Li!”
The two of them sang along. They had actually figured out Li Xingyun’s temper—he was just a playboy with no shrewdness. To put it nicely, he had a sense of justice; to put it bluntly, he was impulsive and easy to fool.
When Li Xingyun and Ji Landong broke up back then, it was because many people collaborated secretly to let Li Xingyun hear about Ji Landong’s “numerous crimes” through various channels.
It’s the same this time. The manager and the deputy general manager of Liyang Media were attentive, helping Li Xingyun into the wheelchair, and finished the story together.
Ji Ran saw a young man in Movie King Ji’s ward.
Red hair, quite fierce, with scars on his face.
…He looked very much like the original Li Xingyun.
This matter is quite intriguing, especially since Ji Landong seems to have completely recovered during this time and has begun to spend money recklessly again.
Could this be using Li Xingyun’s money to find a substitute openly?
Where does this leave Li Xingyun??
Not to mention that Ji Landong was not seriously injured, but for such a long time, he didn’t visit Li Xingyun once. It’s truly heartless to the extreme.
Compared with Ji Landong, Ji Ran has been running between the two places without sleep or rest. Even if there is no merit, there is hard work.
The contrast between the two is so obvious.
Li Xingyun sat in the wheelchair, tightly gripping the wheelchair armrest, with the veins on his right hand popping up. He had been lying down for too long with serious injuries, and his face was still very bad, making his pupils black.
Li Xingyun said softly: “Ji Ran.”
“Get the hell over here.”
Ji Ran shuddered, but the manager’s eyes lit up, and he hurried to grab Ji Ran.
Li Xingyun’s voice was very hoarse: “You’ve always done this, haven’t you?”
The tone was wrong. The manager’s hand that was pulling Ji Ran stopped halfway, startled: “President Li?”
Li Xingyun pulled the corner of his lips in self-mockery.
He lowered his gaze, thinking how could a person be as stupid as him? He finally figured it out at this time.
Ji Ran is not timid or cowardly. He is clearly stupid, selfish and vicious in the skin of cowardice—he greedily wants everything, but doesn’t want to dirty his own hands.
So Ji Ran always lets it be, letting these people exaggerate and take things out of context, and cutting the matter into a form that is most beneficial to him.
Without mentioning that Ji Landong is sick, without mentioning how bad Ji Landong’s physical condition is. In their mouths, Ji Landong seems to be on a leisurely vacation in the psychiatric department of the hospital.
Who would go on vacation in such a hellish place!?
Ji Ran is Ji Landong’s immediate relative—immediate relative! For so many days, Ji Landong has been trapped in such a dark hellish place.
Li Xingyun wished he could beg Ji Landong to spend his money, and it would be better to spend it all.
Even if Ji Landong found a substitute, could Li Xingyun afford to offer even a word of opinion?
Who was Ji Landong turned into this because of?
“Liyang Media is disbanded.” Li Xingyun lowered his head and stared at the ground, “Go back and wait for a lawsuit, Ji Ran, I’m going to investigate the past affairs.”
Ji Ran’s face turned pale instantly, and he blurted out: “No!”
Li Xingyun was not asking for his opinion. He glanced at these stunned people and called the Li family to send clothes and crutches. He tried his best to make himself look a bit like a person, and cleaned himself up from head to toe. As long as he could stand up, it didn’t matter how many painkillers he was given.
Li Xingyun changed into a suit, slapped his face hard against the mirror, and tried his best to make himself look more energetic.
He didn’t let anyone follow him, and went to go through the procedures himself with crutches to pick up Ji Landong.
Li Xingyun limped towards Ji Landong’s ward.
Li Xingyun tried his best to make himself look relaxed, not impulsive or reckless. He wanted to try his best to make Ji Landong relax, and even prayed basely in his heart that at least part of what the doctors and those bastards said was true.
Is it possible… Ji Landong spent a lot of money and felt better, even if only a little?
Is it possible that the doctor said Ji Landong was much better, and all the performance and tests during ward rounds were infinitely close to normal, not because Ji Landong’s acting was too good?
He knocked on Ji Landong’s ward door alone, not allowing anyone to follow. His heart was beating fast. Then he froze at the door, as if a pot of ice water had been poured over his head.
Ji Landong leaned quietly against the head of the bed, his eyes lowered.
The wind poured in from the window, and only the curtains and the patient’s gown, which was more than one size too large, moved. The person in the gown was pale and quiet, and did not respond to the sound.
Li Xingyun saw the “red-haired young man” in Ji Ran’s mouth, who was busy revolving around Ji Landong. At a certain moment, Li Xingyun couldn’t distinguish at all—he seemed to be crazy too. He didn’t see any substitute, he saw himself five years ago.
Five years ago, Li Xingyun, who hadn’t graduated from university, took Ji Landong, who was filming in the Tibetan area, to speed. On both sides were green grass, white clouds, and snow mountains receding rapidly.
Ji Landong seemed to be in a good mood, imitating a koala in the whistling wind: “Ah… so… fast…”
He was very amused, and then shouted with all his strength: “Ge! They say this is a holy mountain. If you go around it three times, you’ll have no worries, and it saves people from the world. I’ll make you happy for the rest of your life!”
…The image in his memory quickly turned grey and faded, as if being gnawed by ants, full of holes, everything collapsed. In front of him was Ji Landong sitting quietly.
Li Xingyun saw his five-year-ago self, crossing the memory, and walking in front of him with red eyes.
“You said you wanted to save him.”
“Li Xingyun, what have you done in these five years?”