Chapter 758

The smoke smell at the end of the corridor hadn't fully dissipated; Lin Dongfan stood where he was, watching Director Qi's slightly fatigued figure disappear around the corner.

The cigarette butt in his hand burned his fingers, and only then did he come back to his senses, pressing the butt out.

When he returned to the ward, Yang Qing was already asleep, exhausted, breathing evenly, though his brow remained slightly furrowed, as if in his sleep he were still struggling with the pain of amnesia.

Lin Dongfan sat down beside the bed and quietly looked at him for a while.

Outside the window the sky grew dim; the hospital evening always comes especially early. The sound of a cart's wheels rolling, nurses' light footsteps, and the faint television from a distant ward drifted down the hallway.

These everyday sounds formed an eerie contrast with the life-and-death drama playing out in the ward.

About half an hour passed.

Yang Qing's eyelids twitched, then slowly opened.

Seeing Lin Dongfan, his gaze first went blank for a moment, then took on an almost dependent look—like an amnesiac instinctively clinging to the only familiar face.

"You're still…?" Yang Qing's voice was hoarse.

"Mm." Lin Dongfan got up and poured him a cup of water: "Thirsty?"

Yang Qing nodded, took the cup and sipped. After a few sips he suddenly asked, "Just now… did Director Qi leave? What did he say just now?"

"He said you've sacrificed too much and hopes you can recover your memory as soon as possible."

Lin Dongfan spoke in an even tone, but he carefully observed Yang Qing's reaction.

Yang Qing lowered his head, his fingers unconsciously rubbing the rim of the cup. After Along while he said softly, "For now… Director Qi is a good person… but sometimes good people can't get things done."

His words were vague, but Lin Dongfan heard the meaning between the lines.

He asked without changing expression, "Then what kind of person do you think can get things done?"

Yang Qing lifted his head, looked at Lin Dongfan, and a flash of extremely complex emotion crossed his eyes: "We need people who aren't afraid to die, people who dare to overturn the table."

Lin Dongfan's heart tightened; those words carried too much weight.

To dare to overturn the table—that meant the case Yang Qing was investigating was no longer something that could be resolved within the system; it might require breaking the existing pattern, even touching some deeply entrenched interests.

"How can you overturn the table in your current state?" Lin Dongfan asked deliberately.

Yang Qing tugged at the corner of his mouth, a smile with an almost tragic undertone: "I'm like this now, and it's perfect. A ruined, memory‑lost wreck—who would guard against me? Who would think that such a wreck holds in his hands something capable of blowing up all of Jianglan Province?"

He spoke softly, but each word struck Lin Dongfan's heart like a heavy hammer.

The ward fell into silence.

Outside, the streetlights came on one by one; the yellowish light filtered through the blinds, casting alternating bright and dark stripes across Yang Qing's face.

"Show‑off Fan." Yang Qing suddenly changed the topic, his tone lightening a bit: "I heard your old man still wants you to quit business for politics, and you're not enjoying being general manager of National Fortune Technology?"

"Don't bring up a sore spot—I have no interest in becoming an official."

Lin Dongfan couldn't be bothered to respond to that depressing topic.

"Then what are you interested in?" Yang Qing asked, a hint of contempt in his eyes.

Lin Dongfan thought for a moment, then smiled: "I used to think I was interested in upholding justice, but I found that too empty. Now… I suppose I'm interested in 'getting things done'—doing something concrete, changing something."

"For example?"

"For example, making a lithography machine to break the foreign monopoly. Or bringing Zhengtong Group up to a world‑class tech enterprise." Lin Dongfan paused, looked at Yang Qing and smiled again: "Of course, if you want to overturn the table but lack the strength to do so, I can give you a hand—after all, you're going to be my future son‑in‑law."

He said that last sentence casually, as if the two families were already engaged.

But Yang Qing didn't take it as a joke.

What he felt was brotherly sincerity.

He looked at Lin Dongfan, and his eye sockets suddenly reddened—this time it wasn't an act.

"You…" Yang Qing turned his face away, voice somewhat agitated: "Damn it, you're still meddling in other people's business."

"It's not meddling." Lin Dongfan said seriously, "Your affairs are my affairs."

As he spoke, neither said anything more, but some things were already understood without words.

It was past seven in the evening.

Director Qi came again, this time bringing an insulated bucket.

"The soup the cafeteria simmered is good for wound recovery." Director Qi put the insulated bucket on the bedside table, glanced at Yang Qing, then at Lin Dongfan: "Dongfan, you haven't had dinner yet, have you? Let's eat together."

The three sat around the bedside, the atmosphere unusually peaceful.

Director Qi ladled soup for Yang Qing while making small talk: "Dongfan, how many days are you staying in Wuzhou?"

"It depends." Lin Dongfan said, "I'll leave once Old Yang stabilizes a bit."

"You should spend more time with him." Director Qi nodded, then offhandedly added: "By the way, is your National Fortune Technology recently working on some smart‑city project? I heard they're picking a few pilot cities nationwide."

Lin Dongfan's heart twitched, but his face gave nothing away: "We do have such a plan; it's still in the preliminary feasibility stage."

"How about Wuzhou?" Director Qi lifted his head, his gaze appearing casual but probing: "Wuzhou has developed well these years, its business environment is improving. Moreover, we've long had plans for smart‑city construction; we just lack the technology and funding."

This sounded like ordinary investment promotion, but Lin Dongfan sensed another layer of meaning.

Director Qi was paving the way for him—or rather, testing whether he had the intention to return to Wuzhou to develop.

"Wuzhou really is a good place."

Lin Dongfan went along with the topic: "I remember when I left this city back then it was only a second‑tier city; now it's a new first‑tier, the changes have been huge."

"The changes are big, but there are also many problems."

Director Qi sighed and didn't continue.

Back then, if you tested the old faces of Jianglan Province and its provincial capital Wuzhou, the retirees retired, the transfers were transferred—even Lin Dongfan's father‑in‑law Chu Jinsong was transferred last year to Nanjiang Province and promoted to second‑in‑command.

Now Jianglan Province and Wuzhou are a case of "the place remains but the people are gone."

Director Qi pondered a moment, then suddenly probed: "These days everywhere there are exchange‑and‑appointment programs; have you thought about jumping from the state‑owned enterprise back into the political‑legal department to continue your old line of work?"

"Hahaha, that sort of thing isn't up to me to decide; it's up to the leaders."

Lin Dongfan gave a hollow laugh to brush it off, once again thwarting Director Qi's attempt.

According to the three‑step plan of the Lin Family patriarch, Lin Dongfan will sooner or later return to politics. He has already completed the first step; next is to build up seniority, then convert his professional post to an administrative post.

It is estimated that there are still about three years left.

Three years!

These words stirred a myriad of emotions in Lin Dongfan's heart.

In three years, I don't know where I'll be transferred to; if I return to Jianglan Province, will I still be able to catch up with Yang Qing's overturned carriage after three years?