The time of the city

Chapter 167 Hypnosis

Ni Jiamu had just come down from the police station. His voice was low and cold, and a fierce look flashed in his eyes. "Is this how the police department treats vulnerable groups? Do I need to talk to your director again?"

"Mr. Ni." The two young policemen spoke respectfully.

Ni Jiamu didn't look at them. He resolutely bent down, picked up the broken girl in front of him, and walked out of the police station.

"Why do you say Hecheng is dead? Why should the gallery accept it?" Mo Yu tore at Ni Jiamu's collar, struggling constantly, tears falling like pearls.

"Enough, Xiao Hecheng is dead, I confirmed it." Ni Jiamu put Mo Yu on the ground, his narrow and long almond-shaped eyes full of anger. He stood in front of Mo Yu, blocking most of the light in front.

His voice was a little out of control, his chest was heaving violently, and the veins on his neck were bulging. "Why can't you always see me? Xiao Hecheng is dead, and you can never be with him. My love for you has been like crazy, but you are like blind and ignore me." He said with unwillingness and pain.

He lost Hanhan when he was eight years old, and now he can't lose Moyu again.

As soon as he finished speaking, the rain began to fall. It was like a long-held emotion finally erupting. Raindrops hit the ground, stirring up tiny splashes of water. The two of them stood by the road, creating a strange scene. Neither of them made any attempt to hide, letting the rain soak them.

Ni Jiamu stood tall and slender in the rain, rain trickling down his forehead to his jaw. A few strands of hair clung to his sword-like brows. Beneath his brows, his eyes held an inextricable emotion. Beneath his high nose, his thin lips were slightly pursed. The falling rain etched delicate contours on his face. Standing in the rain, he looked like a deity, a scene unto himself.

Mo Yu's body trembled in the rain, her eyes red as tears mingled with the rain. Ni Jiamu realized he had spoken too harshly, and his anger instantly died down, replaced by guilt. He pulled Mo Yu into his arms, his strength rubbing her into his very flesh.

"I'm sorry, sweetheart. I shouldn't have been mean to you. It's my fault. Don't be angry. Just hit me, okay? I don't want to see you so sad for another man."

Mo Yu's eyes were hollow, as if her soul had been sucked out. She let Ni Jiamu hold her, mumbling to herself, "Before, I never knew how I felt about Xiao Hecheng. Until that day, when he knelt in front of me covered in blood and told me that he loved me, I realized at that moment that I had already fallen in love with him. I..."

"Stop talking!" Ni Jiamu stretched out his hand and covered Mo Yu's mouth. He really didn't want to hear her confess her love for another man in front of him. They were hugging each other, so close to each other, but their hearts were so far apart, as if they were half a light year apart.

Fine raindrops fell, and the sky and the earth were filled with mist.

Ni Jiamu stood in the street, Mo Yu beside him, thin and delicate, like a delicate yet resilient withered flower in the rain. Rain trickled down her hair, soaking her fair face. Her lips, tinged with a sickly pale from the cold, revealed a poignant beauty in the rain.

Mo Yu raised her head slightly and looked at the rain. Although her voice was low, Ni Jiamu could hear it clearly: "I don't believe He Cheng is dead. I will wait for him and wait for him to come back." The stubbornness in her tone was like a knife digging out Ni Jiamu's flesh and blood bit by bit. It was a long and painful journey. He wanted to live but saw no hope.

His eyes were red, filled with pain and resentment. He clenched his fists at his sides, his knuckles white from the effort. The rain poured down his neck, chilling him to the bone, but he seemed oblivious, his mind preoccupied with the resolute, foolish look of the girl before him.

She has always been like this. The night he returned to pick her up, she held Gu Bai's hand with such a resolute look in her eyes.

She did the same thing the night he forced her to go abroad.

Too much too much……

Looking at her face, which was washed by rain but still breathtakingly beautiful, Ni Jiamu felt as if his heart was torn apart and pain spread throughout his body.

"If this is what you call love, I can die for you. I can give you what Xiao Hecheng can't. I can also give you what he can't." Ni Jiamu took a step forward, his hands trembling as he tried to grab Mo Yu's shoulders. His voice was choked with sobs, almost begging, "But you can never feel my presence. I don't want to be your brother anymore. Please, just look at me."

Mo Yu just shook her head slightly. She was so calm that he looked like he was crazy. The water droplets on her hair splashed and splashed onto Ni Jiamu's face, like a cold barrier.

Ni Jiamu's body stiffened, and the pain on his face became more intense. It was the despair of being pushed away by the one he loved. His lips trembled slightly, and his throat was so sore that he couldn't make a sound. He could only stare at her blankly.

The two of them stood face to face in the rain, which grew heavier, clattering onto the ground and sending up layers of splashes, just like their tangled and broken hearts. Mo Yu was stubborn, and so was Ni Jiamu.

It wasn't until Ji Lin drove by that he pulled them into the car. Ni Jiamu slumped in the back seat, staring blankly out the window at the rain, his face soaked by the rain mixed with tears that had welled up unknowingly. Mo Yu huddled beside him, eyes closed, silent, body trembling slightly.

Upon returning to their residence, Mo Yu developed a high fever and fell unconscious. Ni Jiamu wasn't much better, his face pale as paper, his eyes sunken, and his whole body exuding the same aura of weakness as Mo Yu. This "contest" in the rain had no winner.

……

The first glimmer of dawn had just shone upon the mysterious and eerie castle halfway up the mountain when a car, swirling a trail of dust, sped into the castle courtyard, breaking the chilly stillness of the early morning. As the car came to a stop, Wu Kang was the first to get out, turning back to signal.

Then, several people in white coats and with extraordinary temperament appeared. They were all famous hypnotists invited from abroad by Wu Kang at a large sum of money. There were also doctors and scientists who had worked with Lin Yuan in the laboratory. The group marched in a mighty and hurried manner towards the castle.

Qiao Zhengrong had already been waiting at the door, leaning on a cane, his face brimming with smiles. Even the wrinkles on his face seemed to conceal a trace of kindness, but that smile never reached his eyes, which instead revealed a sinister and resolute nature. "I'll leave Feng to you. I won't go in. I'm afraid Feng will hate me." His voice trembled slightly, and he sighed in feigned resignation, but a fierce glint flickered in his eyes.

Wu Kang led the way and went straight to Nan Feng's room. The moment the door was opened, Nan Feng in the room looked up vigilantly. Seeing this scene, his brows were furrowed, and anger was burning in his eyes. "Wu Kang, why did you bring so many people into my room? What does Qiao Zhengrong want to do! Let me out, I hate him!" He roared, his voice like thunder, and the whole body exuded a sense of resistance.

Wu Kang pulled a fake smile at the corner of his mouth, flattering and perfunctory: "A Feng will be fine after a good sleep."

Nan Feng looked past him at the row of white coats. His eyes fell on the gleaming syringe in one of their hands. His pupils suddenly shrank and he subconsciously stumbled back, only to have his back hit the cold wall. His face was filled with sadness and despair, his eyes reddened as he roared, "Qiao Zhengrong, what are you doing? Let me out! I hate you!"

"Capture the young master!" Wu Kang commanded, and several burly, grim-faced bodyguards rushed forward, clamping down on Nan Feng's struggling limbs. Nan Feng struggled desperately, but he was no match for the crowd's strength. He watched helplessly as the syringe pierced his skin, the drug's effects spreading rapidly. Nan Feng's body limp, falling backwards, like a puppet at the mercy of others, never free. His consciousness gradually faded, and in the hazy mist, the image of Mo Yu's faint smile floated in his mind like a phantom.

"We can begin now." Wu Kang stepped aside. The doctor stepped forward, pried open Nan Feng's teeth, and stuffed a few pills. A moment later, Nan Feng's head felt as if it were about to explode. Severe pain washed over him, his brows knitted tightly together, his face twisted in a hideous manner. His limbs were bound by four heavy iron chains. His instinctive struggle caused the chains to creak, scraping his skin, bruising, and bloodshot.

As the aromatherapy incense burned, filling the room with a soothing aroma, Nan Feng's headache eased considerably. The hypnotist stepped forward, holding up a crystal ball. In a flicker of light, everyone quietly retreated, leaving only Wu Kang and him.

The crystal ball swayed slowly, drawing Nan Feng's distracted gaze into the ball, which followed the movement mechanically. "What's your name?" the hypnotist whispered softly, her voice seemingly wrapped in a mysterious magic that echoed faintly in the quiet space.

"My name is Nan Feng"

“Do you have someone you like?”

The person on the bed smiled and said in a hoarse voice, "Mo Yu, I like Mo Yu."

“Can you tell me your story?”

"My Xiaoyu is a timid and cute girl. She likes painting, eating chocolate, and drinking Wangzai milk. I used a piece of chocolate to coax her to be my friend. She is so innocent."

Nan Feng seemed to be mentioning the most precious thing in the world, and the tenderness on his face never faded. Time seemed to have gone back to fifteen years ago. The handsome and depressed little boy clutched the chocolate his mother bought him and looked around timidly, feeling lonely and afraid.

At that moment, a little girl, also alone, came into view. She stood quietly, completely out of tune with the hustle and bustle around her, like an elf lost in the world. Just as lonely as he was.

He approached her cautiously, "What are you doing?" Unexpectedly, the little girl acted like a frightened elf. He thought she was so cute, so he gave her the chocolate her mother had left for him. The little girl took the chocolate and wanted to run away. What a bad kid! She was not allowed to run away and had to be Nan Feng's friend for life.

Time suddenly came to five years later, and he was taken away. Recalling this, Nan Feng's face on the bed was twisted in pain, his hands and feet were struggling, and his wounds were bursting and bleeding.

In fact, he was very sad at that time, but he did not shed tears in front of her. He told her that I will come back to find you, please wait for me.

Not long after his return, he was sent abroad. During those years there, he missed her terribly. He hadn't received a good education in the orphanage and had been bullied. They told him to go back to China, saying his accent was unpleasant. But he couldn't go back. He practiced speaking and studied all night long. He had to become strong, to break free from his grandfather's control. His Xiaoyu was still waiting for him.

Finally, he returned home, but his grandfather wouldn't let him look for her. He told him, "A Feng, you have to take the Qiao family to the next level. Successful people never get bogged down in petty love affairs." But he never cared about fame or money; he only wanted Xiaoyu.

Later, he finally became strong and went to City A. He was so happy that he couldn't sleep all night. He looked at himself in the mirror again and again. He was afraid that he didn't look good and that Xiaoyu didn't like him.

In the end, he still didn't see her. A fire broke out in the orphanage, and everyone told him, "Feng, the person you loved died a long time ago. Why are you always stuck in the past? You are so successful, there are many good girls for you to choose from." But they didn't know that his hard work and success were just a pass to get him to her.

From then on, marriage conspiracies, fake relic scams, deception and coercion were like thorns that bound us.

Fortunately, he found her, but it still couldn't happen. Too many people were trying to stop him. The boy in the hospital bed wet his pillow with tears, his face in agony.

The hypnotist couldn't bear to continue, but when he saw Wu Kang's fierce gaze, he had no choice but to continue. He fabricated a false memory for Nan Feng according to Wu Kang's instructions.

By the time the hypnosis was over, the boy on the bed had already fallen asleep, his limbs covered in blood. "Master Qiao Feng has forgotten everything about Mo Yu. Remember to have him take this medicine regularly. I'll come over every two months to hypnotize Master Qiao Feng."

The warm morning sun, like scattered gold, streamed through the carved window lattices of the study, casting patches of light and shadow on the floor. Qiao Zhengrong nestled comfortably in the study's quaint rocking chair. The chair rocked gently, and his hand holding the teacup swayed with it.

He wore a dark-black Tang suit, made of the finest silk, intricately embroidered throughout, and the cuffs and collar were sewn with fine gold thread. This gave him a calm, age-honored presence, yet a commanding presence. His hair, already graying, was meticulously combed, each strand neatly tied back, as if observing a certain order.

Wrinkles covered his face, each one a tale of past hardships. But his eyes, when narrowed, gleamed with a subtle light, like the pupils of an animal hidden in the cold night, revealing cunning and ruthlessness. The teacup he held in his hand was an antique he had found at an auction. The steam rising from it enveloped him, making the figure in the rocking chair even more mysterious.

Hearing the footsteps, he was reluctant to lift his eyelids. He raised his head and basked in the sunlight outside the window: "The sun is so nice today. Qiao's company will get better and better." The confidence in his tone seemed to declare that he had absolute control over the future of the family, and there was no doubt about it.

"Godfather, Afeng's limbs were injured while struggling, and now he's fallen asleep after the hypnosis is over. Do you want to bandage Afeng?"

When talking about Nan Feng, his expression did not change, but his eyes became more ruthless, and the corners of his mouth turned down slightly, revealing an almost cold arc, "No need, my grandson, Qiao Zhengrong, is not that fragile. He has been disobeying me all this time. Let him suffer a little. When he wakes up, I will definitely slander the Ni family. Ni Jiamu has been too arrogant recently. It's a pity that Mo Yu escaped. He is lucky." As he spoke, his teeth were gnashed, and his hands unconsciously clenched the teacup, his knuckles turning white due to the force.