BPDSB Chapter 10: There were n rumors about Dr. Xu circulating in the villa

The farce ended, and this matter could basically be said to have settled.

About to go to bed only to be called out to witness a dramatic spectacle, and even forced to muddle-headedly act as a shield, Xu Xiliu’s face alternated between green and white, utterly speechless. He took a deep breath, smiling as he slowly calmed his mood. It’s fine, don’t get angry, what is there to fuss about, don’t get angry don’t get angry…

However, it still felt utterly ridiculous.

Xu Xiliu reached into his pocket, wanting to pull out a piece of candy to shift his attention. But after patting around for a while and finding nothing in any pocket, he realized that what he was wearing wasn’t his own clothes, but rather the bathrobe provided in the protagonist gong’s villa. His attention was once again drawn back to the fact that his sleep time had been squeezed.

He had come in such a rush he didn’t get a chance to change clothes, and naturally wearing a bathrobe didn’t look the least bit proper.

Fortunately, he had tied the belt tightly, otherwise half his chest would be showing.

Thinking of this, Xu Xiliu’s peach blossom eyes turned into dead fish eyes.

The villa quietly bustled with activity.

Aside from the shocking incident of the host’s medicine being swapped with the possibility of poisoning, the rest of the servants were all trembling with fear, lowering their heads and keeping quiet, afraid that this fire would spread to them. Under Uncle Zhong’s instructions, they quietly left, their footsteps on the carpet like terrified mice, and in no time even their shadows disappeared.

Thus the villa returned to silence.

The kind of silence that belonged solely to the deep of night.

Affected by it, Xu Xiliu couldn’t help but yawn, a layer of fine mist instantly covering his peach blossom eyes, and a trace of drowsiness surfacing in their depths.

The moment he finished yawning, he met Qin Li’s gaze, which was staring straight at him.

“Sleepy?”

Xu Xiliu paused, then nodded honestly.

“Of course, if it weren’t for this situation and Mr. Qin calling me over, I would probably already be asleep by now.”

He spoke sincerely.

There was even a hint of undisguised complaint in his tone.

Qin Li had the surveillance footage, so he must have known right away that this had nothing to do with him, yet still insisted on calling him over to confront Xue Bo. If that wasn’t making trouble for him, then what was?

He was already playing the role of a tool, could he not even complain a little?

Qin Li naturally also heard the complaint in Xu Xiliu’s words.

He gave a light chuckle. The dull ache in his head from being disturbed by Xue Bo just moments ago and his plummeting mood had, for some reason, lifted quite a bit. Seeing the private doctor’s eyes misted over from drowsiness and the rare trace of temper on his face that usually wore a gentle mask, he even curled his lips slightly, his dark eyes fixed steadily on him.

After a while, he slowly opened his mouth: “What should I do, something like this happened, and I feel very uneasy.”

Upon hearing this, Xu Xiliu didn’t react immediately.

He stared wide-eyed and said nothing.

Qin Li maintained that somewhat chilling smile as he continued, “Heh, so many people want me dead, one after another refusing to stop, coming forward in endless succession. Should I just die to satisfy them, or should I let them have a taste of this feeling…”

The more he spoke, the more his tone grew gloomy, the more his words were spoken through gritted teeth. His handsomely pale face was clouded with heavy gloom. In this luxurious yet desolate villa hidden in the mountains at night, he looked practically like a vengeful spirit.

By the end, his tone suddenly changed again. “What do you think I should do, Doctor Xu?”

How would I know what you should do?

I’m just a heartless tool, that’s all. You, the protagonist, don’t even know, so how would I know?

Xu Xiliu was startled by Qin Li’s fierce expression, and his drowsiness lessened a little.

Then inwardly, he was expressionless.

However, the man stared straight at him, clearly not willing to let it go unless he spoke, obviously waiting for him to give an answer.

Xu Xiliu then carefully said, “I think, well, there’s nothing that a good sleep can’t solve.”

“It’s time to sleep, Mr. Qin.”

Please go to sleep already.

In the middle of the night, are you really not sleepy?

Xu Xiliu was genuinely puzzled.

Qin Li stared at the youth’s overly sincere expression, tugged at the corner of his lips, the meaning unclear whether it was mockery or something else.

Xu Xiliu felt it was about time and was just about to open his mouth to take his leave, but was preempted by the other party again. Qin Li lazily curled his finger at him, “Come here, keep me company for a chat, Doctor Xu.”

He half-smiled, half-not, “Caring about the patient’s emotions is also part of your job, isn’t it?”

What could Xu Xiliu even say?

Xu Xiliu clenched his fist and sat down with suppressed patience.

Qin Li looked at his reluctant expression, his butt shifting on the chair as if there were thorns on the seat, and laughed again.

“What would Mr. Qin like to talk about?” Xu Xiliu’s smile was faint.

The fact that he could still smile was purely out of politeness.

“What to talk about,” Qin Li said softly, “What does Doctor Xu think of this villa?”

“It’s very beautiful,” Xu Xiliu replied briefly.

“And also very big,” Qin Li continued, “A place so remote, so vast and beautiful, doesn’t it seem like a carefully prepared grave? A person here wouldn’t even know when they died.”

The man lowered his eyes. His deep voice rose and fell, as if talking to himself, or perhaps simply venting. His words wandered from topic to topic.

At first, Xu Xiliu still responded with a few sentences. Later, he realized it didn’t matter whether he responded or not. The man kept talking to himself, clearly not needing any replies. Xu Xiliu sitting there was practically just a decoration.

Fine, fine, fine.

Even chatting, he was still a tool.

Xu Xiliu was simply out of temper.

Might as well let him go back to sleep.

Once a person settles down, fatigue starts to creep in. Sitting there, he found a comfortable posture. With Qin Li’s self-talk buzzing in his ears like a lullaby, the drowsiness that had just surfaced grew heavier and heavier. His brain turned to mush, his head drooped slightly and his eyes lost focus. The only thing keeping him sitting there was sheer willpower.

He listened to Qin Li’s words, occasionally responding with a couple of sounds: “Mm, mm.”

The room was very quiet. Uncle Zhong had silently withdrawn when the two of them were about to chat.

Qin Li originally said he wanted to chat just on a whim. It was a malicious thought that arose when he saw the youth forcing himself to stay awake and showing a hint of complaint. He had not actually intended to talk about anything serious.

But once he began speaking, hearing the youth beside him respond in that gentle and warm tone, he became somewhat entranced and ended up saying more and more. Though he did not reveal any important information, before he knew it, quite a bit of his thoughts had been exposed.

Qin Li curled his lips in self-mockery.

The surroundings were silent. As soon as his voice stopped, the silence became even more pronounced.

Sensing something, Qin Li turned his head and looked over, only to see the person beside him with his head slightly drooped, already silent.

Suddenly, there were two soft hums: “Mm, mm…”

The perfunctory tone was almost tangible.

Qin Li laughed.

He shut his mouth and watched as his usually gentle and polite private doctor dozed off, eyes half-closed and muddled, occasionally letting out a few hums as if responding to someone, with great amusement.

Heh.

Pretty good at brushing people off.

The window was not closed, and the temperature in the mountains late at night was low. A cool breeze blew in, and Xu Xiliu shivered slightly. Half-asleep, still holding on to his sense of duty, he murmured, “Mm right, that’s true, buying a house too big isn’t good either…”

Qin Li laughed again.

Xu Xiliu groggily met Qin Li’s gaze, realizing that he seemed to have fallen asleep just now.

He probably didn’t notice, right?

Under the man’s gaze, he blinked and became mostly awake.

Feigning calm, he asked softly, “Where were you, Mr. Qin?”

“Got to the little fox in the forest falling asleep.”

Qin Li spoke with meaning.

“Fox?” Xu Xiliu frowned upon hearing this. “Are there foxes in this mountain?”

That wild?

Qin Li let out a soft, slow laugh.

The gloom lingering between his brows seemed to have lightened a little.

“Perhaps,” he said, his gaze falling on Xu Xiliu’s face, “It’s late. Let’s leave it here. I’ve delayed Doctor Xu’s rest.”

Xu Xiliu only then belatedly realized that this crappy conversation was finally over.

He immediately stood up.

“Alright then, good night Mr. Qin.”

He turned to leave as soon as he finished speaking.

But just as he reached the door, he was called back.

Xu Xiliu turned his head warily, thinking the other party had regretted it and wanted to have an all-night talk.

Unexpectedly, he heard the man say, “Doctor Xu, wipe your drool.”

What the hell?

He froze, instinctively raising his hand to the corner of his mouth.

It was clean.

Then he looked up and met the man’s half-smiling gaze.

He instantly understood.

So the other party knew he had been dozing off and playing along earlier, deliberately didn’t say anything, just to mock him now?

Damn this bastard!

Xu Xiliu felt a surge of anger, ground his teeth, but couldn’t say a word.

He left with stiff steps.

The next day, when Xu Xiliu got out of bed, he still felt a bit stifled when he recalled the scene of being teased last night.

But when a sudden thought occurred to him — wondering if he might be able to go back — he no longer had the energy to be angry.

Xu Xiliu guessed that he had been deliberately kept here by Qin Li for a purpose. Last night something like the medicine-switching incident had happened, and now that everything had settled, the outcome was already certain. The purpose of the protagonist gong using him as a shield had been achieved. Now that he was no longer useful, this tool could be set aside, and he would have no reason to stay here any longer.

After all, to be fair, Qin Li was quite annoyed by him.

With that thought, Xu Xiliu’s mood instantly improved.

He went out to ask, and sure enough, he received a definite answer from the butler Uncle Zhong: “Sir’s condition is stable. Doctor Xu may leave.”

The gentle smile on his face immediately became genuine.

The sun was shining brightly, and spring flowers were in bloom.

And at that moment, he also heard about the follow-up regarding the medicine switch.

Qin Li’s people had taken the bottle of medicine for testing, and results came back quickly.

The medicine had indeed been switched, and with malicious intent. The entire bottle had been replaced with stimulants, containing a large amount of caffeine, which could cause heightened mental excitement. If viewed in isolation, it might not seem like a big deal, but once combined with Qin Li’s condition, it became truly alarming.

Qin Li had some mental health issues, often experiencing episodes, and emotional instability was the most dangerous trigger for him.

And caffeine happened to promote mental stimulation.

This was practically forcing Qin Li into an episode.

If Qin Li had taken that medicine, even his life could have been at risk.

This could be considered a meticulously planned murder. With the surveillance footage and the test results of the medicine, Xue Bo’s crime was completely confirmed. Back in the middle of the night, someone had already thrown Xue Bo into the police station. Along with him went the cook Zhao Ma, who had been fired by Qin Li. Xu Xiliu learned from the butler that the cook was an accomplice, working together with the steward. The couple had been secretly drugging Qin Li’s food for a long time. Fortunately, Qin Li tended to lose his appetite during his episodes and barely ate, or something would have gone wrong much earlier.

With those two cleared out, it was like pulling out a massive malignant tumor.

Xu Xiliu listened in stunned silence, gaining a new understanding of how dire the protagonist gong’s situation was.

Living like this, constantly on edge, with danger to life at every turn.

Tsk, terrifying.

Shaken by this, Xu Xiliu tried to seriously recall the plot of the original novel.

He really did not remember much of the original plot, but the basics he still knew.

The protagonist gong living alone in a small mountain villa clearly was not by choice. It was probably forced. And this forced situation was tied to the chaotic state of the Qin family.

He remembered that one of the protagonist gong’s uncles was the major antagonist in the novel.

The antagonist schemed tirelessly to seize the Qin family’s inheritance and suppressed the protagonist gong, forcing him to lie low here. Not only was his health poor, but many spies from the antagonist’s side had been planted around him, causing his every move to be exposed to the antagonist.

Judging by the timeline, with the man in such a miserable state, it should be the peak of the antagonist’s power right now.

But who would want to live surrounded by constant threats?

That pair, Xue Bo and his wife, were probably connected to the antagonist. Otherwise, why would they drug Qin Li for no reason? And Qin Li’s urgent desire to purge people now made sense. Using him as a shield was probably meant to serve as a smokescreen, to mislead the antagonist’s side, avoid drawing too much attention, and buy more time to lay low.

Once he figured that out, Xu Xiliu suddenly saw the light and felt completely refreshed.

No wonder.

Looking at himself again, he truly lived up to being the iron-blooded tool man of the novel.

Like a brick, moved wherever needed.

Xu Xiliu shook his head, his face full of speechless resignation, and went home.

Back at his own residence, he enjoyed a period of carefree salted fish life, completely relaxed and quite happy lying flat.

The original host, as a private doctor, actually had his own clinic, which ran smoothly. But ever since being hired by the protagonist gong as a personal doctor, he had rarely managed the clinic. The money he received from the protagonist gong was already more than enough for him to spend.

Given that, Xu Xiliu was happy to go along with it.

After some time passed, it was once again time for the regular check-up at the mountain villa. Xu Xiliu packed up and went as scheduled.

After not seeing it for a short while, the villa had changed drastically.

Specifically, many of the villa’s servants had been reassigned. People he used to see had disappeared, and in their place were many unfamiliar faces.

These unfamiliar faces worked efficiently, only handling their own tasks, ignoring everything else. When they saw Xu Xiliu, their attitude was as usual, calm and composed, unlike the previous servants who were timid and scattered like a loose pile of sand.

Xu Xiliu understood.

It seemed the protagonist gong had taken decisive action and replaced many people in the villa.

To be fair, Xu Xiliu was quite pleased with this.

It showed that the protagonist gong was not so downcast anymore, and was starting to pull himself together. The more the other party pulled himself together, the closer Xu Xiliu got to the life of retirement and lying flat. When the other party was in good condition, swept away the antagonist, restored order, and got the beauty in the end, that would also be the time for him to cash out and resign for a peaceful retirement.

This was great.

With that mindset, Xu Xiliu remained in a very pleasant mood all day, smiling from ear to ear, and his patience with Qin Li’s gloomy face also increased quite a bit.

Even when supervising the other’s medication intake, he smiled especially gently.

That was until, right before leaving, he heard many rumors circulating in the villa about himself.

Things like Doctor Xu not liking that one person who didn’t clean properly, so Mr. Qin replaced them;

Or someone in the garden upset Doctor Xu while working, and Mr. Qin, in order to appease Doctor Xu and stand up for him, directly fired that gardener;

And also that Doctor Xu had suggested Mr. Qin keep his surroundings quiet, saying there were too many servants in the villa, so Mr. Qin listened and let them all go.

Each rumor was more detailed and vivid than the last.

The person at the center of it all: ??

Xu Xiliu frowned tightly as he listened, his steps coming to a halt.

No, what kind of ridiculous nonsense was this?

If his words were really that powerful, then why had Qin Li never obediently taken his medicine when told?

So this damn bastard was just using him to pull the wool over everyone’s eyes?

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T/N: Dr. Xu is so powerful hahahah