Nyoi-Bo Studio

  Nyoi-Bo Studio

  A gentle breeze, bodies fatigued from activity, leisurely lifestyle, contented and peaceful.

  A table, a pot of tea, people with varying emotions.

  A hundred flavors of life—these five words were so profound.

  Meeting for the first time over a meal can be considered the beginning of a new friendship.

  After that, everyone would go home to rest and get ready for the start of a new day.

  “Take care as you drive.”


  “I will.”


  After saying goodbye to his friends, Wang Yao got into his car and drove away slowly. As he was nearing a traffic light, he suddenly slammed on the brakes. It was originally a green light, and it was his right of way, but all of a sudden, a young woman had rushed out into the middle of the road and collapsed on the ground.

  What’s going on?

  Wang Yao immediately got out of the car and noticed the woman sitting on the ground, clutching her abdomen. Her face was pale.

  She was pregnant!

  “Are you alright?” he quickly asked.

  “I’m fine,” the woman replied, standing up.

  She was a beautiful woman, but her face was languid. It made one’s heart ache looking at her.

  I think I’ve seen her before, Wang Yao thought, looking at the woman’s face.

  “Would you like to go to the hospital?”


  Although the woman was in the wrong and Wang Yao hadn’t knocked into her, he had given her a shock. Furthermore, she was carrying another life inside of her. In such a situation, Wang Yao didn’t dare to take any risks.

  “No need!” The woman’s expression was strange.

  She was staring straight ahead, dazed, not dispirited but looking a little lost and disappointed.

  Ah! Wang Yao remembered who this person was. He had seen her in Wang Mingbao’s shop before. At that time, she was with her husband, and they seemed to be an important customer. Because of something he said, the man had become unhappy.

  What about now?

  The other person didn’t insist but clutched her belly as she crossed the road.

  HONK!!!! At this moment, a motorcycle sped by.

  Careful!

  Wang Yao rushed forward and moved her behind himself. The motorcycle swerved and ran up the sidewalk, hitting into a tree before stopping. Fortunately, the rider was wearing his helmet and did not suffer any serious injuries. Nevertheless, he was still in a daze and took a while to regain his senses.

  “What the f*ck; are you blind?!” The first thing he did when he regained his senses was to start shouting at Wang Yao.

  Meanwhile, there were even more cars honking behind. Wang Yao’s car was blocking the road, and the other cars couldn’t pass him.

  “Are you alright?” Wang Yao asked the lady a second time.

  “I’m fine, thank you,” the lady said. Then, she crossed the road and left Wang Yao all alone.

  Under the dim street lamps, she made people feel like reaching out to protect her.

  “Hey, the person’s already gone. Time to move your car!” Someone shouted towards Wang Yao.

  That shout seemed to contain a trace of humor. The person shouting had seen what had happened and figured that Wang Yao had stopped the car to check on the woman. Therefore, he wasn’t truly angry and just shouted to get Wang Yao’s attention.

  People who threw themselves in front of a car to get compensation were rare these days.

  “Okay.”


  Wang Yao wanted to quickly get into his car, but suddenly, he was stopped by the motorcyclist.

  “How do you want to settle this?” the motorcyclist asked.

  “Settle what?” Wang Yao asked.

  “My motorcycle is smashed, and I’m injured. You’ve got to go with me to the hospital,” the man said, grabbing onto Wang Yao’s arm with no intention of letting go.

  “It was a red light earlier,” Wang Yao retorted. “Go ahead and call the police.”


  “You……!” The motorcyclist was lost for words.

  Wang Yao got into the car, but once again, the light was red. He waited until it turned green before driving off, leaving the motorcyclist confused and dazed.

  Was it really a red light earlier? I seem to remember it being green?!……

  In another flat in Lianshan county.

  The table in the living room was in a mess with plenty of beer bottles. A man was dead drunk, reeking of alcohol.

  The door opened, and a pale-faced woman walked in. It was precisely the woman whom Wang Yao had nearly collided into.

  “Where have you been?” The moment the man saw the woman, he shot up from the sofa and swaggered over to the woman.

  “What do you want?!” The woman held her hand over her belly.

  “I asked you what you’ve been up to! Have you been seducing some other man?”


  “Pang Yan, you bastard; are you still human?!” The woman trembled as she shouted back. Tears were forming in her eyes.

  “You act pretty well!” The man snorted. “Say it, where did you go?”


  He grabbed the woman’s arm, and his gaze became a little harsh.

  “Let me go! I’m pregnant!”


  “Pregnant? We don’t even know whose seed it is!”


  “You……”


  She was crying. As she turned, intending to leave the house, her husband grabbed her hair and pulled her back.

  “Where are you going! You slut, whore!”


  Slap. He slapped her. Then, he started beating and kicking his already pregnant wife like a rabid dog.

  “Ah!” She gasped. She clutched her belly.

  The man froze for a moment. Taking this chance, the woman stood up and dashed out of the house, down the stairs and onto the streets.

  She wanted to run away from home, the place that was no longer the safest and warmest place on earth.

  The night was cold, and it was drizzling.

  Zhou Xiong was taking a night stroll as he went out to buy fruits.

  Hmm?

  He saw a figure. It was a woman. More accurately, it was a pregnant woman.

  Then, he caught sight of the blood that was dripping down her thigh. Her white skirt was stained red. His head spun.

  Other bystanders also saw her and were talking in hushed tones. No one approached to offer any help.

  “Look, what’s wrong with her?”


  “She’s pregnant, but she’s losing a lot of blood. She needs to go to the hospital quickly.”


  “I’ll go and help.”


  “Are you crazy? What if you get dragged into some problem?”


  Not good!

  Zhou Xiong rushed to the woman and stood in her way. The woman raised her head to look at him. On her face were still the marks from the slap earlier, as well as tears that ran from her eyes, tears that contained disappointment and hopelessness.

  “You can’t walk anymore; you’ve got to go to the hospital,” Zhou Xiong said, pointing to the woman’s thigh and bloodstained skirt.

  “My baby!” The woman was stunned.

  Zhou Xiong didn’t hesitate, whipping out his phone to call the ambulance.

  “Come, sit,” Zhou Xiong said, carrying the dejected woman to the side. He sat her on a bench.

  “Where’s your family? Give them a call.”


  “I don’t have a family,” the woman said. She seemed truly lost and insane at this point.

  “You slut! So you really are seeing another guy!” At this moment, the man who reeked of alcohol had come. “See how I beat you to death!”


  The man picked up a brick from the floor.

  Zhou Xiong hastily stood up to protect the woman and gave a light shove. The man fell to the floor with a thump.

  How could a drunk, staggering man hope to prevail over someone who was trained in martial arts?

  Zhou Xiong glared at the man, his eyes cold and emanating killing intent.

  “You!” The man suddenly seemed to sober up a little. “Well, so now you’re planning to kill your own husband, is that it?” he angrily said to his wife.

  “This is unreasonable.” Some of the people around them saw this scene and started to gather closer, talking and pointing. They clearly seemed like they were enjoying the show.

  The woman got up and started to walk away.

  Zhou Xiong fiercely punched the road barrier beside him. Smash! The stainless steel barrier immediately bent ninety degrees.

  “Scram!” Zhou Xiong uttered, gritting his teeth.

  “You, watch it!” The man clenched his jaw. He had an extremely dark expression as he glared at Zhou Xiong and the woman behind him. If looks could kill, he would have killed them many times over.

  Finally, he turned and left, cursing as he went.

  Someone trained in martial arts and possessing an ice-cold glare was not a person to be trifled with.

  He was drunk but not stupid.

  Wee-woo! The ambulance had arrived. Zhou Xiong picked the woman up and helped her into the ambulance, and then he followed her to the hospital.

  “What’s your relation to the victim?” The doctor asked.

  “I’m a stranger.”


  “Stranger, can you take responsibility? Her condition right now is extremely unstable, and the child may not make it,” the doctor said.

  Today, who would bother bringing a stranger to the hospital? They wouldn’t even have the chance to get away from trouble after that.

  “Then, could I trouble you to do your best?” Zhou Xiong immediately responded.

  “We definitely will, but we need a relative’s signature to do the hospital procedures and make payment.

  Zhou Xiong went to do all of this, paying and making arrangements for the hospital stay. Then, the doctor came back.

  “The initial results are out. The child cannot be kept; we need to do surgery.”


  “How many months is it?”


  “Five.”


  “Is there really no way?”


  “None.”


  Zhou Xiong was stunned, and his facial expression was dark. It was as though he was somehow related to this stranger. He went out into the corridor and started pacing.

  “Please, hold on,” Zhou Xiong said to the doctor.

  He took out a phone……

  In the village, under a brightly lit street.

  Wang Yao had just left his house and was headed towards Nanshan hill when the phone in his pocket started ringing.

  “Mr. Zhou, is there anything wrong……? What, a pregnant woman……?” Wang Yao was stunned. “Is she wearing a blue blouse and a white skirt?”


  “Yes, how did you know?” Zhou Xiong was surprised.

  “Is it in a critical condition right now?”


  “Yes, the doctor said the child might……”


  “Which hospital is it? I’m going over immediately.” Wang Yao immediately got into the car. In the middle of the night, the sound of the black car’s engine was like a tiger roaring. It looked like a panther that was ready to pounce.

  It was that woman! Could it have been the result of the shock?

  Wang Yao was anxious. The car sped forward, flying through the streets.

  Wang Yao also dialed Pan Jun. After all, Pan Jun worked in the county hospital and might now some people.

  The route that normally took him thirty minutes now took him under twenty minutes. By the time he reached the county hospital, Pan Jun was waiting at the entrance.

  “What’s going on?”


  “I’m here to see a patient.”


  The two of them quickly rushed in to find Zhou Xiong. After seeing the woman lying on the bed, Wang Yao immediately recognized her as the person he had nearly knocked over. At this moment, her thigh was covered in blood.

  Pan Jun could pretty much guess what was going on in a glance, and he quickly pulled Wang Yao out of the room.