Su Jin's heart dropped instantly. She had told him to go, but she hadn't really expected him to abandon her.
But just as despair was about to crush her, he came back—this time with a fire extinguisher in one hand and a crowbar in the other.
With a calm and powerful stride, he approached the driver's side, sprayed back the fire, and smashed the crowbar into the twisted metal.
The heat from the fire was unbearable. The flames were creeping dangerously close, and the fuel smell grew stronger.
But Fu Siyan worked quickly, prying open the crushed door with relentless strength.
Su Jin watched him in disbelief—his suit was dirty, his hair was damp with sweat, and his normally expressionless face was strained with effort. But his eyes were steady. Unwavering.
He was risking his life to save her.
He hadn't left. He had gone to get tools.
With a final pull, the door gave way. Fu Siyan leaned in, unbuckled her seatbelt, and carefully freed her trapped leg.
Before Su Jin could even react, he had scooped her into his arms.
As the car behind them erupted in flames, he sprinted through the smoke with her held tightly against his chest.
She could hear the pounding of his heart. Or maybe it was hers.
She buried her face in his shoulder, eyes wet.
"…Thank you," she whispered.
Fu Siyan didn't respond—but his grip around her tightened ever so slightly.
The truck driver up front had fainted from his injuries.
Thankfully, the ambulance arrived just in time and quickly took him to the hospital.
As for Zhou Tao, by the time rescuers managed to pull him from the wreckage, he was declared brain dead.
Ironically, in her previous life, Zhou Tao had also died in a car accident. No matter how fate twisted, he still couldn't escape a tragic end.
Su Jin lay on the stretcher inside the ambulance, dazed. Her gaze kept drifting to Fu Siyan, who sat nearby, silent and composed.
She had a thousand words to say to him.
But when they reached her lips, they dissolved. She swallowed them back, her heart full.
"…Thank you," she said at last, her voice low but filled with sincerity.
If Fu Siyan hadn't arrived when he did, she might not be alive right now.
Fu Siyan looked at her calmly, then showed her his phone. "You made a call to me."
Su Jin blinked in confusion for a moment—then it clicked.
She had set his number as the emergency speed dial on the "1" key.
So the call she had meant to make to the police… had gone to Fu Siyan instead.
Was this fate?
Was everything already destined to happen this way?
In her past life, he had saved her. And now, in this life, at her most desperate and dangerous moment—he had saved her again.
Su Jin gave a bitter smile. She had owed Fu Siyan a life once, and now she owed him again. At this rate, even in the next life, she might still be paying off this debt.
"Are you… laughing?" Fu Siyan frowned as he noticed the subtle curve of her lips, puzzled by her sudden expression.
Su Jin stopped smiling, her gaze dimming. "I just think… I'm really unlucky."
A long silence fell between them. The only sound in the air was the distant wail of the ambulance siren.
Fu Siyan looked at Su Jin, his eyes unreadable
Her small face was pale, her thin body wrapped in dirty clothes. She sat there quietly, surrounded by an air of despair.
It wasn't like her at all.
He had seen her graceful and poised at banquets. He had seen her calmly dismantle her stepmother's schemes and gently care for his grandfather with both skill and kindness.
But he had never seen her like this—defeated, hopeless. And somehow, that unfamiliar vulnerability made him feel unsettled. It stirred something in him, compelling him to speak.
"You should be glad you're still alive—lying here in one piece instead of zipped into a body bag," Fu Siyan said coldly, though his eyes betrayed a trace of concern. "Now that you know how close danger can come, don't let your guard down. Don't give others the chance to play with your life."
Su Jin fell silent, his words sinking into her heart.
He was right.
She had been careless. Too trusting. She had given Gu Xiangyun the space to act.
This time, she would learn her lesson—and never forget it.
When the ambulance arrived at the hospital, it was immediately directed through the green emergency lane.
There was no need to guess—someone had pulled strings.
"Thank you." Su Jin quickly gathered her thoughts and offered her gratitude once more.
This time, Fu Siyan didn't brush her off coldly. He simply responded with a quiet, "En."
Su Jin was treated promptly. Aside from a strained ankle and a few minor scrapes, she had no serious injuries.
The truck driver was rushed to the intensive care unit and remained in critical condition.
"Fu Siyan, can I ask you something?" Su Jin hesitated for a moment before speaking.
"Go ahead."
"Can you not call the police just yet? I'd like to handle this myself first."
Fu Siyan studied her for a moment, his gaze unreadable. Then he said, "It's your matter. Do as you see fit."
"Thank you." Su Jin exhaled softly, relief and gratitude written all over her face.
"How exactly is your relationship with the Su family?" Fu Siyan asked, his tone calm.
He was never one to pry, but after everything that had happened, his impression of Su Jin had changed significantly.
The so-called third Miss of the Su family might not be the pampered, harmless girl the outside world believed her to be.
At least, that's not what he saw with his own eyes.
"You want to know?" A faint glimmer lit up in Su Jin's eyes. For a moment, she felt seen—understood.
Fu Siyan, unlike others, was beginning to notice the truth no one else cared to look for.
Just then, a sudden voice interrupted their conversation.
"Sister, it's so great that you're all right!" Su Nuo ran over and clung to Su Jin's arm affectionately, then offered a shy smile toward Fu Siyan. "Young Master Fu, you're here too."
Fu Siyan's eyes briefly landed on Su Nuo's face. A flash of disdain passed through his gaze before he turned and walked away without saying a word.
Su Nuo instinctively wanted to chase after him, but Su Jin stepped in front of her, blocking her path.
"What is it? Were you hoping something had happened to me?" Su Jin asked coldly, a sneer tugging at her lips.
Caught off guard, Su Nuo's expression stiffened. For a split second, her true annoyance flickered, and she looked ready to shove Su Jin aside—but when she caught sight of Su Mingyuan nearby, she quickly dropped the act and slipped into her usual pitiful tone.
"Sister, how could you think of me that way?" she said with fake innocence, her voice trembling as she dabbed at invisible tears.
"What kind of attitude is that?" Gu Xiangyun snapped, clearly displeased. "Nuo Nuo was worried sick when she heard you were hurt. She came all the way to the hospital to see you, and this is how you treat her?"
In her eyes, Su Nuo's life was worth ten thousand times more than Su Jin's. How could she tolerate seeing her precious daughter wronged?
Su Jin laughed coldly. "Concerned about me? The hospital is only fifteen minutes away from home, yet you show up after over an hour. What did you do—crawl here on a snail?"
Gu Xiangyun was momentarily speechless. Her expression darkened with barely concealed malice.
This little wretch was growing more and more insolent.
"All right, that's enough. Stop arguing in public," Su Mingyuan cut in, glancing at Gu Xiangyun with a warning look.
Only then did Gu Xiangyun bite back her anger. She dared not go against Su Mingyuan in front of others.
"Xiaojin, don't overthink it. Your mother and sister were just worried about you. They only came late because of a traffic jam," Su Mingyuan explained gently, trying to smooth things over.
Su Jin almost laughed aloud. A traffic jam? At 10:30 at night? What buses were still running?
But she was too lazy to expose the lie. Since Su Mingyuan wanted to put on a show, she was more than happy to play along.
"I knew Dad cared about me," she said sweetly, flashing a smile at Su Nuo. The forced smile twitched on Su Nuo's face like she'd swallowed something bitter.
Seeing Su Nuo's barely contained irritation made Su Jin feel unexpectedly pleased.
Anything that disgusted Su Nuo, she was more than happy to do.
"Xiaojin, you really scared us. What exactly happened?" Su Mingyuan asked, stepping forward with concern in his eyes, trying to pull her into a hug.
But Su Jin skillfully dodged, maintaining her distance.
"I was kidnapped on my way home. Thankfully, Fu Siyan arrived just in time to save me," Su Jin said, her tone calm but deliberately ambiguous.
She noticed the flash of nervousness in Gu Xiangyun's eyes and the overly dramatic shock that spread across Su Nuo's face.
"I can't believe you were kidnapped, Sister! That's so frightening," Su Nuo squeaked, her voice sweet to the point of nausea. The forced concern made Su Jin's skin crawl.
"And the kidnapper… is he still alive?" Gu Xiangyun blurted out, her tone just a bit too eager.
Su Jin turned to her slowly, an almost curious look in her eyes. "Mom, why do you seem so concerned about the kidnapper?"
"I—I'm just worried about you, of course!" Gu Xiangyun said hastily, clearly thrown off. Her smile was stiff, her face tense with barely concealed anxiety. "You really are lucky."
Worried about me? Su Jin laughed coldly in her heart. No, you're worried I didn't die.
"Yes, I'm extremely lucky. I must have accumulated a lot of virtue in my last life," Su Jin replied. Then her smile faded, and she stared directly into Gu Xiangyun's eyes.
"Mom… do you believe in karma? That good is rewarded, and evil is punished?"