Julia Reed’s face was pale as she opened the car door. When she saw that Matthew Thompson was indeed sitting there safe and sound, she finally relaxed. She closed the door and, without hesitation, threw herself into Matthew Thompson’s arms, desperately kissing his face, searching for his lips in the darkness, only to be gently pushed away by the completely unresponsive Secretary Thompson.

　　“That just now… scared me to death…” Julia Reed sobbed softly. Along with her fear, she felt a deep sense of guilt. Her reaction just now had been far too panicked, too childish. If it hadn’t been those two young men she encountered, if her scream had attracted the police, the consequences would have been unimaginable. As the deputy captain of the county public security bureau’s criminal investigation team, her performance at such a critical moment was truly immature.

　　The glow of a cigarette flickered in the car. Secretary Thompson said in a low voice, “I’m very disappointed!” After that, there was a long silence.

　　Once she had calmed down, Julia Reed cautiously broke the silence: “He might not know you…”

　　“His name is Ryan Bolton, an intern at the county people’s hospital. Xiao Ge, go investigate his background. This time, don’t let the organization down again.”

　　Julia Reed nodded vigorously, climbed from the back seat to the driver’s seat, her full hips displayed in an extremely seductive posture right in front of Secretary Thompson. If it were any other time, our respected Secretary Thompson would certainly have been filled with passion, personally taking charge and giving hands-on guidance to the policewoman. But after what had just happened, he was in no mood at all. Between his legs was a cold, damp patch, and beneath his unpredictable exterior was an even colder heart… That stack of money Secretary Thompson had casually taken out was no small sum—it was originally meant to be Julia Reed’s Valentine’s Day gift. Secretary Thompson was too busy, so he could only give her money to pick out her own present. After returning, Ryan Bolton counted it and found it was exactly ten thousand yuan. Although he didn’t have a clear concept of modern currency, he knew it was a considerable fortune, especially for a poor student like him who often went hungry. This money was truly a timely blessing.

　　Knowing Secretary Thompson’s secret was like holding a trump card. To make the most of it, he couldn’t reveal it lightly. A secret is powerful precisely because of its exclusivity—the fewer people who know, the greater its power. So Ryan Bolton guarded this secret closely. Even though Sophie Harris was extremely curious, Ryan Bolton kept his lips sealed. After leaving, he considered all the possibilities, including the chance that Secretary Thompson might try to silence him. But Ryan Bolton thought this was highly unlikely—not only because he was confident in his own martial arts, but also for another important reason: Secretary Thompson did indeed have a hidden illness, and Ryan Bolton had already left himself a backup plan in the car.

Chapter 0005: The Happy Life of a Spendthrift

　　The next day passed peacefully. In the afternoon, Ryan Bolton took the initiative to go to the internal medicine department and asked Sophie Harris out, which surprised her a little. “What do you want from me?”

　　“I want you to go to the market with me!”

　　Sophie Harris let out a snort of laughter. That’s called shopping—was he saying it like that just to make her laugh? But seeing Ryan Bolton’s serious expression, it didn’t seem like he was joking. Still, pretty girls have a common problem: when they ask a guy for help, it feels perfectly natural, but when a guy asks them for something, they start to overthink it. Was this little junior brother interested in her? Sophie Harris thought of recent events and became even more convinced. It was all her fault—she’d asked him to pretend to be her shield to avoid John Green’s pestering. She hadn’t meant anything by it, but who knew what he thought? The more Sophie Harris thought about it, the more she regretted it. If this made Ryan Bolton fall for her, that would be a problem. She’d better clear things up soon.

　　“Hey! Are you going or not?” Ryan Bolton was getting impatient. In his view, after helping Sophie Harris so many times, it was only fair for her to return the favor.

　　Sophie Harris still seemed a bit hesitant.

　　They were standing in the corridor of the department, and a group of interns in the distance had heard the commotion and were watching from afar, all waiting to see Ryan Bolton make a fool of himself.

　　Ryan Bolton was extremely shrewd and immediately realized that this little girl probably thought he had other intentions toward her. He couldn’t help but feel a bit annoyed. Little girl, I’m just asking you for a small favor, nothing more. Don’t make it seem like I’m asking for something huge. Damn, how pretentious. “Forget it if you’re not going!” Ryan Bolton didn’t wait for Sophie Harris to answer and turned to leave.

　　Now it was Sophie Harris’s turn to be confused. What kind of person was this? He hadn’t even explained what he wanted, and in front of so many people, he just turned hostile. Wasn’t he making her, a girl, lose face? Sophie Harris said angrily, “Ryan Bolton, you stop right there!”

　　Ryan Bolton turned around and looked up, putting on a look of unyielding defiance. “What is it?”

　　“What do you actually want from me?”

　　“Are you done yet? If you want to go, go. If not, forget it. Why so much nonsense?” Back in the Sui Dynasty, Dr. Bolton was famous for being forceful. Except for suffering a setback at the hands of Emperor Yang of Sui, everyone else could only bow their heads when they saw him.