I, the Villain, Accidentally Killed the Protagosint! - Chapter 38

Chapter 38: Even a Single Cent Can Stump the Chosen One—Who Told You to Be So Poor?

Zhang Chen had transmigrated into this world.

After all, it was a world plagued by the resurgence of terror.

And what’s more, the specific setting had been written by none other than himself.

So naturally, he wasn’t too surprised by it.

Oh no—

This was part of his plan all along.

A grand feast carefully prepared for Ye Fan, the so-called Chosen One.

“So in that sense, it’s actually kind of pitiful.”

Zhang Chen shook his head with a bitter smile, just shy of squeezing out two crocodile tears.

Chief Wei, unaware of the truth, also nodded helplessly. “This Ye Fan really is utterly deranged!”

Clearly—

Chief Wei’s impression of Ye Fan was downright abysmal!

Never mind that Ye Fan was already suspected of destroying the research lab and stealing the new drug along with its data.

Now he had even doomed his only family member to certain death!

Even death wouldn’t bring her peace.

Chances were, she’d turn into a grotesque demon.

Chief Wei couldn’t help but grunt in anger internally.

“Brother Zhang, since we’re sure of this, I’ll have my men take immediate action.”

Hospitals were full of gossiping mouths, and Chief Wei obviously didn’t want things to spiral out of control.

He was ready to cut through the mess with a clean strike!

Regardless of whether Ye Fan was guilty!

He had indeed gotten his hands on the new drug—even if it was just a prototype.

But Zhang Chen shook his head and gave a word of advice. “There’s something I’m not sure I should say.”

“Go ahead, Brother Zhang. Speak freely.”

“If I were you, Brother Wei, I wouldn’t arrest him just yet.”

“Oh?”

Hearing this, Chief Wei frowned slightly.

“What do you mean, Brother Zhang?”

“Cast a long line to catch a big fish.”

Zhang Chen’s lips curled into a smirk, his response seemingly unrelated.

But Chief Wei was no fool.

He understood immediately.

A trace of hesitation crossed his face as if weighing Zhang Chen’s suggestion in his mind.

Zhang Chen didn’t press him.

Even if he failed to convince the Demon Slayer Division, it wouldn’t affect him much.

The trap was already set, and Ye Fan had obediently walked into it.

If the Demon Slayer Division took Ye Fan away now, there’d be no way for him to explain himself.

After all, once the surveillance footage left behind by Zhang San was recovered,

the evidence would be irrefutable!

“At that point, given how the Demon Slayer Division operates, Ye Fan’s fate would be sealed.”

Zhang Chen sneered coldly to himself.

But of course, that wasn’t enough insurance!

Ye Fan was, after all, the Chosen One. No one could predict whether,

thanks to his destiny, he’d escape from a desperate situation.

“What if that brat displays an extraordinary talent for manipulating demonic powers while in custody? Who’s to say the higher-ups wouldn’t start eyeing him for recruitment?”

That was the real reason Zhang Chen spoke up.

To deal with someone like Ye Fan, you had to strike hard and make sure he stayed down!

You absolutely couldn’t give him the chance to rise again.

A Chosen One, blessed by fate—if he survives once,

he’s bound to explode in strength after narrowly escaping death!

“He must be denied any chance of making a comeback! He must be killed on the spot if possible!”

Zhang Chen stared at the surveillance feed.

Outside the ICU ward,

Ye Fan was pacing anxiously back and forth.

Zhang Chen’s eyes narrowed.

Finally—

Chief Wei seemed to have weighed the pros and cons.

He nodded in the end and said, “Then according to your suggestion, Brother Zhang, what should we do?”

“Simple. Watch from the shadows for now—keep him under surveillance.”

Zhang Chen smiled. “No matter his reasons for stealing the drug and using it on his sister,

there must be more behind it!”

“Besides, Brother Wei, do you really believe he did all that alone?”

Chief Wei was briefly stunned, then quickly came to a realization.

“Indeed. We’ve investigated him before. Just a regular college student, orphaned young.”

If he hadn’t just seen the security footage with his own eyes, showing Ye Fan administering the new drug to his sister—

Chief Wei would still find it hard to believe.

How could such an average university student

steal something from Lin Pharmaceutical’s secret research lab,

and even destroy the entire facility?

“Then why don’t we keep watching in secret, and see if we can follow the clues back to something bigger?”

Zhang Chen shrugged.

Chief Wei was clearly swayed.

In the end, he nodded. “Alright, let’s go with your plan. We’ll hold off for now.”

Originally, he’d brought the Demon Slayer Division’s men ready to strike.

But now,

having been persuaded by Zhang Chen,

he scrapped the plan.

Zhang Chen smirked triumphantly to himself.

He wasn’t going to give Ye Fan a single opportunity.

He had to create a scenario where Ye Fan could be killed on the spot.

“It’s not enough yet. Things haven’t escalated to the point where the Demon Slayer Division would kill Ye Fan without hesitation.”

What kind of situation

would force their hand?

A moment where they’d decide to execute Ye Fan immediately, leaving him no way out?

Zhang Chen already had that figured out.

And right now,

everything was proceeding just as he’d planned—step by step,

flawlessly.

Convincing Chief Wei hadn’t even taken much effort.

In the end, Chief Wei left two agents at the hospital to monitor things,

while the rest temporarily withdrew.

After all, it was obvious—

Ye Fan wasn’t likely to flee, not while his sister remained in the hospital that Zhang Chen controlled.

He might escape the monk—

but he can’t escape the temple!

On the other side—

Zhang Chen’s subordinates were doing their best to recover last night’s surveillance footage from the lab.

Whatever happened there,

once the data was restored, the truth would be revealed.

Zhang Chen wasn’t worried in the slightest about being exposed.

He had full confidence in Zhang San’s skills.

Inside the hospital,

Ye Fan had no idea he’d been under Zhang Chen’s thumb the whole time.

At present,

his eyes were sunken, dark circles heavy under them.

Even with his freakish healing as the Chosen One—

like recovering from a broken leg in a day—

the mental and emotional toll

still left him utterly exhausted.

“Yiyi! What should I do!”

Ye Fan was completely at a loss, even feeling deep regret.

Watching his little sister being taken into the ICU,

he slapped himself across the face twice.

But what good would that do?

“Student Ye, here’s your sister’s hospital bill for the past few days. Please settle it as soon as possible.”

As the saying goes—misfortunes never come alone.

Not only was his only family member critically ill,

possibly dying because of him,

the hospital was now demanding payment.

Ye Fan looked at the bill the nurse handed him,

and felt like he’d been struck by lightning.

“S-So much?”

He couldn’t believe it.

Of course, he didn’t doubt the numbers—while the total was high, everything seemed reasonable.

Especially since he knew that a day in the ICU cost several thousand yuan!

That wasn’t even counting the use of medical equipment and medications.

“I-I’ll go pay right away.”

Ye Fan said bitterly.

His parents had died young, leaving behind only an apartment—

their sole inheritance.

He and his sister had managed all these years

by scraping by on the meager savings their parents had left behind.

Working part-time while studying, just to get by.

But the real headache now was—

he didn’t have that kind of money anymore!

His bank card only had a few thousand left.

And Ye Yiyi’s medical bill had already ballooned to nearly fifty thousand!

“What am I going to do?”

Ye Fan was in a total panic.

As the saying goes, “a single cent can topple a hero.”

And he wasn’t short by just a cent—

he was short by more than forty thousand!

The first person Ye Fan thought of—was Lin Xi!

Among everyone he knew,

the only one who might be able to help with that kind of money

was her.

Footnotes

1. 1. 1. 1. 1. 1. 1. 1. “一分钱难倒英雄汉” (yī fēn qián nán dǎo yīng xióng hàn)– Literally: A single cent can defeat a hero. A Chinese proverb used to emphasize how even the smallest lack of money can bring down someone otherwise capable or brave. In this context, it underscores the irony that even someone with great fate and potential like Ye Fan can be rendered helpless by a lack of funds.