Chapter 35: My Xiao An Will Always Be the Cleanest
At the banquet, Liang Qinian strode through the crowd, looking for Jian An among the sea of formal gowns and suits.
Suddenly, a man walked toward him. The moment he turned his head, he bumped squarely into the other’s arm. The red wine in the man’s hand splashed onto Liang Qinian’s clothes.
Their eyes met. Liang Qinian was stunned for a moment, then hurriedly pulled a napkin from his pocket, bending over to apologize:
“I am terribly sorry! Iāll wipe it for you right now!”
Just as his napkin was about to touch the suit, Lu Huaishenās arm instinctively dodged to the right. His long fingers helplessly shook off the red wine. He frowned and said:
“Tch. Young man, how do you walk? Do you know how much this suit costs?”
Liang Qinian secretly studied the man before him, who could be described as a “gentlemanly scoundrel.” He asked tentatively:
“How much?”
The other man arched an eyebrow at him, his expression lazy, a very shallow smile at the corner of his mouth. He then made a gesture for the number eight.
“Eight thousand? At most eighty thousand.”
Hearing this, Lu Huaishen let out a “pfft” laugh. His gaze fell on Liang Qinian through his glasses. He lightly shook his index finger and said:
“Wrong. Does my Dormeuil high-edition limited suit look like itās worth that much? It costs at least 80 million!”
At this astronomical figure, Liang Qinianās eyes widened in disbelief. Only after a long time did he hesitate:
“Eighty… 80 million? Is your suit studded with diamonds?”
With his monthly salary of eight thousand, even without eating, drinking, or paying rent, how many years would it take to pay that back?!
Furthermore, the manās appearance of being able to toy with people in the palm of his hand made it difficult to trust him.
Seeing his silence, Lu Huaishen suddenly leaned forward slightly toward him. His dark eyes narrowed, his gaze a bit playful. He said:
“How did you know my suit is studded with 800 diamonds and is also bulletproof?”
At the sudden close proximity, he could even smell a certain unknown perfume on the man. Liang Qinianās face turned slightly red, and his heart tightened. He instinctively backed away.
However, he had only taken half a step when his wrist was grabbed.
“Let go…”
He had intended to scold the other man, but when the words reached his lips, he found his voice had changed due to dryness and raspiness:
“What do you want to do!”
“To pay the debt~”
Lu Huaishen pulled his wrist and shook it shamelessly. He then admired his looks and nodded in satisfaction:
“If you don’t have money, come be my servant. You have some looks; I don’t mind.”
Under the gaze of everyone, Liang Qinian quickly pulled his wrist back. He said resolutely: “It’s just 80 million; Iāll scrape enough together to pay you back. As for being your servantādon’t even think about it!”
He had only come to this hotel to be a bartender for a few days. He had accidentally seen Jian An while passing the banquet hall. In the end, he hadn’t seen the person, but he had found himself a creditor!
“Yo, quite ambitious, aren’t you~”
Lu Huaishen pushed his glasses and said: “Then Iāll be merciful and give you three days to scrape the money together. If you haven’t paid it back by then, weāll just have to see each other at the police station.”
“Three days?!”
This man clearly wants me to be his servant!
Liang Qinian gritted his teeth and agreed:
“Fine. Three days it is!”
…
Seeing the newcomer, Jian Tangli immediately threw away the black cloth and ran over to hug his arm, saying happily:
“Brother Yunheng, why are you here?! Come join us in the game!”
Shen Yunheng broke free from her entanglement and went straight to Jian An. He knelt down and pulled off everything that bound the other’s freedom. His hand trembled as he took the eggshells from the youth’s head.
“Iām sorry, Xiao An. Iām late…”
His brow was deeply furrowed, his heart filled with an indescribable pain. He could only raise his hand to stroke Jian Anās pale cheek, gently wiping away the egg white with a tissue. He spoke with a sob:
“Let’s go. Iāll take you back to the hospital.”
Ignored, Jian Tangli stomped her feet in anger. Her porcelain face was full of grievance and resentment at this moment.
Why would the Brother Yunheng she had a crush on help that trash Jian An?! Did she, the great eldest daughter of the Jian family, not look a thousand, ten thousand times better than an illegitimate son?
Jian An leaned tiredly against the manās shoulder, being supported step by step out of the room. The pure white suit on his body was also stained with filthy things.
Suddenly, a hand blocked the two of them. The owner of the arm had a handsome but cold face. His voice was icy:
“Where is Shen-zong taking my family’s person?”
Shen Yunheng stared at him, rage churning in his chest. He forcefully threw off the man’s hand and gritted his teeth as he spoke word by word:
“You also know Xiao An is a person from your family? Then how have you treated him? You let others bully him, didn’t you? You, Ji Songting, are forever unworthy of saying those words!”
If he hadn’t been worried about Jian An leaning on him, he would have long since struck that heartless fellow!
Ji Songting wanted to step forward to take Jian An back, but he was suddenly held tightly by Shen Chuyan, who requested in a high-pitched, delicate voice:
“A-Ting, where are you going? Don’t leave.”
As long as Jian An and his brother did something else out of line, then he, Shen Chuyan, could enter the Ji family legitimately.
So why not play the role of a matchmaker to bring others together? It was so much fun!
…
Shen Yunheng opened the car door halfway, wanting the youth to sit in the passenger seat, but the other person was inexplicably resistant:
“No… my clothes are so dirty and smelly. Theyāll get your car dirty…”
His voice was trembling violently, and his eyes were shimmering with water, as if he were trying his best to suppress something.
“They aren’t dirty. My Xiao An will always be the cleanest.”
Shen Yunhengās movements were firm, not allowing him to resist, but his voice was extremely gentle. He then gently tucked him inside.
Just as the car was about to start, Jian An closed his eyes slightly and leaned quietly against the seatback. He murmured for a while before speaking:
“Yunheng… I want to eat sugar-fried chestnuts. Can you go buy some for me? I used to love them in the winter… but now I can’t eat them anymore.”
The other man meticulously placed a hot water bottle in his hand and agreed: “Okay. Thereās a chestnut shop just behind us. Wait here for me; don’t go anywhere.”
“Mhm…”
After repeatedly confirming his current condition wouldn’t allow him to run around, the worry in Shen Yunhengās heart finally eased slightly. He then pushed the door open and got out.
Jian An leaned his head against the car window, trying his best to open his blurred eyes. He silently watched the manās retreating figure in the rearview mirror. At this moment, tears finally flowed uncontrollably.
How could he not understand Shen Yunhengās heart?
But right now, he was uselessāworse than an ordinary person. On what basis could he receive that man’s favor? What right did he have to accept Shen Yunhengās love?
He had long since lost his previous optimism. Now he was just an empty shell, living every day and night like a walking corpse. How could he delay such an outstanding person?
“Yunheng, if there is a next life, let me love you then… in this life, I loved someone I shouldn’t have and used up all my strength. I can no longer love you…”
With that, Jian An pushed the car door open with effort and slipped out through the gaps between the cars. His thin frame moved between the many cars parked by the road.
Shen Yunheng, standing in line not far away, glanced back toward the Mercedes from time to time.
“Here are your sugar-fried chestnuts.”
the shop assistant handed over a bag of warm chestnuts. The man gave a distracted reply. When he paid, he happened to miss Jian An, who had just passed behind his car.
Vehicles flowed continuously at the intersection, the headlights making the road look as bright as day.
Jian An stood at the edge of the road, lost. Looking at the coming and going cars and strangers, the biting north wind continued to bring back the images of his humiliation in his mind.
He couldn’t go back to the Ji family; that man wouldn’t want him and probably wished he would go as far away as possible.
A marriage without a shred of affection all these years, the heart-wrenching insults, a love where he was always the only one giving, and a mother who never cared about him…
All the suffering and torment were like a rope so long its end couldn’t be seen, tightening until he couldn’t breathe. He couldn’t find a shred of hope in these long years.
He was currently penniless, unable to support his mother, and unable to keep the one he loved. It was better to just end it all.
With the thought of dying, he walked forward without fear. He didn’t stop, just as he had unhesitatingly chosen the path of artāhe was heading toward the light.
Countless cars sped past behind him, stirring up a wave of heat that drained his remaining reason.
Suddenly, a BMW that was swaying from side to side and completely out of control came ramming toward him!
The drunkard in the car hadn’t noticed the arrival of death at all and was even leisurely humming a song.
The piercing white light made it impossible to open his eyes. Jian An instinctively raised his hand to block it, his eyes narrowing to slits.
In an instant, the powerful impact sent him flying through the air. His soft hair was stained with blood, and the clothes on his body were torn in several places.
Jian An rolled on the ground. His eyes were blurred by blood. He only felt an intense pain in his ear, which bled continuously. It felt as if something were being torn from his body.
The weight of his body seemed to be slowly disappearing. He closed his eyes in despair, not knowing if he was dead. He only heard noisy sounds around him, but he couldn’t hear them clearly no matter how hard he tried.
“There’s been a car accident! Call an ambulance!”
With a terrified shout, everyone’s attention was drawn over. Coming and going cars were forced to stop.
People surged from all directions toward the accident site. In a short while, the scene was surrounded so tightly that even water couldn’t leak through.
The BMW that was the culprit had overturned at the intersection, and flames were roaring.
Clearly, the car owner was at death’s door.
The sugar-fried chestnuts in his hand suddenly rolled onto the ground. Shen Yunhengās expression went blank for a moment, as if he had lost his voice. A thousand bad premonitions spread frantically in his heart.
He stumbled over and squeezed through the crowd. When he saw the youth lying in a pool of blood, he fell into ruin.
“Xiao Anā!!”
He had only left for a few short minutes. Why was this the scene when they met again?
The ambulance lights flashed, moving forward continuously. The youth on the stretcher, covered in blood, was at death’s door.
Shen Yunhengās hands were covered in blood, his fingertips trembling. He felt his heart suddenly contract into a tight ball. He didn’t even know how he had gotten out of the ambulance.
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