Chapter 71: I Won’t Allow Anyone to Hurt Him
“Fei ge had a dream, he dreamt that Yan Yan was crying, so he sent you two candies to cheer you up.”
Gu Fei’s voice was his usual magnetic and gentle tone, transmitted through the phone’s current, slightly distorted, but it didn’t stop Lin Qingyan from being touched by the man’s words.
Lin Qingyan looked at the two hawthorn candies in his palm and couldn’t help but redden his eyes. It seemed he could also receive someone’s unrestrained affection. Just Gu Fei’s words dispelled the gloom in his heart.
He clenched the candies, looked up at the white ceiling, suppressed his nasal congestion, and smiled. “You’re so good to me, I don’t know how to repay you.”
Gu Fei said, “Yan Yan, Fei ge is good to you because I want you to be happy, not for you to repay me.”
It was still late at night abroad. Gu Fei stood by the floor-to-ceiling window of his hotel, looking at the desolate night outside. His expression was calm and gentle, his brows and eyes carrying a faint tenderness.
He really had a dream, he dreamt of the child in the darkness, covered in wounds, alone and helpless, curled up in a corner crying. He could only watch and was helpless, and was eventually awakened.
He couldn’t sleep, and even had the urge to immediately fly back to China. So he called An Jing to inquire about Lin Qingyan’s situation, and An Jing said Lin Qingyan was sick.
The young man on the other end of the phone was silent for a moment, then said, “I’m fine now, because of Fei ge.” His voice was clear, soft, and slightly hoarse from illness, sounding like a child pouting to Gu Fei.
Although the child never acted spoiled with him, his unintentional words always struck a chord with him.
Gu Fei’s Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed. His voice remained calm but was deeper. “Then Yan Yan must take care of himself and not get sick.”
At Gu Fei’s words, Lin Qingyan suddenly felt a little guilty. He whispered, “It’s just a minor illness. I’m almost better now.”
Gu Fei, “An Jing said you slept in the corridor all night.”
Lin Qingyan’s heart skipped a beat. He felt he hadn’t done anything wrong, and the man’s tone was casual, yet he felt like he was being interrogated.
Just as he hesitated, unsure what excuse to make, the man said, “Don’t want to say? I’ll ask Lu Yuqi.” Gu Fei had Lin Qingyan completely figured out.
“…” Lin Qingyan sighed silently and honestly explained the situation. As for whether the door was locked intentionally or unintentionally, he didn’t want to guess.
After listening, Gu Fei didn’t ask any further questions. He just told Lin Qingyan to rest well and then asked him to give the phone to An Jing. An Jing stood by the window at the end of the corridor, his eyes narrowed as he looked at the scenery outside. He said teasingly, “Don’t worry, I’ll take good care of your Yan Yan.”
“I never imagined that our Gu Ye would be so commonplace in love, even asking me to deliver candy. Just two candies, aren’t you a little stingy?”
Gu Fei, “Too much sugar is bad.”
His tone returned to its usual calm indifference. The only tenderness was reserved for his Yan Yan, with nothing left for anyone else.
An Jing winced, the cloying sweetness of love hitting him in the face. “You’re really worried like an old father. By the way, are you two together?”
Gu Fei calmly and restrainedly hummed in affirmation.
An Jing inevitably heard pride and boastfulness in his friend’s “hmm,” a cold wave of dog food slapping him hard in the face.
“…”
He asked Gu Fei, “Are you serious?”
Gu Fei asked back, “Otherwise?”
An Jing felt he was humiliating himself. He thought of the young man lying on his back, saying forlornly and alone, “If only I had a brother like you.” And the boy’s frail appearance in the hospital bed…
“Yan Yan is really good…” An Jing murmured softly, then seriously said to Gu Fei on the phone, “Gu Fei, since you’re serious, treat him well. Don’t always have that cold and indifferent face. Be gentle, caring, and let the child feel your love.”
However, Gu Ye remained unmoved and coldly threw down a sentence: “Even if he’s good, he’s still mine.”
“…” An Jing twitched his mouth, silently cursed, and said through gritted teeth, “That’s too much! I’m not competing with you! What’s with the declaration of ownership? Lin Qingyan is yours, always yours, okay?”
Gu Fei said, “Oh.”
An Jing ground his teeth secretly. Lu Yuqi and Gu Fei are indeed cousins, their ability to retort is top-notch. He declared he didn’t want to hear Gu Fei’s cold voice for the next few days. “If there’s nothing else, I’ll hang up!”
“There is.” Gu Fei got to the point. “Why was the dorm room door locked? Why was it specifically Lin Qingyan? I want you to find out the answer.”
“What? You suspect someone did it on purpose?” An Jing frowned. There were only three people in the dorm room. It couldn’t be Lu Yuqi, leaving Liu Yang, and…his brother An Nanyi.
Of the three, the only one who had a conflict with Lin Qingyan was An Nanyi. An Jing didn’t want to suspect his brother, forced a smile, and said, “I think it’s an accident. There are cameras in the dorm room. Who would dare do this?”
He had watched his younger brother grow up. He was well-behaved and sensible since childhood, except for being a bit competitive… But An Jing couldn’t help but recall the theme song assessment and felt like he had never truly understood his brother.
“If you don’t investigate, I will.” Gu Fei’s tone became even colder. His low and harsh voice transmitted through the phone into An Jing’s ears. “I won’t allow anyone to hurt him.”
An Jing was stunned, then compromised helplessly. “Fine, I’ll give you an explanation.”
After hanging up, An Jing turned back to the ward, but saw the young man already up, dressed neatly, standing by the window looking out. The morning sun shone on his profile, highlighting the pale lines of his face, revealing an unspeakable fragility.
An Jing stopped, his gaze lingering on him, and met the gaze of the young man who had turned around.
Lin Qingyan pursed his lips and smiled politely. “An Jing, I’m almost better. I don’t want to miss training. Can I go back now?”
“You can, but if you feel any discomfort, tell me.” An Jing suddenly had the urge to pat the young man’s head but stopped himself. He smiled gently. “Let’s go.”
“Mm.”
——
The hospital was near the recording location. It took ten minutes to drive back. After returning, An Jing learned that something else had happened: Lu Yuqi and Liu Yang had fought. If it weren’t for the program managers rushing over to stop them, Liu Yang would be in the hospital now.
Young Master Lu was truly bold, fighting without any reservations, using underhanded tactics. Liu Yang seemed fine on the surface, but he winced in pain.
An Jing felt a headache. He coldly reprimanded the trainees who were watching the commotion, and after everyone left, he closed the dorm room door and looked at the four people in front of him:
Lu Yuqi leaned against the wall with his arms crossed, talking casually to Lin Qingyan. Liu Yang glared resentfully at Lu Yuqi, but was intimidated by the other’s gaze and lowered his head. An Nanyi lowered his head, looking frightened and pitiful.
An Jing said coldly, “Stand up straight.”
“Yan Yan, you don’t need to stand, sit down.”
After questioning, the situation was as expected. Lu Yuqi suspected An Nanyi had intentionally locked the door.
An Nanyi said he had woken up to use the restroom and found the door ajar, so he closed it and locked it. He was half-asleep and didn’t know Lin Qingyan hadn’t returned.
Lu Yuqi, of course, didn’t believe him.
Liu Yang was also unconvinced. After arguing for a while, they started fighting. Young people in their teens and twenties are prone to impulsive actions, and fighting is their way of resolving problems.
“Brother, it’s all my fault. Blame me. Liu Yang did this to help me.” An Nanyi said softly, his eyes red and his gaze downcast.
Lu Yuqi glanced at him and sneered. “You do have some self-awareness.”
An Jing looked at Lu Yuqi and said sternly, “Isn’t cleaning the practice room enough? Should I add cleaning the toilets?”
Young Master Lu pouted and said nothing.
No matter how big the conflict between them, it couldn’t disrupt training. An Jing scolded them and sent them back to the practice room.
After dismissing them, An Jing sighed silently and asked the staff to check the surveillance footage. The situation was similar to what An Nanyi said, but there were also differences.
Around two in the morning, Lin Qingyan hadn’t returned. An Nanyi got up to use the restroom. When he came out, he seemed to glance at Lin Qingyan’s bed, then locked the door.
But the room was very dark, and it was impossible to determine if An Nanyi noticed the empty bed. The door was closed, so why did he specifically lock it?
This contradicted An Nanyi’s previous statement that he saw the door ajar and closed and locked it.
An Jing stared intently at the surveillance video, his heart sinking little by little. He didn’t know what to do. Emotionally, he shouldn’t suspect his brother; rationally, Nan Nan was the most suspicious.
He had promised Gu Fei an explanation.
He couldn’t help but recall the boy’s fragile and helpless appearance when he was sick… After hesitating for a moment, An Jing finally decided to call An Nanyi over.
He played the relevant section of the surveillance video for An Nanyi and carefully observed his brother’s micro-expressions. An Jing, a former film emperor, was skilled at acting; no disguise could escape his eyes.