Chapter 49: Of Course I Want You to Never Stand Up Again!
Shen Chuyan violently whipped back Jian An’s bedsheets, his face clouded with a dark, brooding storm. As he stared at that fair, flawless face, he gritted his teeth and hissed a low curse.
“Bitch!”
Back in school, Jian An had snatched away every honor and ranking. He was not only the “Class Flower” but also the “Department Grass,” always surrounded by an endless swarm of pursuers.
If it hadn’t been for his own status as the pampered young master of the Shen family—with all the wealth and power that came with it—Shen Chuyan wouldn’t have even bothered to fight him tooth and nail. He likely would have ended up like an ugly duckling, trampled beneath everyone’s feet.
He glared with eyes full of resentment, a deep-seated hatred surging through his bones, nearly consuming him whole.
If Ji Songting hadn’t suddenly appeared last time, would Jian An even still be alive, lying here in the ICU?
He wouldn’t let this man die just like that. After all, watching someone linger in a state between life and death—suffering until they wished they were dead—was far more entertaining, wasn’t it?
A moment later, Shen Chuyan grabbed the cold water from the bedside table and splashed it directly onto Jian An’s face. The icy liquid trickled through his hair and soaked into the bedding without leaving a single drop behind.
The sudden, bone-chilling cold jolted Jian An awake from his drug-induced stupor. He gave a sharp, involuntary shiver as a wave of terror flashed in the depths of his eyes.
He wiped the cold water from his face. Seeing his palms drenched and looking up, he saw Shen Chuyan standing before him with his arms crossed, a cold sneer on his face.
“Jian An, why haven’t you died yet?!”
Once he fully recognized that pure yet malicious face, Jian An was struck with fear and panic. His current inability to move even an inch made him feel vulnerable and in grave danger.
He struggled with all his might to prop himself up, but no matter how hard he tried, his efforts were in vain. His body felt as heavy as if it were filled with lead, far too heavy to lift.
Only his voice remained, rasping out like sandpaper across a wooden table. “You… what on earth do you want?”
“What do I want? Heh.”
Shen Chuyan tilted his head and smirked, a chill in his smile that made one shiver. He then strolled leisurely to the foot of the bed.
Suddenly, he seized Jian An’s sensationless legs with both hands, his voice turning sharp and shrill.
“Of course, I want you to never be able to stand up again!”
The person standing nearby was no longer fragile; instead, he looked more like a madman. Jian An’s heart filled with rage and terror. Watching the other man’s fingers dig tightly into his thighs while he was unable to resist, he screamed with every ounce of strength he had left.
“You don’t have to drive me to such a dead end! Don’t you want to enter the Ji family? Don’t you want to marry Ji Songting? I’ll step aside! I’ll step aside for both of you…!”
He knew what Shen Chuyan was thinking, and he knew the man was capable of anything right now. He truly didn’t dare to go through the agony of a near-death experience ever again.
At twenty-four, he had spent so many years gambling everything on things that were forever out of reach. Now, he was finally ready to hand over the person he had valued more than life itself…
He stubbornly wanted to maintain a final shred of dignity, to live at least one day for himself in the few days he had left.
Hearing this, Shen Chuyan froze in disbelief. His grip on the man’s thighs slowly loosened.
Had he heard correctly?!
Jian An was actually saying to his face that he would divorce Ji Songting? Had he been struck so hard by the car that his brain was broken?!
He didn’t believe it. Jian An had grit his teeth and endured for three years, refusing to sign the divorce papers. Why would he suddenly mention divorce now? He must be saying whatever he could to trick him out of fear for his own life!
After all, this man was incredibly stubborn and always did the opposite of what Shen Chuyan wanted! He tried to snatch everything from him!
At this thought, Shen Chuyan’s eyes turned bloodshot. His expression grew increasingly dark and ugly as he glared at the youth. Intense murderous intent and loathing flickered in those beautiful, dark pupils.
He walked slowly to the head of the bed, a sinister smile on his lips. He reached out a slender finger to stroke Jian An’s cheek, only for the youth to turn his head away in disgust.
This movement thoroughly enraged Shen Chuyan. He angrily pinched Jian An’s face, forcing him to look at him. His gaze was as cold and venomous as if it were laced with poison.
“Then A-Ting and I really must thank you for stepping aside and giving us your blessing~ But I don’t believe you’d give in so easily, Jian An! I won’t be fooled by you that easily!”
Jian An struggled to raise a hand and grab the wrist pinching his cheek, then shoved it away with force. He gasped for breath intermittently, a trace of resolve appearing in his sorrowful eyes.
“Shen Chuyan, what would I gain by lying to you in this state? You can have Ji Songting bring the divorce papers over. I’ll sign them, and I won’t hesitate…”
“My, my, have you finally given up? Who was it that loved him to death back then, insisting it had to be A-Ting? Perhaps your body is already filthy, and you’re just so eager for a divorce so you can hide it from him while trying to get a share of the assets?”
Shen Chuyan wiped his hand in disgust as if he had touched something filthy. He rolled his eyes ruthlessly, his face full of deep contempt. Then, he let out a fake gasp of surprise.
“Jian An, I really underestimated what a disgusting slut you are~ Tell me honestly, how many times have you seduced my brother? You’re not doing those kinds of things right here in the ward, are you?”
Jian An stared at him blankly, gasping for air. His eyes were bloodshot as he choked out.
“Shen Yunheng is your brother… your own flesh and blood. How can you slander him so shamelessly? He is such a good person. Do you even deserve to be his brother…?”
As he said this, he actually let out a mocking laugh right in front of Shen Chuyan. Despite the man’s face growing terrifyingly dark, he continued as if to himself.
“Besides, you’re always so fond of slandering the innocence between Yunheng and me for no reason. Tell me, did you see anything with your own eyes? Do you have evidence? Look at how disgusting you are!”
The words were followed by a loud, heavy slap. Five bright red, stinging finger marks immediately appeared on Jian An’s jade-white face, and a trickle of blood seeped from the corner of his mouth.
“Whether I deserve it or not is none of your business! What kind of brother is he? A brother who sides with outsiders?!”
Shen Chuyan gripped the youth’s wrist in a death grip, his eyes wide with rage and his face twisted into a mask of ferocity. His voice turned shrill and ear-piercing.
“I’m telling you, don’t even think about marrying my brother and becoming the Mistress of the Shen family after the divorce! Dream on! As long as I, Shen Chuyan, am in the Shen family, don’t you dare dream of crawling your way in!”
The seemingly weak and petite youth possessed a strength that was startling. It felt as if he were trying to snap the arm and crush the bone. Jian An resisted for a while but couldn’t break free.
Ultimately, he stopped struggling. His weak body simply couldn’t find any more strength. He could only manage to keep his eyes open, his vacant gaze filled with resentment.
To Shen Chuyan, such a gaze was undoubtedly a naked provocation. How could someone as proud and arrogant as him ever endure that?
The next second, he violently ripped out an IV tube and used it to bind Jian An’s arms together in a tight, tangled mess. A few bright red drops of blood suddenly sprayed from the needle, landing on the clean white pillow in a jarring, vivid display.
Jian An tugged at the tube in a panic, trying to move his body to sit up, but he was easily pinned down by the shoulder. He shouted.
“Let go of me…! I never had any intention of marrying Yunheng! And I’m already prepared to divorce Ji Songting! I didn’t even settle the score with you for stealing my work. How long are you going to keep being so aggressive?!”
“Stealing your work? Have you been struck stupid by the car? You’re probably only mentioning divorce to save your own life, aren’t you?”
Shen Chuyan let out a disdainful snicker, his gaze cold to the extreme. He slowly opened an insulated carrier of chicken soup, poured a bowl into the lid, and spoke in a voice that suddenly turned gentle.
“Don’t be afraid. I’m not going to do anything to you. I just remembered that every time I was sick, you’d brew soup for me. Now that you’re about to die, I should show a bit of appreciation too…”
Hearing this, the pupils in Jian An’s eyes shrank with pure terror. He could only shake his head frantically, his first instinct telling him that there was absolutely something wrong with that bowl of chicken soup. He gasped in horror.
“I won’t drink it! Don’t come any closer! Get out!”
As he watched the youth with the sinister smile approach him step by step, his instinctive fear turned into despair. His eyes were filled with deep-seated resentment and agony.
This feeling of being in a state worse than death tortured him to the extreme, pushing him to the brink of madness. Never had he longed for Shen Yunheng’s appearance more than he did right now.
The more he struggled, the more excited Shen Chuyan became. He even felt an impulse to swallow him whole.
Standing at the head of the bed, he held the scalding chicken soup in his left hand and pinched Jian An’s cheeks with the other. His long nails dug into the flesh as he brutally forced the man’s tightly closed mouth open.
Jian An’s brows knit in pain, but he grit his teeth and refused to open his mouth. His thin lips were turned red by the heat, and a crystal tear slowly rolled from the corner of his eye.
“Drink it!”
Shen Chuyan’s voice suddenly became even more shrill, like a blade scraping harshly against glass, thick with fury. “If you don’t open your mouth, don’t even think about living!”
The soup, fresh off the stove, was incredibly hot. When it splashed against his cheek, it felt like a searing burn, the stinging pain spreading instantly throughout his body.
His eyes burned with a spicy ache, and his nose turned bright red. Tears began to flow uncontrollably, leaving Jian An in a wretched, unrecognizable state.
Why was there no end to this torture?
He would have been better off dying in that car accident, escaping all this drama and sleeping forever…
The temperature of the chicken soup scalded his tongue. Jian An began to cough violently, spitting up several mouthfuls of fresh blood mixed with the soup onto the white sheets.
Seeing that not a single drop had entered his stomach, Shen Chuyan immediately grew furious. He poured the remaining soup from the carrier into the bowl, pinched the other man’s jaw with force, and said.
“You actually dare to spit out the chicken soup I prepared for you? Swallow it! Don’t you dare spit it out!”
Under such intense abuse, Jian An let out a few moans of pain, yet he was still forced to swallow.
“How is it? How does it taste? Is it good?”
Shen Chuyan licked his teeth in satisfaction, the corner of his mouth curling into a smirk. He tossed the metal lid aside with a clang and then took a tissue to slowly wipe his fingers.
“Blegh…”
Seeing Jian An trying to vomit up the soup that had been forced down his throat, he quickly pulled up the quilt to gag him.
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