Yan Chong looked up at Su Xingyan, a slow smile spreading across his face. The morning sun streamed through the sealed floor to ceiling windows, making his smile radiate a chill. Su Xingyan’s hand remained on the doorknob. When he turned back to look at Yan Chong, his eyes were filled with disbelief.
“What do you mean? You’re locking me in?” Su Xingyan laughed out of pure frustration. “Yan Chong, do you know that restricting personal freedom is against the law? I can call the police and have you arrested!”
Perhaps because he was still running a low fever, Su Xingyan’s voice trembled with rage. No one had ever dared to treat him like this.
“Oh, really?”
Yan Chong seemed entirely unfazed. Hearing this, he narrowed his eyes at the furious Su Xingyan, smiled nonchalantly, and even pulled out his phone, “kindly” asking, “Should I dial the emergency number for you then? Nine, nine, nine, hm?”
Seeing Yan Chong actually about to dial, Su Xingyan’s heart tightened. Frowning, he reached out to grab the phone, only for Yan Chong to wrap an arm around his waist and slam him against the door.
“I suggest you behave yourself. Unless you want to be locked up for the rest of your life.”
Yan Chong’s scorching heat enveloped him in an instant, his sharp black eyes glaring fiercely down at Su Xingyan. Su Xingyan looked stunning even when angry, especially those glistening eyes. Yan Chong narrowed his eyes, scrutinizing him with an amused expression. He knew Su Xingyan wouldn’t call the police. That man cared too much about his pride, if it were anything else, fine, but if this matter blew up further, he wouldn’t be able to handle it.
With a faint smile, Yan Chong tightened his grip on Su Xingyan’s waist, pulling him into his chest. “Now you know to run? Why didn’t you run last night when I wasn’t around, hm?”
Su Xingyan’s pupils contracted, his teeth chattering from anger. Last night? How dared he bring up last night! Last night, he was worried Yan Chong would be put in a tough spot by the old matriarch of the Yan family, and secondly, this bastard had acted like such a refined gentleman, how could he have known he would turn out so vile?!
“I didn’t know last night that you were so shameless! Disgusting!”
“I’ve always been this shameless and disgusting. You didn’t know before, but do you know now?”
Yan Chong narrowed his eyes, laughing in anger. Seeing Su Xingyan glaring up at him with hatred, he grabbed his jaw and forcibly kissed him. Su Xingyan’s eyes widened in shock, his heart hammering against his ribs. He fought to push the man away, but his wrists were pinned above his head, and Yan Chong wedged a long leg between his, pinning him against the door to take his fill of the kiss.
His words were so cold and harsh. Yet his lips were so soft and sweet. Yan Chong felt he simply couldn’t get enough of kissing him.
After an agonizingly long moment, Yan Chong finally released his lips. Panting heavily, he rubbed his warm cheek against Su Xingyan’s, letting out a low, amused sigh: “You could trust anyone, yet you chose to trust me.”
Having slept through the night, Su Xingyan’s fever was spiking again. Being forcefully pressed against the door and kissed made his head spin even more. Distressed, Su Xingyan closed his eyes and took a deep breath, trying his best to suppress the nausea rushing to his stomach. When he opened his eyes again to glare at Yan Chong, his clear gaze was filled with stubborn defiance. But he didn’t speak. He lacked the energy to speak.
Yan Chong narrowed his eyes, finding his flushed, utterly humiliated appearance both infuriating and amusing. After a moment of silence, he used his thumb to stroke Su Xingyan’s swollen lips, softening his voice by his ear. “I know where you want to go… Now that Sun Bailang is dead, whether it’s CY or Hongye, the ground outside both offices is blocked by crowds holding banners, demanding justice for Sun. Not to mention the Sun family, they probably want to chop you both to death. Wei Chengran ran away long ago, and Wei Zhenning will likely cut ties immediately.”
Yan Chong stared at him, raising a dark eyebrow. “You go out now, are you tired of living and want them to hack you to death? Hm?”
“…That has nothing to do with you!” Su Xingyan gritted his teeth, glaring back.
“How does it have nothing to do with me? I told you long ago, we’re grasshoppers tied to the same string,” Yan Chong let out a light laugh, his narrow phoenix eyes slanting with teasing amusement. “If you die, I’ll still have to collect your corpse.”
Outside the window, the rain pitter-pattered incessantly. People in Ronggang were superstitious, praying to gods and Buddha for peace of mind; they would never speak such jinxing words. But who was Yan Chong? Yan Chong didn’t care about any of it. He believed in neither ghosts nor karma. He was like a man with no origin and no destination.
Su Xingyan was completely different from him. Taking a light breath, he bit his pale lower lip and stared at Yan Chong in silence. He didn’t want to pay any mind to this bastard, his feverish brain was a complete blank, and he barely processed what Yan Chong said. Under his gaze, Yan Chong’s heart inexplicably softened. Sighing softly, he didn’t care whether Su Xingyan would struggle or not; he forcefully scooped him up into a princess carry and strode toward the master bedroom.
“What are you doing? Put me down!” Su Xingyan’s eyes widened, a sudden weightlessness making his heart leap into his throat.
“I’m taking you back to the room. Where else do you want to go?” Yan Chong raised an eyebrow, shooting a glance at the panicked Su Xingyan in his arms. His thin lips curved into a nonchalant yet unreasonable smirk. “You stay right here. If you dare leave, I’ll go to the Wei family and the Su family to look for people. You know I’m capable of it. So, you’d better not move.”
“…Yan Chong, you bastard!” To speak of restricting personal freedom in such a grand manner!
Su Xingyan was furious, turning his face away and refusing to look at him. But unable to hold back his anger, he raised his hand and thudded a punch onto Yan Chong’s back. Yan Chong merely looked down at him and chuckled softly, “Yeah, I am.” Su Xingyan was still sick, so his punch carried no real force. Yan Chong wanted to tell him that if he wanted to hit him, he’d better wait until he recovered, but he feared Su Xingyan would hold a grudge.
Su Xingyan is a petty guy, Yan Chong thought.
The spring rain continued relentlessly, tapping against the tightly shut doors and windows, washing the greenery outside into a vivid, glistening shine. Yan Chong carried Su Xingyan step by step back to the master bedroom, took a thermometer to check his temperature. 38.3°C, indeed a low fever. Frowning slightly, Yan Chong went to pour a bowl of medicine and handed it over.
“Drink it. If the fever doesn’t drop in a bit, I’ll call the doctor over.” Yan Chong held out the steaming bowl with one hand.
Su Xingyan turned his face away, still angry, ignoring him.
“Not drinking?” Yan Chong didn’t pamper him either. Narrowing his eyes, he smiled knowingly, nodded, and continued. “Ah, so you want me to feed you. That’s fine, I can do that.”
“What kind of crazy episode are you having now!”
Out of the corner of his eye, Su Xingyan saw Yan Chong take a sip from the bowl himself after saying those words. Su Xingyan’s eyes widened in horror. Realizing immediately what he was planning to do next, he instinctively reached out to snatch the bowl. Mid-air, realizing something was wrong, he tried to pull back, but Yan Chong grabbed his wrist.
“If you don’t want me to feed you, then drink it yourself.”
Yan Chong’s dark eyes carried immense pressure. With one hand clamping Su Xingyan’s wrist, the other held the bowl in front of him. “Drink it.”
Su Xingyan: ?
Su Xingyan stared at him in silence for three seconds before finally taking a deep breath, pulling his hand back, and taking the bowl. Glancing at the spot where Yan Chong had drunk, he frowned slightly, subtly rotated the bowl to the other side, pinched his nose, and gulped it down.
Very bitter. Su Xingyan had hated drinking medicine since childhood.
Looking at his furrowed brows, Yan Chong smirked with interest. “You’re actually afraid of bitterness.” Yan Chong teased him, “So delicate.”
Su Xingyan gave him a cold side eye without saying a word, handing the empty bowl back to Yan Chong. Yan Chong looked down, it was clean, with nothing left but a few dregs. Very obedient. He really was obedient.
Su Xingyan wiped his mouth with a handkerchief, breathed softly, and asked icily with a cold glare: “How long do you plan to lock me up?”
“Didn’t I tell you? As soon as Wei Chengran brings the person back to me, I’ll let you go.” Yan Chong took the bowl, his gaze sweeping over Su Xingyan’s flushed, angry face, a somewhat wicked smile playing on his lips. “Why? Is your memory that bad? Forgotten already?”
At the very least, wait until the Sun Bailang mess blows over, Yan Chong thought.
“Are you insane! Yan Chong, do you have any respect for the law?! You’re a lunatic!”
Su Xingyan’s chest heaved with rage. Throwing off the blanket, he tried to get out of bed. Yan Chong frowned and grabbed his wrist. Driven mad by rage and fever, Su Xingyan raised his other hand and slapped Yan Chong across the face. Yan Chong’s brows furrowed as he looked up at Su Xingyan with a cold, indifferent glare. That single look sent an inexplicable chill through Su Xingyan’s heart. Seeing Su Xingyan still trying to get out of bed, Yan Chong simply grabbed him by the waist, threw him onto the bed, and pinned his wrists above his head when Su Xingyan tried to strike again.
“Not done yet? Gotten addicted to hitting me, hm?”
Yan Chong’s left cheek was still burning. Pressing tightly against Su Xingyan, his dark eyes darkened dangerously as he stared intensely at him.
Su Xingyan’s body was both burning hot and soft.
Yan Chong’s throat bobbed, vivid memories flashing back in his mind. Meeting his dark, brooding gaze, Su Xingyan seemed to guess what this bastard was thinking. Gritting his teeth, his entire body trembled with rage. “…What are you thinking about!”
Yan Chong curved his thin lips, staring at him as he said unhurriedly. “Whatever you’re thinking, I’m thinking.”
“…You’re shameless!”
Su Xingyan’s face flushed so red it looked ready to bleed. Unwilling to let Yan Chong see his disheveled state, he bit his lip hard and turned his face away. Yan Chong stared at the crimson blush spreading from his cheek to his earlobe. Narrowing his eyes with interest, he leaned down, deliberately whispering against his ear. “So pretty. When are you going to wear it again?”
Without warning, Yan Chong received another slap from Su Xingyan.
He deserved it. He brought it upon himself.
After walking out of the bedroom, Yan Chong called Tang Chao. Tang Chao’s voice sounded somewhat anxious: “Mr. Yan, the Hongye office building is completely blocked by the Sun family right now. They’ve put up banners demanding a life for a life. A large group of reporters has also gathered to stake out the place. Wei Zhenning happened to get trapped today, over a dozen bodyguards struggled immensely and still couldn’t get him out. I heard he was hit during the scuffle, but no specific photos have leaked.”
“The reporters keep demanding an explanation, but Wei Zhenning remains tight-lipped, offering only superficial pleasantries and vague statements. No real action.”
Yan Chong let out a knowing smirk. Of course Wei Zhenning could only say that now, what else could he do? Apologize and pay compensation on behalf of his precious son? Wouldn’t that be equivalent to dumping a bucket of filth onto his own head? Even if Wei Zhenning agreed, Hongye’s shareholders wouldn’t. Wei Zhenning was probably racking his brain for a way to sever ties. He didn’t hold shares in CY, so cutting ties wasn’t impossible; the hard part was that damned father-son relationship.
Yan Chong let out a contemptuous laugh. Then he heard Tang Chao hesitate before continuing. “The reporters couldn’t get anything out of Wei Zhenning, so they turned their sights onto President Su… Uh, they seem to keep demanding President Su step forward to respond, but since he’s nowhere to be found, some rumors dug up the previous wedding banquet incident, saying they suspect… President Su is with you.”
“Who is suspecting? Yan Youwei?”
Yan Chong’s face darkened. Hanging up on Tang Chao, he immediately dialed Yan Youwei’s number. Before the other side could speak, Yan Chong sneered, his tone chillingly sinister. “Youwei, if you’re tired of living, just let me know. You don’t need to wait for the King of Hell to collect you. I can send you to hell right now.”
In broad daylight, Yan Youwei shivered uncontrollably. He blurted out frantically. “I-I-I’ll have them retract the news immediately!”
“Don’t drag Su Xingyan into this. Not a single word.” Yan Chong said.
Su Xingyan was still running a low fever, feeling dazed and groggy. As soon as Yan Chong left, he burroed into the covers and went back to sleep. When he woke up again, it was already dusk. Rubbing his sleepy eyes as he sat up, he saw Yan Chong pushing a small food cart into the room.
“Awake?” Yan Chong had his sleeves rolled up to his elbows, a half-apron tied around his waist. Meeting Su Xingyan’s gaze, he smiled with a slight curve of his lips, looking in high spirits. “Just in time. Sit up and let’s eat together.”
Su Xingyan glanced at him, his brain still foggy from sleep. Once he processed the situation, he closed his eyes, pulled the blanket over his head, and tried to go back to sleep.
Yan Chong raised an eyebrow, his handsome face freezing for a moment. Seconds later, he stopped the cart, sat on the edge of the bed, and frowned as he reached to pull off the blanket. “What kind of daydream takes a whole day to sleep off? Get up and eat; you haven’t eaten all day.”
Just as Yan Chong pulled the blanket back, Su Xingyan annoyed pulled it right back. Back and forth they went. Being sick, Su Xingyan was no match for Yan Chong’s strength, and combined with his morning grumpiness, he simply threw off the blanket and sat up, glaring furiously at Yan Chong. “Yan Chong, do you know how annoying you are?!”
“I’m annoying?”
Yan Chong had been catering to this ancestor all day and was starting to lose his patience. He had been coaxing him gently all day, yet Su Xingyan hadn’t given him a single pleasant look and had even slapped him. Even a clay man has a temper. Yan Chong narrowed his eyes, staring at Su Xingyan with a cold laugh. “What on earth did I do to make you hate me so much? Did I beat you? Scold you? Insult you?”