Gu Jing Shen pushed open the door of the high-end apartment and strode inside.
The living room was brightly lit, casting a cold gray glow over his sharp, angular features.
The moment Lin Wan Yin saw Gu Jing Shen’s figure, she immediately rushed out from the corner of the sofa and threw herself into his arms like a drowning person who had finally found something to cling to.
She wrapped both arms tightly around his waist, her shoulders trembling as she sobbed pitifully.
“Jing Shen…
you’re finally here!” Lin Wan Yin buried her head against his chest, her voice choked and trembling, as though she had suffered countless grievances.
“Why has it become so hard to see you lately?
I call and text you over and over before you finally reply, and even then, you’re not nearly as warm as you used to be.” Gu Jing Shen stood still as she clung tightly to him, his eyes utterly calm, without the slightest ripple of emotion.
He answered in a deep, even voice devoid of warmth.
“I’ve been busy with work at the company lately, and I’ve also been dealing with some rather complicated legal matters.” The polite explanation did nothing to satisfy Lin Wan Yin.
She lifted her beautiful face to look at him, tightening her arms around his waist even more as her voice broke with grievance.
“You were busy before too, but you never abandoned me and the child like this!
Every weekend, you would always make time to take us to the supermarket and buy toys for Tian Yi.
But these past few weeks, you’ve practically disappeared.
Jing Shen, tell me the truth…
Do I and the child no longer mean anything to you?
Or…
do you have another woman?” Lin Wan Yin clutched the hem of Gu Jing Shen’s shirt tightly, as though she was afraid that the moment she let go, he would disappear.
Gu Jing Shen said nothing.
He placed a hand on Lin Wan Yin’s shoulder and gently but firmly pushed her away, deliberately creating some distance between them.
His silence and distant attitude were like a bucket of cold water poured directly over Lin Wan Yin.
“Why aren’t you saying anything?
Say something!” Lin Wan Yin demanded, refusing to let him off.
“Your silence means you’re admitting it, doesn’t it?
You really have another woman, don’t you?” Gu Jing Shen frowned and was about to speak.
“Wan Nuan, you…” Before he could finish, Lin Wan Yin completely lost control.
She began crying and making a scene.
“You don’t love me anymore!
Have you forgotten everything you promised me and my son?
We’ve endured so much humiliation because of you, and now you’re treating me like this!” In a fit of anger, Lin Wan Yin lunged at Gu Jing Shen, raising both hands and pounding wildly against his chest and shoulders as she screamed and cursed.
“You’re such a terrible man!
You’re a liar!
Gu Jing Shen, how could you be so heartless to me?” Looking at the woman in front of him who was completely out of control, Gu Jing Shen’s patience finally reached its limit.
His eyes darkened dangerously.
In the blink of an eye, Gu Jing Shen reached out and caught both of Lin Wan Yin’s wrists, locking them firmly in midair.
His grip was not particularly forceful, but it was strong enough to keep her from moving even an inch.
“That’s enough!
Stop making a scene!” Gu Jing Shen’s deep voice was as cold as ice, every word carrying an unmistakable warning.
The chill in his eyes made Lin Wan Yin freeze.
She was breathing heavily, her trembling lips unable to form another word.
Gu Jing Shen released her wrists, straightened his wrinkled shirt, and spoke with complete rationality, cutting through her entire emotional performance.
“How is the boy?” Lin Wan Yin seemed to wake from her rage, suddenly remembering why she had called Gu Jing Shen here in the first place.
She hurriedly explained, sounding aggrieved.
“Tian Yi has had a high fever of thirty-nine degrees.
I gave him fever-reducing medicine an hour ago, but his temperature still hasn’t gone down.
He’s been so lethargic, and I was so panicked that I didn’t know what to do, so I had no choice but to call you…” Before she could finish, Gu Jing Shen had already strode quickly toward the child’s bedroom.
The bedroom was dimly illuminated by a soft orange bedside lamp.
On the single bed lay six-year-old Lin Tian Yi, his small, thin body motionless in a feverish stupor.
The boy’s cheeks were flushed bright red from the fever, his lips dry and cracked, while his little chest rose and fell with every wheezing, labored breath.
Lin Wan Yin followed him inside, but after taking only a few steps, her body suddenly swayed.
She raised a hand to her head, staggering as she struggled to remain standing.
By instinct, Gu Jing Shen quickly reached out and caught Lin Wan Yin by the shoulder, preventing her from collapsing onto the hard wooden floor.
“Are you all right?” he asked as he helped her sit down in the armchair nearby.
Lin Wan Yin weakly shook her head, her slender fingers immediately tightening around Gu Jing Shen’s forearm and refusing to let go.
“I’ve had to stay up all night taking care of the child these past few days, so I’m a little dizzy…
Jing Shen, thank you for always appearing whenever I need you the most.
Without you by our side, my son and I really don’t know how we’d survive…” Gu Jing Shen looked down at the hand clinging tightly to his sleeve.
His gaze became distant, and the image of Su Jin Yue suddenly flashed through his mind.
She was a strong, decisive woman who had never bowed her head or begged for anyone’s sympathy, no matter how many storms she faced or how much pressure and intimidation came from her own biological father.
The stark contrast between Lin Wan Yin and Su Jin Yue made him even more clear-headed.
Gu Jing Shen calmly pried Lin Wan Yin’s fingers away from his arm one by one.
He straightened up and took a step back, maintaining his distance from her.
His face remained completely expressionless.
“If you’re feeling unwell, go to the hospital and get yourself checked.
I’m not a doctor.
I can’t treat you.” His voice was even and distant, as though he were speaking to a complete stranger.
Gu Jing Shen’s coldness and ruthless indifference only made Lin Wan Yin more certain of one thing: he truly had another woman.
She looked up at him, her lips trembling as each broken word escaped her.
“Jing Shen…
you’ve changed.
You really have changed…
You never used to say such cruel things to me.” Gu Jing Shen did not care about her reproach.
He walked over to the bed and knelt down on one knee.
He gently placed his large, slightly cool hand against the child’s forehead, which was burning like a hot coal.
In his feverish daze, Lin Tian Yi stirred slightly.
The boy narrowed his swollen eyes, his tiny, frail hand instinctively reaching into the air.
He caught hold of Gu Jing Shen’s finger and murmured weakly, his voice broken and faint.
“Dad…
Dad!
I don’t feel well…” Lin Wan Yin stepped closer and stood beside Gu Jing Shen, her voice choked with emotion, deliberately tugging at his sympathy.
“See?
He misses you so much that even in his feverish delirium, he keeps calling for you.
He’s always waiting for you to come.
Every day, he asks me why it’s been so long since Dad came to see him.
You’ve disappeared for weeks, and the poor child missed you so much that he even got sick.” Gu Jing Shen paid no attention to Lin Wan Yin’s attempts to manipulate his emotions.
His eyes remained fixed on the child trembling from the high fever.
“Your son has such a high fever, and the medicine isn’t bringing it down.
You don’t know enough to take him to the hospital?” Gu Jing Shen turned to look at Lin Wan Yin.
“What kind of mother are you?” “I…
I was so panicked that I just couldn’t think of it for a moment,” Lin Wan Yin explained awkwardly.
Not giving Lin Wan Yin another chance to continue her emotional act, Gu Jing Shen calmly removed the child’s tiny fingers from his own, then rose to his feet.
He pulled the thin blanket tightly around the boy, decisively scooped him up into his arms, held the child securely against his chest, and strode quickly out of the apartment.
Lin Wan Yin stood frozen for a moment.
She could only hurriedly grab her handbag before rushing after him.