Went back and retrieved it???
For the second time in less than two hours, Chu Tingyun was stunned in place.
He immediately grabbed Yan Xun’s hand and examined the ring carefully, confirming that it was indeed the original and not a replica.
“……”
At this moment, Chu Tingyun felt a whirlwind of emotions inside.
“So how did you retrieve it?”
He couldn’t wrap his head around it. He had jumped into the water right after Yan Xun left, and later even hired a professional salvage team. Neither he nor the team could find it, but Yan Xun somehow got it back easily?
And more importantly…
“Yan Xun, aren’t you afraid of water?”
Back when they were at the hot springs, Yan Xun refused to go in, and he had almost drowned in a 1.2-meter-deep pool despite being 1.87 meters tall. Now he casually mentioned retrieving the ring from the water?
Chu Tingyun was a hundred percent unconvinced!
“Did you even throw it away in the first place?”
“…I threw it.”
Yan Xun had indeed thrown it.
At that time, it was his third time asking for a divorce, and it just so happened that Chu Tingyun had checked Yan Xun’s phone and found that his secret Weibo account was following a fan page dedicated to Zhou Ze, even liking the latest post.
That’s when the jealousy pot boiled over.
Chu Tingyun thought Yan Xun wanted a divorce because of Zhou Ze, so he once again used Zhou Ze as leverage, thinking that would make Yan Xun back down from the divorce.
As expected, it hit a nerve again.
Yan Xun was truly furious at the time. He had already severed ties with his only good friend, ending a decade-long friendship just like that. Even after that, Chu Tingyun still wouldn’t leave Zhou Ze alone.
Fine then, this marriage had to end!
In his rage, Yan Xun threw the ring right in front of Chu Tingyun.
“…You really threw it?”
Chu Tingyun still couldn’t wrap his head around it; the whole thing felt surreal.
“If you threw it, why couldn’t I find it?”
When it came to tasks unrelated to emotions, President Chu was very confident in his abilities. He believed there was nothing he couldn’t do.
Yan Xun simply said, “I threw it… but I didn’t lose it.”
Chu Tingyun: “…”
Is this even Chinese?
After years of thinking he had mastered Chinese as his native language again, Chu Tingyun was sure there would be no more misunderstandings. Yet now, he was utterly confused.
Seeing his puzzled look, Yan Xun pursed his lips and rephrased:
“I threw it in a fit of anger, but somehow, before it left my hand, I held onto it and didn’t let it go.” So, technically, he took it back.
Chu Tingyun: “…”
Threw it, but didn’t lose it?
Oh, so he just flicked his wrist, huh?
At this moment, President Chu was so frustrated that he almost laughed.
But after all that frustration, he didn’t laugh. Instead, he said:
“Yan Xun, you do understand the difference between ‘throw’ and ‘lose,’ right?”
Ah, the Chinese language is so profound. He just learned something new today!
Back then, during their argument in the late afternoon, the sky was already darkening. Chu Tingyun only saw Yan Xun take off his ring right in front of him and hurl it fiercely towards the pond, followed by the faint sound of something hitting the water in the distance.
Naturally, Chu Tingyun thought Yan Xun had truly thrown the ring away, so he spent the entire night desperately searching the water.
No wonder he couldn’t find it after an entire night of searching, and even after paying the park to drain the pond, the ring was nowhere to be found.
Turns out it was all just a fake-out???
And he had been tricked all this time?!!
Chu Tingyun felt angrier now than when he found out Yan Xun had pretended not to regain his memory!
“…”
Damn! Case closed after all this time.
Yan Xun had been truly angry back then and still felt a bit upset now. He grabbed Chu Tingyun’s hand and squeezed it as a form of punishment.
“I didn’t actually lose the ring, but you really did throw away my jade pendant.”
“…”
All the frustration inside Chu Tingyun deflated like a punctured balloon.
In a sulky voice, he muttered:
“Well, who told you to insist on a divorce at the time? Would you have cared if I threw away the ring?”
Yan Xun had already decided on divorce and even thrown away their wedding ring. If Chu Tingyun threw his own ring away, wouldn’t that have played right into Yan Xun’s hands?
When he searched his pockets and found nothing of equal value, he impulsively threw the jade pendant instead, as it seemed like a fitting retaliation.
But as soon as he let go of the pendant, Chu Tingyun regretted it. Yan Xun’s shocked and hurt expression at the time had made him want to dive in after it, but for some reason, he didn’t.
Yan Xun had left with the words, “This marriage is over,” and walked away.
In response, Chu Tingyun had shouted after him, “This marriage is absolutely not over!” But instead of chasing after him, he immediately dove into the water to search.
Since he hadn’t thrown the pendant too far and it had a string attached, making it easier to find than a ring, he retrieved it within an hour.
Now, Chu Tingyun pulled out the little jade Guanyin pendant to show him:
“See? I got it back, didn’t I?”
Yan Xun made a soft sound of acknowledgment, seeming to have calmed down.
“Looks like the salvage team you hired did their job well.”
“What salvage team? I fished it out myself!”
Chu Tingyun became agitated at the mention of this, even to the point of feeling a little sick.
“Yan Xun, could you at least pick a cleaner pond next time? Do you have any idea how dirty that park pond was?!”
“…You fished it out yourself?”
Yan Xun was a bit stunned. He knew that Chu Tingyun had called a salvage team and had the park pond drained, but he hadn’t realized that Chu Tingyun had actually gone into the water himself.
After all, he remembered that the pond was quite filthy. How could someone with Chu Tingyun’s cleanliness obsession actually go in?
“You could handle water that dirty?”
“Of course, I couldn’t! But I had to get the pendant back, didn’t I?”
At the time, Chu Tingyun hadn’t even thought about it before jumping in. It was only after getting into the water that he realized how disgusting it was, nearly giving his cleanliness-obsessed self a heart attack.
But now, Yan Xun was doubting him, and Chu Tingyun was so angry that he wished he could pull up the security footage to show him frame by frame!
“It was only after I couldn’t find the ring that I resorted to hiring the salvage team.”
“……”
Yan Xun was suddenly taken aback, his eyes filled with immense shock as he looked at Chu Tingyun.
His lips trembled slightly, as if he wanted to say something.
Just then, a nurse quietly reminded them:
“Gentlemen, this is a hospital. Please keep it down.”
“……”
Chu Tingyun had gotten a bit too worked up when talking about the dirty water, raising his voice without realizing it. Yan Xun quickly apologized to the nurse and dragged him out of the hospital ward.
Originally, Yan Xun had planned to find the right time and place to calmly clear up past misunderstandings. But now, he had accidentally let something slip.
Since the timing and location weren’t right, he quickly stopped himself.
“Let’s pause for now. Once we’ve handled everything at the hospital, we’ll talk at home.”
“…Fine.”
Earlier, while they were talking in the stairwell, all Chu Tingyun could think about was how Yan Xun didn’t hold him accountable for deceiving him, wasn’t going through with the divorce, and had never been in a real relationship with Jiang Jingshu. Plus, Yan Xun still had deep feelings for him.
Just those four things made President Chu so happy he could die!
He felt like none of the past mattered anymore, not at all! As long as they could live happily together from now on, that was all that counted.
But when Yan Xun mentioned the ring again, Chu Tingyun felt like the old grievances needed to be addressed one by one, sorted out properly.
First, the lawyer had interrupted them in the stairwell, and now the nurse had. Clearly, this wasn’t the right time or place.
Chu Tingyun, still holding onto some pent-up frustration, dragged Yan Xun into a secluded stairwell and kissed him fiercely before stopping.
Afterward, he felt much better. But then, belatedly, he realized something.
Catching his breath, he asked:
“We came to the hospital on short notice, so how did you get the ring?”
After a pause, he gave Yan Xun an incredulous look.
“Don’t tell me you’ve been carrying it with you this whole time?”
Yan Xun slightly turned his head and, after taking a deep breath, said:
“…Only for the past few days.”
Chu Tingyun: “…”
Tsk!
If it weren’t for the current circumstances, he’d really want to drag Yan Xun home, strip him down, and interrogate him thoroughly.
But for now, they still had to stay at the hospital and assist with the police investigation and evidence collection. There simply wasn’t enough time.
At 8:30 a.m., Lin Ran was out of surgery. By noon, after the anesthesia had worn off, he woke up.
The first thing he saw was Jiang Jingshu, her eyes red from crying, followed by Yan Xun sitting nearby, casually reading a novel on his phone.
“You’re awake?”
It was Yan Xun who spoke, as Jiang Jingshu was too choked up to say anything.
Yan Xun then pulled back the blanket to check Lin Ran’s wound. Not only did he look at it himself, but he also pointed it out to Jiang Jingshu:
“Look, Jingshu. Didn’t I tell you he’d avoid the blade? The wound is nowhere near his vital organs, just a cut on the belly.”
Yan Xun had found it strange to call her “sister,” so he switched to “Jingshu” with the addition of “senior,” creating a slight distance.
Lin Ran never expected that the moment he opened his eyes, someone would be lifting his shirt, especially in front of Jiang Jingshu. His pale face flushed slightly, and he struggled to pull the blanket back up, weakly and indignantly shouting:
“Yan Xun!”
“Don’t get worked up.”
Jiang Jingshu quickly came over to help cover him back up.
“Don’t get agitated, be careful of your wound.”
Yan Xun felt particularly complicated at this moment. He thought it made sense that he could get along well with Zhou Ze and maintain their friendship for so many years.
His idiot friend, though a bit dense, had always been straightforward and optimistic, saying whatever came to mind without hiding or internalizing anything. Even when they had conflicts, Zhou Ze could quickly swallow his pride and apologize.
But the people around Yan Xun—Lin Ran, Jiang Jingshu, and Chu Tingyun, including himself—none of them knew how to communicate properly.
Lin Ran had a sharp tongue but a soft heart; Jiang Jingshu was purely stubborn; and Chu Tingyun was just ridiculous, as if he had grown a mouth on a pile of blades.
Yan Xun was utterly exhausted.
He took a deep breath, sat down beside them, and cut straight to the point.
“When did you find out about Dad and Chen Tengxiao? And when did you start investigating?”
“……”
Lin Ran obviously froze for a moment. Then, he instinctively avoided Yan Xun’s gaze, remaining silent for quite a while before speaking.
“Half a year ago, when I just returned to the country, I found an anonymous letter left by Li Rong at my doorstep.”
Actually, Li Rong had initially sought out Lin Ran first, since he was Father Lin’s biological son. However, when he found that Lin Ran was unreachable abroad, he turned to Yan Xun instead.
After receiving the anonymous letter, Lin Ran didn’t plan to disturb Yan Xun’s life and began to investigate on his own.
In this regard, the two brothers had a strange mutual understanding, as Yan Xun had thought the same when he was investigating and specifically told Li Rong not to contact Lin Ran again.
“I got a job as a small editor at a local publishing house in Nancheng. The publishing house was originally a newspaper, and they had done a web report when Dad had his accident, even using the surveillance footage at the time.”
Traffic accident footage is generally kept for one to two months, and the traffic bureau had long since discarded it. But the publishing house might still have it.
“However, the video was too blurry, and there were no clues. So I looked for the motorcycle involved in the accident.”
After Father Lin’s accident, the motorcycle had no one to ride it. Given the family’s financial situation, Lin Ran suggested selling it.
At that time, someone quickly came to buy it, offering a surprisingly high price, so Lin Ran had a clear memory of it.
“After returning to Nancheng, it took me a long time to find that person. After some investigation, I discovered he had received a considerable ‘compensation’ from a Chen family project, and shortly after that, he came to buy the motorcycle and then destroyed it…”
At this point, everything became clear.
Lin Ran reported to the police and requested a case reopening. Naturally, if they were to investigate again, the police would have to ask Yan Xun, the surviving victim, so he came back to the capital, also to give Jiang Jingshu a heads-up.
But he never expected that upon learning the news, she would secretly investigate her own family, only to discover her father’s illness wasn’t an accident either.
Then a series of events unfolded: Jiang Jingshu was kidnapped by her younger brother and cousin, Lin Ran went to save her, and in the struggle, both sides ended up in the hospital operating room.
If it hadn’t been for Lin Ran’s instability with his prosthetic leg while trying to protect Jiang Jingshu, he would never have been stabbed.
In terms of martial arts talent, Lin Ran, inheriting Father Lin’s genes, shouldn’t be that much weaker than his brother.
“……”
After learning everything, Yan Xun felt an unprecedented understanding of the importance of communication.
Stubbornly holding on and fighting solo was not the way to go. If they had opened up earlier and discussed plans together, they wouldn’t have ended up like this!
Now that the matter had been handed over to the police, Yan Xun didn’t continue the topic but instead asked:
“So, did you isolate yourself from high school to university to become a novelist?”
Lin Ran: “……”
He immediately turned to glance at Jiang Jingshu, who said nothing but sheepishly looked away.
Yan Xun took a few steps to block Jiang Jingshu from view and continued asking:
“Zhou Ze gifted me that guitar in high school, right? You bought it with your manuscript fees, didn’t you?”
Actually, Yan Xun had found it strange how Zhou Ze had given him a guitar when teaching him in high school and then gifted him another when he returned. At that time, his clueless friend stammered, saying he could afford another one now that he was earning.
Yan Xun thought it made sense and didn’t press further. Looking back now, he felt something was off.
“Those pocket money in junior high, the new sneakers for the sports meet, the new phone I got for graduating high school, the extra red envelopes during the New Year, plus my living and tuition fees for the first three years of university—none of those came from your mother. They were all from you, right?”
Yan Xun was genuinely confused and quite angry.
“Weren’t you always jealous of me, resenting me, Lin Ran?”
“Your way of jealousy and resentment is rather unique! So fresh and unconventional, quite extraordinary?”
Probably influenced by spending so much time with Chu Tingyun, Yan Xun’s words had taken on a somewhat sarcastic tone.
“……”
Lin Ran remained silent for a long time, feeling as if he had been stripped bare. His pale face, already drained from blood loss, turned even redder.
Yan Xun never expected to meet such an awkward person in his life.
One was Lin Ran, and the other was Chu Tingyun.
Having lived together for over a decade, he felt completely unlike a brother to Lin Ran; rather, he felt Lin Ran and Chu Tingyun were more like biological brothers from different fathers.
“Xun…”
Ultimately, it was Jiang Jingshu who felt sorry for him. She gently tugged at Yan Xun’s sleeve, pleading for him not to continue provoking the injured person.
“……”
Yan Xun took a deep breath and sat back down.
“Don’t worry, I won’t be your brother anymore.”
“I found my biological parents. Once the police handle the Chen family matter, I’ll go back to Nancheng with you to terminate the adoption and change my household registration, my ID back to the original. From now on, I’ll have no ties to your family legally.”
“—Really?”
After being silent for a long time, Lin Ran finally spoke, his eyes brightening with excitement.
Yan Xun looked at him with a complicated expression:
“Why, are you happy not being my brother?”
“……”
Of course Lin Ran was happy, especially happy. He even wanted to pull Yan Xun to talk about the reunion process, what his biological parents were like, how good they were to him.
Lin Ran had never considered that his biological parents might not treat Yan Xun well, because if that were the case, Yan Xun wouldn’t have said he wanted to terminate the adoption and change his household registration.
But seeing Yan Xun’s not-so-happy expression, he kept quiet again.
“……”
Yan Xun felt his anger rising again at Lin Ran’s demeanor.
At this moment, he suddenly understood Chu Tingyun very well. He had been angry and resentful for half a day, saying all sorts of things, and yet the other person just stayed silent, stubborn as a mule.
It was incredibly infuriating.
If he hadn’t already known the truth, Yan Xun might have genuinely believed Lin Ran hated and resented him that much.
Indeed, the boomerang would come back to hit oneself, and it felt like it was piercing through the heart.
If Lin Ran hadn’t been lying injured in bed, Yan Xun would’ve definitely given him a beating.
He couldn’t stand this awkward, stubborn person. After sitting for a while, he left.
Staying inside any longer, Yan Xun felt like he would suffocate.
At this point, Chu Tingyun had already left the hospital. He had gone to the company with Jiang Zhenghai early in the morning, probably for some big moves.
Yan Xun didn’t understand those complicated business battles; otherwise, he wouldn’t have fallen into a trap set by that General Liu and gotten himself in such big trouble.
He stood in the corridor for a while, breathing in some fresh air, and then video-called his parents to briefly discuss the current situation.
“Lin Ran is fine, just woke up. He’ll probably be okay after lying down for a month or two. Chen Tengxiao is in the hospital; his dad Chen Bing and Chen Wanqing have already been taken away by the police, while Jiang Yuheng is currently missing. He’s probably fled, and the police are still searching…”
In short, nearly all the people involved had been caught. Now it was just a matter of how much evidence could be uncovered and what the court would decide.
At this thought, Yan Xun suddenly asked:
“By the way, Dad, can you restore traffic footage from over ten years ago? It’d be best if you could enlarge the details.”
Professor Ye specialized in this, so it wasn’t a problem.
“Just give it to me, and I’ll try.”
“Okay.”
By the time he hung up, it was already past one in the afternoon. Chu Tingyun had specially ordered food to be brought over.
Xueshan: “It’s a bit busy today, I’ll pick you up from the hospital at night.”
Yan Xun replied with a “good.”
After a moment’s thought, he sent a “little dog sitting obediently waiting” emoji back.
Xueshan: “Meow meow kiss.jpg”
Yan Xun stared at the chat interface for a while, and his mood finally brightened.
He had previously found the way couples chatted and the atmosphere a bit nauseating, but now he suddenly felt this was clearly the right way to connect!
The meals came in three portions. Yan Xun divided two for Lin Ran and Jiang Jingshu, while he found a separate place to eat.
He was still very angry and didn’t want to see that awkward person, Lin Ran.
In the afternoon, Yan Xun went to the police station again, then returned home to hand over the footage to his father. After that, he checked on Lin Ran’s condition at the hospital. The doctor said everything was fine, and he would just need to rest for a while.
At nine in the evening, a familiar black Maybach stopped at the hospital entrance.
It was driven by the chauffeur, and Yan Xun got into the back seat with Chu Tingyun.
Both of them knew that tonight would probably be a sleepless battle, so Yan Xun had already begun to mentally prepare as he got into the car.
Just then, his phone rang in his pocket.
Yan Xun pulled it out and was quite surprised.
—It was Zhou Ze calling.
Yan Xun glanced at Chu Tingyun, who said nothing, just raised an eyebrow.
Beep.
Yan Xun said nothing further, directly answering the call and switching it to speaker.
“Hello?”
“Ah! Yan Xun! Xun Ge! I finally wrapped up filming! Ahhhh!!! Ahahaha, I’m finally free! Hahaha…”
Zhou Ze’s voice was so loud that it echoed throughout the car, to the point where Chu Tingyun frowned in disdain.
But Yan Xun had gotten used to it, and after dealing with the two awkward people, he now found Zhou Ze’s straightforwardness quite charming.
“Wrapped up? Congrats!”
“Hehehe, let me tell you, this character is particularly charismatic, the persona is absolutely perfect!”
Zhou Ze bragged with confidence, “And I performed so well! The director and screenwriter praised me, saying this role was tailor-made for me!”
Yan Xun became a bit interested and asked, “Oh? What character?”
Zhou Ze answered proudly, “A cold-blooded, smart, decisive person with exceptional martial arts skills… a eunuch!”
Chu Tingyun: “…Pfft.”
Yan Xun: “…”
This felt oddly familiar, so Yan Xun asked, “Zhou Ze, which production company is behind this drama?”
“Tianji,” Zhou Ze replied.
As expected, it was one of the two production companies that Chu Tingyun was involved with.
So this guy not only “castrated” their family cat but also made his idiot friend a eunuch in the show.
Yan Xun: “…”
What a grudge!
Zhou Ze rambled on excitedly, and suddenly remembering something, he interrupted himself and asked, “Hey Yan Xun, how’s the divorce going? Did it succeed? I called that divorce lawyer my mom used, and he said you didn’t reach out to him!”
Zhou Ze spoke so fast that Yan Xun didn’t even have a chance to stop him.
Of course, by this point, Chu Tingyun’s face had turned black.
Yan Xun quickly replied, “Oh, I forgot to tell you, we didn’t get divorced and don’t plan to.”
“Not divorcing???”
Zhou Ze was confused and then asked, exasperated, “Why not? Didn’t he think you weren’t capable?”
Yan Xun: “…He was joking. I’m very healthy and quite capable.”
Zhou Ze fell silent.
This topic was too awkward, so Yan Xun quickly changed the subject, “Ahem, mainly, I discussed it with Chu Tingyun, and we realized there were quite a few misunderstandings in the past. We decided we need to give the Baobao (baby) a complete family.”
Zhou Ze: “???”
What the hell!
“You two are both guys, where’s the baobao coming from?!”
Yan Xun: “…Babobao is a cat.”
Zhou Ze: “…”
If they could video call at this moment, Yan Xun would probably see Zhou Ze heartbroken, clutching his chest, with a look that said, “Ah, you’re hopelessly lovesick!”
After a long silence, Zhou Ze sighed heavily, frustrated.
“I get it, Yan Xun.”
Yan Xun was skeptical: “What do you get?”
Zhou Ze replied resentfully, “Chu Tingyun is just a male fox spirit; he can charm eight hundred people with just a flick of his finger!”
Yan Xun: “…”
“Pfft—”
“Hahaha!”
This time, Chu Tingyun didn’t hold back and laughed heartily.
