Chapter 84 Leaving the City

Luo Zheng and Rong Lan were both puzzled when they heard this. They looked at each other for a long time, not knowing what to say. After all, they had only known Shen Jin for a short time, and it was in City A, which was far from the capital city.

So they didn't know why he was so eager to see her. His eagerness was unlike that of a stranger; it was as if... they had known each other for a long time.

The moment this thought crossed their minds, both Luo Zheng and Rong Lan shook their heads, feeling that they shouldn't have.

Rong Lan was the first to react, her expression softening considerably as she gently asked him, "Why do you want to see him? Do you know her?"

"...Do you know him?" Shen Jin murmured these three words, trying to find some clues in his mind, but for some reason, he only had a lingering feeling, but no related images, which made him waver for a moment.

Seeing that his forehead was covered in fine sweat and his facial expression was convulsing as he racked his brains to recall something, Luo Zheng hurriedly advised, "Anyway, calm down first. You just recovered from a fever and may not feel well, so don't think too much about it. Listen to me."

"No, no, it's not like that..." Shen Jin didn't listen to him, but was lost in her own world, shaking her head blankly and sadly lowering her eyelids. "I should remember, I should remember..."

How could I forget...

But he couldn't quite put his finger on what was wrong. The pain in his head felt like it was suffocating him, and the more he thought about it, the more upset he became.

Rong Lan gave Luo Zheng a look, and Luo Zheng quickly patted his blanket, coaxing him soothingly, "If you can't remember, don't think about it for now. Listen to me, get some rest, or you'll feel even worse."

“But,” Shen Jin shook his head, feeling a tightness in his chest, his voice growing hoarse, “I want to see her, I want to see her, I just want to see her! I really want to see her!!”

His sudden shout startled Rong Lan and Luo Zheng. Before they could react, they saw Shen Jin's eyes suddenly turn red, as if he were very aggrieved, and tears kept flowing. Then he burst into tears.

Neither Luo Zheng nor Rong Lan had much experience comforting anyone. Upon seeing him burst into tears, they were both stunned, staring blankly. Shen Jin ignored them, only choking out, "Why can't I see him... why, why? I want to..."

After a moment of stunned silence, Luo Zheng was the first to react. She quickly hugged his shoulders, buried his sobbing face in her arms, patted his back comfortingly, and coaxed, "Okay, okay, we know. Don't cry anymore. We'll take you to see it. We'll take you to see it, okay? Don't cry anymore."

When someone cries and no one comforts them, they might stop crying quickly. But often, when someone comforts them, they feel even more wronged. Shen Jin immediately hugged Luo Zheng's waist and buried his face in his chest, rubbing against him: "Waaah, are you telling the truth? You're not lying to me, are you?"

Luo Zheng felt a little awkward when he hugged her, her back straight and her body stiff for a while, but she felt a little happy inside. She couldn't help but hug him tighter, rub his back, and chuckled softly, "Of course it's true. When have I ever lied to you?"

When Shen Jin, who was still crying in grievance, heard these words, he suddenly felt relieved. He remembered that Luo Zheng had told him many things when they were in the mountains, and he had done them all.

"Can I really see her?" Shen Jin looked up at him, his eyes still a little red, and the tip of his nose was also red. He looked pitiful, which made Luo Zheng's heart soften instantly.

Luo Zheng patted his back, then turned to Rong Lan beside her: "When do you plan to go back?"

"No," Rong Lan was a little confused, looking at Shen Jin and then at Luo Zheng, and asked uncertainly, "You don't... really want to take him to meet... my mother, do you?"

Many years ago, his mother was still active in the business world, but after many things happened, she gradually retired. In addition, due to her poor health, she rarely saw outsiders and lived a quiet and undisturbed life.

So when he saw that Luo Zheng had actually agreed to Shen Jin's request, he found it hard to believe and stared at him blankly for a long time.

Luo Zheng felt uncomfortable under his gaze, so she looked away, coughed a few times, and said as if explaining something to herself, "I haven't seen my aunt for quite a while, and I don't know how she is. I plan to visit her when I go back."

Rong Lan: "And then you're taking Chen Jin with you?"

"..." Luo Zheng coughed a few times, not knowing what to say about his blunt words, and could only continue to ramble, "I mainly wanted to see him, and then I just took him along, just by chance."

"Is that so?" Rong Lan smiled faintly, not exposing him, but simply said with a smile, "We'll be going back soon. My nineteenth birthday is coming up soon, and I feel like I'm getting a year older."

"..." Luo Zheng's feelings were complicated. He was a few years older than Rong Lan, but seeing that he was not even nineteen years old, he felt that he had aged. For a moment, he did not know what to say.

Luo Zheng said, "Then let's do it this way, set a time, and go back together."

“Okay.” Rong Lan smiled, glancing at Chen Jin, then hesitated, as if he wanted to say something but couldn’t. From his eyes, Luo Zheng felt as if she could read a lot of emotions.

Then he turned and walked out. Luo Zheng knew he had something to say, but he didn't say it in front of Shen Jin.

"Alright, get up now. Take your medicine and then go eat." Luo Zheng ruffled Shen Jin's wild, bird's-nest-like hair and said with a smile, "I already promised to take you there and take you to see Rong's mother, aren't you happy?"

"Oh..." Shen Jin blinked, sniffed, and released him. Only then did he realize that there was still an injury on his lower abdomen. He was instantly startled and quickly said, "I'm sorry! I...I...I..."

"It's nothing, it's nothing." Luo Zheng smiled nonchalantly. "It's much better now, it doesn't hurt much anymore. You were just hugging me, you didn't aggravate the wound."

Shen Jin sincerely said, "I see, thank you..."

"Do you really want to thank me?" Luo Zheng couldn't help but tease him, looking at his current state. "Why are you just saying it?"

Shen Jin was taken aback. Although he knew that this seemed too inappropriate, after all, how could he only talk about it? But this was not in the mountains, and he had no fruit to pick for Luo Zheng. He had no idea what to do at this moment.

Under his gaze, Luo Zheng was slightly dazed for a moment, then couldn't help but move closer to him, smiled, and blurted out, "Just give me a kiss."

"Huh?" Shen Jin was taken aback, blinked, and asked uncertainly, somewhat confused about this way of expressing gratitude, "Do you want a kiss?"

Luo Zheng was actually a bit stunned. He didn't expect that he would say something that seemed like taking advantage of others. What was worse, he felt a little excited after saying it.

So Luo Zheng braced herself and said, "What, is that not allowed? Just a kiss on the cheek? Many people express their gratitude by kissing someone on the cheek, no need to go to that trouble."

Shen Jin didn't understand these things, so he was easy to fool. When he heard him say that, he frowned, thought about it seriously for a moment, and then looked at him with wide eyes: "Is that so?"

Under his clear and earnest gaze, Luo Zheng felt that no matter what she answered, it would be wrong. She felt a little guilty under his stare, but her heart was still restless.

So Luo Zheng looked away and decided to follow her heart, saying, "Yes, that's right."

He thought it was just a kiss, nothing serious... and he was just saying it casually, Shen Jin wouldn't take it seriously, and even if he did, so be it...

Just as Luo Zheng's mind was racing with random thoughts, Shen Jin blinked, suddenly leaned over, and kissed him on the cheek: "Is this all right?"

Luo Zheng's pupils suddenly contracted, and she froze for a moment.

He stared blankly at Shen Jin beside him, suddenly unable to utter a word. He only felt a warmth on his cheek where Shen Jin had kissed him, as if Shen Jin's scent still lingered, making Luo Zheng feel a slight itch in his heart.

Especially when his gaze fell on Shen Jin's slightly red lips, he suddenly felt a strong urge to lean in and kiss him...

"What's wrong? Isn't that how it is?" Shen Jin felt a little strange being stared at, blinked innocently, and pursed her lips. "I just listened to you and kissed you."

Only after he said that did Luo Zheng snap out of her daze. Remembering the kiss Shen Jin had left on her face, her ears instantly burned and her cheeks flushed red.

Then he decisively shifted his gaze, stammering, "Um...yes, right..."

He stood up from the bedside and, before Shen Jin could react, hurriedly walked outside, his steps unsteady and somewhat strange.

When Rong Lan saw him come out from outside, she looked at his flushed face and asked, somewhat puzzled, "What's wrong with you? Why is your face so red?"

"It's nothing... I probably just caught a cold." Luo Zheng shook her head, avoiding his gaze, and then walked to the side, intending to calm down by herself.

Rong Lan was left somewhat bewildered.

Shen Jin couldn't understand what was wrong with him; his face suddenly turned so red. But when he remembered that Luo Zheng had promised to take him to see that person, he smiled happily again.

When Luo Zheng had almost finished processing the information and gradually calmed down, Rong Lan walked to his side and asked softly, "Do you really want to keep Chen Jin by your side? Or even take him away from here? Back to the capital city?"

Luo Zheng snapped out of her reverie, sensing the underlying meaning in his words, and looked at him: "Hmm, what's wrong?"

Now that things have come to this, Luo Zheng feels even less willing to let go of that person. He just wants him to stay by his side at all times and protect him well.

It would be even better if he could keep smiling every day and live a free and carefree life.

When this thought popped into Luo Zheng's mind, a faint blush rose to his ears. He felt that things were still far from being settled, yet he was thinking about something so distant.

Rong Lan interrupted his thoughts and asked directly, "I want to know how much you know about him?"

"Hmm?" Luo Zheng was slightly taken aback, barely coming to his senses. He knew what Rong Lan meant by asking this question. After a long silence, he suddenly smiled, "I believe him."

Upon hearing this answer, Rong Lan knew things were going to go wrong, and her eyebrows instantly rose: "So you mean you know nothing about his background?"

“That’s not what I meant,” Luo Zheng sighed softly. “He’s someone who lives in the east end. He grew up in an orphanage and has a younger sister who lives with him. His sister is in the hospital, and he was injured in the head and hasn’t recovered yet.”

When Rong Lan heard Luo Zheng say that Shen Jin was an orphan, her heart skipped a beat. Then, when she heard him say that Shen Jin also had a younger sister, her heart sank even further.

Finally, Rong Lan let out a soft sigh.

"What's wrong? Why are you sighing all of a sudden?" Luo Zheng was a little puzzled.

"It's alright, you should focus on recovering. We'll leave in a few days; I don't have anything else to do here," Rong Lan said calmly. "And you, is there anything else you need?"

Luo Zheng smiled helplessly: "What else could I possibly be doing? I'm in such a sorry state here, so naturally I want to leave as soon as possible. There's really nothing else going on here, but things will be different back in the capital."

Rong Lan sensed the hidden meaning in his words, but didn't respond, only giving a faint reply.

Shen Jin was excited about leaving for the capital, but also reluctant to leave. For example, he was quite reluctant to part with Bai Yujin, but he didn't know where he was or how he would see him.

He was also worried that seeing him would implicate him and cause him trouble, so Shen Jin could only try not to think about it. He felt that as long as he got away from this place, everything would be fine...

Four or five days passed in the blink of an eye. Xie Li had long since woken up, but he had been lying in bed like a half-dead person, ignoring everyone. He didn't even acknowledge Yan Yu when he saw him walking beside him.

“You don’t have to do this,” Yan Yu sighed softly, sounding somewhat tired. “I know I was wrong before, but don’t gamble with your life anymore… I’ll be good to you from now on.”

There were still no clues about Shen Jin these past few days, and Yan Yu was getting tired. Adding to his woes, Xie Li's health condition made him feel guilty, and Xie Cheng's aggressive behavior left him caught in a dilemma, unable to attend to both.

"You don't need to pretend anymore. Your heart belongs to Shen Jin, so go find him. Why bother staying here with me?" Xie Li's expression was indifferent, his face deathly pale. Lying on the pure white bed, he gave a self-deprecating laugh. "Anyway, whether I live or die, you won't care..."

"Stop making a fuss." Yan Yu sighed softly. He knew that Xie Li couldn't handle any more stimulation in his current state, but he couldn't do what he used to do and treat him like a treasure, spoiling him unconditionally.

Now he only feels tired.

When Yan Yu came out of the ward, he stood aimlessly by the window. A breeze blew in, and he stared blankly at the sky. The airport wasn't far away, and a flight was taking off. The plane gradually rose into the sky, leaving behind a solitary shadow.

For some reason, Yan Yu felt a sudden jolt in his heart, as if something was drifting further and further away from him. His chest tightened, and he murmured to himself, "Where are you? Where have you gone..."

Meanwhile, Shen Jin looked down from the plane, somewhat bewildered, and was surprised to find that the city that had caused him so much pain and sorrow was actually so beautiful...