Chapter 45. Jiang Zhirong looked around, his eyes…

Jiang Zhirong looked around, a nostalgic look in his eyes. His gaze swept over every corner, finally landing on Jiang Huaichuan's face. He smiled and said, "Don't be so nervous. I just came to see you and Xiao Li. Seeing that you're doing well makes this old man very happy."

"Relieved?" Jiang Huaichuan scoffed. "More likely, disappointed?"

“Young man, don’t be so hot-tempered.” Jiang Zhirong touched the semi-circular protrusion at the top of his cane. “So many years have passed in the blink of an eye… You’re becoming more and more like him.”

Jiang Huaichuan interrupted sharply: "You are not qualified to mention him."

“I know.” Jiang Zhirong sighed. “You’re blaming me for urging him to come back early, which caused the plane to crash due to turbulence… I regret it too…”

“You don’t need to put on this act. You’d better pray I never find any evidence, otherwise…” Jiang Huaichuan didn’t finish his sentence. He stood up, looked down at the old man on the sofa, and gave a very gentle smile. “Of course, before I find it, please enjoy the rest of your time.” After saying that, Jiang Huaichuan paused. “Also, stay away from Shen Li.”

Jiang Zhirong remained unmoved, completely absorbed in his art, saying without batting an eye: "You look even more like him when you smile."

Jiang Huaichuan choked: ...You're out of your mind.

Perhaps it was to the point that even glancing at him felt unlucky, so Jiang Huaichuan turned away abruptly without saying another word.

Jiang Zhirong looked at Jiang Huaichuan by the window. He was wearing a smart black suit, with one hand in his pocket, looking straight into the distance, while the other hand gently patted the green leaves of the lucky tree next to him.

Jiang Zhirong's cloudy eyes suddenly trembled.

They look so alike...

Perhaps because they hadn't seen each other for many years, he seemed to be in a daze again. Jiang Zhirong subconsciously reached for the medicine in his pocket, but found it empty.

By the way, he never brings his own medicine.

Jiang Zhirong was panting heavily, his vision blurred, and in a daze, he felt as if he had become ten years younger.

After a long silence, Jiang Zhirong stood up and tapped his cane on the ground with a crisp sound: "I'm leaving."

"No need to see me out."

As Jiang Zhirong passed by Shen Li, he paused. He looked at Shen Li, his eyes unreadable, his face expressionless, but his knuckles turned white.

After Jiang Zhirong left, Shen Li entered Jiang Huaichuan's office and, as expected, saw Jiang Huaichuan lying on his back in his office chair.

Shen Li rubbed her fingertips together to warm them, then pressed them against Jiang Huaichuan's temples and massaged them in a circular motion.

"Are you feeling unwell?"

"...Hmm." Jiang Huaichuan let out a soft hum, a hint of weariness and exhaustion showing in his eyes.

Shen Li didn't ask. He knew that Jiang Huaichuan was hiding things from him, from his mother, and from everyone else.

This matter concerns Jiang Zhirong and is of great importance.

Shen Li frowned with heartache: "If you don't want to see him, I'll keep him out from outside from now on."

"Don't worry, I know what I'm doing."

Jiang Huaichuan sat up, reached out and took Shen Li's hand and rubbed it affectionately. He hugged Shen Li and buried his face in Shen Li's soft cashmere sweater.

This office was once Jiang's father's office, and Jiang Huaichuan didn't make any major changes after taking over. Initially, it was because the group was facing internal and external troubles when he first took over, and there was no time or energy to redesign it; later, when he could finally catch his breath, he unexpectedly noticed Jiang Zhirong's unusual behavior.

Jiang Huaichuan overturned the investigation results of the plane crash and began to suspect his kind uncle.

Jiang Zhirong is a cautious and meticulous person who never leaves any trace of his actions. Finding evidence from the accident itself is virtually impossible. Jiang Huaichuan's only solution is to target Jiang Zhirong, break down his psychological defenses, and force him to reveal his weaknesses under the influence of the environment and deliberate guidance.

This is why Jiang Huaichuan disliked Jiang Zhirong so much, yet he never refused anyone who came to him.

Jiang Huaichuan looked at the happiness tree in the corner. It was worth the long search he had sent people to find this one that looked just like the one in the photo.

It seems that his deliberate actions, which followed Jiang's father's habits, had caused Jiang Zhirong to become mentally disoriented.

It looks like we won't see each other for quite a while.

Jiang Huaichuan knew that this matter couldn't be rushed, because rushing it would only make Jiang Zhirong more wary.

Jiang Huaichuan had already decided he wouldn't see this person for the next few months, but he never expected to run into him at the Jiang family's old house in just one day.

——

In the evening, Jiang's mother heard the sound of a car outside and said with a smile, "Look, speak of the devil, and he appears."

"Xiao Chuan is coming back tonight?" Jiang Zhirong's pupils moved, and he looked up at the door.

Jiang's mother: "Yes, I was supposed to come back on the weekend, but Xiao Li is filming a variety show recently, so it's been changed to Thursday. Big brother, please stay and eat with us."

Before Jiang Zhirong could respond, Jiang Huaichuan's voice came from the entrance hall.

"Mom, we're back."

Amidst the rustling of clothes, several hushed conversations could be heard.

Upon seeing Jiang Zhirong sitting in the hall, Jiang Huaichuan paused almost imperceptibly.

Jiang Huaichuan led Shen Li to sit down and looked at Jiang Zhirong.

"Why are you here?"

Jiang Zhirong: "Since I have some free time, I'll catch up with your mom. We were just talking about how you skipped class in your first year of high school and your dad caught you."

Jiang's mother: "Hahaha, I still have all the photos from back then."

Jiang Huaichuan's expression was somewhat unnatural. He moved his lips, but looking at the longing in his mother's eyes, he ultimately said nothing.

Skipping class?

Beside her, Shen Li's brown eyes were filled with shock. She had thought Jiang Huaichuan would be a good student in the teacher's eyes, but she never expected him to skip class.

"Xiao Li probably doesn't know yet, does he? Don't let his current well-behaved appearance fool you; he was quite a troublemaker when he was little." Jiang's mother beckoned to Chen Li, gesturing for him to sit next to her. Seeing the displeasure in her son's eyes, she chuckled and scolded, "Why are you even jealous of your own mother?"

After saying that, Jiang's mother took out a wooden album from under the coffee table and said mysteriously to Chen Li, "Huaichuan's childhood photo album, want to take a look?"

Shen Li's eyes lit up instantly. He turned to look at Jiang Huaichuan, his beautiful eyes full of anticipation.

Jiang Huaichuan choked, then helplessly let go of his hand: "Go, go."

Shen Li moved swiftly and sat down next to Jiang's mother in the blink of an eye, his fingers holding the edge of the picture book. Jiang Huaichuan was afraid that he would bump into the corner of the coffee table.

"Let's start from the first page. Hmm, Huai Chuan was super cute when he was born."

Jiang Huaichuan sat up straight in surprise: "Wait! Mom, which book is this?"

Jiang's mother covered her wildly upturned lips: "Hehe, of course it's the first book! Isn't it a bit late to realize this now?"

Jiang Zhirong looked puzzled. He leaned back on the sofa and stared at the open photo album. The first few pages were photos of Jiang Huaichuan shortly after his birth. Because it was summer, he was wearing a beige outfit and looked as fair and tender as a little dumpling.

As Shen Li flipped through the photos, Jiang's parents began to appear. Jiang Zhirong sat up slightly, his gaze sweeping over each photo.

The photo album is quite thick, and I can see myself in a few photos, although most of them are just a side profile.

"This is a family photo taken when Huai Chuan was one year old. These are his grandparents and maternal grandparents. You've met his maternal grandmother before."

Shen Li nodded. Jiang Huaichuan's maternal grandmother had passed away just last year. She was a very kind old lady, and every time Shen Li visited, she would give him a red envelope with the promise of good luck.

Shen Li looked at each one, her eyes gradually welling up with tears.

Jiang Huaichuan was born amidst the anticipation of the Jiang family. Every photo contains the intense love between Jiang's father and mother. Shen Li's fingertips paused on the face of Jiang's father, who was holding Jiang Huaichuan.

The young father, full of vigor, leaned against his wife, both of them smiling broadly at the camera. The mother was also holding up a model airplane to cheer up little Huai Chuan.

A pang of sadness welled up in Shen Li's heart, and he couldn't help but press his hand against his chest. If only that plane crash hadn't happened...

The photo album was snatched away and closed by a large, bony hand. Shen Li looked up and met Jiang Huaichuan's gaze. In that one glance, Shen Li's suppressed emotions were stirred, and he almost burst into tears. He awkwardly looked away.

Jiang Huaichuan ran his fingertips across the corner of Shen Li's eye, then reached out and pressed on his back, gently rubbing it twice.

Jiang Zhirong left early. He didn't stay for dinner. He just swayed as he got up, and the white hair at his temples made him look even older. A look of incomprehension appeared on his wrinkled face.

That evening, the two did not return to Royal Blue Bay. After washing up, Shen Li leaned against Jiang Huaichuan's chest, propping her legs up as she flipped through several other photo albums that Jiang's mother had taken out of the study.

These are photos of Jiang Huaichuan after he grew up. He is wearing a blue and white school uniform, holding a basketball in one hand, with a sweatband on his slightly immature face, and he is standing shoulder to shoulder with Lu Mingxuan.

Starting with this photo album, people familiar to Shen Li gradually appeared.

Suddenly, Shen Li paused, staring blankly at the photo in the upper left corner.

Jiang Huaichuan followed his gaze and suddenly froze.

The gray house in the background looks somewhat dilapidated, with large patches of plaster peeling off the walls, but the windows are polished to a shine. The staircase next to the photo is narrow and cramped, appearing to allow only one person to pass at a time.

Jiang Huaichuan was facing away from the camera. To the left of the camera was a thin boy with long bangs and wispy strands of hair that covered his eyes. He was wearing an obviously oversized black long-sleeved shirt, and his overly fair skin appeared even paler under the sunlight.

Jiang Huaichuan recognized her at a glance; it was Shen Li.

Ten-year-old Shen Li.

Shen Li can still remember that day when the old dean returned from outside in high spirits and suddenly organized everyone to clean the courtyard. Then, on a sunny afternoon, a beautiful woman and a handsome young man arrived.

Shen Li never expected that she would have a place in this photo album called Jiang Huaichuan's Growth Diary.

Jiang Huaichuan rested his chin on Shen Li's shoulder, reached out and pulled out the photo, stroking the little boy in the picture with his fingertips.

"Want to take it with you?"

Jiang Huaichuan asked softly.

Shen Li shook his head, took the photo, took a picture with his phone, and then put the photo back into the album.

This is the most suitable place.

At 8 PM, the first episode of "Exchange of Lives" aired, and the online response was positive. The production team then announced the list of a new group: actor Gao Jing and his childhood friend Fang Xuan.

That's right! It's Fang Xuan.

Celebrities come and go, but ordinary people remain constant.

Gao Jing was so angry after watching the live stream that he almost went crazy. Besides cursing Wang Luo, he also wanted to grab Fang Xuan by the neck and shake him hard to hear the nonsense in his head.

Just then, his agent messaged him, saying the production team wanted to discuss further collaboration and wanted to know if he was available. The agent's first instinct was to refuse. What did they take Gao Jing for? Someone they could just take and discard at will?

The agent wanted to stand up for himself, but unfortunately there was someone he couldn't afford to mess with.

So on Friday afternoon, Gao Jing sat down in front of Fang Xuan's house with a cold face, without knocking or ringing the doorbell.

A minute later, Fang Xuan opened the door and laughed, "What are you doing sitting outside? You'll freeze to death. My alarm is practically spinning its own tune."

"Who told someone to be so slow? I had to test my hearing." Gao Jing followed him inside, and seeing no signs of anyone else living in the room, he smirked in satisfaction. "Is it all tidied up?"

"Alright, alright."