There weren't many people at the cinema in the afternoon, and the ticket check wouldn't start until 10 minutes before the movie started.

Chen Qizhao hung up the phone, and when he casually opened the call records, his hand stopped.

When Shen Yuhuai came out with popcorn, he saw Chen Qizhao standing outside the crowd, seemingly looking at something on his phone.

When he got closer, he saw Chen Qizhao looking at the call list. He could vaguely see several repeated names. "Can't find the number?"

"No." Chen Qizhao came back to his senses and turned off his phone. "I just finished a call."

He usually contacts his friends directly through WeChat voice, and usually communicates on his mobile phone for important calls. In the past, his call list was full of unremarked numbers, but now calls from family members are mixed in. The day before yesterday, Chen Jianhong also called him and asked if he wanted to move his office to a more spacious place.

A long time ago, Chen Shiming might not make a phone call once a week, but now he may occasionally make two calls a day.

Not to mention Chen Jianhong. In the past, all matters were conveyed through Zhang Yazhi or his assistant, and the number of times he was called actively was very few and far between.

This feeling is strange and a little annoying, but not unpleasant.

Shen Yuhuai found an empty seat and sat down, waiting for the time to check the ticket. During this time, he noticed that Chen Qizhao opened his phone several times.

It looked like he was about to make a call, but he just swiped through the call list and then closed it. He seemed to be in a much better mood.

He didn't say anything. When he came over from school, he often noticed Chen Qizhao looking at his mobile phone, and his face seemed to always have a serious expression. Although it is concealed well, some concern and anxiety are difficult to hide.

Now it seems gone, and looks like distraction.

Chen Qizhao opened WeChat and sent a message to Special Assistant Xu, asking them whether they had returned to the company.

Special Assistant Xu replied after a minute, saying that he was on his way back.

The distance from the police station to the company should not be far, about fifteen minutes.

Only two and a half hours had passed since he learned about the situation, and Chen Shiming had already arranged other matters. He knew his elder brother Chen Shiming's ability. As long as the other party had the main clues, certain things would always be under his control.

...Chen Shiming has always been so outstanding.

After reading the message, Chen Qizhao closed the vx background, and when he looked up, he noticed that Shen Yuhuai was looking at him.

He paused and asked, "Have you checked your tickets?"

"You should be able to enter now." Shen Yuhuai's eyes swept towards the ticket gate, where the ticket inspector was already helping others cut their tickets, "Are you in a good mood?"

Chen Qizhao was stunned for a moment, then quickly picked up the popcorn on the table and said, "Yeah."

After saying that, he added: "I suddenly realized that there are some things that I don't have to do anymore."

There are some things that he doesn't need to make special arrangements for, and his family can protect themselves well.

There were two people in front of the ticket gate when it was their turn.

When Chen Qizhao handed the ticket to the ticket inspector, the other party looked at him and Shen Yuhuai for a second, and quickly cut it and handed it to him, "Turn left to Hall 6."

The corridor in the cinema was quiet. Chen Qizhao was holding the movie ticket stub and was sweating a little bit.

Shen Yuhuai had nothing to do in the afternoon, and after the two of them came out of the institute, the other party suggested going to see a movie, and he agreed.

And now, these two movie tickets are a bit hot.

“Room 6 is over here.” Shen Yuhuai stopped and looked at the person who had walked four steps away.

Chen Qizhao said "oh" and turned to walk into Hall 6.

There were not many people watching the movie in the afternoon. After entering, only scattered seats could be seen. Chen Qizhao glanced at the seats on the movie ticket and suddenly realized that the ticket he bought was for the last row. The ticket was bought by Chen Yuhuai, and there were three rows of seats at the back. There was a man and a woman sitting in the middle of the front row, and there were many empty seats in the front with excellent viewing angles.

It looks empty, and you can either sit in pairs or alone, choosing a seat in some corner.

However, Shen Yuhuai took the lead and walked into the last row. Seeing that Chen Qizhao was standing still, he said, “Row 9, seats 7 and 8 are over here.”

As soon as Chen Qizhao sat down, he heard the young couple whispering to the left of the front row.

The woman asked: "Why didn't you buy the couple's room?"

"The couple's lounge is closed this afternoon. It's okay. This seat is fine." The man glanced at the back row and immediately retracted his gaze after noticing Chen Qizhao's gaze. "I originally wanted to buy a seat in the back row, but who knew that someone would grab the last row in the afternoon."

After listening to this, Chen Qizhao couldn't help but look at Shen Yuhuai next to him.

The screen of Shen Yuhuai's phone was on, and there seemed to be a synopsis of the movie on it. Everything seemed like a coincidence, but also particularly unlike a coincidence.

"What's wrong?" Shen Yuhuai looked at him.

Chen Qizhao came back to his senses and said, "No."

He was a little unsure. Could they really be here to watch a movie?

Before the movie started, the screen went dark and the sound of commercials came from all directions.

The sudden darkness brought back the atmosphere of a movie theater. Chen Qizhao hadn't watched a movie for many years. The last time he watched a movie was during college. Later, he had more things to do, so instead of spending time watching a movie, he might as well work two more hours at the company. During breaks, I’ve been to many cafes or leisure places in S City with Shen Yuhuai, but this seems to be the first time to watch a movie.

It was a little uncomfortable to watch a movie in the last row. My neck always felt a little awkward when I looked at it from a lower angle.

He tried to concentrate on watching the movie, but was soon shocked by the extremely awkward plot. After all, this movie was a love movie disguised as a survival movie on a deserted island. No matter how outrageous a love movie is, it should be expanded based on the subject matter. But the hero in this movie used up all the firewood at night to build a comfortable residence for the heroine, and wasted most of the plot picking brightly colored wild fruits. After picking them, he said that they could not be eaten just to make the heroine happy...

The logic of the plot collapsed to the point that Chen Qizhao could hardly bear to watch it. Several times he looked away and saw Shen Yuhuai looking calmly at the movie screen, his glasses reflecting the light from the screen. He could only move his gaze back, wondering if there was anything interesting about this plot.

After watching for a minute, Chen Qizhao slightly side-glanced at Shen Yuhuai.

The other person's hand was placed naturally on the armrest. In the darkness, I couldn't see other corners clearly. Only the other person's white hand could be seen when the screen light passed by. Obviously, the two of them had kissed and held hands many times, but when Chen Qizhao saw Shen Yuhuai's hand now, his heartbeat was always difficult to control.

The movie changed scenes, and the deafening sound drowned out all other sounds.

Chen Qizhao moved his gaze away, and his hand reached over and touched Shen Yuhuai's joints in the darkness. There was no other reaction from the other side, as if the person didn't notice his actions and was completely focused on the movie.

When the fingers are bent, the joints are actually very obvious.

Chen Qizhao carelessly touched Shen Yuhuai's hand, imitating the other's previous movements to caress the other's joints, feeling the increasingly clear touch under his fingers. When the other party did not make any unnecessary movements, he became bolder and finally covered Shen Yuhuai's hand and interlocked his fingers.

In the darkness, certain behaviors are condoned.

Shen Yuhuai didn't move, but his eyes moved from the screen to the armrest, and finally stopped at the boy's profile.

The nails that have not been trimmed recently are a bit long, and the feeling of them scratching the sides of the fingers is very obvious.

It felt like all ten fingers were connected to the heart, and the numbing and itchy feeling spread little by little.

Chen Qizhao's gaze seemed to stay on the screen, but the movements of his hands became more and more unbridled as time went on. Without anyone to stop them, the behavior grew recklessly, from the joints on the back of his hand at the beginning, to the gaps between his fingers, to his little finger, to his palm, stepping on the edge of some sanity and testing inside little by little.

Just when Chen Qizhao was about to retract his hand, the large palm that had been calm for a long time suddenly covered him.

Their arms rubbed against each other, and the contact of their skin surface temperature became more obvious. The man who had been indulged for a long time moved more forcefully, perfectly replicating all of Chen Qizhao's actions just now. As Chen Qizhao's heartbeat got faster and faster, he slowed down to hook his finger.

Chen Qizhao glanced sideways, Shen Yuhuai was not watching the movie at all, he was clearly looking at him.

"Not watching movies anymore?" Chen Qizhao asked.

"Yeah." In the darkness, the man's voice was a little hoarse, "Come closer."

Shen Yuhuai held Chen Qizhao's wrist, and led him sideways in his direction. With his other hand, he held the back of his neck, kissed the tip of Chen Qizhao's nose, and moved down little by little, finally prying open his lips and teeth.

Chen Qizhao put his hands on the armrests of the seats on both sides. For the first time, he felt that this thing stuck in the middle was a bit of a hindrance.

As he was thinking, he suddenly noticed Shen Yuhuai's hand moving down his neck, just like when he was in the room in the morning, sliding down his spine. Summer clothes are thin to begin with, and the air conditioning in the cinema is useless. As his heartbeat gradually quickened, Chen Qizhao couldn't help but glance at the young couple in the front row.

The movie lasted nearly two hours, and while the movie was playing, people in the front row kept standing up and leaving.

Bad movies are just a waste of time, no one wants to waste time on them.

When all the lights came on, the young couple in the front row suddenly started talking.

The woman leaned on the man and said, "Everyone has left. This movie is really not good."

The man said, "It's hard to get a nice seat. Next time I'll buy a couple's seat."

The two men stood up while talking, and when they looked at the back seat, they stopped moving suddenly, as if they didn't expect that there was someone in the back seat.

Shen Yuhuai didn't look at anyone, and when he stood up from his seat, he reached out and pulled Chen Qizhao.

Chen Qizhao raised the back of his hand and wiped his lips slightly, then passed their gaze and followed Shen Yuhuai out of the theater.

-*

When the news from City S reached City B, Gu Zhengsong hung up the phone with a gloomy face. The document in front of him was exactly the evidence that Gu Zhengxun submitted to the police again. At noon, he was summoned by the police for questioning.

Gu Zhengxun has done too many things. Recently, he has been targeting his industries. He used to be restrained, but now he is doing it openly. He didn't know where Gu Zhengxun got the information to know so many things. Ever since some of the secret agents were exposed, he had thoroughly investigated his subordinates, but after completely eliminating all the suspects, he didn't find any suspicious subordinates. It was as if Gu Zhengxun got the information out of thin air.

Gu Zhengsong had anticipated such speculation a long time ago, but the current restrictions made it impossible for him to carry out this speculation. In the past, Gu Zhengxun was in the light and he was in the dark, but now the situation is completely reversed. He has given up too much to protect himself. If Gu Zhengxun is not stopped, it is very likely that he will be completely dragged down by this situation.

"Gu Zhengxun acted quickly. With his connections in Beijing, he could provide protection for Chen and Chen's families. They investigated carefully, but we have destroyed all the relevant information... A summons is just a summons, and they can't nail us down at the moment." The confidant continued, "Except for Young Master Gu."

Gu Zhengsong glanced at him and asked in a serious tone, "What do you mean?"

"We received some news. Before the operation failed, there was some bad news in S City." The confidant carefully looked at Gu Zhengsong's expression, and after confirming that there was no problem, he continued: "Although the matter of the Chengjiao Manufacturing Factory was pushed to Young Master Gu, and other evidence was destroyed by us...but there is no guarantee that Young Master Gu did not leave anything behind."

The confidant continued, "There is some news coming out from Young Master Gu that is related to the manufacturing plant. The lines we secretly connect to overseas may be from Young Master Gu... If Young Master Gu makes any move, it may be difficult for us to defend ourselves."

"You mean, Gu Shen intends to provide clues to the police?" Gu Zhengsong frowned slightly, "Didn't I ask you to control the people on Gu Shen's side? As long as he doesn't receive the message."

"We did receive the news." The confidant lowered his head and said, "The failure of this operation seems to have deepened the suspicion of Gu Shao's people. It is very likely that Gu Shao has received the news. The failure of this operation may be due to the clues he provided to the police in advance."

Gu Zhengsong fell silent after hearing this, his brows furrowed, as if he was thinking about something.

He had prepared for this matter in advance, and he also knew the risk that those who took advantage of Gu Shen might be exposed. However, he did not expect that when they instigated Gu Shen's people to take action, the police were ready for a counter-ambush in the first place.

"But the news may not be true. We have no way to obtain evidence. It is also possible that the police have found someone related to Gu Shao and set up an ambush in advance."

The confidants watched as Gu Zhengsong's expression became increasingly gloomy. They did not quite believe the news when they received it, saying that "Gu Shen might provide clues to the police." However, the situation in S City was too complicated, and they did not want Gu Shen's people to have too much contact with Gu Shen to expose the plan... As the news came out, the ambush on Chen Shiming failed, which seemed to further confirm the possibility of this incident.

Gu Zhengxun's actions were illogical, the Shen and Chen families were investigating more things than they imagined, and Gu Shen might have provided some clues to the police without their knowledge. If this is true, it will be fatal to them.

The confidant told all the news and waited for Gu Zhengsong's instructions.

After a long time, Gu Zhengsong finally spoke up: "Keeping Gu Shen here is indeed a hidden danger."

The confidant stopped moving after hearing this, and then heard the boss's cold and ruthless words -

"Since it is a hidden danger, let's take some risks. At least don't let the fire burn to our side."

At 8:30 in the evening, the lights in the Chen family villa were brightly on, and the three members of the Chen family had finished their meal.

Chen Jianhong looked outside the restaurant. It was quiet outside the floor-to-ceiling window and no vehicles came in.

He looked at Zhang Yazhi and asked, "Xiao Zhao is not coming back today?"

Zhang Yazhi: "He's having dinner outside tonight, he should be back soon."

It was late at night and it was already ten o'clock when Chen Qizhao got home. He got out of the car at the door and when he went in, he looked up at the study on the second floor and was surprised to find that the study was dark tonight.

When he entered the house, Chen Qizhao saw three people sitting in the living room. Chen Jianhong and Chen Shiming, father and son, who were known for being workaholics, were sitting on the sofa. There were several documents on the table, and Zhang Yazhi's favorite TV series was playing on TV.

Noticing the sound, two people who were talking about work looked over.

Chen Jianhong looked at him. "Are you back?"

"Yeah." Chen Qizhao responded and walked to the empty seat on the sofa and sat down.

Zhang Yazhi saw him coming over, glanced at him, and quickly moved over with the tablet in her hand, "Take a look at this, do you like this style of cake?"

Chen Qizhao saw several styles of cakes on the tablet. Judging from the progress bar, there seemed to be many more to come. He hesitated for a moment, then said, "The third one looks better."

The birthday party will be in a few days. Zhang Yazhi is very concerned about it and has been busy preparing for it all day today.

When Chen Qizhao came in from outside, he noticed that the garden on the left seemed to have been renovated today, and several flowers in the outer row had been replaced.

After talking to Zhang Yazhi, Chen Qizhao's gaze stayed on Chen Shiming for a while, and soon looked at the documents on the desk, which appeared to be work documents.

"You're back so late?" Chen Shiming asked, "Didn't you watch a movie this afternoon?"

Chen Qizhao said casually: "After watching a movie in the afternoon, we will go to dinner in the evening."

Chen Shiming asked again: "With Chen Yuhuai?"

Chen Qizhao was puzzled: "What else?"

Chen Shiming: "Is the movie good?"

After asking, he noticed a strange look across Chen Qizhao's face.

After a while, Chen Qizhao said: "Not bad."

Seeing Chen Qizhao's attitude, Chen Shiming thought of Special Assistant Xu's evaluation of the bad movie in the afternoon, and retracted his gaze slightly. Could it be that Chen Qizhao liked the female star in that movie? What’s your name? It seems her name is Jiang Youyou?

The volume of the TV series was not loud, but it drowned out the brief and awkward atmosphere in the living room.

Chen Qizhao was wondering whether to go back to his room when he suddenly noticed a distant sight: Chen Jianhong was looking at him.

The man was still wearing his shirt, which was slightly rolled up at the wrists, and holding a half-opened work document in his hand. In Chen Qizhao's memory, Chen Jianhong was a person who preferred quietness. He preferred to stay in a quiet study when handling work. A noisy living room with a TV on would not be his best choice.

When their eyes met, Chen Qizhao gave up the idea of ​​leaving, and the next second Chen Jianhong spoke.

Chen Jianhong: "Have you taken the medicine?"

Chen Qizhao didn't expect Chen Jianhong to ask this, and replied, "I ate it around seven o'clock."

Zhang Yazhi sat next to Chen Qizhao and said naturally, "Your dad said yesterday that he wanted to take a few days off when he's free in August or September."

Chen Qizhao was stunned for a moment when he heard this, "Vacation?"

Zhang Yazhi said in a gentle voice, "Your father said that after we finish the current work and the Gu family's affairs are resolved, our family will find a place to travel."

People's thoughts change a little bit as they get older. When they are young, they hope that their parents and older brothers can always be by their side. When they are teenagers, they hope that everyone can be together at the dinner table when they return home. Traveling was a thing of the past. He had indeed thought about going out for a trip with his family, but his busy work never allowed him to have free time. Now he is no longer at the age when he longs for his family to accompany him on trips. Rather than traveling, he hopes that his family will take better care of their health and work less overtime.

Chen Qizhao said after a while: "There is no need to stay up late and work overtime just to go on a trip."

After he said that, he noticed his tone and was about to change his wording in a tactful way.

Chen Jianhong said, "September is the off-season, business is not that busy, no need to work overtime."

Chen Qizhao retracted his gaze: "That's good."

"Yeah." Chen Jianhong's eyebrows relaxed a little, and he seemed to be less serious than usual. He looked at Chen Shiming: "Shiming, where were we just talking about?"

Zhang Yazhi talked about the places she wanted to travel to for a while, and then her attention was drawn to the plot on TV.

Chen Qizhao didn't say anything. The lively sounds were all around him, and it felt like a family watching TV together. He couldn't tell where this strange atmosphere came from, but this lively atmosphere made him feel like he was part of the real thing.

The TV in the living room is large, and the marble background is magnificent.

In my memory, there was a half-sized TV hanging on the wall of the small apartment, and photo albums were placed on the cabinet to the left of the TV. The cramped space contained a home that no longer existed, which gradually expanded outwards and was finally filled with lively sounds.

He should realize that everything is different now.

Chen Qizhao shrank his feet and leaned back on the sofa, feeling at a loss as to what to do with the hustle and bustle.

"Is the air conditioner too cold?" Zhang Yazhi looked at him.

Chen Qizhao said: "No, my feet are just a little sore."

Zhang Yazhi smiled and said, "That's probably because I walked too much today."

“That should be it.” Chen Qizhao lowered his eyes, flipped open his phone and sent a message to Shen Yuhuai.

After doing this, he hesitated for a while, and finally, for some unknown reason, he took a picture of the TV that was playing.

After staying on the WeChat interface for a long time, he posted the photo and sent a message to his friends.

The housekeeper brought Chinese medicine, which was dark and smelled bitter.

Chen Qizhao's gaze stayed on the medicine for a while, and he didn't feel like drinking it.

Uncle Zhang said, "Madam, regarding the menu for the birthday banquet, the chef said he needs to confirm with you."

"I almost forgot about this. Is the chef on break?"

Zhang Yazhi put down the tablet and said, "Xiao Zhao, don't let the Chinese medicine get cold. Remember to drink it before I come back."

Chen Qizhao stopped and had no choice but to respond.

The two people who were talking about work selectively ignored the lively TV series. They flipped through the documents on the desk one by one, and the discussion gradually shifted from work to family matters. The Chen and Shen families had anticipated that Chen Shiming would be ambushed today. The police took this opportunity to follow the clues and continue to investigate the Gu family. They did not mention the ambush in front of Zhang Yazhi.

After the police began to be on alert, they also increased defenses outside the Chen family villa and added more security guards inside the villa.

"Gu Zhengsong should make some moves in the near future. Gu Zhengxun is pushing too hard. In addition to what happened at noon, there may be other moves." Chen Shiming said seriously, "I have also been paying attention to their movements recently. When Xiao Xu sent me a message this afternoon, I heard a little news that someone seemed to be spreading the news that Gu Shen had confessed."

Chen Jianhong frowned upon hearing this. They knew best whether Gu Shen had confessed or not. Gu Shen was more stubborn than they thought. He denied all the charges and had not explained anything so far. "Who spread these things?"

This news is not of much substantive use to them and is mostly just a rumor arising from the tense situation.

"It doesn't have much impact on us at the moment." Chen Shiming was halfway through his words when a voice suddenly spoke from the side.

"That will have a big impact on Gu Zhengsong." Chen Qizhao crossed his legs, drank the Chinese medicine brought by the housekeeper Uncle Zhang, and said nonchalantly: "Under the current situation, Gu Shen can't be unaware of his own danger... But now he is keeping his mouth shut. With such confidence, I'm afraid he has evidence in his hands that we don't know. Gu Zhengsong has pushed all the crimes onto Gu Shen, so why can he still use Gu Shen's people to deal with us?"

Chen Jianhong looked at Chen Qizhao and said, "Gu Shen's people may not know the truth."

"The police will not announce the progress of the investigation until it is confirmed. The news circulating outside is both true and false. Regardless of whether Gu Shen's people are loyal or not, the desperate people will not believe some real news. They firmly believe that what they hear is not true. From the current point of view, the only person they can rely on is Gu Zhengsong. And Gu Zhengsong is still suppressing the news to cover up the truth..."

Chen Qizhao drank half of it, swallowed the bitter water, and continued: "The father and son of the Gu family will do anything for the sake of profit. Gu Zhengsong can push the blame onto Gu Shen, and Gu Shen may also drag Gu Zhengsong into the water."

Chen Shiming was about to speak, but Chen Jianhong waved his hand and looked at Chen Qizhao, "And then?"

"If the news of the failed ambush on the Chen or Shen family reaches Gu Zhengsong's ears at this time, coupled with Gu Zhengxun's relentless pursuit of him during this period, and there are rumors outside that Gu Shen has confessed... do you think Gu Zhengsong will believe it?"

Chen Jianhong and Chen Shiming immediately noticed the information points here. Gu Zhengsong would believe it. A suspicious person would not let go of any possibility, especially the possibility that threatens his own existence.

Chen Qizhao said again, and his words confirmed the speculation of the two Chen family members: "The crime has been pushed away. Gu Shen will die sooner or later anyway. If I were Gu Zhengsong, if Gu Shen could expose me, I would kill him at the risk of my life."

Chen Shiming looked at Chen Qizhao closely, "How do you know this?"

"I don't know." Chen Qizhao noticed Zhang Yazhi coming back from her work in the distance. He put the medicine bowl on the table and said calmly, "I'm just making a suggestion."

"Keep an eye on Gu Shen, you might find something interesting."

--------------------

The author has something to say:

Xiao Chen: It seems that there is no need to worry about it.

Xiao Chen: I still want to manage it.

Xiao Chen: I don’t know anything, I just want to make a suggestion.