Chapter 85 After a long absence, the capital city is finally home.
Yan Yu stood by the window, watching the plane flash past like a shooting star and disappear in an instant, leaving only drifting white clouds.
"Never seen an airplane before? You're staring at this like a daze," Yan Yu chuckled self-deprecatingly, then looked away and absentmindedly took a cigarette from his pocket. "Have you been too tired lately?"
He reached up and pinched the space between his eyebrows, looking somewhat melancholy.
If you think about it, he hasn't known Shen Jin for very long. Compared to Xie Li, who has known him for more than ten years, he has only known Shen Jin for half a year.
In the past six months, apart from the happy times when we first met and the beautiful memories we made, it seems that all the rest of the time were bad, sad, and full of scars.
What I think about is mostly sadness.
On the plane, Chen Jin was still in a daze, his mind suddenly blank. He was quite scared when he boarded the plane, since he had no experience of flying before, so it was inevitable that he would feel scared.
Especially when he watched the plane fly high into the sky, he was always worried that it might suddenly fall down, which would be dangerous, since it was from such a high place, and people could die.
His idea amused Rong Lan and Luo Zheng, but at the same time they felt helpless. After some persuasion and repeated reassurances, he finally dared to board the plane. At first, he was restless, but he gradually got used to it.
"Do you still think flying is scary?" Luo Zheng saw him lying to the side, looking out through the transparent window at the tall buildings. His eyes seemed to hold millions of stars, making him exceptionally beautiful.
When Shen Jin heard him speak, he turned around and looked at him, then shook his head: "I don't find it scary anymore, because it seems like I won't fall."
Luo Zheng smiled, but before he could speak, Shen Jin nudged him, pointed to a spot, and gestured for him to look. He said, "Look, is that the eastern end? I remember it. And then there's that mountain, the one we were on before. Now we're getting further and further away from it."
Luo Zheng glanced in the direction Shen Jin pointed, somewhat surprised that he could recognize it from the plane. Then, following his gaze, she smiled and nodded: "Yes, that mountain. That's where I met you. Back then, I thought you were a little fool."
He couldn't help but chuckle as he said this, which earned him a disapproving look from Shen Jin, who glared at him and said, "You're the idiot!"
"Ahem, yes, yes, I'm silly, but you're not." Luo Zheng's smile faded, she coughed a few times, followed his words, and then asked, "Do you still have any regrets in this city? Or is there anything you still want to do?"
He knew this was the place where Shen Jin had lived for so many years, and even if he was about to leave, he must have a lot of regrets in his heart. If possible, he didn't want Shen Jin to leave any regrets in this city.
After all, if he leaves regrets in this city, he will definitely still be thinking about them when he goes to other cities. Luo Zheng doesn't want him to be like that. He wants him to start over, to start over in a new place.
“I have a younger sister who lives in the hospital. I don’t see her often. I’d like to see her, but it’s not safe. I’m afraid bad people will find out, so I don’t want to see her. Da Bai Bai will take care of her…” Shen Jin said softly, pursing his lips. He felt sorry for Da Bai Bai because this person was too good, and he had no way to repay him.
“But it’s alright, I can’t help much even if I see them…” Shen Jin smiled, his already fair face now somewhat pale. “As long as they are all doing well, that’s all that matters.”
Luo Zheng wasn't good at comforting people, so she could only ruffle his hair and say, "Yeah, I will."
Shen Jin simply smiled, said nothing, and withdrew his gaze, no longer looking outside. He gently closed his eyes, intending to rest well. Deep down, he couldn't help but silently pray that he would have a better life after leaving this city...
He didn't crave great wealth or status, since he didn't understand those things. He just wanted a simple life, where relationships between people weren't so calculating, and he could live an ordinary life.
An hour after the plane took off, Bai Yujin, who was in his office, suddenly received a package. There was no return address or name on it, and it was delivered to his office.
Bai Yujin frowned and asked his assistant, "Did this package arrive out of nowhere?"
"There was a note for you to sign for it, and it was left at the front desk. I just brought it to you," the assistant said with a smile. "But Mr. Bai, don't worry, the package has been scanned and it's not a dangerous item."
Bai Yujin gave a casual "hmm," his gaze deep, seemingly lost in thought. After a long pause, he calmly said, "I understand. You can leave now."
When he was alone in the office, he gently opened the package. He had been wondering if some rich young lady was interested in him but was too shy to say it directly, so she chose this method. But when he opened it, a small toy popped out with a "pop".
Bai Yujin was stunned: "What the hell?"
He carefully moved the toy aside, and then he saw a drawing underneath it. It depicted a cute chibi character, and next to the character was written: "Big White, I'm okay! Hehe, just letting you know I'm safe!"
"...Shen Jin?" Bai Yujin's pupils suddenly contracted, somewhat incredulous, his throat tightened, he pursed his dry lips, doubting that he had seen wrong, and looked down again.
During the time he took care of Shen Jin, Shen Jin liked to draw when he had nothing to do. He drew a lot of paintings, so Bai Yujin recognized his style and knew that they were drawn by him.
"He knows I'm looking for him?" Bai Yujin was a little surprised, then quickly rummaged through the package and found a small card inside. Without saying a word, he hung up and plugged it into the computer.
A moment later, a screen appeared on the computer. He saw Chen Jin's face. He smiled and waved at the camera, saying, "Haha, can you see me? They said this way you can see me and hear me. And I wanted to tell you that I'm fine now! Don't worry!"
Bai Yujin was still a little confused, but seeing him jumping around so energetically, he couldn't help but laugh. At the same time, he breathed a long sigh of relief, knowing that he was safe for now.
He had just breathed a sigh of relief when he saw Shen Jin on the screen continue, "By the way, this place is too scary, I'm going to run away! But we can still meet in the future! Also, Xie Li is a big bad guy! He bullies people and made them chase me into the mountains. I hate him! I don't want to see him, bad guy!"
Upon hearing this, Bai Yujin froze. Although he could guess the general outline of the matter, he had no evidence. But now, he heard Shen Jin say this from the video.
Shen Jin smiled bitterly and said, "And I don't have a home anymore. After I ran away from that big villa, I went back to... well, I guess that place is called my hometown!"
"I ran back to live there, and then someone rushed into my room and told me that someone was trying to harm me and that I should run away, so I hid in the mountains. Then that big bad Xie Li smashed everything in my room and even brought people up the mountain to catch me, saying that if they caught me, I would be given to those other bad guys to play with. I...I...I'm so wronged, sob sob sob..."
Shen Jin still felt scared and sad when he thought about these things. After all, his warm home had become a mess, and his things were destroyed. The person he considered a friend actually wanted to harm him and even chased him into the mountains. How could he not feel wronged?
Before Bai Yujin could react, a hand on the screen handed him a tissue and comforted him, saying, "Okay, stop crying, your eyes will get swollen."
“But I just feel wronged and sad,” Shen Jin sniffed, took the tissue he was handed, wiped his nose, and then looked at the camera and muttered, “I can’t cry, it’s too ugly.”
After wiping away his tears, Chen Jin waved to the camera: "That's it, Bai Bai, goodbye! When we can meet again, I'll treat you to a big meal! You can choose whatever you want! Bye-bye."
When he finished speaking, Shen Jin did not immediately stop recording. Instead, he stared intently at the camera until someone next to him sighed softly and reached out to turn off the recording for him, ending the video feed.
Bai Yujin hadn't reacted yet, whether it was what Shen Jin had said about Shen Jin or Shen Jin's statement that he was leaving the city. He just stared blankly at the black screen.
“Chen Jin…” Bai Yujin murmured his name, somewhat dazed. Judging from the video footage, Shen Jin seemed to be doing quite well, with someone taking care of him and treating him kindly.
But after he left this place where he had lived for so many years... where else could he go?
Bai Yujin couldn't figure it out for a moment, but at least he knew that Shen Jinren was safe, hadn't encountered any trouble, and had someone by his side, which put Bai Yujin at ease.
Bai Yujin took out the memory card, his eyes were cold, a sarcastic smile appeared on his lips, and he walked out of the office.
He wanted to see how Xie Li would explain himself then!
The hospital was unusually quiet, with Xie Li all alone.
After that, he stopped looking so dejected. Looking at his hand, which was bleeding from the needle prick, his eyes turned cold, and he clicked his tongue and said, "Damn it."
He didn't want to use such a self-harming method, but he couldn't think of any other way, so he had to do it this way for the time being.
Just as he was wondering what was going on, there was a knock on the door of the ward. Xie Li immediately suppressed the hatred on his face and said in a calm tone, "Come in."
The person who pushed open the door was Xie Cheng. After closing the door, he came to Xie Li's side, looked at her with disappointment, and sighed softly: "Why did you do this? Trying to hold onto a man whose heart isn't with you by using such a self-destructive method?"
Xie Li frowned, offering no explanation, but staring at the wound on the back of his hand. After a long while, he said, "Given time, he will forget about Shen Jin. Besides, brother, he feels guilty towards me, so he cannot betray me."
As Xie Li finished speaking, a cold smile crept onto his lips, radiating confidence. He understood that because of some events from their childhood, Yan Yu still felt that he had almost lost his life for him, so no matter what, Yan Yu would never abandon him.
In any case, he will not hand Yan Yu over. Once he has made up his mind about someone, he will not let anyone take him away, no matter what!
"I simply don't know what to say to you." Xie Cheng sighed softly, then said, "As for that Shen Jin you mentioned, there's no need to worry. Just let me know if you have any leads on him, and I'll have someone kill him directly."
Xie Li's face turned pale instantly. He pursed his lips, wanting to say something, but then stopped himself. Xie Cheng, seeing his expression, seemed to know what he was thinking and said nonchalantly, "I know what you want to say, but don't worry, you can rest assured that your brother will handle things."
"...Hmm." Xie Li's response was clearly reluctant, after all, not long ago his brother's person, Qing Yan, had messed up his affairs and notified Shen Jin in advance, otherwise there wouldn't have been so much trouble.
"As punishment, Qingyan is almost a cripple. Let him learn his lesson so that this despicable person won't do it again!" Xie Cheng couldn't help but curse under his breath. "He keeps going crazy about finding people. So many years have passed, his family probably doesn't even know where they died in the sewer. His whole family is just barely surviving like rats, and they still hope to live a good life."
Xie Li narrowed his eyes but did not reply. He remembered that many years ago when his brother picked up Qing Yan, that person was crazy and said that he was looking for someone, and that there seemed to be a younger sister left in the world.
Xie Cheng remained silent for a long time, seemingly thinking about something, before finally speaking: "I think we should do this: now that Chen Jin has disappeared and you are lying in the hospital, while Yan Yu feels powerless and full of guilt towards you, let's strike while the iron is hot and get everything done!"
"...What do you mean?" Xie Li was slightly taken aback, staring intently at Xie Cheng, a hint of excitement in his heart. "What do you mean by doing everything that needs to be done?"
Xie Cheng didn't keep him in suspense. He stared into Xie Cheng's eyes and said with absolute certainty, "You two should get engaged."
Xie Li's eyes narrowed suddenly: "...What?"
He couldn't believe it. After all, he had thought about this before, but he just couldn't do it. Even though he lived with Yan Yu and was very close to him, Yan Yu had never mentioned this matter.
"Stop joking, you don't need to tell me these lies just to make me happy," Xie Li said with a weak smile on his pale face, pursing his dry lips. "I know it's difficult, I know all of this, so brother, you..."
Before he could finish speaking, Xie Cheng reached out and patted his shoulder, looking at him with unwavering eyes: "A marriage alliance will suffice. The Yan family will be with our Xie family. I will discuss the matter with his father properly. Leave it to me."
A dark and ambiguous light flashed in Xie Cheng's eyes. He was a man in the underworld with all sorts of tricks up his sleeve. He just couldn't believe that he couldn't even help his younger brother find happiness.
The moment Xie Li saw the look in his eyes, he knew that the man had probably come up with some idea. He felt a surge of joy; once he was engaged to Yan Yu, he would rightfully belong to Yan Yu, and Yan Yu would be his...
"Thank you for your hard work, brother," Xie Li said with a gentle smile.
Xie Cheng smiled and said, "It's nothing."
After Xie Cheng left, Xie Li went back to sleep peacefully, a smile on his lips, and drifted into a sweet dream. He dreamt of Yan Yu, and how the two of them got engaged amidst everyone's blessings, and how Yan Yu put a ring on his finger and kissed him...
In their dream, the two of them were incredibly happy.
Xie Li thought, "Shen Jin, what are you anyway? I don't even know where you've gone now, while I'm the one who's always by Yan Yu's side. We'll get married one day, and you're just a laughable passerby, a supporting character..."
While Xie Li was sound asleep, having a sweet dream, Bai Yujin arrived uninvited at Yan Yu's company.
Yan Yu recalled what Bai Yujin had told him about Xie Li at the hospital that day, which had led him to impulsively question Xie Li, causing his condition to worsen and leaving him in the hospital. Yan Yu felt somewhat guilty.
So when he heard his assistant say that Bai Yujin had come to see him, he frowned and said impatiently, "Tell him to leave. I don't see guests, especially uninvited guests. If he insists on barging in, have security throw him out!"
The assistant was somewhat embarrassed, but dared not disobey him, so he could only force a smile and nod, and said tactfully, "Okay, I'll go out now, please ask Mr. Bai to leave."
However, the assistant had just left when he awkwardly knocked on the door and came back in a moment later. Yan Yu assumed it was Bai Yujin trying to barge in and said impatiently, "I already told you to kick him out! Didn't you hear me?! Are you ignoring what I said?"
The assistant was startled by his shout and quickly shook his head, explaining, "No, Mr. Yan, you've misunderstood. Mr. Bai didn't barge in; he left."
"He left?" Yan Yu was somewhat surprised. "What did he say?"
He didn't believe that Bai Yujin would simply leave after suddenly showing up at his door just because he didn't want to see him; he probably left some kind of message behind him.
As expected, the assistant said, "President Bai said he has clues about Young Master Shen. It's okay if you don't want to know, but you probably won't see him again in the future. I hope you won't regret it."
Yan Yu's face turned deathly pale. He jumped up from his office chair, his voice trembling slightly with anxiety and disbelief: "What did you say?"
Before his assistant could say anything, Yan Yu raised his voice and asked urgently, "Where is Bai Yujin? Where is he? Let him come in to see me right now!"
His firm yet anxious tone startled the assistant, who looked embarrassed and truthfully replied, "I'm sorry, Mr. Bai has already left."
Yan Yu slammed his fist on the desk, kicked the chair, and cursed, "That bastard!"
After cursing, he immediately picked up the suit jacket he had thrown aside, quickly went downstairs to chase after Bai Yujin. Regardless of whether he really had any clues about Shen Jin, he would not give up as long as there were any traces.
Little did they know that the person they were anxiously searching for had left the place where he had lived for many years and which was full of his memories, and appeared in the bustling capital city, thousands of miles away.
When Shen Jin got off the plane, he was a little dazed. He had fallen asleep on the plane and his mind was still a bit confused. He looked around at this unfamiliar place with a blank expression.
"Are you tired?" Luo Zheng patted his shoulder and told him with a smile, "This is the capital city. Have you been here before?"
Rong Lan, who had been silent all along, handed him a bottle of water and asked with a smile, "Do you have any memories?"
"Um, thank you..." Shen Jin took the water from him, then glanced around, "Let me think..."
He found it strange; he clearly had no memory of it, yet Shen Jin felt an extraordinary sense of familiarity, even a feeling of nostalgia that made him want to cry. In the end, he could only smile and sigh, "You're back, you're finally back..."
This place, both strange and familiar, though separated from City A by thousands of miles, gave him a sense of warmth, as if a wanderer who had been away from home had finally returned home, returned to the capital city he had been away from for so long...
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