Chapter 6 The Child I Found
When Ruan Xingfeng came out of the shower, he found that Liao Feng had already left.
While wiping his hair, he sat in front of the computer to submit his homework, but was surprised to find that the homework had already been submitted successfully by Liao Feng.
Ruan Xingfeng was startled, unconsciously looking toward the stairwell. Suddenly, he felt a sense of unease. This assignment required him to draw a standard design based on an existing apartment, not to create his own. And the design he had drawn was based on the layout of the apartment he and Liao Feng currently shared.
Would Liao Feng misunderstand anything when he saw this design? Ruan Xingfeng's fingers gripping the mouse tightened slightly, a subtle sense of unease rising in his heart.
On the other side, Liao Feng was lazily sinking into the leather sofa, and the golden light reflected by the crystal chandelier flowed on his well-defined profile.
The two young men beside him were like carefully trained canaries. The one on the left, with dyed silver hair, was picking up iced Qingwang grapes with a gilded fork, his fingertips brushing his lower lip.
The man on the right, wearing a silk shirt, was holding a Czech crystal glass. The amber wine cast a hazy glow on the wall of the glass. When he lowered his head to sip, the boy's slender fingers stroked the back of his neck.
The entire box is filled with the luxurious aroma of agarwood and champagne. The contemporary art paintings on the wall flicker in the intelligent dimming system, and the lights of the entire city outside the floor-to-ceiling windows serve as a backdrop.
Liao Feng was a little drunk. It was almost midnight. The screen of his cell phone lit up and went off in the dim box, and he couldn't get in touch with the designated driver.
He rubbed his temples, his eyes swept over the two young men who were clinging to him, and he felt annoyed. If he stayed any longer, he might lose his innocence tonight.
After hesitating for a moment, he finally opened the address book, his fingertips stopped at the name "Ruan Xingfeng", he sighed softly, and dialed the number.
On the other end of the phone, Ruan Xingfeng had just finished his work and was about to go to bed when he heard the phone ring. He listened to Liao Feng's vague voice, frowned, grabbed his coat and went out.
The neon lights at the entrance of the club are dazzling, and the light from the crystal chandelier reflects a decadent and extravagant tone through the glass door.
As soon as Ruan Xingfeng entered the door, he was choked by the smell of perfume and alcohol that hit him in the face and held his breath slightly.
The doors of the boxes on both sides of the corridor were half-open, and one could vaguely see people toasting each other inside, with sticky laughter and ambiguous touches between them.
He walked quickly towards the VIP area where Liao Feng was. His heartbeat quickened for some reason. The moment he pushed open the door, his steps suddenly stopped.
Liao Feng leaned lazily on the sofa, with two young boys nestled in his arms. One was talking and laughing in his ear, and the other even had his fingers on his collar, caressing it with his fingertips.
The light was dim, but it was enough for Ruan Xingfeng to see the hazy drunkenness in Liao Feng's half-closed eyes, as well as the intimate gestures of the young men.
It felt like something was gripping his chest tightly. Ruan Xingfeng stood there with his throat dry.
He clenched his fists and finally stepped forward: "Sir, it's time to go home."
Liao Feng raised his head with drunken eyes, and his gaze swayed for a few times before focusing on Ruan Xingfeng's face. He reached out to touch the person in front of him, his fingertips slightly warm from the drunkenness.
Ruan Xingfeng covered his hand with his, and the moment their palms touched, Liao Feng used the force to stand up, but his whole body hung directly on him like melted hot chocolate.
He was half a head taller than Ruan Xingfeng. At this moment, he put his arms together, and his broad-shouldered and narrow-waisted body immediately wrapped Ruan Xingfeng tightly in his arms.
Ruan Xingfeng was forced to raise his face, his nose rubbing against the other's collar that smelled of alcohol, and his warm breath with the sweetness of grapes brushed against his ears.
The two handsome boys hummed in dissatisfaction, but Liao Feng, like a tired bird that had suddenly found its home, rested his chin heavily on Ruan Xingfeng's hair and rubbed it, muttering, "You smell like my shower gel..."
Ruan Xingfeng: "Sir, you have a really good nose." His tone was full of jealousy, but he couldn't say anything sarcastic.
When the two arrived at the garage, they heard a child crying. This is a private club and you need an exclusive card to enter. How could there be a child here?
Liao Feng's drunkenness dissipated with the sound of crying. He looked a little fierce and was afraid that if he went there, the child would be even more scared, so he let go of Ruan Xingfeng and asked him to hold the child over.
Ruan Xingfeng ran over immediately after getting permission. A little girl, almost one year old, was sitting on the ground. Her little face was red from crying and she was wiping her tears with her chubby little hands in a panic. When she saw someone coming, she stopped crying and looked at him with watery eyes.
Ruan Xingfeng was touched by the cuteness. He squatted down and handed the candy in his pocket to the child. When the child was distracted by the candy, he picked up the child.
Liao Feng rubbed his temples to make himself more awake. They took the child to the monitoring room, but the surveillance did not capture anything. Liao Feng was not feeling well and did not want to continue to struggle. He thought about sending the child to the police station tomorrow and going home today.
Ruan Xingfeng drove the car all the way, and Liao Feng coaxed the child in the back seat. Liao Feng was surprisingly adept at doing what he was least familiar with.
The back seat of the car was filled with the smell of baby powder. Liao Feng pulled the tie out of the baby's mouth for the third time. The expensive silk fabric was wrinkled like pickles.
He stared at the Patek Philippe watch covered in saliva, and suddenly found that the second hand had stopped, exactly at the time when Ruan Xingfeng had just braked suddenly.
"Don't bite the watch strap." He tried to attract the baby's attention with his wallet, but the corners of the sheepskin wallet were immediately covered with transparent saliva.
Ruan Xingfeng could be heard trying to hold back his laughter from the front seat, and the corners of his mouth twitched in the rearview mirror.
In the apartment elevator, the baby suddenly danced with joy at the mirrored stainless steel wall. Liao Feng subconsciously held the back of her head, and this action caused two wrinkles on his suit sleeves.
The crying broke out the moment they entered the room. The two of them frantically pulled out their phones to search. Liao Feng stared at the page for "4-month-old baby food" and frowned: "I haven't even used a coffee machine."
When Ruan Xingfeng grabbed his coat, Liao Feng was stirring the boiling water with a long-handled spoon.
The baby hung on his left arm and gnawed on his shirt button, making him look like a human cradle.
The moment the kettle suddenly screamed, he subconsciously covered the baby's ears, and this action caused a tear to appear under the armpit of his suit.
Liao Feng frantically turned off the gas, the baby's cries making his temples throb. He subconsciously shook his head, and a pair of furry lion ears popped out - this was his most instinctive reaction in a hurry.
"Stop, stop crying..." He clumsily rocked the baby in his arms, the lion's ears trembling with his movements. The baby's cries quieted down a bit, and with its tear-filled eyes, it stared curiously at the moving ears, stretching out its chubby little hands to grab them.
When Ruan Xingfeng pushed the door open, he saw this scene: Liao Feng, with a pair of lion ears, his suit wrinkled, his tie askew, and a look of despair written all over his face. A baby was pulling his ears and stuffing them into his mouth, his saliva soaking his hair.
"You're back?" Liao Feng's voice was trembling, completely losing his usual ease.
The baby in his arms looked like a wet big cat. "Raising hundreds of dogs isn't this tiring..."
Ruan Xingfeng couldn't help laughing and walked over quickly to take the milk powder.
When the baby saw the new face, he immediately let go of Liao Feng's ears and grabbed Ruan Xingfeng's collar. Liao Feng slumped on the sofa as if relieved, with his lion ears drooping listlessly.
"Thank you for your hard work." Ruan Xingfeng suppressed his laughter and handed him the bottle of milk. "Would you like to try feeding?"
Liao Feng shrank back in fear, his ears pricked up in fear: "No, no need..."
Ruan Xingfeng gently rocked the baby in her arms. The warm bottle calmed the little guy down, and his little mouth bulged as he sucked.
He looked down at the baby's long, curly eyelashes and unconsciously breathed lighter.
In his peripheral vision, Liao Feng's head was drooping slowly. His usually bright eyes were now half-closed, his tie hung askew around his neck, his suit jacket was wrinkled to pieces, and his trouser legs were stained with water stains from when he had just been fussing with the child. He looked disheveled and exhausted.
"Liao Feng?" Ruan Xingfeng called softly, but only heard a vague grunt. The man's body had completely sunk into the sofa. His lion ears twitched unconsciously, and then he became completely motionless.
The only sounds left in the room were two even breathing sounds, one loud and one soft, one deep and one shallow, inexplicably harmonious.
Ruan Xingfeng stood in front of the sofa, looking at Liao Feng's curled-up sleeping posture and the baby's outstretched little hands, and suddenly felt that this scene was wonderfully warm.
He took the blanket carefully, hesitated for a moment, and finally gently put it on Liao Feng.
The sleeping man rubbed the blanket unconsciously and let out a contented sigh.
Ruan Xingfeng looked at his rare relaxed sleeping face, and the corners of his mouth unconsciously rose.
He stood there for a while and then went upstairs with the child in his arms. Even when he was sleeping, Ruan Xingfeng was still uneasy, fearing that he would crush the child when he turned over, but he couldn't resist the sleepiness and fell asleep.
At five o'clock in the morning, the dim light seeped in through the gaps in the curtains, and the crying sounded like a thin needle piercing into Liao Feng's chaotic sleep.
He frowned and buried his face in the sofa cushion, but the next second he suddenly opened his eyes and cried, waking him up completely.
The angry "It's so noisy" in his throat turned on the tip of his tongue and was swallowed back. He scratched his messy hair and walked upstairs with heavy steps.
His slippers shuffled wearily across the floor, each step condemning him for his impulsive decision last night.
The moment he opened the door, he was caught off guard by Ruan Xingfeng's equally tired yet gentle eyes. They both spoke at the same time:
"Did she wake you up?" Liao Feng's voice was still heavy with sleepiness.
"Did she disturb you?" Ruan Xingfeng held the crying baby in his arms.
The words fell at the same time, and they both froze for a moment. In the morning light, the dark circles under Ruan Xingfeng's eyes were particularly obvious, and there was a milk stain on the collar of his shirt.
Liao Feng suddenly noticed that he was standing barefoot on the floor, and his ankles were slightly red from the cold air.
The air froze for a second. The baby's cry suddenly turned into a sob of grievance, and its little face buried in Ruan Xingfeng's shoulder. Liao Feng reached out and rubbed his sore temples, saying in a hoarse voice, "Give it to me, you go get some sleep."
Ruan Xingfeng: "I just woke up now too, and she recognized me." He didn't want to trouble Liao Feng. After all, he was very busy at work, and he was very free these days. He only had one class a day, and it was only four hours long.
Liao Feng didn't say anything, but just sat quietly next to Ruan Xingfeng. The slightly concave curve of the mattress allowed their shoulders to touch each other naturally.
The baby gradually calmed down under Ruan Xingfeng's gentle caress, its pink little face pressed against his chest, tears still hanging on its eyelashes, trembling slightly with its steady breathing.
Ruan Xingfeng yawned unconsciously, his body slowly relaxed, and the back of his head rested lightly on Liao Feng's shoulder.
Liao Feng keenly noticed his slightly furrowed brow and reached out to take the remote control from the bedside table.
The electric curtains closed silently, filtering the dazzling morning light into a hazy warm color.
He adjusted his posture so that Ruan Xingfeng could lean completely in his arms, while his other hand continued to pat the baby's back.
The breathing of the three people gradually synchronized, interweaving into a warm rhythm in the dim bedroom.
Liao Feng's chin rested lightly on the top of Ruan Xingfeng's head, and he could smell the faint scent of shampoo in his hair.
He put his arms around Ruan Xingfeng's waist, and his fingertips patted the baby's soft onesie from time to time, as if he was coaxing two big and small children who needed sleep.
The baby's small hands unconsciously clutched Ruan Xingfeng's clothes, and there was a little milk stain on the corner of his mouth. Ruan Xingfeng's eyelashes finally stopped trembling, and his breathing became long and steady.
Liao Feng closed his eyes, feeling the two heartbeats coming from his chest, one steady, the other brisk, forming a perfect closed loop in the quiet moment before the morning light.
After a while, Ruan Xingfeng woke up, and the little girl was also full of energy. The two changed clothes, packed up their things, and took the child to the police station.
The young policeman inserted the surveillance USB drive into the computer: "The regular cameras in the club's garage didn't capture it, but you guys were lucky." The screen lit up with the side camera at the entrance of the convenience store, and a figure in a hoodie was captured from a distance putting a basket behind a pillar.
"This was captured by the security camera at the 7-Eleven two hundred meters away," the veteran officer said, approaching with a thermos in hand. "If Mr. Liao hadn't insisted on checking all the surrounding businesses, we wouldn't have discovered it."
Liao Feng lightly stroked Ruan Xingfeng's lower back with his fingertips. That was what he asked his assistant to do before they entered the police station.
Ruan Xingfeng felt his ears burning as the baby in his arms suddenly grabbed the buttons of his shirt, as if to remind him to pay attention to his facial expressions.
Liao Feng: "Well, so when can the child's parents be found?" He always spoke decisively, no matter who he was talking to, but he was much nicer when talking to the police.
The young policeman shook his head and said, "We can't give a clear time limit. It should be within 7 days. If we can't find it..." He paused and looked up at their reactions.
Liao Feng frowned and said nothing. Ruan Xingfeng almost blurted out, "What about after 7 days? What if we can't find it?"
The old policeman watched Ruan Xingfeng's hand unconsciously patting the baby's back and suddenly smiled. "Don't worry, we've dealt with this kind of situation many times before." He opened a drawer and took out a document. "If you're worried about the orphanage, you can first apply for a 'Temporary Care Power of Attorney'—of course, it has to be your own will."
Liao Feng took the document and glanced at it, "Power of attorney?" He flicked the paper with his fingers. The baby was attracted by the sound and looked at him with round eyes.
"This is the first time a club has found a child," the old policeman shrugged. "But it's better than the one we found at the garbage transfer station last year." He handed over the pen and suddenly lowered his voice. "Actually... for those with no immediate family, if the temporary caregiver wants to formally adopt them later..."
Ruan Xingfeng's fingers suddenly tightened, and the baby squirmed uncomfortably. Liao Feng suddenly reached out and cupped the back of the child's head. This unfamiliar yet cautious gesture made the veteran officer raise an eyebrow. "Fill out the form, and remember to check the box for 'found in a special location.'"
When Liao Feng signed the document, the tip of his pen left an ink spot on the paper, revealing his suppressed irritation.
Ruan Xingfeng took half a step towards him while holding the baby. This unconscious action of dependence was reflected by the revolving door as a warm halo.
Twenty meters away, beside the flower bed, Entertainment Weekly reporter Kobayashi was adjusting his 600mm telephoto lens.
He deliberately chose a backlit position to give the two people's outlines a furry golden edge. With a "click", Liao Feng brushed away Ruan Xingfeng's hair that was grasped by the baby. The scene was incredibly warm.
"Push the buckle all the way in." Liao Feng suddenly leaned over and put his arm across Ruan Xingfeng's waist.
The baby babbled between them, its tiny hands clutching at his falling tie; the saliva-soaked silk shone like mother-of-pearl in the camera.
Inside the paparazzi's car, Deep was sending photos to the editor-in-chief: "Absolutely explosive! Liao Feng secretly raised an illegitimate child! A male college student is suspected to be the biological mother!" He cleverly cut out most of the baby's figure, leaving only Ruan Xingfeng's hugging posture.
The editor was happy to see the photo, but when he saw the words "男大", he thought that the person was not very smart and no one would believe it if it was sent out. But then he thought that writing it this way might also bring unexpected surprises, and if he let those marketing accounts say whatever they wanted, it would definitely become a hit.
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