showdown
Chu Sinian stood up. Instead of rushing to open the door, he walked to the window and drew back the bedroom curtains.
There is a huge maple tree outside the window. In late autumn, the maple leaves are blown everywhere, and a few fall on the wooden stake behind the window, receiving the baptism of moonlight.
Further away are scattered lights that flutter like butterflies, mixed with flowers and plants. Going up the wooden steps, there are two closed wooden gates.
The nearly 1.9-meter-high fence couldn't completely block out the figure behind it.
Through the relatively large gap, one could see that the person was wearing a smooth, thick black overcoat, a pair of fitted black trousers, and slightly pointed leather shoes.
Chu Sinian parted the curtains and watched.
His arrival was sudden. Ever since the engagement party, he had a clear understanding of how terrifying Chen Chi's ability to investigate people was. At that time, being on the same side, he only found it convenient and easy to use.
But he forgot that this skill could be used on anyone.
Now that Chen Chi is actually using him, he doesn't feel much anger about his privacy being violated.
Only some things remain hidden in the ordinariness of the subconscious.
As soon as Chu Sinian put his hand down, a person behind the fence stared intently at him.
Chu Sinian stepped out of the door, treading on the wooden steps and fallen leaves, and opened the fence under the other person's persistent gaze.
He looked up at him and said, "I can sue you for trespassing, you know that?"
Chen Chi gave a soft "hmm" and took off his coat to put it on him. "Then why did you open the door for someone who broke into your home?"
Chu Sinian frowned, feeling the weight of the coat, and slumped his shoulders slightly.
He turned and walked back, smelling the dusty scent on his coat: "What do you want from me?"
Chen Chi followed behind him and said, "I can make sure Xiao Yu doesn't retaliate against Ning Zicheng."
Chu Sinian looked at him with surprise and suspicion, his tone icy, "What have you been investigating?"
This thunderbolt struck him without warning, without any preparation or time to prepare.
Chen Chi walked to the door ahead of him and knocked on it with his knuckles. "Let's go inside and talk. It's cold outside."
The two entered the house, which was brightly lit. The uninvited guest stood in the pavilion, his expression cold and aloof, completely unaware of the intrusion.
Chu Sinian sat down and said without any emotion, "Tell me, great detective."
A sarcastic tone broke the silence of the night.
Chen Chili stood in front of him, his sharp eyes staring at him. "I know Xiao Yu was beaten by Ning Zicheng. You've come to Beijing to clean up the mess for him."
Chu Sinian felt a little relieved, as long as he didn't know about Yi Rou.
"You say you have a way to prevent Xiao Yu from retaliating against Ning Zicheng?"
Chen Chi said, "Yes, he wanted to buy chips and was trying to cut off other buyers."
“I can get them to unite in a boycott of Xiao Yu.”
Chu Sinian narrowed his eyes slightly and sat up straight. "And then threaten him?"
Chen Chi nodded.
Chu Sinian stroked his chin, caressing it little by little.
Using both kindness and severity is indeed a good approach.
After the joint boycott, Xiao Yu would have to devote half his attention to dealing with the chips, so he wouldn't be as focused on Yi Rou. This would allow the people secretly investigating to remain in ambush for longer.
It's almost like killing two birds with one stone.
Chu Sinian couldn't help but chuckle, leaning back on the sofa and crossing his legs in high spirits. "Hmm, your visit was very worthwhile."
The slight annoyance at being woken up in the middle of the night vanished, and now he actually found that cold face quite pleasing to the eye.
Chen Chi avoided eye contact, remained silent, and stood in the hall like a wooden stake.
Chu Sinian patted the sofa, "Great contributor, please sit down, don't be shy."
Seeing his attitude change by a factor of 80, Chen Chi didn't say anything and obediently went to sit down next to him, smelling a long-lost, light and refreshing fragrance.
Chu Sinian crossed his legs and asked him, "I own so many properties in Beijing, how did you manage to pinpoint this one so quickly?"
Even if it could be found online, it wouldn't be possible to know his location with such precision.
Chen Chi said, "It's not difficult to find them one by one."
"Search them one by one? Aren't you checking them?"
"I've checked and searched."
"You've been to every corner of my house?"
“There are a few places I didn’t visit.” Chen Chi slightly curled his lips. “The lights in your garden were always on, and the gate was not very discreet. When I came, I saw that the gate was unlocked, and I reached in and closed it.”
Chu Sinian wore a timely smile, but hesitated slightly in his heart.
It was very cold in Beijing. The dusty smell on his coat carried the desolation of late autumn. In such a large area, his properties were scattered from the city center to the suburbs.
How much effort did it take to find them one by one?
Despite it being just a meal together, she used it as an excuse to check his whereabouts after hanging up. She traveled a long way to get here not for revenge for their childhood, but simply to deal with Xiao Yu on his behalf.
He hadn't thought about all the illogical things Yu Shi had done before.
Now, considering everything that has happened, he can't convince himself that Chen Chi wants revenge on him.
How could that be? Even if there's no hatred, they should at least be even and have nothing to lose.
Chu Sinian asked suspiciously, "Chen Chi, why are you helping me?"
"For a meal."
Is that a lame joke?
Chu Sinian is now surrounded by enemies on all sides, and there is also an enemy who is clinging to him.
He simply didn't have the energy to keep arguing with Chen Chi, and just let the days slip by in a mess.
"If you're going to talk nonsense, get out."
Chen Chi's gaze swept over the slightly red lips and settled on the other person's slightly angry eyes. "I just found out about Yi Rou's matter a moment before I boarded the plane."
Chu Sinian suddenly looked at him, "How much do you know?"
Chen Chi looked at him quietly, "All I know is that you took Yi Rou away."
Chu Sinian returned to that same itchy feeling of scratching his head.
He couldn't understand it, and his frustration was driving him to the brink of madness. This sense of being unable to grasp the key point and control deeply disturbed his calming mood.
Chu Sinian took a deep breath, trying to expel his resentment. "Answer my previous question: why did you help me?"
Chen Chi said calmly, "We're not done here yet."
Chu Sinian's mind calmed down, and the old matter was brought up again.
He burst out laughing, his eyes filled with mockery. "So what do you want to do? Hmm?"
Chu Sinian kicked him, his anger surging: "Huh?! What do you think you're doing?"
Chen Chi remained calm, but the fluctuating emotions in his eyes solidified into a lingering gloom.
His tone was sticky and cloying, like liquid clinging to your skin, "I don't want you to always be surrounded by so many people."
Chen Chi slowly leaned closer.
"I don't want to always just pack up and fly abroad, always take responsibility for others, and always be cold to me."
"Chu Sinian." Chen Chi stared intently at him, his pupils so dark they seemed inhuman.
The suppressed emotions poured over Chu Sinian like a torrential waterfall, leaving him completely chilled.
The two were inches apart, and fire burned in those cold eyes.
The fire that has existed since childhood has evolved over time, burning ever more fiercely, and now it is showing signs of spreading like wildfire.
The burning coldness in those sharp eyes caused large flakes of fiery red maple leaves, filled with memories, to drift down.
"Shouldn't you owe me the most?" His voice was very low, almost pitifully low.
"You almost starved me to death, indirectly caused me to be locked up in a mental hospital, ruined my model assignments, and tore up my textbooks."
"But do you know what I hate most?"
Chen Chi's eyes suddenly trembled, like a ghost being driven to the brink of despair.
“What I hate most is that when you parted ways at the cabin back then, you left with the words ‘we owe each other nothing,’ and turned to leave.” He gritted his teeth, his eyes filled with malice, “without looking back.”
Chu Sinian staggered backward, staring at the face so close to him, a face that seemed to hate him to the point of speechlessness, but felt no fear or anger.
There was a bittersweet feeling rising in my heart, an unease behind the words I refused to consider, and a heart pounding with the chill of autumn wind.
His lips trembled; never before had he felt it so difficult to squeeze out a few syllables.
—
After his mother was buried, Chu Sinian took a year off from school and, just like she had secluded herself at home, locked herself in front of the grave every day.
He found a house nearby to live in, and went to sleep when it got dark and went to observe mourning when it got light.
Kong Boyu and Uncle Huang took turns trying to persuade him, but he wouldn't listen.
Three months later, Chu Zhuang hurried up to him and calmly advised, "How much longer are you going to be willful?"
"As compensation, I will gradually transfer nearly half of the Chu family's assets to you in advance."
Chu Sinian started gagging without warning; his empty stomach could only vomit bile.
Chu Zhuang took a step back, glanced at his assistant, who stepped forward, while he turned and drove back to his car.
The assistant kept rambling on about the asset transfer, and seeing the man's face growing paler with each vomiting, he was about to call a doctor when someone rushed over and pushed him aside.
Young Yu Shi was innocent and adorable. He hugged Chu Sinian, wiped his mouth with a tissue, and gently patted his back. "Brother, shall I help you home to take your medicine?"
Chu Sinian had severe tinnitus and couldn't hear what Yu Shi was saying.
Yu Shi had no choice but to help him stumble and fall as they walked home, fortunately the house wasn't far away.
After returning home, Yu Shi made a hot water bottle to warm his stomach and poured hot water for him to take painkillers.
Throughout this process, Chu Sinian was in a semi-comatose state. Yu Shi tugged at his clothes and asked, "Brother, shall I go and call the doctor?"
Chu Sinian felt a little better and shook his head after hearing what he said.
Yu Shi couldn't leave either; he was afraid that if he went to call the doctor, Chu Sinian would faint in the room.
He sat down beside him, constantly observing Chu Sinian's condition.
Fortunately, after a while, Chu Sinian's complexion wasn't so bad anymore.
Unable to bear it any longer, Yu Shi hugged him from behind, her voice trembling with tears, "Brother, let me take you to find my mother, okay? Let's leave this place, I'll take you away."
Chu Sinian gently opened his eyes, shaking his rapidly thinning body, "You...go back."
Yu Shi shook her head, crying, tears soaking the thin fabric of her back. "I won't go back! Brother, I want to take you away, I must take you away!"
Chu Sinian tried to break free from the overwhelming body heat, but found that even raising his hand was so difficult.
He looked helplessly at the sun blocked by the old wooden window, its scorching heat seeming to want to break through the window and shine into the dilapidated house.
He lowered his eyes, his gaze lingering on the dry, thin hands, and Chu Sinian smiled slightly.
Such shriveled hands are rare; the last time I saw them was when Chen Chi's hands were rough and covered in chilblains.
He closed his eyes, "Chen...Chi".
Yu Shi paused, wiped away her tears, and knelt down in front of him. "Brother, are you talking about Chen Chi?"
Chu Sinian nodded very slowly.
Yu Shi sniffed. "Brother, Chen Chi has been locked up in a mental hospital."
Chu Sinian's eyelids twitched. "What...did you say?"
Seeing that he was interested, Yu Shi immediately perked up and raised his voice, "Chen Chi went crazy at Kong Bo's birthday party. He not only hit you, but also other people. His father said that your suggestion was right, that he was mentally ill, and he was locked up in a mental hospital."
Chu Sinian coughed violently a few times, his pupils constricting.
The sheer absurdity and disbelief overwhelmed his mind.
He never expected that a casual remark would have such an outcome.
"Rescue him."
Yu Shi gripped Chu Sinian's wrist and pleaded, "Brother, I can't do it. Can you come with me?"
Chu Sinian looked at him for a long time before finally nodding.
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