Zhou Jinchen took out his phone, lifted his chin slightly, and in a tone that left no room for refusal, commanded the nervous and anxious boy, “Cry.”
As he spoke, he pointed the phone camera directly at Ruan Qing.
The others understood what Zhou Jincheng meant upon hearing his words.
The boy’s white shirt had long since become filthy, with wounds on his wrists and at the corner of his mouth, making him look quite disheveled.
If he cried a little more sadly, it would indeed seem like he had been severely bullied.
The lighting in the basement was poor, but thanks to flashlights and phone lights, they were still able to record some footage.
However, the footage was very dark and unclear, making it impossible to see the situation properly.
Naturally, they couldn’t capture Ruan Qing’s condition on video.
After realizing this, Zhou Jinchen gestured to Duan Ming beside him, "Give him some light."
Duan Ming paused for a moment, then took out his phone and turned on the flashlight, pointing it at Ruan Qing.
The direct light from the phone was very blinding. Ruan Qing squinted from the brightness and instinctively backed away, closing his eyes.
Seeing this, Zhou Jinchen frowned, feeling a strange emotion well up from within, causing him to become a little irritable. He attributed this to his frustration with the boy's disobedience.
Zhou Jinchen impatiently spoke, "Hurry up and cry."
Ruan Qing’s eyelashes fluttered as he looked at the phone pointed at him. After hesitating for a few seconds, he softly said, "…But Daddy said before, boys shouldn’t cry so easily."
As he spoke, his voice grew quieter and quieter, until it was barely audible, "Qingqing doesn’t want to look ugly."
Zhou Jinchen: "..."
Zhou Jinchen’s expression became indescribable. For a moment, he didn’t know whether to be angry or to mock the boy for being so vain.
On the side, Xu He looked at the adorable boy with a slight curve to his eyes, filled with amusement and joy.
So cute.
Although the boy was obedient and well-behaved, there was still a bit of rebellion in him.
For example, when told to cry, he refused because he didn’t want to look ugly.
Or when Zhou Jinchen told him to stay quiet, he immediately pounced on him as soon as they came in.
This wasn’t something a completely obedient person would do.
However, the boy’s rebelliousness wasn’t unreasonable or willful; instead, it made him seem more genuine.
Like a disobedient little kitten, his defiance was so endearing that it was impossible to get angry at him.
It was even hard to suppress a sense of delight.
Not recording a video was definitely not an option, and without a bit of misery, there was no way to threaten Ren Yanqing.
Zhou Jinchen raised his voice a bit, coldly urging, "Hurry up and cry."
This time, Ruan Qing didn’t dare to argue anymore. He started crying with a "boo-hoo."
Everyone present fell silent at the sight.
Because the boy’s crying was obviously fake, so fake that it was immediately clear he was pretending. He even kept glancing at Zhou Jinchen while crying.
It was as if he was checking to see if Zhou Jinchen was satisfied.
Those star-like beautiful eyes clearly showed no trace of fear or sadness.
Anyone who didn’t know better would have thought he was just fooling around with friends.
Zhou Jinchen took a deep breath and reached out, tugging at Ruan Qing’s cheeks.
Zhou Jinchen didn’t use much force, but for Ruan Qing, it hurt quite a bit. The pain immediately triggered real tears.
Warm tears slid down the corner of his eyes, falling onto Zhou Jinchen's hand, leaving him momentarily stunned.
Crying... again?
Zhou Jinchen stared at the boy's reddened eyes, his gaze uncontrollably drawn to the tear mole at the corner of Ruan Qing's eye.
The boy’s crying was never loud or dramatic; instead, his tears fell quietly, like pearls from a broken string, as if he had suffered some immense grievance.
Even the expression "crying like a weeping beauty" couldn't fully capture it.
Those tear-filled eyes, along with his flushed cheeks, reddened eye corners, and the way he bit his pale pink lips in silent grievance—all of it was heartbreakingly beautiful.
So beautiful that it stirred countless dark desires in the depths of Zhou Jinchen's heart.
Want to...
Want what?
Zhou Jinchen’s heart skipped a beat, shocked by his own thoughts. Realizing this, he pulled his hand back as if electrocuted.
He even took two steps back, putting some distance between himself and Ruan Qing.
His hand holding the phone trembled slightly, and he completely forgot to keep the camera aimed at Ruan Qing.
After Zhou Jinchen had stepped back a few steps, he remembered that he wanted to record a video. He immediately pointed his phone at Ruan Qing, recorded a few seconds of video, and then turned off his phone.
After putting the phone in his pocket, Zhou Jinchen looked at Ruan Qing with a stern expression and said, "No crying."
However, this time Ruan Qing didn’t obey. Tears continued to stream uncontrollably down his delicate cheeks.
It was unclear whether it was because of the pain or because he felt wronged by Zhou Jinchen’s scolding.
Due to rolling on the ground earlier, Ruan Qing's cheeks were also a bit dirty, making him look somewhat disheveled.
But it wasn’t the kind of disheveled that would make someone feel disgusted. Instead, it evoked a sense of pity.
This person was meant to live in a beautiful villa, clean and receiving the best of everything.
A construction site was not suitable for him.
Like the mud on the ground, which could never stain the sunset in the sky.
Just like them.
Xu He had a subtle and unclear emotion in his eyes, and in the end, he lowered his gaze, hiding the expression in his eyes. He walked closer to Ruan Qing, gently wiped away his tears, his movements extremely tender.
Then Xu He showed a worried expression, his voice full of warmth and compassion, as if it carried the power to soothe, "Does it hurt a lot?"
Upon hearing this, Ruan Qing felt even more wronged. He nodded, "It hurts."
Xu He had only asked casually, so when he heard Ruan Qing's response, he was momentarily stunned.
It hurts?
Xu He carefully observed the boy's expression. It didn’t look like he was lying.
He seemed to be genuinely in pain.
That didn’t seem right.
He had been standing right beside them, and he could clearly see how much strength Zhou Jinchen used. That amount of force shouldn’t be something an ordinary person would find very painful.
It seemed like the boy’s sense of pain... might be abnormal.
However, everyone’s tolerance for pain was different. The boy had been pampered since childhood, so it wasn’t incomprehensible that his body was this sensitive.
Besides, it might not really be physical pain; maybe he just wanted some comforting due to feeling wronged.
Xu He had no experience comforting others, but at this moment, it came to him instinctively. He slightly lowered his head and gently blew on Ruan Qing's cheek, "A little blow and the pain will go away."
Xu He's tone was full of tenderness and affection, his lowered voice carrying an indescribable magnetic and sensual quality.
Thank you for the chapter!!
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