Ruan Qing’s hostility toward Xu He was apparent to anyone. The way he looked at Xu He was as if he were looking at a sworn enemy.
This situation was clearly unusual.
If the boy had lost his memory, he should be unfamiliar with them. Moreover, before losing his memory, his attitude toward Xu He wasn’t like this either.
Unless something happened last night between Xu He and the boy after they left—something they weren’t aware of.
Sneaking into the basement to approach the boy was a blatant violation of the agreement they had set. Yan Lulin shot a side glance at Xu He but ultimately said nothing. Instead, he picked up the breakfast he was holding and walked forward.
However, as soon as he approached, the boy quickly grabbed an iron rod from the table and glared at him as if he were also an enemy.
It seemed like a warning to stay away.
Yan Lulin: "?"
A rare hint of confusion crossed Yan Lulin’s usually stern face, and for a moment, he didn’t know how to react.
He could understand why the boy hated Xu He—after all, Xu He hadn’t helped him the previous night.
But Yan Lulin had never forced the boy to do anything, and he had rarely approached him either. This hostility was completely inexplicable.
So inexplicable that Yan Lulin mentally reviewed everything that had happened in the past two days and still couldn’t find a reason.
At this moment, Zhou Jinchen also realized something was off. He cautiously moved toward Ruan Qing, only to be met with the same treatment as the other two.
Yet, it somehow felt different.
At first, the boy glared at him with hostility, but the next second, his eyes lit up as if he had seen his savior. He quickly climbed out of bed and ran toward him.
His movements were decisive and without hesitation, as though he were running to the most important person in his life.
Zhou Jinchen, slightly uneasy, glanced sideways but eventually stretched out his hands, preparing to catch the boy who was dashing toward him.
However, Ruan Qing didn’t leap into his arms but instead dove into the arms of… Duan Ming, who was standing beside him.
The entire process passed without Ruan Qing so much as glancing at Zhou Jinchen.
Zhou Jinchen was utterly dumbfounded. He stiffly turned his head to look at the two people embracing each other and failed to process what had just happened.
The livestream audience, who had been speculating on various possibilities based on the game scenario, burst into laughter at this development.
[Hahaha, I can’t take it. This is hilarious! What on earth was he expecting?]
[I’m dying! He even had his hands out, only to watch helplessly as his "wife" threw themselves into someone else’s arms. A certain unnamed kidnapper: Who am I? Where am I? And where’s my wife?]
[Hard work really pays off! One pen, one lamp, and one night can create a miracle. Rewrite your future with your own hands, haha.]
Although none of them knew exactly what had happened, seeing the boy throw himself into Duan Ming's arms made it clear to everyone that Duan Ming must have done something.
Zhou Jinchen and Xu He’s expressions darkened completely, their eyes brimming with a dangerous, storm-like intensity. Even Yan Lulin’s gaze grew colder, though none of them seemed to realize it themselves.
They even thought the uncontrollable anger bubbling up inside them was solely because Duan Ming had broken the rules.
Yan Lulin stared at Duan Ming with a cold expression and said, “You broke our agreement.”
“Where’s your evidence?” Duan Ming’s expression didn’t change as he spoke lightly, holding the person in his arms. “If you’re accusing me of breaking the agreement, you need to provide proof.”
There were no surveillance cameras in the basement, so they had no way of knowing what had truly happened, and naturally, no evidence to present.
But if Duan Ming claimed he hadn’t done anything, none of them would believe a word.
Xu He silently turned his gaze to the notebook in the boy’s arms, instinctively feeling that the notebook held the key to the issue.
However, the notebook was tightly held by the boy, making it hard to take. Left with no other choice, they dropped the matter for the time being.
The boy was completely hostile toward them, so naturally, it was still Duan Ming who took on the task of feeding him breakfast.
The breakfast was nothing extraordinary, yet this time the boy didn’t complain in the slightest. After finishing, he obediently took his medicine without needing much coaxing, behaving so well that it tugged at one’s heartstrings.
And yet, that same obedient behavior was... utterly infuriating.
Once breakfast was over, it was time for the boy to take his medicine again. However, this time Luo Haodong was nowhere to be found. That’s when they realized that Luo Haodong had seemingly been out all night.
Zhou Jinchen immediately pulled out his phone to call Luo Haodong, but the call didn’t go through.
“The number you dialed is powered off. Please try again later.”
For the sake of maintaining contact, they all ensured their phones were always on. Under normal circumstances, there shouldn’t have been any issues with reaching him.
Something was wrong.
The group exchanged glances before quickly leaving the basement, their backs radiating a sense of urgency.
Their concern wasn’t rooted in any deep bond with Luo Haodong. What worried them was that if Luo Haodong didn’t return, the boy’s medication would run out.
Over the past two days, they’d come to fully understand the consequences of the boy missing his medication.
If mild, it could cause splitting headaches; if severe, it could very well lead to death.
What’s more, this young master had already fallen ill once before. If he were to have another attack in such a short time, it would undoubtedly be extremely serious.
Just as the group was preparing to leave the construction site to get the medicine, they noticed a figure stumbling toward them from a distance.
It was… Luo Haodong.
The group immediately went to greet him after recognizing who it was.
At this moment, Luo Haodong’s face was unnaturally pale. He was supporting himself against a wall with one hand while clutching his abdomen tightly with the other, barely able to walk. Blood dripped from his hand onto the ground, making for a shocking sight.
When they approached him, he even coughed up a mouthful of blood.
The group froze for a moment, and no one moved to help Luo Haodong. Eventually, it was Yan Lulin who supported him toward the basement, while Duan Ming stayed behind to clean up the blood on the ground.
Although Luo Haodong had managed to retrieve the medicine, he was seriously injured this time. Sitting weakly on a chair with one hand over his abdomen, his face devoid of expression, he spoke in a flat tone, “Ren Yanqing really wants to use us to kill this young master.”
When he went to get the medicine, he ran into Ren Yanqing. A kidnapper encountering his target was naturally not going to end peacefully—he directly clashed with Ren Yanqing’s men.
Ren Yanqing’s men had shown no mercy, clearly intending to kill him outright.
Even though Ren Yanqing knew he was there to retrieve medicine for his son, he still showed no intention of sparing him. He truly didn’t care about the young master’s life or death.
The others showed no surprise upon hearing this; after all, Ren Yanqing’s behavior had already made his intentions obvious.
“Ring ring! Ring ring!” Zhou Jinchen’s phone suddenly rang.
Zhou Jinchen glanced at his phone. It was an unfamiliar number without a name attached. The number seemed familiar to him, but he couldn’t immediately recall whose it was.
Answering absentmindedly, he said, “Hello?”
At first, Zhou Jinchen’s tone was indifferent, but after hearing what the person on the other end said, he froze, unable to react for a long moment.
His unusual behavior drew curious glances from the others. Yan Lulin frowned and asked, “Whose call was it?”
Zhou Jinchen finally snapped out of it. Holding the now-ended call, he spoke in a slightly uncertain tone, “...It seemed to be Ren Yanqing.”
“He said he’s prepared the money and is coming over to redeem his son, asking us to make sure we don’t hurt him.”
The group: “???”
Thank you for the chapter and Happy Holiday!
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