Month: April 2021

Chapter 92 – Get out, I don’t want it
 
Although he has lived in S City since childhood, after handling many investment-related jobs, Xin Zimai has also heard a little about the soaring rate of property prices in the central area of B City. What’s more, Zhou Jinchen bought a siheyuan that has been scarce and occupies a rather large area, which is not a real estate that can be bought with money.
 
Moreover…… Xin Zimai glanced at the location written on the real estate contract; he can’t help but feel astonished. This district, even ordinary commercial houses below 100 square meters should have risen to sky-high prices.
 
Even if you know that the boss’s family is rich…… I didn’t expect him to be this rich.
 
Zhou Jinchen was aware of Xin Zimai’s strangeness and only explained, “It’s a birthday present ten years ago. At that time, it was under my name and it was only recently found out to renovate.”
 
Despite the location and size of this property, it was certainly not much cheaper back then but at least it is easier to imagine that it is now.
 
Xin Zimai nodded and asked about serious business, “How to spread the news? Do you want to keep it?”
 
The property bought ten years ago and the siheyuan bought now are basically already two concepts. Don’t know what kind of news the other party wants to pass on to Yin Yuan’s ears.
 
Nonetheless, Zhou Jinchen said, “No need.”
 
He looked at the contract on the screen and said in low voice, “The high profile, the better.”
 
The more money is spent, the harder it is to buy a house and the more people would believe that he had moved to B City because of the hard-won real estate.
 
And not because of another person.
 
—-
 
On the eve of reporting for school at the start of the school year, An Xumo received an invitation.
 
“Housewarming celebration?” An Xumo read the invitation over and over again, but still didn’t quite understand. “Why am I being invited?”
 
Tang Tang didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. “Why else, it’s because you made money for the company ah.”
 
She has always felt very helpless about her own artist’s self-awareness. When will this child really have the awareness that he is already popular?

“A lot of people were invited to this dinner, most of whom are famous artists in Jin Dian. Counting it down, it’s about the same as the company’s official party specifications.” Tang Tang explained.
 
If counting two more months, this kind of thing won’t definitely be An Xumo’s turn but now that 《Different Roads》 has just been released and the film still has heat, it’s not strange that An Xumo would receive an invitation.
 
“But me and this……. Head Yin, haven’t been in contact before. If there is no personal relationship, would you also send a private party invitation?”
 
It’s no wonder An Xumo thought too much. Not only had he never met this Head Yin before but the only time he heard of this name was when Xin Zimai mentioned Li Pinghui who was dismissed during the filming of 《Different Roads》.
 
“This time, it’s said to be a private dinner but in fact, it’s just a pretext for getting together.” Tang Tang explained. “It’s mainly because of this Head Yin prefers to put on a show. When there’s something going on, he will call many people over.”
 
“Not only us, but also many artists and executives in Jin Dian have received invitations. I have inquired about it, as long as they have time in S City, they will basically attend the appointment. Our itinerary has already been reported to the company for approval, so if we refuse now, it may be too difficult to deal with it.”
 
Since Tang Tang has said so, An Xumo also has no opinion. “Then it’s good to go and pack your things when you get back.”
 
“Ok, but……” Tang Tang glanced at the door to make sure that it was locked before lowering her voice, “This Head Yin’s reputation is not too good. Xiao Mo, you turn on and put your phone in your pocket when you arrive, we keep in touch at all times.”
 
An Xumo was a bit amused, “Even if the reputation is not good, he won’t be able to do anything at a party with so many people, right?”
 
“Not afraid of ten thousand, just in case.” Tang Tang insisted, “He can even lay hands on someone like Lu Pinghui, who knows what kind of accidents may occur.”

After being shared a long list of kept rumors, An Xumo repeatedly promised that he would properly hold his phone and finally reluctantly let Tang Tang feel at ease. The next night, An Xumo arrived at the location written on the invitation.
 
Coincidentally, Head Yin’s new home happened to be in the building next to An Xumo’s dormitory. Although the entrance was a bit far apart, the straight line distance was only a few hundred meters.
 
When An Xumo was welcomed inside, he realized that the environment of this kind of high-rise villa which was only one floor away was so excellent. Not only the interior decoration, but also the open-air garden, the outdoor swimming pool, and the double-story duplex, you can clearly feel the distinct gap between this place and the public dormitory downstairs.
 
When he first arrived at the villa, An Xumo did not see Yin Yuan. Although he has recently become popular, because his debut time is still short, his position in the circle is not yet firmly established so he hasn’t yet entered the core circle.
 
However, An Xumo recently turned his focus on his studies and he had no extra thoughts. He quietly sat on the sofa where the guests were, waiting for the dinner to begin.
 
Tang Tang said earlier that this Head Yin likes to be ostentatious but no matter the discussions in private, he is a big boss and does have the capital to put on a show. Once the call was made, others have to come and accompany him. Therefore, An Xumo had not been here for twenty minutes when he saw many familiar faces he had only seen on TV before.
 
He had seen many classical films when he was studying acting and there were many films in which these people were present.
 
Now that he is here, An Xumo couldn’t sit alone. He greeted these seniors but what he didn’t expect was that not only some artists who have debuted for many years but also several movie stars and movie queens, who were extremely well-known, were very friendly when talking with him.
 
An Xumo had never been in contact with them before, even though the exchange of greetings was relatively brief, the initial nervousness subsided for the most part.
 
When greeting a movie star in his forties, the other party smiled and said a few words to An Xumo. Before he finished speaking, he looked in the direction behind An Xumo.
 
An Xumo didn’t have time to turn his head before he heard a familiar low voice.
 
“Teacher Sun,” Zhou Jinchen came forward and greeted the other party.
 
The two talked for a few minutes and the movie star Sun left. Zhou Jinchen turned his eyes to the boy beside him, and there was something in his gaze that An Xumo couldn’t read.
 
“Brother Jinchen.” An Xumo didn’t think much about it and smiled at the person.
 
Zhou Jinchen looked at him, “Did you have a good exchange with the seniors?”
 
An Xumo nodded his head.
 
Zhou Jinchen wanted to say something else, but he was interrupted by a noise coming from the side.
 
An Xumo looked sideways and saw that the owner of the house had finally appeared in front of the crowd.
 
Yin Yuan is over 40 years old but he looks only in his early 30s. His appearance is excellent among the group of high-level people and his height of more than one point eight meters makes him even more eye-catching. Although the house is full of famous artists in the entertainment industry, Yin Yuan’s appearance hasn’t been suppressed much.
 
Coupled with the aura added, he attracted everyone’s attention as soon as he appeared.
 
Yin Yuan came this way, greeting people along the way, and when he reached Zhou Jinchen, he stopped and smiled at the person. “How come you disappeared after a while?”
 
On the side, An Xumo bit the tip of his tongue and took a few steps back without a trace.
 
The exchange before the meal didn’t last long, the host had already appeared, and the dinner was soon ready to start. Yin Yuan obviously enjoyed the feeling of being in the limelight. He first walked to the prepared microphone inside the room and stood on the high platform to give an opening speech before announcing the official start of the dinner.
 
The people were evidently accustomed to his style, only after a long round of applause did they began to take their seats. Amid the melodious music, meals were served one after another, and the snow-white tablecloths were soon filled with delicacies.
 
There were a total of three tables in the hall, with An Xumo’s qualifications, he naturally can’t get to the main table but his position is not far from the Zhou Jinchen who was at the main table. They could see each other with a slight turn of the head.
 
Therefore, he can also clearly see how Zhou Jinchen, who was sitting next to Yin Yuan, frequently talking with each other.
 
From the time the conversation with his brother was interrupted, An Xumo had vaguely sensed something, and now it is even more obvious at a glance.
 
Before coming, Tang Tang said that Head Yin doesn’t abstain between men and women, playing quite high. However, he was generous, and his bed partner’s requirements were basically met so there hasn’t been too much trouble. Coupled with Yin Yuan’s real ability and means, the board of directors of Jin Dian also turned a blind eye to him.
 
Tang Tang also advised him that Yin Yuan has very mixed tastes and had kept all types of people. Therefore, An Xumo must not think that he isn’t in danger just because he only met a Lu Pinghui.
 
Now, listening to the conversation not far away, An Xumo really understood the phrase “very mixed tastes”.
 
However, he didn’t show what he was thinking and didn’t even raise his head more than a few times, only burying his head and concentrate on eating.
 
With his stomach filled with warm food, An Xumo took a sip of juice and sighed with satisfaction.
 
He just felt that he didn’t care too much about anything anymore.
 
After the acute anxiety attack that night, the doctor in charge of the diagnosis helped to prescribe medication. It’s just that An Xumo’s time did not allow him to complete the scheduled psychological counseling sessions. Now he has to attend school in B City, the psychological counseling can only be transferred to B City.
 
However, during the few long nights of insomnia, An Xumo has figured out a lot of things. After that, his panic attacks never occurred again.
 
Although it can be taken as a relief, death is not something that can be chosen at will for An Xumo now. He has a large number of fans and a team that is always looking out for him, and it would be too irresponsible to leave now.
 
Therefore, he’s going to make himself work hard to stay alive.
 
There was a roar of laughter coming from the neighboring main table, causing many people at the remaining two tables to look over. An Xumo, who had just clinked glasses with one of the seniors, lowered his head and concentrated on eating the pudding in front of him.
 
What originally provided him with motivation was his sun, the illusion he once had about a complete family. But now, these motives have changed from the past to bitter cold, cold to the bones.
 
As a result, after receiving treatment for anxiety disorder, An Xumo finally hardened his heart and began to push out the only two remaining images in his heart.
 
Whether it’s the sun or the ‘mom’.
 
Get out. I don’t want it anymore. Thank you.
 
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The author has something to say:
 
Xiao Mo: ( ^_^ )/~~ waves
 
Brother: ……
 
Brother: ? ?

Chapter 91 – Chase after being rejected
 
The quilt is brand new, fluffy, soft, and warm enough. The body under the velvet quilt is also soft and can be posed in any difficult position with long and slender limbs.
 
Only the weeping sound coming from the soft quilt is obviously light but it’s as hard as a blunt iron that can’t be broken, one by one deeply cutting in the flesh of the human heart.
 
The crying did not last long, probably knowing that crying for a long time will not change anything, as a result, only the flood above the warning line was discharged, and the gate was quickly closed. Not long after, the quilt slowly moved, the moonlight outside the window spilled through the gap in the curtains, and the boy slowly floated from under the quilt to the pillow.
 
He still had his back outside and kept his eyes closed. If it wasn’t for the occasional whimpering sound, I’m afraid everything that just happened would have been traceless.
 
When the whimpering sound also stopped, the boy slowly sat up from the bed. He rolled out of bed, stepped on his slippers, and walked to the inner side of the room with its own bathroom. The crashing sound of water rang out and lasted for a while before the boy came out of the bathroom.
 
There were no lights in the room and An Xumo was only able to identify the direction by the thin moonlight. With a towel in his hand, he immediately went to the bedside but suddenly stopped moving.
 
Perhaps in recognition or too surprised, An Xumo stood by the bed for a full five or six seconds before suddenly dropping the towel in his hand and turning his head toward the bathroom to run inside.
 
There were water stains dripping from the towel on the ground, the boy ran too fast that he felt a sense of weightlessness when he slipped under his feet, but in an instant, a pair of hands reached over, firmly encircling him as he fell.
 
An Xumo still has some coldness on his body. His forearms were stained with cold water and so was his face. Nevertheless, Zhou Jinchen held him in his arms and clearly understood that the person in his arms who could not stop shivering wasn’t because of the cold.
 
“Xiao Mo.”
 
The low male voice was slightly hoarse and Zhou Jinchen wasn’t a verbal person, he could only hold the boy in his arms and tell the other party frankly, “Don’t be afraid, there’s nothing you need to do.”
 
After a while, the obvious trembling calmed down. Zhou Jinchen carried the person back on the bed; his younger brother was so thin that he was a little lighter to hold than the usual arm strength trainer.

The towel was left on the edge of the bed, swaying, but fortunately, it did not wet the bed. Zhou Jinchen took the cold towel away, wrung it out, and soaked it in warm water before bringing it back to help the person place it on his eyes.
 
An Xumo was lying on his back with eyes covered. He seems to have returned to his motionless state. Zhou Jinchen whispered a few words to him but there was no response.
 
Fortunately, when the towel was changed for the third time, the boy’s deliberate tension finally disappeared. He breathed evenly and lightly, and he fell into a deep sleep.
 
Zhou Jinchen sat on the edge of the bed, looking at An Xumo who was lying on the bed but couldn’t raise the thickness of the quilt much. He had envisioned many kinds of results today in advance but did not expect that the situation could become even worse than the worst. 
 
—-
 
The next morning, before five o’clock, Zhou Jinchen was awakened by a movement on the side. He had already asked the crew for leave but he didn’t expect An Xumo to return to his usual appearance as soon as he woke up, insisting that he had nothing to do and didn’t want to delay the final promotional work.
 
As if nothing happened, An Xumo behaves as usual. He ate his breakfast obediently and when he was picked up by Tang Tang, he smiled and comforted the other party several times, saying he was fine.
 
It’s not that Zhou Jinchen didn’t mention what happened last night but An Xumo is the first to say that he would definitely cooperate with the work. His tone was much calmer than last night but his perception of confession equals treatment has not changed much.
 
Not wanting to stimulate the person a second time, Zhou Jinchen did not continue to explain. He sent An Xumo to the nanny car and he also got into the car driven by his assistant. When two cars left the hospital together and parted ways, the nanny car honked its horn to signal this way. An Xumo sat on the same seat but did not roll down the window.
 
The two met again when they attended the group interview of the crew on the same day. An Xumo’s performance was nothing strange. When he was asked about his relationship with the rest of the crew, the boy naturally admitted that the person with the best relationship in the crew was indeed Zhou Jinchen.
 
But Zhou Jinchen was vaguely aware of something.
 
This feeling is not as straightforward as the boy’s brief stiffness when he was touched by him in the past but it is deeper than the resistance shown by that stiffness. An Xumo is like slowly blowing a layer of a transparent protective film around him, blowing it bigger and bigger, and then making it impossible for people to get any closer.

 
Forty-two days after its release in the cinemas, the total box office of《Different Roads》exceeded 4 billion, nearly 1.5 billion ahead of the previous total box office champion. Whether it was distribution, investment, production, or actors, everyone related to the movie reaped significant benefits.
 
As a result, the value of the two main actors skyrocketed and many supporting actors in the film also expanded their popularity well. The most notable one is An Xumo who crossed over to star in his first film and yielded such good results.
 
However, when the heat of the film’s discussion topic gradually cooled down over time, An Xumo himself was given a piece of almost explosive news.
 
His studio made an announcement on their certified Weibo account, stating that An Xumo would return to school after a year-long suspension. Next, his life will be focused on his studies and his acting work will be focused on the holidays.
 
Judging from the current situation in the entertainment industry, it’s not uncommon for young artists to go to university. In recent years, news of celebrities taking part in the art examinations has received increasing attention. An Xumo’s studies were in the spotlight before the filming of《Different Roads》. After the film hit the box office exploded, there were endless posts guessing which art school he would go to.
 
Yet no matter the platform, media, or fans, none of them knew that An Xumo had actually taken the college entrance exam.
 
What was even more unexpected was……
 
The one he got into was actually P University.
 
The studio’s Weibo account is no less than the artists themselves and the number of followers is several times less than the main one. When the news was just released, there were still people below excitedly grabbing the sofa to occupy the front row, and half a minute later, the comments were slaughtered by a river of question marks and exclamation marks. 
 
“P University?!!!”
 
“My Mo was admitted to P University last year??”
 
“Is this the same P University that I think it is?! Oh my god, are there universities in the country that have duplicate names and spelling ah? I don’t think there is……”
 
Five minutes later, the comments and forwards quickly revived the fan trend.
 
“My Mo is eighteen, sings and dances well, have his first box office but he’s also on P University. Let’s walk by and find out [heart] [heart] [heart]”
 
“Now anyone who is a regular fan belongs to top2 [kneeling] education is not enough, embarrassed to chase the star and say that they are fans. Go go. Go and study [cover face]”
 
“Is it too late to start working hard to make P University the goal today ma!! Ah ah ah baby An, wait for me!!”
 
“Transfer needs: 1, 【link】 P University over the years’ college entrance examination grades cut-off. 2, 【link】 P University self-admission rules. 3, 【link】 what is it like to be admitted to P University? Can you pass the exam after working hard for a year? 4……”
 
In less than ten minutes, the keywords “An Xumo P University” were popular on the hot search; the news also appeared in the real-time search and hot recommendations of major websites.
 
The realities of domestic entertainment are here. Most of the young generation of actors graduated from specialized art schools and there are few examples of attending top universities like those in Europe and the United States. Some well-known colleges and universities in China have also published news about the emergence of school flowers¹prettiest girl in schooland school grass²the most handsome boy in school. However, apart from the most famous one who married a wealthy businessman who graduated from the same school and has an age difference of 20 years, so far, other people have not been able to get many real achievements in the entertainment industry.
 
Therefore, An Xumo who has just acted in a blockbuster film with a good reputation and harvested a double box office success, and was also announced that he will be studying at the P University, has become a truly unique special case in the country.
 
In addition to being comparable to Chinese New Year fans and surprised and curious passersby, there is another group that is paying attention to this topic. After the news came out, questionable voices soon followed. Some doubted whether An Xumo had really been admitted to the school or whether he went to a prestigious college under the guise of P University. Some speculated that he was a special student in the arts; others focused on the words ‘drop out of school’ and questioned the reason for An Xumo’s dropping out of school.
 
With the matter of traffic of idols, a little news can set off a pink³fans and black⁴antis war in the circle of fans, tearing into a bloodbath.⁵lit. foul wind and bloody rain (idiom); fig. reign of terror; carnageThe news intensified and even the “trust relationship P University” black material has been made up to be decent. The surprised fans quickly began to organize purification control. The rumors were spread and refuted on various major forums and social media platforms, which made a lot of noise for a while.
 
Soon, an old picture was pulled out.
 
That photo is the honor list of a high school’s entrance examination. Although the names and classes of all the staff were protectively coded, An Xumo’s photo, results, and admission school are prominently listed.
 
The next day, the studio sent out another photo.
 
An Xumo’s acceptance letter.
 
The refreshing face slap came so quickly that the fans could not even do it for years.
 
Put away the firecrackers and put up the satellite instead.
 
There was a lot of news outside but the main person is not much disturbed. As the start of the school year is approaching, An Xumo has gradually completed the handover of his work and the variety shows and recording singles he had participated in the few months were still hot enough to maintain the heat for a period of time. With the team that was looking out for him, An Xumo’s most important thing to consider now is to adapt to his new life.
 
Of course, it’s not just his team that’s trying to take the pressure off of An Xumo, there’s another person as well.
 
When Xin Zimai pushed the door in, Zhou Jinchen was answering the phone. Only after the phone hung up did he raise his eyes and look over, “What’s the matter?”
 
Xin Zimai said, “Jinchen, that high-rise villa you have in the company next door, a new neighbor has moved in.”
 
The company’s dormitory buildings were all designed in a row. Although each villa was a single-family house, the distance between the two adjacent top floors was so close that one could see the other’s garden when looking over the open-air garden of one villa.
 
Zhou Jinchen doesn’t like to get along too closely with others. He naturally had the money to buy the two villas together but this was a benefit given to the artists and executives by Jin Dian and it wasn’t good for Zhou Jinchen to occupy two places by himself. However, the head of the family next door had already settled overseas and Zhou Jinchen hadn’t been at home for a long time, so he lived alone for a while.
 
Unexpectedly, this villa has now changed ownership.
 
Zhou Jinchen frowned, “Who is it?”
 
Xin Zimai said in a low voice, “Yin Yuan.”
 
Zhou Jinchen fell silent.
 
Xin Zimai looked at his expression and wisely changed the subject, “In addition, there is one more thing, Xiao An will start school in a week. Jinchen, would you like to see him off?”
 
Zhou Jinchen listened but said, “Have 《Different Roads》 accounts been divided?”
 
Xin Zimai nodded, “The key extension is over, the movie has been officially released, the total box office has just been announced, and the cinemas are splitting the bill.”
 
The total box office of 《Different Roads》 finally fell to 4.57 billion. Judging from the film that has already been announced, if there are no accidents, this record should be enough to maintain it for about a year or so.
 
Zhou Jinchen said, “After the dividing of accounts is over, I’ll leave the matters here to you.”
 
“……Huh?” Xin Zimai blanked for a moment.
 
Zhou Jinchen said, “I’m going to B City.”
 
“……” Xin Zimai swallowed his saliva for a moment, is this to accompany the child to study?⁶to accompany one’s child or spouse who is studying overseas; to help a child with their study, reading, or practicing together.
 
“But,” He was a little hesitant, “I may not be able to handle things here by myself…..”
 
“After a week, someone will come to help you.” Zhou Jinchen briefly said.
 
Hearing him say so, Xin Zimai also put down his heart for the time being. However, for the matter of going to B City, he still has some hesitation.
 
“Jinchen, Yin Yuan’s side……the company also sent an invitation, saying that it’s a new house and would like to invite everyone to celebrate a housewarming.” Yin Yuan is obviously aiming at Zhou Jinchen, his recent actions have clearly indicated this. “What are you going to say to him? We don’t have any real estate in B City for the time being, so if I can’t say anything back……”
 
“I already bought a residence in B City.”
 
Zhou Jinchen pulled out a real estate contract from the tablet.
 
“Just say that the conditions there are good and want to move in.”
 
Good conditions? Xin Zimai has some doubts. The high-rise villa is a special benefit of Jin Dian, the decoration, location, and transportation are the first-class level. In front of this kind of real estate, saying that the conditions are good……
 
But when he looked at the words on the real estate contract, the doubt was completely gone.
 
“Si-siheyuan?!”⁷Lit. quadrangle. A historical type of residence that was commonly found throughout China. Throughout Chinese history, the siheyuan composition was the basic pattern used for residences, palaces, temples, monasteries, family businesses, and government offices. (Wikipedia)
*something like this: credits

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The author has something to say:
 
The male gods are chasing my brother; my brother is chasing me… [WeChat frown]

Yin Yuan appeared in the first few chapters, the text also has him embarrassed just after running to find out the relative⁸can also mean: parent; one’s own (flesh and blood); marriage; bride; close; intimate; in person; first-hand; in favor of; pro-; to kiss; (Internet slang) dear.visit…

Chapter 90 – Not in a normal state

Thank you so much for the ko-fis, andez24! ♡

I would also like to express my gratitude to everyone who enjoyed reading this novel and sent me sweet messages on my dms! I really appreciate it a lot; it makes my day happier! Thank you so much! Although I apologize if my responses are somewhat late ( 〃▽〃)

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When Xin Zimai arrived at Jin Dian, the office door was still locked. Tang Tang who had arrived at the news was holding the key, her fingers shaking along with the key. She managed to restrain herself from unlocking the door. Once the door was pushed open, she saw the boy lying on the floor with his thin ankles exposed, and tears sprang to her eyes.
 
“Xiao Mo……”
 
The boy lying on the floor was padded with an expensive suit that had been pressed out of several bright folds. The owner of the suit was half-kneeling beside him with one hand pressed against the boy’s chest and the other against the side of his neck. An Xumo’s front shirt was unbuttoned several times and he slept there bloodlessly as if he was too tired to wake up.
 
The air conditioning in the room had been turned off, the windows were half-open, and the hot, humid natural breeze was pouring in from outside. The flow of air did not bring much substantial comfort but because of the rising temperature, the intruders who came in felt that the atmosphere is becoming more and more frozen.
 
Xin Zimai turned to the side and let in the medical staff pushing the stretcher. The two men quickly unloaded the stretcher and laid it flat on the ground, one opened up the oxygen mask while the other squatted down to check on An Xumo’s condition.
 
While checking, he asked Zhou Jinchen, “Did the patient suffer an external shock before he fell unconscious?”
 
“No.”
 
“Has he experienced similar seizures or heart abnormalities before?”
 
Zhou Jinchen paused for a moment, “…… No.”
 
The doctor took another look at An Xumo’s face and chest, “Have you done artificial respiration, how about CPR?”
 
“I’ve done it all.”
 
A series of questions and answers were extremely quick. In a few seconds, another doctor has already torn open the oxygen mask and put it on An Xumo. When the simple oxygen bag was connected, the slightly strange sound of breathing rang out in the tense room. The two men carried the boy on the stretcher, fastened the stretcher, and pushed the person out of the door.
 
Zhou Jinchen immediately wanted to follow up; Xin Zimai hastily stopped him, “Jinchen! It’s not convenient for you to follow. I’ll go, I may have to ask the crew for leave tomorrow……”
 
But the man directly raised his hand to interrupt the other party’s voice, “I’ll go to the hospital and leave the matters behind to you.”
 
He looked at Tang Tang, “You also stay. Xiao Mo’s schedule is arranged by you, keep in touch.”
 
Zhou Jinchen finished and left the office with his usual expressionless face. He also took his wallet and mask with him but he didn’t even have time to put down his rolled-up cuffs.
 
–
 
Xin Zimai and Tang Tang stayed in the company, only Zhou Jinchen followed him to the ambulance. An Xumo woke up when passing by the bumpy area. Zhou Jinchen called him in a low voice but the boy only looked at the man for a while. As if he felt that the lights in the car were too harsh, he turned his head to the side and closed his eyes.
 
Although the doctor onboard has said that the patient’s vital signs are temporarily stable, An Xumo didn’t look too severe when he woke up in the car yet the man who was with him the whole time still didn’t show any signs of relaxing.
 
When Li Qiucheng arrived, the examination was already half done. He brought the medical records and went through them, and then he went to the doctor who examined An Xumo to ask a few questions before he said to Zhou Jinchen, “Don’t be nervous. Xiao An’s physical condition should not be too serious. Do you know how he fainted?”
 
Zhou Jinchen frowned, “Not serious?”
 
Li Qiucheng nodded, he pointed to the other party, “The heart was checked separately and the medical examinations are basically the same, none of them found any obvious abnormalities……”
 
Zhou Jinchen looked towards the closed door of the EEG¹EEG: electroencephalogram (EEG) is a test that detects electrical activity in your brain using small, metal discs (electrodes) attached to your scalp. room; his voice was low and hoarse. “Before Xiao Mo passed out, he said he felt like he was going to die.”
 
Li Qiucheng heard the words and halted.
 
After the full set of tests, the results of some items will have to wait for more than ten minutes before they could get them. The hospital’s beds are very tight, so many processes have to go down. Not to mention the time, the application may not be approved. However, when Li Qiucheng returned with the results and called Zhou Jinchen, he found that the other party had already been transferred to a single ward.
 
There was a lot of space in the ward. Zhou Jinchen’s assistant, Xiao Yang, had also rushed over. The bed was covered with new sheets and quilts, and even the pillows were changed. It didn’t look like a ward but like a first-class hotel.
 
An Xumo laid in bed with his back facing the door, unable to see his expression. Li Qiucheng walked over with light steps and looked at Zhou Jinchen inquiringly.
 
‘Still sleeping?’
 
Zhou Jinchen said in a low voice, “Awake.”
 
When Li Qiucheng walked around, he saw that the boy still had his eyes closed. Under the light, his face looked a little paler compared to the quilt. Noticing the passing line of sight, An Xumo looked like he was disturbed, and he slowly shrank his face into the quilt with his eyes closed.
 
Zhou Jinchen took a lot of effort to coax him to pull the quilt under the tip of his nose.
 
Li Qiucheng walked back around and stood outside, holding the case, and said in a light voice, “Xiao An, there are no major problems in your body for the time being, and only your gastroenteritis still needs to be carefully noted. In addition to not overworking, exertion will add a burden to your gastroenteritis which will affect your emotions and make you feel very uncomfortable. Therefore, after that, you must try to keep a regular diet and take more rest.”
 
The boy on the bed didn’t give him a response and Li Qiucheng didn’t mind much about it. After asking Xiao Yang to change the headlamp to a table lamp inside the room, he gestured for Zhou Jinchen to follow him and called the person out.
 
There was a balcony outside and when the two went out, Zhou Jinchen took the lead and said, “Is it still because of gastritis?”
 
“No,” Li Qiucheng shook his head, “that part just now was to calm Xiao An and let him stop thinking about it first.”
 
He turned over the case in his hand and explained, “All the examinations did not show any major problems. He’s physically healthy; the problem should be his mentality.”
 
Zhou Jinchen frowned, “Nothing was overlooked in the physical examination?”
 
“All the necessary items have been checked,” Li Qiucheng could understand his feelings and patiently explained, “If there is a lesion in one area, it’s impossible that it will only show abnormalities in one kind of examination. All the results are normal so the possibility of overlooking is almost zero.”
 
Zhou Jinchen reluctantly pressed down and asked, “What’s wrong with his mentality?”
 
“Before I say this, I have to ask, apart from the processes you mentioned earlier, are there any other special circumstances that occurred in the room before he fell unconscious?”
 
“For example, is there suddenly turning dark or in front of the sudden appearance of spiders, mice, and so on?”
 
Zhou Jinchen said, “No.”
 
Li Qiucheng then asked, “Is there anything Xiao An was particularly afraid of before, the kind that makes you uncomfortable when you see it?”
 
He expanded his explanation, “Perhaps a situation that you don’t like such as a narrow space or when there are a lot of people……”
 
Zhou Jinchen shook his head, “No.”
 
An Xumo is an artist, he didn’t have this kind of abnormality in his working state.
 
The previous organic lesions have been ruled out and now the influence of specific object has also been ruled out……Li Qiucheng pondered for a moment and said, “I have seen his EEG, although there isn’t much abnormality, his alpha waves show a tendency.”
 
“Alpha wave is the most relaxed state of the human brain and body. In Xiao An’s case, his alpha rhythm is less and his activity is in a higher frequency range. Simply put, it means that he is in a constant state of high tension.”
 
“Judging from the current speculation……” Li Qiucheng looked at Zhou Jinchen, “Xiao An, he, just now most likely had suffered from a strong stimulus. He had an acute anxiety disorder that is…. panic attack.”
 
Zhou Jinchen was silent for a moment.
 
He said in a hoarse voice, “Because of my confession?”
 
“That’s not necessarily true,” Li Qiucheng waved his hand, “Looking at your description, it seems that Xiao An was already in the bad state before accepting the confession.”
 
“If it were a normal situation, he would certainly not associate the confession with the treatment he had heard before. Even if there is such an idea, it’s unlikely that he will show it directly in the eyes of a person with the consideration of normal people.”
 
“I think the problem should be in that photo. Didn’t you say that it had his parents on it? Could it be that his parents contacted him before you went there?”
 
Zhou Jinchen’s face remained cold, “Tang Tang said that he received a phone call yesterday. Tonight, he also has to contact with the other party.”
 
“Then, this phone call is very important,” Li Qiucheg said, “The cause of the panic attack has a lot to do with his early childhood family encounters and many patients have experienced childhood misfortunes. We’d better find out what happened on that phone call.”
 
Zhou Jinchen nodded and Li Qiucheng added, “By the way, it’s best not to ask Xiao An about this. If possible, it would be better to use technical means to recover the call records.”
 
He sighed lightly, “Jinchen, although Xiao An and you are both mentally ill, the two of you are in fact in completely different states.”
 
“You really don’t care but he is forced to endure it. There is nothing unusual on the surface but those things are always there, and they even magnified several times. It’s only because they are temporarily buried that no one can see them.”
 
“……” Zhou Jinchen said, “The more you bury it, the more bombs you’ll have everywhere under your feet, right?”
 
“Right,” Li Qiucheng added, “So when you make a choice, it’s best to give more thought to his ideas. After all, you’re now…… the person who can influence him the most.”
 
He looked at Zhou Jinchen, “You’re confession…… do you still intend to continue?”
 
Zhou Jinchen paused for a moment and shook his head.
 
“It’s good that you think so,” Li Qiucheng said. In the beginning, he would urge Zhou Jinchen to face his heart. In addition to An Xumo’s reaction, he also wants to treat Zhou Jinchen with it, but now……
 
“Jinchen, your self-control ability has always been very strong. You received professional correction and treatment in time but Xiao An is different.” Li Qiucheng pinched the bridge of his nose. “I have seen many such cases, the accumulation of years of stimulation, not receiving timely guidance, not detected by others, and finally……”
 
Li Qiucheng let out a low sigh, “Just now in the ward, Xiao An has shown autistic tendencies. Not only does he have to suffer the stress of an acute anxiety attack but he also has to face the uneasiness of having been seen by others in this manner after the attack.”
 
“Xiao An’s current state shouldn’t be suitable for formal treatment either so if you have time tonight…… it’s better to go and comfort him.”
 
Zhou Jinchen did not say anything and after confirming that Li Qiucheng had no other explanation, he left the balcony. Li Qiucheng looked at the man’s back and couldn’t help but rub his temples.
 
Let’s hope that their relationship will catalyze each other’s healing instead of making the situation worse…….
—
 
Zhou Jinchen pushed the door in, the boy on the bed was still in the same position as when he left, and there wasn’t even seem to be an extra crease in the quilt.
 
There was hot water at the head of the bed and slippers beside the bed. Xiao Yang left the room with a sign. Zhou Jinchen walked over and stood by the bed.
 
The room was silent and no one spoke. The summer night was so quiet that only the sound of cicadas in the distance could be heard faintly.
 
After a long time, the light of the lamp was also turned off, the sound of footsteps resumed, followed by the sound of the door being gently closed, and a few moments later, the ward finally returned to complete silence.
 
The soft black hair scattered on the pillow was suddenly haloed with a small water stain.
 
The top of the hair sank under the pillow, buried deep in the soft bed covers of the slender back, curled up in an almost broken curve. The soft quilt filled all the crevices but there was no way to hide the increasingly urgent, no longer suppressed choking sound.
 
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The author has something to say:
 
Guess if brother left or not, was.²sounds of child crying

 Chapter 89 – It hurts to live ah…

Warning: This chapter may trigger adverse reactions. If it’s beginning to upset or affect you, we advise that you immediately stop reading.

•·················•·················• 
The room quieted down, only the sound of shallow breathing could be heard.
 
An Xumo didn’t hear the knock at first, it wasn’t until Zhou Jinchen, who was standing in the room, began to speak, did he respond with a delayed reaction. “… What?”
 
Zhou Jinchen took this as a response and said, “It’s about the cooperation plan during the previous film promotion period.”
 
The man briefly explained the matter once and made clear of his current attitude. He is accustomed to being in control of everything in advance and rarely goes back on his decisions, let alone apologizing to others.
 
But when Zhou Jinchen said, “I’m sorry”, his tone was very straightforward.
 
An Xumo’s ears buzzed, everything sounded like a barrier. Nonetheless, he still at least understood Zhou Jinchen’s words, and the tiredness and pain in his chest seemed slightly more bearable.
 
“…… It’s okay.”
 
The boy’s voice sounded normal, but his face was white and a bit strange. Zhou Jinchen looks at the in-a-trance-like An Xumo and it gave birth to an uncontrollable, eccentric pain in his chest.
 
“It’s all because of me; I will make up for it.”
 
He thought that the other party’s complexion looked terrible because he was concerned about being used before. Zhou Jinchen reflected on his mistakes and did not think in different directions.
 
After clearing up the misunderstanding between the two, Zhou Jinchen had another thing to explain.
 
He had locked the door when he came in; Jin Dian’s building’s soundproofing was enough. Although the office is not a very suitable place, it’s at least safe here. Moreover, tonight is one of the rare times that both of them have free time.
 
The man stepped forward and got one step closer.
 
“There’s one more thing I want to tell you.”
 
He spoke with great caution and his tone was not as calm and collected as it was earlier.
 
“After a long period of careful consideration, I think I have developed special feelings for you.”
 
An Xumo looked up at the man blankly.
 
“I think I like you.”
 
When saying these words, Zhou Jinchen’s peculiarity was quite evident.
 
The dry words sounded unconvincing and the typically sharp and deep gaze became inexplicably soft. Zhou Jinchen’s performance was so monotonous and dull that he had long lost his usual calmness and comprehensiveness.
 
He apparently doesn’t look cool at all anymore and he no longer looks like his usual self.
 
It’s just that the person listening to these words has lost the ability to read these details at this point.
 
An Xumo thought sluggishly, ……. Like?
 
An He’s voice never dissipated from his ears. Even her expression when she spoke was playing in An Xumo’s mind in a giant movie screen mode. She cried and talked about her despair after finding out she was pregnant, the pain of feeling the fetal movement during pregnancy, and how she couldn’t help but bathe in tears as soon as she saw him after giving birth.
 
Even the person who brought An Xumo into this world said so.
 
So, what else does he have to be worthy of being liked?
 
Is there?
 
An Xumo mumbled the word ‘like’ and suddenly came to his senses.
 
Yes, he also has a dirty but quite convenient identity.
 
The scene around him shifted back to the pure-white strange hospital where two doctors sat behind the door and talked in low voices. In their words, they mentioned Zhou, Asperger’s Syndrome, and there is also a tentative plan for treating the illness.
 
Stimulate romance for the patient so that he can touch the real emotions in the most yearning and most desperate feelings of human beings.
 
This is the reason why you opened your mouth and said like, right?
 
An Xumo looked at Zhou Jinchen; his eyes were so empty that every word bitten out between his lips was simultaneously engraved on the tender flesh, scarred in his heart by the sword.
 
“If you want me to help with the treatment, just say so. Why still go to such great lengths.”
 
The voice that’s pretending to be normal finally became hoarse and harsh, and the blood in his chest churned out, clogging his throat.
 
“Pretending to confess will have a better effect on treatment?”
 
Zhou Jinchen was stunned but consequently recovered his composure from his nervousness immediately.
 
He frowned, “Treatment for what?”
 
An Xumo panted heavily, his forehead stained with cold sweat. When the pain reached the extreme, his heart began to itch and turn sour.
 
He spat out words with difficulty, “Asperger’s……syndrome.”
 
Zhou Jinchen’s gaze turned cold, “What does it have to do with this?”
 
An Xumo’s temples seemed to be chiseled in by a long needle a little. He had a splitting headache and braced himself for the bout of dizziness.
 
“The plan to treat this……is to fall in love with someone, right?”
 
“Why do you think so?” Zhou Jinchen said, “Xiao Mo, what I said to you today is all true and doesn’t mean anything else. The treatment you said……”
 
He didn’t finish his words because the boy in front of him was shaking and couldn’t stand firm while holding on to the table.
 
Zhou Jinchen quickly took two steps forwards, trying to hold An Xumo. The shrunken body of the other party was shaking so badly that he couldn’t even hold up. As soon as his knees went soft, he knelt on the ground.
 
The boy’s body temperature is frighteningly cold, like a piece of ice floating on the sea, which may be crushed and sink to the bottom of the sea at any time.
 
Zhou Jinchen didn’t dare to pull forcefully. He half kneeled and reached out his hand around the other party’s back, trying to pick up the person.
 
“Get up first, Xiao Mo. The ground is cold.”
 
An Xumo didn’t respond. He insisted on holding out his trembling right hand, not knowing what he was fumbling for.
 
When Zhou Jinchen was just about to ask, the boy had withdrawn his arm, and a pocket watch covered with dust was stuck on his bloodstained palm.
 
The somewhat deformed case popped open and revealed a picture.
 
An Xumo was stabbed with pain in his eyes, he used all his remaining strength to shove the pocket watch into Zhou Jinchen’s arms.
 
“You take it away, okay?” The boy was nearly deflated but was still tormented by panic as if he would be blown to pieces if he got a little closer to that photo.
 
His voice was even trembling, “You take it away, and I can do anything you want. You don’t need to give me anything anymore, photos, confessions, nothing…… Brother, just tell me what you want, I will cooperate with you. I promise I will finish the task……”
 
“Xiao Mo, Xiao Mo!”
 
Zhou Jinchen sensed that something was wrong with An Xumo. He did not dare let go of his hand, afraid that the person won’t be able to hold up and fall over. Zhou Jinchen could only cruelly suppress the other party’s struggle, kneeling on the ground and holding the boy in his arms.
 
He wrapped one hand around An Xumo’s waist and pressed the other party’s hand together. He stretched out his other hand and hastily pulled open the boy’s collar.
 
“Listen to me and do it with me. Come and take a deep breath. Don’t think about anything else, inhale……”
 
An Xumo’s struggle grew weaker and weaker while the rise and fall of his chest slowly weakened.
 
The coldness that wandered throughout the body began to attack the heart and brain; the cold sweat crawled all over the spine, the sharp icy edges plunged straight into every bone, the bright red blood spurted out from the ruptured arteries, and dyed the field of view in front red with blood.
 
The boy could no longer hear the sounds around him, he murmured and whispered, breathless.
 
 “B-brother…… I’m sorry, I seem to be dying…..”
 
The sound of An He’s cries drifted distantly in his ears. Before his eyes were the look of those two doctors talking, the past eighteen years ushered in head-on like a giant icicle that sucked away all the heat.
 
This icicle broke apart and became those icy edges that killed him.
 
An Xumo closed his eyes wearily; death was not at all as easy as imagined. The coldness inch by inch reaped the scarred flesh and blood, and even the thin soul was frozen, unable to leave his body.
 
It’s so painful to die ah……
 
Surprisingly, it’s less painful than living.
 
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The author has something to say:
 
Keywords: Near-death feeling

Chapter 88 – Zhou Jinchen opened the door and came in

Warning: This chapter may trigger adverse reactions. If it’s beginning to upset or affect you, we advise that you immediately stop reading.

•·················•·················•
 
An He was bathed in tears all day long and for a time, her mental state was difficult to recover. The Zhou family disliked her for always weeping endlessly yet they couldn’t ask why. However, Zhou Yunshan didn’t want to break off the marriage so the Zhou family had to lock up An He, not letting her show her face to upset people, and the child was also handed over to the babysitter.
 
However, the paper could not wrap up a fire,¹it will burn itself out, as truth will eventually reveal itself despite cover-ups. two years after the birth of An Xumo, Zhou Yunshan was diagnosed with a serious illness. In addition, the hospital also gave another report —— Zhou Yunshan’s sperm lacked vitality, basically, incapable of bearing children.
 
…… Then whose seed is his child?
 
The Zhou family exploded at once; they had never experienced such an absurd event before. The identity of He Wenbin was quickly found out; the He family is also a dignified figure in S City. Although they’re not as good as the Zhou family, they’re not as easy to handle as An He’s parents. The Zhou family is treating Zhou Yunshan while pressuring the He family to hand over the person, thus, the two families are at a standstill, and Zhou Yunshan’s health is getting worse day by day in this situation.
 
In less than half a month in the sickbed, Zhou Yunshan passed away. However, the stalemate between the Zhou family and He family did not end. What the Zhou family did not expect was that Zhou Yunshan had prepared a will behind his family’s back before he died; transferring all his shared and funds to An Xumo’s name, and also notarized them without authorization. The reason why he did this is naturally not how much he loves An Xumo. Zhou Yunshan’s purpose is to leave his assets to He Wenbin so that the other party can escape the responsibility of the Zhou family.
 
Zhou Yunshan is indeed an infatuated person as the Zhou family said to the public. But his infatuation is only for He Wenbin, one that is blind and absurd. As for the life, death, and attitude of others, he did not consider it at all.
 
Although they were very annoyed with Zhou Yunshan’s decision, he is after all their own bloodline, and the Zhou family can only turn the accumulated anger to another person. After dealing with the aftermath of Zhou Yunshan, the Zhou family did not follow his words to spare He Wenbin but instead, pressed forward step by step, and ultimately planned. He Wenbin jumped from the scaffolding of the He family’s construction site and was killed on the spot.
 
The two families, Zhou and He are like water and fire, and they have engaged in a lot of bruising and bone-breaking fights. But the Zhou family did not drive out An Xumo who has the He family’s bloodline. After all, An Xumo still has the shares of Zhou Yunshan which must be waited and can only be signed and transferred until he comes of age.
 
Another reason is that the He family has only one son of their generation, He Wenbin. After the death of He Wenbin, An Xumo became the only heir. The Zhou family and the He family are incompatible, they will naturally not push out An Xumo for nothing to the He family.
 
That’s why An Xumo was fostered in Zhou Yunlin’s home, which had only one child.
 
The Zhou family had to keep An Xumo but they were not so polite to An He. Big families have the best reputation and it’s naturally impossible for them to allow the news of Zhou Yunshan and He Wenbin to come out. As a result, An He was made up as a dissolute woman who trampled on her lover’s infatuation and wanted to have an affair. When the false news spread for a long time, everyone was convinced, and An He who had been used was driven out from the house where her freedom had been restricted before. 
 
The two scums who caused her such a miserable end have died one after another but An He herself hasn’t been able to relax much. She has long been cut off from her previous social circle, has no financial resources, and has no skills. After great difficulty and wandering about, An He finally returned to her hometown. She wanted to slowly recuperate in this remote but simple place where she grew up but in despair, she found that the rumors about her had already spread here. 
 
Her parents thought she didn’t know how to be restrained, making their family lose face, and they didn’t even let her in. The younger brother also shouted at An He through the door, telling her not to come back, less step on the dirty ground at home.
 
An He couldn’t so she could only wander around again. She sold the only remaining bit of trivial jewelry, supported herself with this money, and went south to work temporarily on the set of the film and television base.
 
Being an actress was An He’s dream since childhood. If it wasn’t for going astray, perhaps there would have been a small success at this time. But An He was filled with tears all day previously, her looks and charm were not as good as before. She didn’t make it as an actress so she has been running odd jobs on the set.
 
Later, by chance, An He went to Hollywood with the crew. After filming, she found a way to stay there. Even on the other side of the ocean, she didn’t want to go back to the sad place on that side of the sea.
 
At this point, An He has already cried and wet two packs of tissues but the makeup on her face hasn’t been wiped off much, her appearance still looks beautiful.
 
There is always another hand in the camera to help her pass the tissues again. An Xumo listened drowsily but could not even ignore the tone of every word when An He spoke.
 
For the first time, he despaired so much of his good memory.
 
“After that, I went with Statham to Hollywood. He’s a producer here, we got married……and had two children.”
 
An Xumo realized with hindsight, no wonder……there are children’s voices coming over there from time to time.
 
An He continued, “About six months ago, Zhiwei came to the United States to talk about cooperation. He and Statham have a working relationship and we just happened to meet.”
 
Since An He graduated from the university, the two had broken off contact. Zhang Zhiwei was unaware of the twists and turns that had happened to An He and was only too excited to catch up with her, and mentioned An Xumo whom he had met in China.
 
For An He, this child has cast a shadow on her no less than the Zhou family. She didn’t want to tell the dirty truth nor did she want An Xumo to know her news. Therefore, she made up a reason that the child ran back to China in anger to make his debut, saying that An Xumo was most bothered by her interference in his affairs so that Zhang Zhiwei would never mention herself in front of An Xumo.
 
If it wasn’t for the fact that An Xumo had such an important eighteenth birthday this time, Zhang Zhiwei once again enthusiastically proposed to help resolve the conflict between his senior sister and the child. An He wasn’t able to find a reason to continue to stall but could only contact An Xumo under Zhang Zhiwei’s lead.
 
“It’s pretty good that you can live independently on your own.” An He reluctantly smiled, “Being an artist, it must be a wonderful life……”
 
An Xumo stiffened there, not even knowing how to react.
 
Being angry with the family, said he was annoyed with his parent’s interference……these words, An Xumo has only seen in books and scripts. He did not even dare to look at the narration of the text and had to skim hastily each time.
 
Moreover, his mother, An Xumo’s mother whom he had not seen in eighteen years, actually made up this reason and placed it on him.
 
“But I also have something to say to you.” An He’s emotions have slowly calmed down and the tears on her face have been wiped clean. The only thing left on her face is a touch of hesitation, “In the future, on Zhiwei’s side, I will explain it to him. You’d better not get in touch with him anymore.”
 
An He stiffly pulled out a smile, “Zhiwei was enthusiastic at that time but he did not expect to be able to maintain it when he entered the entertainment industry. But……you’re also an adult and you should understand that. After all, it’s not good to return the favor if you’re helped too many times. Although I helped him at that time, it was all a meal, and now, there is nothing to reciprocate. Over a long period of time, it may not look very good……”
With such sluggish and confused thoughts, nevertheless, An Xumo found that he could still be so clearly aware of the deeper pain stabbed into his heart.
 
His voice was hoarse as he opened his mouth and said his first words after hearing the truth.
 
“You think that… I am asking for resources from Teacher Zhang Zhiwei under your banner?”
 
The thoughts could not run smoothly and it’s difficult for An Xumo to speak as thoughtfully as he always does. But he lost all his strength and he was by no means in a very aggressive tone at this time.
 
However, on the other side, the screen suddenly flashed. Then, a foreign man with a carefully trimmed ash gray beard appeared on the screen.
 
He had a cigar in his hand and his face was much harsher than An He’s.
 
“Watch your language, Mr. Zhou. Is this the tone you should use to talk to your elders?” He understood An Xumo’s Chinese but spoke in English, “An is too embarrassed to speak with you so let me make it clear. We exactly know what your intentions are but I can tell you plainly that I will not help you come to Hollywood and I won’t leave any role for you.”
 
“The wound you’ve caused to An has still made her difficult to heal and she doesn’t want to see anyone in your family. Even if you’re unwilling to redeem yourselves, don’t keep coming back to hurt her.”
 
As Statham spoke, An He was already covering her face, crying. The two curly-haired boys ran over, their limbs soft, with round dimples on the back of their exposed hands on the screen. The two small children hugged An He on each side.
 
“Mom, don’t cry!”

 
An He wiped her eyes and hugged each of them, “Thank you, my dear boys.”
 
Their movements came one after another and though most of them were muffled by Statham’s voice, but like the shrill sound of cutting glass, it pierced through An Xumo’s eardrums.
 
An Xumo’s eyes, ears, and heart flowed with bright red blood and tears, woodenly listening to Statham’s stern proclamations.
 
“That’s everything. You’re an adult now; you don’t have to play those childish tricks. You owe Zhang a favor and we will pay it back. But in the future, don’t contact Zhang again, and don’t bother An again.”
 
The screen suddenly darkened and the signal was cut off unilaterally. From beginning to end, An He did not call An Xumo’s name once.
 
She didn’t show any bit of happiness about this reunion throughout nor did she say sorry for the past ten years or so.
 
The hot screen reflected An Xumo’s face, the room was brightly lit, yet invisible to the eye.

An Xumo sat on the chair for a long time, as if finally remembering how to move, he stretched out his trembling right hand to his chest.
 
He pulled the pocket watch down with all his strength, his arm was numb, and his fingertips were sore. The thin chain was forced to tighten but it wasn’t pulled off until the second force, it finally broke feebly in the air.
 
The broken long-chain scattered down, stained with some blood.
 
The arm’s movement was so large that it knocked off the penholder next to the table, five or six pens were scattered on the ground, brightly reflecting the light.
 
An Xumo took off the pocket watch with a mini-photo and dropped it from the palm of his hand as if he had been scalded. He just didn’t hear the sound, but now, when he looked down, he found that several pens had fallen on the ground.
 
He stared blankly at it for a long time, he supported himself on the table with his palm, squatted down slowly, and picked up the pens scattered everywhere, one by one.
 
One, two, three……
 
An Xumo put all the pens in the penholder but could not count the last number.
 
One, two, three……
 
It suddenly occurred to him that this was the third time.
 
When he was first used by his brother for the publicity program, An Xumo had made a promise to himself not to be delusional and not make the same mistake again.
 
It’s only been a few days?
 
It’s only been a few days?!!
 
Why, why does he still dare to dream?!
 
Mom, mom, mom! An Xumo shouldn’t have had illusions about that word long ago but what did he do? He bit the title in his mouth, his heart hung on this picture, he dreamed of this person, and then he deserved it, having every bone broken by these two words.
 
An Xumo stood by the table, stepping on the pocket watch under his feet. His insides twisted into a knot, his vision turned blood-red.
 
Why does he still dare to dream? Why is he still alive?
 
If a person’s birth brings endless suffering to others.
 
If a person’s birth suffers from endless white eyes²indicates looking down on people or not being satisfied with them.of the people around him.
 
The blood flow spread around his feet, flowed out at his fingertips, wet his chest, and poured into his twitching throat ——
 
“Knock, knock, knock.” 
 
A dull knock on the door suddenly interrupted the deathly silence in the room.
 
The office light was on, and soon the door was pushed open by a hand.
 
A slender, familiar figure walked in.
 
After asking Tang Tang, Zhou Jinchen learned where An Xumo was, and only then did he make a special trip to Jin Dian.
 
They would see each other at intervals like this before but this time, Zhou Jinchen had a very different feeling.
 
He looked at An Xumo standing at the table, his voice was still low and melodious but there was some imperceptible tension in his tone.
 
“Xiao Mo.”
 
Zhou Jinchen said, “I have something I want to talk to you about.”
 
•·················•·················•
 
The author has something to say:
The four sons of the previous generation of the Zhou family are named after the sound of “Feng Lin Volcano”.
 
The eldest: Zhou Yunfeng;
The second: Zhou Jinchen’s father — Zhou Yunlin;
The third: Zhou Yunhua;
The fourth: An Xumo’s nominal father — Zhou Yunshan

•·················•·················•

Jie Jie: I—

Chapter 87 – An He called

When he came out of the hospital examination, An Xumo was taken away by Xiao Zhang for an interview. He didn’t have a little rest until the scheduled mealtime.

While eating, An Xumo remembered what just happened during the check-up. He didn’t know what Xin Zimai said about the registration but unlike the imaginary one-on-one psychological counseling, almost the entire medical team came to An Xumo and asked him about it. They were fine when talking to An Xumo but once they started discussing with each other, their voices became fast and urgent, with a lot of jargon mixed in from time to time.

In addition, the other party asked too many various things and went through many bizarre scales and tests along the way. An Xumo thought about it again but can’t come up with many useful things.

But because of his good memory, An Xumo remembered an incident that happened during the examination when he was organizing his thoughts.

At that time, he happened to be finished being questioned by a bearded doctor, who took him to another room to find another doctor. When he pushed the door in, the bearded doctor walked in front followed by An Xumo behind him, who heard voices of two doctors talking in the room.

An Xumo originally did not want to listen to other people’s conversation but in one of the words, he heard the word ‘Chou’. Thinking of when Xin Zimai said that his brother is also being treated in Huashan Hospital, his attention was drawn to them.

The two people were discussing about Asperger’s syndrome, one of them was talking about the alleviation and treatment of AS symptoms. An Xumo couldn’t really hear it but vaguely heard a phrase similar to stimulated romance.

What is stimulated romance, a love game? An Xumo remembered Tang Tang mentioned that a stimulated romance game had come into contact recently, the game’s heat seems to be very popular, the monthly sales are also very good. But……An Xumo couldn’t imagine what his brother would look like playing a love game.

En…… it’s really unimaginable.

Apart from these titbits, An Xumo also searched keywords for Asperger’s syndrome. The information and opinions on the Internet are diverse and somewhat confusing to read but the point that can be confirmed is that the most basic and obvious symptoms are not present in An Xumo.

Xin Zimai said the results will probably come out in a few days and there is no use in worrying about it now. Therefore, An Xumo put the matter at the back of his mind for the time being.

The next few days were still busy as usual, during that time Tang Tang left one day and came back quite distracted. An Xumo asked her once but Tang Tang did not give a direct answer but only said that he should work well and don’t be too pressured. After going to school in a few weeks, there will be time to adjust.

An Xumo couldn’t help but have some doubts, he didn’t feel much busy lately, and his stomach was slowly improving so he didn’t know why Tang Tang would suddenly say that.

But his attention was soon drawn to another matter.

The phone call he had been waiting for for a long time finally came.

When the gentle voice hesitantly called out his name, An Xumo had not yet put down the water bottle in his hand. The boy hurriedly found a corner where no one paid attention to and his eyes silently turned red.

The transparent bottle being held was dent but the sound of the response was deliberately soft.

An Xumo was afraid that he would wake up from this beautiful dream if he made a little movement.

There wasn’t much conversation in the phone call. An He only said that she would contact him again tomorrow night. An Xumo nodded and said he was free tomorrow night and when he asked for the location, there was another hesitation.

“Let’s talk on a video call first……is that okay? You find a little more private space.”

“Okay.” An Xumo asked, “have you returned home safely?”

There was a moment of silence on the other side but both of them were obviously a little nervous as they talked and An Xumo didn’t think much about it.

“Wait for tomorrow night’s video call to talk ba. I’m here now, I may need to hang up the phone first……”

“Good, you go ahead and do your things ba. See you tomorrow night.” 

An Xumo finished speaking, he hesitated for a moment, wanting to call out that title but his lips seem to be stuck, and his throat was so dry that he couldn’t even call out the simplest of reduplicative.

When he finally plucked up the courage to call “mom”, there was a busy tone of ‘beeping’ from the other side.¹to clear it up, we were stuck between using mama/papa and mom/dad. Since mama/papa was used in the raw, but it didn’t feel right using them, so yeah… in case it’s a bit confusing.

An Xumo was stunned.

An Xumo was stunned.

Maybe it’s going through the customs or getting on the plane so the phone was turned off. An Xumo was relieved to think so, he put away the phone and let out a long sigh of relief.

The thin chain around the neck was hooked out by the slender fingers and An Xumo carefully held the pocket watch in the palm of his hand. The simple pocket watch case was opened and inside, in addition to the time, there was a miniature photo that had been hidden.

There were three people in the photo and it took eighteen years before An Xumo finally found their voices.

On the second evening, An Xumo who had always loved his job and worked hard took the initiative to leave early. The soundproofing of the dormitory is not good, An Xumo borrowed Tang Tang’s office. The latter is still busy outside and will not return to the company tonight, she let An Xumo go straight over.

More than ten minutes before the appointed time, An Xumo arrived at the office. He had never had a concrete concept of the word mother before and thought that after so many years, he had long ceased to be the little boy who cried for his mommy and daddy. But when he really saw that picture and heard the other party’s voice, he realized that those longings were only suppressed but never disappeared.

The hour hand overlapped with the minute hand and An Xumo took a long breath. He looked at the tablet in front of him, staring at the video call software that they had agreed on, and counted each and every second.

About fifty or maybe a hundred, the green microphone finally popped out.

An Xumo squeezed his sweaty fingertips and clicked on the screen.

A delicate, soft, and gentle woman appeared on the screen. An Xumo only took one look at her and understood why Zhang Zhiwei had identified him at first glance.

Except for age and gender, An He and he are almost carved out of the same mold.

An He was obviously also taken aback by An Xumo’s appearance for a moment, she only smiled after half a second, “……Hello.”

An Xumo was somewhat reserved, “Hello.”²An Xumo said “您好” which is a more courteous greeting.

The electric waves transmitted in the screen and the atmosphere were like returning to that previous phone call. An Xumo subconsciously bit the tip of his tongue and his palms were a little sweaty.

Both ends were quiet for a moment until the voices of other people talking came faintly from the other side. It seems that someone said something to An He. She nodded out of the camera then turned to An Xumo and said, “I heard from Zhiwei that you have turned eighteen years old.”

An Xumo nodded.

An He said, “So now……you should also be clear about what happened before.”

Before? An Xumo was stunned and he saw An He take a soft breath and explained.

Twenty years ago, An He who was still studying in art school had an outstanding appearance and excellent acting skills. Before she graduated, she was given many opportunities to appear on stage. With a chance encounter, she became acquainted with Zhou Yunshan, a wealthy son from a well-off family. Zhou Yunshan soon pursued her with flowers, perfumes, luxury brands, and picking up and dropping her off with luxurious cars. The young An He’s romantic experience is almost like a blank sheet of paper. Although many people advised her that Zhou Yunshan just wanted to play her, she still failed to resist the other party’s attack.

What moved An He the most is that during the graduation season, not only did the two ‘break up after graduation,’ but Zhou Yunshan even asked her for an engagement.

An He, who was deeply absorbed in love, gave up acting to avoid her fiancé feeling jealous and agreed to break off her relationship with her former classmates and teachers. Because of the great disparity in family conditions, her parents also obeyed the Zhou family and kept telling their daughter to keep a firm grip on Zhou Yunshan’s heart.

While An He was waiting for the wedding ceremony with great anticipation, Prince Charming’s dream suddenly shattered in front of her.

An He returned early but in the villa where the two lived alone, she bumped into Zhou Yunshan entangled with someone in bed.

What’s more, she couldn’t believe that the person who was fooling around with her fiancé was a man.

An He stumbled out of the house but there was nowhere to stay in such a big city. She ran to a coffee shop and was alone in the corner in torment that she wished she was dead.

A strange man came forward and stroked up a conversation, saying that he pitied the beauty and could not bear to see her cry alone. An He refused several times at first, then slowly moved by the man’s words of enlightenment, she burst into tears, but under the comfort of the person, she’s finally willing to drink a sip of coffee that had been untouched for a long time.

As a result, it was this sip of coffee that knocked her out and made her unconscious. When An He woke up again, she was already sleeping in bed with a strange man.

What’s even more frightening to An He is that this man was the one she saw in Zhou Yunshan’s bed last night.

His name was He Wenbin.

Zhou Yunshan suddenly appeared with a gloomy expression; he looked at An He and sneered. Unexpectedly made unfounded charges, accusing her of not knowing how to behave, sleeping with another man behind her fiancé’s back. An He could not argue with the other but Zhou Yunshan has already kept the evidence and he teamed up with He Wenbin to threaten An He. Even if she told others that Zhou Yunshan was having an affair with He Wenbin, no one would be able to believe her.

It was only then An He realized that from beginning to end, what she had been facing for the past two years was a scam.

The only person Zhou Yunshan loved was He Wenbin but the Zhou family did not allow him to marry a man so Zhou Yunshan went to the young, innocent, and easy to control An He, and tricked her into coming home as a puppet. After He Wenbin slept with An He, the latter could no longer sue the Zhou family. She nearly fell apart but was forced by Zhou Yunshan to live on and continued to be his shield.

Two months later, An He found out that she was pregnant.

There was no need to find out whose child it was as Zhou Yunshan had never touched her. At that time, An He only thought that this was her lover’s respect for herself, she was contented with Zhou Yunshan’s thoughtfulness when she caught wind of the spreading rumors being taken care of.

Now she knows that there is only one reason Zhou Yunshan can’t get hard on the opposite sex.

With the baby, Zhou Yunshan became more and more fearless, and even when An He was at home, he was able to act directly with He Wenbin in the living room without any scruple. Forced into a desperate situation, An He called home for help. She cried and said she wanted to go home but her parents hesitated on the phone and even told her to take good care of the child.

Before Zhou Yunshan chose her, he had already found out everything about her, including her poor family conditions, and her parents’ greed for money.

An He fell into the abyss but was still having the most considerate and expensive pregnancy care.

Eventually, in everyone’s expectation, An He gave birth to a boy.

Taking the father’s name, Xumo.³I’m not quite sure if this refers to An He’s father since Xiao Mo’s father is He Wenbin. It wasn’t clearly specified.

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The author has something to say:

It’s impossible for a normal person to be unconcerned towards their own flesh and blood for 18 years, right?