After the initial surprise, she carefully looked through them again, gradually calming down and shaking her head: “This is not Xu Cheng’an.”
Shen Yuan’s face turned blue with anger: “The evidence is right here, and you say it’s not him? Shen Ran, are you disregarding your own brother for a wild man?”
Chen Jing ignored his accusation and asked: “When did you take these photos?” Indeed, the man in the photos was exactly like Xu Cheng’an, with similar expressions and temperament that could be recognized at a glance. However, Chen Jing quickly noticed something was off – the eyes were wrong, the complexion slightly distorted, looking like it was photoshopped.
No matter what expression, his eyes were hollow, pitch-black pupils without any focus, looking like a dead person.
”Even if it were Xu Cheng’an who did it, the car accident is three months away. You drive this car almost every day. If there were a real problem, would you really wait three months to have an accident?” Chen Jing thought she was stupid for climbing out of bed just because Shen Yuan said he had “Xu Cheng’an’s criminal record,” hastily leaving a note and rushing to the airport in the middle of the night to pick him up.
Shen Yuan seemed stumped, his face alternating between blue and white, his brow furrowed tightly, saying nothing. Chen Jing couldn’t be bothered to look at him, collected the photos, stood up and walked out: “If you feel dangerous, be careful recently. Don’t always try to cause me trouble. Get some rest, goodbye.”
Xu Cheng’an might wake up at any moment. She left in a hurry and casually wrote a note. It’s better to go back and reassure him. Shen Yuan glared at her back, watching her walk away, feeling somewhat guilty and holding back from speaking. Until she was completely out of sight, he finally snorted coldly and gritted his teeth: “Just you wait!”
Returning to the bedroom, it was pitch black. Chen Jing carefully lay down on the bed, and just as she pulled the covers over herself, her wrist was grabbed.
“When did you wake up?” Facing Xu Cheng’an’s blurry face in the darkness, Chen Jing blinked, inexplicably feeling guilty. Xu Cheng’an’s voice was low and hoarse, softly saying: “Not long after you left.”
Chen Jing unconsciously reached out to touch his eyelids, and indeed felt a damp surface. Her fingertips paused slightly, her tone tinged with compassion, as she explained: “My brother came over, I went to pick him up at the airport, and I left in a hurry, so the sticky note is all messy.”
Xu Cheng’an hummed in response, his face nestled close to her shoulder, breathing steadily.
Chen Jing raised her eyebrows in surprise: “You’re not going to ask?”
“Ask what?” Xu Cheng’an smiled warmly: “I trust you.”
Just as he finished speaking, an electronic voice sounded: [Male Lead’s Current Happiness Value: 1%] Xu Cheng’an’s data only appeared during the day and was invisible at night. Chen Jing had almost believed him, but then the sudden electronic sound caused the arc at the corner of her lips to instantly stiffen.
Chen Jing touched his cool hair with a complex mood: “Go to sleep.” Xu Cheng’an nuzzled her palm affectionately, softly responding with a “Hmm.”
Chen Jing stared at the pitch-black ceiling, listening to the gradually steady breathing beside her, her heart full of melancholy. Xu Cheng’an, clearly cared about her going out late at night, yet would rather suffer in silence than cause a fuss with her. Seeing him like this was indeed heartbreaking, but Chen Jing would have preferred him to get angry with her, rather than bottling everything up and leaving her no chance to even apologize. Chen Jing felt depressed, and Xu Cheng’an, clinging tightly to her, felt even worse.
In fact, he now desperately wanted to question Shen Ran – was her brother, whom she hadn’t contacted for several years, really that important? Important enough that she would disregard everything, leave a note in the middle of the night, and just abandon him? Did she consider how he would feel seeing those words? Did she think about his panic upon waking up in the middle of the night to find her gone?
Xu Cheng’an’s heart was heavy, suppressing anger, grievance, and heartache – various negative emotions he wished he could lay bare before Shen Ran, making her understand how wronged and jealous he was of the brother who could call her away in the middle of the night with just a word.
Apart from the late hour and not explaining clearly to him, she hadn’t done anything wrong. If he thought about it, he was even to blame. If he hadn’t suddenly woken up in the middle of the night, given Shen Ran’s return time, he would never have seen that note, let alone be angry. He had just managed to get Shen Ran to accept him, and now, discovering his ugly, monstrous side after just a few days, she would surely want to break up with him. Xu Cheng’an bit his lip, forcibly holding back his distress, not letting a single tear fall: he didn’t want to gamble at all.
With his intense emotional fluctuations, Chen Jing lying right next to him wasn’t stupid – how could she not notice? She just respected him and didn’t expose it. But now – Thinking about the electronic voice that had just appeared, that 1% highlighted in red as if afraid she wouldn’t see it, Chen Jing let out a light sigh, feeling the road ahead was long and arduous…
The two spent the night with different thoughts, their hearts heavy, neither sleeping well. Chen Jing fell asleep around four in the morning, and Xu Cheng’an’s sleep time was unknown, but he got up early.
Steamed eggs were prepared in the pot, black rice porridge was cooked, and lettuce was stir-fried to go with it. He set the table and tidied up the kitchen before going to the bedroom to wake Shen Ran. ”Ran Jie,” Xu Cheng’an leaned close to her ear, calling her gently: “Time to wake up.” Chen Jing turned over, drowsily half-closing her eyes. Seeing Xu Cheng’an’s face inches away, she slowly closed her eyes again, her voice soft: “Not getting up.” Xu Cheng’an had never seen Shen Ran like this and felt a stir in his heart, almost wanting to pin her down for some morning exercise. He chuckled softly, kissing her forehead, patiently coaxing: “Get up and have some breakfast first, and then I’ll keep you company to sleep, okay?” The gentle laughter and warm voice were particularly comfortable, making Chen Jing even less willing to get up. Without opening her eyes, she reached out from under the covers, hooking his neck and pulling him down. Xu Cheng’an’s smile widened, kissing her thoroughly until both were breathless, before reluctantly pulling away. Chen Jing’s sleepiness was completely gone: “Why are you up so early?” If she remembered correctly, today was a weekend and they didn’t need to go to work.
Xu Cheng’an blushed looking at her, she was still catching her breath, her brow marked with a seductive color from their recent kiss, teasingly raising an eyebrow at him, looking irresistibly alluring.
Xu Cheng’an’s throat moved: “Your brother called me, saying he’s coming over.”
“You gave him the address?” Chen Jing didn’t expect Shen Yuan to be so persistent. It clearly had nothing to do with Xu Cheng’an, and she had already told him last night, yet he still wanted to come.
“Mm.” Xu Cheng’an was straightforward: “He said he had agreed with you last night that he must come.”
Chen Jing asked: “Cheng’an, do you want him to come?”
“Your brother is my brother, of course I want him to come,” Xu Cheng’an said obediently.
He disguised himself well, with love in his eyes that was pure and clean, hiding his unknown side completely, not revealing a trace.
However, precisely because he acted so well, Chen Jing did not believe him.
