Chapter 57#
A reward… for you.#
His body, finally relaxed, leaned completely into Qin Mu’s arms. With his chin resting on Qin Mu’s shoulder, he shook his head gently.
The person who had suddenly knelt before him in the cafe that afternoon was named Liu Yi.
She was his aunt.
He didn’t have a deep impression of this woman. He only remembered that when he had just started high school, Jian Jinbao had brought her back from somewhere. She was a timid woman who had come from the countryside to the big city and been swindled several times. He didn’t know if it was simply bad luck, but she had encountered the greatest catastrophe of her life.
In a state of confusion, she had married Jian Jinbao.
Life after marriage was predictable. When there was money, Jian Jinbao would go out drinking; when there wasn’t, verbal and physical abuse were daily occurrences.
To make life a bit more bearable, she was constantly rushing through various streets and alleys.
Her situation was so similar to Jian Yunchen’s, with one sole difference.
Liu Yi had accepted her fate. She was submissive, living one day at a time, and she rarely even cried.
Meeting her again, Liu Yi had dropped to her knees the moment they met.
Jian Yunchen’s gaze lowered, and he realized her hands were constantly shielding her slightly protruding lower abdomen.
She was pregnant.
Through her tearful complaints, Jian Yunchen learned what kind of life Jian Jinbao was leading in the detention center.
Jian Jinbao was not only his uncle but also the embodiment of the vileness and wretchedness of his past. After regaining his identity, it wasn’t that Jian Yunchen hadn’t thought about making Jian Jinbao pay the price he deserved, venting all the suffering and torture he had endured in the past.
But every time he thought of Jian Jinbao, the first thing that surged up wasn’t hatred, but fear.
Every resistance from his younger self had been ruthlessly suppressed, replaced by countless instances of pain he simply could not bear.
He knew where his weakness lay.
And so he had retreated. He had the courage to perish together with Jian Jinbao, but he didn’t have the courage to negotiate with him.
As long as Jian Jinbao was locked in prison—ideally never to see him again for the rest of his life—Jian Yunchen felt that such an outcome might be enough.
But from Liu Yi’s mouth, he learned that in a corner he had abandoned.
Qin Mu had pulled every string just to make Jian Jinbao pay the proper price for every single scar on his body.
Liu Yi said through her tears that Jian Jinbao was at his breaking point inside; he was emaciated and covered in injuries. He had knelt on the ground and promised that once he got out, he would treat her and the child in her belly well.
Ignoring the astonished gazes of bystanders, her tears fell to the ground one after another.
She refused to get up no matter what, kneeling on the ground, cradling her stomach, and pleading with him.
“Xiao Chen, I beg of you… I’m begging you…”
“Don’t let him out. Let him stay in prison for his whole life.”
“If he comes out, this child… this child definitely won’t survive. He’ll beat it to death.”
Such a timid woman, who hadn’t dared to raise her head or say a harsh word her entire life.
For the sake of her unborn child, she knelt on the crowded street, her face covered in tears.
Asking only one thing of him: to give her child a chance to live.
Jian Yunchen lightly rubbed against the side of Qin Mu’s shoulder and said softly, “She… begged me not to let Jian Jinbao out. She begged me to let him stay in prison forever.”
Hearing this, the cold light in Qin Mu’s eyes gradually dissipated.
He let out a cold snort. “Just prison? That would be far too easy on him.”
Jian Yunchen tilted his face up, Qin Mu’s reflection shimmering in his moist eyes. He slowly tightened his fingertips, his voice dry: “What else do you want to do?”
Qin Mu curled his lips into a smile. His tone was gentle, yet the words he spoke made Jian Yunchen’s spine turn cold: “How about I kill him?”
His eyes widened suddenly. In the current atmosphere, he actually believed Qin Mu’s words. Jian Yunchen lowered his voice and blurted out:
“Are you crazy?! Murder is against the law, you’ll go to prison, and for a man like him—”
Seeing the irrepressible playfulness hidden in Qin Mu’s eyes, Jian Yunchen suddenly realized he had been played.
He couldn’t help but throw a frustrated punch at him.
“Ouch.” Qin Mu caught his wrist and leaned in, hissing slightly with pain as his brows furrowed in agony.
Jian Yunchen’s hand went soft, and his own brow furrowed in concern. “I… I didn’t use any strength.”
Qin Mu wrapped his arm around his waist and lowered his head against his shoulder. Jian Yunchen didn’t dare to resist, letting himself be held like a wooden block. After quite a while, Qin Mu’s shoulders began to shake gently; he couldn’t suppress his laughter and began to laugh softly.
“I still managed to fool you.”
Jian Yunchen snapped back to reality. It was a carbon copy of the last time, except this time, Jian Yunchen’s concern had clouded his judgment, and he had truly fallen for it.
He pursed his lips and fell silent.
Qin Mu leaned lazily against Jian Yunchen’s shoulder, his downcast eyes filled with a chilling coldness. His moral compass had never been high; the only reason he hadn’t killed Jian Jinbao yet was that he felt the man hadn’t suffered enough.
There were “surprises” waiting for him to unwrap later; he couldn’t bear to let him go offline so soon.
“Qin Mu…”
Jian Yunchen’s voice suddenly rang out.
Qin Mu gave a soft “Mm” and straightened up to look at him.
The warm light fell on Jian Yunchen’s face, giving his skin a delicate white glow. His long eyelashes drooped slightly, and his voice was very soft, like a feather landing on the tip of Qin Mu’s heart.
Jian Yunchen lifted his eyelids and looked at him lightly. His watery eyes were like deep small lakes shrouded in mist. His pale lips parted and closed; though it was only two words, he spoke them so slowly and softly that time seemed to stretch several times longer:
“Thank you…”
There was too much he wanted to say, but he didn’t know where to start. He could only use these simple words to represent his thoughts. He looked at Qin Mu, thinking of everything that had happened along the way. Everything he cared about, everything he was ashamed of, and everything he feared had been laid out clearly before Qin Mu, with nowhere to hide.
But this person was Qin Mu.
He thought he could feel a little more at ease.
The thanks received no response. Qin Mu suddenly reached out and covered his eyes.
His vision was plunged into darkness. Jian Yunchen blinked, his lashes brushing against the other man’s warm palm. He didn’t understand why Qin Mu always did this. He reached up to pull the hand away but couldn’t move it.
With his hand over his eyes, Qin Mu leaned forward, stopping just before they touched.
Warm breath brushed against his lips. Jian Yunchen’s body stiffened, and he stopped moving.
Qin Mu’s gaze fell on his lips, and he spoke softly.
“Do you know what kind of expression you were just wearing while looking at me?”
Jian Yunchen’s chest rose and fell slightly, completely trapped in this heated atmosphere. Qin Mu’s proximity made his body begin to tense. Though his vision was covered, it felt as if it wasn’t entirely blocked; everywhere Qin Mu’s gaze swept felt as if a cloud of fire had descended, burning openly.
Hearing the question, he subconsciously shook his head, but suddenly felt the vibration of a voice against his ear:
“An expression… that says you want me to kiss you.”
The side of Jian Yunchen’s neck where the breath landed quickly turned a deep red, the color spreading across most of his face covered by Qin Mu’s hand.
He began to struggle instinctively, but Qin Mu held him even tighter.
With the hand over his eyes held steady, Jian Yunchen’s world consisted only of the temperature of Qin Mu’s embrace.
And the exceptionally clear, slightly cool kiss that landed on the side of his neck.
The sensation was so clear and burning that Jian Yunchen’s body went weak on one side. He trembled all over and bit his lower lip hard.
The kiss quickly pulled away, but the sensation felt as if it remained on his skin.
Qin Mu’s gaze darkened as he looked at the small red mark. “A reward… for you.”