Chapter 26 - 2#
Jing Shun’s reactions were still slow, and he didn’t respond.
Chi Gui brought him back to the room as quickly as possible, setting him down on the edge of the bed. “Change out of your dirty clothes first.”
The smart controls in the bedroom all turned on, lights brightening to chase away drowsiness.
Jing Shun belatedly realized he’d been carried by Chi Gui the whole way, and the heat inside him intensified. “I’ll do it myself. What about the, the wheelchair?”
Chi Gui noticed his discomfort. “I’ll have Yi Ming bring it up. You go ahead and tidy up a bit.”
“Alright.”
Jing Shun had a bit of a headache.
Afraid that a shower might worsen his physical discomfort, he simply wiped himself down with hot water and changed into soft cotton pajamas.
The sticky residue of the juice was finally gone, and the bedroom’s AC temperature was just right. Jing Shun carefully moved himself back onto the bed and let out a relieved sigh.
Suddenly, urgent scratching sounds came from outside the door.
“Woo woo~ Hmph! Woof!”
Then came a knock. “Jing Shun, are you done?”
Jing Shun froze, not expecting Chi Gui to still be waiting in the living room. “Oh, I’m done.”
The unlatched bedroom door opened.
Gou Bao sprinted a hundred meters to the bedside, wildly wagging his tail while whining and acting cute toward Jing Shun.
Jing Shun rubbed the dog’s fluffy head. A faint scent of shampoo came through—clearly, someone at home had taken him for a bath that afternoon.
“Woo~”
“Alright, I know you’re a sweet-smelling baby. Come on up. Tonight, you’re allowed to sleep with me.”
Gou Bao had been waiting for those words. He jumped onto the bed with a boost, pressing himself against Jing Shun’s chest, listening to his heartbeat.
“Awoo! Woof~”
Held close by the warm, soft little dog, Jing Shun felt all his limbs relax along with it.
He couldn’t help but lower his head and touch foreheads with Gou Bao. “Alright, good boy. I love you the most.”
“……”
Chi Gui, standing at the door, hadn’t expected Jing Shun to indulge the dog to this extent. His gaze darkened.
The dog could come in and jump on the bed without asking, but he couldn’t—at least not yet.
Fortunately, Uncle Lin soon brought over a bowl of freshly made ginger soup. “Sir.”
Chi Gui finally walked into the bedroom, immediately aiming the electronic thermometer at Jing Shun. “Don’t move.”
—Beep.
It showed 37.4°C, about the same data from the wristband.
A slight fever, but nothing serious.
Uncle Lin handed the steaming ginger soup to Jing Shun. “Young Master Jing, drink some ginger soup to ward off the cold. Once your body heats up a bit, this little fever will go away.”
Jing Shun really couldn’t stand the smell of ginger. He whispered, “Do I have to? I don’t like the smell.”
Chi Gui didn’t force him. He said to Uncle Lin, “Switch to cold medicine granules instead.”
Jing Shun, still rubbing Gou Bao’s soft belly, tried to refuse again. “… No need, right? I don’t feel unwell.”
Chi Gui saw through his intention to avoid medicine. “Either take the medicine now to prevent it, or wait until you’re burning up in the middle of the night and let the doctor give you a proper shot. Your choice.”
“……”
Jing Shun paused in his petting.
He deliberately avoided looking at Chi Gui, who was being a nuisance, and just gave the butler a faint smile. “Uncle Lin, I’ll take the medicine instead. Sorry to trouble you.”
Uncle Lin, seeing his rare childishness, couldn’t help smiling. “No trouble at all, Young Master Jing. I’ll go prepare it for you now.”
Once Uncle Lin left the room,
Chi Gui pulled over a desk chair and sat down. “Let’s talk.”
Jing Shun knew he was about to face the music. Guiltily, he said, “Didn’t we already talk? I just wanted to go get that compensation money back from them.”
“So, did you get it back?”
“……”
Jing Shun paused for two seconds and answered honestly, “How could it be that easy? That couple wants to swallow the whole three hundred thousand.”
“The moment I walked in, I had a huge fight with them. Jing Yang splashed juice on me, but I threw the cup back at him. I didn’t lose.”
Jing Shun knew better than anyone that the money wouldn’t come back to him easily, but he still had to go through this—to let out all the resentment he’d been holding for years.
Maybe because he’d never seen Jing Shun so hysterically crazy before, Jing Guanhai was genuinely intimidated.
Until Jing Shun left, he didn’t say a single word.
Jing Shun rubbed Gou Bao’s little paw and spoke from his heart. “Chi Gui, I’ve always felt ashamed to admit I have a father like this.”
“Maybe three hundred thousand means nothing to you, but to me, this money can be one of my future safeguards. I can’t just let it go.”
A flicker of deep light passed through Chi Gui’s eyes. “Jing Shun, you don’t have to think of me as too lofty.”
Jing Shun was taken aback. “What?”
“Three hundred thousand—to me, it’s not an insignificant amount.”
“For ordinary families or even impoverished ones, this sum can sustain life for several years, or even save lives in a crisis.”
Chi Gui’s current status wasn’t low, but that didn’t mean he looked down on money. “This money is yours, so you should get it back.”
“But there are many ways to recover it. You shouldn’t have gone there alone. Didn’t you consider that if they really attacked you, could you have won?”
“Or were you, like last time, prepared to ‘go down with them’?”
“……”
Jing Shun, caught revealing his hidden intentions, coughed softly.
Fortunately, footsteps sounded again from outside, cutting off the deepening of this topic.
Uncle Lin walked in with the prepared cold medicine. Behind him were Chen Yiming and Wei Di.
“Young Master Jing, here you go.”
“Thank you, Uncle Lin.”
Jing Shun took the cup, confirmed the temperature was right, and drank it all in one go.
Chi Gui signaled Chen Yiming. “Since we’re here today, tell Jing Shun what we found.”
Jing Shun licked the lingering taste of medicine from his lips, confused. “What did you find?”
Chen Yiming glanced at Chi Gui and gave the pre-prepared explanation. “Young Master Jing, after Sir reached a cooperation agreement with you, he conducted a simple background check on your family relationships. Please understand.”
Jing Shun heard this and didn’t find it problematic.
After all, given Chi Gui’s status, checking a “cooperation partner’s” background was natural.
Jing Shun countered, “So, what did you find?”
To be honest, Jing Shun knew nothing about Jing Guanhai’s life or work over the past five or six years.
In his memory, Jing Guanhai initially worked as a film crew cameraman, moving between various crews with his team back then.
Later, when Jing Shun became a somewhat famous child star, Jing Guanhai quit his stable crew job. He only needed to film Jing Shun’s promotional materials daily—essentially coasting off his own son.
After that, Jing Shun started living separately from his parents and basically stopped interacting with their reconstituted family.
He’d heard that after marrying Yuan Jiali, Jing Guanhai tried to groom his younger son, Jing Yang, as a child star, replicating Jing Shun’s path.
But Jing Yang’s appearance wasn’t outstanding among peer children, and he was spoiled by his parents, with a bad temper. That path clearly failed and fizzled out.
Chen Yiming spoke. “Five years ago, Jing Guanhai and his second wife tried running a catering business, but within two years, the shop couldn’t sustain itself.”
“Later, Yuan Jiali went back to her old profession as an accountant. She’s still employed at a foreign trade company called ‘Chuang Mi.’”
“As for Jing Guanhai, unwilling to accept defeat, he dabbled in stock trading at home for two or three years and even got involved in World Cup gambling.”
People who have coasted for a long time won’t think about living a solid, down-to-earth life.
“In July last year, Jing Guanhai suddenly sold off a resettlement house from his hometown for cash and then co-invested with someone else to set up an e-commerce equipment studio.”
In simpler terms, they charged fees to help people set up live-streaming platforms.
“Jing Guanhai’s partner is responsible for daily client acquisition and operations, while he handles equipment purchases and setup. The studio is currently running reasonably well.”
“……”
Jing Shun hugged Gou Bao, a hint of scrutiny in his eyes:
Given Jing Guanhai’s personality—having been accustomed to a carefree life of idleness—would he really be willing to come out and work for money?
Was the sun rising from the west?
“However…” Chen Yiming hesitated, unsure if he should continue.
Jing Shun seemed to understand. “Assistant Chen, just say it. I stopped treating him as a father long ago. My face has nothing to do with him.”
Chi Gui confirmed Jing Shun’s attitude and nodded slightly.
Chen Yiming said, “It was discovered by accident. Earlier this year, Jing Guanhai rented a suite outside. But now a woman lives in that suite—should be a colleague from his studio.”
This remark was implicit yet direct.
Jing Shun gave a faint, barely noticeable sneer.
Some people just can’t change their cheating ways!
Chi Gui waited until Chen Yiming finished, then steered the topic back to the beginning. “Jing Shun, how were you originally planning to get back that three hundred thousand?”
By now, Jing Shun’s emotions had calmed down a lot, and the physical discomfort had also dissipated.
He remembered his original plan and simply raised his left hand, shaking the detection watch on his wrist at Chi Gui.
“When you gave me this watch last time, didn’t you say there’s a hidden camera in the crown?”
Chi Gui recalled that feature and immediately synchronized thoughts with him. “So, you recorded everything?”
Jing Shun nodded. “I started recording before I even entered the door.”
He knew better than anyone that he couldn’t just get the money back by showing up. Whether calling the police or taking legal action, sufficient evidence was necessary.
So, Jing Shun’s earlier “threat” at home wasn’t just a bluff—he already had a clear plan:
If they refused to return the money voluntarily, he would not only call the police and sue but also expose their despicable behavior online and to their current workplaces!
With video evidence, it was better than a written complaint.
Fortunately, that couple didn’t disappoint him—their faces and schemes were disgustingly predictable.
Jing Shun took off the watch, recharged it, and turned it on.
Soon, he found the long video in the album.
The shooting angle was perfect, capturing Jing Guanhai and Yuan Jiali’s expressions clearly. They even admitted outright that they had taken the three hundred thousand.
Wei Di said, “Even secretly recorded audio can hold legal validity under certain conditions.”
“I thought the video I recorded tonight was enough, but clearly, what you’ve found is far more interesting and worth digging into.”
As Jing Shun spoke, he formed a clearer plan in his mind.
He instinctively looked at Chi Gui by the bedside, only to fall into the other’s gaze.
In that moment, their wavelengths synced.
“Chi Gui, can you do me a favor?”
“Go ahead. What’s your plan?”