Chen Yuncheng let Ning Junyan hold him in his arms and said to him, “I can’t borrow your money anymore.”
Ning Junyan bowed his head and kissed Chen Yuncheng’s hair.
Chen Yuncheng said, “This money is used to invest in a business. It’s different from the need to save someone’s life as soon as possible. This time, it’s not necessary. I slow down and take my time. As long as I work harder, I can always make money.”
Ning Junyan tilted his head, rubbing his cheek against the top of his head, as if he could not enjoy this intimate touch more, and said, “Then what am I going to do with the money?”
Chen Yuncheng said “Huh?” and gave him a puzzled look, “What?”
Ning Junyan said, “I want to make money to provide for my wife.”
Chen Yuncheng couldn’t help but laugh when he heard the words, “I don’t want you to provide me.”
Ning Junyan said, “Then you admit to being my wife?”
Chen Yuncheng smiled and did not speak.
Ning Junyan said again, “Then you can provide for me, I will give you all my money, and you will buy me everything in the future.”
Chen Yuncheng said: “Whatever you want now, I will buy it for you if I can afford it. You don’t need to hand over the money to me.”
Ning Junyan was silent for a while, and said, “Don’t you think that’s unfair?”
“How is it unfair?”
Ning Junyan cupped Chen Yuncheng’s chin with his hands, lifted his head and looked at him with a serious expression, “You think I can spend your money, but you can’t spend mine. Do you put us on an equal footing inside your heart?”
Chen Yuncheng thought for a while, and answered him seriously, “This is different. What I need now is not such a small amount of money for daily expenses. Doing business is very risky, and the money I invest may not always pay off. So how can you ask me to take a risk with your money? And also I still owe you money.”
“You also refuse to use my money for daily expenses, you don’t even live in the house, and you don’t want the clothes, what do you take me for?” Ning Jun Yan’s tone was a little cold like he was really angry.
Chen Yuncheng tried to sit up, but he first pushed away Ning Junyan’s hand that was pinning him down, and just as he braced himself to leave Ning Junyan’s embrace, he was grabbed back by Ning Junyan again.
Ning Junyan put his arms around him, and said coldly, “What are you running for!”
Chen Yuncheng had no choice but to continue to let Ning Junyan hold him, and said, “I am very serious about this relationship, don’t say that to me. Perhaps because I am too serious about this, sometimes I don’t know how to deal with it.” After he finished speaking, Chen Yuncheng looked up at Ning Junyan, he was always afraid that if he did not do well enough in some things, one day it would affect the relationship between him and Ning Junyan.
Ning Junyan was stared at by Chen Yuncheng for a long time, his eyelashes drooped, his eyes became soft, and he asked Chen Yuncheng, “So what are your plans for this money?”
Chen Yuncheng said, “I’m going to find a way to borrow it, and I’ll think of a way.”
Ning Junyan asked again, “What way?”
“A bank or some financial institution,” Chen Yuncheng had been looking at various financial institutions for loans, hoping to find one that was slightly more reliable.
Ning Junyan asked, “Do you want to try a mortgage loan1?”
Chen Yuncheng was a little strange, and said, “What to take as collateral? I don’t have anything as collateral.”
Ning Junyan lifted Chen Yuncheng’s face and looked at it, then stretched out his hand to lift the quilt to take a look that they were both still undressed. Chen Yuncheng quickly pulled back the quilt and then heard Ning Junyan say, “Take your body as collateral.”
Chen Yuncheng was angry and amused and said, “My body is only worth 100,000 yuan?”
Ning Junyan said flatly, “And no one wants it but me.”
Chen Yuncheng did not agree, “That’s not necessarily true.”
Ning Junyan suddenly rolled over and pinned him down, and said in a cold tone, “It’s not necessarily true indeed. Don’t even think about it.”
Chen Yuncheng looked at him with a faint smile, “Knock it off.”
Ning Junyan relaxed his strength, lay on Chen Yuncheng’s body, and said, “Give yourself to me as collateral, and I’ll give you the money. If 100,000 yuan is not enough, I’ll try to earn more, and I’ll give you as much as I want.”
Chen Yuncheng raised his arms to hug him, and suddenly felt sourness in his heart, and said, “Enough is enough. Only in your heart, I am worth so much money.”
Ning Junyan said, “Everything all good now?”
Chen Yuncheng answered him, “Let me give it some thoughts again.”
They woke up very early the next day, and Ning Junyan drove to pick up Gu Yaojia and the child, and then rushed to Zhou Yan’s hometown Central Court.
When she arrived at the court, the trial had not yet started. When Gu Yaojia wanted to enter the court with her son in her arms, she was stopped by the bailiff and the child was not allowed to enter.
Gu Yaojia was in a difficult position and begged the bailiff for a few minutes, but was not accommodated.
Ning Junyan then said, “You can leave the child to me and go in.”
Gu Yaojia heard the words and looked at him.
Chen Yuncheng said to Gu Yaojia, “Let him watch the child while the two of us go in and listen to the court hearing.”
Gu Yaojia had no better choice and handed over the child to Ning Junyan.
The child cried all of a sudden as he was handed over to the strange man.
Chen Yuncheng saw that Ning Junyan frowned, looking a little at a loss, and asked him, “Are you going to be fine?”
Ning Junyan just nodded.
Gu Yaojia comforted the child for a while and only when she heard that the court was about to start inside did she go in with Chen Yuncheng and find a seat.
When Zhou Yan was brought out by the bailiff, he glanced in their direction, looking slightly agitated, but soon he stood in the defendant’s position with his back to them.
Chen Yuncheng hadn’t seen Zhou Yan for several months. His hair was cut very short, and after being locked up in the detention centre for so long, he looked surprisingly paler and fatter
Gu Yaojia sat next to Chen Yuncheng, staring at Zhou Yan’s back with red eyes.
The trial was a bit dull, the legal aid agency had appointed a lawyer for Zhou Yan, but because Zhou Yan had already pleaded guilty, the lawyer only tried to defend him as lightly as possible.
Midway through the trial, Chen Yuncheng came out and saw Ning Junyan sitting on the bench outside, looking at the sleeping child lying on his lap, with no emotion in his eyes.
“Asleep?” Chen Yuncheng walked to him and asked him in a low voice.
Ning Junyan raised his head and gave a soft “hmm”.
Chen Yuncheng was suddenly curious about Ning Junyan’s thoughts, and asked him, “Do you think the child is cute?”
“No,” Ning Junyan replied without thinking.
Chen Yuncheng stretched out a hand to him, “You really don’t want a child at all?”
Ning Junyan took Chen Yuncheng’s hand and touched it to his lips, “I don’t need one, you’re enough.”
The trial lasted until noon and was adjourned for an hour, and the verdict was not delivered until the afternoon.
Zhou Yan was convicted of intentional homicide and theft and sentenced to fifteen years in prison for both crimes. He said in court that he would not appeal.
Gu Yaojia suddenly got up at this point. She left the courtroom and went out to hold the child and tried to come in, but was stopped by the bailiff at the door, so she shouted Zhou Yan’s name.
Zhou Yan turned around.
Gu Yaojia cried and said, “Look at your son!”
The bailiff quickly took Gu Yaojia out.
Chen Yuncheng watched as Zhou Yan cried bitterly, and couldn’t help but got his eyes. He waited until Zhou Yan was taken away by the bailiff, then got up and left the court.
Outside the courtroom, Gu Yaojia was sitting on a bench, holding the baby and crying all the time, while Ning Junyan stood beside her and calmly handed her a tissue.
Gu Yaojia reached out and took it, unable to even say the word ‘thank you’ properly.
Chen Yuncheng came over and stood beside Ning Junyan. Ning Junyan glanced at him and handed over the whole pack of tissues, “Do you need it?”
“No,” Chen Yuncheng said and just stood a little closer to Ning Junyan. The back of his hand lightly touched the back of Ning Jungyan’s hand, until Ning Junyan grabbed his hand and held it firmly.
They waited until Gu Yaojia recovered a little before leaving, and drove Gu Yaojia home for two hours.
When they said goodbye, only Chen Yuncheng got out of the car, and Ning Junyan sat in the driver’s seat without moving.
Holding the sleeping child in her arms, Gu Yaojia said to Chen Yuncheng, “Cheng ge, thank you.”
Chen Yuncheng shook his head, hesitated, and said, “If it’s possible, would you like to take your child to visit Zhou Yan?”
Gu Yaojia replied, “I don’t know, do you think it’s good for the child?”
Chen Yuncheng can’t answer this question. Zhou Yan was his friend, and from his point of view, he would always think more about Zhou Yan. He knew that Zhou Yan must very much hope that his son can visit him. As for whether it was good for the child, he really couldn’t figure it out either.
“It’s okay,” Chen Yuncheng said, “You could think about it, after all, you are the child’s mother.”
Gu Yaojia nodded, and she asked Chen Yuncheng, “Cheng ge, are you and Dr. Ning—”
Chen Yuncheng said, “Yeah?”
Gu Yaojia smiled, “It’s nothing, thank you for coming to pick me up, do you still have to rush back now?”
Chen Yuncheng replied, “Yes, Dr. Ning has to go to work tomorrow.”
Gu Yaojia said, “Be careful on the road, and send me a message when you arrive.”
“Okay,” Chen Yuncheng said. He stepped back and waved to Gu Yaojia, turned around and opened the car door, returned to the passenger seat, and said to Ning Junyan, “Let’s go.”
The author has something to say:
The sentencing is randomly measured by me, professional readers don’t bother me haha