The Sickly Beauty Can’t Escape the Obsessive Lover - Chapter 29.2

Jing Yuan, having received two apologies, felt the matter should be about resolved. But since Ji Yan was standing up for him, he decided not to say he forgave them and left it to Ji Yan to handle.

So, he gently squeezed Ji Yan’s fingertip, hoping the other would understand.

Sure enough, Ji Yan squeezed back.

Jing Yuan smiled and focused his attention on Ji Yan, surprised that he was being defended so staunchly.

“Old Master Ning’s birthday, and you invited me and Jing Yuan. It shows you value the Ji family and wish to maintain good relations. But today, all I’ve seen is targeting.”

Ji Yan lifted his head and stared leisurely at Ning Sui’s father. “Targeting Jing Yuan is targeting me. Since you don’t care about the relationship between our families, don’t be surprised by whatever I do.”

Ning Sui’s father said furiously, “Are you threatening us?”

Ji Yan curled his lips into a smile. “It’s not a threat. Jing Yuan is the apple of my eye at home. If he so much as scratches a finger, I lose sleep. Now that Ning Sui has injured his head, this matter cannot be let go.”

Everyone had heard rumors of Ji Yan’s methods. If Ji Yan truly went mad and confronted the Ning family head-on, it was a scenario none of the relatives or shareholders wanted to see.

Ning Zhao glanced at his wife, Lin Shu, who was Ji Yan’s maternal aunt.

Lin Shu smiled gently at Ji Yan: “Xiao Yan, for my sake, could you please forgive Ning Sui? Our families have such a close relationship. Let’s not upset Grandpa over this matter.”

Ji Yan returned her smile: “Don’t worry, this is between me and Ning Sui. It won’t affect our family ties.”

Lin Shu paused, then tried again: “But Ning Sui is still just a child.”

Ji Yan crossed his long legs: “An eighteen-year-old child should learn to take responsibility.”

Ning Sui, trembling with fear, quickly hid behind his father.

Ning Sui’s father snorted coldly: “Don’t be afraid. This is a society governed by law—would he dare to commit violence openly?”

Ji Yan adjusted his glasses, concealing a hint of menace.

“Who can predict what might happen in the future?”

He smiled leisurely at Ning Sui, his gaze terrifying and shadowed.

“Yuan Yuan, let’s go.”

Jing Yuan followed: “Okay.”

Watching their retreating figures, Ning Jin slowly withdrew his gaze and lowered his eyes.

Ning Sui’s father continued venting angrily: “He’s all talk. If he dares lay a finger on my son, I won’t let him get away with it.”

“He would dare.” Ning Zhao lifted his teacup, speaking softly.

Ning Sui’s father immediately fell silent. Though he held some prestige in the antique world, he knew little about business or Ji Yan’s methods.

Ning Zhao: “Xiao Sui, be careful these next few days. I’ll have Lin Shu speak with Elder Lin and ask him to reason with Ji Yan.”

Ning Sui replied in a fearful, tearful voice: “Okay, thank you, Uncle.”

Old Man Ning looked at Ning Sui with deep disappointment.

“Go to your room and reflect on your actions.”

…

In the car on the way home, Jing Yuan felt both sleepy and happy. Ji Yan had been quite impressive earlier. His reasoning was sharp and precise, thoroughly dismantling the defenses of the Ning family’s so-called “cultured elites.”

Yawning, he slumped against the car seat, wanting to lie down and nap. Today had pushed his physical limits; if he didn’t rest properly, he was sure to fall ill tomorrow.

Just then, Ji Yan patted his leg: “You can lie here.”

Jing Yuan glanced at him, hesitated for a moment, then scooted closer.

Resting his head on Ji Yan’s lap, his eyes sparkled as he observed Ji Yan from this new angle for the first time.

“Yan Yan, my treasure.”

Ji Yan looked down: “Hmm?”

Jing Yuan formed a heart shape over his chest: “Thank you.”

Ji Yan’s fingers gently touched the injured spot on Jing Yuan’s head: “Let’s take you to the hospital for a check-up first.”

Jing Yuan lifted his thick lashes: “Can we have a doctor come to the house instead? I don’t want to go to the hospital.”

Ji Yan’s lips curved: “Why?”

Jing Yuan: “I’m scared.”

Stroking Jing Yuan’s soft hair, Ji Yan teased him: “It won’t hurt. They might just stitch it up.”

Jing Yuan shot up, clutching his head in alarm: “No, please, I’m begging you.”

Chen Tian, sitting in the passenger seat, grew increasingly bewildered by the scene, countless questions flashing through his mind. How had their relationship improved so much since leaving the Ning residence?

Ji Yan smiled without a word, deliberately ignoring Jing Yuan’s pleas.

Suddenly, a sly grin spread across Jing Yuan’s face: “So? Was my reaction convincing enough earlier?”

Ji Yan raised an eyebrow: “Passable.”

Jing Yuan knew perfectly well that stitches were just a pretext—Ji Yan was only teasing him. He lay back down like a kitten, rubbing his chin against Ji Yan’s leg: “Yan Yan, there’s something I want to tell you.”

Ji Yan seemed to treat him quite well; he probably wouldn’t resort to extreme measures to force him to regain his memories.

Moreover, if he helped Ji Yan find the true culprit behind his parents’ car accident, Ji Yan would surely be even more grateful to him, and it wouldn’t end like it did in the book—with him freezing to death under a bridge.

Ji Yan was resting with his eyes closed.

“Speak.”

Jing Yuan wanted to avoid the driver and Chen Tian, murmuring, “It’s a secret. I want to tell you alone.”

“Fine, we’ll talk at home.”

…

Before going to Ji Yan’s room, Jing Yuan returned to his own room to change into comfortable, loose-fitting home clothes.

During this time, Chen Tian spoke to Ji Yan. “Young Master Jing did go to the tea house these past few days, but he also took a taxi to other places.”

“Where did he go?” Ji Yan asked, sitting at his desk.

Chen Tian replied, “He went to Manhe twice.”

Ji Yan frowned slightly. “To the tea house at Manhe to learn the craft?”

Chen Tian said, “I’m not sure which club he went to, but the taxi dropped him off at an entrance closest to the nightclub.”

“Nightclub.” Ji Yan repeated the word, twirling a pen in his hand. “His health doesn’t allow him to drink. What could he be doing at a nightclub?”

Chen Tian had a dark thought. “A secret rendezvous?”

Ji Yan glanced at him. “With whom?”

Chen Tian ventured, “Ning Jin?”

Ji Yan stared at him for a moment, a trace of fury rising between his brows.

Seeing this, Chen Tian immediately made himself scarce.

Couldn’t he even speculate? Why get so worked up?

Just then, Jing Yuan happened to pass by and exchanged a glance with him. Chen Tian forced a smile, still unable to figure out why Jing Yuan had repeatedly visited the nightclub.

Perhaps, as Ji Yan suspected, he had gone to the tea house at Manhe to secretly learn the trade.

In Ji Yan’s room, Jing Yuan, wearing a loose round-neck sweater, sat cross-legged on the sofa, shelling nuts.

Ji Yan was on a phone call, so Jing Yuan ate while waiting.

By the time Ji Yan finished his call and returned, Jing Yuan had shelled a whole handful and proudly showed it off.

Ji Yan seemed intrigued. “Are those for—”

Before he could finish, Jing Yuan opened his mouth and stuffed all the nuts inside.

Ji Yan watched him but said nothing more.

After Jing Yuan finished eating, Ji Yan asked calmly, “What’s the secret you wanted to tell me?”

Jing Yuan brushed the nut crumbs off his hands and recounted what had happened by the lake at the Ning family’s estate.

After hearing the story, Ji Yan’s relaxed fingers suddenly clenched.

Then, the joints of his knuckles cracked audibly.

The hatred buried deep in his heart seemed to break free from its cage in that instant. Recalling the gruesome photos of his parents’ fatal accident, Ji Yan’s eyes reddened with rage, and his shoulders trembled uncontrollably.

Jing Yuan grew frightened. Without bothering to put on his shoes, he stepped barefoot off the sofa and crouched beside Ji Yan.

Hesitating for a moment, he leaned against Ji Yan’s arm and gently stroked his back.

The death of Ji Yan’s parents had truly affected him deeply.

He suddenly seemed to understand why Ji Yan’s character had turned dark in the story.

After what felt like a long time, Ji Yan’s emotions stabilized.

Feeling the warmth at his waist, he calmed himself and began recalling the exact time in his previous life when Jing Yuan had told him about his parents’ car accident.

—Around the time of the Awakening of Insects.

It was still far off.

Back then, Jing Yan rarely left the house and had almost no social life. If Jing Yuan had regained his memories due to some encounter, what person or event had he come across around the Awakening of Insects?

Ji Yan’s thoughts slowly returned, and the melancholy in his expression deepened.

Although the clues Jing Yuan provided were incomplete—or at least not yet confirmed to be related to the car accident—the Ning family’s gardener was definitely suspicious.

“I recorded a video. You can check him out.” Jing Yuan sent the video to Ji Yan, muttering under his breath, “He looks absolutely terrifying. Scared me to death.”

Ji Yan received the video and lowered his gaze with a complicated expression.

The man in the footage appeared quite ordinary. Aside from his somewhat fierce features, he looked no different from the casual laborers who did odd jobs for the Ning family.

However, the horrifying tattoo on his arm was indeed suspicious, resembling some kind of sinister symbol.

Or perhaps, the man’s background was certainly not clean before he came to work for the Ning family.

Ji Yan saved the video and thanked Jing Yuan, “Yuan Yuan, thank you.”

Being thanked so earnestly by Ji Yan made Jing Yuan feel a bit embarrassed. “No problem, no problem. When I remember everything in the future, I’ll definitely tell you everything.”

Ji Yan asked, “Really?”

Jing Yuan replied casually, “Of course, what’s our relationship? I’m happy to help you uncover the truth.”

At that moment, Ji Yan’s foul mood finally improved.

It seemed Jing Yuan trusted him a great deal. Or perhaps Jing Yuan was simply a kind-hearted and good-natured child. Even if he occasionally had his own little schemes or told a white lie, it was harmless.

He reached out and began shelling nuts for Jing Yuan.

“But I’m not sure exactly when I’ll remember, so don’t get too anxious,” Jing Yuan added.

Just as Jing Yuan finished speaking, Ji Yan’s family doctor arrived to examine Jing Yuan and apply medication.

Jing Yuan was delicate and afraid of pain. The moment he saw the doctor, his bright eyes dimmed, and he grew particularly wary during the application of the medicine.

“Mr. Ji, Young Master Jing only has minor superficial injuries. Just avoid getting them wet for the next couple of days, and he’ll recover quickly,” the doctor reported honestly after disinfecting the wounds.

Ji Yan voiced his concern, “Shouldn’t we do a more thorough examination or a CT scan? Could there be a concussion?”

The doctor smiled reassuringly, “No, based on Young Master Jing’s description, such a minor impact isn’t that severe.”

Ji Yan nodded.

Hearing that this doctor was a renowned brain specialist in the country, Jing Yuan took the opportunity to ask, “Doctor, when I was very young, I experienced a kidnapping incident. Due to extreme fright, I lost that part of my memory. If I want to recover it, do I need to take medication or undergo any treatments?”

Ji Yan hadn’t expected Jing Yuan to bring this up proactively.

The doctor explained, “This type of amnesia is your brain’s way of protecting you. If you want to recover the memories, there are a few methods: environmental stimulation, verbal stimulation, or hypnotherapy.”

Jing Yuan asked further, “I’ve already recalled a little bit. If I rely solely on time, what are the chances of recovering all my memories?”

The doctor shook his head, “Not high. For example, the memory fragments you’ve recovered so far were triggered by environmental stimulation. Without such stimuli, it’s generally very difficult to recover memories.”

Jing Yuan nodded and stole a glance at Ji Yan.

“Thank you for your trouble. I understand.”

After seeing the doctor off, Ji Yan and Jing Yuan fell silent for a moment.

“It’s alright, take your time recovering. For now, I already have some leads. I’ll investigate that gardener first; there might be new discoveries,” Ji Yan said.

Hearing this, Jing Yuan felt a wave of relief.

As expected, Ji Yan didn’t intend to use overly intense methods.

He grinned, “Alright, I’ll do my best to remember.”

Ji Yan looked at him gently, “Go rest now. I still have some work to attend to.”

“Okay,” Jing Yuan replied obediently, but before leaving, he sneakily took all the nuts from Ji Yan’s coffee table.

A few minutes later, Chen Tian, who had escorted the doctor out, returned.

Ji Yan was still pondering the gardener.

He truly hoped this matter had nothing to do with the Ning family.

If his mother’s spirit in heaven knew that the culprit behind her car accident was closely linked to her own sister, she would be even more heartbroken.

Chen Tian stood by Ji Yan’s side, keeping him company. Seeing that the car accident case was finally making progress, he felt genuinely happy for Ji Yan from the bottom of his heart.

Ji Yan suddenly asked, “Do you have something to say to me?”

Chen Tian pursed his lips and recounted the conversation he had with the doctor when he saw him off.

“The doctor said environmental stimulation works the fastest. With our financial resources, we can piece together the fragments Young Master Jing currently remembers and recreate the scene. While he’s asleep, we can quietly take him there and let him stay alone inside for a while. As for the gardener and the snake tattoo, we can hire actors to play those roles. If we do this, Young Master Jing will likely recall everything immediately.”

It had to be said—that last sentence was quite tempting.

Ji Yan stared at the video Jing Yuan had sent him on WeChat, noticing how the camera shook violently in the last few seconds. From the sound, the phone must have fallen to the ground.

He could imagine how terrified Jing Yuan must have been at that moment.

“Boss Ji, shall we proceed with the setup?”

Ji Yan set his phone down, his hollow eyes filled with complex emotions.

“Chen Tian.”

“I’m here.”

“I can’t bear to.”