CFRFGC Chapter 82

⌈She felt something moving in the palm of her hand.⌋

Lu Ran was momentarily stumped by the question.

He sat up straight, stayed silent for a while, and thought deeply.

Ji Min had only said it to deflect the topic, casually throwing out a verbal jab.

But when he noticed the silence in the car, he froze too.

He glanced sideways at the boy next to him.

The boy had his wide, obediently curved eyes open, his brows slightly furrowed, and even his lips pressed together unconsciously.

It was an expression of deep thought.

He was seriously considering the answer to this question.

Ji Min, who had only intended it as a casual remark, suddenly felt a little uneasy.

Time seemed to slow down abruptly.

Even the complex scenery outside the car window blurred into indistinct streaks.

The breaths of the driver and Butler Chen in the front seat felt distant and muffled.

In this almost suspended moment within the car’s confined space, Ji Min became acutely aware of his own heartbeat, heavy and distinct in his chest.

Thump… thump…

Once, twice, three times…

Ji Min’s Adam’s apple moved involuntarily.

He stared at the boy next to him. What started as a lighthearted tease now felt like waiting for a final judgment.

Finally, under the man’s watchful gaze, the boy, immersed in thought, moved.

He reached up to touch his forehead, then his cheek.

After that, he paused, sitting upright with a frown, as though unsure of what he was doing.

Ji Min’s Adam’s apple moved slightly again.

He had the urge to ask, “What’s wrong? Are you feeling unwell?”

But he was also afraid that speaking might interrupt the boy’s contemplation and lead to an answer he didn’t want to hear.

Another minute passed.

The boy raised his eyes to look at him, blinking twice, and said, “I don’t think I like you.”

Ji Min froze.

The heart that had been suspended mid-air came crashing down with a heavy thud.

Don’t think?

Don’t think you like me? Then why did you spend so long thinking and make all those little gestures!

Ji Min instinctively asked, “Why?”

As soon as the question left his lips, he immediately regretted it, feeling that it was too forward.

However, the boy didn’t seem to think much of it.

He answered seriously.

“Because when you asked me that question just now, I didn’t blush or have a racing heartbeat like they describe in novels. In fact, I even counted my pulse, and it was still within the normal range! It didn’t speed up at all!”

Ji Min: “…”

The man’s face froze in place.

He almost instinctively wanted to say, “All that nonsense in novels is fake, think more carefully!”

But as he realized what he was thinking, his expression darkened further.

The boy continued, oblivious to Ji Min’s discomfort: “Boss, you really overthink things. How could I like you?”

“You’re my boss, and you have such a bad temper…”

Biu~

Ji Min felt like a knife had been plunged into his heart.

“You still remember I’m your boss?” Ji Min gritted his teeth.

Before Lu Ran could respond, Ji Min turned to the driver and shouted, “Stop the car.”

Then, he turned to Lu Ran with a cold expression, “Get out.”

Lu Ran, not at all scared, replied, “But my school is still one stop away.”

“Walk yourself,” Ji Min said, his tone completely indifferent.

Lu Ran grumbled as he got out of the car, muttering, “You’re so petty. I’ve rejected you more than once and you’re still this angry.”

Ji Min: “…”

Things weren’t the same back then!

That was just your one-sided rejection.

As the business car drove away, Lu Ran shook his head, sighing, “What a petty person.”

At the Shen family home, the internal issues at Shen Corporation were still pressing.

When Shen Hongyuan and Shen Xingyu returned home the next day, they saw Madam Shen celebrating with Shen Xingran.

They had opened a bottle of champagne and ordered a table full of food, looking very cheerful.

Shen Hongyuan, already exhausted, couldn’t stand seeing people enjoying themselves while there were serious matters at hand.

He immediately said in a deep voice, “What’s all the commotion? After a whole day of running around, I can’t even have some peace at home.”

Shen Xingran pretended to be a little frightened and put down his chopsticks.

Madam Shen immediately added, “Of course we’re celebrating because something good happened. Guess what it is?”

Shen Hongyuan thought that Madam Shen might have some connections to help bridge the gap for a new project.

He felt a little hopeful, but then he heard Madam Shen say, “Lu Ran has moved out.”

Shen Hongyuan froze, his expression darkening instantly. “What did you say?”

Madam Shen, completely unaware of his change in mood, continued, “Finally, no more troublemakers at home, no more filthy things going on. Now we can finally sleep peacefully.”

Shen Xingyu also looked upset.

He furrowed his brow and asked, “Mom? What do you mean? Where did Lu Ran go?”

“He was picked up by Ji Min,” Madam Shen said, then snorted, “He didn’t care for the Shen family and went to enjoy life with the Ji family.”

As soon as these words left her mouth, Shen Hongyuan, who had been silent all this time, suddenly erupted.

He slammed his hand down on the table, knocking over the champagne bottle.

The sound of the bottle crashing to the ground mixed with Shen Hongyuan’s roar.

“What nonsense are you spouting?!”

“How could you let Lu Ran go?”

“I took that kid home from the orphanage and I even put aside my pride to welcome him back with a grand celebration. And now you just let him go with one sentence?”

Shen Hongyuan’s sudden outburst startled Madam Shen.

She clutched her chest, bewildered, and stared at him, “What are you getting so worked up about? He wanted to leave, and Ji Min came to pick him up. What was I supposed to do?”

“But you still shouldn’t have let Lu Ran leave! He is… he is…”

Shen Hongyuan stammered, then pointed his finger at Madam Shen, cursing, “He’s your own flesh and blood!”

Madam Shen seemed to be triggered by something, her expression frozen for a moment.

Then, like a switch had been flipped, she suddenly jumped up and tried to slap Shen Hongyuan’s face.

The room was filled with her shrill scream: “Shen Hongyuan, what do you mean by this? Now you’re coming to find trouble with me? If it wasn’t for the argument we had during the trip, how would we have lost the child!”

“It’s all because of you! I’m his mother, aren’t you his father?”

In the living room, the middle-aged couple started to physically fight.

Shen Xingran was a little shocked.

Although Madam Shen and Shen Hongyuan often argued, this was the first time he had seen them physically fight like this.

Instinctively, he took two steps back, retreating to a corner away from the commotion.

Shen Xingyu watched his parents, first calling out, “Dad! Mom!”

But in the heat of the moment, neither of them reacted to his call as they continued to hurl insults at each other.

Shen Xingyu stood quietly for a moment, watching.

He sighed, covering his forehead, as though trying to escape from the situation.

Finally, he lowered his hand, stepped forward, and forcibly separated the two.

The noise in the living room continued for a while before it finally quieted down.

Shen Hongyuan did not leave Shen’s house to go to the company.

In the past, after arguing with Madam Shen, he would usually leave to escape the trouble.

But this time, the argument was too intense.

Even in the villa district, the neighbors had probably overheard.

If he left now, it would be as if Shen family had lost all face.

In the evening.

Shen Hongyuan sat alone in the small living room, smoking a cigar.

Madam Shen, having caused a scene, had already gone to the bedroom to sleep.

Shen Hongyuan’s face remained grim.

He reached out to cut the cigar. When he lit it, he noticed his hands were trembling.

But then, he quickly tried to calm himself.

Lu Ran and Ji Min had been close for quite a while now, and Lu Ran had stayed there before.

It wasn’t as if Lu Ran moving there now was something to be shocked about.

They were both madmen, after all. What serious trouble could they cause?

Moreover…

Shen Hongyuan, holding the cigar, looked out the window through the half-drawn curtains, staring into the pitch-black night.

His gaze was distant.

It had been more than ten years since that incident, so why should he still be concerned?

Lu Ran, a four-year-old child, got lost and later experienced a mountain flood, but it wasn’t something worth being so cautious about.

However, for the peace of the Shen family, Lu Ran could not be left wandering outside.

He needed to figure out a way to control the situation.

But these days were critical for the Shen family, so letting Lu Ran stay outside for a few days wouldn’t hurt.

It was better than causing trouble at home.

Once he figured this out, Shen Hongyuan felt a sense of calm.

He was no longer in a rush.

With a slight motion of his fingers, he leisurely took another deep drag from his cigar.

He had the cigar in his mouth when he suddenly noticed something moving.

The overhead light was off and the room was dimly lit.

Shen Hongyuan, with the cigar still in his mouth, saw a shadow—almost the length of half the cigar—slowly crawling up the cigar.

It moved slowly, steadily getting closer to his face.

In an instant, Shen Hongyuan’s eyes widened, turning into startled, bulging eyes.

Finally, the thin, long feelers brushed against his lips.

He let out a loud “Ah!” and immediately leaped up from the sofa.

The lit cigar fell onto his thigh, burning him, and causing him to yell again.

The two yells echoed through the house.

In the bedroom, Madam Shen, who had just fallen asleep, was suddenly awakened.

She walked out in her pajamas, irritated, and looked at Shen Hongyuan.

“What are you yelling about in the middle of the night? I thought our house was on fire.”

“It’s not! There’s something—” Shen Hongyuan didn’t even clearly see what it was.

After all, the object looked similar to the cigar and the room was quite dark.

“It’s on the cigar…” Shen Hongyuan pointed at the cigar.

At this moment, the lit cigar had already fallen onto the sofa, burning a hole in the leather.

“Oh my, what are you doing?” Madam Shen said, her voice tinged with concern.

She walked over, picked up the cigar, and looked around.

“There’s nothing here. Maybe you’re getting old and your eyesight is going?” she teased.

Shen Hongyuan was now starting to doubt himself.

The two of them circled the sofa, but couldn’t find anything suspicious.

Madam Shen scoffed, “The pest control company was just here a few days ago; the place is spotless. There’s nothing here.”

“Could it be… I really saw it wrong?” Shen Hongyuan wasn’t sure anymore.

He was exhausted today—no progress at work, and then the argument at home.

At that point, Madam Shen had already gone to sleep, reassured.

Shen Hongyuan, still suspicious, scanned the room once more before finally heading to the bedroom.

Unnoticed, a shadow on the curtains of the small living room continued to crawl, undisturbed.

And hidden in the folds of the curtains were a second, a third, and more…

At first glance, they seemed to blend seamlessly with the pattern of the curtains.

Late at night.

Madam Shen, half-dreaming and half-awake, felt an itch on her feet.

It felt like something was crawling on them.

She reached down to scratch, but there was nothing there.

For a moment, Madam Shen became alert, but then a knowing smile spread across her face.

In the past, after arguments with Shen Hongyuan, he often did things to soothe her.

It seemed like this was one of those times.

So, she relaxed again and fell back to sleep.

For the next several nights, Madam Shen felt something seemingly “caressing” her body.

Sometimes it was her toes and calves, other times it was her arms, and occasionally, it felt like something was brushing through her hair.

At first, Madam Shen felt a sense of satisfaction, thinking that he was finally apologizing.

Every time, she pretended to be asleep, deliberately remaining still.

But as the “touching” happened more often, Madam Shen began to feel it was starting to disturb her sleep.

The anger from their earlier argument had long since faded.

So, one morning at breakfast, she playfully scolded Shen Hongyuan.

“We’re an old married couple now. Stop all that touching and groping, let’s just sleep properly at night.”

Shen Xingran came downstairs and, hearing this, smiled and said, “Mom and Dad really get along well.”

Only Shen Hongyuan seemed confused.

He glanced at Madam Shen, puzzled, and asked, “What’s with you this early in the morning?”

With that, he put on his coat and went off to work.

Madam Shen, turning to Shen Xingran, remarked, “Look at him, still acting shy.”

It was night again.

The familiar sensation, both like crawling and like “caressing”, returned.

Madam Shen smiled faintly.

Madam Shen: I finally caught him.

Wasn’t it being denied? Well, now she would catch him in the act.

Quick as a flash, Madam Shen slapped out her hand.

But after the slap, her fingers met nothing. She froze for a moment.

Soon, she felt something moving in the palm of her hand.

Curious, Madam Shen lifted it up.

Using the moonlight outside the window, she brought it closer to inspect.

What she saw was a cockroach, longer than her thumb, wriggling in her hand, waving its antennae and several legs in struggle.

Wasn’t this the so-called “caressing”?

Madam Shen: “……”

Madam Shen: “Ah—!”

A piercing scream echoed throughout the Shen residence in the dead of night.

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