Xiang Yang, confused, couldn't help but chime in, "What are you two talking about?"
No one answered him, and Fang Zheng continued, "How do you feel about it?"
Chen Jin responded, "Damn, I don't feel anything. It's like when we used to play on the railway tracks as kids, lost in our fun, and then a train comes toward you…"
Xiang Yang widened his eyes and asked, "Then what?"
"It just ran over you."
"Ah?" Xiang Yang was surprised and then scoffed, "Come on, with your steel frame, you wouldn't just be run over by a train, you'd probably derail it."
Chen Jin paused, muttering, "Yeah, both sides get hurt, everyone's a casualty."
"Damn, that's dark," Xiang Yang muttered, and then, as if he'd figured something out, added, "Lin Wan really is pitiful."
Chen Jin glanced up at him, "Didn't you not like her?"
"Hmph, I didn't know the truth back then. Now, I don't like you either. You're like a modern-day high-born tyrant. I don't get it—what kind of woman do you need that you have to force her into this? You've made a mess of it, and I'm embarrassed for you."
Fang Zheng took over, "Isn't there that saying? 'A wife is better than a concubine, a concubine is better than stealing,' what's it called? Stealing is better than robbing?"
The two of them started chuckling. Chen Jin didn't find it funny at all, actually feeling a bit annoyed. His relationship with Lin Wan felt like a bundle of gunpowder buried under a haystack. No matter how much time passed, the smallest spark would make it explode. Normally, he'd be fine, able to deal with the mess and put out the flames. But with Lin Wan, it was different. His mind was consumed by thoughts of her, and he couldn't even muster the energy to argue.
At that thought, he stood up and said, "I need to go."
"Wait a minute, since when did you get so thin-skinned? A couple of words, and you're already leaving?" Xiang Yang said.
"No, Lin Wan's home alone. I'm worried about her," Chen Jin replied.
Xiang Yang scoffed, "Come on, she's not a little kid, she won't break if she trips."
"She's sick."
Both of them looked at him in surprise, and Chen Jin sarcastically said, "Aren't you guys so concerned about me? You didn't even know this?"
"Damn, we're not your stomach's worm, hearing every fart you make," Xiang Yang sneered. "We're just a bit concerned."
"What's wrong with Lin Wan?" Fang Zheng asked, now worried.
Chen Jin sighed, sat back down on the sofa, and said, "She has depression."
The two of them were stunned. Xiang Yang asked, "Is it serious?"
Before Chen Jin could answer, Fang Zheng asked, "Did she try to commit suicide because of this?"
Chen Jin nodded.
Now they understood. Xiang Yang said, "This needs proper treatment. My family has people in the medical field, I'll ask them for advice when I get back."
Fang Zheng frowned and asked, "What are you planning to do? She's in this state…"
Chen Jin waved his hand dismissively, "I've made up my mind. Once she's better, I'll let her go."
For a moment, the three of them fell into silence. Chen Jin stood up again, clearly exhausted, and said, "Now I really have to go."
The other two stood up as well. Xiang Yang, looking serious, said, "A Jin, let me handle the company stuff. Focus on Lin Wan and get her the treatment she needs."
Chen Jin nodded in gratitude, turned, and left. Fang Zheng called out to him, "A Jin, remember what you said."
Chen Jin gave a wry smile, closed his eyes briefly, then said, "Although I'm no gentleman, I know once a word is spoken, it's hard to take back."
Chen Jin walked out the door. Xiang Yang watched him leave and shook his head, "A Jin really has changed."
Fang Zheng sat down, took a sip of his drink, and said slowly, "Everyone has to go through a process of growth."
"Come on, he's over thirty and still 'growing'? He's practically ripe for the picking."
"The more mature someone appears, the more immature they actually are."
"Wow, the 'love guru' has left, and now we have the 'philosopher'," Xiang Yang chuckled as he sat down. He took a sip of his drink, clicked his tongue, and asked, "So, you've matured now? Am I the only one left acting immature?"
Fang Zheng didn't respond, but seriously said, "Do you know why I don't agree with your meddling? Adding external pressure will only complicate their relationship further. A Jin responds better to softness than force. The more you push him to let go, the tighter he'll hold on. If you force him, he could destroy Lin Wan. But now, he's figured it out himself."
Xiang Yang scoffed, "I don't think you're not meddling. You're probably just afraid of getting too involved. Afraid of ruining your own reputation when things get messy. But Lin Wan's not going to stay with you either. You'll be left with nothing."
"Heh, you really understand me."
"Of course, we grew up wearing the same pants. You really are a philosopher, the philosopher of self-preservation."
"Can you stop being so sharp?"
"Well, I can't. I'm the legendary 'Sharp Guy'," Xiang Yang laughed, took another sip of his drink, then suddenly asked, "I still don't get it. Lin Wan is just a little girl in her twenties, other than being a little pretty and having a fiery temper, what makes her so special? How could she take down A Jin, who's been standing strong for over thirty years?"
"That's called 'a match made in heaven.' A person falls for someone who balances them out. It's not about skill, it's about timing."
"Well, I hope I don't run into someone like her. She sounds too dangerous."
"Then I wish you never find true love in your life."
"Damn, are you cursing me?"
When Chen Jin arrived home, Lin Wan was sitting on the bed, tearing pieces of paper. She, too, wanted to escape the disease, but it was so hard. The abortion had been a huge blow to her. She used this opportunity to get back at Chen Jin, achieving a certain result. But she felt like a soldier, wounded and exhausted, in the midst of a battle. Her last strength went into delivering a final blow to her enemy, then she collapsed.
Although her survival instincts urged her to struggle and get back up, the constant nightmares and hallucinations drained her already limited energy. She couldn't eat well or sleep well. She wandered through the days in a haze. Even Chen Jin's promise, when she thought back on it, seemed like a hallucination. It was too unlike him, unless, like her, he had gone mad. His behavior yesterday proved it—he really had gone mad. But unfortunately, their madness wasn't on the same level. She was still weak, too scared to even touch a knife. The sight of blood made her faint.
Chen Jin stood in the doorway, watching her curled up on the bed with her back to him. His frustration from the day instantly softened. Lin Wan's hair had grown longer, and the tips of her hair were curling irregularly due to her natural waves. She was wearing a pale pink Korean-style pajama, looking like a giant stuffed doll. Although her hair was messy, as if she hadn't brushed it all day, and her cotton pajamas were wrinkled, she still looked so cute.
Chen Jin stood at the door for a moment, feeling a deep sense of longing. If you could love a woman, whether her hair was long or short, whether she was dressed up or messy, whether she was lively or quiet, then that was truly love.
As he came to this conclusion, a feeling hit him, like lightning on a sunny May day. He walked toward her, and as he did, a romantic lyric flashed in his mind: In a lifetime, when two fates cross paths, they can never escape.
But when he saw what Lin Wan was doing with her hands, he was immediately pulled from the clouds of romance back into the harsh reality.
"What are you doing?" Chen Jin grabbed the half-torn notebook from her hands. It was filled with her drawings. He immediately slipped from the realm of reality back into his imagination—Lin Daiyu burning her manuscripts and dying in her obsession…
Chen Jin sighed, placed the half-torn notebook on the bedside table, sat beside Lin Wan, and gently pulled her into his arms. His voice softened, "This is your work, it's a shame to tear it up. If you want to vent, tear me up instead."
Lin Wan looked at him in confusion, startled by his words. Chen Jin held both of her hands, moved them to his shirt, and tried to tear it apart. He didn't succeed, but laughed and said, "Try a little harder."
After a forceful tug, two buttons popped off, revealing his sun-kissed chest. Lin Wan finally realized what he was up to. It wasn't venting; it was teasing. She pulled her hands out and muttered, "Boring."
Chen Jin saw the blush rise on her cheeks and felt a sudden itch in his heart. His thoughts wandered, and he said with a mischievous grin, "How about we play a little S&M? Whips, wax, high heels—your choice. I can lend you my belt to use…"
Lin Wan thought to herself, Of course, he's still the same perverted lunatic, even when he's gone crazy. She threw the blanket off and tried to crawl under it, but Chen Jin grabbed the blanket and mischievously said, "Wan Wan, since you can't bear to punish me, let's continue our game of tearing clothes."
Lin Wan immediately looked up, asking, "Really?"
Chen Jin nodded firmly.
Lin Wan's eyes lit up, and Chen Jin's eyes went wide in surprise. She climbed out of bed, heading for the wardrobe. He froze, expecting her to tear his clothes off, but instead, she was interested in his clothes. Was she looking for something in the wardrobe?
Although it seemed absurd, it didn't seem too bad…