✿✾❀✿✾❀✿✾✿✾❀✿✾❀✿✾❀✿✾
The day after the cruise party, news of the impending marriage arrangement between the Shen and Liang families spread online.
The media hailed it as a strategic alliance, with many speculating that the main characters were Shen Jin and Liang Yuting.
"Shen Jin is truly a young prodigy, securing such a strong ally in the Liang family. The real estate industry in City A is likely to be dominated by the Shen family."
"I heard it's Shen Minghuai, the son of the Shen family's main branch, who's getting married?"
"Exactly! With Shen Jin's strength, does he even need a marriage arrangement? Besides, isn't Shen Jin attracted to men?"
"Wow, really?"
"What's the big deal? Same-sex marriage has been legal in our country for a while now."
Ye Tingtong watched the various claims, unable to discern the truth, but his curiosity got the better of him, so he sent a message to the so-called "gossip queen," Yu Huanhuan.
"Ye Tingtong: Is it true that Shen Jin likes men?"
"Yu Huanhuan: ?"
"Yu Huanhuan: There have been no rumors about Shen Jin's love life in the industry. His sexual orientation has always been a mystery."
"Yu Huanhuan: The deeper someone hides, the more likely they have quirks, you know what I mean?"
"Yu Huanhuan: Stop digging into these strange things. Stay at school recently and avoid quiet spots. After the marriage news broke, the Ye family is surely trying to bring you back."
"Ye Tingtong: Got it! I always go out with my roommates."
Just after sending the message, the RA, Yu Hui, knocked on his bed curtain, "Tong, a new barbecue joint opened near the east gate. Today's the last day of discounts, wanna go?"
Ye Tingtong immediately poked his head out, "Is it good?"
But then he hesitated, "We have to step off campus..."
He had been avoiding the Ye family, not returning to his apartment or leaving campus, as the Ye family wouldn't dare to publicly snatch him from the university.
"It's just a short walk from the school," Yu Hui said with a smile, "You haven't left campus for almost two weeks, right? If Minghuai doesn't come back, you won't go out?"
"Wait, the few times Minghuai came back to the dorm, you weren't there, and you didn't respond when called. Did you two have a fight?"
Ye Tingtong remained silent.
Since confirming Shen Minghuai's engagement, he had deliberately kept his distance, spending his days in the library and pretending to sleep early at night, not responding to anyone.
Meanwhile, Shen Minghuai was busy with the engagement and had no time to bother him.
However, every time Shen Minghuai returned to school, he brought gifts, each more expensive than the last.
In the past, these would have been material for his social media feed, but this time, Ye Tingtong left the tags on and stored them in the corner of his wardrobe.
With the marriage arrangement announced, Shen Minghuai was no longer his support.
What the Ye family sought was not something a hidden relationship could achieve.
Moreover, Ye Tingtong wouldn't allow himself to do such a thing.
Seeing his silence, Yu Hui thought he had guessed correctly and let out a sigh, "Alright, I won't ask anymore, but you can't keep brooding like this. Let's go out for dinner tonight, clear your head, it's on me."
These words struck a chord with Ye Tingtong.
The Ye family had stopped topping up his meal card, and he never ordered much when he ate in the cafeteria. Fortunately, he had a small appetite and wasn't picky, so a few hundred yuan could stretch a long way for him.
After two weeks without meat, Ye Tingtong didn't hesitate. "I'm in!"
Before heading out, Ye Tingtong bundled up, with a hat, scarf, and a long down jacket, with only his eyes showing.
Luckily, the recent temperature drop made his outfit seem normal.
Along the way, Ye Tingtong's eyes scanned the surroundings like searchlights, 360° looking for any suspicious figures. His two roommates laughed, thinking he was on guard against Shen Minghuai.
"Chill, Minghuai said he's not coming back tonight, and we didn't tell him we're taking you out to eat."
Ye Tingtong shook his head, "You don't get it."
He was guarding against the Ye family.
Before he met Shen Minghuai, he had been caught two or three times while trying to escape.
He thought he was being careful, leaving no traces, but the second he let his guard down, they would seize the opportunity and lock him in that pitch-black room.
Even years later, he still remembered the despair of being swallowed by darkness.
After the arranged marriage was announced, Ye Guodong had only sent him one message, asking if he would return.
Ye Tingtong ignored it, and the other party didn't ask again, seemingly letting it go.
But he knew the Ye family wouldn't let it go.
However, his worries seemed unnecessary, as the three of them arrived safely at the barbecue restaurant. The bustling vibe of the new place and the aroma of the barbecue completely dispelled the tension in his heart.
The three of them stuffed themselves, and Yu Hui even ordered a round of ice-cold beers. Ye Tingtong couldn't resist the temptation and drank a bottle, feeling on top of the world.
But his alcohol tolerance was poor, so he didn't dare drink more. After that, he switched to soda. Before paying the bill, Ye Tingtong couldn't hold it any longer and told them he had to hit the restroom.
The restaurant didn't have a restroom, so Ye Tingtong followed the staff's directions to a nearby public toilet.
There were many shops in the area, and with it being peak dining hours, the restroom was packed, with even a queue forming outside the women's restroom.
Ye Tingtong's guard slowly dropped. After taking care of his business, he turned a corner, only to feel someone silently approach him from behind. Just as he was about to turn around, his neck was suddenly grabbed, and a towel was pressed over his nose.
A weird smell hit his nose, and his consciousness slipped away. He vaguely heard someone nearby speaking in a familiar tone, "I told you you drank too much, let me help you back."
The hat Ye Tingtong had used as part of his disguise was now pulled over his head, covering his last struggles and cries.
After an unknown amount of time, Ye Tingtong was awakened by a splash of cold water. He instinctively fought back, but his hands and feet were tightly bound, leaving him unable to move.
"You little bastard, why don't you keep hiding?" Ye Guodong grabbed his hair, forcing Ye Tingtong to tilt his head back and face the man's fury. "Do you know how much money I've spent to catch you?"
The kid had become increasingly cunning, so Ye Guodong had to cast a wide net and wait around the clock for this opportunity.
Ye Tingtong endured the sharp pain in his scalp and tried to negotiate with Ye Guodong, "If my roommates find out I'm not back, they'll call the police. As for the money you spent, I can compensate you. Shen Minghuai has given me many gifts, and I haven't touched them."
"Hmph," Ye Guodong sneered, letting go of his hair. "You mean the ones in the rental apartment? Did you really think those were yours?"
Ye Tingtong's head was violently flung to the side, and the aftereffects of the drug made his vision blur for a moment.
The next second, another basin of cold water was thrown at him.
Ye Guodong threw the cup aside, "As for your foolish roommates, a message from your phone is enough to get rid of them. Who do you think will come to save you?"
Ye Tingtong's hair was wet, clinging to his face in wet strands, water droplets gathering at the tip of his chin, teetering before finally falling to the ground, shattering on impact.
His face was pale, and he remained silent.
Indeed, no one could save him. Shen Minghuai was busy with his engagement, and with the tension between them, he was oblivious to Ye Tingtong's plight. As for Yu Huanhuan, she lacked the ability to save him from this situation.
Seeing Ye Tingtong's defeated expression as he slumped to the ground, Ye Guodong kicked him, "You better reflect on your actions here!"
The door closed, taking with it the last bit of light in the room, leaving only the flickering red camera in the upper right corner, like the cold gaze of a venomous snake, watching the figure on the ground with icy detachment.
Following the practices ingrained in his memory, Ye Tingtong huddled into a ball to avoid freezing to death.
But he underestimated how cold the night would be. The next day, Ye Tingtong developed a high fever. In a weak voice, he called out to the camera for help, knowing someone was watching, but his voice grew hoarse, and no one came.
"Boss, are we really not going to help?"
Ye Guodong looked at the curled-up figure on the ground and sneered, "Don't worry, this kid is resilient. Without a harsh lesson, he'll never learn."
Ye Tingtong felt someone give him a sip of water, and then the door closed again.
Starving and freezing, Ye Tingtong started to hallucinate. He heard his homeroom teacher ask sternly, "Weren't your attendance rates high a few weeks ago? And you were turning in your homework on time. Why are you skipping class again? If this continues, I'll have to expel you."
He desperately explained, "Teacher, I've been locked up. I'll come to class, I promise. Please don't expel me."
But the teacher seemed deaf to his pleas, stamping the expulsion papers as if he hadn't said a word.
A new student moved into the dorm, and the dorm leader, Yu Hui, looked after him well, as if Ye Tingtong had never been there.
Yu Huanhuan apologized to him, expressing her regret. Shen Minghuai, dressed in a suit, married Liang Yuting...
Finally, he seemed to see the back of someone. No matter how much he called, the person didn't turn around, walking away until they vanished from his sight.
After suffering from illness for an unknown period, Ye Tingtong finally received treatment.
After a severe illness, Ye Tingtong lost weight rapidly. He was already slender, but now he was almost skeletal.
Ye Guodong loudly scolded the cooking aunt, "You need to fatten him up. How can he go out looking like this?"
Every time Ye Tingtong saw the fearful expression on the cooking aunt's face, even if he had no appetite, he would try to finish the soup. After a week, he finally regained some color in his cheeks, and dressed, he looked somewhat presentable.
On the second day he could walk, Ye Guodong brought him to the Crescent Hall.
Ye Tingtong had never been here before, only knowing it was an upscale club where the wealthy conducted business.
Then, he ran into Hu Cheng, who was accompanied by a boy about his age, being led by the hand, head bowed, with a meek expression.
Hu Cheng saw Ye Tingtong and greeted him with a smile, "It's been a while. Are you feeling better?"
Ye Tingtong pursed his lips and didn't respond.
He didn't want to think too much about how Hu Cheng knew he had been sick.
They all took the same elevator down. When the doors opened, Hu Cheng and Ye Guodong exchanged subtle smiles, their entire demeanor exuding a hidden excitement.
What surprised Ye Tingtong even more was that after entering the basement level, Ye Guodong graciously allowed him to move freely, saying he would come to pick him up when the time was right.
Ye Tingtong initially thought this was just another tactic of Ye Guodong's, but he was truly left alone, without even a guard in sight.
Once he was sure no one was watching, Ye Tingtong ran back the same way, but was stopped by a waiter at the elevator.
"Sir, because of the confidentiality agreement, guests can't leave until all the events are over. You'll need to show the right documents to leave."
Ye Tingtong's hopeful look turned to despair. He realized Ye Guodong wasn't going to let him go—he was just trapping him in a different way.
As he walked around, he noticed the huge space under the Crescent Pavilion. After a moment, Ye Tingtong opened the closest door.
Half an hour later, he came out, his face pale, rushed into the nearby restroom, hugged the toilet, and threw up everything he'd eaten.
He'd never seen anything so bloody and violent.
In the middle of the stage was a huge cage covered in sharp spikes. Inside were two people, wearing just boxing gloves and nothing else.
When the whistle blew, they went at each other hard. The sound system was so good that even from a distance, Ye Tingtong could hear the punches land.
This wasn't boxing—it was a death match. If they got pushed to the edge, the spikes would stab into them. They had to keep attacking until the other couldn't stand.
Within minutes, the air was thick with blood, and the crowd went wild.
"Number 8, are you weak? Push him to the edge and rip him apart!"
"Damn it, Number 17! I bet 500,000 on you. Don't you dare lose!"
Chaos, brutality, madness—the place was out of control. When Number 17's leg was snapped and twisted as he fell, the screen zoomed in on the break.
The bone broke through the skin, bloody and exposed, as the man convulsed and the crowd roared, ending the show.
After throwing up, Ye Tingtong was drenched in sweat, and his stomach was on fire.
Now, every time he closed his eyes, he saw that twisted leg bone.
He'd never felt reality's cruelty so sharply.
To the powerful, the lives of ants were just entertainment.
Ye Guodong's intimidation worked—Ye Tingtong was shaking with fear.
Maybe he'd been in the bathroom too long, because there was a knock at the door.
"Sir, are you alright?"
It sounded like a waiter.
Ye Tingtong tried to calm himself, but when he spoke, his voice was hoarse. "I'm fine."
The obvious tremor in his voice didn't convince the waiter, who remained at the door. "Sir, do you need help? Could you please open the door?"
Ye Tingtong bit his lip hard.
Was the person outside brought by Ye Guodong? Was he going to be sold to this black market? Would he be turned into a human pig or dismembered?
Various terrifying guesses flashed through his mind, and the persistent questioning outside became the final straw that broke Ye Tingtong.
He couldn't take it anymore. He opened the door and, before the waiter could react, dashed out with all his strength.
Run, he had to escape.
But his body, just recovering from a serious illness, couldn't withstand the strain. Before his strength gave out, he seemed to hear someone speaking.
"Why would I lie to you? I really saw him, running faster than a rabbit."
Ye Tingtong turned a corner and unexpectedly collided into someone's arms. The person caught him steadily.
The embrace was warm, Ye Tingtong thought. He looked up and saw a familiar face. The suppressed fear suddenly surged like a dam breaking. He couldn't hold back anymore and spoke with a sob, "Shen Jin, please, take me away."
✿✾❀✿✾❀✿✾❀✿✾❀✿✾❀✿✾❀✿✾