On the rewards for successfully defeating a boss

"Where did you take my baby son?" Shi Xixi's voice sounded nonchalant, without any hint of urgency.

"In the bathroom, I'll be back soon." Chi Mu replied, staring blankly at Chen Qian's departing back with a gloomy expression.

"Okay, hurry up. We have to board the plane in half an hour." Shi Xixi reminded lightly, then hung up the call before Chi Mu could reply.

The call was brief, just a few sentences.

But Chen Qian's figure was no longer in front of the door. Chi Mu felt sad. He then knocked lightly on the wooden door of the compartment and asked through the wood: "Yubai, is it ready? We should go back."

"Okay!" Yu Bai's crisp, baby-like voice rang out powerfully in the cubicle.

In a moment he was neatly dressed, tiptoed to open the door of the compartment and walked out.

"Then let's go find mom." Chi Mu said softly. He suppressed his complicated emotions and forced a smile. He bent down, reached out and picked up Chi Yubai, and returned to the coffee shop where they had just taken a break.

When Chi Mu brought Chi Yubai back to the original place, Chen Qian was already sitting next to Zhong Yi, chatting naturally, as if nothing had happened.

The atmosphere between the two was very harmonious, but they subtly excluded the outside world and would not allow others to disturb them without permission.

Just like when I was with him before.

Shi Xunxi's eyes moved between the slightly embarrassed Chi Mu and Chen Qian. Even if she didn't ask, the answer that the two were alone was obvious.

She smiled slightly, took Chi Yubai, and then said goodbye to Chen Qian and Zhong Yi who were sitting at the table: "Then we won't disturb you any more. You two can enjoy yourself. We have things to do and have to go back first."

"Walk slowly and be careful on the road." Zhong Yi stood up and walked with them for two steps.

Not long after they left, Chen Qian and Zhong Yi also returned to the hotel.

In the next few days, Chen Qian's condition was unusually bad.

He looked listless and dispirited, completely lacking the energy he had when he was in Denmark.

Fortunately, the on-site inspection mission was completed early, and what remained was just some work that could be completed in the hotel with a computer.

Chen Qian's main responsibility was to work with Zhong Yi to integrate the pictures and select suitable photos as illustrations based on the content of Zhong Yi's manuscript.

Perhaps it was because Chen Qian was completely absent-minded and stared at the computer in the hotel all day, adjusting the details of a few pictures back and forth, and Zhong Yi stayed at home to accompany him.

I thought the work would take seven or eight days to complete, but it was completed in less than half the time and sent to the editor's email.

Now Chen Qian had no reason to sit in the hotel in a daze. He became silent and taciturn, so quiet that even Zhong Yi felt it was too much.

Even if he tried to find topics to talk to Chen Qian, it was fruitless because Chen Qian would always look at him with those empty eyes and then speak incoherently and randomly.

Helplessly, Zhong Yi was able to change his flight originally scheduled for five days later to the next day before he was about to lose his ability to speak, and dragged Chen Qian back to his hometown, Fucheng.

……

In a blink of an eye, more than half a month has passed since my trip to your city.

For the past half month, Chen Qian lived almost the same life every day.

He ignores everyone when eating, going to the toilet, or sleeping.

Even Chen Tian, ​​who spent less than 20 hours at home a week, noticed that something was wrong with him, let alone the other people he spent time with day and night with.

Ms. Wen rarely fulfilled the wish of her 27-year-old son. From the moment she opened her eyes, she began to worry about Chen Qian's recent mood. She couldn't sleep for a while at night because of this, and sighed to Chen Tian's father.

Every day at mealtime, everyone would gather around the mahogany round table punctually. Not because they wanted to eat more, but to persuade Chen Qian, who was awake but rarely opened his mouth, to eat a few more bites.

During this period, he lost a lot of weight visibly.

That night, Chen Tian finally took some time off to go home for dinner.

He sat at the dinner table, holding his bowl and glaring at his younger brother across from him who couldn't even pick up a few grains of rice with his chopsticks. He felt a lump in his throat and couldn't swallow it.

I was really helpless, so I simply asked Zhong Yi, the only person who knew the situation, to go to the rooftop upstairs.

He called it having a few drinks and chatting together.

But actually, he just wanted to find out what happened between him and Chen Qian and what they encountered during the time when he was away from home on a business trip, so as to find a way to relieve Chen Qian's decadent state.

Otherwise, if this continues, even if Chen Qian is healthy, the elderly people in the family will get sick.

He himself had tried to talk to Chen Qian.

But the boy either remained silent when asked, or just made up a bunch of nonsense and tried to get by without hesitation, blatantly treating Chen Tian like a fool.

After chatting for a long time, there was no clue at all, it was all nonsense. When he left the room, Chen Qian was still at the same place.

"You were only on a business trip for a few days, how did he become like this?" Chen Tian sat in the wicker armchair on the balcony, staring intently at the amber vodka in the glass in his hand.

"I met Chi Mu and Miss Shi." Zhong Yi took a sip of the red wine. The wine passed between his lips and teeth. After a slight astringency, only the sweet and rich fruity aroma was left.

It is said that this wine is Romanee-Conti privately collected by Chen Tian’s father. It has been hidden in the underground wine cellar for several years and no one was willing to drink it. Today, Chen Tian secretly took it out.

"Chi Mu? He is not someone who can spare time for fun. How come you met him when you went to Gui City?" Chen Tian frowned slightly and looked at Zhong Yi with a stern gaze, thinking carefully about this "chance encounter".

"I only brought the child." Zhong Yi said concisely.

The two people's eyes met in mid-air. Chen Tian looked at the pair of exotic eyes and pondered for a long time.

After a few seconds, Chen Tianxian withdrew his gaze and replied calmly, "I understand."

He then tilted his glass slightly in a gesture of greeting, then drank the rest of the wine in one gulp. He stood up and said goodbye to Zhong Yi, "I suddenly remembered that I still have some work to take care of, so I'll be going downstairs now."

Zhong Yi's gaze followed Chen Tian's footsteps all the way to the small door at the stairs, and he watched him slowly leave.

After returning downstairs, Chen Tianxia didn't go to his study to tackle his mountain of work, as he'd promised. Instead, he returned to his room. After pondering for a while, he pulled out his phone and called Yu Wangze and Wu Zhefan, each asking for a small favor.

The next morning, Chen Qian, as usual, went downstairs quietly to have breakfast with a lost look on his face.

But before he could have breakfast, he was pulled back to the room by Chen Tian.

Chen Tian blocked the door and ordered him, "I'll give you five minutes. After five minutes, you have to change out of your pajamas and get yourself ready."

After saying that, he slammed the door shut on Chen Qian, leaving him alone at the door of the room, unable to react to what had happened.