Chapter 25: Xie Yean Ran Away

Chapter 25 Xie Yean Took Off

The next day, Chi Xingcun slept in until past ten.

When he opened his eyes, Qin Liyi was standing by the window, speaking in a low voice on the phone:

"Uncle and Auntie, Xiao Xing is still sleeping right now. Yes, he's with me."

"Alright, once he wakes up, I'll get him to call you both."

Just as he hung up, he saw Chi Xingcun lying in bed, staring at him with those big, dreamy, vacant eyes.

He smiled. "Oh, you're up? I was about to have your parents come over, but then I figured I'd wait until you woke up and decided if you wanted to tell them yourself."

Chi Xingcun sat up, rubbed his eyes, and said, "I want to tell them."

"Alright, then let's tell them."

After he got cleaned up, Chi Xingcun called his parents.

"Mom, Dad, I ended up at the hospital yesterday..."

After he finished explaining, he expected his parents to blow up and yell at him, but to his surprise, they kept their tone gentle:

"Sweetie, wait for us at the hospital. We'll be right there."

After hanging up, Chi Xingcun finished his hospital breakfast and went downstairs, right as his parents were pulling up.

They rushed over, looking tense, and Chi Xingcun's heart began to race.

When his mom's hand came toward his face, he instinctively squeezed his eyes shut and turned his head aside.

But unexpectedly, his mom just cupped his face in both hands and gave him a good look-over.

"Sweetie, are you hurt? You said your classmate was hurt—what about you?"

His dad gently ruffled Chi Xingcun's hair. "Buddy, tell us—did anyone mess with you?"

Chi Xingcun's tears started falling out of nowhere, startling his parents, who immediately feared the worst.

"Damn it, whoever dared to mess with you, Mom will make them pay." His mom wiped his tears with her thumb.

"Sweetheart, let Dad see—where are you hurt?"

Qin Liyi frowned, watching from the side. If he was hurt, why did he say he was fine yesterday?

Just then, Chi Xingcun shook his head, wiped his tears with his hand, and gave a silly, goofy smile. "I'm fine."

"...Then why the tears?" His parents' brows knitted together in worry.

"I was just worried about my friend, that's all..."

"Alright." His parents finally let out a sigh of relief and patted his head to comfort him. "Then tell us—is there anything you need us to do right now?"

Chi Xingcun led his parents into the lounge before saying, "Mom, Dad, can you check into Xie Yean's family situation? There are so many rumors about him at school, and I don't know which ones are real... He got hurt this bad, and he still hasn't contacted his parents... And he got hurt right near his own house—I think his parents did this to him."

Xue Xue and Chi Hanxin looked at each other, and Xue Xue spoke up:

"Sweetie, are you helping him because you two are close? Do you really care about him?"

Chi Xingcun paused, then nodded. "Yeah, he's the only one who can model for my paintings."

"Alright, if that's the case, we'll help you." They both nodded.

Chi Xingcun's eyes lit up instantly, and he said happily, "Thanks, Mom and Dad..."

Xue Xue and Chi Hanxin exchanged another look, both feeling a knot in their stomachs. They'd already planned to dig deep into what had been going on with their son lately—the people and events around him—because they'd noticed he didn't cling to them like he used to.

In the past, he would've pounced on them by now, planted a bunch of kisses on their cheeks, and said, "Mom, Dad, love you, love you, love you, love you."

Not like this... sitting there all stiff, saying thank you.

And last night, he'd snuck out without telling them. In the past, he would've never snuck out at night without telling them... Did he not love them anymore?

The two of them were crushed.

But they couldn't just say it—that would be too embarrassing.

They'd just have to look into it quietly behind his back and fix things.

Honestly, they were curious about Xie Yean too. They'd figured he was just a regular student, but he'd gotten their son so invested—so much that he'd even stopped paying attention to Fu Chenzhan lately.

Chi Xingcun had wanted his parents to stay and see Xie Yean, but since he didn't know when Xie Yean would wake up, he didn't want to make them wait.

At noon, his parents took Chi Xingcun and Qin Liyi to a nearby restaurant for lunch.

Then, Chi Xingcun and Qin Liyi both returned to school for classes.

The moment school let out, Chi Xingcun bolted straight to the hospital.

Half an hour earlier, the doctor had told him Xie Yean was awake.

He rushed to Xie Yean's room, only to see Xie Yean yank out his IV right in front of him and get ready to get up.

Chi Xingcun's eyes went red instantly, and he rushed in. "What are you doing!"

He frantically hit the call button.

Only then did Xie Yean look up and notice him. His voice was low and hoarse as he said, "It's nothing serious. Just surface wounds—I'll put some ointment on and be fine in a few days. No need to stay in the hospital."

The bruises and swelling on his face had gone down a lot, but it still looked bad, and the gauze was still on.

The doctor had just told Chi Xingcun that Xie Yean needed to stay in the hospital for a week—they must've told Xie Yean the same thing.

"You have so many injuries, you know! Not just from yesterday—there are old wounds from before too!" Chi Xingcun said firmly. "You have to stay in the hospital!"

Xie Yean was about to say something when the doctor came in. Despite Xie Yean's protests, the doctor firmly put the IV back in.

He had no choice but to give in.

He lay back down, arm over his eyes.

With just the two of them left in the room, Chi Xingcun looked at him and said, "Did your parents beat you?"

Xie Yean opened his eyes, his gaze drifting to the clean-cut, gentle young master by the bed. His lips parted slightly. "Didn't you already figure it out?"

After waking up, Xie Yean had replayed yesterday in his head and found it a little strange.

The young master's overly worried look seemed like he already knew how Xie Yean had gotten beaten, which made him extra sympathetic.

And in the car, the young master wasn't puzzled the way the driver was, as if he already knew the boy had been beaten by his parents.

"I—I guessed it." Chi Xingcun nervously fidgeted with his pants, thinking about both his past life and the present, his eyes welling up. "I'll help you. Don't go back home anymore, not until they're in prison."

"..." Xie Yean was silent for a moment, then looked up at this naive young master. "Why help me? Are you so sure it's their fault? Not that I did something wrong?"

"It's wrong for them to hit you! I'll get my lawyer to charge them with attempted murder!"

"..."

Xie Yean said nothing more.

Before long, Qin Liyi also arrived. He'd had another class, but knowing Chi Xingcun had left after just one, he skipped it too.

In the evening, the two went to order food. When they returned, the hospital bed was empty.

The IV needle dangled by the bed, a bead of blood still dried on it.

Chi Xingcun's eyes widened in disbelief.