CFRFGC Chapter 117

⌈”Hahaha!”⌋

Ji Min couldn’t think of any reason to continue holding back.

He pressed forward again, guiding the boy toward the edge of the bed by memory.

In the dark, they stumbled, bumping into the bench at the foot of the bed with a muffled thud.

Lu Ran paused, trying to wriggle free.

But for the first time, the man ignored his struggle, lost in his labored breaths.

“Hey, your leg!”

Lu Ran turned his head away, but Ji Min grabbed his jaw and pulled him back.

“The leg’s fine,” Ji Min replied nonchalantly, his words drowned in the deepening kiss.

Lu Ran’s tongue ached from the forceful suction.

The air in his chest was being recklessly stolen, leaving him gasping for breath. The heat of Ji Min’s heavy breathing burned against his face, leaving him dazed, as if his rationality had melted into a thick, sweet syrup.

Yet, a sliver of awareness remained, focused on Ji Min’s injured leg.

Lu Ran struggled again, taking a much-needed breath during the brief pause in their kiss.

Then, gathering his strength, he pushed against the man before him.

Only then did Lu Ran truly realize how strong Ji Min was.

His effort was effortlessly neutralized.

Ji Min used just one hand to pin both of Lu Ran’s wrists firmly behind him.

Lu Ran’s knees buckled as they reached the edge of the bed. After a moment of futile resistance, he trembled and fell backward.

Ji Min’s tall and powerful body pressed down on him.

This time, it wasn’t the comical fall of their last encounter but a close, inescapable confinement.

The metallic “click” of a belt buckle being unfastened echoed in the quiet room.

Lu Ran froze, his body instinctively stiffening as he struggled again.

The slight movement elicited a low groan from Ji Min.

The man furrowed his brows tightly, letting out a hoarse gasp.

In a voice so hoarse it was almost unrecognizable, Ji Min leaned close to the boy’s ear and whispered, “Just a moment.”

The room was oppressively dim, saturated with an inexplicable, sultry heat.

The curtains were left open. The faint yellow light from the courtyard seeped in, just enough to illuminate the blush on the boy’s face beneath him.

Ji Min lowered his head and kissed him again.

But just as the moment reached its peak, charged with ultimate intimacy, the boy beneath him leaned in and murmured devilishly into his ear: “Uncle Ji.”

Ji Min: “…”

It was as if someone had slammed the brakes on a speeding car. Ji Min’s thoughts were forcibly dragged back to reality.

He froze for a moment, then looked down at Lu Ran beneath him.

The boy’s face was still tinged with a soft blush, but his expression was nothing short of mischievous. Meeting Ji Min’s gaze, he called again, “Uncle Ji, what are you doing?”

Ji Min: “…”

He dipped his head again, intending to silence the boy with a kiss.

Halfway through, however, he couldn’t help but grit his teeth and mutter, “Did you really have to call me that now?”

“Ha! Ha! Ha!”

Lu Ran shoved him off, rolled over, and stood up on the bed, reaching up to turn on the light.

The sudden, harsh brightness filled the room, completely dispelling the intimacy that had lingered in the dark.

Lu Ran’s eyes sparkled with mischief as he stood, hands on his hips, and looked at Ji Min.

“Don’t tell me you thought my anger was gone now?”

Ji Min: “…”

He had indeed forgotten about that.

Between the “Uncle Ji” and Lu Ran’s playful outburst, all thoughts of continuing had completely vanished.

Ji Min sat up cross-legged on the bed, propping his forehead on one hand and letting out a long sigh.

After a moment, he couldn’t help but feel stifled.

“Just kill me already,” he said in resignation.

“Did I call you wrong?”

Lu Ran sat cross-legged opposite him, pointing an accusatory finger. “Weren’t you the one who wanted to act like my elder? When I called Gu Zhi ‘Uncle Gu’, weren’t you super unhappy about it?”

Ji Min: “…”

At this point, he didn’t want to say a single word.

Ji Min glanced at the boy sitting across from him. Feeling his current posture was too undignified, he grabbed a pillow and placed it on his lap.

Seeing this, Lu Ran burst into laughter again.

He lunged forward, wrapping his hands around Ji Min’s neck, and teased, “So, have you realized your mistake now?”

Ji Min had developed a slight wariness toward Lu Ran’s antics.

When the boy pounced, he quickly caught him and let out a long sigh. “What do you think?”

After everything that had just happened, anyone—human or ghost—would realize their mistake.

“Oh?” Lu Ran raised an eyebrow and said, “Then let me ask you: in the future, if something like this happens again, will you still hide all the dangers from me? Will you secretly prepare a will and make arrangements without telling me?”

Ji Min paused for a moment before obediently replying, “Of course not.”

His answer was remarkably proper, delivered with an air of absolute righteousness. “I’ll definitely discuss everything with you.”

Lu Ran: “…”

He stared at Ji Min with a stern expression, squinting slightly. “What did that one-second hesitation mean?”

“Cough.”

Ji Min raised his hand, rubbed his nose, and tried to change the subject. In a soft tone, he pleaded, “You’re crushing me.”

Lu Ran was livid.

He swung a fist, hitting Ji Min through the pillow, and growled, “Stop changing the subject! Answer me properly!”

Ji Min winced and let out a muffled grunt before pulling Lu Ran closer into his arms.

Leaning against the headboard, he looked at the determined and serious boy in his arms. Letting out a sigh, he replied sincerely, “Don’t worry. I won’t hide any dangers from you again. Forcing you to climb through a window just to see me was indeed my fault.”

But after a pause, Ji Min added, “However…”

“You’re still saying ‘however’?” Lu Ran was immediately displeased.

“However, in case of certain unexpected situations, I’ll still want to make sure everything is taken care of properly,” Ji Min said as he gently patted Lu Ran’s hair.

Lu Ran took a deep breath, his hands moving back to Ji Min’s neck.

“You’re doing this on purpose. You know I don’t like it when you do this, but you insist on doing it anyway!”

His fingers pressed against Ji Min’s Adam’s apple.

Ji Min quickly dodged.

“I’m so mad I could explode! Sleep by yourself!” Lu Ran struggled to get up.

But Ji Min held him down with one hand.

Lu Ran used all his strength to try and stand, his face turning red with effort, but he couldn’t break free.

Frustrated, he reached out to mess up Ji Min’s hair.

They wrestled for a while.

Suddenly, Ji Min frowned and let out a sharp “hiss”.

Lu Ran immediately stopped what he was doing and checked Ji Min’s leg.

“What happened? Does your leg hurt again?”

Ji Min rested his chin on Lu Ran’s shoulder and sighed softly. “My leg is fine, but something else is about to break from all your torment.”

Lu Ran: “…”

He paused, clearly skeptical, but his concern won out. He lifted the pillow covering Ji Min’s leg to take a look.

After one glance, he slammed the pillow back down, his ears turning red.

“Nonsense! Nothing’s broken at all!”

Ji Min couldn’t hold back his laughter, pulling Lu Ran into his arms as he chuckled softly.

The two of them sat leaning against the headboard, facing each other.

Lu Ran nestled into Ji Min’s embrace, muttering sulkily,

“I don’t like it when you make those arrangements.”

It felt as if every step Ji Min planned was based on the assumption of his departure.

But Lu Ran didn’t want to think about such “assumptions”.

Ji Min rubbed his chin against Lu Ran’s hair.

It was precisely because he knew Lu Ran couldn’t face those scenarios that Ji Min had arranged everything in secret.

If Lu Ran didn’t want to confront such assumptions, then Ji Min would handle them alone.

The night deepened.

Eventually, Ji Min got up to take a shower, gradually cooling the surge of emotion he’d brought back from the hospital.

Lu Ran didn’t return to his own room either.

After Ji Min finished, Lu Ran also took a shower. With his hair only half-dry and dampness clinging to him, he climbed into bed.

It wasn’t until he was on the bed that he noticed Ji Min had brought up another comforter.

Now, the large bed had two separate blankets.

Ji Min was already lying under one of them, his eyes closed, apparently asleep.

He slept with precision—hands and feet properly placed, his posture long and straight.

Lu Ran watched him for a while, then flipped his own blanket open and burrowed inside.

Moments later, he emerged from the other side of the blanket and slipped into Ji Min’s comforter instead.

“Click.”

Ji Min opened his eyes and grabbed his hand.

“What are you doing?” Ji Min asked coolly, brushing a hand through Lu Ran’s damp hair. “Dry it properly before coming up.”

Lu Ran grinned cheekily at him, ignoring the comment, and wriggled his arms and legs into the blanket, firmly wrapping himself around Ji Min.

“Lu Ran, you’re pushing it,” Ji Min said, his voice low and steady.

First, the boy had metaphorically slammed the brakes on him earlier. Now, he was intentionally stirring up trouble.

Lu Ran wrapped his arms and legs around Ji Min, letting out a vague sigh. “Boss, you’re really like a teddy bear.”

The moment the word “boss” slipped out, Ji Min knew this kid was half-asleep and muddled.

He sighed, choosing not to push Lu Ran away.

Instead, he pulled the blanket up, covering the boy’s head.

The bedroom lights dimmed once more, and the two drifted off to sleep in each other’s arms.

While they rested, the Shen family banquet was just reaching its conclusion.

Most of the guests had already left the courtyard.

However, several key figures in the business world were still gathered in Shen Hongyuan’s study.

With the Fang family expressing interest in collaborating with the Shen family, particularly on the lucrative HZ project, the Shen family’s prominence would inevitably rise if they secured it.

Many sought to curry favor with the Shens now, seeing the potential gains.

Seizing the opportunity, Shen Hongyuan began pitching investments.

He wasn’t above lowering himself, flattering the influential guests in his study. His words of praise had the roomful of executives grinning from ear to ear.

“Alright, it’s settled. Tomorrow, we’ll sign the contract!” one of them declared.

The others quickly chimed in, expressing their eagerness to cooperate.

Shen Hongyuan promptly agreed. “Perfect. I’ll be available at any time tomorrow!”

Securing several investments in succession, Shen Hongyuan was in high spirits.

His demeanor grew even warmer as he interacted with the executives, particularly the eldest among them, Mr. Yang. On their way downstairs, Shen Hongyuan was practically ready to escort him down every step.

As they reached the ground floor and prepared to leave, some of the executives, having eaten and drunk their fill, expressed the need to visit the restroom.

At this point, Shen Hongyuan regarded these men as saviors of his company.

Hearing their request, he suddenly remembered that Lu Ran had been here earlier. A chill ran down his spine.

“Mr. Yang, please wait a moment.”

Not daring to neglect them and terrified something might go wrong, Shen Hongyuan chose not to send a servant. Instead, he personally inspected the first-floor restroom.

Everything appeared normal.

Each stall was spotless and there were no signs of cockroaches or any other disturbances.

Only then did Shen Hongyuan let out a sigh of relief.

It seemed Lu Ran hadn’t caused any trouble today.

After his inspection, Shen Hongyuan personally escorted Mr. Yang into the restroom, saying, “The floor is slippery here. Please be careful.”

However, no matter how attentive Shen Hongyuan was, he remained, after all, just a company boss.

Seeing Mr. Yang enter a stall for a long call, Shen Hongyuan had no interest in lingering in the restroom. He stepped out into the hallway and lit a cigarette.

Just then, Shen Xingyu approached.

Upon spotting Shen Hongyuan, Shen Xingyu frowned and said, “Dad, did Shen Cheng mess up again today?”

Hearing this, Shen Hongyuan’s expression darkened.

He waved dismissively and replied, “That’s your uncle. No matter what, he’s still your elder.”

Shen Xingyu sighed. “Dad, I’ve told you not to associate with him anymore.”

Shen Hongyuan’s face turned stern. “He’s a company director and my brother. If something happens to him, how can I not step in?”

“With all due respect,” Shen Xingyu said coldly, “the embezzlement of Shen Corporation’s internal funds is all because you keep covering for him.”

“Enough. I know what I’m doing,” Shen Hongyuan replied in a low voice. “Your uncle’s father died because of the company’s operations. Without him, there wouldn’t be a Shen Corporation today. Where would you be to play CEO?”

Shen Xingyu was rendered speechless.

Shen Hongyuan, in good spirits, didn’t want to argue with his son.

He patted Shen Xingyu on the shoulder and said, “Alright, go entertain those gentlemen. The funding issue will be resolved today.”

As he finished speaking, a loud “thud” came from the restroom door behind them.

Turning around, they saw Mr. Yang, who had just gone in for his business, running out clutching his belly.

His clothes were soaked, his face filled with terror.

As he ran, he shouted at the top of his lungs, “It exploded! It’s all exploded!”

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