The unattainable beauty was driven to depravity and madness by a wicked seed.

One o'clock in the morning.

Chen Jingmo sat by the window, unable to sleep. Every time he closed his eyes, he saw Chen Yunting with a distorted face, saying that he would ruin Shi Qianqiu. He knew that those emotions were being suppressed in his heart, but he didn't know who to talk to. He felt that he was on the verge of collapse, just one step away from the breaking point.

I closed my eyes again, and when I opened them again, it was dawn.

Chen Jingmo returned to his bedroom, opened a drawer, took out all of Shi Qianqiu's photos, arranged them around the bed, and lay down to sleep with a doll in his arms. However, he still couldn't fall asleep. He wanted to smoke, but he didn't have the energy. He also wanted to drink, but his body couldn't handle it.

Finally, he sat up again and carefully put the photos back in the drawer, only to find a medicine bottle inside.

When did you buy it?

do not know.

But this precisely confirms the fact that he was ill.

Chen Jingmo took two pills as instructed, and this time going to sleep wasn't so difficult.

The next day, around noon, Shi Qianqiu started knocking on the door. Chen Jingmo was woken up and checked the time on his phone, only to see Lu Sui's continuous video calls. He got up, drank some water, and turned off the camera when Lu Sui called again before answering.

"Chen Jingmo, where did you go? Why didn't you turn on your camera? Did you and your boyfriend have a fight? You haven't talked to me in so long, I miss you."

"...We didn't argue, I'm on vacation."

"I don't believe it."

"..."

"Chen Jingmo, when you're unhappy, you're not allowed to hide away by yourself. If I can't find you, I won't be able to comfort you."

"I'm not unhappy."

"It doesn't make me happy..." Lu Sui said to Chen Jingmo while searching for his location. A few seconds later, she said, "I'm coming to find you now."

Chen Jingmo knew that Lu Sui could locate him with WiFi on, but he really didn't want Lu Sui to come because he was very tired and Lu Sui couldn't solve his problems. "No need, I want to be alone."

Lu Sui's eyes were filled with desolation. "When can I see you again?"

"……have no idea."

"I'll buy you even more rings—"

Before he could finish speaking, Chen Jingmo heard Shen Qinghuai talking to Lu Sui on the other end of the line. Although the voices were soft, they were clear enough for Shen Qinghuai to say, "What he wants is not the ring we give him, but the ring his boyfriend gives him."

That's completely wrong.

He didn't want to wear it on his wrist because it was so uncomfortable.

After the video call ended, Shi Qianqiu sent a message telling him to have dinner. Chen Jingmo replied with the only message he'd received in so many days—

Baby: Bro, you have a lot of things to deal with at your company, don't waste time with me here.

He didn't look at what Shi Qianqiu sent after that, but stared blankly at the incoming call screen on his phone.

It's Chen Yunting.

How dare he call me?

Chen Jingmo answered the call.

"Hey, where have you been lately? I can't find you anywhere. Now that we've broken up, this is the past. Don't bother your brother anymore, okay? Do you hear me?"

"I heard you. See you at Yunshui Bridge at 1 a.m. tonight. Let's have a good talk and plan what I should do in the future."

"What are you doing on the bridge so late?"

"It was quiet then, and it was cool. There weren't many people around, so it wasn't awkward. Dad, you made the right choice to separate us. I really can't ruin him. I'll stay far away from him from now on and watch him get married and have children."

"That's more like it. Don't stand me up, okay?"

"I'll definitely be there on time. Oh, Dad, I'll transfer some money to your phone later as an apology. Don't worry about it being from an unknown source, because it's all money I earned myself. I've spent a lot of your money over the years, and all in all, it's only this much... If it's not enough, there's nothing I can do. If it's too much, give the extra part to Shi Qianqiu and tell him I'm sorry for me."

Chen Yunting frowned, sensing something was off about the question, but years of talking to Chen Jingmo made him almost instinctively ask, "You earned it? How much can you earn?"

"You can earn a lot."

Doodle.

Chen Jingmo hung up the phone.

He seemed to have suddenly mustered some strength, put on an apron and started cleaning, locking every window, covering the sofa and table with dust covers, putting all the dolls into dust bags and locking them in the cabinet, and finally taking a shower, changing into zippered shorts, and packing some things.

Heat up the leftover food that Shi Qianqiu ordered for him last night.

Transfer the money to Chen Yunting.

Time quickly came to 12 p.m.

Chen Jingmo lowered all the curtains, turned off the water, electricity, and gas, put on his hat, locked the door, and left. He was greeted by a cool breeze all the way, but his thoughts were somewhat excited.

He stood by the bridge for a while before Chen Yunting's car arrived.

"Pretty punctual." Chen Jingmo chuckled.

"Where did you get so much money?" Chen Yunting's first words after coming down were this, his tone still accusatory.

"Don't worry, it's all legitimate." Chen Jingmo rested his elbows on the railing, his tone and expression indifferent. "Chen Yunting, you broke me up with Shi Qianqiu just for the sake of your so-called face. From childhood to adulthood, I remember every single thing you've done to hurt me for the sake of this so-called face."

On the phone, Chen Jingmo said she wanted to have a good talk with him.

But then, they say these things.

Chen Yunting sneered, "What have I done to hurt you? You eat my food, drink my drinks, and use my things—"

Chen Jingmo said, "Food, drink, and other necessities are all things I deserve."

"You don't need to pretend you don't know. I don't want to argue with you about who's right and who's wrong, because I don't have that much time, and you're the only one in the wrong."

"Chen Yunting, you are incompetent and selfish. Every part of you disgusts me. You always use your so-called reasoning to morally blackmail me. All my pain comes from you."

"Let's sever ties. From now on, let's not speak to each other when we meet, just like Chen Ziqiu and I, okay?"

Chen Yunting's eyes turned bloodshot with rage. "You're my son, and you still want to sever ties with me? Hahaha, you have my blood in your veins and you still want to distance yourself from me? What kind of joke is that?!"

Chen Jingmo nodded knowingly, then turned to look at Chen Yunting, "Then I'll die once to return this life to you, and we'll sever all ties as father and son."

If he can come back tomorrow, he will go to find Shi Qianqiu.

If you can't come back tomorrow, or don't want to come back, then let's not see each other.

As soon as he finished speaking, Chen Jingmo looked down at the pitch-black river below, pushed off with his hand, and jumped in.