Hou Chuan was elated when they successfully escaped, but after travelling a short distance, he asked hesitantly, “Qin-ge, are we just going to take Director Zhong away like this?” Mrs Zhong had obviously been very angry. Shengshi was still owned by the Zhong family; Chu Qin would undoubtedly face hardships if he involved himself in their family affairs.
“Who is he?” Zhong Yibin raised his chin and asked Chu Qin as he pointed to the little monkey assistant driving the car.
Hou Chuan rolled his eyes. They had just met last week, yet he so easily forgot him. Prestigious people really did have short-term memory. “Director Zhong, I am Hou Chuan. I was assigned to be Chu Qin’s assistant last week.”
Zhong Yibin took out his phone and scrolled through his contacts list. When he found Hou Chuan’s contact, the remark was “unsightly new assistant”. Since he had confirmed that he had this person’s contact information, Zhong Yibin didn’t ask more, merely stating that this small assistant should work hard.
The corner of Hou Chuan’s mouth twitched. He actually used the exact same words of courtesy as last week. This big boss really didn’t put any heart into duping him.
Ever since Zhong Yibin woke up with amnesia, the people around him could recognize, but he couldn’t recognize any of them. This was a very uncomfortable feeling. Mother Zhong had had to show him the family’s photo album and his pictures when he was young to make him believe that he was a member of the Zhong family. But that was it. Anything they told him, he had to question.
This was because during the six days he was awake, nobody mentioned Chu Qin in front of him when he was the only person he remembered. Mother Zhong also refused to let him contact the outside world, and wouldn’t give him back his mobile phone, claiming that the company would be thrown into chaos if others knew about his memory loss.
All these things done by the Zhong family only made him more suspicious. Zhong Yibin had put on an act in front of them till Mother Zhong found some woman to pretend to be his fiancée, putting an end to his patience.
“Why do you keep staring at me?” Chu Qin’s head was lowered as he replied to messages on Wechat. A few friends had gone to the hospital in vain to visit him, so they had enquired after him. Raising his head, he was greeted by a pair of bright eyes. It seemed like this guy had been staring at him in this manner ever since they boarded the car.
“Qinqin…” Zhong Yibin tried calling out. He only called Chu Qin like this when they were alone.
“En?” Chu Qin automatically responded, before he realized what this guy had called him. Glancing at the little monkey at the front of the car, his face slowly turned red. He gave Zhong Yibin a look, “There are other people around, don’t call me that.”
Seeing that he had responded, Zhong Yibin laughed jubilantly.
In front, Hou Chuan was a trembling mess, almost driving the car onto the pavement. Even if he counted the days spent in the hospital, the total number of days he had spent with Chu Qin did not even amount to half a month. Moreover, this was his first time driving a car with two passengers. Given his position as Chu Qin’s personal assistant, he was very clear on the type of relationship Chu Qin had with Zhong Yibin.
He had always assumed that even if there were feelings between the two of them, power and wealth was the basis of it. He did not think that they would be like this in private, even wanting to be intimate in front of the assistant!
The shocked assistant silently pondered over whether he should prepare a set of ear plugs the next time he had to drive the both of them, or if he had no choice but to listen to them.
“How could you let them leave?” Mother Zhong was very displeased with her eldest son’s way of handling the issue. Her son had amnesia and only remembered that slut Chu Qin. Now that Zhong Yibin was taken away by Chu Qin, who knew if he would start treating whatever Chu Qin said as an imperial decree. If Chu Qin ordered him not to acknowledge his mother, he might really do as asked.
“Mother, he only lost his memories, not turned dumb. Lying to him will only worsen his condition,” Zhong Jiabin ignored his mother’s unreasonable words. He glanced at the mother-daughter pair and left for the house.
The Su mother-daughter pair wanted to die from embarrassment. Having been seen in this manner by the Zhong family’s heir, although there had not been much fluctuation in that enigmatic radiance, a simple glance was enough to make them feel as if their inner thoughts had been seen through. As if she had been slapped several times, Mother Su stood up with her daughter. Her heart was burning with hatred for Mother Zhong, but daring to unload it, she could only stiffly bid goodbye.
Mother Zhong also felt that she had lost face, and quickly sent them off with a few courteous words.
The car belonged to the company, so after Hou Chuan delivered them to the gate of the residence, he drove back to the company.
The residential area was not large, and only had three floors. The patch of greenery in the center was very spacious, a canal had been dug out, and a small wooden bridge had been erected. Since it was working hours, there were less people around. There were elderly people bringing children to play at the stone beach beside the canal, but not a single young person could be seen.
As they walked through the residential area, Chu Qin automatically kept a distance of half a step between them. He was a public figure, and Zhong Yibin was also someone who frequently appeared on magazines. When they were outside, they always showed self-restraint.
To Zhong Yibin, everything in his surroundings was unfamiliar. Only Chu Qin was familiar. When Chu Qin strayed from him, unease would fill his heart. Speeding up, he sneakily extended his hand and accurately grasped a slender hand.
“What’s wrong?” Chu Qin turned to him.
Zhong Yibin didn’t reply, merely continuing to hold onto Chu Qin’s hand. His other hand was sandwiched in his pocket, and his gaze was fixed on what was ahead, as if nothing had happened.
This small residence could not compare to the Zhong family’s villa, but it was still a high class one. Its security measures were top notch. Chu Qin was amused yet pained by his actions, so he did not stop him. Just like this, he held onto Zhong Yibin’s hand. As they were walking, his heart inexplicably throbbed.
It had been a long, long time since they had held hands and walked under the sun like this. He felt slightly jittery but the tinge of excitement to it made him unable to resist giving a faint smile. They had been in a relationship for a long time already, he never thought that a simple thing like holding hands and walking under the sun could make him this happy. Zhong Yibin was also very happy, even childishly shaking his arms.
“Doudou, lets hold hands too!” Two children were running around playfully. Seeing the two older brothers happily holding hands, he suggested the same to his friend.
“Okay!” Therefore, the two friends held hands and walked ahead. They even circled around Chu Qin and Zhong Yibin, shaking their arms.
Zhong Yibin was befuddled. These two rascals, were they mocking him?
“Pfft…” Chu Qin couldn’t help laughing, quickly dragging Zhong Yibin into the lobby.
The house was not big, the design resembling a loft. The living room had a very high ceiling extending to four meters, and was decorated very delicately. The overall style was simple, but the details made the house warm, such as the fluffy cushions on the sofa and the rounded wood coffee table. It resembled Chu Qin – the outside appeared to be refined and rigid but the inside was full of warmth.
Zhong Yibin looked around curiously. After changing his slippers, he didn’t roam around randomly. Chu Qin looked at Zhong Yibin obediently sipping tea on the sofa, and felt that it was quite interesting.
Time seemed to have rewound to when they just met each other. That time, Chu Qin was still attending high school. It was convenient for him to pick up something along the way, so he invited Zhong Yibin in to his dormitory. Back then, this young master had also been like this, sitting very politely and not touching anything, only looking around in curiosity.
“Did you really forget everything?” Chu Qin rubbed Zhong Yibin’s head. There was an ugly patch of shaved hair on the side of his head because of the wound.
“I still remember you,” Zhong Yibin picked up the photo frame at the corner of the sofa. It was a picture of the two of them at the beach. They were wearing flower-patterned trousers and laughing especially stupidly.
Chu Qin watched him, his nose feeling slightly sore. Actually, he could tell that even though Zhong Yibin remembered him, he only remembered the person and not their interactions. That was why he was slightly cautious and not nesting into the sofa without concern for his posture, like how he would usually do.
But that wasn’t important. He forgot the entire world except for him. That was enough, they could start afresh.
Chu Qin took a deep breath and hauled him up, proceeding to meticulously explain the things in the house that he should not touch.
“This is a socket. Don’t touch it with wet hands, you’ll get shocked.”
“This is the kitchen. It’s a very dangerous place, don’t enter.”
“This is a water dispenser. Hot water can only be dispensed when the green light is lit up.”
“This is the bathroom…”
Treating him as an ignorant child that had no general knowledge, Chu Qin pointed out every dangerous item in the house so that he would not unwittingly injure himself. Zhong Yibin listened patiently to him without a trace of irritation.
Chu Qin painstakingly explained everything. By the time he was done, it was already 2pm in the afternoon. Slapping his head, he realized that they had not eaten and went into the kitchen.
After Chu Qin left, Zhong Yibin picked up the remote control and turned the TV on. He skillfully switched channels to Shengshi TV. He might have amnesia, but he wasn’t stupid. Common sense was still something he possessed. The Zhong family had never considered that he may have lost all his general knowledge, only blindly getting him to absorb information and finding strange women to trick him. Only Chu Qin would treat him like a child and teach him how to eat and drink.
Zhong Yibin was unexpectedly not angry with being treated like an idiot. Instead, an awkward worrywart like Chu Qin made gave him a sense of security.
The television was showing a replay of last night’s program. It happened to be Chu Qin’s variety show – Friendly Confusion.
The show was originally a food show, but it later morphed into a variety show and was now the highest rated variety show on Shengshi TV.
Chu Qin was absent this week so a star performer from another program, Qian Liang, was invited. Qian Liang was a veteran host that spoke with cold humor. The talk show he usually hosted was also very well received. However, the stage was originally Chu Qin’s so his presence was still slightly awkward.
“We welcome all to Friendly Confusion this weekend night. I am Chu Qin’s… rescue soldier Qian Liang!” Qian Liang’s lips moved very quickly. The sudden turn caused the audience to explode into laughter.
“Hello everyone, I am Chu Qin’s…partner Lin Xiaoxiao, hehehe!” Lin Xiaoxiao had fast reactions, quickly using similar phrasing for her sentence. At the same time, she unleashed her signature magical laughter, livening up the atmosphere.
Zhong Yibin curled his lips. The awkwardness was overflowing from the screen. He turned to see what Chu Qin was doing. The glass door was transparent, revealing the scene in the kitchen.
Chu Qin took out a wok and was getting ready to put it on the stove when a sudden swell of pain struck his ribs. His hands slipped, and the wok fell squarely onto the floor. The pain was so intense that he had to support his body using the kitchen stove.
“Chu Qin!” Zhong Yibin flung the remote control and rushed to the kitchen.