Chapter 61: Support

Silence.

Dead silence.

In that stillness, someone quietly took out their phone to search for what an entire king oyster mushroom looked like.

Ji, the King Oyster Mushroom, was utterly stunned on the spot.

Shen Hongyuan was also taken aback.

This... the direction of this frenzy... How is it so unconventional?

The youth within the door continues to radiate charm.

His insults left Gu Ningqi's face deathly pale. Then, he pointed at an elderly man beside him, "What's wrong with him being in a wheelchair?"

"He'd outshine all of you standing on two legs with his wheelchair."

"An entire night passed, and I'll have to take a day off tomorrow."

"..."

Outside the door.

The man in the wheelchair took a deep breath.

Then he exhaled slowly.

His chest rose and fell prominently.

In the end, he couldn't resist the urge, lifting his broad palm to cover his face entirely.

He pressed the bones of his fingers against his forehead.

Yet, the pale skin behind his ear gradually turned red, inch by inch.

It was unclear whether it was from anger or frustration.

A collective gaze, wide-eyed and unblinking, was fixated upon him.

It was as if they were pondering with their eyes how someone in a wheelchair could torment another to the point of being unable to get out of bed the following day.

Even Manager Chen couldn't help but cast an astonished look at Ji Min.

The most flustered one was Shen Hongyuan.

Standing beside Ji Min, all the words he had prepared vanished down his throat.

Has Lu Ran gone mad?

Yes, he has.

But the outcome...

Why was it different from what he had anticipated?

His intention was to expose Lu Ran's true nature to Ji Min.

He then felt disgusted and wanted to distance himself!

But now...

Which man would dislike being praised for his prowess?

Shen Hongyuan's lips moved, but he had no idea what to say.

In the end, he forced out, "Haha! Haha! President Ji, you young ones are truly formidable."

Ji Min: "..."

The moment he put down his hand, their eyes met.

He suddenly recalled that, although rather uninvolved, the man before him was indeed Lu Ran's father.

Upon pondering the words that had just come out of the child's mouth, Ji Min experienced an unprecedented discomfort and awkwardness.

He felt like a rogue who had been caught red-handed while flirting with someone else's son.

Yet, he hadn't done anything at all.

Inside the room, Lu Ran was still speaking.

Praising him earnestly about how remarkable he was.

If possible, Ji Min would have rushed in and knelt before him at this moment.

Crying out, "Ancestor, please stop talking!"

But now, it seemed even maneuvering the wheelchair inside with a remote control was a challenging task.

"Ahem..." Ji Min cleared his throat.

He wanted to explain that it was just a child's nonsense.

But as the words reached his lips, he felt that doing so would make him appear even more irresponsible.

Eventually, he gave up and leaned back in his chair, pretending not to have heard a thing.

Shen Hongyuan saw this and sighed inwardly.

As expected!

Just look at how attractive this man is!

It was unknown how Ji Min felt about it, but inside the chess room, Lu Ran, who was engaged to him, kept praising another man while dismissing Shen Hongyuan with a mere "golden needle mushroom."

Gu Ningqi couldn't bear it anymore.

"Lu Ran, do you have any shame?!"

Don't even mention those three words, "golden needle mushroom," to him!

His face darkened to the color of a pot's bottom, and he abruptly stood up, reaching out to seize Lu Ran's wrist.

It seemed like he was about to make a move.

Ji Min's expression turned grim.

He maneuvered his wheelchair, fully pushing open the door to the card room.

The appearance of this hefty black electric wheelchair brought another silence to the room.

This time, it wasn't a silence born of surprise.

But one born of fear.

Gossip could only be whispered behind backs.

Upon Ji Min's arrival, even the most talkative individuals present had their indignation fade away from their faces.

Gu Ningqi was also taken aback.

His eyes met Ji Min's dark, intense gaze, and he subconsciously loosened his grip.

"Lu Ran, come here," Ji Min said calmly.

His tone was not harsh, it could even be considered gentle.

Yet, Gu Ningqi instantly released his hold and took a hesitant step back.

The youth's eyes brightened upon catching sight of Ji Min.

Swiftly, he took refuge behind his wheelchair.

Ji Min scanned the room, his gaze lingering momentarily on Gu Ningqi.

He once again extended his hand towards the youth behind him.

"What are you doing?" Lu Ran, perplexed, leaned in to ask.

"Hand," the man said succinctly.

After some contemplation, Lu Ran realized that he wanted to see the hand that had just been caught.

"It doesn't hurt," Lu Ran said.

Ji Min cast him a glance but didn't withdraw his hand.

The young man obediently held out his hand.

Not a hint of the arrogance he displayed earlier when he "debated with the scholars" and "argued forcefully with reason."

Within and without the chess and card room, all present beheld the man's pallid finger bones cradling the youth's slender wrist.

With the utmost care, as if inspecting a fragile work of art, he frowned and examined it meticulously.

He unfastened his obsidian cufflinks and rolled up the sleeves of his silk shirt, ensuring that there were no telltale bruises on his alabaster skin beneath.

Only then did he delicately wrap that wrist.

His finger gently smoothed the wrinkles on the cuff before finally releasing it.

He didn't say much.

Instead, he quietly looked at Gu Ningqi and said, "I'll give Grandpa Gu my well-considered advice regarding your succession assessment."

With just this one sentence, Gu Ningqi's face turned deathly pale.

Upon hearing the hidden meaning in those words, everyone was astounded.

Does this Gu Ningqi, who claims to be the successor of the Gu family, actually haven't passed the qualification exam yet?

Could it be that Ji Min has a say in the succession trial of the Gu family?

I paid no attention to the others in the room.

Ji Min leaned back in his chair, releasing his grip on the wheelchair's remote control.

He cast a glance over his shoulder at the youth behind him and said, "Let's go out for a stroll."

Understanding the situation instantly, Lu Ran pushed the wheelchair outwards.

They exited the card room.

In the grand hall outside, the wandering guests were taken aback upon seeing someone pushing Ji Min's wheelchair out.

Everyone knew that the head of the Ji family had an eccentric temperament and detested others touching his wheelchair the most.

Upon closer inspection, they realized it was the very same young master Shen who had just been acknowledged as a member of the family.

This came as another shock to the crowd.

Some approached them spontaneously.

Housekeeper Chen, aware of Ji Min's dislike for socializing, took the initiative to greet them.

Ji Min completely disregarded the gazes from onlookers.

His mind was currently preoccupied with the suggestive words he had just heard.

What a scene of flying Enoki and King Oyster mushrooms everywhere.

For a while, he might not want to see these two ingredients on his dinner table at all.

Suppressing the warmth that was rising behind his ear.

Ji Min forcibly suppressed the urge to rest his forehead in his hand, gently turning his gaze sidelong to take in the youth behind him.

He expected to witness the child's utterly embarrassed and awkward appearance...

Unpredictably, Lu Ran strolled along while humming a tune, gently propelling him forward.

His demeanor gave no hint of the explosive event that had just transpired or the nonsense he'd spouted earlier.

Even Ji Min found himself perplexed by this attitude.

He started to reflect on himself.

Could it be that he had overreacted?

In that moment, Ji Min recalled the image of Lu Ran calmly rinsing a cup in toilet water. Suddenly, he found Lu Ran's current reaction entirely reasonable. Even if one day this young man were to turn the world upside down, his response would likely be no different. Lu Ran truly felt nothing. On the contrary, he was thrilled. He never imagined that his hard work and dedication outside would catch the eye of his boss. Wonder if Ji Min would show mercy and promote him, perhaps even give him a raise. Since they were already "former boyfriends," a promotion might not be necessary. But a raise? That would be welcome!

Ji Min lifted his gaze to meet the child's sparkling eyes.

Once again, the phrase "he's bigger than a king oyster mushroom" flashed through his mind.

Suddenly, he felt a bit uneasy.

He cleared his throat softly and asked in a cold, low voice, "Why are you looking at me?"

"Boss, don't you have something to say?" Lu Ran tried to hint subtly.

What could he possibly say?

One would usually choose a private place to confront someone about a wrongdoing.

With so many people around, what could he say?

Ji Min gently pressed his forehead and said, "Push your wheelchair properly."

He pointed towards the corridor, indicating, "Go over there."

Lu Ran gazed at him for a moment and realized that he genuinely had no intention of giving him a raise. He inwardly cursed the skinflint Zhou Bapi. His enthusiasm for work plummeted, and he slumped on the backrest of the wheelchair, pushing it half-heartedly. Ji Min: "..." "Are you a tortoise?" he asked. "This wheelchair is too heavy," Lu Ran grumbled. Ji Min consoled himself not to get angry. He would confront him about his manners when they were alone. He would teach this kid a lesson about how to speak properly. However, before they even reached the corridor, someone blocked their path again.

It was Shen Hongyuan who accompanied Madam Shen.

Both of them wore grim expressions.

One had put in immense effort into a plan that had fallen flat and still had to maintain the facade of a loving father.

The other had been subjected to judgmental gazes from the ladies at the party for quite some time and was now unsure how to face Lu Ran.

In the end, Shen Hongyuan forced a smile and said to Ji Min, "I need to take Xiao Ran over."

After all, the banquet had been organized to introduce Lu Ran.

Now that all the guests had arrived, they had to go through the formalities and let the main character make an appearance.

Lu Ran still held onto the support handle at the back of Ji Min's wheelchair.

He looked up at the crowded ballroom, then down at Ji Min.

The man in the wheelchair was gloomy and quiet.

Despite his evident physical impairment, he strangely conveyed an indescribable sense of reassurance.

"Should I head over then?" Lu Ran inquired.

"Go ahead," Ji Min nodded at him.

Following Shen Hongyuan and Madam Shen, Lu Ran walked out of the corridor and into the main banquet hall.

He turned back for one last glance.

Ji Min remained in his wheelchair, his dark eyes silently urging him on.

Together with Shen Hongyuan and Madam Shen, Lu Ran ascended to the circular platform at the center of the event.

Shen Hongyuan took the microphone and began with a formal speech.

He expressed his grief over the loss of his youngest son and the joy he felt upon finding him again.

Lu Ran, however, had no patience for listening.

He reached out and seized the microphone from Shen Hongyuan's grasp.

Then, his gaze swept across the stunned audience below the stage.

His eyes passed over those who had attempted to provoke him earlier but were rebuffed by him.

Next, he looked at Gu Ningqi, whose face was ashen, yet he managed to stay standing.

He also observed Shen Xingran beside him, whose smile had frozen stiffly on his face.

And then there was Shen Hongyuan, who was forcing himself to project the appearance of a doting father beside him.

Not to mention, Madam Shen, who was clearly uneasy.

Standing on the stage, Lu Ran suddenly broke into a smile.

He said, "I am Lu Ran, also Shen Xingran. I'm back."

As he spoke these words, the expressions of some people shifted dramatically once more.

But Lu Ran had already tossed the microphone aside, leaped off the platform, and headed toward the corridor.

Ji Min's wheelchair was already at the end of the corridor.

He was stationary at the edge of the main hall, watching Lu Ran from afar.

Lu Ran strolled over and slowly pushed Ji Min back into the corridor.

The corridor was long.

After pushing for a while, Lu Ran suddenly felt tired.

So he stopped, shaking his arms in complaint. "This wheelchair is really heavy to push."

For once, Ji Min didn't retort.

He remained silent, sitting in his wheelchair and quietly observing the young man before him.

At the other end of the corridor was the grand hall.

Laughter and merriment from the grand hall continuously echoed, intertwined with the voices of Shen Hongyuan and Madam Shen conversing with their guests.

Occasionally, Lu Ran's name would be mentioned.

These sounds traveled through the long and serene corridor, gradually fading and softening.

Like distorted background music in a film, they served to enhance the tranquility within the hallway.

The youth clad in exquisitely tailored finery lowered his arm, settling into stillness.

He unfastened the leash of the little dog, allowing it to play in the backyard.

Without being particular, he casually grabbed a piece of paper to cushion himself and sat on the lid of the trash can by the corridor window.

The lights in the corridor were not particularly bright.

A faint, dusky light cascaded down, stealing the luster from the golden glitter he had meticulously sprinkled in his hair.

Amidst the distant greetings between Shen Hongyuan and Madam Shen.

He casually sat on the lid of the trash can, lost in thought as he gazed at the backyard pond.

The pond was empty of water.

This was to prevent any mischievous children among the guests from accidentally falling in.

Yet, it was beautifully adorned with a circle of balloons and colorful lights around its edge.

The young man gazed silently at the pond, lost in thought.

After a while, the man's deliberately softened voice echoed, "Why aren't you happy?"

His cold tone reverberated gently through the hallway, inexplicably imbuing it with a tender ambiance.

Lu Ran's eyelashes fluttered slightly.

"I'm not," he said. "Since the person is back, what's there to be angry about?"

Yet, for some inexplicable reason, he felt weary.

Ji Min gazed at the child before him.

Just moments ago, he had been engaging in a verbal duel at the banquet, each word of his capable of slaying an opponent.

His adversaries had been left with ashen faces.

It was a decisive victory, without a doubt.

Yet, in the next moment, he seemed to have had all his candies stolen, sitting quietly in a corner, alone.

Entirely engulfed in a sense of loss.

Ji Min had originally intended to pull the person over and demand an explanation.

Gazing at the young man's appearance, he thought better of it. It was just a minor matter; he could wait and discuss it later.

Big Yellow dashed back from the backyard with rapid footsteps.

Lu Ran leaped down from the trash can, squatted down, pulled out a puppet, and used it to wipe the puppy's paws.

It seemed he had managed to comfort himself in an instant.

He looked up at Ji Min with a smile, "Actually, this is a good thing. I only managed to do it by borrowing someone else's authority!"

After saying that, he lowered his head again to look at the puppy in front of him, gently pinched its paw pads, then corrected himself,

"Oh, Big Yellow also took advantage of my presence."

He spoke these words openly and candidly.

A warm ripple emerged in Ji Min's cold and tranquil eyes.

Seeing the child about to play with the puppy, he checked the time and said, "Come on, let's go somewhere with me."