Chapter 23

Chapter 23

Lin Se had recently been delving into psychology texts, largely driven by a desire to understand Bo Chengyan.

A harsh family environment could lead to distorted psychological development in children, typically manifesting in two extremes: a continuous descent into darkness, or a phoenix-like rebirth.

Yet, the relationship between these two was subtly intertwined, truly embodying the saying, "Genius on the left, madness on the right."

Exceptional individuals emerging from dysfunctional families often harbored extreme thoughts or persistent dark tendencies.

The Bo family was certainly not impoverished, but when it came to chaotic family dynamics… no one could rival them.

The tabloids never ceased their coverage.

Lin Se was merely curious about the causes of abnormally high thresholds. Generally, people only had one excessively high threshold.

For example, an excessively high sex threshold meant an inability to achieve pleasure, even after hours, leading to a loss of libido or sadistic tendencies.

An excessively high pain threshold, however, indicated a lowered sensitivity to pain, often going unnoticed, which over time could develop into a psychological condition like algolagnia.

……

Lin Se belatedly wondered if Bo Chengyan had suppressed himself too much. Outwardly composed, yet inwardly, his negative emotions had never dissipated.

Seeing someone so clean and pure…

Had he become addicted?

He frowned. If a person remained emotionally detached and indifferent for a long time, it was likely due to an excessively high dopamine threshold.

Humans survived by pursuing "happiness." If dopamine remained elusive for too long, they would spiral into self-destruction.

Lin Se absently spun his pen, thinking of Qi Jing, who was like a porcelain doll.

So pure.

Yes, that was his first impression upon meeting him.

This child was pure.

If he had seen such a child in the Daliang Mountains, he would have helped him too.

But a normal person… wouldn’t have taken him in so hastily.

There were too many variables at play—it wasn’t just about money.

Bo Chengyan hadn’t resorted to violence in years, yet he had lost control so completely over those adoptive parents, as if the careful equilibrium he maintained had been violently upended.

Was he treating Qi Jing as medicine?

Just as this thought crossed his mind, his phone rang. Lin Se picked it up immediately.

"D-Doctor? H-He told me to call you… C-Can you come over?"

"Sh-Sheng Yun Hotel."

Qi Jing’s voice was quiet and halting—clearly panicked.

But this was Bo Chengyan’s phone.

As Lin Se was about to ask for details, another voice came through the phone, gentle, as if instructing.

—*Tell him to bring sedatives.*

"S-Sedatives."

—*Dr. Lin. Xiao Jing, his surname is Lin. Remember to address him properly.*

"Dr. Lin…"

Lin Se’s body moved faster than his mind. He swiftly prepared the injection kit, keeping his voice steady, "Qi Jing, don’t hang up."

"Was he drugged?"

"What about you? Are you okay?"

The line went dead—whether they’d heard his final question or not was unclear.

Lin Se: "..."

*That bastard.*

*

Honestly, incidents like this were nothing new. In earlier years, such things—drugging—were even more common.

*"CEO of Lingyue Group rapes innocent girl/boy."* If such a headline broke, stocks would plummet.

Go to the emergency room?

Impossible. Competitors had already had eyes everywhere. No matter which hospital they went to, they’d be photographed, and the "victim" would collaborate in a carefully orchestrated takedown.

It wouldn’t kill you, but it would make your life hell.

After getting into the car, Lin Se’s mood was extremely conflicted—because he remembered the earlier years.

At first, competitors sent conventional women. After repeated failures, they became more brazen, sending older women, underage girls…

And eventually, even an expectant mother.

Back then, Lin Se had only been treating Bo Chengyan for debilitating headaches, unaware of how someone so successful could be as gloomy as someone twice his age.

Trust had been built gradually, starting with a psych eval. Bo Chengyan had simply asked, "Why don’t I feel pain?"

His thresholds were abnormal.

Genuine competitors wouldn’t stoop to such tactics—or at least, not openly. These things were usually done by lackeys.

Actions that harmed others for personal gain were best carried out in the shadows.

After getting out of the car, Lin Se immediately bolted for the elevator as instructed by the text message.

But as he watched the floor numbers climb higher…

"..."

The young man made the sign of the cross. *Amen.*

*

Two hours earlier—

Qi Jing’s wrist was suddenly pulled, and in an instant, he was lifted off the ground, effortlessly carried away by Bo Chengyan.

The heavy smell of alcohol hung in the air.

Qi Jing's body temperature continued to rise, his emotions a mess, too overwhelmed to speak clearly as he stammered, "I..."

Where did 996 go?

Why hadn’t it returned yet?

Bo Chengyan gripped the back of his neck, tilting Qi Jing’s chin up with one hand, forcing his face up with a finger.

His eyes glistened as he looked up.

"Not behaving."

996 couldn’t return at all. Faced with the mess of the thirtieth floor, it was completely lost. This was supposed to be a perfect romantic setup—romantic and destined.

Xiao Cui, as an NPC, had colluded with the rival company’s CEO, aiming to drug Bo Chengyan. But thinking too highly of himself, he fumbled while opening a bottle, spilling wine on Qi Jing’s clothes—giving the target a chance to notice him.

Yet, the plan backfired. Xiao Cui’s attempt to make a pass at Bo Chengyan failed, and he was instead forced to drink. Bitter, seeing the colleague he despised steal the spotlight, spite grew in him. He handed over the drugged wine.

*Let him play the saint! Let him look down on me!*

*Let’s see how smug he is when some stranger picks him up off the streets!*

Ruan Hang drank it.

996’s arrangement here was quite clever.

Because Ruan Hang was inherently stubborn, he had already reached his limit but still said with unyielding dignity, "This one honors you."

This open resistance actually earned Bo Chengyan’s respect. Capitalists didn’t always enjoy tormenting people.

There was no need.

Besides, this man had even given Qi Jing his clothes.

Bo Chengyan drank.

At this point, 996’s mission was complete. The bottom protagonist had consumed the drugged drink, the top protagonist had also drunk the spiked wine, and the side character had fulfilled their role in moving things along.

Over.

Now they just needed a bed.

But then something went wrong.

Why did both of them rush off?

Hold on, wasn’t this meant to be instant attraction?

996 grew increasingly worried that the protagonists might actually get taken advantage of by strangers—that would truly derail the plot. It floated around, desperately scanning for information.

So much so that it forgot about Bo Chengyan, the top protagonist.

And Qi Jing, who obediently stayed in the dressing room.

...

The wristband was GPS-tracked.

Bo Chengyan didn’t have much trouble locating Qi Jing—even finding the door locked from the inside. His pulse quickened, and he was nearly ready to break the door down.

Then the boy emerged by himself.

His anger evaporated instantly.

*That’s my boy.*

He was used to lifting Qi Jing into his arms—after all, the boy was slender, fragile as a porcelain doll.

A living doll with real tears and smiles.

His.

Qi Jing was mumbling something incoherently.

Bo Chengyan frowned, in no mood to listen.

He took him to a hotel.

Even after entering the room, he didn’t let go, simply sitting on the edge of the bed, gazing down at the boy in his arms.

Bo Chengyan ordered tonelessly, "Take off your clothes."

Qi Jing seemed frightened, his face pale as he stammered, "N-no… I can’t."

One was hazy from fever, the other also feeling unwell.

Bo Chengyan placed him on the bed with one hand, shrugging off his own jacket. The boy looked up at him, pure panic written on his face.

Just as Qi Jing tried to bolt, his waist was pulled back.

The cheap, oversized shirt was undone bit by bit, revealing large patches of skin.

Then, he wrapped his suit jacket around him.

"..."

Qi Jing’s chin was still being held, his eyes shining with unshed tears, a look of utter confusion on his face.

Bo Chengyan bent down and lifted him again. The hotel bed was dirty—like someone with OCD, he pulled the boy into his lap instead, meticulously checking Qi Jing’s arms.

His skin was covered in angry red welts.

He was allergic.

That cheap fabric.

Qi Jing had never worn outside clothes at home—his skin was spoiled sensitive, bruising if you so much as breathed on him.

Let alone this assembly-line factory shirt.

"What were you hiding for?"

Bo Chengyan even found time to tease, closing the distance slightly to study every inch of Qi Jing’s face.

As if looking at his own property.

"N-nothing..."

A pair of hands held Qi Jing by the nape, trapping him in place. His cheeks burned, his mind a jumble.

"Weren’t you the one who kept saying you liked me?"

"Now you’re scared?"

All those bold confessions he’d made so freely before now made the boy flush crimson, his fever flaring hotter.

The too-big suit jacket swallowed his frame as Qi Jing lowered his gaze to his wrist.

He didn’t even know he was allergic...

His mind went blank for a second.

"I do... like you."

No longer acting the part of a pampered songbird, Qi Jing spoke his feelings plainly.

But there was no response.

Huh?

The boy tilted his head to look up, only to see Bao Chengyan spacing out, responding softly, "Hmm?"

The metallic tang of blood hit the air.

Drip—

Qi Jing’s gaze dropped in alarm and saw blood dripping from Bao Chengyan’s palm.

Bao Chengyan followed his stare and muttered, dazed,

"Oh? Bleeding..."

Bao Chengyan hauled him closer by the waist, as if finally recalling something, and said gently, "Xiao Jing, get my phone."

Qi Jing was speechless, his hands trembling slightly, but he managed to retrieve it from the pocket—though it was locked.

Bao Chengyan: "The day you first came over."

The boy’s eyes went round.

"Don’t remember?"

Bao Chengyan gave a soft laugh. "June 28th."

Qi Jing lowered his head to input the password, unlocking it.

"Call them..."

The older man coached him patiently, his breathing uneven. As Qi Jing bowed his head, the nape of his neck was exposed—pale skin flushed pink.

From the friction.

Even through the haze, Bao Chengyan still instructed him step by step, "Go ahead, call."

Until Lin Se’s voice came through—"Qi Jing, don’t hang up."

Bao Chengyan frowned and hung up irritably, texting their location with one hand. To anyone looking, he was perfectly calm.

Qi Jing sat on his lap, his waist locked in place without protest, his heart hammering.

[But it was an aphrodisiac...]

[In movies, don’t they always...]

[Why no reaction?]

The boy frowned, confused.

A quiet laugh sounded above him.

Before Qi Jing could speak, fingers closed around his throat like a bird’s fragile neck.

"What exactly have you been learning, Xiao Jing?"

His voice was deceptively even.

Their breaths gradually intertwined. Under the loose suit jacket, where the man’s hands touched, his skin burned. Qi Jing felt oddly... different.

He squeezed his thighs together.

"You’re not gonna kiss me?" the boy asked, tilting his head up.

"No."

Their foreheads bumped lightly.

Bao Chengyan just sighed softly, "Why didn’t you tell me you had a fever?"

Then he drew back.

He backed off!

Frustration surged through Qi Jing—why wouldn’t he kiss him?

Chaotic emotions seemed to flood in all at once. Was he really that immature?

But he was already an adult.

Gritting his teeth, the boy gathered his nerve, and tugged at the man’s sleeve, lifting his head to—

Just then.

Lin Se rushed out of the elevator, 996 exhausted and slumped on the NPC’s head, when the hotel door burst open.