AD Chapter 46
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When Su Ning woke up, he found himself tied up with ropes and thrown to the ground. He struggled for a while, but it was completely useless. He was deeply shocked and couldn’t understand why Chu Zichen would do something like this.
At this point, Su Ning had realized that there must have been something wrong with the glass of water Chu Zichen gave him — he must have drugged it.
But why kidnap him?
Could it be that his hatred toward him ran that deep? Was Chu Zichen blaming him for being dumped by Gu Lingfeng and now wanted revenge?
In an instant, Su Ning was frightened by the terrifying possibilities his own imagination conjured up. From the moment he saw Chu Zichen today, he had sensed something was off. Chu Zichen’s state reminded him of something — he’d seen this before. Most of Gu Lingfeng’s ex-lovers had parted ways peacefully, but a few couldn’t accept the breakup. They cried, clung on, and refused to let go, acting hysterical — just like how Chu Zichen looked now.
And what a love-crazed person might do... no one could predict.
Su Ning looked around and realized he was locked in a bathroom, likely still inside Chu Zichen’s apartment. His hands and feet were bound together, making it impossible for him to stand. He scooted over to the door and tried ramming it with his body, but the bathroom door was locked from the outside and wouldn’t budge. As he continued to crash into it, he shouted loudly:
“Chu Zichen! What are you trying to do? This is illegal detention!”
The door was suddenly pushed open from the outside. Chu Zichen walked in with a gloomy expression, holding his phone.
Su Ning immediately became alert and retreated. He looked up at Chu Zichen, swallowed nervously, and tried to persuade him gently:
“Chu Zichen, don’t do anything stupid. If you let me go now, I’ll pretend none of this ever happened. Kidnapping is a crime — you don’t want to go to jail, do you?”
“He doesn’t care about you at all! You’re just like me! You mean nothing to him!” Chu Zichen suddenly exploded, shouting at Su Ning. He paced back and forth in the narrow bathroom like a trapped beast, eyes bloodshot — his condition was clearly worse than when Su Ning had seen him earlier.
Seeing how close he was to a breakdown, Su Ning didn’t dare provoke him further and instead followed his words carefully:
“Who doesn’t care about me?”
“Gu Lingfeng!” Chu Zichen roared, his expression twisting into pain and sorrow. “I just wanted to see him one more time. Why is he so heartless? I loved him. I was never with him for resources or money. I truly loved him. Why couldn’t he see that? Why did he treat me like all the others?!”
Chu Zichen’s voice cracked with heartbreak as he vented his fury and unwillingness. Suddenly, he turned and grabbed Su Ning by the collar.
“Didn’t he care about you? He dumped me because of you. Then why isn’t he reacting at all after hearing you’ve been kidnapped? He’s still out dining with someone else!”
Su Ning swallowed hard and said cautiously, “I’m just his assistant. Kidnapping me won’t help anything.”
Chu Zichen flung Su Ning aside violently. Su Ning slammed into the wall, and a loud buzzing filled his head. For a moment, he could see and hear nothing.
“Just an assistant? Still trying to lie to me? Everyone knows you’re one of Gu Lingfeng’s lovers — the one who’s been with him the longest! Su Ning, this is all your fault! You stole everything that should’ve been mine! If it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t be like this!”
Dizzy and disoriented from the collision, Su Ning took a while to regain his senses. Hearing Chu Zichen’s accusations, he felt utterly wronged. He used his bound hands to push himself upright and looked up at Chu Zichen with a bitter smile.
“Like you said, I’m basically a live-in housekeeper Gu always keeps around to take care of his meals and daily life. If I really were one of his lovers, why would he keep getting new ones all the time?”
Chu Zichen’s expression gradually softened, as if he was starting to believe him. Su Ning was encouraged and prepared to say more.
“No, that’s not right!” Chu Zichen suddenly snapped, interrupting Su Ning. “If Gu Lingfeng had so many lovers, why has he only ever had one assistant? You’re special to him!”
Su Ning opened his mouth but couldn’t come up with a rebuttal. Normally, hearing someone say he was special to Gu Lingfeng might have made him feel a bit happy. But now? It was a death sentence — Chu Zichen was clearly planning to eliminate whoever was “special.”
“I don’t believe he’ll just watch you die!” Chu Zichen said and pulled Su Ning’s phone from his pocket. He called Gu Lingfeng and turned on speaker mode.
“I love him. I’ll prove it to him. I love him more than anyone else ever could,” Chu Zichen murmured, his voice unhinged.
Su Ning fell silent, feeling complex emotions swirl within him. Chu Zichen had clearly lost his mind, caught in a delusion where reason no longer had a place.
The phone rang several times before someone picked up. Chu Zichen clenched the phone tightly like a bowstring about to snap.
“Gu Lingfeng! Su Ning is with me. If you don’t want him to get hurt, come here right now!” he demanded, voice tense with rage.
There was no reply. Su Ning held his breath, unsure of what he was hoping for.
The bathroom was filled only with the sound of Chu Zichen’s heavy breathing. When Gu Lingfeng still didn’t respond, Chu Zichen grew more agitated.
“Gu Lingfeng! Don’t think I won’t do it! If you don’t come, you’ll never see your assistant again!”
Still no reply. The call remained connected, but Gu Lingfeng said nothing. Just as Chu Zichen was about to shout another threat, a clear and relaxed male voice came from the phone:
“Lingfeng, who’s that? This dish needs to be eaten while it’s hot — it won’t taste good cold.”
Gu Lingfeng seemed to respond with a soft “mm,” and then promptly hung up the call.
Chu Zichen stared blankly at the phone in his hand, standing motionless like his soul had left his body. After a long pause, he suddenly burst into hysterical laughter. He laughed so hard his whole body trembled, as if he were having a seizure, until tears streamed down his face.
“It’s not you. And it’s not me. To Gu Lingfeng, we’re the same — both insignificant,” Chu Zichen knelt down in front of Su Ning, his expression hollow and desolate, like a man whose heart had completely died. “Su Ning, we both lost. Neither of us won.”
Su Ning wanted to say, I told you that already.
He even wanted to smile like it didn’t matter.
But he found he couldn’t.
That voice —
Su Ning had recognized it.
It was Shen Yao.
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