The Little Deaf Man Decided to be Spoiled

69

The shout sent shockwaves throughout the ship.
By the time Gu Xiuyi arrived with his men, Ji Ruan was already standing upright, gently leaning against the railing. Hearing the footsteps, he turned his head to glance in Gu Xiuyi's direction.
His hair was tousled, and the night wind had reddened the rims of his eyes and the tip of his nose, yet his gaze remained calm.
Gu Xiuyi quickly approached and draped his coat over Ji Ruan. Despite being a summer evening and only a few minutes exposed, Ji Ruan felt as cold as ice, his cheeks and the sides of his neck chilling to the touch.
His lips were chapped; he licked them subconsciously before speaking with a hoarse voice, "I..."
Gu Xiuyi pulled him close into an embrace, "It's okay, you don't need to say anything."
Heaven knows how fearful he was when he heard someone had fallen overboard and then couldn't find Ji Ruan; it felt as though his blood had momentarily frozen.
Ji Ruan wasn't a good swimmer. He hadn't managed to learn the last time they tried, even cramping up. With his hearing issues, he couldn't hear underwater, and without someone holding him, he would panic.
Strangely, it seemed the most frightened now was Gu Xiuyi himself.
The mere thought made his heart race and his hairs stand on end.
He just held Ji Ruan for a while, feeling his shallow breaths against his ear, ensuring he was safe and sound in his arms. Only then did his heart slowly settle, allowing reason to regain control.
"It's alright; let's go back." He gently touched Ji Ruan's face and carried him to a sofa in the lobby, wrapping him in a blanket.
The live broadcast had long been cut, and the media was barred from filming. The guards were dispersing the crowd in batches. Right after handling the reporters, and with only half of the guests escorted out, Lin Qing, drenched from head to toe, was dragged into the lobby, coughing up water.
The remaining guests, initially confused, now hesitated to leave, watching from a distance.
Lin Qing was still in shock, crying on the floor, his face a messy mix of river water, tears, and saliva-utterly disheveled.
Fang Lan covered her nose with disdain, "Why even bring such a person in? Just leave him somewhere for the night; he can leave tomorrow."
The crew member who had rescued Lin Qing quickly explained, "When I pulled him up, he kept shouting that he was pushed."
He pointed to Ji Ruan and said, "And I did indeed see that gentleman peeking over the railing. I didn't witness the whole event, so I can't conclude anything."
Ji Ruan, holding a cup of warm water, looked up at Gu Xiuyi, calmly stating, "I didn't."
Gu Xiuyi patted his hand soothingly, "I know-Song Ling, fetch the surveillance footage."
Song Ling nodded, "Someone's already on it."
Lin Qing, who had been laying on the floor, finally sat up. His bloodshot eyes locked onto Ji Ruan, "Fine, check the footage. Just don't play innocent."
Li Sui'an sighed, "Honestly, we all think he had no reason to push you deliberately. You're not that significant of a character. What do you think?"
"Did I say he did it on purpose?" Lin Qing shot back with a sharp glance, "We had an argument, and both of us stumbled. The difference is he landed safely on the ground, while I nearly lost my life being pushed into the water. Isn't accidental harm still harm?"
Hearing that both had fallen, a sharp pang hit Gu Xiuyi at his temples. He quickly grabbed Ji Ruan's hand to inspect, "Where did you get hurt?"
Ji Ruan, dressed in long sleeves and pants, was unlikely to be hurt from a mere fall. He had just been momentarily disoriented and lost his hearing aid when he hit his head.
Pressing down Gu Xiuyi's hand, Ji Ruan shook his head, "I'm fine."
Not taking it lightly, Gu Xiuyi thoroughly checked Ji Ruan from head to toe, ensuring no injuries or bleeding before letting out a sigh of relief.
One of the crew members spoke up, looking somewhat perplexed, "I thought the same. If he was truly pushed, he deserves an explanation. But if he's falsely accusing someone, we can't let him spread lies. We need to clear the innocent party's name. That's why I brought him here."
The surveillance footage was quickly retrieved, and Song Ling handed his phone to Gu Xiuyi, "Take a look."
Gu Xiuyi moved the phone aside, settling Ji Ruan onto his lap, and said calmly, "Play it on the big screen."
Only upon hearing this did Lin Qing sense something amiss. But before he could process it, his enraged face appeared on the large screen.
The footage displayed how he confronted Ji Ruan, how he aggressively cornered him when Ji Ruan tried to back away, how he crazily tangled with Ji Ruan, causing Ji Ruan to fall and himself to lose balance and tumble over the railing. It was all clearly shown.
The high-definition camera captured every expression in perfect clarity: his contorted rage, jealousy, frenzy, and resentment, all laid bare for everyone present to see.
"......"
The truth was crystal clear, leaving no room for excuses.
The room fell into a heavy silence.
Lin Qing seemed to slip into a strange calm following his frenzy, sitting limply on the ground.
Watching the footage, Gu Xiuyi felt as if every fall of Ji Ruan was a cut to his heart.