Chapter 55: Ah Yes, Yes, Yes, Yes, He Is My Boyfriend
The next day, after leaving Shuizhen, Shou Jiaxun really did immediately take Liang Bo to a nearby telecommunications hub to buy a new phone and set up a new SIM card for a family number on the spot.
But after he transferred Uncle Guo and his “waiting to be claimed” Alpha father’s numbers over… he felt lost.
Little President Shou asked himself, To carry an extra phone just for two numbers, was I being too hasty?
Assistant Liang nodded silently beside him. “The key point is… if President Guo looks for you, there’s a high probability it’s about company business.”
“Tsk…” Shou Jiaxun’s expression showed his dilemma, his mood complex. “But I’ve already bought it.”
Liang Bo suggested, “How about you add me in too? I promise not to call your private number for official business.”
“Fine… I guess.” President Shou chuckled sheepishly, feeling like he had done something rather stupid.
Nevertheless, he used the new phone on the road to register a brand new Feixin account, and after a bit of hesitation, added Guo Duoyu in as well.
He diligently sent a message to the mere four contacts on the account: I’m Shou Jiaxun, new number, please save it. In the future, if you can’t reach my original number, you can call this one to contact me.
Uncle Guo quickly replied: Why change numbers when everything is fine?
Guo Duoyu also asked: What new trend is this following?
Then the three of them created a new group chat on Shou Jiaxun’s new number. Shou Jiaxun solemnly explained, “This is an emergency contact number, in case the original number runs out of credit…”
Liang Bo looked up at Little President Shou, thinking to himself, What kind of crappy excuse is that? Might as well just say it’s a family number.
Guo Duoyu’s hands were particularly restless. He immediately added Shou Jiaxun’s original number to the new group, and then added Shou’s new number to the old group.
From then on, whenever someone said a word in the group chat, the phones on Shou Jiaxun’s body would vibrate twice.
As for Shou Jiaxun’s true family—his biological Alpha father—he hadn’t accepted the “contact addition request” even by the time Shou Jiaxun boarded his flight in Shuizhen.
Liang Bo suggested, “How about you give him a call to remind him? He might be busy and hasn’t seen it.”
Shou Jiaxun nodded and used the new phone to call his dad.
However, the line was cut off after just one ring.
Shou Jiaxun was dumbfounded, suddenly feeling a bit worried. “Could something have happened to him again? Why isn’t he answering my call?”
Liang Bo helped him deduce, “Maybe he doesn’t know the new number is you.”
Shou Jiaxun immediately switched to his old phone to dial, but surprisingly, it was hung up in one second again.
This time, both of them were genuinely a bit startled.
Because Shou Jiaxun’s dad knew he was coming over today for a father-son reunion. Refusing to answer the phone at this time meant either he didn’t want to acknowledge him, or something really had happened.
The point was, he had no reason not to acknowledge Shou Jiaxun. Shou Jiaxun had paid off his debts, hadn’t asked him to pay the money back, and hadn’t blamed him for irresponsibly abandoning him back then.
There wasn’t a father in the world who would refuse a good son like Shou Jiaxun.
Fortunately, shortly after declining the phone call the second time, Father Shou sent Shou Jiaxun a Feixin message: In a meeting, can’t answer the phone. Have you boarded the plane? I’ll arrive at the airport on time to pick you up later.
Shou Jiaxun finally breathed a sigh of relief: Just boarded the plane, will turn off the phone soon. You’re still not off work? Is work very busy?
His dad replied two minutes later: Attending a parent-teacher meeting for your younger brother, followed by an expression caught between laughter and tears, and His grades are even worse than yours were back then.
Overjoyed, Shou Jiaxun held up his phone to show Liang Bo. Liang Bo also laughed along, but a slight worry began to sprout in his heart.
Because this feeling was far too familiar to him.
He had witnessed the shift in his grandfather Liang Guorui’s attitude toward family over twenty years. For a man, especially an Alpha, whether he wanted to shake off the shackles of family or return to its warmth, it was an absolutely subjective matter.
This “absolute subjectivity” was extremely exclusive. He wouldn’t consider any external factors, including blood ties.
Because he felt it was entirely his own business.
If it involved marital relations, they had to handle legalities, but toward children, it was a completely different attitude.
Back when Liang Guorui and his eldest son’s family threw themselves wholeheartedly into their careers, Liang Bo’s step-grandmother and his two young uncles could only endure it silently.
Liang Guorui felt that not betraying his family was the greatest respect he could show it. Not coming home for half a month at a time simply meant he was too busy to manage. He had no faults.
The moment Liang Guorui wanted to return to the family, the contributions of the eldest son’s family were gradually overlooked—from being mentioned less to a drastic reduction in the frequency of their meetings.
Old Liang started attending parent-teacher meetings for his youngest sons, taking them on trips, and caring about their homework, moods, heights, and even the quality of the water they drank.
He would repeatedly postpone company meetings for family matters, just as he rarely came home to handle official business in the past.
When Shou Jiaxun’s father left the barely-adult Shou Jiaxun alone in Beijing to start a new life in another city with his second wife and had a young son of their own, it indicated that he had already excluded Shou Jiaxun from his family at that time.
Of course he wouldn’t refuse to acknowledge Shou Jiaxun, but acknowledging him didn’t mean they could become a family again.
Just like how Liang Guorui still treasured his eldest grandson Liang Bo very much now, but they wouldn’t live together, and it was very difficult to achieve the intimacy and mutual understanding they once had.
Liang Guorui would still give his grandson many things, but the family members had already been replanned and locked in.
When Liang Bo was young, eating at his grandfather’s house was called “going home.” Now, going to his house to eat was called “being a guest.”
It was very close from Shuizhen to where Shou Jiaxun’s biological father settled down. The flight took less than two hours. It would actually be very convenient to take the railway, but that would mean missing dinner time and inconveniencing Father Shou when picking him up from the station.
Shou Jiaxun felt that since his father already had a stable new life, he should try his best not to cause trouble for that new life. So he rushed for the flight to save time, choosing a time point suitable for “being a guest” to meet the other party.
The things Liang Bo worried about, he had already experienced profoundly in his past life. In his eyes, none of these were problems.
By the time their plane landed, the last trace of the setting sun had officially vanished beneath the horizon.
Shou Jiaxun stood in the brightly lit arrivals area, looking left and right for a long time. Finally, his dad stepped forward with a hesitant expression and cautiously called out, “A-Xun?”
Shou Jiaxun then suddenly realized, laughing awkwardly as he hugged the other man. “I saw you just now, I just didn’t recognize you.”
This was the first time he had met his biological dad since his reincarnation. Not recognizing him was completely normal. After all, the “memories” imported by the Underworld customer service back then were an abstract thing. He had perceptual recognition, but the visual impressions had to be rebuilt by himself during the process of “experiencing” them.
For example, the father in his memory was the image of a middle-aged boss in a suit and leather shoes.
Yet the person standing in front of him had graying buzz-cut hair, a thinning top, a loose T-shirt, knee-length shorts, and flip-flops on his feet. Slightly chubby, he looked entirely like a neighborhood uncle. Compared to back then, he was a completely different person. It would be a wonder if Shou Jiaxun could recognize him.
Father Shou’s face was full of joy as he patted Shou Jiaxun’s shoulder. “I didn’t dare to recognize you for a long time either. You’ve grown so much, you’re a complete adult now.”
Shou Jiaxun hurriedly took off his khaki casual suit jacket and handed it to Liang Bo, transforming into a sporty T-shirt and jeans look. He asked his dad with a grin, “Is it a bit easier to recognize me like this?”
His dad immediately burst into laughter and hugged him again, then draped an arm around his shoulders and walked toward the exit. “Oh my, I have so much to tell you, but let’s go home and eat first.”
“Sure, haha!” Shou Jiaxun’s demeanor was eager, though slightly deliberate. He was working hard to establish a brand-new father-son relationship.
As they walked, his dad pointed back at Liang Bo. “Your boyfriend?”
“Ah… haha…” Shou Jiaxun used a silly laugh to stall for two seconds, then nodded. “Yes, exactly, my boyfriend.”
He felt that answering this way should make everyone happy.
Because elders seemed to love seeing their children and grandchildren with partners.
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