Chapter 140: You Can Call Me Brother An
“A thief? What thief?”
Gu Fei was puzzled. Before he could ask, he heard An Qingyan continue to sob, “I know why I don’t have that memory.”
“It happened after you went abroad for your studies…” He hesitated, unsure how to say it. “That day, my mother… at that time, An Nanyi’s mother, she brought An Nanyi to the Gu family as a guest…”
“I don’t know why that necklace was in my schoolbag. I tried my best to explain, but no one believed me…”
“Later, my adoptive mother beat me with a clothes hanger. Maybe because of that, I had a high fever. After I recovered, I forgot everything that happened at the Gu family, including you.”
Hearing this, Gu Fei’s face gradually turned cold.
He thought it was just a child’s poor memory, that after so many years, he had forgotten those things. He hadn’t expected it was because of this…
Such a young child, falsely accused of being a thief, with no one believing him, including his so-called “mother.” How disappointed and wronged he must have been to choose to forget this memory.
The young man finished recounting the whole process, his emotions gradually calming down. His eyes and nose were red from crying. He said to the man on the screen, “Gege Fei, if you had been there then, would you have believed me?”
Gu Fei unhesitatingly replied, “Believe.”
Looking at the young man on the screen, who was crying so sadly and pitifully, he regretted not being there for him, not being able to say, “I believe you.” The child rarely cried. How much distress must he have endured to make him cry so hard?
Gu Fei regretted not being there for the child, to tell him he believed him.
As for An Nanyi… it seems he got off too easily.
“My YanYan is so good, how could he do such a thing?” The coldness on the man’s face instantly disappeared, his brows filled with tenderness as he softly comforted him, “It’s all over now, it’s alright.”
“Gege Fei won’t let you be bullied again.”
“Good boy.”
After saying this, An Qingyan felt a little better. He roughly wiped the tears from his face. He had made a fool of himself in front of Gu Fei again. Looking at the handsome and mature man on the screen, he mumbled softly, “It’s like coaxing a child…”
Gu Fei chuckled, “Doesn’t YanYan like me coaxing you like this?”
An Qingyan: “…Like.”
The man’s Adam’s apple bobbed. After a moment of silence, he said seriously, “YanYan, no matter what happens, I hope you can tell me. If someone bullies you, or if you want to bully me, you can.”
An Qingyan couldn’t help but smile. He casually lay down on the soft big bed, lying on his side holding his phone, “If I want to bully someone, can you help me?”
Gu Fei: “I can.”
An Qingyan: “I don’t want to bully others.”
Gu Fei: “Then you can bully me.”
An Qingyan uttered an “Oh,” his lips curving into a slight upward arc. How dare he bully Gu Fei? He was the one being bullied, okay?
Seeing the boy’s happy expression, Gu Fei felt relieved. He didn’t forget to remind him to take his medicine on time and eat properly.
“I know, Gege Fei, you too.”
“Go wash up and rest. I’ll hang up first.”
“Okay.” Gu Fei waited for An Qingyan to hang up first. After a moment of silence, he walked to the floor-to-ceiling window and called his assistant.
“What’s An Nanyi’s situation?”
“Keep an eye on him.”
——
The next day.
A guest arrived at the An family.
An Lingkang and An Yu went to work. Song Shuman stayed home to take care of An Qingyan. An Jing didn’t have any schedules these past two days, even if he did, he had cancelled them, so he stayed home eating and drinking.
“Hello, Auntie…” Lu Yuqi, holding gifts in both hands, stood politely at the door. After a two-second pause, he hesitantly said to the man standing in front of him, “Hello, Teacher An.”
“Auntie knows you. You’re Lu Yuqi, right? YanYan’s good friend.” Song Shuman’s face was full of warm and amiable smiles. “You’re here to see YanYan, right? Don’t stand there, come in.”
“Yeah, I heard An Qingyan was sick, so I came to see him.” Lu Yuqi’s whole body radiated constraint. His docile appearance seemed incongruous with his usual bossy demeanor.
An Jing crossed his arms and looked at him with interest.
Song Shuman reminded him, “An Jing, don’t just stare. Quickly help him take his things.”
An Jing uttered an “oh,” took the things from Lu Yuqi’s hands, and Lu Yuqi said “thank you, Teacher An” in an unnatural tone.
Teacher An was flattered, a playful smile appearing on his lips, “Don’t call me Teacher An at home. You’re YanYan’s friend, you can call me Brother An.”
Lu Yuqi: “…”
“Have a seat first, Auntie will go upstairs to call YanYan.”
“Okay.”
Lu Yuqi sat upright and reservedly on the living room sofa. An Jing sat beside him, and the air suddenly fell silent, the two staring at each other.
An Jing spoke first, “Listen to Gege’s advice, don’t drink so much alcohol next time, drink more tea.” Saying so, he poured a cup of hot tea in front of the young man.
“…” Lu Yuqi silently picked up the cup and took a sip of tea. A bitter taste spread in his mouth, slowly turning sweet. He then said, “I’m sorry, I was drunk that day, I didn’t mean to bite you.”
Hearing this, An Jing looked at him with interest, “I didn’t expect you to remember. I thought you blacked out.”
He did black out, An Qingyan told him all this, Lu Yuqi thought to himself.
An Jing smiled, “It’s okay, I accept your apology.” He wouldn’t hold a grudge against a child.
“Do you remember what you said to me that night?”
Looking at the man’s ambiguous expression, Lu Yuqi’s grip on the glass tightened. On the surface he remained calm, but his heart was racing.
He had no memory of it whatsoever. Who knows what he did or said while drunk? If he really said something… forget it, what’s done is done.
An Jing didn’t know what Lu Yuqi was thinking. He leaned back leisurely on the sofa, his long legs elegantly crossed, chuckling, “On the way back, you called me an old bastard the whole way. I only said a couple of things to you, and you were crying, saying I was being mean to you, tears were welling up in your eyes…”
The man’s smile widened, his magnetic voice playful, “I really didn’t expect it, our Qiqi actually has two faces.”
Lu Yuqi was completely dumbfounded. He cried in front of An Jing last night? He looked at the smiling man, his ears turning slightly red.
He placed the cup on the coffee table, the glass making a clear sound. He coldly snorted, his jawline tense, coldly saying, “How could I do such a thing!”
An Jing continued to stare at him, the blush on the young man’s ears falling into his eyes. He smiled, not a very genuine smile, “Okay, whatever you say.”
“You!”
“What? Want to bite me again?”
An Jing seemed to have found the joy of teasing a puppy.
Lu Yuqi secretly gnashed his teeth. He really wanted to rush over and bite him, but at that moment, Song Shuman and An Qingyan came downstairs, and he instantly suppressed his emotions, pretending nothing had happened.
After a good night’s sleep, An Qingyan’s spirits had improved a lot. He smiled and greeted Lu Yuqi, “Yuqi, long time no see.”
“Only a few days. How’s your body? Feeling better?”
“Yeah, much better.”
“YanYan, have fun with your friend.” After saying this, Song Shuman smiled at Lu Yuqi, “What do you want to eat for lunch? Auntie will make it for you.”
In front of unfamiliar elders, the bossy demeanor immediately disappeared. Although he still had little expression, “Auntie, anything is fine, I’m not picky.”
After Song Shuman left, An Qingyan teased him, “You’re actually very picky. You don’t eat bitter melon, green peppers, carrots, and you only eat the eggs and not the tomatoes in tomato scrambled eggs…”
When he participated in the talent show, he almost ate with Lu Yuqi every day, so he knew the young master Lu’s preferences, his taste buds were quite refined.
“…” Lu Yuqi subconsciously glanced at the man beside him. The man looked back, their eyes met. An Jing spoke first, “My mom’s cooking is pretty good, you can eat more.” After a pause, he added three words: “Grow taller.”
Lu Yuqi: “…”
“You two kids have fun, I won’t bother you.”
An Jing got up and ruffled his younger brother’s head. After a moment, he also rubbed Lu Yuqi’s head before turning to go upstairs.
Lu Yuqi pursed his lips, his Adam’s apple bobbing.
“Yuqi, let me take you for a walk.”
“Okay.”
The An family villa was quite large. The two strolled casually in the courtyard. Lu Yuqi casually looked around, “Young Master An, are you happy here?”
An Qingyan smiled, “Happy, quite happy.”
“An Nanyi used to live here. Such a good place, he didn’t deserve it.” Lu Yuqi snorted disdainfully, feeling sorry for An Qingyan. “Don’t let me see him again, I’ll beat him up every time I do.”
“You really shouldn’t have let him off so easily.”
An Qingyan sighed almost inaudibly, “He’s lived in the An family for so many years, even if he’s been driven out, my parents still have a little affection for An Nanyi. If I do anything to him, it’s my family who will suffer in the end.”
“As long as he doesn’t bother me, I won’t bother him.”
Lu Yuqi remained noncommittal.
If it were him, he definitely wouldn’t let it go so easily.
Young Master Lu wasn’t willing to suffer losses.
“Don’t talk about me, let’s talk about you.” An Qingyan’s eyes showed a hint of gossip, lowering his voice, “What’s the deal between you and my older brother?”
Lu Yuqi: “…What do you think could be between me and him?”