Chapter 138: The Thief
An Qingyan was delirious with fever, feeling terribly uncomfortable. In a hazy state, he had a dream, or perhaps it wasn’t a dream; it felt so real.
Eleven years ago.
Gu family villa. Eight-year-old Lin Qingyan was still a thin and small child. He sat on the steps of the courtyard, wearing a too-small short-sleeved shirt and trousers. The trousers were a little short, revealing his slender ankles.
But his skin was exceptionally fair, his face delicate and cute, his eyes like grapes, large and bright, but now somewhat absent-minded. His small hand supported his chin, as if he were thinking about something.
Big brother had been gone for three days. He said he was going to study abroad. How far was abroad? Did he have to take a plane? Lin Qingyan was a little melancholy; he had never been on a plane before.
He missed big brother. He wondered if he was eating well abroad, if he could sleep at night, if he would miss home, if he would cry when he missed home.
Lin Qingyan sighed.
The child’s thin and small back looked particularly lonely.
Big brother was gone, and he had no friends. The children from the neighboring house and the classmates at school didn’t want to be friends with him; they always bullied him.
“Xiao Yan, sweep the fallen leaves in the yard. Make sure you sweep them clean,” Zhou YueLan came over with a broom.
“Okay.” Lin Qingyan replied, his voice crisp and tender.
He obediently took the broom, which was taller than him, and began to sweep the fallen leaves under the trees. Although he was still young, he was quite skilled at the work; his mother often asked him to help with chores.
He was also happy to help because his mother wouldn’t scold him then. She would pat his head and praise him, saying he was a good boy.
The broom was too big, and Lin Qingyan swept with some difficulty. The weather in August and September was the hottest. He wiped the sweat from his small face and continued to work diligently.
At this moment, a similarly childish voice rang in his ear, innocent and somewhat arrogant: “Hey, what are you doing?”
Lin Qingyan stopped what he was doing and looked up at the speaker, standing opposite him.
It was a boy about his age, fair-skinned and dressed in clean shirt and trousers, wearing shiny little leather shoes, a long life-lock necklace around his neck, and holding a toy car.
He clearly came from a wealthy family.
“I’m sweeping the floor.” After saying that, Lin Qingyan lowered his eyes. He was sweaty and dirty, and his clothes were torn in a few places; his shoes were also dirty.
“What’s your name? Why are you working here? Aren’t you the son of a maid?” An Nanyi approached, carefully looking at him, his face showing disdain and mockery.
Lin Qingyan was familiar with this kind of look and disliked it. He stepped back two steps with the broom. “I need to continue working…”
An Nanyi: “What work? I want you to play with me.”
Lin Qingyan: “No, you play by yourself.”
“Look at your clothes, all torn and old. If you play with me, I’ll give you money. Don’t poor families like yours need money the most?”
Lin Qingyan had heard this kind of talk many times at school. He continued to sweep, whispering, “I don’t want your money. You can find someone else to play with.”
He gathered the fallen leaves into a pile. Just as he turned to get a dustpan, An Nanyi, who had been standing nearby, suddenly ran over and kicked the pile of leaves apart.
Lin Qingyan just glanced at him timidly and continued to sweep the scattered leaves back into a pile. He knew he couldn’t afford to offend these rich kids.
Seeing that Lin Qingyan still ignored him, An Nanyi’s temper flared. Every time Lin Qingyan swept the leaves, he kicked them apart, repeating this several times.
“Hey, are you mute? I’m talking to you!” An Nanyi said, then forcefully shoved Lin Qingyan, pushing him to the ground.
Lin Qingyan didn’t feel anything. Even though his palm was scraped, it didn’t hurt. He endured the humiliation silently and stood up to continue sweeping.
If only big brother were here; big brother would definitely help him.
Seeing that he still didn’t react, An Nanyi stomped his foot angrily, muttering that it was boring, and turned to leave. He inadvertently saw the old and worn schoolbag under the tree—clearly belonging to the poor kid.
He smiled maliciously and turned away.
Lin Qingyan finally managed to put all the leaves into the trash can. He panted, dragging the half-person-high bin to the other side to empty it.
After he left, An Nanyi, who had been watching from the shadows, immediately ran under the tree, opened the old schoolbag. Inside were only a few worn notebooks, a few short pencils, and a wooden rabbit carving.
He wasn’t interested in these. After thinking for a moment, he took off the safety lock necklace around his neck, put it in the small pocket of the schoolbag, zipped it up, and put the schoolbag back in its place.
Lin Qingyan, returning from emptying the trash, knew nothing of this. Although someone had messed with him, he had still swept the leaves clean. Would his mother praise him later?
…
In the bright kitchen, Song Shuman and Yu Qingtong were making desserts.
Song Shuman: “Is Gu Fei getting used to being abroad? Why did you insist on sending such a young child to study abroad? All alone.”
“He’s not that young anymore, he’s sixteen.” Yu Qingtong shook her head helplessly. “My son actively proposed to study abroad. Don’t look at him as sixteen; he has a twenty-six-year-old mind inside, incredibly mature.”
“That’s pretty good.” Song Shuman smiled and began to complain:
“An Jing just started high school last year, and he was boarding at the school. After only two days, he tearfully called me, saying the school cafeteria food was awful, the bed was hard, and someone ground their teeth and talked in their sleep at night. He insisted on coming home to live.”
“In the end, because I couldn’t take it anymore, An Lingkang and I bought him a house near the school and let him move there. We even hired a housekeeper to cook three meals a day and clean up, otherwise, his dirty socks would pile up like a mountain.”
Yu Qingtong: “Gu Fei never made me worry; I wish I had something to worry about concerning him.”
“I’m so worried my hair is turning grey! Especially An Yu, that boy always gets into fights and causes trouble at school. Only Nan Nan is the most well-behaved and obedient.”
Just then, An Nanyi suddenly ran over, calling for his mother. His eyes were red, tears welling up, looking particularly aggrieved.
Yu Qingtong asked: “What’s wrong? Who bullied you?”
“What happened?” Song Shuman knelt down, stroking her youngest son’s head, her eyes filled with concern, her voice gentle. “What happened? Why does our Nan Nan look so sad?”
“The necklace my mother gave me is gone.” An Nanyi sniffed, aggrieved. “I was playing in the yard just now, and I took off the necklace and put it aside, and then it was gone. I can’t find it anywhere.”
“It’s alright; Mommy will help you find it.”
Several people went to the courtyard and even asked the maids to help search, but they couldn’t find it. An Nanyi suddenly pointed to Lin Qingyan, who was sitting in the corner with his schoolbag, drawing on the ground with a twig.
“That brother was next to me just now. Did he take it?”
Song Shuman looked at the small boy’s thin figure from afar, then said to her youngest son, “Nan Nan, you can’t wrongly accuse someone without evidence.”
An Nanyi pouted aggrievedly, “But I just saw him staring at my necklace.”
Meanwhile, Zhou YueLan, among the maids, lowered her eyes in terror and quietly put on the mask she used for work. She only knew that there were guests at the Gu house today, but she didn’t expect the guests to be…
Without evidence, Song Shuman didn’t want to trouble a child. She comforted her youngest son: “If we can’t find it, then forget it. Mommy will buy you another one.”
“But that’s the birthday present my mother gave me. It’s different.”
“Shuman, that’s the son of one of my maids. He usually seems very well-behaved and often helps his mother with chores. He shouldn’t do something like this.” Yu Qingtong whispered to her good friend.
Zhou YueLan’s gaze remained on An Nanyi. That was her son, all grown up. Living in a wealthy family, how luxurious he looked.
Seeing An Nanyi’s aggrieved and sad expression, she quickly walked towards Lin Qingyan. Without a word, she took the schoolbag from his arms and, before everyone, unzipped it, pouring out the contents.
Notebooks, stationery, a wooden carving, and a valuable necklace.
Lin Qingyan looked at the things on the ground in a daze. “Mama…” However, what greeted him was a harsh slap; Zhou YueLan slapped him across the face.
“How many times have I told you? How could you do such a thing?!”
Although he didn’t feel pain, the child’s fair cheeks immediately flushed red. Lin Qingyan covered his face, somewhat aggrieved and bewildered. He looked at the necklace on the ground, “This isn’t mine…”
“Mama, that’s my necklace!” An Nanyi ran over quickly, picking up the necklace. “Brother, even if you like my things, you can’t steal them! That’s wrong.”
“What? What stealing?” Lin Qingyan looked at him incredulously, as well as the several adults around him. “I didn’t steal your things! Why are you framing me…?”
“Mama, I didn’t steal anything! I really didn’t!”
“Then why was the necklace in your schoolbag? Did it have legs? You still won’t admit it?” Zhou YueLan glared fiercely at her stepson and was about to raise her hand again when Song Shuman stopped her.
“Forget it, the thing’s been recovered.” Zhou YueLan was wearing a mask. So many years had passed; Song Shuman didn’t recognize her. She frowned. “Even if your son did something wrong, you can’t hit him.”
The thin and small child covered his face, his eyes still teary, looking particularly pitiful.