Chapter 21: What Memories Do I Have with a Fool?
Yu Xiuqing only curled his lips in satisfaction then, loosening his grip. He then kicked the plushie under a nearby table, his face filled with undisguised loathing.
“Don’t bring just any kind of trash into the Yu household.”
Shen Yuan hurriedly crawled over, his eyes rimmed with red. He clutched the little rabbit in his arms, and while he comforted the doll, he used his gaze to plead with the man, hoping he would let him be.
But the other didn’t even deign to look at him.
Perhaps because he had just fallen, Shen Yuanās lower body was in too much pain to stand up. He could only crawl back to the man’s feet on his knees, the White Rabbit cream candies falling out of his pocket.
He didn’t have time to pick them up; he was terrified to the extreme. He only dared to look up timidly, his voice trembling violently:
“Xi… Xiansheng, bunny isn’t dirty… Yuanyuan will wash bunny clean. I beg Xiansheng, please don’t kick us out.”
Yu Xiuqing looked at the White Rabbit candies scattered across the floor and raised an eyebrow slightly, asking coldly, “Who gave you these candies?”
The little fool hurriedly grabbed the candies and stuffed them into his pocket, not daring to mention Guitar-gege for fear of receiving even more cruel torture. He could only stammer out a lie:
“I… I picked them up by the road…”
“Aren’t you afraid of being poisoned to death?”
The man’s tone was malicious, his gaze chillingly terrifying.
Shen Yuanās eyes turned red, his face full of grievance.
He lay on the floor, picking up the candies Guitar-gege had given him one by one. Just as his small hand reached for the last piece of candy near the foot of the sofa, a fair foot “accidentally” stepped heavily onto the back of his scarred hand, grinding down on it.
A wave of heart-piercing pain instantly made him gasp, and the candy he was holding fell to the floor with a “clack.”
Shen Yuan bit his lip, his pale, exquisite face turning even whiter from the pain.
He looked up, and his clear eyes reflected a beautiful yet sinister face.
The other was looking down at him with a superior posture, a trace of contemptuous and mocking laughter hanging from the corner of his mouth, as if looking at a useless idiot.
“Ah, I’m sorry, Shen Yuan. I didn’t mean to step on you. I just wanted to stand up and accidentally stepped on you. You won’t blame me, right?”
Su Huaiyao hurriedly lifted his foot. That innocent and sincere appearance would make anyone believe he truly was just being careless.
He bent down to pick up the candy and handed it to the youth: “Here, this is your candy. Returning it to you.”
Shen Yuanās eyes trembled. Looking at the youth’s gentle and expectant gaze, he didn’t dare take it.
“Xiaoyao, don’t touch such dirty things.”
Yu Xiuqing directly took the item from Su Huaiyaoās hand, turned around, and threw it into the trash. He then carefully helped him up, his tone as gentle as water: “Let’s go back to the room. Weāll change into pajamas; youāll catch a cold wearing this.”
“Okay~”
Su Huaiyao obediently allowed him to support him as they walked. His face was a picture of happiness and sweetness as he suddenly spoke:
“By the way, Xiuqing-gege, I want a piano room to put that grand piano you gave me in. But Iāve looked for a long time and haven’t found a suitable place…”
The man’s movement of brushing past the other’s hair was gentle, his gaze focused: “Take your time looking. The manor isn’t lacking in rooms.”
In a hidden shadow, the corner of Su Huaiyaoās mouth curved slightly, revealing an unreadable malice.
He then returned to his gentle and pure appearance. His eyes darted around, and he asked in an offhand tone:
“I think Shen Yuanās room is quite nice. Although it’s a bit small, the balcony has many potted plants; it looks very warm. Xiuqing-gege, what do you think?”
Yu Xiuqing lightly stroked the youth’s head. Looking at his expectant gaze, he doted: “You can have whatever you like.”
“But will Shen Yuan disagree?”
“He wouldn’t dare.”
Looking at the two leaning against each other, Shen Yuanās heart felt bitter, yet he couldn’t resist. He could only lower his head and stroke the plushie.
He wanted to refuse. He didn’t want to give up the room he had lived in for two years to anyone, but he didn’t dare.
Xiansheng had just said that as long as Su Huaiyao liked it, he had to give it, even if he was unwilling in a thousand ways…
Yu Xiuqing turned his head at the corner of the stairs and looked down at the dazed youth below, commanding: “Come up later and move all your things out.”
After saying that, he carefully put his arm around the white moonlight and went upstairs.
Shen Yuanās head was filled with a ringing sound. He didn’t answer, or perhaps he only vaguely heard the gist of it.
It was only after a long time that he recovered from the intense pain, then he stood up unsteadily.
The little fool limped as he climbed the stairs he had rolled down several days ago. It was here that he had lost the baby.
His hands gripped the railing tightly, his knuckles turning white, yet he didn’t dare let go. The massive shadow in his heart made his entire body tremble.
As he was about to reach the room, Shen Yuan heard a beautiful piano melody, and it was a duet between two people.
He stood at the door, watching as the place where his bed used to be in the bedroom had now been replaced by a piano.
He had dreamed of having a piano like that.
He saw Yu Xiuqing and Su Huaiyao sitting in front of the piano, their fingers nimbly dancing across the black and white keys.
The beautiful piano music rose, gradually spreading like a tide, filling every corner of the bedroom.
The cold moonlight spilled over the two playing the piano, plating them in a thin layer of silver light.
They looked so well-matchedāa pair made in heaven.
Shen Yuan looked at the scene before him and suddenly felt it was somewhat eye-piercing. His heart was filled with immense envy and sadness…
He had never heard Xiansheng play the piano. It was always him playing for Xiansheng. He thought Mister Yu wasn’t good at it; it turned out he just wasn’t worthy of hearing it.
Yu Xiuqing turned his head and saw Shen Yuan standing there. He stopped his fingers from playing and said coldly, “Come in.”
Su Huaiyao stared at the youth with an unfriendly gaze.
Shen Yuan lowered his head and walked into the room submissively.
His heart beat exceptionally fast. He never looked at the two once, instead walking directly toward the nightstand.
Actually, he didn’t have many things to move out. The only thing he didn’t want to discard was that pair of ceramic dolls on the stand.
These items were something he had made together with Xiansheng in the past. Even if they had no monetary value, he treated them as treasures, needing to look at them every night before he could fall asleep.
They were like the last bit of solace Xiansheng had left him…
Su Huaiyao instantly knew his intention. He hurriedly stood up, taking a step ahead to grab one of the ceramic figures on the stand. With an unreadable smile, he handed it over, saying:
“Shen Yuan, you want this, right? Here~”
As soon as the words left his mouth, before Shen Yuan could even take it, he deliberately let go, letting out an “aiyah” cry of surprise. The ceramic in his hand instantly fell to the floor, shattered into pieces.
It all happened too suddenly, almost in an instant. Shen Yuan looked at the ceramic figure that had already broken into shards on the floor, stunned in place, unable to react for a long time.
Bro… broken?
Yu Xiuqing stood up from his chair and glanced indifferently at the fragments, his face showing no emotion.
Su Huaiyao, meanwhile, stood where he was like nothing had happened, his expression unchanged and his gaze frank as he smiled awkwardly: “I’m sorry, Shen Yuan. I didn’t mean to. It’s just…”
He paused there, frowning with feigned difficulty as he continued: “Maybe I hurt my arm a few days ago. My hand is a bit shaky and doesn’t quite listen to me.”
The more he spoke, the more it sounded like a provocation. Shen Yuan was so angry he reached out and pushed him once, shouting:
“You… you did it on purpose!”
Even though that push didn’t have much strength at all, Su Huaiyao feigned being pushed until he stumbled backward, landing firmly in the man’s embrace.
Yu Xiuqing caught him with quick eyes and hands, his entire body shielding him so he wouldn’t fall. “Are you alright?”
the other shook his head, but still pointed significantly at his injured thigh: “It’s fine… hiss.”
“Sit down first.”
Yu Xiuqing helped him into a chair, his face darkening. He turned around directly, looking at the shock-stricken youth.
Shen Yuan shook his head in disbelief, then looked at his own violently trembling hands, not knowing where he had gotten the strength just now. His gaze was terrified as he stammered:
“I… Xiansheng…”
The next second, the man raised his hand. Slap! A heavy slap landed forcefully on his fair and handsome little face. The sound was crisp and piercing, sending him falling directly to the floor.
Shen Yuanās small face immediately swelled up, and spots of blood appeared at the corner of his lips. He looked up at that tall man, his eyes red and swollen, tears falling incessantly.
Looking at those water-stained, mist-covered eyes, Yu Xiuqing felt his heart twist for a moment. His eyes were bloodshot; in his mind, he had already tormented the youth a thousand times over.
“Do you want to die?”
He spoke word by word, his voice low and hoarse, sounding like a wandering soul from hellāsinister and terrifying.
The youth’s entire body shook, yet he still stared back at him stubbornly, saying weakly: “No… it’s not like that, Xiansheng. It was… it was Su Xiansheng who deliberately didn’t hold it steady and dropped it…”
“It’s just a piece of ceramic. Is there a need for this?”
“That wasn’t just a piece of ceramic…”
Shen Yuan spoke in a low voice, then crouched down to pick up the broken head of the ceramic figure, cradling it in his palm with heartache, his fingers gently stroking it.
Bean-sized tears struck the fragment. He looked at the ceramic doll that was becoming increasingly blurred in his hand and said sadly:
“That was during the Mid-Autumn Festival… when Xiansheng took Yuanyuan to… to the North to play. It was a ceramic baby I made… with Xiansheng… I have always cherished it well…”
“Ah, I didn’t know this was so important to you. So it’s a memory between you and Xiuqing-gege…”
Su Huaiyao appeared very self-reproachful, but beneath those innocent eyes was a heart full of jealousy and loathing.
If it weren’t for him studying abroad, these things should have belonged to him. How could it be this fool’s turn!
“What memories could I have with a fool?”
Although the sound of Yu Xiuqingās voice had softened quite a bit, lacking the overbearing aura from earlier, the loathing and disdain on his face was constantly intensifying.
He casually took the other ceramic doll from the stand, lifted his eyelids, and turned it over to look at it. The crooked smile on the little figure’s face seemed extremely ridiculous to him.
Shen Yuan looked at the little ceramic figure with worry, tremblingly reaching out his hand as he pleaded: “Xiansheng… I beg you… return the last one… to me…”
“Sure. Returning it to you.”
Yu Xiuqing raised his eyebrows, the smile in his eyes exceptionally ambiguous. But his movement was fast and ruthless as he directly smashed it.
Recommended Reads
