Chapter 9: Why Are You Here?
In the autumn afternoon, the sunlight shed the harshness of summer, becoming mellow and gentle. Occasionally, a breeze would pass through, and a few leaves would swirl, reluctantly bidding farewell to the branches, rustling as they fell onto the shoulders of pedestrians.
Jiang Qing pushed open the door, and the cool breath unique to autumn rushed to his face.
He raised his hand to gather the collar of his thin cardigan, slowing his steps. The soles of his shoes crushed the fallen leaves on the front steps, emitting a fine “rustle” that intertwined with the distant chirping of birds.
The sunlight pierced through the gaps in the leaves, casting mottled light and shadows on the ground, as if a handful of crushed gold had been scattered.
The courtyard was very quiet. Father and Mother Jiang were out of town these few days. Jiang Linmu was likely not out of bed at this hour, while Jiang Yu had gone to the company early in the morning.
Jiang Qing took a deep breath of this “freedom” in the air. Suddenly, he grinned.
Keeping a perfectly straight face, he pulled a suona out of his clothes.
Since the ones in the house he couldn’t afford to provoke were all gone, then the only remaining joy was…
Jiang Qing glanced at the window upstairs.
He took a deep breath.
The next secondβ
“BEEEPββ!!!”
A high-pitched, resonant, exceptionally piercing note, like a sudden clap of thunder, ripped through the entire Jiang residence.
On the second floor, in Jiang Linmu’s room.
The rhythmic snoring ground to a sudden halt.
Following closely was a muffled “Thud,” sounding like some heavy object falling onto the floor.
Soon after, the window was forcefully shoved open. Jiang Linmu, sporting hair comparable to a bird’s nest, roared:
“Brother!! Are you trying to send me away?! Is this young lady in her early 20s going to lose her life right here????”
Jiang Qing calmly lowered the suona. The liver-and-gall-shattering sound finally stopped, leaving only an echoing buzz reverberating in the courtyard.
He looked up, revealing an innocent smile:
“I am providing a musical wake-up service, helping you welcome this beautiful morning.”
Jiang Linmu was so angry he almost flipped out of the window: “Brother!!!!!!”
“Tsk,” Jiang Qing disgustedly weighed the suona in his hand, “You don’t know how to appreciate art.”
As he spoke, he raised the suona again, his eyes gleaming with the light of “I can blow this five hundred more times.”
Seeing this, Jiang Linmu’s face turned deathly pale, instantly admitting defeat:
“Stop! Stop it! I was wrong! Brother, quickly put it down!!!! I’m willing to give you 3 more boxes of goji berries to use as your fish bait!!!!!!”
Jiang Qing shot him a glance, then hoisted the suona up once again.
“Plus, I’ll help you pull the limited skin from that newly released gacha banner!!!!”
“Deal.”
“…….”
ββββββββββ
Jiang Linmu went downstairs with a black face.
This morning, he originally had a dream where he led an esports team to bravely seize the world championship. He was just lifting the trophy to accept the cheers, the spotlight hitting his handsome side profile… when it was all “BEEEP”-ed away by his brother’s suona.
Rubbing his eyes and carrying a lingering aura of morning grumpiness, he resentfully looked at the main culprit on the sofa.
Jiang Qing was leisurely wiping his “murder weapon,” a trace of a smile still hanging on his lips after successfully executing his scheme.
“Brother,” Jiang Linmu slumped feebly onto the opposite sofa, “do you know that what you destroyed wasn’t just a young boy’s sweet dream, but the hope of a future world champion!”
“Oh?” Jiang Qing raised an eyebrow and put down the suona, picking up the honey milk beside him and taking a slow, methodical sip.
“I was helping you recognize reality.” He swirled the cup.
Jiang Linmu was choked speechless. He could only indignantly grab a throw pillow to muffle his face, letting out a stifled wail.
“Also,” Jiang Qing added, “next time you act pitiful, remember to wipe away the drool stains at the corners of your mouth from smiling in your dream first.”
Jiang Linmu fiercely dropped the pillow, scrambling to wipe the corners of his mouth. Only upon finding them squeaky clean did he realize he had been tricked again. He instantly became so furious he pounced over, baring his fangs and brandishing his claws:
“Jiang Qing!!!!”
The two brothers instantly broke out into a scuffle in the living room. That bit of tranquility from earlier vanished without a trace, leaving only chaos and Jiang Linmu’s wails of being unilaterally suppressed.
Right as the two were fighting and messing around, the front door was suddenly opened.
“Ahahaha, my Qingqing darling, I came looking for you as soon as I got off the plane, are you touched!!!”
The newcomer’s voice abruptly stopped. Still dragging a suitcase in hand, he stood at the entryway, completely dumbfounded.
On the sofa, Jiang Linmu was pressing his entire body onto Jiang Qing, one hand pinning Jiang Qing’s shoulder. And Jiang Qing, who was pinned underneath, although his expression remained calm, his shirt collar was pulled slightly askew, his cheeks flushing with a post-exercise redness.
The three of them stared at each other. The air froze for three seconds.
The smile on Song Lingchen’s face instantly stiffened. He stared dumbfoundedly at the scene on the living room sofa.
“Looks like I came back at a bad time? Interrupting you two… exchanging feelings?”
Before Jiang Qing could speak, Jiang Linmu flared up first, his ears red as he retorted: “Song Lingchen, what nonsense are you spouting! We are fighting!”
“Fighting?” Song Lingchen dragged his suitcase in, his eyebrows raised sky-high.
“What kind of ‘fighting’? The kind that requires rolling around on the sofa? Little Mumu, I couldn’t tell you were this passionate?”
“You!” Jiang Linmu was choked speechless by him. He was so angry he wanted to pounce again, this time changing his target to Song Lingchen.
Jiang Qing helplessly rubbed the center of his brows. Reaching out to stop his younger brother who was about to smoke from anger, he said flatly to Song Lingchen:
“Stop teasing him. Why did you suddenly come over without even saying a word?”
“Wanted to give you a surprise,” Song Lingchen grinned mischievously and leaned close to Jiang Qing, looking meaningfully at Jiang Linmu next to him. “Looks like… someone gave one before I did?”
Jiang Linmu ground his teeth in anger. He indignantly grabbed a throw pillow, but this time not to muffle his face; instead, he threw it directly at Song Lingchen:
“Get lost!”
Song Lingchen easily caught the pillow, laughing heartily.
As the childhood friend who grew up with Jiang Qing, Song Lingchen’s existence to Jiang Linmu was simply like an uninvited crooked-necked tree that suddenly appeared in their courtyardβan eyesore that couldn’t be driven away.
The parents of the two families were good friends and visited often, so Song Lingchen naturally infiltrated every aspect of Jiang Qing’s life.
When Jiang Qing climbed trees to dig out bird’s nests, he held the ladder below; when Jiang Qing climbed over walls to skip tutoring, he waited outside the wall to receive himβalthough Jiang Qing had never once let him catch him; when Jiang Qing was in a bad mood and wore a cold face, he could talk to himself on the side and enjoy it. He would act as that punching bag; occasionally, when Jiang Qing got annoyed and gave him a couple of kicks or hits, he never hit back, and he himself thoroughly enjoyed it.
In Jiang Linmu’s words:
Brother, when did our family get a dog that isn’t surnamed Jiang?
You could say the two were so close they practically shared a pair of pants. And it was precisely because of this life-and-death bond that he dared to act so unscrupulously in front of Jiang Qing, andβknew exactly how to piss off Jiang Linmu the most.
He looked at Jiang Linmu, who was being blocked by Jiang Qing yet still baring his teeth. He deliberately hugged the caught throw pillow to his chest, took a deep breath, and used an extremely punchable tone to say to Jiang Qing:
“Mmm… also, the scent on our Qingqing’s body smells really good.”
“Song Lingchen, you pervert! Give the pillow back to me!” Jiang Linmu was simply going mad with anger!
Fuck! The pillow he just casually threw out was actually the one his brother frequently used!
Watching this familiar chaotic scene unfold before his eyes, Jiang Qing’s headache worsened.
Suddenly, he shifted his gaze to the suona on the sofa, a stroke of inspiration hitting him.
The two beside him were busy exchanging jabs when they suddenly saw Jiang Qing’s eager-to-try expression, immediately rushing up to stop him:
“Wait!! Let’s talk this out nicely!!!!!”
Translator’s Note:
- Suona (ε’ε): A traditional Chinese double-reed horn that is notoriously loud, high-pitched, and piercing. It’s often associated with rural folk music, and because it’s played at both weddings and funerals, internet culture jokes that the suona’s sound “bridges the realms of the living and the dead.”
- Dog that isn’t surnamed Jiang: Jiang Linmu is comparing Song Lingchen to an overly eager, tail-wagging dog that just constantly follows his older brother around!
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