After sending away Dong Xiaoye, it was already three o ‘clock in the afternoon. The doubts in my heart were like the small sparks gradually became exuberant on a prairie, and in the end, they were turned into the unstoppable prairie fire. I went straight back to my parents’ place. Upon opening the door, I heard my old man’s hearty laughter.
“Come, Xiao Nan, let me introduce someone to you,” my old man must have drunk alcohol at noon since his originally serious face was now red, and his behavior was also less proper. Pointing at a refined young man sitting opposite him, he said gruffly, “this was my student, Guo Xiang. Xiao Guo, this is my disappointing son, Chu Nan.”
My face blushed. Since when did I disappoint you?
This young man named Guo Xiang was really nervous in front of my old man. Surprisingly, his current reaction was exactly like me when I faced my old man. He got up and reached his hand out and smiled. “Hello! I’ve often heard Teacher talking about you. I’m glad to finally be able to meet you today. You indeed look very talented and handsome.”
I didn’t know whether he was shy, or whether he was just trying to say something to flatter the old man, there was a vague coy expression flashed on his face, which made me shudder. Why does he have such a feminine expression?
“You flatter me…”
Just when I was secretly thinking about why his name sounded so familiar, the old man frowned and said, “You don’t need to be too nice to him. He doesn’t compare to you at all. Xiao Guo, you have not seen my daughter, if it weren’t for the fact that you already had a girlfriend, I would really like to introduce you to Yuanyuan, and maybe you two might get married in the future.”
My old man definitely drank too much, otherwise, he definitely would not say those words. Looking at Guo Xiang’s blushed face, my heart suddenly skipped a beat without any reason. Subconsciously, I began to look at him more carefully. Frankly speaking, even from a man’s point of view, I still couldn’t find anything to complain about him.
His face was fine like jade, eyes bright like stars. I didn’t dare to say that he looked as handsome as Pan An, the most handsome man in Chinese history because I didn’t know what Pan An looked like. But he definitely fit the description of a “fine appearance”. His age should be around twenty-six or twenty-seven, with the simple and short hairstyle, and his gentle temperament and humble attitude, it made people unable to help themselves but have a good feeling about him. From this, I shouldn’t have any reason to dislike him, but I couldn’t explain the puzzling hostility in my heart.
Was it because he was much more handsome than me? If I were jealous of such a thing, I would have already committed suicide, but the strange thing was that I couldn’t resist wanting to compare myself to him…
“What are you talking about? Yuanyuan is only sixteen this year,” my stepmother suddenly hugged my arm, and rolled her eyes at the old man and said, “also, who said that my son is not handsome and talented? I’m telling you, I’ll not agree to Yuanyuan marrying other men other than her older brother.”
If it weren’t for the fact that my stepmother was only thirteen or fourteen years older than me, I’d have wondered if she was my biological mother…
What my stepmother said should have embarrassed Guo Xiang, but he did not seem to mind it. Instead, there was a genuine smile on his face. Looking at his smile, my hostility toward him also reduced slightly.
My old man didn’t dare to challenge my stepmother. He just pretended to clear his throat and then signaled Guo Xiang to sit down and sternly said to me, “You should learn from Xiao Guo. Three years after graduation, he already has a company.”
Before I even responded, my stepmother said, “How do you know that my son won’t be successful in the future? Maybe in another two years, he can buy a big company like Fengchang Corporate group!”
I… I really could not handle it anymore. If my stepmother carried on like this, I would probably die of embarrassment, “cough, mom, I need to put back Chu Yuan’s residence document, where do I put it?”
The old man also wanted my stepmother to stop talking, “Yuxuan, can you stop saying things like that? Please just go and make us another pot of tea.”
“Huh, if you don’t constantly say something to embarrass my son, you think I like to talk to you. Xiao Guo, I’m sorry that you have to see this,” my stepmother was not an unreasonable woman after all. She raised her dainty chin and said proudly, “My son is filial and well-behaved. He treats me as if I was his biological mother. So I don’t like other people to mock him. It is definitely nothing personal.”
My stepmother’s words were like a warm river flowing through my heart, and this feeling could not be expressed by any words. Although my biological mother was gone, I still had the luxury of experiencing maternal love…
My stepmother was busy making the tea, so she simply told me where to put it. This was just something I wanted. Thinking about what Dong Xiaoye said, I opened the second drawer of my stepmother’s dresser and nervously took out the residence document.
“Chu Wenbo, marital status, remarried… Murong Yuxuan, marital status…” I was dazed for a second, “Married?!”
What is going on? Isn’t my stepmother supposed to be remarried after she married my old man? Why is her marital status ‘married’ rather than ‘remarried’? Is it because she never registered before?
Looking at the words “adopted” on Chu Yuan’s residence document, I was completely confused. But why is it adopted? Is it possible that my stepmother was worried that someone would discover that she gave birth to Chu Yuan before she was even married and that it would affect many things in her life, so she made some changes on Yuanyuan’s residence document?
But when my stepmother’s childish smile flashed in my mind, I immediately gave up this thought. Is she that selfish? No way! I scratched my head hard and gave myself two slaps to punish myself for even doubting my stepmother…
…
“Brother, did you touch the basket in my room? !” Chu Yuan ran into my room angrily with a blushed face and picked up the cactus plant. It seemed like she would hit me with it if I nod my head.
“Nowadays brand computers are very cheap…” I calmly closed the page I was browsing, calmly turned to look at Chu Yuan, and said evasively and mysteriously, “Yuanyuan, did you know that the man who lives opposite to us is the burglar the police officers were looking for.”
“Ah?! Is he?!” Chu Yuan was shocked. But this girl would not care about other people at all, and I guessed that she probably had already forgotten what Zhou Tian looked like. “You answer my question first!”
I pretended that I did not hear what she said and carried on, “It was me who noticed that he was very suspicious. The things he stole were hidden under his bed. After we exposed him, he tried to resist. He even injured officer Xiaoye…”
“Resisting arrest?” Hearing what I said, the dissatisfaction on her face immediately transformed into worries and nervousness. She hurriedly put down the cactus plant, and held my head with her two hands, turned my head left and right to check if I was injured, “Were you wounded by him? Where is it?”
She was my little sister after all. Though she was always cold, she still cared about me. My heart was moved, but at the same time, I felt ashamed. Grabbing her by the hand, I said with a smile, “It was not me, but officer Xiaoye. Her shoulder was injured by that man. But luckily, it was not some serious injury. However, a bowl of spoiled soup was spilled all over her body, so I lent her our bathroom and…”
Chu Yuan did not shake away from my hand. She just let me hold her hand. Her expression returned to the cold expression and started into my eyes as if she wanted to find out what I was thinking, “So, the basket in my room was carried to the bathroom by her?”
“Mhm,” I gritted my teeth and nodded embarrassedly, “by the way, I took a T-shirt from your closet and lent it to her. I’ll buy you another one someday.”
Chu Yuan frowned and asked in confusion, “She took my clothes, so why do you have to buy me a new one? What’s your relationship with her? Girlfriend? I thought you were going out with Liusu?”
“Who said that?!” I raised my hand and pinched Chu Yuan’s delicate small nose. It scared her into suddenly retreating one small step backward, “Liusu is my best buddy, you know?” I have explained this to countless people countless times already, but I did not know why, when I repeated this sentence this time, I actually felt a little guilty.
“Really?” Chu Yuan held her nose and looked at me in disbelief, “So you and sister Xiaoye… You and Miss Dong are…”
“No way! What are you thinking about? Including today, Dong Xiaoye and I just met twice. I also just knew her name today.” I stood up, stretched my body and then rubbed Chu Yuan’s head and smiled, “You can rest assured that your older brother will not have a girlfriend anytime soon, even if I really have a girlfriend, I won’t throw you out. So don’t worry that much, just stay here and write your novel. Haha… I think it’s time for the meal, let me cook something for you.”
“Do you pinkie swear!”
“Huh?” I just lifted my foot, but Chu Yuan suddenly pulled me back, “What?”
Chu Yuan slightly turned her cold face sideways, and her eyes flickered strange lights. She reached out her right hand to me with her tiny little finger curled up, and said, “Do… Do you pinkie swear…?”
After sending away Dong Xiaoye, it was already three o ‘clock in the afternoon. The doubts in my heart were like the small sparks gradually became exuberant on a prairie, and in the end, they were turned into the unstoppable prairie fire. I went straight back to my parents’ place. Upon opening the door, I heard my old man’s hearty laughter.
“Come, Xiao Nan, let me introduce someone to you,” my old man must have drunk alcohol at noon since his originally serious face was now red, and his behavior was also less proper. Pointing at a refined young man sitting opposite him, he said gruffly, “this was my student, Guo Xiang. Xiao Guo, this is my disappointing son, Chu Nan.”
My face blushed. Since when did I disappoint you?
This young man named Guo Xiang was really nervous in front of my old man. Surprisingly, his current reaction was exactly like me when I faced my old man. He got up and reached his hand out and smiled. “Hello! I’ve often heard Teacher talking about you. I’m glad to finally be able to meet you today. You indeed look very talented and handsome.”
I didn’t know whether he was shy, or whether he was just trying to say something to flatter the old man, there was a vague coy expression flashed on his face, which made me shudder. Why does he have such a feminine expression?
“You flatter me…”
Just when I was secretly thinking about why his name sounded so familiar, the old man frowned and said, “You don’t need to be too nice to him. He doesn’t compare to you at all. Xiao Guo, you have not seen my daughter, if it weren’t for the fact that you already had a girlfriend, I would really like to introduce you to Yuanyuan, and maybe you two might get married in the future.”
My old man definitely drank too much, otherwise, he definitely would not say those words. Looking at Guo Xiang’s blushed face, my heart suddenly skipped a beat without any reason. Subconsciously, I began to look at him more carefully. Frankly speaking, even from a man’s point of view, I still couldn’t find anything to complain about him.
His face was fine like jade, eyes bright like stars. I didn’t dare to say that he looked as handsome as Pan An, the most handsome man in Chinese history because I didn’t know what Pan An looked like. But he definitely fit the description of a “fine appearance”. His age should be around twenty-six or twenty-seven, with the simple and short hairstyle, and his gentle temperament and humble attitude, it made people unable to help themselves but have a good feeling about him. From this, I shouldn’t have any reason to dislike him, but I couldn’t explain the puzzling hostility in my heart.
Was it because he was much more handsome than me? If I were jealous of such a thing, I would have already committed suicide, but the strange thing was that I couldn’t resist wanting to compare myself to him…
“What are you talking about? Yuanyuan is only sixteen this year,” my stepmother suddenly hugged my arm, and rolled her eyes at the old man and said, “also, who said that my son is not handsome and talented? I’m telling you, I’ll not agree to Yuanyuan marrying other men other than her older brother.”
If it weren’t for the fact that my stepmother was only thirteen or fourteen years older than me, I’d have wondered if she was my biological mother…
What my stepmother said should have embarrassed Guo Xiang, but he did not seem to mind it. Instead, there was a genuine smile on his face. Looking at his smile, my hostility toward him also reduced slightly.
My old man didn’t dare to challenge my stepmother. He just pretended to clear his throat and then signaled Guo Xiang to sit down and sternly said to me, “You should learn from Xiao Guo. Three years after graduation, he already has a company.”
Before I even responded, my stepmother said, “How do you know that my son won’t be successful in the future? Maybe in another two years, he can buy a big company like Fengchang Corporate group!”
I… I really could not handle it anymore. If my stepmother carried on like this, I would probably die of embarrassment, “cough, mom, I need to put back Chu Yuan’s residence document, where do I put it?”
The old man also wanted my stepmother to stop talking, “Yuxuan, can you stop saying things like that? Please just go and make us another pot of tea.”
“Huh, if you don’t constantly say something to embarrass my son, you think I like to talk to you. Xiao Guo, I’m sorry that you have to see this,” my stepmother was not an unreasonable woman after all. She raised her dainty chin and said proudly, “My son is filial and well-behaved. He treats me as if I was his biological mother. So I don’t like other people to mock him. It is definitely nothing personal.”
My stepmother’s words were like a warm river flowing through my heart, and this feeling could not be expressed by any words. Although my biological mother was gone, I still had the luxury of experiencing maternal love…
My stepmother was busy making the tea, so she simply told me where to put it. This was just something I wanted. Thinking about what Dong Xiaoye said, I opened the second drawer of my stepmother’s dresser and nervously took out the residence document.
“Chu Wenbo, marital status, remarried… Murong Yuxuan, marital status…” I was dazed for a second, “Married?!”
What is going on? Isn’t my stepmother supposed to be remarried after she married my old man? Why is her marital status ‘married’ rather than ‘remarried’? Is it because she never registered before?
Looking at the words “adopted” on Chu Yuan’s residence document, I was completely confused. But why is it adopted? Is it possible that my stepmother was worried that someone would discover that she gave birth to Chu Yuan before she was even married and that it would affect many things in her life, so she made some changes on Yuanyuan’s residence document?
But when my stepmother’s childish smile flashed in my mind, I immediately gave up this thought. Is she that selfish? No way! I scratched my head hard and gave myself two slaps to punish myself for even doubting my stepmother…
…
“Brother, did you touch the basket in my room? !” Chu Yuan ran into my room angrily with a blushed face and picked up the cactus plant. It seemed like she would hit me with it if I nod my head.
“Nowadays brand computers are very cheap…” I calmly closed the page I was browsing, calmly turned to look at Chu Yuan, and said evasively and mysteriously, “Yuanyuan, did you know that the man who lives opposite to us is the burglar the police officers were looking for.”
“Ah?! Is he?!” Chu Yuan was shocked. But this girl would not care about other people at all, and I guessed that she probably had already forgotten what Zhou Tian looked like. “You answer my question first!”
I pretended that I did not hear what she said and carried on, “It was me who noticed that he was very suspicious. The things he stole were hidden under his bed. After we exposed him, he tried to resist. He even injured officer Xiaoye…”
“Resisting arrest?” Hearing what I said, the dissatisfaction on her face immediately transformed into worries and nervousness. She hurriedly put down the cactus plant, and held my head with her two hands, turned my head left and right to check if I was injured, “Were you wounded by him? Where is it?”
She was my little sister after all. Though she was always cold, she still cared about me. My heart was moved, but at the same time, I felt ashamed. Grabbing her by the hand, I said with a smile, “It was not me, but officer Xiaoye. Her shoulder was injured by that man. But luckily, it was not some serious injury. However, a bowl of spoiled soup was spilled all over her body, so I lent her our bathroom and…”
Chu Yuan did not shake away from my hand. She just let me hold her hand. Her expression returned to the cold expression and started into my eyes as if she wanted to find out what I was thinking, “So, the basket in my room was carried to the bathroom by her?”
“Mhm,” I gritted my teeth and nodded embarrassedly, “by the way, I took a T-shirt from your closet and lent it to her. I’ll buy you another one someday.”
Chu Yuan frowned and asked in confusion, “She took my clothes, so why do you have to buy me a new one? What’s your relationship with her? Girlfriend? I thought you were going out with Liusu?”
“Who said that?!” I raised my hand and pinched Chu Yuan’s delicate small nose. It scared her into suddenly retreating one small step backward, “Liusu is my best buddy, you know?” I have explained this to countless people countless times already, but I did not know why, when I repeated this sentence this time, I actually felt a little guilty.
“Really?” Chu Yuan held her nose and looked at me in disbelief, “So you and sister Xiaoye… You and Miss Dong are…”
“No way! What are you thinking about? Including today, Dong Xiaoye and I just met twice. I also just knew her name today.” I stood up, stretched my body and then rubbed Chu Yuan’s head and smiled, “You can rest assured that your older brother will not have a girlfriend anytime soon, even if I really have a girlfriend, I won’t throw you out. So don’t worry that much, just stay here and write your novel. Haha… I think it’s time for the meal, let me cook something for you.”
“Do you pinkie swear!”
“Huh?” I just lifted my foot, but Chu Yuan suddenly pulled me back, “What?”
Chu Yuan slightly turned her cold face sideways, and her eyes flickered strange lights. She reached out her right hand to me with her tiny little finger curled up, and said, “Do… Do you pinkie swear…?”
