Chapter 51

Chapter 51 (First Release)

Yu He was stunned, rooted to the spot.

In his imagination, parents capable of raising a child as academically excellent as Yu Qingyan would probably be teachers or doctors—highly educated, with a strong societal status and great at nurturing Yu Qingyan's studies.

But it seems that the reality is quite different.

Yu He asked, “What about now? Have they paid off the debt?”

Yu Qingyan looked at Yu He, “I do have my ulterior motives for not taking you to meet them, but it’s mostly because I’m afraid they would cling to you, and you don’t have the money.”

Yu He responded, “Oh, but I do have money.”

Yu Qingyan cracked a smile, “You can meet them first and think about whether you want to acknowledge them later. Yu He, what I want to tell you today is that your adoptive parents aren't good enough, and your biological parents are just so-so. Family bonds... they're not that easy to obtain.”

Yu Qingyan spoke faster and faster, "You wouldn’t be able to live that kind of life; otherwise, you'd end up like my classmates, either dropping out early in junior high or hanging out in internet cafes and pool halls, not taking life seriously.”

Yu He was momentarily at a loss for words.

What could he say? Tell Yu Qingyan that he too once had good grades? Or tell him that psychological issues affected his studies, and all of this was caused by his adoptive father, Yu Qingyan's biological father, Yu Shiquan?

Saying all of this seemed utterly pointless.

Yu He has never been one to hold grudges, and Yu Qingyan has never been an enemy to Yu He.

Comparing miseries is just too low.

He would never tell others about the times he got beaten up when he was a child.

That's just too embarrassing.

Both Yu He and Yu Qingyan are incredibly unlucky. There are plenty of competent parents in the world, yet neither of them managed to find one set. Even if they switched lives, they still wouldn't feel the warmth that should exist between blood relatives.

Who is more fortunate, and who is more unfortunate between him and Yu Qingyan?

Yu He really couldn’t say.

With a drooping gaze, Yu Qingyan's tears began to fall: “Yu He, Yu Shiquan didn’t forget that today is our birthday. They even prepared a lavish birthday banquet. The cook at home said that they’ve never prepared so meticulously even for your birthdays in the past.”

Yu He was taken aback, “Isn’t that a good thing?”

Yu Qingyan choked up: “Have you never wondered why they took me back to the Yu family and treated me so well?”

Standing in the winter breeze, Yu He hadn't felt very cold, but suddenly, he felt like he had fallen into an ice cellar.

Yu Qingyan said: “The physical examination he had you take wasn’t for genetic disease screening; it was for kidney donor matching. When your type didn’t match, he started to have suspicions, and that’s when he found me.”

Yu Shiquan might not be a good father, but to find his estranged son of twenty years just for a kidney is simply inhuman.

Angered, Yu He grabbed Yu Qingyan's hand and asked, “What do you think about all of this?”

Yu Qingyan shook his head: “I don't know. I have anemia, and the results from the last test didn't meet the requirements for donation... I was actually willing, but ever since the test results came out, they’ve always been cooking blood-enriching food at home. I don't like spinach, but they told me eating spinach is good for my health. My mom even bought me a lot of nutritional supplements for enriching blood, and today, even at the birthday banquet, there was sautéed spinach. I really find it hard to accept, but I don't know who to talk to about these things.”

Facing Yu Shiquan's blatant utilitarianism, Yu He was utterly speechless. "So, are you still living with the Yu family now?"

Yu Qingyan shook his head, "I've applied to stay on campus, so I can live in the dormitory."

Yu He sighed, "Alright, well, some things are better kept to yourself. Falling out with them openly wouldn’t do you any good either. The kidney is in your body; they surely can't force you to donate it, right?"

"I wanted to have just one real relative, just one would be enough, but I've realized that sincerity is not always reciprocated." Yu Qingyan lowered his eyes, the golden four-leaf clover blossoming on the watch box: "Yu He... actually, blood relation doesn’t really mean that much."

Yu Qingyan once returned to the Yu family with endless admiration for his biological parents, but after spending time with them, he realized that Yu Shiquan and Zhang Wan were filled with hypocritical exploitation towards him.

They brought him back to extend Yu Shiquan's life with a kidney transplant.

But Yu Qingyan was desperately longing for familial love.

Compared to Yu He, he lost hope in his biological parents earlier, so he shifted his hope for familial affection to Yu He.

He needed a relative.

Yu He is extroverted, carefree, and self-centered. He can quickly find common ground and make friends in new environments. Yu He doesn’t deliberately seek to be liked; his personality isn’t the type favored by elders, but nobody would be unwilling to be friends with him.

Yu Qingyan is different from Yu He. He naturally carries the label of a good student, appears gentle and indifferent, and isn’t aggressive. People also like Yu Qingyan, but this fondness is exchanged with his gentle and amiable demeanor. Yu Qingyan is always careful and cautious, walking on thin ice, afraid that a word or an action might annoy others.

Yu He pointed out at their first meeting that Yu Qingyan was pretentious. Yu He wasn’t wrong; Yu Qingyan was indeed putting on an act. He had to present himself as harmless and likable.

Perhaps because Yu He saw through him early on, Yu Qingyan occasionally becomes more casual when he is with Yu He.

In front of Yu He, he can put down his facade. Yu Qingyan can’t help but see Yu He as a family member.

But Yu He only intentionally annoys him.

The more Yu Qingyan thought about it, the more wronged he felt, and in a blink of an eye, tears dripped onto the leather watch box.

Yu Qingyan asked in a low voice, "Yu He, I don't want to be a part of their family anymore. Can you be my kin instead?"

Yu He, flustered and exasperated, rummaged through his pockets for quite a while but couldn’t find a piece of paper. Eventually, he just stretched out his sweater's sleeve and used it to gently wipe away Yu Qingyan's tears.

It was only upon closer inspection that Yu He noticed a discreet scar on the temple of Yu Qingyan’s forehead, which left him greatly surprised. Supporting his knees with his hands, he looked straight into Yu Qingyan’s eyes, “Yu Qingyan, I have a scar on my forehead as well.”

Yu Qingyan is shorter than Yu He. As Yu He bent down slightly, Yu Qingyan got a clear view of the scar on Yu He’s temple for the first time, realizing that it was almost identical to his own.

The scar on Yu Qingyan's temple was inflicted by a debt collector with a bottle, whereas the one on Yu He’s temple was caused by Yu Shiquan throwing an ashtray.

This subtle coincidence suddenly bridged the distance between Yu He and Yu Qingyan. More tacitly, neither of them spoke of the origin of their scars.

Both had endured hardships for each other; it seemed impossible to compare who had suffered more or less.

Twenty years ago, on the sixteenth day of the first lunar month, due to a nurse's negligence, Yu He and Yu Qingyan switched lives. Today, twenty years later, under the cold wind of Guanyun Mountain, they bid farewell to the past, letting go of their obsession with blood-related kinship, and choosing a new family member for themselves.

Yu He and Yu Qingyan walked side by side toward the manor’s gate, silent for a long while.

After a lengthy walk, Yu He suddenly asked, “Were you really crying just now because I upset you, or were you playing mind games with me?”

Yu Qingyan's voice was hoarse, “You really are infuriating.”

Yu He responded, “So, you weren’t playing mind games; you truly consider me family.”

Yu Qingyan confirmed, “I really do consider you family.”

In that moment, Yu He's precarious intelligence peaked. He caught the evasion in Yu Qingyan's words, stopped in his tracks, and scrutinized Yu Qingyan, “But you didn’t say you weren’t being cunning.”

Yu Qingyan responded with silence.

Isn’t that just playing tricks?

Yu He continued to walk forward with a sullen expression. If he couldn’t get clarity on this issue, he was certain he wouldn’t be able to sleep tonight.

Yu He suddenly stopped, and Yu Qingyan, lost in thought and unaware that Yu He had halted, bumped right into his back.

Yu He turned around to scrutinize Yu Qingyan once more, “You said that people from Hua Country wouldn’t deceive each other.”

The tip of Yu Qingyan’s nose turned a bright red as he warmed his hands by his breath, placing them by his lips. Amidst Yu He’s clear gaze, he calmly responded, “I played a trick.”

Annoyed, Yu He gave the tree trunk a hard kick.

He knew all too well that Yu Qingyan was not so fragile, not so easily brought to tears!

Yu Qingyan is craftier than a fox, probably because he has spent so much time with Yu Shiqian and Zhang Wan. He must have realized that those two are not suitable to be his family, so he turned to me to play the role of kin!

But, even though Yu Qingyan had manipulated Yu He before, wanting to earn his forgiveness without directly admitting his fault, he still staged this whole scene in the cold wind, making it seem as if Yu He had wronged him,

Which left Yu He feeling guilty for quite a while.

Isn’t this turning the tables?

Yu He was on the verge of exploding with rage, but thankfully he held onto his principles, not stooping to call Yu Qingyan ‘big brother’ just to appease him, which would have been a lifelong humiliation.

After kicking a flower bed in anger, Yu He thought furiously: Why is everyone around him as cunning as a fox, taking advantage of his gullibility!

*

After bringing Yu Qingyan back, the villa was already tidied up. Aunt Zhou had washed some fruit and placed it on the coffee table. Seeing Yu He return, she said, “The cake is in the fridge. Would you like to eat it now?”

Yu He shook his head, “Don’t trouble yourself anymore; go and take a rest.”

Aunt Zhou looked at Yu He with tender affection in her eyes, and asked with a smile, "Are you feeling sleepy from waking up too early?"

Yu He yawned, "A bit. Where is Mr. Fu?"

“He's gone upstairs,” Aunt Zhou set down the fruit tray and lowered her voice: “Mr. Fu is a bit tired. He’s never spent so long accompanying the uncles and elders of the Fu family before.”

Aunt Zhou gave Yu He a meaningful wink, “Mr. Fu is really doting on you, personally making an appearance to support you.”

Yu He felt a warm surge in his heart, and without waiting for the elevator, he hurriedly climbed the stairs, leaving behind a quick, “I’m going upstairs!”

"Slow down!" Aunt Zhou called after Yu He, "This child..."

He couldn't slow down.

Yu He climbed the stairs with swift and large strides.

He was eager to see Fu Yunzheng.

He wanted to tell Fu Yunzheng: On his twentieth birthday, he had gained a lover, friends, and a family.

It’s strange; they had only been apart for a short while, yet Yu He missed Fu Yunzheng terribly and had so many things he wanted to tell him.

Yu He had never missed someone this much before.

“One won’t feel yearning until they’ve never yearned; once they start to yearn, they’ll be plagued by yearning.”

It turns out, yearning doesn’t require physical separation; a momentary absence is enough to evoke deep longing.

His thoughts lingered fondly, from the day he left the Yu family, Yu He had never imagined that he could possess so much happiness.

From the towering mountain peak he fell, and Fu Yunzheng caught him.

Bestowing upon him a joy more beautiful than dreams themselves.

Above the vast expanse of the sky, amidst the boundless clouds stretching for thousands of miles, there now exists a cloud that belongs solely to Yu He.

Through the ebb and flow, in the vast sea, Yu He's cloud was not to be found on Mount Wu.

Yu He pushed open the door of the room, rushing toward his splendid dream.