Chapter 61

Chapter 61

"068"

Xiao Lancui noticed that Xiao Liqin wasn't surprised by his words—if anything, he had the calm composure of someone who'd been waiting for exactly this.

Xiao Lancui could almost conclude now that Xiao Liqin's obsession with Xiao Anfeng went far beyond what the original text described as mere possessiveness.

Xiao Liqin intended to erase everyone from Xiao Anfeng's life.

Xiao Jingli was one of them, along with Father and Mother Xie, Xie Jingfang, Xiao Mian, and even Zhao Lan—Xiao Anfeng's biological mother he hadn't yet reunited with. He wanted Xiao Anfeng to have no one but him—to become truly isolated, relying only on him for the rest of his life, belonging to him completely.

This was Xiao Liqin's true purpose in bringing Xiao Anfeng to the Xie household today.

Comfort, finding family—those were just his high-sounding excuses to lure Xiao Anfeng in.

Xiao Lancui decided to turn the tables, using Xiao Liqin's plan to take down both father and son together.

Xiao Lancui's gaze fell on Xiao Anfeng's stiff neck, his face nearly pressed against the table.

He calmly piled on, "You already discovered I was your real brother back when Xiao Anfeng was kidnapped."

One stone stirred up a thousand ripples.

Xie Jingfang and Xiao Mian were shocked, Father and Mother Xie were astonished, and even Xiao Anfeng lifted his head in bewilderment, his swollen, peach-sized eyes fixed on Xiao Liqin in surprise.

Xiao Liqin, exactly as Xiao Lancui had predicted, took up the thread and confirmed it. "That's right." He tightened his grip on Xiao Anfeng's hand, no longer looking at Xiao Lancui, and gave a slight bow toward Xie Jingfang. "I'm sorry, Mom. Anfeng is my most important brother. I thought it over for a long time before deciding to keep it from you."

Xie Jingfang remained seated, her emotions unexpectedly calm, though the color had drained from her face, leaving it deathly white.

She knew Xiao Liqin had kept things from her, but she never imagined he'd kept it hidden for so long.

Xiao Anfeng was kidnapped when Xiao Lancui was six.

Back then, she hadn't yet poisoned Xiao Lancui. Back then, she hadn't yet poisoned Xiao Lancui!!!!

Xiao Liqin could have prevented it, yet he'd hidden it from her for fourteen years!!!!!

Xie Jingfang rose without a word. The dining room fell deathly silent. Mother Xie called out in worry, "Fangfang..."

Xie Jingfang walked step by step to Xiao Liqin, raised her hand, and slapped him hard on the right cheek.

"I'm your mother!"

The gauze on Xiao Liqin's lips had already been removed, and the surgical wounds had healed quite well. But with that slap, several of the tightened stitches burst open, and blood seeped from the wounds again.

Xiao Anfeng cried out, "Brother!" He sprang up and immediately wiped Xiao Liqin's lips with his bare hands. Blood instantly stained his fingers. Panicking, he looked up—Xiao Liqin felt the soft warmth of his touch, lowered his eyes, and smiled at him, whispering, "It's fine."

"How can it be fine? The stitches split open and it's bleeding again!" Xiao Anfeng's eyes reddened again. He turned back, clenching his jaw at Xie Jingfang. "Mom, you've gone too far! It's all my fault—take it out on me instead..."

He saw the icy coldness in Xie Jingfang's eyes, and the rest of his words caught in his throat. It felt like a handful of fish bones were stuck in his throat, a fine, dense ache spreading through him.

Xie Jingfang was looking at him with such a strange look in her eyes...

That's when Xiao Anfeng panicked.

When he'd stormed out of the Xiao household that day, half of it was out of spite, and half was because he was certain that Xie Jingfang would come looking for him.

He refused to believe that twenty-one years of mother-son bond could be outweighed by that meaningless blood relation between Xie Jingfang and Xiao Lancui.

Xie Jingfang loved him most—hadn't she been willing to poison Xiao Lancui for him?

Xiao Anfeng had always been certain of this, waiting for Xie Jingfang to calm down before she came for him.

But now, in horror, he realized—Xie Jingfang didn't love him anymore. She truly didn't love him. She didn't want him anymore.

Xiao Anfeng instinctively reached out for Xie Jingfang's hand. "Mom..."

"I'm not your mother." Xie Jingfang cut him off coolly. She completely ignored Xiao Anfeng, speaking to Xiao Liqin alone, word by word.

"The moment you were born, your father used the company as an excuse to go abroad. Even when he came back when you were two, he never cared for you—I was the one who raised you." Xie Jingfang's palm stung terribly. The force of the slap rebounded into her own hand, a searing pain like every bone in her fingers had shattered.

She suddenly laughed. "This is the fine son I raised through all that hardship."

Xiao Liqin's face showed no emotion. His gaze met Xiao Lancui's as he said, "I didn't think it through, but this has nothing to do with Anfeng. He's a victim too. Mom, don't you think you're being too cruel, too harsh on him? He's only twenty-one, for God's sake..."

"Get out!" Xie Jingfang flung her hand toward the door. "Get out of my house, and take that bastard child with you!"

Tears burst from Xiao Anfeng's eyes. He stared at Xie Jingfang in disbelief, unable to accept that such hurtful words could come from the mother he loved more than anyone.

For a moment, a vicious thought crossed his mind.

You love your biological son so much, do you? I'll expose how you once tried to poison Xiao Lancui, and pushed him into the sea where he nearly died. Do you think the son you cherish like a treasure will still want you after that?

Xiao Anfeng clenched his fists and immediately looked at Xiao Lancui.

He met the deep, dark depths of Xiao Lancui's eyes.

Those dark eyes—cold, indifferent, looking down from above. They seemed to see him, yet didn't really see him at all.

His heart lurched. He swallowed the words on his tongue and gripped Xiao Liqin's hand tightly.

Xiao Liqin responded immediately, gripping his hand firmly and walking away. "Fine," he said to Xie Jingfang. "We'll get out."

Father Xie didn't stop them either. When the dining room fell quiet again, he asked the nanny to bring out the soup and sighed. "It's cold out. Have some hot soup to warm up."

Xie Jingfang was still clenching her fists. Xiao Lancui walked over, gently pried her hand open, and looked down at her deep-red palm. "Let me put some ointment on it first."

Xie Jingfang shook her head, curving her lips into a smile. "It's fine. Mom's feeling great right now. Come on, let's have some soup—I can down two bowls today."

She wasn't lying. She really did drink two bowls. After venting, she suddenly felt incredibly light. Xiao Liqin, Xiao Anfeng—she didn't give a damn about any of them anymore.

After the meal, she even played a game of chess with Father Xie, though she got wiped out. Then Xiao Lancui took over, and it was Father Xie who got wiped out.

Xiao Lancui didn't go easy on him. Someone like Father Xie, who had long held a high position, preferred people with real talent.

Sure enough, after several games, Father Xie was left wanting more. Mother Xie had to urge him several times before he reluctantly went to bed, reminding Xiao Lancui to continue in the morning.

Xiao Lancui agreed. As he gathered the chess pieces, Xiao Mian had already been sent off to bed by Xie Jingfang. She had stayed by his side watching the games, and only now said, "You can stay in my room tonight." She hesitated, struggling to get the words out, then finally said, "The other room is Xiao Anfeng's..."

Xiao Lancui said, "Sure."

It wasn't that he refused to stay in the room Xiao Anfeng had used—it was mainly because the original text mentioned once that when Xiao Liqin had stayed overnight at the Xie household, there weren't enough rooms, so he'd stayed in Xiao Anfeng's room.

In the middle of the night, gazing at Xiao Anfeng's sleeping face, he'd quietly jerked off once.

As for the blank spaces—who knows how many more times.

Xiao Liqin's feelings for Xiao Anfeng began only after he discovered they weren't biological brothers, but for years before that, they had lived as true brothers. Falling for Xiao Anfeng, who was indistinguishable from a real brother, was a violation of basic human decency.

That room, that bed—Xiao Lancui naturally refused to stay there.

Xie Jingfang escorted Xiao Lancui to the room before leaving. This had been Xie Jingfang's room before her marriage; decades later, the furnishings were unchanged and the place was spotless.

On the desk was a vase of fresh lisianthus blooms, Xie Jingfang's favorite flower. It was unclear whether they'd been put out because she was coming home today, or whether Xie's mother, as she did every day, still treated her daughter as if she lived there and kept a fresh vase of her favorite flowers.

Xiao Lancui lightly pinched a pale pink petal with his index finger, unable to associate it with the mother he'd never met. He'd never had that chance. His mind drifted instead to Lu Ao.

In the two years before Lu Ao went to the military camp to win military honors, there was a lotus pond in the imperial palace that bloomed beautifully in summer. Every day, Lu Ao would sneak a flower and place it in a vase in Xiao Lancui's small courtyard.

He'd rigged up a bamboo tube as long as an arm, packed with ice to keep the flowers fresh. He could only sneak out of the palace at night, yet the lotus flowers were always as fresh as the moment they were picked.

Xiao Lancui had scolded Lu Ao many times for wasting time, but the young man would just tug his sleeve and grin, "Okay, I won't do it again."

Next time, he did it anyway.

Lu Ao never talked back to him. But now, thinking back—

his actions told a different story.

Frustration flared in Xiao Lancui's chest, and even after a shower, it hadn't cooled. He grabbed his phone and, as usual, checked WeChat first.

The little pup was obedient, having sent "Good night, brother" right on time half an hour ago.

He remembered the video call in the early hours last time, and, like setting a trap, sent Lu Ao a video request.

He picked up instantly.

On screen, the young man was in the bathroom, bare-chested, still glistening with water droplets. He was holding the phone in one hand and a towel in the other, drying his hair.

Lu Ao immediately leaned into the camera, his handsome features filling the screen, and asked anxiously, "Brother, are you feeling unwell? Your face looks awful!"

Xiao Lancui knew he did look bad.

His sweet little Pomeranian had suddenly picked up the same bad habit as that wolf—no wonder he looked like crap.

He should have caught it last time: Lu Ao also said one thing and did another.

He'd said good night, but was actually still in the kitchen baking bread.

And today, he was taking a shower.

Xiao Lancui didn't answer, and Lu Ao panicked. "Brother, where are you? I'm coming over right now!"

Seeing him grab his clothes and head out, Xiao Lancui finally spoke. "You're not being obedient."

Lu Ao stopped, confused. "How am I not being obedient?"

Xiao Lancui couldn't answer. He knew he was just venting on the wrong person. Lu Ao wasn't that wolf—he'd confused him with that wolf again.

"Sorry." Xiao Lancui leaned back against the soft cushion, rubbing his forehead, feeling uncomfortable.

He was still affected by what Xie's mother had said.

If Lu Ao really hated him, really resented him to the bone, then he'd truly failed as a person. In his short life, the only person he'd ever treated with genuine sincerity—could that person really hate him that much, more than any enemy?

Even those who died by his hand, even if they were reborn, their most extreme retaliation would only be to grind his bones to dust.

But Lu Ao, even after death, had sent assassins to wipe him out completely, ensuring even his name wouldn't survive.

"Brother? Brother!"

On the screen, Lu Ao was already fully dressed and about to leave, his voice urgent. "Where exactly are you?"

"Lu Ao." Xiao Lancui snapped out of it, looking at him through the screen. Even he hadn't expected to make such a childish request. "Close your eyes."

Lu Ao shut them instantly.

Xiao Lancui studied the face that was so alike, yet not, gripping his phone tightly, and called out again, "Lu Ao."

Lu Ao responded instantly. "I'm here. What is it, brother?"

With his eyes closed, his face was full of worry, and he asked urgently, "Can you tell me where you are now?"

See? Not the same person.

This face was full of concern, full of care.

That face only ever wanted to kill him.

Xiao Lancui reached out to touch the feature that was most alike—that cold, cruel, high-bridged nose. His fingertip was already on the screen, but he stopped.

He withdrew his hand, resting it on the blanket, and said, "Open your eyes. I'm fine, I just suddenly..."

He tilted his head slightly, meeting the young man's dark eyes as they opened, and a small smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. "I really missed you."