VGAB Chapter 41

“No name-calling,” Qi Heng lightly tapped Qi Rui’s head, but he wasn’t particularly angry. After all, according to the report from the steward, it was true that the girl had been bothering Qi Rui.

Qi Rui obediently nodded and hesitantly asked, “So, Uncle, have you agreed to come and watch the competition?”

Qi Han, wiping his hands, sat down at the table and inquired, “What competition is my brother going to watch?”

“Qi Rui is participating in the school’s sports day,” Qi Heng calmly explained, “He achieved first place in his grade, and I promised to grant him one request.”

“Uncle!” Qi Rui’s eyes sparkled with joy. “So, you’ve agreed to it?”

“I can go watch,” Qi Heng glanced at him, “But if you don’t achieve a good result—”

Qi Rui quickly raised his hand and swore, “I absolutely won’t embarrass Uncle.”

“Alright, let’s eat.”

Qi Rui chuckled and, like a thief, rushed back to his room right after dinner.

“Qi Han, come with me to the study.”

“Yes.” Qi Han hurriedly followed his steps. In the study, Qi Heng sat down at his desk and tossed a plan onto the table.

“Take a look at this plan. Do you see any issues?”

Qi Han picked it up and carefully went through it page by page. His brows furrowed involuntarily as he read.

Quickly, he shook his head decisively.

“This plan won’t work. It’s clear that it was written by a novice who only knows the theory… In short, the person who wrote this plan only considered the location factors, without thinking about the residents’ spending capacity in the area.”

Qi Han scathingly critiqued the entire plan.

Qi Heng glanced at him and, with a mischievous tone, said, “This plan was written by you when you were sixteen.”

“Huh?” Qi Han’s hand paused, his expression showing some bewilderment. “Was I that naive at sixteen?”

Qi Heng walked over and affectionately ruffled his hair. “Don’t worry, your older brother doesn’t mind if you’re a bit naive. Tomorrow, you can go back to the company and continue working. You used to love managing the company in the past.”

“I also feel that I used to enjoy managing the company,” Qi Han looked at his older brother with complete trust in his eyes. “Because even after losing my memory, I still remember these things. So, in the past, I must have enjoyed it.”

Qi Heng had no guilt about encouraging a child with amnesia and simply patted his shoulder, saying, “Your older brother believes in your abilities. Do your best.”

As it turned out, even after his amnesia, Qi Han’s instinct for managing the company hadn’t faded. Although he was a bit rusty in the beginning and hesitated on certain management decisions, just four or five days later, he was back to being exactly as he was before the memory loss.

Except for certain contracts involving large sums of money, which required repeated consultations with Qi Heng.

It was unclear what Qi Han had experienced outside, but when he returned, he seemed to have developed a slightly frugal attitude, as if he had become a bit more thrifty.

The spring school sports day that Qi Rui was participating in was scheduled for mid-April.

On the morning of the school sports day, the steward, Sun Yi, made sure to have two eggs cooked for Qi Rui.

“Young Master, don’t get too nervous during the competition. The ranking isn’t that important in these events,” the steward earnestly advised. “You’ve already done excellently by coming in first place in the mid-term exams.”

Qi Rui raised an eyebrow, “No, I can’t settle for anything less. I’ve invited Uncle to watch, so I must secure the first place.”

Coming in second place wouldn’t do; it would be embarrassing.

As they were talking, footsteps could be heard, and Qi Rui looked up to see his Uncle and Third Uncle walking down.

“Good morning, Uncle and Third Uncle,” Qi Rui greeted obediently, then turned to Qi Han, “Third Uncle, aren’t you going to the company today?”

“There’s nothing urgent at the company today, so I can go watch your competition with elder brother,” Qi Han replied with a cheerful smile.

Since his return after losing his memory, Qi Han’s demeanor has changed significantly. Qi Rui noticed that his uncle’s reactions were different from the initial ones. However, he still thought that his third uncle had become somewhat less sharp since the memory loss. He believed everything Uncle said and seemed to lack the same level of independent thought he had before.

“Master, your car is ready,” Steward Sun Yi, said respectfully as he put down his phone.

Qi Heng gave a distant glance at the two of them and said, “Let’s go.”

Upon arrival at the school, many cars were already parked at the entrance. It seemed that Qi Rui’s statement was accurate; other parents had indeed come to watch. After all, he was still a child and liked to compare himself to others.

The car came to a slow stop, and the driver in the front seat got out, opening the rear car door. Qi Heng and Qi Han exited from opposite sides of the vehicle.

“Uncle,” Qi Rui hopped out of the car from the front seat and eagerly approached Qi Heng. He pointed to a bulletin board not far from the school gate and said, “Over there is the outstanding students’ bulletin board I told you about, with my photo posted on it.”

Qi Han couldn’t stand the look of Qi Rui showing off. He had a long memory, and he still remembered how Qi Rui treated him like a mentally challenged person when he first returned.

So, upon seeing Qi Rui’s triumphant expression, Qi Han couldn’t help but sarcastically remark, “Isn’t it just being an outstanding student for once? I was an outstanding student every year back in my time.”

Qi Rui felt frustrated, but he quickly found a counterargument. “Third Uncle, you studied over a decade ago. The exam questions weren’t as difficult as they are now, so it’s easier to be an outstanding student.”

“Are you saying I’m old?” Qi Han flashed a threatening smile.

“Qi Rui!” a coquettish voice came from behind, and Qi Han’s gaze changed as he looked at the girl. He could tell from Qi Rui’s expression that things had taken a turn.

Qi Rui felt his scalp tingle and quickly caught up with Qi Heng. “Uncle, please believe me, I really don’t know her.”

Oh no, this ugly girl was causing him trouble. He didn’t want his uncle to break his leg over something as silly as young love.

“Qi Rui, why are you ignoring me?” the girl complained as she ran up to Qi Rui and grabbed his arm.

Qi Rui quickly realized and pushed her hand away. “An Ruoxi, can’t you see I’m not interested in you?”

He was quite straightforward about it.

Qi Rui’s voice was a bit loud, and all the parents and students around heard it, causing them to stop and stare at the two of them from time to time.

An Ruoxi’s smile faltered.

“Qi Rui, why are you so heartless? Don’t you know I transferred to this school just for you?”

“What does that have to do with me?” Qi Rui replied impatiently.

“Child, young boys should have some manners,” a nearby male parent chimed in with a smile.

“Why should I care about your business?” Qi Rui rolled his eyes in annoyance and, realizing that his uncle and third uncle had already reached the notice board, quickly picked up his pace and ran inside.

“Qi Rui!” An Ruoxi shouted, but Qi Rui didn’t even look back, leaving her infuriated.

“Uncle,” Qi Rui squeezed between Qi Han and Qi Heng, pointing to the photo he had seen countless times, “Look, I’m here.”

In the photo, Qi Rui had a buzz cut and a goofy grin, looking quite silly, with a motto written underneath.

“Listen to Uncle, and you’ll never go wrong,” Qi Han read it out, looking at Qi Rui with a smirk, thinking that this brown-noser was really good at pleasing people.

However, as an adult, he couldn’t butter up his elder brother as shamelessly as Qi Rui did. One small mistake could leave an impression of immaturity.

“Let’s go to your competition area,” Qi Heng said, with no visible emotions on his face.

Qi Rui had signed up for the 800-meter race and relay, and he led Qi Heng and Qi Han to the field. By the field, many people had already gathered, and students were setting up chairs on the field.

“There’s a stage over there; I’ll be giving a speech on it later,” Qi Rui pointed to a nearby podium with a red carpet. The stage was already adorned with numerous flower pots, and there was a row of seats.

“Qi Rui!” A few boys came over, chatting and laughing, “You finally made it. Your speech is with the teacher; he’s been looking for you everywhere.”

The boys looked at the two people next to Qi Rui and seemed surprised. “Qi Rui, are these two your family?”

Qi Rui nodded, “Yes, these are my—”

Before he could finish his sentence, the boys interrupted him, and they cheerfully greeted Qi Heng and Qi Han, “Hello, brothers! We are Qi Rui’s classmates.”

After their cheerful greetings, the boys couldn’t help but think privately. No wonder Qi Rui was the school’s heartthrob. With Qi Rui’s and his two older brothers’ genetics, they all seemed rather plain in comparison.

Qi Rui’s face turned red with embarrassment. “Yu Fan, why are you guys shouting like that? These are my big uncle and third uncle.”

 

Yu Fan and the others were wide-eyed in shock and turned to look at Qi Heng and Qi Han. “You mean the stern old man who threatens to break your legs if you date early? Is that your big uncle?”

All of them looked at Qi Rui, thinking he must have some vision problems to call someone who looked like a divine being an old man. Qi Rui was seething with anger.

“Oh?” Qi Han seized the opportunity and his eyes lit up. “Does he usually talk about my elder brother like this to you? Did he say anything else?”

“Uncle!” Qi Rui rushed forward, covering Yu Fan’s mouth and pleading desperately, “Don’t listen to his nonsense. Yu Fan was my middle school classmate, and I was immature back then. I didn’t understand your good intentions. I absolutely don’t think like that now.”

“When I was in middle school, I certainly wasn’t as irritating as you, often causing trouble for my elder brother,” Qi Han stabbed Qi Rui silently, never missing an opportunity to contrast his own virtues with Qi Rui’s shortcomings.

Qi Rui glared at him, reminiscing for the umpteenth time about the third uncle he had before amnesia. Despite being a bit cold and reserved, that third uncle never poked at his scars like this.

“Um, um, um…” Yu Fan removed Qi Rui’s hand from his mouth, “I misspoke. Is it necessary to smother me?”

He then turned to Qi Heng and Qi Han, explaining, “Big Uncle and Third Uncle, please don’t misunderstand. I can vouch that Qi Rui really said those things in middle school. But since he entered high school, he’s always bragging about how good you treat him.”

The other boys nodded in agreement.

“Why are you all calling him ‘Big Uncle’?” Qi Rui protested, “He’s my Big Uncle, not yours.”

“We’re good friends, so your Big Uncle and Third Uncle are like uncles to all of us,” Yu Fan chuckled, putting his arm around Qi Rui’s shoulder and waved to Qi Heng and Qi Han, “Big Uncle and Third Uncle, we’ll take Qi Rui for pre-race preparations.”

“These kids are quite interesting,” Qi Han chuckled. Then, as if he remembered something, he nervously asked, “Elder Brother, when I was in school, I probably didn’t cause you as much trouble as Qi Rui does, right?”

Qi Heng looked at him inexplicably, feeling that Qi Han had become too childish after losing his memory, constantly comparing himself to Qi Rui.

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