Cheng Yue was so intimidated by his imposing presence that his hands trembled uncontrollably. But then he thought it was too humiliating, so he decided to go all out and pointed to the jade urn on the coffee table.
“This is my dad and mom. If you have the guts, just say hi to them. Call my mom’s name and see if she responds!”
The house fell silent for a moment, and Ji Xu almost laughed in exasperation.
What kind of brat is this?
Has Ke Miu really raised such a troublemaker over the years?
“What are you laughing at?” Cheng Yue, feeling scared, pulled back his neck.
“I’m laughing at how your mother gave birth to someone like you,” Ji Xu said, clearly annoyed, as he pointed to the documents on the coffee table.
“Hurry up and look at these. After you’ve seen them, pack up and stop wasting time.”
“Damn it! Who the hell are you? Why should I listen to you!” Cheng Yue was scared stiff by the man but still tried to maintain his composure, standing tall and glaring at him.
Ji Xu sneered, then reached out and pressed down on the back of Cheng Yue’s neck, pinning him so he couldn’t move.
He leaned in close to Cheng Yue’s ear and said, “You’d better behave.”
“Hey! It hurts, it hurts…” Cheng Yue whimpered, twisting his arm painfully, begging for mercy.
Ji Xu glanced at the wall clock, relaxed his grip, and lifted Cheng Yue up.
“Pack your things.”
Cheng Yue, holding his arm and feeling aggrieved, glanced at Ji Xu’s eyes. Swallowing hard, he mumbled to himself and carefully picked up the jade urn, hugging it tightly.
Ji Xu sat on the sofa, watching him. Once Cheng Yue was holding the urn, he still didn’t move. “Where’s your luggage?”
Cheng Yue, carefully cradling the urn, sniffled.
“I left it at the airport.”
Actually, he hadn’t left it at the airport; he hadn’t had the chance to retrieve it. As soon as his phone turned on after landing, the hospital called. By the time he arrived, the idiots had already cremated his parents.
Cheng Yue looked down at the urn, tears welling up in his eyes as he thought about not even getting to see their bodies. He quickly blinked them away, determined not to let the man on the sofa see him break down.
His mother had taught him that crying should be done in private, not in front of others.
“Alright, let’s go,” Ji Xu said, frowning as he stood up from the sofa and headed towards the door.
When he reached the halfway point, he heard no movement and turned to see Cheng Yue still standing in the living room.
Cheng Yue looked around the house, his eyes misty.
Before today, he had never imagined he would be the one to leave his home voluntarily. Everything in the house was unchanged, but it felt emptier than ever before.
Ji Xu, observing Cheng Yue’s unmoving form and the now lifeless big house, sighed after a long silence.
He walked over, patted Cheng Yue’s back, and said, “Come on.”
Cheng Yue sniffled, wiped his eyes with his sleeve, and walked out of the house without looking back, clutching the urn.
Ji Xu raised his eyebrows in surprise at his retreating figure and followed him outside.
“Where are we going?” Cheng Yue asked as he saw Ji Xu follow him out.
Ji Xu glanced at Cheng Yue’s still-red eyes and his forced calm expression. Seeing that he seemed reasonably sensible, he pointed to a car outside the yard.
“Get in the car first.”
Ji Xu didn’t even look at him as he opened the car door and got in.
Cheng Yue touched the jade urn in his arms, his brow furrowing. He then got into the car and, after a while of nervously watching, turned to look at Ji Xu, who was driving. He hesitated and said, “Um… Can I see what my mom sent you?”
Ji Xu, focused on the road ahead, clicked his tongue without looking at Cheng Yue.
“So now you realize I might be here to kidnap you? Clever move.”
Cheng Yue: “!”
Cheng Yue’s face turned pale in an instant.
“You’re so clueless to the point that it’s almost unbearable,” Ji Xu said, glancing at him. “It’s in the back seat. Get it yourself.”
Cheng Yue’s face changed colors rapidly—from white to green to red—finally feeling deeply embarrassed. He turned around and grabbed the brown leather file from the back seat.
The file contained only a thin letter and a photograph of himself.
The handwriting on the letter was messy, with every stroke pressing hard into the paper, almost tearing it.
It was definitely his mother’s handwriting.
Cheng Yue recognized it instantly. Only his mother’s handwriting was so ugly yet distinctive.
“I will take care of you until you are of age,” Ji Xu suddenly said as he focused on the road.
“I don’t need you to take care of me,” Cheng Yue said, his hand trembling as he held the letter, feeling like his nose was about to run.
“I don’t want to either,” Ji Xu said, pulling over and turning to face Cheng Yue. He handed him a tissue from the glove compartment.
“But unfortunately, from a legal standpoint, I’m your only guardian. Bear with it, and I’ll try to do the same.”
Cheng Yue took the tissue and wiped his nose.
Seeing Cheng Yue’s actions, Ji Xu quickly opened the window and glanced outside, urging, “Hurry up and get out of the car.”
Cheng Yue, with his nose blocked, turned his head in confusion and asked, “Huh?”
“Get your luggage,” Ji Xu said, opening the car door and getting out.
Cheng Yue, holding the tissue against his nose, was startled by the loud slamming of the car door, causing him to fumble with the tissue. He quickly gathered it up, stuffed it in his hand, and got out of the car.
The airport was crowded, and Cheng Yue, holding the jade urn tightly, carefully maneuvered through the throngs of people, moving cautiously with each step.
Ji Xu, with his tall stature and long strides, walked briskly, while Cheng Yue, gripping the urn tightly, tried to keep up.
“Where’s your luggage?” Ji Xu asked.
Cheng Yue looked around. Since he went straight to the hospital right after getting off the plane the day before yesterday, he wasn’t sure where his luggage had ended up. It should have been on the conveyor belt, but now he had no idea where it was.
As he stood by the conveyor belt, checking each item, Cheng Yue realized Ji Xu was nowhere to be seen.
With so many people and so much luggage around, and holding the jade urn in his arms, he dared not move around too much and could only look around anxiously.
“Cheng Yue.”
Ji Xu’s voice came from somewhere near the maintenance staff room, calling out to Cheng Yue, who was looking worried.
When Cheng Yue looked over, Ji Xu called again, “Come here.”
Relieved, Cheng Yue quickened his pace and walked over, looking up at Ji Xu. “Where did you go?”
“Come over and check the information,” Ji Xu said, guiding him to a staff member.
After Cheng Yue verified the information, the staff member led them to four large silver suitcases.
“These should be the ones,” the staff member said, helping them roll out all four suitcases.
Cheng Yue, holding the urn, was unable to take over, so he just thanked the staff member.
Ji Xu looked at Cheng Yue’s yellow hair and the many holes in his work pants with some surprise. This kid didn’t seem like someone who would say thank you—was he really that different from his appearance?
“Get moving, stop staring at me,” Cheng Yue said, rolling his eyes. Holding the urn with one hand, he tried to lift one of the small suitcases with the other.
Ji Xu: “……”
This little rascal knows how to boss people around.
Ji Xu drove an SUV with a spacious trunk and high doors. He managed to fit two suitcases in the trunk, a small one, and threw a large one onto the back seat. After closing the rear door, he pulled out a handkerchief from his pocket and meticulously wiped his hands clean.
Cheng Yue watched him, astonished, as he realized this man, who looked quite rugged, had such delicate habits.
Is anyone still using handkerchiefs these days?
“Is the car door broken?” Ji Xu asked, looking at Cheng Yue.
“Huh?” Cheng Yue, distracted by Ji Xu’s hand-wiping, instinctively tried to open the car door.
The door opened easily.
Cheng Yue looked at it in confusion and said, “No, it’s perfectly fine.”
“I thought you were praying by the car door,” Ji Xu said expressionlessly, his tone unrelenting. “Turns out it opens.”
“Hey…” Cheng Yue was taken aback. “You’ve got quite a sharp tongue.”
“Well, it’s not as sharp as your brain,” Ji Xu retorted, getting into the driver’s seat.
Cheng Yue, fuming, slammed the car door shut. He looked out through the car window at the road ahead.
“Where are we going now?”
Ji Xu frowned, gripping the steering wheel tightly. He had been thinking about this question the whole way. It was indeed a problem where to take Cheng Yue. This wasn’t a toy; it was a living person, and not an easy one at that.
He had lived alone for decades, and suddenly having someone else in his home was making him even more frustrated.
“Where to, guardian?” Cheng Yue asked again when Ji Xu didn’t respond.
“I’m starving!”
Ji Xu was just about to consider renting a place for Cheng Yue to stay temporarily when his phone rang. With the red light ahead, he stopped the car and pulled out his phone.
The caller ID showed it was his father.
Seeing Ji Xu’s silence, Cheng Yue grew even more impatient.
Ji Xu turned to Cheng Yue, pointing at the phone with a frown, signaling him to be quiet.
“Dad,” Ji Xu answered the call.
“Off work?” His father’s voice was loud and filled with the chirping of birds in the background.
“Yes,” Ji Xu replied, glancing at Cheng Yue, who was resting his neck against the back of the seat.
Suddenly, an idea struck him.
He could leave this kid with his father. His father had been a high school teacher all his life, and dealing with an unmanageable troublemaker would be just another way to pass the time.
“Then come over and visit. I bought bitter melon and bananas, just cooked them,” his father said, sounding serious while playing with the birds in the cage.
“Aunt Yang said it’s good for the lungs. Bring your smoking lungs over.”
Ji Xu’s stomach suddenly hurt as he recalled his father serving him dragon fruit and meatballs the other day.
“Who’s that?” Cheng Yue finally asked, unable to hold back.
“Your uncle*,” Ji Xu said, ending the call.
*T/N: Can also be used as an insult, that’s why Cheng Yue thought like that
“You just insult anyone, don’t you?” Cheng Yue glared at him.
“Actually, it really was your uncle,” Ji Xu said, watching the traffic light turn green. He pressed the gas pedal and drove forward, thinking to himself that this troublemaker would finally be out of his hair.
