Chapter 26
With no work scheduled in June, Ji Tingqian found himself at leisure. Staying home alone wasn’t exactly boring, but it certainly wasn’t thrilling either. So, he decided to spend a couple of days at the old family estate. As luck would have it, his eldest brother, Ji Lizhuo, was there too.
Ji Lizhuo bore a striking resemblance to Ji Tingqian in his features; one glance made their brotherhood obvious. A few years older, thirty-two this year, Ji Lizhuo was in the prime of his masculine charm. Yet, always consumed by his career, he remained unmarried.
Truth be told, their meeting was no coincidence at all. Ji Lizhuo had known Ji Tingqian was coming and had been waiting for him there.
The two brothers hadn’t had a heart-to-heart in quite some time. In front of Ji Lizhuo, Ji Tingqian never acted like a younger brother at all; beyond calling him “older brother,” he maintained an impassive demeanor that made it impossible to tell which of the two was more formidable. Dong Ruman had once joked, wondering what strange breed she had given birth to—two boys who seemed prematurely aged and utterly exasperating.
Certain matters had been buried deep within Ji Tingqian’s heart for some time now, and today, facing Ji Lizhuo directly, was the perfect opportunity to finally speak them aloud.
The two sat at a wooden table beside a floor-to-ceiling window. Outside, a scorching sun hung high above a vast expanse of emerald-green grass, while inside, cool air conditioning provided relief. On the table rested chilled drinks, light snacks, and fresh fruits.
“Older Brother,” Ji Tingqian said, his gaze heavy and fixed intently on Ji Lizhuo, as if trying to pierce through the cold mask to uncover the true emotions beneath. For now, he was merely testing the waters. “Something happened after you escorted me to my room during the banquet this past March.”
Ji Lizhuo took a sip of his iced tea and asked, “What’s wrong?”
“Someone entered the room.” Ji Tingqian’s fingers curled slightly as he rubbed the surface of the table.
It was only later that Ji Tingqian realized something had been off about that incident. At the time, he had left together with Ji Lizhuo. Because he was in his brother’s company, Ji Tingqian had drunk a few extra glasses. Though his tolerance for alcohol was usually excellent, he had become intoxicated unusually fast that day, feeling pleasantly lightheaded within moments. What followed was a gap in his memory, yet one thing remained crystal clear: it was absolutely Ji Lizhuo who had escorted him into the hotel room.
It was Ji Lizhuo who had brought him into that room—no one else. Ji Tingqian simply could not believe that his normally cautious older brother would make such a mistake, allowing an outsider the opportunity to enter the room.
“Someone entered the room?” Ji Lizhuo’s expression remained indifferent as he countered, “Why wasn’t I told at the time?”
The moment Ji Lizhuo finished speaking, Ji Tingqian smiled.
Ji Lizhuo was far too obvious—showing neither concern nor surprise. He seemed merely to be following Ji Tingqian’s lead, not even bothering to adopt a posture that matched his words. In other words, Ji Tingqian’s suspicion was correct: this matter indeed involved Ji Lizhuo. He appeared unconcerned about Ji Tingqian bringing it up and had no intention of concealing anything; he had simply been waiting for Ji Tingqian to ask.
“Big Brother, you were the one who let Ming Huai in, weren’t you? Why?” Ji Tingqian stared straight at Ji Lizhuo, his expression calm yet overwhelmingly pressing.
Ji Lizhuo did not deny it; he simply nodded and said, “It was me.”
“Why?”
“He likes you.” The words coming from Ji Lizhuo sounded utterly unlike anything he would ever say, filling the air around him with a jarring sense of dissonance.
Ji Tingqian found it absurd. What kind of reason was that? For a fleeting moment, he even doubted whether the person standing before him was truly Ji Lizhuo. Even if Ming Huai liked him, what did that have to do with Ji Lizhuo?
“So you just let someone in to sleep with me?” Ji Tingqian asked, utterly incredulous.
“You slept together?!” Ji Lizhuo reacted violently, surprise finally flashing across his face, mingled with a trace of worry.
Their gazes collided in the air, seeming ready to ignite the very space around them, charged with emotions too complex to name.
Ji Lizhuo appeared cold on the surface, but beneath lay a volcano waiting for the chance to erupt. Rarely prone to regret, he suddenly felt frustrated and unwilling to speak another word to Ji Tingqian. He rose to leave, but Ji Tingqian blocked his path. Ji Lizhuo stared straight at him.
It happened in an instant. The next moment, Ji Tingqian was clutching his mouth, staring at Ji Lizhuo in disbelief. That had been a genuine punch, delivered with absolutely no restraint.
“Ji Tingqian,” Ji Lizhuo said, the veins on his forehead bulging as he struggled to contain himself, “sometimes I really want to knock some sense into your brain with one good punch!”
With that, Ji Lizhuo turned and walked away without looking back, leaving Ji Tingqian to ponder the deeper meaning behind his words. Ignoring the injury to his mouth, Ji Tingqian’s mind kept replaying that sentence. What exactly did it mean?
Before Ji Tingqian could delve any deeper into his thoughts, his phone rang. Seeing the number displayed on the screen, a complex emotion flickered across his eyes, yet he still answered the call.
“Ji Tingqian,” Ming Huai’s voice sounded exceptionally cheerful, “do you remember what we’re doing tomorrow?”
“I remember.” The moment he spoke, the wound at the corner of his mouth throbbed. Ji Tingqian raised a hand to gently touch it, lowering his gaze as he pondered how to dress for tomorrow; he certainly couldn’t frighten the child.
Ming Huai laughed heartily, “That’s good, otherwise I wouldn’t be able to conjure up an Uncle Ji for Dudu.”
After setting down his phone, Ming Huai’s smile widened even further. He reached for the notebook beside his bed and marked a small checkmark on its pages. The notebook was filled with dense writing, detailing methods Ming Huai had carefully devised based on his understanding of Ji Tingqian, refined through meticulous consideration to perfectly handle him.
It seemed Ming Huai had truly gone to great lengths in his efforts to win Ji Tingqian over.
However, before he could enjoy his triumph for even two minutes, Ming Huai’s phone rang again. He answered the call, holding the device to his ear, slightly puzzled. “Big Brother?”
“Did Ji Tingqian bully you?” Ji Lizhuo’s angry voice came from the other end, making Ming Huai feel inexplicably unnerved.
“What do you mean by ‘bully’…” Ming Huai rubbed his ear, his voice growing quieter and quieter.
“Ji Minghuai, what were you thinking?” Ji Lizhuo asked in frustration, feeling as though he was watching iron fail to turn into steel. With the two of them not even officially together yet and things already like this, if you really thought about it, Ming Huai was clearly the one at a disadvantage.
Ming Huai bit his lip and stammered, “It… it was just an accident…”
Ming Huai found himself unable to continue; discussing such matters with the brother they both shared felt utterly strange. Yet if Ji Tingqian wanted it, how could he possibly refuse?
Once his initial embarrassment faded, Ming Huai realized something belatedly: if they had known all along, they should have asked sooner. So what was happening now?
“Big Brother, how did you find out?” Ming Huai asked, puzzled.
“How do you think I found out?” Ji Lizhuo countered, not giving Ming Huai a chance to speak. “Ming Huai, your Second Sister and I will keep an eye on things for you, but you need to move quickly. You know Tingqian’s personality—he’s incredibly dense when it comes to feelings. If you take your time wearing him down, who knows how long it’ll take.”
Ming Huai glanced at the lines of text in his notebook, lost in thought. “Hmm, I’ll get it done as soon as possible.”
And so, for the entire afternoon, he remained in his room, writing and sketching, erasing and revising, his face etched with deep concentration as if pondering something of utmost importance. It wasn’t until Aunt Chen returned with Dudu from his piano lesson that Ming Huai finally emerged from his room.
Dudu’s face beamed with a wide smile. He claimed he had done exceptionally well today and that his teacher had praised him. In truth, this was simply Dudu’s clever way of fishing for praise from Ming Huai.
Dudu’s piano teacher was an elegant lady with a considerable reputation in the industry. Currently, Dudu only attended lessons occasionally; he was still too young. Imposing a systematic curriculum now would likely prove counterproductive. Both Ming Huai and the teacher agreed that formal, structured learning should wait until Dudu turned five.
Logically, Dudu should have started school long ago given his age, but he simply refused to go. It wasn’t that he disliked making friends; Dudu had plenty of them, like Doudou and Guoguo from downstairs. He just didn’t want to attend kindergarten.
Last September, Ming Huai had sent him to kindergarten for a while, but Dudu threw a tantrum every single day he went. His eyes would swell into two little walnuts from crying. At first, Ming Huai thought it was just a matter of adjustment, but after more than a month with no improvement, she finally relented and hired a private tutor for Dudu instead.
Now that Dudu was getting older, Ming Huai’s thoughts on the matter began to stir once again.
The next morning, Dudu woke up very early. The moment Ming Huai opened her eyes, she saw him swinging his short little legs, his eyes rolling around as he stared at her.
Ming Huai reached up to ruffle Dudu’s hair, his eyes still heavy with sleep, and asked, “Why are you up so early?”
“Uncle Ji is coming soon,” Dudu replied with a sleepy grin, his adorable features scrunching together.
Suddenly playful, Ming Huai adopted a look of mild dejection and said sorrowfully, “Do you like Uncle Ji so much? Does that mean you don’t like Daddy anymore?”
A wave of panic instantly flooded Dudu’s face. He waved his hands frantically, rushing to assure him, “Dudu likes Daddy the most! Really, really!”
Ming Huai couldn’t hold back and burst out laughing. He flipped over, pinning Dudu’s small body down to tickle him, smiling as he said, “Daddy knows Dudu loves me the most, but it’s okay to share a little of that love with Uncle Ji too.”
Ji Tingqian wasn’t due until noon, yet Aunt Chen had gone out early in the morning to buy fresh ingredients. She was quite delighted about Ji Tingqian’s impending arrival.
The one who was both the most nervous and the most excited was Dudu. He had never actually met Ji Tingqian in person; being so young, his curiosity was naturally intense. Ming Huai observed all of this silently. It would be best if the father and son could bond well; that way, when the truth was finally laid bare, it would be much easier for everyone to accept.
At ten-thirty, the doorbell rang. Ming Huai had been playing with Dudu on the blanket, but upon hearing the bell, he assumed Aunt Chen had forgotten her keys. Barefoot, he hurried to the door and turned the handle.
The moment the door opened, Ming Huai never expected it to be Ji Tingqian.
Standing outside, Ji Tingqian was dressed casually, a baseball cap perched on his head and a large paper bag held in his left hand. Yet what drew the most attention was the small bandage on the corner of his mouth; such a tiny thing looked utterly out of place on his stern face.
Suddenly, Ming Huai recalled the phone call from Ji Lizhuo yesterday.