Yin Muchen felt that a piece of his heart was empty, like something important had been lost. His palm held something so soft. She had stuffed her little hand in.
She wanted him to hold her hand as usual.
At this time, Yin De squatted down to coax the girl. “Shuiling, don’t cause trouble. Older Brother is out to do business, not to play. Muchen, you should leave quickly. Shuiling will be alright after crying for a while.”
Yin De used some strength to pull Yin Shuiling’s little hand back.
The soft temperature in his palm suddenly left. Yin Muchen closed his eyes for a moment and strode away with his long legs, walking outside the villa.
And so, behind him came a heart aching wail, “Wuu, Older Brother, Older Brother, don’t go…” The girl whose voice sounded like a little lamb screamed with all her might now, kicking at her parents with her hands and feet as she struggled to free herself. She ran to the door like a rabbit. “Older Brother, wuu, Older Brother, where are you going? Don’t you want Shuiling anymore?”
Yin Muchen went out and got into the car. He said to the driver in front of him, “Let’s go.”
“Yes, young master.” The driver stepped on the accelerator and the car sped out.
Yin Muchen balled his hands into fists. He told himself not to look, but he couldn’t help it. He looked back through the rearview mirror.
The girl had run out of the villa and the summer wind blew at her black hair. She rubbed her eyes while chasing the car. She was crying. “Older Brother…”
She was running too fast. She had lost one of her crystal shoes on her right foot.
Yin De and Shi Xiaoqing ran out. Shi Xiaoqing held the girl in her arms. The girl fell to the ground and struggled but could not run away. She cried out and stretched out her hand towards him. She looked so small, so sad, and so pitiful, “Older Brother, Older Brother…”
She wanted him to bring her away.
Yin Muchen took his gaze back and leaned back in the back seat, closing his eyes gently.
Sorry, he didn’t have the ability now.
He needed to be stronger.
Shuiling, oh Shuiling. Wait for him to come back.
After Yin Muchen left, Yin Shuiling suffered from a serious illness. She had a high fever and lay in her bed for three days and three nights without eating or drinking.
After she had recovered from her fever, she shut herself up in the room without crying, laughing, or talking.
Yin De and Shi Xiaoqing were extremely worried when they saw her state and called Yin Muchen in America. Shi Xiaoqing brought the phone to the girl’s ear. The boy’s voice could be heard clearly in the quiet room. So gentle, he was laughing. “Shuiling, Older Brother is in America…”
Yin Shuiling did not say a word. Her face was pale. She pulled the blankets and covered her little face. Then she curled up and cried her heart out. She understood now. So that was America.
She began to eat, got out of bed, and entered the first grade of the girls’ school.
She went to school by private car and back from school by private car every day. The girls in the school all spoke ill of her behind her back.
Look at how arrogant Yin Shuiling is. She doesn’t listen to us when we talk to her, and her cold face seemed as if it would not smile.
Yes, she wouldn’t make friends or talk to those classmates. After class, she would take out her pencil and draw. For the first couple of days, she could still draw the image of her brother. But after one year, two years, and three years, she couldn’t even remember the image of her brother.
Although she had tried hard to remember.
Although her older brother had never faded in her heart.
The atmosphere at home became heavier. At night, she could hear the quarrels between her parents in the room. She could not remember what they had quarreled over. It was something along the lines of her brother growing his wings and becoming uncontrollable.
She didn’t understand it, and subconsciously, she didn’t want to understand it. She was too young to have a cell phone. She wanted to write a letter to her brother, but she didn’t know where he was. Every night, she would lay on the map of the United States. Her fair and dainty little hand went from New York to Seattle. She imagined every trace of his steps.
Mom and Dad had closed off all the news, and she couldn’t get out.
And Older Brother never came back.
On the fourth year, Older Brother came back.
She couldn’t remember the scene of that day because it was so sudden. No one had told her, and when she entered the villa, she saw a tall and handsome figure in the living room. As she was frozen in place, her brother turned around. As soon as she saw him, she ran upstairs with her face covered and locked herself in the room.
For several years afterward, she had been painting her older brother on that day. She found that she could not draw him well. Time flowed fast, and the thin and handsome teenager had grown up. He was so suave that she dared not look at him again.
At dinner, she sat beside her older brother. Her parents, who were sitting across, were different. Their smiles were filled with…flattery. Her brother’s chopsticks stretched out when she was eating with her head down, and he gave her a piece of sweet and sour ribs.
She peeked at her brother’s hands. On that day, he wore a leather jacket. The fine soft jacket wrapped around his wrist. The silver button was unbuttoned, revealing the clean white shirt inside. Her brother’s hands were so beautiful — long, fair, and well defined.
She didn’t know what her parents had said. She only remembered one sentence from her brother — I will finish studying business management.
After that, the atmosphere of the dinner was heavy.
Older Brother left that night. She ran down from upstairs in a hurry. She knew she couldn’t do anything well. One of her shoes had come off while running. Her eyes were blurred. She touched them with her hands and felt endless tears.
She dared not see her brother off, so she hid behind the door of the villa and peeked. The palace lamp in the corridor defined his beautiful face perfectly. She watched him standing in front of the limousine with one hand in his pocket. He then slowly turned around and looked in her direction.
She covered her face with two small hands and sat frozen behind the door. After the sound of the car starting, everything went quiet.
Four years later, she cried her heart out again.
Older Brother had brought her a gift. She opened the beautiful bag to see that it was Hello Kitty’s ceramic collection. It was not sold all over the world.
Year after year, her beautiful youth passed by. It was the sixth year. In another six months, she would be celebrating her 15th birthday.
On this day, she came home and passed the door of the study and heard another quarrel.
The door of the study was not closed. She stopped to listen.
Yin De threw the fax documents in his hands on the desk, put his hands on his waist, and cursed, “Go and see for yourself. Yin Muchen is now a popular and influential man in the finance sector.”
Shi Xiaoqing slumped down on the sofa. She could not believe it and said, “What? How could Yin Muchen?”
Yin De was about to vomit blood from anger. “You asked me how Yin Muchen could do it. Isn’t this kid’s performance in these six years enough to shock you? For the first couple of years, he went to the United States and studies business management obediently. The person we sent to monitor him had said he was doing well without any abnormal reactions. But in the third year, something happened. Professor Sparking brought Yin Muchen behind him at a gathering of the financial industry. That year coincided with the financial crisis in the United States. He had seized the right time and bought the coldest stocks at that time, making huge profits and amazing the entire financial industry.
“In the fourth year, he appeared frequently in the financial industry and amazed the four influential men with his brilliant and original essays. In the fifth and sixth years, he had spent more time in the financial industry, speculating in stocks and houses.
“Do you know how people in the financial industry speak of Yin Muchen? They say that he is handsome, intelligent, courageous, and precise. Professor Sparking’s only daughter, who is a doctor in the Chinese Department of Hong Kong, is very fond of him. Countless beautiful women would bow down for him. He had great flirting skills, is strong in bed, rich, young, and unrestrained. He is the most promising bachelor in the financial industry.”
Shi Xiaoqing’s face turned pale, and she muttered in a distracted voice, “How did things become like this? How can our family use him now?
“How did this happen? You have the face to ask? Who was the one who wanted to send Yin Muchen to study in the United States at the beginning? If you hadn’t sent him away, he would still be obediently under our eyes.”
Shi Xiaoqing shook her head and regretted it. “At that time, he was too close to Shuiling. I was afraid that Shuiling’s thoughts would be all on him. Besides, men and women are different. Which man doesn’t love Shuiling when she’s so lovely? When I made that decision, didn’t you agree too?”
Yin De said nothing. He brushed his sleeve and said, “Sigh. Who ever thought that kid could single-handedly make his own way in the United States? I thought he was an eagle, but he’s a dragon. He’s going to reach the skies at this rate.”
Yin De was confused as he said, “I also do not understand, how did that kid Yin Muchen gain favor from Professor Sparking? At that time, we were monitoring him so strictly. If we were to pick up something unusual, it would be the girlfriend he had after he went to the United States for the first two years, An Meng Wen.”
Shi Xiaoqing couldn’t understand those words. She comforted herself by saying, “Honey, we don’t have to be afraid. We still have Shuiling. Yin Muchen’s so close with Shuiling, even if it’s just for Shuiling…”
“Shut up! Shi Xiaoqing, don’t you use your brain now? Yin Muchen now has women everywhere and has all sorts of powerful families’ young ladies throwing themselves into his arms. If Yin Muchen is willing to marry the professor’s daughter, he would be able to stand firm in the financial industry. Shuiling is still so young. What can Shuiling give him? Yin Muchen’s vision is broadened. He is no longer the poor boy under the roof of others. He has long forgotten your daughter. He doesn’t want your daughter anymore.”
“Honey, you…”
Shi Xiaoqing wanted to speak, but at that moment there was a snap. She looked sideways. Outside the door of the study, the frail girl in her school uniform had dropped her schoolbag behind her and looked at them with tears in her eyes.
Yin De and Shi Xiaoqing got up quickly. They opened the door of their study and comforted her, “Shuiling, what’s wrong? Dad was speaking nonsense just now. Don’t cry.”
Yin De wanted to wipe his daughter’s tears away.
But he could not, because Yin Shuiling backed away, not letting him touch her. She cried while shaking her head, her voice unbelievably soft and sweet. She was panting while crying, charming and delicate as a rose. “You’re lying! Older Brother did not forget me. Older Brother still wants me.”
“Yes, Shuiling, Muchen still wants you. Don’t step back. There’s a staircase behind you…”
Yin Shuiling was ignorant of her surroundings. Tears blurred her eyes. She cried so hard that she didn’t know anything. “But Older Brother did not come back. Older Brother…doesn’t miss me. Older Brother probably…doesn’t want me anymore.”
Boom! With a crash, Yin Shuiling rolled down the stairs.
“Shuiling!” Shi Xiaoqing screamed.
“Housekeeper, housekeeper, call the doctor!”
