“Piece of shit!” shouted Lu Sr., his face was flushed with anger. The green veins on his forehead twitched violently as he flung a cup at the door.
“Scram! Right now!” he pointed a quivering finger at the door. “Don’t ever let me see you again, Lu Jin, whether it’s you or your damn son! Scram! Get out!”
Lu Jin paused, then opened the door and left without looking back.
Clearly, it was time to make themselves scarce. If he hated them that much, so be it. Lu Qin and his family can accompany him for the New Year.
Inside the house, Lu Sr. was still fuming. He was so mad that his lungs felt like they were about to burst apart. He wondered why he gave birth to such a son. Just to make him mad? To disobey him? If he knew things would turn out this way, he might as well finish him off on a wall. In that case, he wouldn’t have to go through all this.
Qin Xiaoyue smiled, unable to repress her schadenfreude.
Leaning against the wall, Lu Qin tapped lightly at the wall. His slanted eyes looked malicious. Perhaps it was the light or the angle.
Lu Jin said nothing as he walked to the car. When he got inside, he held Ye Shuyun’s hands in his apologetically.
“I’m sorry I got you into this.”
“We are a couple, and getting scolded together is what couples do. However, it seems like Dad won’t be calming down in a while,” sighed Ye Shuyun. She wasn’t a harsh woman, and Lu Sr. was Lu Jin’s father after all. They have joked about Lu Jin being adopted, but in truth, no one had ever doubted Lu Jin’s birth. Lu Sr. had been unjust, but he was getting old. It’s not like they can abandon him.
Chinese valued the fidelity, and she wouldn’t want anyone pointing at her and calling her an awful daughter-in-law. She couldn’t bear that shame. The Ye Family couldn’t bear that shame.
“Let him figure things out himself,” said Lu Jin, reluctant to dwell on the topic. “I’ll be going back to the army after New Year. Don’t visit him when I’m not around, unless you want another scolding.”
He had been rather vexed from all the talk about him being adopted.
“I know,” said Ye Shuyun. She wasn’t planning on doing that either. The old man was getting grumpier by the day, and she wasn’t going to take the risk of incurring his wrath.
As Lu Yi drove back to his parents’ place, a gaudy sports car that cost hundreds of thousands tailed them from a distance, as though the driver was trying to send a message. What was he flaunting? His status?
Yet there are some innate qualities that such people could never hope to acquire.
When Lu Yi got back, Yan Huan was sitting on the sofa with Little Bean, with its usual languidness, on her lap. The fat cat was nearly 6 kg now, a huge creature with a massive head. Still, it was very cute and well-liked by everyone in the family.
Little Bean loved Yan Huan the most and was most affectionate with her. Might be because Yan Huan was the one who adopted it. Anyway, she was more affectionate with Yan Huan than with anyone else.
A laptop rested on Yan Huan’s legs as she flipped through it, so caught up in her thoughts she didn’t notice Lu Yi coming back.
Lu Yi walked to her on light feet and bent over. She was looking at Hello, Uncle’s real-time box office income. She said she didn’t care, but she did care deep down.
Seems like it’s doing well, thought Lu Yi. He sat down and took the laptop from her laps and tapped rapidly. He was an expert at computers, a top student in mathematics and had good reasoning abilities. He would have been an excellent software engineer if he hadn’t been a prosecutor.
Box office income for the first screening—A billion.
Pretty good indeed, thought Lu Yi. The box office income had been on the rise since the first day of the New Year. It wasn’t even two yet. It was mostly screened during golden hours, so it was safe to expect another billion by the end of the day—if it was well-received.
But that shouldn’t be a worry. Yan Huan wouldn’t have invested otherwise.
Yan Huan was overjoyed too. Even though she was expecting good results, she never expected it to be this good. She wasn’t greedy either—she just needed enough money to keep the Su Family wary about scheming anything.
“Thank you, hubby,” Yan Huan pecked Lu Yi on the face. She was feeling a little smug from the excellent results from the box office.
“For what? I never helped with anything,” said Lu Yi, feeling a little guilty since he didn’t play any part in the whole thing.
“That’s not true,” Yan Huan hugged his elbow tightly. “If not for your protection from behind the shadows, I might have already been forced out of the acting sphere. You played a part in my success.”
Lu Yi reached out and stroked her head gently. “I told you I will protect you until the day I can’t.”
And that would be the day he dies.
His words made Yan Huan a little sad. She knew he was being serious, because that’s exactly what he had done in her previous life. He protected her until the day he couldn’t—because she died.
She quickly rose, afraid that Lu Yi might notice her tears.
“I’ll go get the dumplings. I made them for you today,” she said as she dashed to the kitchen. She made certain he didn’t see the streams of tears that rolled off her cheeks.
No, she thought as she wiped her tears. Don’t cry, don’t. Things are going well now. No one will bully me, hurt me, or try to kill me again.
She shut her eyes and drew a deep breath. She then took out the dumplings from the fridge and turned on the gas to heat them up. Lu Yi loved the dumplings she made, and would eat two large bowls of them at one serving.
Soon, the Sycee-like dumplings were out of the pot.
When Yan Huan brought the dumplings over, Lu Yi was still looking at the laptop screen. Yan Huan didn’t know what he was looking at, but his fingers were moving so quickly that she thought she was seeing afterimages.
Yan Huan felt a little envious. The comparison made her realize how terribly slow she was at typing.
Still, she had a capable husband, and that made her feel proud.
She set the dumplings on the table. Lu Yi put down the mouse, stood up, then dipped his head and kissed her on the face. “I’ll go wash my hands. Don’t dig in without me.”
A man’s love for a moment starts from the moment he cherishes her.
Love is some parts desire and some parts cherish.
