Chapter 44

Dinner made Bai Wei feel like he was sitting on pins and needles. Fortunately, Lu Sen was sitting next to him and could speak on his behalf, easing much of his discomfort.

Long Chun praised the lady boss’s taste and the renowned wine from her vineyard. However, as soon as Bai Wei tasted it, he knew it was definitely not from the winery Long Chun mentioned.

The reason was simple—he had tasted it before. When he was young, his grandfather took him there for a vacation and business talks. He had to spend an entire summer at that winery, tasting various wines until he almost got sick of them. His grandfather believed that learning to appreciate wine was a necessary social grace for the upper class.

Young Bai Wei really disliked alcohol. He particularly hated the dizzy, fuzzy feeling he got after drinking, along with the warmth and tingling sensation on his cheeks. He almost fled from those beautiful vineyards, bringing a few bottles back as gifts for some teachers and classmates.

Fortunately, he gradually got used to it after that.

He took a sip and put the wine glass back in its place. Lu Sen said, “What a coincidence, Ah Wei and I were also planning to dine at this restaurant.”

“Generally speaking, I don’t come to this restaurant often. But Longxia loves it here. He especially likes the wine,” Long Chun said earnestly. “So whenever I have time, I bring him here to eat.”

“You really care for your brother!” Lu Sen said.

“Naturally. I’m his older brother; taking care of him is my responsibility and duty,” Long Chun said reservedly.

“Is it guilt?” Longxia said.

A light laugh suddenly broke the atmosphere, as if Long Chun was trying to draw a perfect circle with a compass, but the compass’s leg pierced the paper sharply. A look of annoyance flashed in his eyes. He said, “Of course, there’s that too—when he was young, I wasn’t by his side…”

“Long Qiu lived by your side, but you still wish it was her who survived,” Longxia said darkly.

The atmosphere at the table became tense. Lu Sen took another sip of wine. Long Chun seemed to have been hit at a sore spot, and after a moment of dullness, he said excitedly, “How could you think that? You and Long Qiu are both my siblings and twins at that. Besides, you are different from her. It was for the purpose of further education that Dad hoped you could get a better education and sent you to study in another city. Long Qiu wasn’t good at studying, so she stayed in Snow Mountain Town… And that car accident was something none of us wanted to see!”

He placed his hand on the table, trying to calm himself. Then, instead of looking at his brother Longxia, he turned to Bai Wei and Lu Sen, “I’m really sorry. Ever since that car accident, my brother’s emotions have been unstable. You understand, don’t you? Before that, he was an excellent student, good at painting and tennis. But that accident not only took his beloved sister but also took away his ability to walk properly…”

If Long Chun and Long Xia truly loved each other as brothers, why would Long Chun only look at two outsiders and talk to them at such a moment? Bai Wei noticed but said nothing. He was about to say, “I’m very sorry,” but Lu Sen spoke up, “From his reaction just now, it didn’t seem like he truly loved his sister. What exactly happened in that accident?”

Bai Wei’s veins bulged in surprise. He wanted to turn and glare at Lu Sen, but was stunned when he saw his face.

Lu Sen’s lips were smiling, but his eyes were not. He held his wine glass, looking at the two people opposite him, like a moving stone sculpture incapable of understanding human emotions.

Those grey-blue eyes were as unfathomable as the deep sea.

Bai Wei suddenly realized he hadn’t seen Lu Sen with such an expression for a long time… Only a year ago, Lu Sen often showed such a look in front of him. When he looked at Bai Wei, his eyes were filled only with the assessment of a treasure and the ambition to get it at all costs. His eyes were not clear, nor sky blue.

“How could he not love her? They are twins after all.” Panic flashed in Long Chun’s eyes. “The accident… The day before Long Dong’s birthday, the two of them and the driver went out to buy a gift for Long Dong. The car crashed into the mountain wall while making a turn. The driver died on the spot, and Long Qiu passed away shortly after arriving at the hospital. Longxia also… Later, it was found that the driver that day was Long Qiu, who had just gotten her license. Maybe she wanted to test her driving skills. She was spoiled from childhood…”

Finally, Bai Wei saw sadness and sorrow in Long Chun’s eyes. Longxia snorted coldly. Long Chun continued, “And Longxia, he was about to take the college entrance exam and go to university. He had taken a special leave from school just to celebrate his sister’s birthday. Who would have thought that day would become a day of sorrow for our entire family? We all try to forget that day intentionally.”

A few years later, in another car, Long Dong lost their parents too.

“That’s really unfortunate,” Lu Sen said.

—

In just a few years, the Long family had two car accidents. He originally found it suspicious and wondered if it was related to Ren Junyao—if so, he could rightfully get Ren Junyao out of this town. But now, judging from the timeline, the accident involving Long Xia and his sister happened seven years ago, when Ren Junyao was just a sophomore in college, not yet acquainted with Long Dong, and had absolutely nothing to do with this incident.

What a pity, he thought with regret.

“Yes, just a bit off. I attended two high schools outside and learned a lot from both,” Longxia said, but his eyes turned to Bai Wei again. “Bai Wei, why aren’t you drinking?”

Bai Wei didn’t expect the topic to suddenly shift to him. Longxia added, “I thought Bai Wei was knowledgeable about wine and would love the wine from this vineyard.”

“Uh… I have to drive home,” Bai Wei said.

He didn’t intend to reveal that the wine was not authentic.

“Oh, my bad,” Longxia smiled again. “I come here because of this wine. I told the lady boss to always keep a bottle for me…”

“After his leg injury, Xiao Xia often stays at home to recuperate. But he always makes a lot of friends,” Long Chun started bragging again.

Longxia saw Bai Wei nodding with lowered eyes. Looking at his cool and clean appearance under the light, the dark and angry black vines wrapped around his heart again.

How does it feel to discover another of Bai Wei’s lies after so many years?

He caught Bai Wei giving the wine to his teacher. Bai Wei was polite, saying he often drank that wine, and the wooden box pushed by his slender fingers was exquisite. Then, because Bai Wei saw him and he asked about the wine, Bai Wei gave him a bottle too.

Longxia didn’t remember the taste of that wine because he never had the heart to drink it. He secretly looked at all the books Bai Wei borrowed, secretly listened to Bai Wei’s playlists, and secretly observed Bai Wei’s every move, just as he secretly hid the wine under his bed. He was so happy that day, but equally furious when he found out he wasn’t initially on Bai Wei’s gift list.

He didn’t want to be excluded from Bai Wei’s gift list, nor did he want Bai Wei to give him the wine as an afterthought. Only being listed first on Bai Wei’s gift list from the start would satisfy him. Besides, wasn’t he the only one in the world who worked so hard to understand and get close to Bai Wei? He knew better than anyone what Bai Wei should be like.

Just like now, he discovered another of Bai Wei’s lies. He didn’t drink, didn’t like the taste of this wine, and frowned while tasting it.

So, the words Bai Wei said when giving wine in high school were also lies.

“That’s impressive,” Lu Sen said.

“Yes, you knew people in town should go out more, meet new people. The broader your network, the easier things get done, and it’s good to clear up any bad rumors,” Long Chun said, acting like he was representing the old town of Snow Mountain in talking to Lu Sen, “Not just the upper class, but also the common people.”

—-

In the eyes of the residents of Snow Mountain, he did have such a status… At this moment, the pregnant restaurant owner came over with a plate of dessert, smiling warmly.

Long Chun saw her and said graciously, “Oh, Feifei, thank you for bringing us…”

“This is for you two!” Xie Fei smiled enthusiastically at Bai Wei and Lu Sen, “Remember me? We met at the hospital. Thank you for saving Yang Yang.”

“But this dessert wasn’t available when we ordered,” Longxia questioned after seeing the food on the plate.

“Auntie didn’t know it was you two,” Xie Fei adjusted her belly. “I’m quite far along now, and my husband is busy alone in the kitchen. We recently hired a part-timer, but he’s not very bright, can’t cook, just does odd jobs in the kitchen. But when I heard you were here, I quickly had my husband bring it out.”

She affectionately patted Bai Wei’s shoulder, “Enjoy your meal!”

—-

After Xie Fei left, Lu Sen said to the grim-faced Long Chun, “You’re right, meeting more people in town does have its benefits. Not everyone in town knows us yet. Once they all know us, I think our work will go much smoother.”

Long Xia picked up his phone and started typing again. When Bai Wei glanced at him out of the corner of his eye, he felt chills down his spine.

In the photo taken in front of the restaurant that day, besides the restaurant’s facade, the table by the window, Bai Wei, Lu Sen, Long Chun, and Longxia sitting on both sides, there were also many customers in the restaurant, enjoying the warm atmosphere.

Longxia smiled and typed:

“New people in town. Truly interesting new people.”

“Alright! I…” Long Chun was clearly choked up. Even a small corner of the outside world seemed capable of suppressing him.

But Bai Wei had not let him off yet. He said, “And that bottle of red wine… well, perhaps the restaurant owner doesn’t know. The red-labeled and black-labeled wines are different. Your brother just mentioned the rare black-labeled wine, but the wine sold here is red-labeled, mass-produced. Of course, it’s normal for beginners to not know this, just as long as they don’t meet someone knowledgeable.”

“I happen to know the owner of this winery. If you want to try the black-labeled wine, I can have him send me a few bottles.”

Bai Wei smiled. Under the light, the corners of his lips curved into a very polite, perfect arc, exactly the same as he would show in social occasions.

After that, he took Lu Sen along. Bai Wei, dressed in a light blue suit, walked with straight legs and brisk steps, disappearing elegantly into the night.

When Long Chun turned around, he only saw his brother’s sinister face.

“What did he say to you?”

“… Let’s go back first.” Long Chun didn’t want to argue with his brother outside. Over the years, he had been trying to downplay the fact that Long Xia still existed in the family.

“Tell me!” Longxia raised his voice.

People started to look over. Without further ado, Long Chun pushed Longxia’s wheelchair to the car. Although Longxia could barely walk with a limp, when Long Chun carried him into the car seat, he went limp like an overcooked noodle, unclear whether he was doing it to spite his brother or out of anger.

Long Chun didn’t want to drive while the conflict was unresolved. The two car accidents had left him with trauma as well. Looking in the rearview mirror, he took a deep breath and said, “He just talked about the wine.”

“What did he say about the wine? Tell me!”

Long Chun briefly repeated Bai Wei’s words. Longxia said nothing, just sat in the back seat. Long Chun’s heart didn’t settle. He knew that Longxia’s calmness was a precursor to madness.

But he needed to take advantage of this calmness to drive home. Sure enough, after parking the car and having the servant push Long Xia to his room, Longxia started to go crazy again.

“Ah!!”

“Ugh!!”

Ear-piercing screams and the sound of things being smashed were endless. Just as Long Chun was rubbing his temples, Ren Junyao came down from the other staircase.

“What happened?” He craned his neck, glancing at Longxia’s room, “Who provoked the little uncle again?”

“Nothing, you go back. He’ll be fine soon,” Long Chun said.

“Oh.” Ren Junyao nodded, not seeming too concerned about what was wrong with Longxia.

Watching his back, Long Chun thought it was normal for Ren Junyao not to care. Longxia was disabled and likely would be for life. He would live in the Long family for the rest of his life, never starting his own family, never taking a share of the property. If he one day committed suicide due to depression, it would even be easier for them.

At that moment, he heard a woman sigh softly.

It turned out Long Dong had come to his side. She looked worriedly in Longxia’s direction, softly hugging Long Chun.

The warm fragrance from her body could calm one’s mood slightly.

“Sister…” Long Chun said.

“Go comfort him, talk to him,” Long Dong said gently, “He always listens to you the most.”

Long Chun’s body trembled, but he nodded.

Long Dong stood there, watching Long Chun enter Long Xia’s room.

She walked upstairs. Before entering her own room, she turned and looked towards another room at the end of the corridor.

It was once her sister Long Qiu’s room.

She looked at that room for a while, then opened the door. A faint light came from inside, suggesting only a computer was on in the room.

She closed the door.

In Long Xia’s large room, everything was smashed to pieces. As soon as Long Chun entered, he turned to avoid a flying pillow. Long Xia, sitting in his wheelchair, red-eyed, yelled at him, “Get out! Get out!”

Long Chun watched the pillow slide off the door frame. He closed the door, expressionless, and looked at him, “Do you want me to leave, or do you want me to stay?”

Longxia stared at him for a long time, then suddenly burst into heart-wrenching sobs.

Long Chun stepped over the obstacles on the floor, found a clear spot on the bed, and sat down, placing his legs where there were no fragments. He clasped his hands and just looked at him.

He felt he might be calm or tired. Finally, Longxia stopped crying. He turned his tear-streaked face and suddenly looked at him viciously.

“I want that. You get one for me.”

At that moment, Long Chun felt a chill down his spine.