Chapter 14: Caring Big Brother

The car stopped under the tree at the gate of Shenzhen University, the streetlamp’s light blocked by the branches, leaving the area almost completely dark.

The cake wasn’t big. Knowing that these guys didn’t really like sweets, it was just for the sake of the ceremony. The white cream frosting formed a round shape, decorated with light purple forget-me-not patterns, and a faint blue inscription read: “Happy Birthday, Ah Cong.”

The car’s roof light was off, casting fragmented shadows of their figures.

Zhou Cong’s face was dark as he placed the cake on the central armrest, sticking the candles in.

Xu Zhiqiao didn’t react at all.

Zhou Cong rubbed the lighter’s wheel with his thumb, and a flicker of light appeared.

He glanced at the girl in the passenger seat, who was clearly resisting, and said lightly, “Light the candle for me.”

Xu Zhiqiao remained silent, took the lighter from him, and bent her head to light the candles.

Zhou Cong added, “Sing the birthday song for me.”

“…”

Xu Zhiqiao threw the lighter back at him, “I don’t know how.”

“Stop lying,” Zhou Cong stared coldly at her. “If I catch you lying, do you know what the consequences are?”

Xu Zhiqiao’s eyes reflected the flickering candlelight, and she couldn’t help the anger in her chest. She sang stiffly, word by word, “Happy… birthday… to… you…”

If it weren’t for fearing his stubbornness, Zhou Cong knew she would have said, “Hope you die sooner.”

Once the song was over, Zhou Cong lowered his lashes, concealing his emotions, “I’m going to make a wish.”

Xu Zhiqiao didn’t care what he wished for.

The candle burned halfway down, swaying gently. The flame sometimes grew bigger and then quickly weakened.

Five seconds later, Zhou Cong looked up, “Blow it out for me.”

Xu Zhiqiao replied, “It’s supposed to be blown out by the person whose birthday it is!”

“You blow it.”

Without thinking, Xu Zhiqiao puffed and blew the candle out.

The interior of the car was dim, barely able to make out their features, but the silence was so thick that they could hear each other’s breathing.

Xu Zhiqiao muttered, “I’m done. I’m leaving.”

Without waiting, she immediately opened the car door and walked away.

The door slammed shut, letting the hot summer air rush in, hitting Zhou Cong’s face.

He lowered his eyes, staring at the delicate cake, his emotions unreadable. The sight of it felt like a heap of garbage to him. His feelings piled up layer by layer, finally erupting into overwhelming anger.

With a swift motion, Zhou Cong flung the cake toward the passenger seat. The cream splattered everywhere, covering the leather seat, the armrest, the footpad, the dashboard, and the air vents with a thick, greasy mess of white.

Back at the mansion, Hua Qingyang hadn’t left yet. He was directing the cleaning staff, making sure the living room was spotless. “Yes, right there. Not a speck of dust. You don’t know how bad this young master’s obsessive cleanliness is.”

The door creaked open, and Hua Qingyang looked up, stunned. “Oh, you’re back so early.”

Zhou Cong slumped onto the sofa, looking like a wilted eggplant, silent and brooding.

“…”

Hua Qingyang took one look at him and immediately noticed. “Is that… cream on your clothes? What happened?”

He paused, then added nervously, “You didn’t get into a fight with your mom and then have her throw cake at you, did you?”

Impossible.

If it was cake being thrown, there’s no way a little mess like this would happen.

Zhou Cong closed his eyes, clearly uninterested in answering.

“The dogs ran too fast,” Hua Qingyang complained. “No one wanted to clean up. Why am I the one stuck with it?”

Zhou Cong snorted coldly, a sound that was ambiguous in meaning.

Hua Qingyang sat across from him. “You look like you’ve been dumped.”

“…”

Zhou Cong lazily blinked, lifting his gaze. “How easy is it to deal with your sister Hua Niuniu?”

Hua Niuniu was Hua Qingyang’s younger sister, his real sister.

Hua Qingyang slapped his leg. “Now, this is the right question. My parents had her and never cared about her. I was just 18 when she was born, and the first thing I did when I came home was feed her milk…”

Everyone thought she was my daughter, and I couldn’t even get a girlfriend because of it.

It was a real hardship.

Zhou Cong frowned. “Just tell me how you calm her down when she throws a tantrum.”

“It’s simple,” Hua Qingyang said, “I’m 22 years old, and I can’t calm down a 4-year-old little girl?”

Well, that’s true.

There’s no comparison.

Zhou Cong closed his eyes again. “Leave.”

“Yeah, I was planning to leave,” Hua Qingyang was casual. “Can I borrow your car? Mine got taken by Zhen Chuang.”

Zhou Cong replied, “Take it to the car wash.”

“…”

Hua Qingyang was skeptical. “Didn’t you just wash it this morning?”

Zhou Cong sighed. “Cake got spilled on it.”

It was nothing compared to his four-year-old sister wetting his bed, but Hua Qingyang looked at him with a face as if he’d been struck by lightning. “How could you let a cake get in the car? Did you take it in without a box? Who knocked it over? Didn’t you beat them up?”

Zhou Cong, clearly annoyed, threw a pillow at him. “Get lost.”

Seeing that the young master’s mood was in the pits, Hua Qingyang gave a few dry laughs, grabbed a garbage bag, and stood up.

“Brother,” he said in a tone of someone who’s been through it all, “You can’t rush when you’re dealing with a kid. You have to test their boundaries, step by step. You can’t just hit them with a hammer right away.”

“…”

Zhou Cong’s eyelids drooped as he muttered, “I don’t understand.”

“My sister asks for candy, and I give it to her one time out of three,” Hua Qingyang explained. “If I gave it to her every time, or even gave her two pieces, she’d get used to it. But when I give it to her sparingly, she’ll praise me as a good big brother.”

It’s all about holding back.

You have to hold back.

Zhou Cong sneered. “Are you sure you’re not just afraid of getting beaten by your parents, and that’s why you don’t give it to her every time?”

“…”

This caring big brother role, anyone who wants to take it, can go ahead!