Chapter 16 – Neighboring Big Sister (Part 6)

Wen Ye: “………………”

He was sure he hadn’t deliberately eaten less today.

Feeling a little helpless, he gave a small explanation, “I wasn’t in a good mood the past few days, so I didn’t eat much. I’ll be more careful from now on.”

Today, Wen Ye was wearing the new clothes.

A deep gray turtleneck sweater paired with a camel-colored wool overcoat made his figure look even taller and leaner.

The soft texture of the sweater hugged his slender frame, and a glimpse of his pale neck peeked through the collar—its fair skin glowing faintly under the winter sun.

He stood by the entranceway, a bit awkwardly adjusting his sleeves. The coat’s tailored cut perfectly outlined his elegant shoulders, but perhaps it fit too well—he looked a little stiff in it.
After all, this was the first set of brand-new clothes he had ever owned in his twenty years of life.

“You look great,” Jiang Jiang poked her head out from the studio, her eyes lighting up. “As expected, I’ve got good taste.”

Wen Ye’s ears flushed red. He lowered his head and took in a faint whiff of cedar from the collar—it was the scent from Jiang Jiang’s wardrobe.

That realization made his heart race, and he couldn’t help but rub the hem of the coat with his fingertips.

…He suddenly didn’t feel like going out anymore.

As soon as he stepped outside, that faint scent would be gone.

Tsk.

But in front of Jiang Jiang, he was still playing the role of a poor student working to support himself.

So, in the end, he went out—he did have some things to take care of today.

==

Ever since Chu Keyong saw his stepson last night, he’d been scared out of his wits and ended up with a fever.

Wen Shulan, not having a job, stayed home to care for him.

The phone rang.

She answered it for her husband, who was lying in bed. A few seconds later, her face turned deathly pale.

“What is it? You look like someone just died,” Chu Keyong grumbled.

Wen Shulan hung up and seemed to lose all her strength in that instant. She murmured, almost in a daze, “That was your company. They said you were caught embezzling funds, and now you’ve been fired. They’re filing charges against our family.”

“……”

Wen Shulan looked at her silent husband and nearly broke down. “Didn’t you say you’d stop gambling?”

Chu Keyong looked a little guilty at first, but after being yelled at, he became defensive: “Everyone else plays too. If I don’t, they’ll look down on me.”

…“Everyone,” huh?

Wen Shulan didn’t even have the strength to laugh anymore.

If he hadn’t been going to those places, how would he know so many people who gamble too?

“…Your son still has school. An’an needs tuition.”

Her voice was weary as she recited the major expenses they were facing. But before she could finish, a cup slammed down in front of her.

“I’ll deal with it. Shut up and get out!”

“……”

Chu An stood at the door, clutching her younger brother’s hand, looking timidly at her stepmother.

“Mom… can we still go to school?”

…

“Mom, can I still go to school?”

Two little faces in front of her suddenly overlapped with Wen Ye’s face from years ago. Back then, he had been around the same age as Chu Jie, her youngest son.

Wen Shulan froze for a moment.

She tried to recall what she’d said back then.

“You will. No matter what, Mommy will make sure our Ah-Ye goes to school.”

“……”

But now, faced with those same hopeful eyes, she couldn’t bring herself to say those words again.

“…Go ask your dad,” she said instead.

She seemed to age ten years in a second, her once-straight back now bent with exhaustion.

“Mom, I want to go to school,” Chu Jie whined. “Go ask Dad for me, he loves me the most.”

Wen Shulan didn’t know what to say.

Yes, he did love the youngest son most. But so what? The person he loved most was always himself.

Chu An pulled her stepmother into her room. “I overheard. Dad went gambling again, didn’t he?”

Wen Shulan sighed and nodded.

The family had no money left. If they had to make up for the embezzled funds, they might have to sell the house.

Chu An bit her lip and suddenly said, “…Let’s find Wen Ye.”

Wen Shulan frowned. “He’s still just a kid. What could he do?”

Chu An gave her a look that made her uneasy. “He can help. You know who his biological father is, don’t you?”

For the first time, Wen Shulan looked at her stepdaughter with something like shock in her eyes.

“I don’t know how you found out,” she said stiffly, “but no. Absolutely not. I won’t go to him.”

Wen Shulan didn’t want to go. Chu An didn’t want to see Wen Ye either. The two parted ways in a deadlock.

==

Today, Wen Ye had gone out to take care of family business—called over by his biological father, in the literal, biological sense.

Seeing this clean, lean young man kill someone without blinking made the middle-aged man sitting nearby clap his hands in delight.

“Good! Good! Good!”

Saying “good” three times in a row, the middle-aged man was clearly very satisfied with the long-lost son he had finally acknowledged. “You really are my blood.”

Wen Ye stood in front of the floor-to-ceiling window. Sunlight poured through the glass and spilled across his bloodstained face.

With an indifferent expression, he slowly pulled out a tissue and calmly wiped the blood from his fingertips—as if he hadn’t just snapped someone’s neck a moment ago.

“If there’s nothing else, I’ll be going now.”
He casually tossed the bloodstained tissue into the trash can, his voice flat—like he’d just finished a boring meeting.

Old Master Qin squinted his eyes at this son he’d only recently claimed.

The boy’s slender frame was still wrapped in a slightly oversized school uniform, his neck so thin it looked like it might snap. But this was the same pair of hands that had just cleanly taken care of a traitor.

“In such a rush to leave?” Old Master Qin asked meaningfully. “I heard… you’ve been staying at someone else’s place lately?”

Wen Ye didn’t reply.

Qin Jun wasn’t angry. In fact, he chuckled. “I told you long ago—don’t waste your time expecting anything from that clueless mother of yours.”

“And as for this girl you’re living with—she’s pretty, sure, but she’s just a plaything. I’ve already arranged your marriage match.”

Wen Ye lowered his eyes, hiding his expression. To the old man, it looked like he was listening obediently.

But then the boy suddenly looked up and let out a cold laugh. “So that’s what you were thinking back then, huh?”

“What?” Qin Jun frowned.

“She looked good enough, so she was worth toying with. Then you tossed her and me aside when you were done?”

Qin Jun thought he was just bitter about being abandoned. He found the boy’s complaints a bit whiny, but since he was his only child, he softened his tone and said, “I didn’t know she was pregnant. If I had—”

“I definitely wouldn’t have left you two behind.”

Wen Ye sneered inwardly.

His gaze swept briefly over the two bodyguards by Qin Jun’s side.

Tch. Just his luck.

Without a guarantee of a clean kill, he wouldn’t make a move.

Wen Ye noticed that some blood had gotten on his clothes, which irritated him even more. But he forced a polite smile and said, “I understand, Father. I’ll be leaving now.”