Chapter 70: I Am No Longer Myself

Around midnight, Lu Zhengfei grabbed Chen Qianqing’s hand and ran outside to set off firecrackers.

Lu Zhengfei placed a long string of firecrackers on the ground, then took out a lighter to ignite it. Chen Qianqing stood far away, watching as Lu Zhengfei ran toward him.

The crackling sound of the firecrackers echoed, creating a lively atmosphere.

Lu Zhengfei’s older siblings also lit fireworks. With a whoosh, colorful fireworks exploded in the sky, bursting into bright colors that made the dark night even more dazzling.

Lu Zhengfei reached out and held Chen Qianqing’s right hand. He grasped his palm, gently rubbing his thumb over the ring on Chen Qianqing’s ring finger, then turned his head and placed a soft kiss on Chen Qianqing’s cheek.

Chen Qianqing did not move or speak; he simply tilted his head, gazing at the sky. The cool breeze tousled his hair, and time seemed to stand still around him.

Once the excitement died down, it was time to go to bed.

Since they needed to wake up early the next day, Lu Zhengfei and Chen Qianqing didn’t delay and went to bed.

Lu Zhengfei pulled Chen Qianqing into his arms, and soon, he fell into a deep sleep. Chen Qianqing rested on Lu Zhengfei’s chest, his silent demeanor making it hard to tell what he was thinking. However, fortunately, insomnia didn’t trouble him anymore. He closed his eyes and soon drifted off into sleep.

On the first day of the new year, Lu Zhengfei and Chen Qianqing left early.

Before they left, Lu Yiqin softly asked, “Brother, where are you going?”

Lu Zhengfei glanced at her with a neutral expression and said, “To B City.”

Lu Yiqin looked at Chen Qianqing with an expression of unmasked disdain, saying, “I just returned to the country, and you can’t spend a little time with me?”

Lu Zhengfei didn’t respond to Lu Yiqin but directly said, “Lu Yiqin, you’re an adult now.” The implication was that she had to figure out how to live her own life.

Lu Yiqin fell silent. She slowly reached up with her red-painted fingernail to adjust her hair, and after a moment, she coldly replied, “Mm.”

Lu Zhengfei turned and left.

Ever since Huang Yuping and Lu Chongqian had their accident, Lu Yiqin’s mental state had been off. She seemed unable to accept the reality and had been weakly avoiding it, still trapped in it to this day. Having been pampered since childhood, it was no wonder she lacked the ability to cope.

Once they were in the car, Lu Zhengfei said to Chen Qianqing, “Don’t take what she said to heart.”

Chen Qianqing wasn’t the type to be hurt by words. He no longer had any sibling feelings toward Lu Yiqin, so he just responded mildly to Lu Zhengfei’s reassurance.

Around noon, Chen Qianqing and Lu Zhengfei’s flight arrived in B City.

There had just been a light snowfall in B City. After getting off the plane, they bought white chrysanthemums and some fruit, then headed straight to the cemetery.

It was the first day of the new year, so there were many people visiting the graves. The winding mountain road had cars moving slowly. The fog in the mountains had mostly cleared, but there was still a lingering dampness in the air.

The graves of Liu Huamei and Chen Qingyang were chosen by Lu Zhengfei himself. It was said that the feng shui was excellent, and aside from being a bit expensive, there seemed to be no drawbacks.

Chen Qianqing walked to the gravesite with the chrysanthemums. He squatted down, staring at the black-and-white photo on the tombstone, suddenly lost in thought.

Lu Zhengfei kept a close eye on him from the side. At that moment, he just reached out and hugged Chen Qianqing’s shoulders.

Chen Qianqing placed the flowers down, took a tissue, and wiped the dust off the tombstone. He then called out, “Dad, Mom.”

The photo of Liu Huamei was still of a young woman, smiling with her eyes slightly squinted, silently and quietly looking at those in front of her.

When Lu Zhengfei saw that Chen Qianqing had calmed down, he stepped back a little. He knew that Chen Qianqing must have some private words to say to his parents.

After Lu Zhengfei moved away, Chen Qianqing said three words to the tombstone: “I’m sorry.” He wasn’t their son, and he couldn’t even fulfill the filial duties that the real Chen Qianqing should have.

After those words, Chen Qianqing didn’t know what more he could say. After all, he wasn’t really Chen Qianqing, and he had no beautiful memories with Liu Huamei and Chen Qingyang. The only thing he remembered was that, when he came back to this home, someone was always waiting for him.

Finally, Chen Qianqing said, “I’ll come to see you every year from now on. I’m really sorry.” After saying this, he turned and walked back toward Lu Zhengfei.

After the grave visit, Chen Qianqing planned to go home. He had the key to the house, but since he hadn’t been back in a long time, according to Chen Xiaohui, someone else might be living there by now.

Sure enough, when Chen Qianqing arrived at home and pulled out the key to open the door, he found that the lock had been changed.

This time, Chen Qianqing had brought all the property documents with him. Since Chen Qingyang had passed away, the house naturally belonged to him after completing the transfer procedures.

At that time, with Lu Zhengfei’s protection, Chen Qianqing was able to complete the procedure without any issues. As for the compensation money, it was all put into a new account that Chen Qianqing had opened.

Seeing that the key wouldn’t open the door, Chen Qianqing directly called the property management. After verifying the property documents, they sent someone to unlock the door for him.

Once inside, Chen Qianqing looked around the room. His expression darkened.

Although the furniture was the same as before, it was clear that the current occupants of the house didn’t take care of it. The light-colored wooden floor was covered in stains, and the furniture was in a shabby, worn-out condition.

Just as Chen Qianqing was inspecting the house, the tenants returned.

The tenants were a young couple. When the woman saw Chen Qianqing standing in her house, she froze and immediately shouted, “Who are you? What are you doing in my house?!”

Chen Qianqing exchanged a glance with Lu Zhengfei, and they both had a pretty good idea of what was happening.

After explaining the situation to the young couple and asking some questions, Chen Qianqing’s guess was confirmed—this was a very cliché dispute. Chen Qianqing’s aunt had changed the locks while Chen Qianqing was missing and had rented out the house pretending to be the owner.

Throughout the situation, Chen Qianqing remained polite, and with Lu Zhengfei’s strong presence, it didn’t take long for the couple to side with them.

The story of a niece trying to take her nephew’s inheritance after both parents passed away was a typical melodrama. The young couple promised that if what Chen Qianqing said was true, they would move out immediately, with no intention of getting involved any further.

Soon after, Chen Qingyu, who had been notified, arrived at the house.

Upon entering, Chen Qingyu immediately pretended to start crying when she saw Chen Qianqing. Her story was the same old excuse—how they had searched for Chen Qianqing, put up ads, and posted notices, but when money ran out, they decided to rent out Chen Qianqing’s parents’ house to earn money to continue the search.

Chen Qianqing listened to her with a smile, then said, “Now that I’m back, does that mean the house can be returned to me?”

Chen Qingyu gave a forced smile. “Qianqing, it’s not that I don’t want to give it back to you, but the thing is, a contract has already been signed with someone else… If I don’t continue renting it to them, they might sue me.”

Chen Qianqing looked at her and sighed, “Sometimes, human nature really is disgusting.”

Chen Qingyu’s expression changed slightly. She knew her nephew didn’t have any affection for her, and judging by the situation, the house was likely no longer rentable.

Liu Huamei and Chen Qingyang had left behind three properties, and this one, being in the best location, could earn over two thousand in rent every month. Chen Qingyu had heard from Chen Xiaohui that Chen Qianqing had become involved with a wealthy man, and after hesitating for a moment, she said, “Qianqing, you don’t need money right now, can’t you consider your father’s reputation and—”

Chen Qianqing interrupted her directly, waving his hand and coldly saying, “If I didn’t care about my father’s reputation, you’d already be in a detention center.”

Chen Qingyu’s face turned pale. She tried to assert her elder authority, but Chen Qianqing was completely unmoved.

In front of Chen Qingyu, Chen Qianqing said to Lu Zhengfei, “Find a buyer and sell all three properties.”

Lu Zhengfei was momentarily stunned. “Really?”

Chen Qianqing nodded. With Liu Huamei and Chen Qingyang gone, he had no intention of staying here. Apart from visiting the grave every year, there seemed to be no reason to return. Rather than leaving the house to bloodsucking relatives, it would be better to sell it and use the money to help students in poverty-stricken areas.

Normally, Chen Qingyu would have probably started insulting him by now, but today, for some reason, she couldn’t bring herself to speak ill of him while under the combined pressure from Chen Qianqing and Lu Zhengfei. She could only watch as they left, her lips trembling but not a single word escaping.

Being kind is often taken advantage of, and just like the saying goes, “A good horse can be ridden,” neither Chen Qianqing nor Lu Zhengfei were pushovers. Chen Qingyu’s decision to stay silent was undoubtedly the right one.

B City, the city where Chen Qianqing grew up, should have stirred complex and deep emotions in him. However, for Lu Zhengfei, who had lived two lives here, the city didn’t seem to hold any positive impressions.

Lu Zhengfei asked Chen Qianqing if he really didn’t intend to return.

Chen Qianqing thought for a moment and replied, “Aside from Qingming, there doesn’t seem to be much reason to come back anymore.”

Lu Zhengfei felt he should be happy upon hearing this, but when he saw Chen Qianqing’s silent expression, he couldn’t bring himself to feel joy.

In the end, he just hugged Chen Qianqing’s shoulders and said, “It’s okay, I’ll always be with you.”

Chen Qianqing smiled and said, “Lu Zhengfei, sometimes… I really feel like you’re a stranger.” He couldn’t believe he had just said such a cheesy thing.

This person, compared to the one in his memories—the gloomy, harsh, and indifferent Lu Zhengfei—seemed to have become someone else entirely, now smiling gently at him, with the warmth of his soul still radiating.

And that warmth seemed to envelop his own body, making him feel warm as well.