Chapter 11: Little Dummy
After shoving Huo Zhanlin aside, Huo Beixing sat there as if nothing had happened, even letting out a visible sigh of relief.
The male lead’s seat had been saved.
Looking at Huo Zhanlin on the floor, he had originally intended to pretend it was not his doing, but he was simply too happy. The smile tugging at the corners of his mouth could not be suppressed no matter what.
For his current mental age, that was just too difficult.
In the end, he gave up completely, lowered his head to look at Huo Zhanlin, and wore an expression that practically screamed I’m the culprit.
Huo Beixing: “Big Brother, why are you sitting on the floor?”
Huo Zhanlin: …
If you’d just wipe that smile off your face, you wouldn’t look quite this shameless.
For some reason, after seeing this scene, An Yi suddenly felt a bit relieved. So Huo Beixing’s dog-ass trait really was equal-opportunity. It was not aimed at him alone.
Earlier, after hearing An Shaofeng talk about the past friction between the two brothers and the way they had been compared in the business world, An Yi had not drawn any firm conclusions, but subconsciously he had assumed that while the brothers might not hate each other like mortal enemies, their relationship could not be that good either.
Before coming to the big city, An Yi had always believed family ties were something impossible to cut away, something emotionally essential. If they were missing, maybe a person’s whole life would change. No matter how ruthless someone was, they still should not be able to sever that bond.
That was how An Yi felt toward his adoptive father.
Even though his adoptive father had not treated him very well when he was young, and although the man had spent most of his life muddleheaded, he had still given An Yi what he considered a fairly happy childhood. An Yi had regarded him as his father. The two had depended on each other for survival. When the man fell ill in An Yi’s twenty-second year, An Yi still ran around doing everything he could so the old man could pass through the final stretch of his life in peace.
Back then, An Shaofeng had precisely seen this trait in An Yi, which was why he had not worried in the slightest that An Yi would refuse the marriage alliance.
Because An Yi remembered every bit of kindness others showed him, and he would not let them down.
Because he had not received much kindness in his life, every time he encountered it, he treasured it.
But after coming to the big city, An Yi realized that family affection seemed more like a thin thread—one light cut from the blade of self-interest, and it would snap. Over the past year, he had heard plenty of gossip from Chen Lin. At first, he would wonder, Aren’t they family? How can they be so ruthless, without even a trace of hesitation? But little by little, he got used to it. Some people simply did not value feelings that much, especially those at the top, who placed profit and reputation above everything else.
The Huo family had status and enormous interests at stake, so An Yi had assumed the two brothers could not possibly be that close. Earlier, when Zhu Shu said their relationship was good, he had not believed her.
But now, seeing Huo Zhanlin sitting on the floor with that helpless expression, he suddenly believed it.
The two brothers really did get along quite well.
If it were anyone else, they would have started hitting people already.
After all, the little frog was exactly that “anyone else.” 🙂
Big Brother Huo was a sentimental and loyal sort.
An Yi stood up and asked after Huo Zhanlin, “Brother Huo, are you alright?”
Before Huo Zhanlin could answer, Huo Beixing cut in: “He’s fine!”
Huo Zhanlin: …
My thanks to you.
Huo Zhanlin got up and did not bother arguing with Huo Beixing. He took the initiative to sit in the single armchair nearby, picked up an orange, and started peeling it. After eating one segment, he handed the rest of it to Huo Beixing.
“It’s pretty sweet.”
Huo Beixing automatically took it.
Watching this, An Yi had not expected Huo Zhanlin not to mind Huo Beixing’s recklessness just now. Now that he had found a sweet orange, he was even sharing it with Huo Beixing.
What kind of heaven-moving brotherly love was this?
Huo Beixing took the orange and obediently said thank you. He split half of it off for An Yi, then popped the other half into his own mouth.
Huo Beixing: “Yueh…”
An Yi: …
Got it. The orange was very sour.
Huo Beixing’s features scrunched slightly from the sourness, though his handsome face still did not lose its flair. Then he reached out and snatched the orange from An Yi’s hand.
Such a sour orange absolutely could not be given to his wife. What if his wife felt he treated him badly and stopped giving him children?
Right then, Huo Zhanfeng came over to call the two of them to Old Master’s place. Huo Beixing immediately stuffed the orange into Huo Zhanfeng’s hand.
“Uncle, you eat it.”
Huo Zhanfeng: …
What a wonderfully filial nephew you are.
Don’t think I didn’t see it. Just now your eyes were practically squeezed shut from how sour it was.
Then his gaze fell on An Yi. The two of them had crossed paths a few times at the engagement banquet, and clearly the other man still remembered him. An Yi smiled and waved at him, looking very obedient.
After greeting An Yi, Huo Zhanfeng turned to Zhu Shu. “Sister-in-law, Father is asking for them. I’ll take Zhanlin and Beixing over for a bit.”
Zhu Shu said, “Go ahead. There’s nothing much going on over here anyway.”
For quite a long time before, because of certain unavoidable factors, Huo Zhanlin and Huo Beixing had not appeared together in the Huo family’s sight. There had been all kinds of speculation and gossip. As for whether the brothers got along in private, probably only the brothers themselves knew. As their mother, Zhu Shu naturally had some filter on. She believed the brothers were close.
But in all likelihood, she was probably the only one in the Huo family who thought so.
Now that the two of them had both appeared at the family dinner, Old Master naturally wanted to call them over and chat. But Huo Zhanfeng felt that talking was probably useless anyway. Huo Beixing had become foolish, so even if someone said all the usual harmonious nonsense about brothers getting along well, it would not matter.
Unless Huo Beixing stayed foolish forever.
But everyone could tell that what happened to Huo Beixing had not been an accident at all. As for who the mastermind behind it was, nobody knew yet.
Although Huo Beixing was foolish, he could still understand human speech. Once he heard he was going to see Grandpa, he did not throw any tantrum. He obediently stood up, though when he left, he looked back at An Yi several times with reluctance.
“Wife, I’m leaving.”
Anyone who did not know better would think he was never coming back.
Ever since arriving at the main residence, Huo Beixing had noticed that many people kept looking at An Yi all the time. Wherever An Yi went, their eyes followed. This left a bad taste in his mouth.
There was definitely more than one person trying to steal his male lead position.
After Huo Beixing finally left, turning back every few steps, An Yi began to feel a little constrained too. After all, at the Huo family home, the only person he was even remotely familiar with was Huo Beixing.
Zhu Shu noticed and comforted him. “An Yi, just treat this like your own home. Relax.”
An Yi: “Really?”
Zhu Shu: “Mm. Try to relax.”
And then An Yi immediately collapsed there like a puddle of mud, his whole body radiating I am very relaxed.
There was still some time before dinner. Zhu Shu said, “Have some fruit first.”
An Yi nodded. “Alright.”
The two of them understood each other without a word and neither reached toward that plate of sour oranges.
An Yi: clever little frog.jpg
At that moment, a very tall teenage boy walked over from not far away. It was none other than Huo Xiao, who had been waiting at the gate earlier with Huo Zhanlin.
An Yi glanced up.
So it was that little dummy.
Huo Xiao was seventeen. Among the younger generation of the Huo family, he was exceptionally outstanding—so outstanding that he could be said to crush the competition and stand above all others. As a result, he had become rather arrogant. Aside from the few people he felt were worthy of respect, he would show attitude even to the elders of the Huo family.
After walking over, Huo Xiao properly greeted Zhu Shu. “Auntie.”
But he selectively ignored An Yi.
Zhu Shu looked at him and smiled. “Ah Xiao, what is it? Sit down and tell me.”
“No.” Huo Xiao politely declined, his gaze shifting to An Yi at the side. “I came to find him to play.”
The “him” here clearly referred to An Yi.
Zhu Shu was a bit surprised. After all, this was An Yi’s first time coming to the Huo family home, and her nephew was famously arrogant. He had been very resistant to the fact that his older cousin had married a man. She had not expected him to come invite An Yi to hang out.
Although the two were six years apart in age, An Yi looked young and did not seem much older than Huo Xiao. At family dinners, many people talked back and forth with stiff formality. Huo Xiao, because he stood out so much among the younger generation, was not very sociable—mainly because he had never wanted to be.
Aside from the truly little children who did not know better, people of every generation only got a bit more gentle and harmonious around New Year. At ordinary times, everyone compared themselves to everyone else, competing and measuring one another. Influenced by the elders, the younger generation also followed suit—comparing, competing, fighting to outdo each other. There was none of the bright youthful energy young people should have. So Huo Xiao coming to take An Yi off to play was actually a good thing.
Zhu Shu looked at An Yi, who was currently slumped there like a blob of jelly. “Child, do you want to go play with Ah Xiao?”
She was older now, and there was a generation gap between her and young people. She also thought An Yi might hesitate to leave because of her, so she asked him proactively.
An Yi actually did not care much either way. No matter where he was, people were still looking at him. Since Huo Xiao had come to invite him, it would not be very polite to refuse. So after greeting Zhu Shu, he stood up.
When Huo Xiao saw An Yi get to his feet, he let out a cold snort.
At least this country bumpkin knows how to read the room.
Afterward, he led An Yi into the game room. The game room was basically the only place in the Huo family for entertainment and leisure. It was fairly large. Once An Yi went in, Huo Xiao shut the door, and the expression on his face immediately turned foul.
He sized up the person before him. His looks matched Huo Xiao’s impression of a kept pretty boy. What Huo Xiao despised most was people who did not rely on their own abilities to survive and instead took crooked shortcuts. Not to mention that An Yi, as a man, had done something as absurd as marrying another man.
Clearly, Huo Xiao had already filed An Yi away among the people who took crooked paths.
But that did not mean that just because he had married Huo Beixing, he would be allowed to live comfortably from now on. Huo Xiao wanted him to face reality. Marrying Huo Beixing was something he was not worthy of, not qualified for.
Huo Xiao asked coldly, “Do you know what the situation is right now?”
An Yi looked at him, then at the playing cards on the table. “Three missing one?”
Huo Xiao: …
Huo Xiao took a deep breath. “I’m talking about your current position.”
An Yi had the vague feeling that the other party was trying to warn him about something. Since it was almost mealtime, his expression turned serious.
“You mean I’m not allowed to sit at the table and eat?”
Huo Xiao: “You…”
An Yi waved a hand grandly. “Don’t worry. That won’t happen. Huo Beixing won’t agree to it. Half of his bowl of rice is mine.”
At times like this, didn’t Huo Beixing’s strengths become obvious?
His good husband who divided marital property evenly.
Huo Xiao’s brow twitched. “Who cares whether you get to eat or not! I’m talking about your position as the male wife!”
An Yi looked at him. The other boy was not yet eighteen, so he was not an adult. For now, An Yi mentally placed him into the same category as Huo Beixing.
An Yi said, “What are you trying to say?”
Huo Xiao met his gaze directly. The disdain and contempt in his eyes were not hidden at all, and he had no need to hide them. Since childhood, he had always been the most outstanding among his generation. No one could surpass him. His pride and arrogance made him look down entirely on this man from the mountains, a twenty-three-year-old with nothing but a high school diploma.
“Do you think you’re worthy of standing by Brother Beixing’s side? The only reason you got to this position today is because Brother Beixing had an accident, and because of the nonsense of some half-dead fortune-teller who came from who-knows-where. That’s the only reason you got the chance to enter the Huo family’s doors, the only reason you got to marry Brother Beixing.”
Since childhood, his only goal had been Huo Beixing.
In his eyes, Huo Beixing was a mountain he admired and could not surpass. When he was little, he had constantly heard people talk about how outstanding Huo Beixing was, how many trophies he had won, how he had entered the business school of the world’s top university. Even if he had been a playboy, his casual freedom had been something unique within the Huo family.
In this family suffocating under heavy pressure, Huo Beixing had lived boldly and flamboyantly, yet without lacking ambition or ability. On the surface, he seemed careless about everything, as though anything he did came easily to him, as though nobody could do it better.
He embodied many of the things Huo Xiao longed for, and had also taught him quite a few things.
But now such a spirited person had met with an accident and married someone with no learning and no ability. The man was even male. He did not deserve him. If Huo Beixing were in his right mind, he would never even spare someone like An Yi a glance.
And now that the two of them had married, it was nothing less than an insult to Huo Beixing.
Seeing that An Yi still had not spoken, Huo Xiao said, “Why aren’t you saying anything?”
An Yi’s expression barely changed. “I think what you said makes sense.”
After all, the truth was more or less what the other person said. Close enough.
He had perfectly dodged the other party’s verbal attack.
“So you at least have some self-awareness.” Huo Xiao sneered and entered full mockery mode, determined to wake up this person who had gained without working simply by marrying a man. “As far as I know, you only have a high school diploma. The An family recognized you as an adopted son a year ago. During that whole year, instead of relying on your own ability to improve yourself, you turned around and married a man. Don’t you feel ashamed?”
An Yi said, “How do you know I didn’t work hard?”
“Because you haven’t accomplished anything in the past year,” Huo Xiao said. “Then again, with nothing but a high school diploma, what kind of career do you really think you could build?”
The moment those words fell, An Yi’s eyes dimmed slightly.
The words high school diploma had practically become forbidden words during the three years from when he was eighteen to twenty-one.
He had grown up in a mountain ravine, working in the fields every day, and knew very clearly that such a life held no future. So from elementary school onward, he had studied desperately. Every morning before dawn, he would leave home and walk several kilometers over the mountain to the school on the other side. Even in winter, when the roads were slippery and steep, he had never once been absent.
Because he knew that was his only way to change his fate.
He did not want to live muddleheaded. He wanted to go see the world outside the mountains. He longed—desperately, urgently—to crawl out of the dry well that trapped his vision, to cross that towering mountain.
His effort had not been in vain. An Yi’s grades had always been excellent. He gritted his teeth and pushed himself through the college entrance exam, applying to the major he loved and hoping to get into that first-tier art university.
And he had gotten in.
It was just that, in the end, the one who went to college was not him, but the village chief’s son. His university spot was stolen.
For the three years after that day, An Yi never recovered. He relied only on time to slowly accept reality.
But the thorn remained in his heart.
He was not just a high school graduate.
He got in.
He really did get in.
But the darkness in his eyes lasted only for a moment. An Yi looked at the proud, arrogant boy in front of him.
“Just because you didn’t see it doesn’t mean I didn’t work hard.”
“Effort without results is wasted effort. It’s no different from not trying at all.”
“There is a difference.”
“There isn’t!”
The two of them very quickly entered full elementary-school-chicken battle mode.
An Yi: “I said there is!”
Huo Xiao: “There isn’t, there isn’t!”
An Yi: “What does a little brat like you know?”
Huo Xiao: “I’m a little brat, but even a little brat is half a head taller than you. You just didn’t work hard!”
An Yi: “I’ll say it one more time—I did!”
Huo Xiao: “I say you didn’t, then you didn’t. If you’ve got the guts, hit me.”
Smack!
Huo Xiao immediately took a smack on the head.
Huo Xiao: …
An Yi stood beside him and said cheerfully, “This is the first time I’ve ever heard such an unreasonable request.”
Author’s Note:
An Yi: I really have no choice but to grant your wish.
