Chapter 39: Still Just a Child
Chi Wang couldn’t let Xiao Fu know he was living with Xie Sichen, could he? Absolutely not.
So, maintaining his composure, Chi Wang replied, “No need. I have a class at 3:30; I need to get to class. Let’s talk next time.”
After speaking, he pulled up the hood of his sweatshirt to block the cold wind and quickly walked toward the school gate.
Xiao Fu called after him, “Wait a minute, come here.”
Chi Wang stopped in his tracks and turned to look at him. “Is there something else?”
The sunlight wasn’t particularly intense at this moment. The warm rays fell upon Chi Wang, casting a faint golden glow on his fair cheeks, making him appear youthful and beautiful.
Xiao Fu couldn’t get enough of looking at him. An indescribable stirring emotion in his heart made him want to keep Chi Wang close, always within sight.
Xiao Fu picked up his phone and smiled at Chi Wang. “Let big brother take a few photos of you.”
Before Chi Wang could refuse, Xiao Fu had already opened the camera and snapped several quick shots, saying, “Our little Wang is so handsome.”
Chi Wang: “…”
He curled his toes inside his shoes and said loudly, “I’m leaving now!”
With that, Chi Wang turned and rushed into the school without looking back.
Xiao Fu chuckled as he looked at the photos he’d taken, thinking that Chi Wang looked great—very photogenic even with casual shots. He planned to have the photos printed and framed and to set one as his phone wallpaper.
After arriving at school, Chi Wang took out his phone, intending to tell Xie Sichen about the paternity test results.
The test report had been taken by Xiao Fu, and he hadn’t been able to take a photo of it, so he could only tell Xie verbally.
When Xie saw the message from Chi Wang, he replied with a single word: [Congratulations.]
Chi Wang felt like chatting more but thought it might be inappropriate, so he casually sent a “[Running in the dark].jpg” meme.
That afternoon, Xie also received information about Xiao Fu’s mother, Yang Qingdai. Before Chi Wang could tell him, he had already learned the truth.
Indeed, Yang Qingdai had given birth to a second child, a fact known only to a very few people, as it wasn’t particularly honorable.
Yang Qingdai was a typical woman from a scholarly family. Her parents were a professor and a doctor; her grandparents were both academics. It could be said that her family had a strong intellectual atmosphere. Growing up in such an environment, she was naturally well-educated, gentle, and intellectual, with a wealth of knowledge. She was also the youngest child in the family, cherished by all.
The Xiao family, to which Xiao Wenzhou belonged, was extremely wealthy locally—a prominent aristocratic family. Although it had declined somewhat by Xiao Wenzhou’s generation, it was still formidable.
Therefore, this marriage was considered a social climb for Yang Qingdai. Xiao Wenzhou was willing to show himself as a loving husband in public, always caring for her. But since the birth of Xiao Fu, he rarely returned home, and even when he did, they slept in separate rooms. A few years later, Yang Qingdai discovered the truth about why he wouldn’t share a room with her and, in a fit of anger, demanded a divorce. Xiao Wenzhou didn’t argue and quickly divorced her.
However, after the divorce, Yang Qingdai didn’t return home. Her parents had disapproved of the marriage from the start, but she was smitten with Xiao Wenzhou’s refined appearance and insisted on marrying him, causing a severe rift with her family. Her father’s heart condition was aggravated by her actions, nearly costing his life, and her two older brothers also fell out with her.
So she took a large sum of money and went elsewhere. It was during that time that she became pregnant.
It wasn’t hard to find out whose child she was carrying. At that time, she was close to a young man who was the top science student of that year, featured in the news—a handsome and charming boy with particularly bright eyes, like stars.
Anyone familiar with Chi Wang, upon seeing the photo of that young man, would immediately sense the strong likelihood of their blood relation.
They looked too similar; those eyes were full of vibrant energy.
Chi Wang did resemble Yang Qingdai to some extent but looked even more like that young man.
Yang Qingdai didn’t stay with that young man for long before leaving, going to a place even farther away—Chi Wang’s hometown—where she gave birth to him.
Then, one afternoon, while she was sunbathing with Chi Wang, he went missing. Unable to find her child and already suffering from postpartum depression, she couldn’t cope and took her own life.
Her two brothers collected her body. Naturally, they knew she had given birth and that the child was missing. They spent time and effort searching, but at that time, there were no surveillance cameras, and the place where she rented was not upscale. Finding the child was extremely difficult, and after a year or two, they gave up.
Xie hadn’t investigated Chi Wang’s affairs but had only looked into Yang Qingdai, yet from that, he had glimpsed hints of Chi Wang’s upbringing.
Xie sat silently in his office for a long time and arranged for this information to be sent to Xiao Fu.
He knew that Xiao Fu was also investigating this matter, but the people Xiao Fu had hired wouldn’t uncover such detailed information.
Since he was the older brother, he should act accordingly.
For now, he didn’t have that qualification.
When Xiao Fu returned home, he received the information from the private investigator earlier than the agreed time. However, he was not pleased and sent a voice message directly: “You managed to find out so quickly? You’d better not be giving me a half-hearted effort.” As he said this, his voice carried a hint of laughter, using a light and cheerful tone to say words filled with hostility.
He appeared amiable in front of Chi Wang, but in reality, he was difficult to get along with, often using his power to suppress others. None of the people around him had an easy time; if they weren’t treated as cash cows, they were used as tools for him to vent his frustrations.
Being anyone’s lackey was better than being Xiao Fu’s; he wouldn’t let much slip through his fingers for them, and they often had to endure his moods.
He was arrogant toward ordinary people, showing no respect. Though he smiled on the surface, he didn’t think much of them.
Such a person was hard to like, but he didn’t need others to like him. As long as they feared him and worked for him, that was enough.
The private investigator, holding the information he had obtained effortlessly, didn’t show any fear. “Mr. Xiao, rest assured. We have a solid reputation for this kind of work. Please review the information first. If you have any concerns, you can let us know, and we’ll continue the investigation.”
Xiao Fu snorted coldly, ignored him, accepted the information, and sat on the sofa to read.
This was fine until he finished reading. His face flushed—not from embarrassment but from rage—his face red, neck veins bulging. The face that usually carried a smile was now expressionless, and the hostility in his eyes was almost palpable.
Soon, he became a master of table-clearing, smashing everything on the coffee table.
When he previously investigated Chi Wang, what was his mindset? He felt that Chi Wang was indifferent toward him, unlike others who fawned over him. He was displeased and wanted to see what kind of person Chi Wang was. People might be able to pretend in front of him, but their life experiences from childhood couldn’t lie.
He rigidly believed that a person’s character was linked to their upbringing—believing that the poor would be inferior and vain.
He wanted to use a template to fit Chi Wang, to grasp his weaknesses and find his pain points. Though crude, Xiao Fu thought it effective. That’s how he dealt with those around him, like Xiao Chengfeng, whom he also controlled tightly.
But what he found was that Chi Wang shone brightly at every stage. He wasn’t inferior, nor did he have vanity. He was consistent inside and out in front of him—open, honest, sincere, and courageous, with no weaknesses.
At that time, Xiao Fu only felt that the person he valued was indeed extraordinary but didn’t think much more. He lacked empathy and wouldn’t feel sorry for someone just because they had a tough life.
He didn’t deny that he still looked down on Chi Wang, with full arrogance.
Now the situation was different. The information clearly stated that his mother had committed suicide because she lost her child. Xiao Fu wasn’t stupid; he knew that Chi Wang’s adoptive mother had stolen the child.
To put it bluntly, that woman had caused his mother’s death. After stealing Chi Wang, she didn’t even raise him properly, making him fend for himself since middle school. One person ruining two lives—she was really something!
In his life, Xiao Fu cared most about his mother, Yang Qingdai. Now there was another—his mother’s child, Chi Wang. That vile woman had ruined both people he cared about. How could he tolerate that?
A smile appeared on Xiao Fu’s face, but it didn’t reach his eyes; it was chilling to the bone.
*
That evening, after finishing his tutoring job, Chi Wang returned home to find that Xie had already walked Xiaomi.
When Chi Wang first started walking Xiaomi, the dog wasn’t very big, looking only about five or six months old—a puppy.
Dogs grow quickly; in just a month or so, its physique had grown considerably, starting to look like an adult dog.
At this age, border collies require a lot of exercise, so the purchase of the electric scooter was just right.
Chi Wang opened the door and was greeted by an exhausted Xiaomi lying flat on the floor, tongue lolling out.
Chi Wang couldn’t help but squat down, grabbing Xiaomi’s tongue, stretching it out, then rolling it back into Xiaomi’s mouth.
Xiaomi whimpered, got up, and wanted to play with Chi Wang. So Chi Wang played fetch with a frisbee in the living room.
They played for a while until Xie called him, and he stopped.
As usual, Xie had prepared a nutritional supplement for him to drink.
Chi Wang obediently took the cup and lowered his head to drink.
Xie watched him. From his angle, he could see Chi Wang’s long eyelashes and high nose bridge.
He suddenly became aware again that Chi Wang was really very young. He had just turned eighteen last summer, and now he was only nineteen—still a child—but he was already carrying his baby.
Sensing his gaze, Chi Wang looked up at him and smiled. “Why are you looking at me like that?”
Xie met his eyes. Chi Wang’s beautiful pupils were like stars, sparkling brilliantly.
He reached out and brushed aside the hair on Chi Wang’s forehead, saying calmly, “Your hair has grown; it needs a trim.”
Chi Wang realized. “It has grown. But in winter, longer hair can block some wind.”
Xie lowered his eyes, his voice softening slightly. “Hmm.”
After finishing the supplement, Chi Wang was about to place the cup on the table when he suddenly tripped and fell forward.
Xie’s pupils contracted, and he immediately reached out to catch him. However, Chi Wang moved even faster, smoothly rolling on the ground and skillfully avoiding a hard fall.
Xie: “…”
He pulled Chi Wang up from the floor. Chi Wang took a deep breath and said, “Sorry about that. That was clumsy of me.”
Xie looked down at his feet and found the cause of his stumble—the carpet’s pile was too long and had knotted, causing Chi Wang to trip.
Xie said, “I’ll replace the carpet tomorrow.”
Chi Wang looked down at Xie holding his hand. Noticing his gaze, Xie paused but didn’t let go; instead, he held his hand even tighter.
Chi Wang couldn’t help but say, “This hand has Xiaomi’s saliva on it; I haven’t washed it yet.”
Xie paused and said in a low voice, “It’s okay.”
Chi Wang replied, “It might be okay for you, but I want to go wash my hands.”
Xie: “…”
