Hello, Jie Fen – CH44

Chapter 44: You Know So Much

When Xie Sichen arrived at the airport, he didn’t have to wait long before he met Chu Qing and Xie Yunting.

Chu Qing had an air of affluence about her—fair-skinned and slightly plump, with a friendly smile. Xie Yunting was tall and handsome, silent and meticulous.

In this family-of-three setting, only Chu Qing did the talking. Xie Yunting stood behind like a background prop, while Xie Sichen occasionally responded.

As soon as Chu Qing saw Xie Sichen, she came over to hug him, wrapping her hands around him to measure his body. “You’ve lost weight. Haven’t been eating well?”

Letting go, she lifted her face to scrutinize his. “But your complexion has improved a lot. Have you been sleeping well lately? You shouldn’t take too many sleeping pills; I heard they’re bad for the brain and can affect your memory if overused!”

“…” Xie Sichen replied, “I haven’t been taking them.”

Chu Qing looked at him disapprovingly. “Well, you shouldn’t drink alcohol either. Drinking too much can cause gout. Your father had gout when he was young!”

Xie Sichen: “…I haven’t been drinking.”

After all these years, he still wasn’t adept at dealing with Chu Qing.

At this moment, the usually silent Xie Yunting spoke up appropriately, “Let’s head to the hotel first.”

Chu Qing agreed, “Oh, right, to the hotel.”

She patted Xie Sichen on the back and turned to Xie Yunting, “Look at our son—hasn’t he gotten thinner?”

In a deep voice, Xie Yunting said, “He’s wearing too many clothes; it’s hard to tell.”

Chu Qing’s attention immediately shifted. “Too many clothes? I thought he wasn’t wearing enough.”

She grabbed the collar of Xie Sichen’s shirt and started counting. “Only three layers! And the sweater is so thin! It’s so cold in winter; don’t try to look cool. Your father was like this when he was young, and now his knees ache whenever it’s cold. Trying to be cool when young leads to suffering when old!”

Xie Yunting thought: At least give me some face.

Xie Sichen: “…”

Chu Qing talked nonstop along the way, and Xie Sichen grew increasingly silent.

After dropping them off at the hotel, he was about to leave when Chu Qing pulled him back. “Wait, it’s still early. Let’s have dinner together.”

So, he stayed to have dinner with Chu Qing and Xie Yunting.

Their family didn’t have a rule against talking during meals, so Chu Qing kept asking about his situation while they ate. Xie Sichen answered as best as he could, but his thoughts drifted far away.

At this hour, Chi Wang was probably still awake; he wondered what he was doing.

After dinner, when he was about to leave, Chu Qing didn’t stop him again. Once he left, she turned to Xie Yunting and said, “Sichen seems preoccupied.”

Xie Yunting didn’t respond, so Chu Qing continued, “He’s distracted, his mind isn’t with us at all, and he’s in such a hurry to leave. Could he be dating someone and rushing to see them?”

This time, Xie Yunting spoke, “I don’t think so.” He probably just finds you annoying.

Back in the day, Xie Yunting was the quintessential domineering CEO. Now, he wore two layers of thermal underwear, and his socks were extra thick.

Chu Qing sighed, “This child still talks so little. Would anyone really like him?”

Xie Yunting remained silent.

He was like that himself back then, yet he ended up with a wife and child.

Some people are just attracted to that type.

*

On Sunday, Chi Wang got up early, had breakfast, and prepared to set off.

Xie Sichen joined him for breakfast. As Chi Wang was about to leave, Xie finally asked which of Xiao Fu’s residences he was heading to.

Chi Wang replied, “Over by Xiang Lake.”

Xie’s expression remained cold and stern, but his tone softened slightly. “You have classes tomorrow; going back and forth will be inconvenient.”

Chi Wang said, “It’s fine. I usually only have one or two classes in the morning. I can make it in time.”

Xie: “…Alright.”

Although it wasn’t his concern, Chi Wang added a few more words, “Senior, your parents probably don’t visit you often, right? If you’re free, you could take them around. I remember our city has quite a few scenic spots. People their age might enjoy hiking; you could take them to climb Xiang Mountain. The scenery up there is really nice.”

Xie responded coolly, “Hmm.”

Sensing that Xie’s mood wasn’t great, Chi Wang scratched his head and said, “Well, I’m off then.”

Xie: “Hmm.”

Chi Wang glanced at him, said nothing more, and headed out.

He had told Xie that he would keep his distance from Xiao Fu, but given the complicated situation now, the best he could do was be upfront about it.

Chi Wang met up with Xiao Fu at the school gate as usual. Xiao Fu was wearing glasses and flipping through a dictionary in the car. Beside him was a notebook filled with names he had come up with.

Chi Wang: “…”

Seriously, bro, you’re overdoing it.

Picking up the notebook and flipping through it casually, Chi Wang found that, thanks to the dictionary, the cultural quality of the names had significantly improved. Names like “Yang Qin,” “Yang Shao,” “Yang Chi,” “Yang Lan,” and so on—much better than “Yang Bao.”

But he’d already said he wouldn’t change his name!

In the past, when Xiao Fu tried to control him, Chi Wang didn’t dare confront him. In society, sometimes you have to bow to power. Chi Wang had been navigating society since middle school; he knew this well.

But now, times had changed. He wasn’t willing to let Xiao Fu push him around.

However, Chi Wang didn’t say much at the moment, fearing he might upset Xiao Fu and cause an accident while driving.

Seeing Chi Wang get into the car, Xiao Fu took off his glasses, carefully placed them in the case, and stored them in the drawer.

He was much more proper now, having removed the studs from his face. Though he couldn’t resist wearing a pair of black diamond earrings, upping his stylish vibe.

Chi Wang hadn’t paid much attention to Xiao Fu’s face before. At first glance, he was a handsome guy, even somewhat radiant. Looking too much might provoke him, but now, feeling bolder, Chi Wang dared to study his face. He noticed that on the side closer to him—Xiao Fu’s right eyebrow had a scar where the eyebrow was split. He asked, “What happened to your eyebrow?”

Xiao Fu paused, glancing at him somewhat guiltily. “…An injury from training when I was a kid.”

Chi Wang said, “That’s really close to your eye—dangerous. You were lucky it didn’t damage your eye.”

Xiao Fu was taken aback, feeling a mix of emotions. Only his mother and Chi Wang had ever said such things to him.

Only his mother would express such concern, and now there was Chi Wang.

He couldn’t hide his joy. Chi Wang truly was his biological brother—just like their mother, he cared about him. He held a place in his brother’s heart.

Xiao Fu smiled and said, “Yes.”

He revealed another scar that he usually tried to hide. “There’s also this one; it’s close to my eye.”

Turning slightly, Xiao Fu pointed to a white scar beneath his right eye for Chi Wang to see.

Chi Wang looked closely and exclaimed, “Wow, you really are lucky—injured twice, both times near your eye.”

Xiao Fu happily lifted his shirt. “Look, there’s more here. There’s a scar on my chest. And on my stomach—I have lots of scars.”

Seeing the numerous scars on Xiao Fu’s body, Chi Wang couldn’t help but ask, “How did you get all these? Do you get injured often?”

Chi Wang himself often got injured, but fortunately, he didn’t scar easily, so he rarely had lasting marks.

Looking at Xiao Fu’s many scars, which didn’t look very pleasant, Chi Wang felt concerned.

Xiao Fu vaguely replied, “Yeah, I get injured often.”

Chi Wang: “…”

Now he believed they were truly brothers.

Most people wouldn’t have such synchronicity.

Though their personalities were vastly different.

But that’s normal—even twins can be quite different, let alone half-siblings.

Wait a minute—Chi Wang suddenly thought of something and asked Xiao Fu, “Do you know anything about my biological father? You must have looked into it, right?”

Xiao Fu’s smile faded, a hint of hostility appearing in his eyes. He said stiffly, “Why are you interested? Having a brother is enough; don’t be too greedy.”

Chi Wang: “…”

See, there you go again, trying to control me.

Chi Wang said, “Can’t I be curious? It’s not about being greedy. I have the right to know about my biological father.”

Xiao Fu wasn’t bothered by Chi Wang’s attitude; he’d experienced it before.

He had noticed earlier that Chi Wang actually had quite a temper—a trait they shared.

Thinking of this commonality, Xiao Fu brightened up again, his displeasure mostly dissipated. He said, “Alright, if you want to know, I’ll tell you. But don’t try to find him. He went abroad ten years ago and settled there. He’s quite wealthy, but what’s his foreign assets compared to our Xiao family’s wealth? Mom didn’t take him seriously back then; she was just playing around. But he took it seriously, even wanted to drop out of school to be with her. He was clueless and scared Mom away.”

At this point, he frowned, “If he hadn’t scared Mom, she wouldn’t have run away, and none of that would have happened. But he’s abroad now, beyond my reach; otherwise, I’d teach him a lesson.”

Chi Wang said, “Wait, your…”

This aggressive attitude—seriously.

Chi Wang remarked, “So my dad was a student back then? Then Mom was quite something too.”

But how did Xiao Fu know such private details? Was he hiding under someone’s bed back then?

Hearing Chi Wang’s words, Xiao Fu realized he sounded too biased and, fearing Chi Wang might think poorly of their mother, reluctantly adopted a fairer tone. “Maybe it wasn’t just playing around. If it were casual, Mom wouldn’t have gotten pregnant. She probably liked him a bit. You must be a child born from love by both parents.”

Ah, Chi Wang liked hearing that and couldn’t help but smile. “I see.”

That was enough for him.

Even though he hadn’t met them, Chi Wang was grateful they brought him into this world, allowing him to see such a vast world and beautiful life.

Chi Wang went with Xiao Fu to his home.

In photos, Xiao Fu’s home looked big. Upon arrival, he realized it was truly enormous—a large villa with an expansive lawn that seemed endless at first glance.

They had even built a path along the lakeside—a long stretch, perfect for an after-dinner walk.

However, the villa wasn’t very new and looked a bit old. Looking closely, the walls were peeling.

The interior decorations were also somewhat dated, and the genuine leather sofa was full of dents and scratches, as if a cat had clawed it.

Wait, how does it look both wealthy and not wealthy?

But because of this simple style, Chi Wang didn’t feel uncomfortable going in.

Xiao Fu cheerfully stood in front of the floor-to-ceiling windows, pointing out to Chi Wang, “See? Those are the sausages we dried this year. Enough for the two of us.”

Then he pulled out a chubby half-grown cat from a corner. “Baby, this is the cat your brother raises. It’s just like a little dog, so I named it ‘Little Dog Meow.’ You can just call it ‘Little Dog.'”

He then looked down at the plump orange cat and said, “Little Dog, this is your uncle. Come and meet him.”

Saying that, he held the cat up, pushing it toward Chi Wang like a cannon, as if it might fire a cannonball at any moment and blow Chi Wang away.

Chi Wang: “…”

So why is a cat named ‘Little Dog’?