Chapter 114
What Lin Zhiqiao said sent shockwaves in every direction.
Ji Ran had originally been grinning in a great mood because Lin Mubai had just been embarrassed, but the instant he heard Lin Zhiqiao say that, the smile on his face froze on the spot.
Cheng Xia also looked over in surprise, as if he wanted to ask something, but was afraid of stirring up painful memories for Lin Zhiqiao, so after a long while, not a single word came out.
Father Ji and Mother Ji, as well as Father Song and Mother Song, all looked toward Lin Zhiqiao too, their expressions carrying both surprise and heartache.
Song Fengshi, although he still said nothing, quietly tightened his grip on Lin Zhiqiao’s hand.
Only Lin Zhiqiao himself acted as if nothing had happened. After saying that one sentence, he lightly brushed the topic aside and affectionately hooked his arm through Director Zheng’s. “How’s the orphanage been lately?”
“Quite good. Several of the children have found adoptive families, and when we followed up recently, they were all doing really well.” Auntie Zheng said with a smiling face. “So just focus on your work, alright? Busy is good. Busy means your career is improving, and that’s a good thing!”
The two of them quickly walked through the orphanage gates.
Following behind Lin Zhiqiao, Song Fengshi suddenly turned his head and looked toward the Lin family, a dark glint flashing through his eyes.
Father Lin and Mother Lin were so unnerved by that look that they shivered, panic instantly rising in their hearts.
—Did Song Fengshi already know?
Lin Mubai was too deep in his own thoughts to notice Song Fengshi’s gaze at all.
At that moment, he felt extremely frustrated. Out of all the orphanages in the world, why had he ended up choosing Lin Zhiqiao’s “hometown” of all places?
And the system had not even warned him.
Unfortunately, it was too late now to say they should change locations. Lin Mubai could only grit his teeth and follow along, forced to fully experience what it felt like to be utterly left out in the cold.
The Heartthrob System seemed to notice what he was thinking. It let out a very brief electric buzz, but said nothing.
[He stayed here before? What does that mean? Is Xiao Qiao an orphan???]
[Wasn’t it said Lin Zhiqiao was a relative of the Lin family? Why is there suddenly an orphanage involved?!]
[I’m shocked. Xiao Qiao is so cheerful now, I seriously would never have guessed he had a past like this, QAQ]
[My heart hurts for our Qiao-baby. He was slandered so badly before too. Do those marketing accounts and haters even have hearts [crying like a puppy.jpg]]
Lin Zhiqiao had no idea just how much uproar he had caused with that one sentence.
The moment he stepped into the orphanage, one of the children playing in the yard spotted him right away and shouted in delight, “Brother Xiao Qiao is here!!”
That one shout instantly drew the attention of all the children. In the blink of an eye, a whole crowd of kids had surrounded Lin Zhiqiao.
Both of his legs were soon covered with children clinging to him, making it impossible for him to take a single step. He could only bend down and scoop up one child in each arm.
But as soon as he did, other children immediately rushed in to occupy those prime spots.
Seeing Lin Zhiqiao practically covered from head to toe in little children, Song Fengshi could not help curling his lips slightly.
In Lin Zhiqiao’s arms were a little girl in a pink dress and a little boy in overalls.
Both children looked only four or five years old, soft and adorable, and it was obvious at a glance that the aunties at the orphanage had taken very good care of them.
The little girl was called Xu Mingyu, and she was especially close to Lin Zhiqiao. At that moment she was hugging his neck and acting spoiled. “Brother Xiao Qiao, did you bring yummy things today?”
“Today—”
Before Lin Zhiqiao could finish, Song Fengshi smoothly picked up the sentence for him. “There are. They’re just still on the way.”
All the children present instantly cheered, “That’s awesome!”
Lin Zhiqiao glanced at Song Fengshi and caught sight of the phone screen still lit in his hand, and immediately understood.
Even after leaving the orphanage, Lin Zhiqiao had often come back to visit the aunties there. Every time he came, he would bring food, clothes, and daily necessities for the children, and he also often played games with them.
The children at the orphanage all liked Lin Zhiqiao very much, and now they clung to him too, begging him to play games with them again.
Ji Ran and the others, who were close to Lin Zhiqiao, also quickly became one with the children, and even a few kids ended up clustering around Song Fengshi.
Song Fengshi pulled out some candy from his pocket and handed one piece to each child present.
Lin Zhiqiao edged over to him and lightly nudged him with his elbow. “Where did you get the candy?”
“It was originally prepared for you.” Song Fengshi said softly. Then he pulled out one last piece, unwrapped it, and placed it into Lin Zhiqiao’s mouth.
“This is the last one,” he said.
Lin Zhiqiao smacked his lips a little. His round almond eyes narrowed slightly. “It’s so sweet. What brand is this?”
“Custom-made,” Song Fengshi said. “I had a chef from Nanjiang Dining House make it. If you like it, I can have them make more.”
Lin Zhiqiao turned to look at him. Under the sunlight, his pale eyes looked bright and moist.
The candy really was delicious—very sweet, sweet enough to go straight to the heart.
The ingredients used to make it were not particularly precious, but the care behind it carried real weight.
The “delivery” Song Fengshi had arranged arrived soon enough—three whole pickup trucks’ worth, filled with food, clothes, and daily necessities of every sort.
After sitting in the yard for a while longer, Lin Zhiqiao finally stood up and headed indoors.
Xu Mingyu spotted him at once and immediately stuck herself to him again. “Where’s brother going?”
“To the kitchen to cook.” Lin Zhiqiao rubbed the head with twin ponytails and asked, “Xiao Yu, is there anything you want to eat?”
The little girl’s eyes lit up immediately. “I want to eat Brother Xiao Qiao’s steamed taro with rice flour!”
The other children nearby also crowded around again, all eagerly raising their hands and calling out dish names.
Crucian carp tofu soup, winter melon meatballs, sweet-and-sour pork strips… Lin Zhiqiao memorized them one by one, then headed toward the kitchen with obvious familiarity.
The auntie in the kitchen was preparing ingredients. The moment she saw him, she quickly said, “Xiao Qiao, why are you here again! Go out, go out, hurry! Go play with the children. I’ve got the kitchen covered!”
“The kids want to eat something I make.” Lin Zhiqiao had already snatched the apron from behind the door and swiftly tied it around himself. “Auntie Guan, today you should just rest properly. If they can’t eat the food I make, the kids are going to be unhappy.”
Only then did Auntie Guan give up, mumbling under her breath, “This child, every time you come, you never stop working…”
Lin Zhiqiao gently pushed her toward the kitchen door and waved at her. “Go enjoy yourself!”
Song Fengshi followed him into the kitchen as well.
The kitchen was somewhat simple, but it was tidy enough, and it had everything it needed. The vegetables and meat were all of pretty good quality too.
After one look around, Song Fengshi could immediately tell that the money he had donated to the orphanage had truly been put to good use.
And while he had only been observing for that short time, Lin Zhiqiao had already pulled out all the ingredients they would need for lunch and was now standing by the sink working on them.
Song Fengshi walked over and said, “I’ll help you.”
Lin Zhiqiao shifted a step to the side and made room for him, asking casually, “Do you know how?”
As if perfectly timed, the fish in the basin suddenly gave a violent flop, and the water flicked off its tail splashed straight onto Song Fengshi’s face.
Song Fengshi fell into a suspicious silence.
One look at his slightly widened eyes, and Lin Zhiqiao understood everything.
“I’d better do this part.” Lin Zhiqiao said with a laugh. “If you want to help, you can peel some taro and cucumbers for me, then sort and wash the vegetables.”
Song Fengshi seemed to relax a little. That did not sound too difficult. He should be able to pick it up quickly enough.
After a while, several knocks sounded at the kitchen door.
Ji Ran rolled up his sleeves with enthusiasm. “I’m here to help too!”
Unfortunately, Ji Ran was also a rich young master whose fingers had never touched kitchen work. His kitchen skill points were basically on par with Song Fengshi’s, so Lin Zhiqiao sent him to the exact same station.
Cheng Xia, on the other hand, was surprisingly skilled. His knife work was clean and beautiful, and the shredded potatoes he cut were all thin and even.
The four of them bustled around the kitchen, chatting and laughing as they worked, and the efficiency improved considerably.
Outside the door, Lin Mubai watched them, biting down so hard on the corner of his lip that it nearly turned white.
This had obviously been a perfect opportunity to show himself in front of the camera. He had originally included such a plan in his own arrangements too—but at most, it had only been to help the aunties a bit in the kitchen, not to take over all the work the way Lin Zhiqiao had done.
He did not have that ability.
And now that Lin Zhiqiao had beaten him to it in the kitchen, he could find no chance to squeeze his way into that group. Given the relationship between them, doing that would have looked far too deliberate.
Lin Mubai ground his back teeth hard, unable to understand how things had turned out like this.
This had clearly been the “highlight moment” he had arranged for himself, so how had it somehow ended up becoming a bridal gown for Lin Zhiqiao instead?
This was completely different from the situation he had planned for.
Soon it was lunchtime.
Lin Zhiqiao’s cooking was excellent. The crucian carp soup was milky and fresh, and the tofu inside had soaked up all the soup so fully that each bite nearly burst with flavor in the mouth.
And of course, the steamed taro requested by little Xu Mingyu had also been made. On top of the taro lay soft, richly braised pork steamed with rice flour, layered with both fat and lean meat. The taro had absorbed a bit of the meat’s oil, making it soft, powdery, fragrant, and unbelievably delicious.
One only needed to look at the way everyone at the table was eating like a whirlwind to know just how satisfied they were with the meal.
Only the Lin family sat awkwardly at the edge of the table, unable to really swallow much of anything.
Truthfully, they also felt that Lin Zhiqiao’s cooking was very good.
But the moment they thought about why Lin Zhiqiao’s cooking was this good, and then thought again of the look Song Fengshi had given them, Father Lin and Mother Lin felt as if insects were crawling all over their bodies, making their skin crawl with unbearable discomfort.
Mother Lin put down her bowl and tried to speak to Lin Zhiqiao. “Zhiqiao’s cooking is really excellent.”
Unfortunately, they were sitting too far apart, and Lin Zhiqiao did not hear her. Instead, Director Zheng heard and replied, “Of course! Back when Xiao Qiao was still with us here, he often helped with cooking. He was so sensible and capable—everyone loved him.”
Auntie Guan also chimed in, “Exactly. Who knows what kind of parents could be blind enough to throw away such a good child. Honestly, it’s just—”
Before she could finish, Director Zheng secretly bumped her with an elbow, signaling for her not to continue.
Auntie Guan immediately shut her mouth. Her eyes flicked toward Lin Zhiqiao, who was busy adding more food to the children’s bowls, and when she saw that he did not seem to have heard what she had just said, she finally let out a breath of relief.
Mother Lin lowered her head and fiddled with the rice in her bowl, her expression extremely awkward.
Not only had her attempt at showing goodwill failed, she had practically been slapped across the face instead. It felt utterly awful.
At that moment, Song Fengshi, seated beside Lin Zhiqiao, suddenly lifted his eyes and looked once more in the direction of the Lin family.
Father Lin’s whole body stiffened. He could clearly sense the coldness in Song Fengshi’s gaze.
—He knows!
The instant he realized that, a bitter chill rose sharply in Father Lin’s heart.
The relationship between Song Fengshi and Lin Zhiqiao was far too good. Once Song Fengshi learned what Lin Zhiqiao had gone through in the past, there was no way he would remain unmoved. And given the kind of man Song Fengshi had always been, Father Lin scarcely dared imagine what methods he might use against them.
The Song family could crush ten Lin families with a single finger!
Just thinking about it made Father Lin feel his mind go blank, his whole body trembling uncontrollably.
At that point, the only thing he could do was hope that Lin Zhiqiao, for the sake of them all being family, would persuade Song Fengshi not to do anything.
At that thought, Father Lin looked once more at Lin Zhiqiao.
Just then, Lin Zhiqiao also happened to glance in his direction. The moment those pale-colored eyes met his, they slid away elsewhere, and Father Lin even caught a slight frown on his face.
It was as if… as if Lin Zhiqiao despised him to the point that he did not even want to spare him a single extra glance.
A sudden panic rose in Father Lin’s chest, and one thought flashed sharply through his mind—
Could it be… that Lin Zhiqiao no longer recognized them as family?
The instant that thought emerged, Father Lin forcefully crushed it back down.
No, impossible!
They were blood relatives! The closest family one could have in this world! Lin Zhiqiao had once longed for family so desperately, and even after being driven away, he had never spoken a single bad word about them outside. Didn’t that prove that deep in his heart, he still cared about them?
Father Lin forced down the anxiety in his chest and made himself calm down.
Yes. No matter how cold and hard Lin Zhiqiao acted on the surface, it was only a child sulking, only because he had not received enough attention—so he was using this kind of method to try to get his parents to notice him.
Song Fengshi shifted slightly and quietly blocked the Lin family’s line of sight toward Lin Zhiqiao.
Even though none of them had said anything out loud, Song Fengshi was extremely sensitive to emotion, and with just one glance he could already tell what they were thinking.
Inside his heart, Song Fengshi let out a cold sneer.
He would never let them get what they wanted.
