Chapter 28
Qi Wang took Lin Huaixi by the hand and led him back to the bedroom.
Qi Wang’s expression looked calm, but after dropping a quick, “Do your homework first. Don’t worry, I can handle this,” he hurried away at once.
Lin Huaixi stared after him, his face full of worry.
How could he possibly not worry?!
But he cared even more about Qi Wang’s feelings. After sitting quietly in the chair for five minutes, he got up, shut the window and the door, then sat properly at the desk as though nothing had happened and took out his homework from his schoolbag.
With both the window and the door tightly closed, most of the outside sounds were cut off, but now and then one or two sentences still slipped into his ears.
In the end, Lin Huaixi could only wad up two little balls of tissue paper and stuff them into his ears. His eyes stared unblinking at the textbook, yet after writing only a word or two, his pen would unconsciously stop, his gaze losing focus. Five or six minutes would pass before he came back to himself and forced his attention back onto the homework.
Lin Huaixi listened carefully in class and was also smart, so he usually finished homework very efficiently. Normally, he could get it all done in two hours. But this time he dawdled and dragged it out, and after two whole hours, he had completed only one page of practice problems.
Grandma finished cooking and still did not see Lin Huaixi come down. Worried, she went upstairs and knocked on the door. “Xixi, come eat first.”
Only then did Lin Huaixi take the tissue out of his ears and head downstairs.
There was no rule in the Lin family of not speaking while eating or sleeping. In the past, mealtimes had always been lively. But this time, the three of them sat quietly at the table, even eating more slowly than usual.
Distracted, Lin Huaixi only kept his head down and ate rice. Grandma sighed, took the initiative to put food into his bowl, and comforted him, “Eat first. After dinner, I’ll tell you about what’s going on with Qi Wang’s family.”
The moment he heard that, Lin Huaixi’s eyes lit up. His wandering soul finally returned to his body and took control again. Lowering his head, he began eating as fast as he could.
Grandma was afraid he would choke, but knowing any warning would be useless, she simply thoughtfully served him a bowl of soup.
After finishing his meal, Lin Huaixi sat down beside Grandma and looked at her with blazing eyes.
After spending so much time together, Grandma had long since come to regard Qi Wang as a real grandson, and she also deeply pitied Wen Qianshu’s circumstances. Taking off her glasses, she said slowly, “I don’t know the exact details either. Your mother only explained a little to me.”
Lin Huaixi froze. “Why does Mom know?”
Grandma patted his knee. “Your mother is Aunt Wen’s agent and handles all her paintings for her. After being around her for so long, she has more or less figured out the situation in that household. Aunt Wen’s paintings have been getting more and more popular, and Qi Wang’s father happened to see them and took the initiative to contact Aunt Wen.”
Lin Huaixi’s brows knotted tightly, and he almost looked dazed. “Qi Wang’s father? Didn’t his father die too?!”
Lin Huaixi still remembered what happened back in kindergarten. Aunt Wen had been seriously ill, and the nanny had been irresponsible, which was why Qi Wang had been left in kindergarten the entire night with no one coming to pick him up.
The next day, Wang Xiaohu had said Qi Wang didn’t have a father, and Qi Wang had not denied it. From that moment on, Lin Huaixi had simply assumed that Qi Wang was the same as him—having only his mother by his side, with his father long dead.
Grandma fell silent, not knowing how to explain it. She only shook her head.
Lin Huaixi instantly exploded, springing to his feet.
Back then, when he thought Qi Wang had gotten lost and had squatted at the intersection for three hours, it had not actually been a misunderstanding. That was how the original plot was supposed to develop.
Nanny Sun had remained in that household, neglecting and mistreating Qi Wang, even sowing discord between mother and son. Aunt Wen’s illness had been severe as well. She had immersed herself in a fantasy world and firmly believed the round figure in her painting was her child, ignoring Qi Wang’s feelings. It was only after Qi Wang had lost heart completely that he wandered off and was kidnapped.
Although that section of the plot had not been described in detail, when Qi Wang returned, there had been an extra scar on his face, and his personality had become even darker. That set the groundwork for all the later tragedy in his life.
On the surface, it had looked as though Aunt Wen and Nanny Sun had caused it. But the real culprit was that irresponsible father, who had ignored them for years and never once cared about what they felt.
Lin Huaixi tried hard to recall the plot, overworking his brain until the veins at his temples throbbed.
In the original novel, Qi Wang’s father had never appeared at all. Or perhaps the author had decided to switch directions later and abandoned that subplot.
His own accidental actions had changed the path of Qi Wang’s fate, and the plot had already become completely unrecognizable. This was supposed to be a good thing, but this particular twist was something he had never anticipated.
Lin Huaixi ground his teeth in anger. If Qi Wang’s father appeared in front of him right now, he would definitely charge straight at him like a little fighting bull and ram him.
Grandma sighed. “Your mother and Aunt Wen are still out of town. They’ll handle this matter properly. As for Qi Wang… children really shouldn’t be dragged into adult matters, but that family of theirs…”
Grandma had been cultured and reasonable all her life. She deeply despised Qi Wang’s father, yet she still could not bring herself to say anything too harsh.
Lin Huaixi also fell silent, his heart sinking lower and lower.
He was too young. In a matter like this, he was powerless. The only thing he could do was stay by Qi Wang’s side and help him through this difficult period.
Grandma had thought the same thing. “Qi Wang looks more mature and steadier than children your age, but in truth he has suffered quite a lot, and his thoughts run deeper too. Talk to him more. Don’t let him corner himself in his own mind.”
Looking troubled, Lin Huaixi asked Grandma for advice. “Qi Wang doesn’t seem to want me to know, and he definitely doesn’t want me involved. What should I do?”
“Then don’t force it. Give him a little more time and let him come out of it himself.” Grandma looked at Lin Huaixi with eyes full of affection. “Xixi, when you were born, our family was going through its darkest period. Looking at you made it feel like everything had been healed. It’s the same for Qi Wang. You can do more than you think.”
With complicated emotions in his heart, Lin Huaixi reached out and held Grandma’s hand, which was full of wrinkles but very warm.
He went back to his room and sat quietly in front of the small inner window.
The houses here were built almost exactly the same. Across from Qi Wang’s bed there was a small window too. When they were younger, Lin Huaixi would often lie at the window and say good night to Qi Wang through it.
But tonight, the other side was silent. The person in his heart still never appeared.
Lin Huaixi let out a slow sigh.
How was he supposed to pretend he knew nothing, and still comfort Qi Wang well? Should he give him a gift?
Every year on Qi Wang’s birthday, Lin Huaixi gave him something, but the gifts had always been things he thought were good. None of them had ever truly reached Qi Wang’s heart. At a special time like this, he wanted to give Qi Wang a gift with real meaning—something that, no matter how unhappy he was, would make him smile the moment he saw it.
Lin Huaixi thought this was an excellent idea. He became so excited he wanted to start on it immediately, but then got stuck at the very first step.
What did Qi Wang like most? What did he care about most?
Lin Huaixi froze. He wracked his brain and searched through his memories until his head felt a whole size bigger, but he still could not come up with an answer.
Buying gifts for himself or for Sun Baiyi was easy. Things they liked could be grabbed by the handful. But Qi Wang had no particular preferences. Everything he did was like a task, carried out step by step in an orderly fashion.
…No wonder Sun Baiyi called him a robot.
As Qi Wang’s childhood friend and his best friend since they were little, Lin Huaixi felt ashamed that he could not identify what Qi Wang liked. He immediately took out the phone his mother had just given him and went to ask Sun Baiyi.
The message had barely been sent when Sun Baiyi replied instantly.
Zi Xiao Mu Bai Tu: What does Qi Wang like? He probably likes doing homework. Just buy him a few workbooks or exercise books. That way he won’t be idle all day.
Bunny Cake: …Be serious.
Zi Xiao Mu Bai Tu: I am serious. Other than that, I can’t think of anything.
Lin Huaixi got no answer from Sun Baiyi and sighed, putting his phone away.
After that, he kept thinking about the problem nonstop. Even his dreams were full of it. But before he could figure it out, he got bad news from Grandma.
Grandma had been paying close attention to the house next door, and a sense of foreboding had been growing in her heart. She hurried upstairs to find Lin Huaixi. “Qi Wang left first thing this morning and still hasn’t come back. Xixi, do you know where he might have gone?”
Lin Huaixi did not waste even a second. He ran into the courtyard next door and shouted Qi Wang’s name at the top of his lungs, then pounded on the door, but there was no response.
Grandma hurried over. Seeing sweat on Lin Huaixi’s nose, she forced herself to stay calm and said, “Xixi, go look for Qi Wang first. I’ll call your mother and the others. If we have to, we’ll call the police. We’ll definitely be able to find him!”
Lin Huaixi nodded and ran out without even having time to change clothes, still wearing his pajamas.
He ran past the intersection where he had once foolishly squatted for three hours. He ran past the kindergarten they had attended together, where the pear tree in the courtyard was now lush and full. He ran past all the places where they usually played, but nowhere could he find Qi Wang.
Anxiety had left him with nothing but instinct. Only after stopping, utterly exhausted, did Lin Huaixi realize that without knowing it, he had run all the way to the park where his mother had once brought him to bury the time capsule.
Lifting his head, he found that the blinding sunlight seemed to vanish, and at the far edge of his vision there remained only the solemn, weathered ancient tower.
Something stirred in Lin Huaixi’s heart. As if guided by something unseen, he sensed it. Dragging his exhausted body, he ran toward the ancient tower. Along the way, one of his slippers flew off, and a pebble lodged into the sole of his foot, but Lin Huaixi did not even stop to check. Staggering, he rushed into the tower.
Inside, the ancient tower was quiet and cold. The sweat on Lin Huaixi’s body instantly went icy. His clothes clung damply to him in the most uncomfortable way.
He was breathing so hard he could hardly catch his breath, yet before he had even adjusted it, he dragged his heavy steps upward, climbing one stair after another.
Sweat slid down from his forehead and caught on his thick, curled eyelashes, making his vision blur and sway. The space inside the tower was narrow and long. In his ears, there echoed only his own rough gasps and the irregular sound of his footsteps.
And when he looked up, all he could see were endless flights of stairs, as though they would never end.
Lin Huaixi did not hesitate for even a second. Even knowing Qi Wang might not actually be inside the tower, he still refused to give up.
One step.
Two steps.
Three steps.
…
By the time the lack of oxygen had made his head start spinning, the space before him suddenly opened up. Sunlight poured through the window into his eyes, but the very first thing he saw was the shadow on the ground.
Without meaning to, Lin Huaixi widened his eyes, and his heart—which had been hanging in the air the whole time—finally settled back into place.
He had found Qi Wang.
As if drawn by a thread, Lin Huaixi smiled and leaned forward, moving toward Qi Wang at a near-running pace. And in that same instant, he also figured out what gift he wanted to give him.
Qi Wang sat by the window like a lifeless statue, quietly sunk inside his own world. Lin Huaixi had made such a huge commotion coming in, yet Qi Wang had not noticed him at all until—
Lin Huaixi bent slightly and pushed his face into Qi Wang’s field of vision.
His face was covered in sweat, and his hair had been blown into a mess by the wind, but his eyes were dazzlingly bright, as though sunlight itself had illuminated Qi Wang’s silent world.
Qi Wang stared at him for several seconds, as if unable to believe what he was seeing, and only then did a trace of reality return to him. “Why are you here?”
Lin Huaixi shook his head. Sliding his hand into his pocket as though taking something out, he said, “I want to give you a gift.”
No matter what Lin Huaixi gave him—even if it were just a prank—Qi Wang would love it dearly. Looking at Lin Huaixi’s mysterious expression, he played along and asked, “What is it?”
Lin Huaixi stepped forward, slightly lifting his chin. The hand that had been holding a fistful of air opened, and he slowly patted his own chest.
“It’s me.”
“It’s Lin Huaixi—the one you like, the one who makes you happy the moment you see him, and the one who can stay by your side all the time!”
