The Genius Cannon Fodder's Counterattack 12

After finishing dinner with Su Xiulun and getting his phone back from Cheng Jian, Chi Xiaochi discovered more than twenty missed calls on it.

Clearly having no intention of explaining himself properly, Cheng Jian started the car and drove home, casually shifting the blame. "Your phone must have been broken."

Chi Xiaochi looked so anxious he was sweating, but inwardly he thought, Yeah right. As if I'd believe that.

He said to 061, "Block my phone signal."

061: "...?"

Chi Xiaochi: "Do it."

061: "All right."

Watching his younger brother return six or seven calls without anyone answering, then tap out text after text, Cheng Jian suddenly flared up. "He has the nerve not to answer your calls?"

Mr. Cheng, Chi Xiaochi thought, your double standard is a little outrageous.

He stared at Cheng Jian resentfully.

Only after the words left his mouth did Cheng Jian remember who had caused this whole mess. Seeing his brother's listless eyes, he felt a little guilty, and his voice softened considerably. "Fine, fine. I'll take you upstairs later and you can call Yang Baihua to explain. All right?"

Chi Xiaochi lightly scuffed his foot against the wool floor mat.

The afternoon sun was a little dazzling, making his already fair skin seem nearly transparent, gilding his lashes.

Cheng Jian's brows stirred.

He thought of his brother at the piano today, radiant beyond measure. During those ten minutes, he had truly felt an unprecedented pride.

But throughout lunch, Cheng Jian had kept wondering: for whom had Cheng Yuan, always so timid and prone to stage fright, worked up the courage to sit down at that piano?

If Chi Xiaochi knew what Cheng Jian was thinking, he would definitely pat him on the shoulder and say, Big brother, don't overthink it. I did it so that the one named Yang would never be worthy of your little brother.

He raised his head and tugged Cheng Jian's clothes. "Brother, wear sunglasses when you drive. The sunlight is weirdly glaring."

Cheng Jian dug out a pair of sunglasses from the case in the car and put them on. "Oh? So you do have me in your thoughts."

Cheng Yuan gave a smile more painful than crying, which made Cheng Jian feel worse.

The car drove on for a while longer. The residential complex was just ahead. Cheng Jian said, "Think about what you want for dinner. I'll take you."

But Cheng Yuan did not answer, his eyes fixed straight ahead.

Cheng Jian saw the person who had left his brother staring speechlessly too—

Yang Baihua stood at the west gate in a thick down jacket, his face exceptionally gloomy.

The west gate was closest to Cheng Jian's apartment. It was the most convenient entrance whenever Cheng Yuan came and went.

Cheng Jian's eyes cooled, and he was about to drive straight past.

Cheng Yuan quickly grabbed him. "...Bro."

Hearing the plea in his brother's voice, Cheng Jian looked displeased, but he slowly pressed the brake.

Cheng Yuan twisted the corner of his clothes tightly. "Brother, don't get out of the car, okay? ...You'll argue if you meet."

Cheng Jian sneered. "Looks to me like he came to pick a fight with you."

Cheng Yuan pleaded softly, "Please, Bro."

Cheng Jian pursed his lips but did not move again, crossing his arms as he leaned back in the driver's seat.

As though pardoned, Cheng Yuan hurriedly undid his seatbelt, got out, and ran toward Yang Baihua. "Old Yang!" he called happily.

Yang Baihua did not respond, his expression dark.

Cheng Yuan shrank his neck a little guiltily and reached to take his hand ingratiatingly. "Old Yang, I didn't mean not to answer your calls. ...I have good news to tell you."

Yang Baihua slapped his hand away with a sharp smack.

Cheng Jian, who had silently cracked the window to eavesdrop, heard it and his face changed abruptly.

Cheng Yuan had never received such treatment. Blankly, he looked at Yang Baihua, then at the back of his reddening hand. His nose stung, but he still stubbornly reached for Yang Baihua's hand. "Old Yang, don't be angry. I've been really busy these past few days. I didn't have time to look after you, and I was afraid your parents would find out if I contacted you. Have they left? Did they have fun these past few days?"

Yang Baihua looked over his shoulder and saw a Bentley.

The driver wore sunglasses that hid half his face, making his features impossible to see.

...Was that Lou Ying?

Yang Baihua gave Cheng Yuan a cold smile. "Looks to me like you've been having plenty of fun too. You probably don't even remember where your own front door is anymore."

Cheng Yuan was utterly bewildered. "...Huh?"

Whenever Cheng Yuan made that expression before, Yang Baihua would have wanted to pinch his cheek. Now, though, he felt only a bellyful of revulsion. The emotions he had suppressed for days burst through like floodwaters and crashed down on Cheng Yuan.

Rather than getting angry, Yang Baihua laughed. "Cheng Yuan, do you know how much I've sacrificed for you?"

Cheng Yuan froze.

"When my parents came these past few days, I couldn't eat or sleep. I kept thinking about how to tell them about us. I'm my family's only son, their only hope. Do you know what being with you means? It means the Yang family line ends with me! What about you? At least you have Cheng Jian! Do you know how much psychological pressure I'm under? Have you ever been considerate of that?!"

Cheng Yuan's eyes reddened. "I have. I never forced you to admit our relationship to your parents..."

"You didn't force me. I forced myself." Yang Baihua gave a bitter laugh. "I have no foundation here. It was hard enough to get on my feet in this city; I'm not worthy of you. But I've done my best to treat you well. When you got a fever in the second half of junior year and called to say you felt sick and wanted lotus-seed porridge, I ran through three markets in the dead of winter before I found the ingredients, then cooked it and delivered it to your dorm. When you had more free time in senior year and always wanted me to go out with you, whenever I could squeeze out the time, didn't I come? These past six months, you haven't had a job or income. You stayed home cooking and cleaning—have I criticized you even once?"

Cheng Yuan began to tremble. "...Old Yang, what's wrong with you? Why all of a sudden..."

Yang Baihua countered, "What's the deal with Lou Ying?"

Cheng Yuan choked up and involuntarily glanced toward the Bentley. "He's my friend. He lent me a place to stay..."

That glance made all the resentment and frustration Yang Baihua had accumulated over the past few days explode at once.

Stripped of his gentle facade, he said acidly, "Didn't he lend you anything else to use?"

Cheng Yuan's face changed drastically. "Yang Baihua!"

Off balance and unable to stop himself, Yang Baihua pressed on. "You must have compared me to him more than once, right? So did you compare which one of us could satisfy you better?"

Tears streamed down Cheng Yuan's face. "Yang Baihua, stop it... Don't say any more."

That reaction only made Yang Baihua more certain his suspicions were right. "After comparing us, you decided I was boring, right? I'm poor, from a bad background, and I don't understand your music."

Cheng Yuan shook his head, trembling. "You're going too far... If I looked down on you, why would I have gotten together with you in the first place?"

Cheng Jian could not hold back a curse.

What an asshole.

He shoved open the car door with the force of someone tearing off a door panel, strode out, and pulled off his sunglasses in one smooth motion.

Seeing the furious person who had climbed out of the Bentley, Yang Baihua, who had just had his fill of venting, nearly choked on his breath.

...Why was Cheng Jian in the car?

Cheng Jian did not play Yang Baihua's twisting little games. He walked up and punched him.

Cheng Yuan gasped. "Brother!"

He reached for Cheng Jian's suit jacket like a chick hiding behind its mother hen, but craftily made no move to restrain Cheng Jian's hands or feet.

In the opening, Yang Baihua took another kick and a slap, leaving him dazed.

Cheng Jian pointed at his nose and cursed, "You sure remember every last thing you've done for my brother, don't you? Junior year, senior year—times and places, all of it. What, did you make yourself a memo and read it three times a day? Want me to tally up every good thing my brother has done for you?"

Cheng Yuan's eyes brimmed with tears. "Brother."

Yang Baihua suddenly felt as though he had misunderstood something. Panicking, he looked at the trembling Cheng Yuan.

Cheng Jian spat. "What business is it of yours if my brother lives in my house? You've got a hell of a lot to say. If you've got the ability, buy him a whole building yourself."

Yang Baihua panicked even more. "...Cheng Yuan? Didn't you say this was Lou Ying's house?"

"What Lou Ying?" Cheng Jian gestured sharply. "Don't throw your weight around with my brother. If you doubt it, look it up yourself. Check whether the owner here is named Cheng or Lou."

"It was me. I lied..." Cheng Yuan huddled behind Cheng Jian and said tearfully, "I didn't dare say Big Brother had lent me a place, so I said I was staying at a friend's place..."

Yang Baihua could not believe it. "...Why would you lie?"

Cheng Yuan said in a shaking voice, "You weren't happy when I used Big Brother's car. You said my brother interfered in our lives. If I said I was staying at his place, would you have agreed?"

Yang Baihua's face went white. "Then... then who was the person I saw that day?"

Cheng Yuan could barely stand, leaning against Cheng Jian as he murmured, "...He was Lou Ying, my friend. When he got back to the country, he didn't have his house keys and no one was home, so I let him rest at the apartment for a while and get over his jet lag."

Cheng Jian turned half around. "When was this?"

The last glimmer of light had vanished from Cheng Yuan's eyes. "The day I brought you lunch. ...I let a friend stay without your permission, so I didn't really dare tell you."

Cheng Jian had never involved himself in his brother's circle of friends, so naturally he had no idea what sort of friend Lou Ying was. "I was wondering why that tea set had been moved when I came to see you that night."

Yang Baihua was flustered. "But Lou Ying clearly said..."

Cheng Yuan immediately asked, "What did he say?"

Yang Baihua was speechless, his face flushing green, then red.

—"It's me. Mr. Yang, come in and sit."

—"Xiao Yuan went out. Wait here for a while."

—"I'm his friend. Not his guardian, and not his jailer."

—"Don't be surprised. We keep in touch privately."

Thinking it over, Yang Baihua realized that the Lou Ying he had met that day had never admitted to owning this apartment.

Even when Yang Baihua had alluded to it, Lou Ying had never answered directly.

Yang Baihua's mind was in turmoil.

That day, Cheng Yuan had not answered his calls and said he had gone out with a friend. In reality, he had been with his big brother?

Come to think of it, that did make sense. After all, he had repeatedly made it clear to Cheng Yuan that Cheng Jian should interfere less in their lives.

This property belonged to Cheng Jian...

Lou Ying was merely staying there. The two were friends...

And as for Lou Ying looking like him, that was probably just a coincidence. Perhaps Cheng Yuan had noticed him at first sight because his face resembled that childhood friend...

Love at first sight...

In an instant, reason returned to Yang Baihua. He remembered the young man in casual clothes who had run up to him, clumsily but sincerely showering him with attention.

Memory overlaid reality. The face before him was still young, but now it bore bewildered, heartbroken tear tracks.

As blood rushed back through him, Yang Baihua finally felt the burning pain where he had been hit.

This apartment complex was quiet and secluded, and its security guards knew how to handle things. When they noticed a disturbance, two came over to take a look. Finding it was a private dispute, they immediately kept their distance, though one stayed far away to watch in case further physical conflict broke out.

Humiliation and pain burned Yang Baihua's fair face purple.

He took a step forward, trying to recover the situation. "Xiao Cheng..."

Cheng Jian stopped him with one arm. "What? You cursed him out just now, and now you think you can wipe your face clean and pretend it never happened?"

Yang Baihua reached a hand toward Cheng Yuan. "Xiao Cheng, I came to take you home..."

Cheng Jian protected Cheng Yuan as they backed up several steps. "Xiao Yuan has been busy with his music day and night. Things have finally started looking up for him. If you're still human, don't make him worry about handling things between you at a time like this."

Yang Baihua ignored Cheng Jian and looked at Cheng Yuan pleadingly, waiting for his answer. "...Xiao Cheng?"

After a long silence—

Cheng Yuan lowered his head and said softly, "Brother, I want to go home. I want Aunt Chen's fish with pickled mustard greens."

Yang Baihua's entire face stiffened like an iron plate.

Cheng Jian's heart clenched in pain. He took his hand. "Okay. Let's go."

Once they were in the car, Cheng Yuan seemed utterly exhausted. Hugging a cushion, he rubbed at it. "Brother, I'm sleepy. I want to sleep."

Cheng Jian started the car again. "I know you. You can't take it whenever something happens. You had an audition today, and you didn't rest well yesterday, did you? Go to sleep. I'll drive smoothly."

Cheng Yuan buried his face in the cushion. "Thanks, Bro."

He did not say another word.

In the silence, Cheng Jian called home.

He remembered that both their parents were home today.

The instant the call connected, Cheng Jian said, "Mom, Xiao Yuan got bullied. I'm bringing him home tonight. I'll explain when I get there. Have Aunt Chen go buy a fish now."

Lying quietly in the backseat, Chi Xiaochi pressed his lips together and gave a small smile.

...Done.