Chapter 34: Brotherhood and Love

There was nowhere to hide in the small courtyard, so Cheng Fei could only helplessly run circles around the two trees in the yard while Qin Yi chased after her with the broom.

Gao Ming and Lu Shengdong stood nearby like audience members watching a show, making no effort to stop them.

Bread also sat nearby with its eyes closed, either calmly resting or simply unable to bear watching the scene.

Everything had changed too quickly, from sadness, to joy, to the current laughter and yelling.

So quickly, in fact, that nobody noticed the strange thing happening above them.

A buzzing sound came from overhead.

Under the frame supported by four spinning propellers hung a camera shaped like a cat’s eye.

At first, the drone had only been passing by. But the person controlling it clearly noticed the lively scene in the courtyard and flew the drone back after it had already gone beyond range.

Beside a small river about one hundred meters away, a young man and woman were watching the live video feed.

The man’s eyelids twitched along with the rising and falling broomstick, and he sighed emotionally.

“Whew… that beating really had some power behind it.”

“Yeah… it looked exactly the same as back then when she chased after him and smacked his butt. The only difference is that there’s no broom now,” the man laughed.

The woman turned her head and stared at him. Then she put away the drone, set down the controller, and looked directly into his face.

“You don’t need to feel phantom pain here. If you really want the experience, I can personally recreate it for you.”

Her words were not just cold, they even carried a hint of jealousy.

“Heh! Big sister, second brother, if you two can’t hold yourselves back anymore, then hurry home already.”

The dangerous atmosphere was instantly broken by an untimely voice coming from the middle of the river.

An Xin quietly ground her teeth, picked up a stone beside the stool, and threw it straight at the face of the person in the boat.

“Ow!”

Su Wen immediately lost balance and fell backward into the river again, making An Xiaolin burst into laughter behind him.

“Sis, second brother, we’ve already caught enough fish. The weather doesn’t look good, so let’s head back,” An Xiaolin shouted while lightly shaking the fish basket in her hand.

Her bright smile was almost dazzling.

Suddenly, a streak of red light appeared from nowhere and entered An Xin’s eyes, making her briefly dazed.

But with other people around, she did not dare sink too deeply into those strange thoughts.

Some people say this world is not the only one.

Every different choice creates another similar yet different world.

As for whether immortals truly exist, nobody knows.

Maybe they are simply aliens from civilizations with technology far beyond human understanding.

Perhaps in another timeline, the story really unfolded exactly as imagined?

“Heh…”

An Xin softly smiled while Qin Hao helped her step onto the small boat.

“Ah!”

The movement was so sudden that Su Wen, who had just been pulled out of the river by An Xiaolin, lost his footing again and once more became a soaked “drowned chicken.”

The noise eventually faded back into peace.

The beating Cheng Fei received, more symbolic than serious, only lasted a few minutes.

Aside from the very first furious strike, the rest were mostly light hits after being raised dramatically.

As a woman herself, Qin Yi understood that Cheng Fei, now having changed from a man into a woman, was no longer as tough and durable as before.

Even in the past, she never truly beat her child harshly. At most, it was only discipline.

But now she was even more worried that using too much force might accidentally hurt Cheng Fei’s body.

Laughter returned once again.

Qin Yi and Lu Shengdong slowly regained their usual energy and spirit, and their attention gradually shifted toward Gao Ming and all the gifts he had brought.

Their instincts told them something.

This man had accompanied their son…

No, that was no longer correct.

Their child was now their daughter.

Whether they wanted to accept it or not, reality gave them no choice.

Disappointment, shock, helplessness. All kinds of emotions mixed together like a whirlpool, dragging people downward before throwing them high into the air again.

All these years, they had hoped their son would marry a wife someday, then give them grandchildren so they could enjoy family happiness in old age.

But reality stood right in front of them.

Since there was no way to change it, they could only accept it.

After all, life itself was more important than anything else.

As long as their child was alive, that was already better than everything else.

In the kitchen, Qin Yi began preparing food while constantly glancing toward Cheng Fei.

After looking for a while, she had to admit that Cheng Fei’s beautiful face really was pleasing to the eye.

Her long flowing hair and elegant temperament made her look especially attractive.

“Mom, be careful with your hand!”

Being stared at so much made Cheng Fei feel uncomfortable, so she reminded Qin Yi, who was chopping vegetables.

Only then did Qin Yi lower her head to look.

She had been staring so much that she forgot to push the vegetables forward and had almost cut her own hand.

“It’s been quite a while since that happened, hasn’t it?”

“Mm.”

“Have you gotten used to it?”

Whether she could adapt or not, she had no choice but to keep adapting.

She was not just being forced onto the stage, below the stage was a sea of lava, and she had to move carefully every step of the way.

“I’m doing okay. After spending so many years outside, I’ve experienced all kinds of things already. You don’t need to worry so much about me.”

Qin Yi switched to cutting another vegetable and lowered her head thoughtfully.

“Being outside is different from being at home. If you’re not right in front of my eyes every day, how could I not worry?”

She paused slightly.

“And now you’re… you’re still a girl. Living all alone in a huge city like Yunzhou. Sure, there are many good people there, but when the population gets large enough, there are also plenty of bad people.”

When she was right in front of them every day, she got disliked constantly. But once she left home, she suddenly became the precious treasure of the family!

Back when Cheng Fei studied at Yun University, it was exactly like that.

Before school breaks, Qin Yi acted like the perfect loving mother. But after Cheng Fei came home and stayed for only three days, she immediately became a thorn in her mother’s eyes again, getting nagged every day for being lazy.

“Sigh…”

Still, after spending so many years outside, Cheng Fei could more or less understand their feelings.

But honestly, this level of worrying was a little unnecessary!

Not to mention how busy she was from morning until night, with all the beautiful people around her, she was hardly lonely!

“I have plenty of friends around me, so don’t worry so much.”

Hearing the rice cooker beep behind her, Cheng Fei opened the lid and planned to carry the pot outside to cool a little.

But Qin Yi silently appeared beside her like a ghost. Cheng Fei’s whole body shook, and she nearly threw the pot away.

Seeing Qin Yi’s serious expression, Cheng Fei looked confused.

“What?”

Qin Yi closed the kitchen door and pulled Cheng Fei into a corner mysteriously.

“The man who came with you… who exactly is he?”

Finally.

The topic she could no longer avoid.

Cheng Fei really, really, really wanted to tell the truth.

She wanted to hug Qin Yi’s leg and cry loudly, ‘Mom, someone’s bullying me!’

But if she really shouted that, then all the effort she had spent surviving away from home for these past years would instantly become meaningless.

Helpless, Cheng Fei could only force out a bitter smile.

But people often read hidden meaning into certain expressions. And clearly, Qin Yi misunderstood Cheng Fei’s helpless smile as a shy smile.

Bringing a man home. Bringing gifts too.

What else could it mean?

It was as obvious as lice on a bald head.

Qin Yi had already guessed part of it long ago, but that only made things more shocking.

One month.

Not especially short, but not very long either.

A mother understood her child best.

Qin Yi knew clearly whether Cheng Fei’s mind was healthy, what kind of personality she had, and whether she liked men or women.

A completely straight man, how could he suddenly accept another man in such a short time and at lightning speed?

Understanding went both ways.

After living with her parents for more than twenty years, Cheng Fei also understood how they thought, especially after spending so many years away from home.

Should she follow the script of fearless honesty and openly tell everything?

Or should she quietly endure humiliation and accept being forced by others?

Clearly, Cheng Fei was no longer the naive student she once was. She had already suffered enough beatings from society.

Just from how Gao Ming tracked her down all the way to her hometown, it was obvious how determined he was.

If she truly exposed everything, then with Qin Yi and Lu Shengdong’s personalities, they would never allow her to continue following that so-called “selling herself contract.” They might even directly confront Gao Ming.

And that would basically mean offending him completely.

Maybe she would feel satisfied for a moment…

But afterward, even her ability to survive in Yunzhou might be crushed completely.

Cheng Fei still understood which choice was more important.

“Do you want me to tell the truth?”

Qin Yi had already become impatient waiting, only to hear that sentence. She lightly slapped Cheng Fei’s cheek.

Cheng Fei pouted, took a deep breath, and prepared herself.

“We already knew each other back in school. At first we were just best friends who could talk about anything…”

“But somehow things slowly changed.”

“You know… that kind of relationship.”

“We were both men, so we were never supposed to be together.”

“This incident was probably just a coincidence. My soul happened to enter a woman’s body, and then… well…”

Oh god.

She actually managed to say such words that could make stomach acid overflow from embarrassment.

She honestly wondered if telling such a huge lie would make heaven strike her forehead with lightning as punishment, just to warn people not to speak nonsense carelessly.

…………………

Ash gently fell from Lu Shengdong’s cigarette.

He drank a mouthful of tea and sighed again, his bright eyes filled with disbelief.

Compared to life itself, everything else should have been a small matter.

Now “Lu Wei” was alive and healthy. Even though appearances had changed, at least their child was still complete and normal.

Once the biggest problem was solved, all the smaller problems naturally became major issues instead.

Their son becoming a daughter was already something impossible to control.

They had only just barely accepted this huge change and had not even fully recovered from the shock yet.

And now, they suddenly learned that their seemingly normal son had actually been bisexual, and even brought the person home.

Their bleeding hearts had only just stopped hurting when another shocking truth arrived immediately afterward.

How could the elderly couple possibly stay calm?

Because she had lied, Cheng Fei felt extremely guilty.

Across from them, even Gao Ming, who usually stayed calm, could not remain as composed as Lu Shengdong.

The joy after reunion did not last long before another huge variable appeared.

Even if it was not another violent storm, it was still enough to heavily shake everyone.

The atmosphere barely managed to stay peaceful, but the unhappiness in their hearts could not be hidden.

Cheng Fei tightly clenched her small fists.

If she had a weapon in her hand right now, she truly wanted to knock Gao Ming unconscious, then sit on top of him, choke his neck, and send this smiling black-hearted man straight to the underworld to begin his next life immediately.

She originally thought this meal would be warm and joyful.

Instead, it became completely tasteless.

“I’m going upstairs to clean the room.”

Lu Shengdong went upstairs to the second floor.

Qin Yi forced out a smile.

“You two keep eating first.”

After they left, Cheng Fei angrily stared at Gao Ming’s face.

Meanwhile, the main culprit seemed completely unaffected and continued calmly eating his food.

Of course, it was impossible not to notice Cheng Fei’s glare, even through peripheral vision.

But Gao Ming felt guilty and did not dare look directly at her, afraid he might lose confidence.

Besides, from yesterday until now, he had been rushing around nonstop. On the road, he only drank one bottle of beverage and ate two tea eggs.

There was basically no oil or real food in his stomach at all.