Chapter 53: Myriad Lights
Sunlight streamed into the bedroom, gently falling on Xie Yang’s sleeping face under the covers.
The glaring light made Xie Yang furrow his brow slightly. Unconsciously, he whimpered a few times and pulled the blanket over his entire face.
“Ugh.”
“So sunny.”
He was so exhausted that there was no sign of him waking up.
Qi Xu pressed the remote control to draw the curtains closed again, blocking out the sunlight to let Xie Yang rest undisturbed.
He pulled Xie Yang’s blanket down and tucked him in again.
The warmth of his fingertips landed on Xie Yang’s face, gently smoothing out the creases between his brows.
Xie Yang habitually rubbed his hand against his.
Qi Xu tenderly stroked his cheek, brushing lightly over his slightly swollen lips.
The cool ointment eased the sting of the wound, and Xie Yang, in a daze, bit Qi Xu’s fingertip.
Qi Xu gazed intensely at his lips, allowing him to s*ck on his fingertip.
Unable to resist, he pinched Xie Yang’s chin, watching his pink t*ngue, tasting lightly.
Just as Xie Yang was beginning to wake up, he let go of him again.
Qi Xu leaned over, pressing him down beneath him, deeply inhaling the medicinal scent on him, looking at his peaceful sleeping face, unable to resist kissing his thin lips again.
Gentle kisses fell, but Xie Yang was completely unaware, breathing steadily and deeply asleep in the familiar scent.
“Sleep well.”
Qi Xu quietly left the bedroom, closing the door behind him.
They had only slept at three in the morning last night, and now it was only eight in the morning. According to Xie Yang’s recent sleep habits, he wouldn’t wake up until at least the afternoon.
Let him rest well.
Following Qi Mother’s daily routine, the Qi family generally had breakfast at eight o’clock.
Qi Xu arrived late, and Qi Mother was already having breakfast. Seeing only him, she asked curiously, “Yang Yang hasn’t woken up yet?”
Qi Xu replied lightly, “He’s still sleeping.”
Qi Mother was about to show concern, but she glanced at the faint mark on his neck and smiled knowingly, “Then let him sleep.”
Young couples are young and can’t resist temptation. Qi Mother didn’t think much about it; after all, the child was grown up and should have a sense of propriety. She added, “Hmm.”
Qi Mother scrutinized her son carefully. Seeing his satisfied expression, she couldn’t help but scold, “You’ve just returned for a day, and you’re already so eager. Aren’t you afraid he’ll run away?”
Qi Xu didn’t reply, just smiled lightly.
If he had been eager, Xie Yang might not have attended last night’s banquet.
Qi Mother continued, “I quite like this child Yang Yang. Our family doesn’t value pedigree. But with his gentle and quiet temperament, even if he enters our family, he might be easily bullied. You should take good care of him normally.”
Qi Xu nodded, “I know. With me around, no one will bully him.”
Qi Mother teased, “Then don’t bully him yourself. Don’t think I don’t see through you. You’re just taking advantage of his affection for you, so you dare to tease him like this.”
A faint smile curved Qi Xu’s lips as he casually recalled Xie Yang crying in his arms. He replied nonchalantly, “How could I bear to bully him?”
…
Ding!
The phone rang, disturbing the quiet atmosphere of the bedroom.
Xie Yang covered his ears, burying himself deeper under the covers, trying to block out the annoying sound.
The unanswered phone persisted in ringing again and again.
Finally, Xie Yang sighed and reluctantly pushed aside the blanket, hoarsely calling out, “Brother, answer the phone.”
Unable to hear any response, Xie Yang, feeling weary, closed his eyes and fumbled for his phone in the direction of the sound.
With bleary eyes, he answered the call without looking at the caller ID, and immediately a voice filled with annoyance came through.
“Why didn’t you answer the phone?!”
From the moment Xie Yang picked up the phone, the other person launched into a tirade, not giving Xie Yang a chance to explain, even interrupting him.
Listening to this familiar voice and tone, Xie Yang lifted his heavy eyelids, rubbed his tired eyes, and glanced at the caller ID.
He interrupted the ceaseless scolding, his voice hoarse from just waking up, “What’s the matter?”
Hearing Xie Yang’s impatient tone, Xie Chuan stopped himself.
He suddenly realized that his earlier anger had upset Xie Yang. Now that he still needed Xie Yang’s help, he had to swallow his anger.
Hearing Xie Yang’s voice sounding even hoarser than usual, he first expressed concern about his health, “What’s wrong with your voice? Are you catching a cold? Although the weather is warming up lately, it’s still cold. You should wear more clothes and not catch a cold; it’s not worth it.”
Xie Yang didn’t like his insincere concern, finding it hypocritical.
He replied lightly, “If there’s nothing else, I’ll hang up.”
Rarely speaking a few caring words, Xie Chuan was ignored by Xie Yang, and his face couldn’t be saved. His voice contained a hint of anger, “Dad has something to tell you.”
Xie Yang asked, “What is it?”
At this time, Xie Chuan was in the Liuli Village. The lock on the yard had been changed, so he couldn’t get in. Furthermore, someone had come to open the door and dug up the cherry tree in the yard. He wanted to find out what was going on, but those people completely ignored him, even blocking his entry. After the cherry tree was dug up, those people also locked the door and left, giving him no chance to enter the yard.
Thinking of this, Xie Chuan became increasingly dissatisfied with Xie Yang’s attitude: “Didn’t you come home for the New Year? Why aren’t you at home? Why did the locks at home change? What’s the matter with those people digging up the cherry tree at home?”
These consecutive questions made Xie Yang’s still groggy mind even more confused.
He rubbed his temples, trying to wake himself up quickly.
He knew about the cherry tree. Qi Xu had told him a few days ago that the tree would be dug up and brought back soon, but he hadn’t expected Qi Xu to act so quickly.
It might already be on its way back now.
When Xie Chuan saw that he didn’t say anything, he asked again if he had changed the lock on the yard.
Xie Yang didn’t want to maintain superficial relations with him anymore and spoke with a hint of sarcasm, “When I came back, I found that thieves had broken into the house a while ago and messed everything up, so I simply changed the locks.”
Both he and his father understood very well who these “thieves” were referring to.
Xie Chuan fell silent for a moment, then shifted the topic nervously, “Where are you now?”
Xie Yang replied, “I’m staying at a friend’s house.”
Xie Chuan cleared his throat lightly, with a hint of pride and condescension, “Staying at a friend’s house is inconvenient after all, especially during the New Year. What kind of disturbance is this? Why not come to Dad’s house? Auntie has prepared a room for you long ago. Come home during holidays from now on.”
“No need.”
Xie Yang hugged Qi Xu’s pillow, gathered his courage, and decided to confront his father directly, no longer hiding his feelings.
Xie Chuan asked, “What?”
Xie Yang took a deep breath and said, “Auntie and I have had years of estrangement, which won’t disappear overnight or be resolved with a few words. She clearly doesn’t like me, and Father knows I don’t like her either. There’s no need to keep saying things that both Auntie and I find disgusting.”
Apart from Auntie, there was also Xie Yuan.
He didn’t like Xie Yuan, even disliked him very much.
Especially after their last meeting, Xie Yuan occasionally sent him some inexplicable text messages.
He found it disgusting and really should change his SIM card.
He had thought blocking him would be enough, but now it seemed like changing the SIM card would be better.
Xie Chuan didn’t expect Xie Yang to suddenly break off relations so bluntly.
He was so angry that he almost couldn’t catch his breath. “What nonsense are you talking about?!”
Xie Yang’s heart was pounding erratically. It was the first time he had spoken so harshly to his father, and he even felt a hint of satisfaction.
He spoke again, calmly: “All the living expenses you’ve been sending me over the years, I’ve stored on the bank card you gave me. I gave that card to Mom, asking her to pass it on to you. Also, the property deed you wanted is with Mom too. You don’t need to keep asking me for updates, or pretend to care about me. It’s exhausting.”
Xie Chuan’s hypocritical facade was ruthlessly pierced by Xie Yang, infuriating him to the point of shouting, “How dare you speak to your father like this?! I’ve raised you all these years, and this is how you treat me?!”
Xie Yang cut him off, mocking lightly, “My birth was from my mom, my upbringing was from my grandma. What right do you have to say such things?”
Xie Chuan erupted in anger, “You ungrateful child! Without me, where would you be?!”
“The property deed was left to me by Grandma. How could you give it to an outsider?!”
Xie Yang replied calmly, “The property deed was meant for Mom by Grandma. She never intended to leave it to someone disloyal and unfilial like you.”
As the words left his mouth, even Xie Yang was stunned.
Xie Chuan exclaimed, “What did you say?!”
Xie Yang’s heart trembled slightly, and boldly he said, “Since it’s come to this, let’s not contact each other anymore.”
Xie Yang immediately hung up the phone and turned on airplane mode on his phone, finally feeling relieved.
Quickly connecting to the home hotspot, he messaged his mother on WeChat: [Dad has been looking for me. I told him about the property deed being with you. He might come to you in the next few days.]
Rong Man replied: [I know, don’t worry. Leave it to me to handle.]
Xie Yang continued: [I’ve changed my phone number. I’ll contact you proactively later.]
Just then, with a click, the door opened.
Xie Yang turned around and looked at the door. When he saw Qi Xu, he couldn’t help but burst into tears.
It was as if he had finally found a refuge.
Qi Xu took a few steps forward, embraced him, and gently patted his back. “What’s wrong?”
Qi Xu had intended to tell Xie Yang that the cherry tree had arrived.
He hadn’t expected to see him so distressed, with tears falling heavily on Qi Xu’s heart.
It hurt.
Xie Yang wanted to tell him that he had done something brave, but he couldn’t speak, only choked with emotion.
Qi Xu kept stroking his disheveled hair, holding him tightly, and comforting him, “It doesn’t matter what happens. I will love you like Grandma does, forever.”
Xie Yang could hardly speak in his embrace.
Qi Xu continued, “From now on, this is your home. Mom and Dad really like you, and I really like you too.”
Xie Yang knew.
He had always known.
Amidst the warmth of home, there was one lamp lit for him by Qi Xu.
It took a long time for Xie Yang to calm down.
Thinking about how he had cried so embarrassingly just now, he quietly lay his head on Qi Xu’s shoulder.
Qi Xu wanted to cheer him up and said, “The cherry tree has been brought back. Shall we plant it in the yard together?”
Xie Yang softly replied, “Okay.”
Just like in the old days, when he and Grandma planted the cherry tree together.
Now, he and Qi Xu were guarding this cherry tree together.
He had found someone who loved him deeply.