Wanting to Be the Older Brother

Lu Yanjin lingered outside the door for nearly half an hour, staring at Shen Yu inside the whole time. Neither of the two said anything, but Xie Shuyang couldn't stand his stare and called someone over to drive him away. Only then did he leave.

He then accompanied his student to get his laptop and take it to Room 1217. Leaving the door ajar, he listened for sounds inside while giving his student a few instructions.

His student Xiao Yun held a small notebook, listening carefully and jotting down what her teacher told her. Once he had finished, Xie Shuyang felt completely at ease leaving the work to Xiao Yun. She was very thorough and had never made any major mistakes. She also knew to come straight to him if anything happened. Leaving it to her gave him the most peace of mind.

So he waved a hand and started to turn back into the room. Then he thought better of it and told her that he would be staying in this room tonight, and she could come to him if there were any problems.

That was when Xiao Yun caught hold of his sleeve.

"What is it?" Xie Shuyang turned around in confusion, thinking there was something she hadn't understood, and prepared to listen patiently.

A tube of ointment was placed in his hand. Xiao Yun looked up at him, her face a little flushed. Seemingly mustering a great deal of courage, she pointed to the corner of her mouth. "Teacher... put some on here. This ointment works really well, and it smells nice too."

Before Xie Shuyang could react, she had already dashed down the stairs, not even taking the elevator. If he remembered correctly, the patient he had just assigned her was on the third floor, and they were currently on the twelfth.

Xie Shuyang looked down at the ointment in his hand, raised his eyebrows, and smiled.

Back in the room, he found himself touching the bruised corner of his mouth again. Hiss... it still hurts to touch. He doesn't look very old, but he sure hits hard.

It really was strange.

Why had he volunteered to look after someone? He hadn't even finished his own business, not to mention that the person had hit him. Was it perhaps because he was Luo Ningsang's younger brother? He and Luo Ningsang were old acquaintances too. They had gotten to know each other because Luo Ningsang was a regular at the hospital; after a while, whenever emergency received him, they would simply bundle him up and send him over to Xie Shuyang.

Or was it perhaps out of affection for him? He thought of how the young man had lost his memory after a heavy blow to the back of his head half a month ago, and how wary he had been of everyone around him.

Xie Shuyang didn't know.

But the young man seemed to have a kind of magic about him. Once Xie Shuyang got close to him, he couldn't help wanting to be closer. He couldn't bear to see him hurt, couldn't bear to see him frown...

He withdrew the hand that had been smoothing Shen Yu's brow.

But he sincerely hoped that the next time they met, it wouldn't be in a monitoring room filled with the smell of disinfectant, with one lying there weakly and the other standing by helplessly. Instead, it would be on a warm, sunny day, on a street where the young man's blue hair fluttered in the wind, his bright eyes full of sunlight as he waved both hands at him, smiling and running, full of life.

The thought made Xie Shuyang laugh at himself.

"Why do I feel like I'm turning into your brother too?"

Xie Shuyang accepted it in zero seconds. Staring at Shen Yu's sleeping profile, he sent a message to a lawyer friend.

Xie Shuyang: How do I fight a stranger for custody of his younger brother? Oh, right, this person adopted (crossed out) tricked a minor with amnesia into being his younger brother. How can I legally transfer his household registration to mine?

Lawyer friend: ...?

The lawyer friend didn't understand, but respected it: What about his family? If they're all gone, you can just take him to change his household registration. That brother hasn't transferred it anyway. The main thing is what he wants. But if his family's still around, I'm calling the police and sending you and the person who tricked that minor into prison.

Xie Shuyang: They're gone.

Lawyer friend: Oh, a poor kid who lost both his parents, huh.

For the first time, Xie Shuyang thought the words "lost both his parents" sounded so pleasant.

Xie Shuyang: He has an older brother.

The lawyer friend took a long time to respond: Have you lost your mind?

Xie Shuyang: You don't understand.

Lawyer friend: I really don't.

Xie Shuyang put down his phone and thought about what he should say. Sitting in the spot Lu Yanjin had occupied before, he leaned back in the chair and gazed at Shen Yu's sleeping face, lost in thought.

After being driven out of the hospital, Lu Yanjin didn't go home. He headed straight for the Police Bureau. Lin Xinluo didn't answer his call, and when he pulled open the office door, he saw Sister Luoluo, usually the most composed of them all, with one foot planted on the tabletop and the other on a chair. Her normally round, cute eyes were lowered and half-closed, making her look rather cold as she looked down at the people gathered around the square table. The oppressive air around her could even rival Luo Ningsang's.

The most impulsive one, meanwhile, sat quietly in a chair beside Lin Xinluo. His elbow rested on the table, his hand covering most of his face so no one could see his expression. Only the rising and falling of his chest grew more pronounced, like a beast that might spring up at any moment.

"I said you had a week to investigate. It's only the third day, and you already can't resist making a move? Even a dog isn't that eager to eat shit."

Lin Xinluo glanced at Lu Yanjin as he entered but paid him no attention. She continued mocking Zhang Pushan mercilessly as he sat before her, dressed up respectably and holding a cup of tea.

Zhang Pushan had been cursed out to his face for quite a while, but he held himself above arguing with Lin Xinluo. Someone else could do it, though. He set his teacup on the table, neither too hard nor too gently.

Feng Xingyi, standing behind him, immediately spoke up. "Xiao Lin, it's not like you don't know how big this has gotten. Luo Ningsang and Director Zhang are old acquaintances too. How could he possibly ignore it? But there's too much pressure from above. Director Zhang has already done his utmost by buying you three days."

"Sigh, and you're actually insulting someone who's looking out for you. Even I feel sorry for Director Zhang. He hasn't been eating or sleeping well because of Luo Ningsang's case. He's even got dark circles under his eyes. You ungrateful bastards."

Feng Xingyi sounded so sincere that even Zhang Pushan nearly believed him and couldn't help nodding in agreement.

The others around the square table wore varying expressions, clearly taken aback by how shameless their director was.

But there was always someone willing to suck up to him.

"Sister Lin, it's a plain fact that Consultant Luo killed someone in public. Everyone there saw it. Isn't the one sitting beside you a witness who was there? But one of you is holding on to the body and refusing to let it be taken away, while the other is standing on the table pressuring the director. Anyone who didn't know better would think you were the ones running the Ancheng Police Department."

"Aren't they?"

Everyone present looked toward the voice. Feng Zijin was lying back on an armchair, one earphone removed, a screen in her hand displaying "victory." She stretched and added,

"Haven't Consultant Luo and the others always been the ones running the Ancheng Police Department?"

Lin Xinluo let out an "Oh," as though she had just realized something.

Zhang Pushan couldn't keep up the act any longer. "The investigation team sent by the higher-ups will arrive tonight. You won't cooperate? Fine. I'll report everything that happened here exactly as it was! No respect for the organization or discipline. Let's see who can protect you."

Bang!

The door slammed loudly. Zhang Pushan had intended to bump into Lu Yanjin, who was standing blankly in the doorway, but after sizing up their heights, he abandoned the idea, brushed past him, and left in a huff. The people around the square table also made their excuses and left.

Only then did Xu Shenzheng lower the hand that had been covering his face and burst out laughing.

"Xiaoyan, you really came too late. You didn't see Sister Luoluo showing her might just now, pointing right at Zhang Pushan and cursing him out. My stomach hurt from laughing."

Lu Yanjin: ...

So your shoulders weren't shaking with anger just now?

Lin Xinluo sat right down on the table, swinging her legs. "He won't let this go. We were going to fall out anyway, so what's wrong with letting me curse him out?"

"So what's going on with the body?"

"I don't know. Boss won't let anyone touch it. He's been staying in the cold storage room with the body himself; he's practically going moldy. But it's fine. Just as Boss expected, Zhang Pushan couldn't sit still and called in an investigation team from above."

"Huh? Weren't we supposed to stop him?"

"Yeah. Only if we stopped him would Zhang Pushan willingly call them in."

Xu Shenzheng's long-unused brain stirred. "There's an insider in the Police Bureau?"

Feng Zijin had at some point brought over a stool and sat down beside them. "You only just figured that out?"

Xu Shenzheng tried to make excuses for his feeble brain. "Of course not. I was just explaining it to Xiaoyan. He's been looking after Xiao Yu lately and hasn't had time to come over..."

"Wait, Xiao Yu! You're here, so where's Xiao Yu?!"

Xu Shenzheng's eyes widened.

Lu Yanjin glanced at him. "The hospital."

For the sake of his own safety, he added, "Dr. Xie is looking after him."