--

Jiang Zixing stood in the entryway, looking at the shoes on the rack.

He recognized Fu Yanli's pair at a glance. Maternal Uncle Fu mostly wore custom-made leather shoes, mature and understated.

The man was tall, and his shoe size was large, too.

When he spotted the casual sneakers several sizes smaller beneath the leather shoes, the curve of Jiang Zixing's lips stiffened slightly.

He composed himself, slipped on disposable shoe covers, and walked inside.

This was where Maternal Uncle Fu lived...

Could he be home right now?

Jiang Zixing's heart raced wildly, as though a rabbit were trapped in his chest.

Which room was Uncle Fu's bedroom?

Would there be a wedding photo of him and Ye Jing by the bed?

As Jiang Zixing's thoughts ran wild, a door opened, and a tall, slender figure stepped out.

It was Maternal Uncle Fu!

The man he had longed for day and night appeared before him. Jiang Zixing's ears flushed faintly, and he lowered his eyes, too shy to look over. Even his voice trembled. "U-Uncle Maternal Uncle Fu, it's been a long time."

The Jiang Family and the Chu Family were the ones with a longstanding friendship. Fu Yanli actually had little contact with the Jiang Family and barely remembered their youngest son.

It was only when the story of the switched sons became the talk of the town that he had formed a vague impression.

Jiang Zixing was portrayed as the victim targeted and bullied by the malicious biological son. That biological son was his nephew's young fiancé.

Seeing no particular reaction from Fu Yanli, Jiang Zixing hurried to explain, "I'm here to take my second brother home."

Fu Yanli maintained a polite distance. "All right. Have a seat."

"Okay..."

Jiang Zixing sat obediently on the sofa, his gaze following the man the entire time.

He watched him stop outside a room and raise his hand to knock.

There was no sound inside. He knocked a few more times, but there was still no response.

Jiang Zixing got up and walked over, stopping beside Fu Yanli at a carefully measured distance. His eyes, however, remained fixed on the man's mature, flawless profile as he asked softly, "Maternal Uncle Fu, is my second brother in there?"

Fu Yanli said, "Yes."

"Second Brother, are you in there? I've come to take you home."

"Second Brother? Why aren't you answering?"

"Did he go out?"

Jiang Zixing murmured to himself.

Fu Yanli took out his phone and opened WeChat. He had not changed the contact's display name, so the nickname "AAA Professional Scheming Wholesale-Brother Jiang" stood out conspicuously.

The vacant-looking Patrick Star avatar was even more distinctive.

He tapped into the chat and placed a WeChat call.

It rang for quite a while, but no one answered.

Concerned that something might have happened, Fu Yanli turned off his phone screen and entered a few digits on the door lock.

Jiang Xun had not changed the code. The lock beeped, and the door opened.

Fu Yanli and Jiang Zixing entered the room one after the other.

Jiang Xun was lying on his side in bed, sound asleep.

His legs were wrapped around the quilt, and half his face was exposed. His mouth was squashed out of shape, his lips pouting slightly like a goldfish's.

His phone lay beside the pillow, its screen still lit.

"So he's asleep. No wonder he wasn't answering," Jiang Zixing said.

He approached the bed, bent down, and called again, "Second Brother, wake up."

Jiang Xun still did not react. Sleeping on his side, he had his good right ear pressed against the pillow, while his left ear, facing upward, could not hear anything.

Fu Yanli stood on the opposite side, watching the scene calmly with his deep-set eyes.

He watched Jiang Xun roll over and finally open his eyes, nearly startling at the sight before him.

"What are you doing here?"

"Second Brother, you're finally awake. I came to take you home."

Jiang Xun sat up and gave a listless "Oh." "Go outside first."

Even with someone else standing across from him, he made no attempt to hide his attitude toward Jiang Zixing. His dislike was plain to see.

Embarrassment crept onto Jiang Zixing's face. He stole a glance at Fu Yanli, whose expression remained impassive, as though he had not heard Jiang Xun.

"I'll wait outside, then."

Jiang Zixing hurried out.

Fu Yanli remained where he was and explained, "You didn't answer when we called, so I unlocked the door and came in."

"It's fine, it's fine." Jiang Xun scratched his messy hair sheepishly. "I was sleeping so soundly that I didn't hear anything."

Fu Yanli gave a quiet acknowledgment, then turned to leave, closing the door behind him.

Fu Yanli had no interest in the feud between the biological son and the boy raised in his place. The rumors were not necessarily true, either, but Jiang Xun's dislike of Jiang Zixing was a fact.

Jiang Zixing sat properly on the sofa with both hands resting on his legs, unconsciously squeezing his fingers.

Fu Yanli poured him a glass of water.

Overwhelmed by the attention, Jiang Zixing held the glass in both hands and sipped slowly.

"Maternal Uncle Fu, is my second brother causing you any trouble by staying here?"

"No," Fu Yanli said.

"That's good..." Jiang Zixing drank absentmindedly. After a moment of hesitation, he ventured, "Could I add you on WeChat?"

Afraid of being refused, he hastily added, "That way, it'll be easier to get in touch if anything happens with my second brother."

As he waited with cautious hope, Fu Yanli spoke. "If anything happens, I'll contact Mr. Jiang and Mrs. Jiang."

The refusal was tactful, but every word conveyed distance, as though an enormous gulf lay between them.

Jiang Zixing parted his lips, wanting to say more, but the man's unapproachable demeanor left him unable to utter a word.

That was just how Fu Yanli was. He treated everyone that way.

Yet Jiang Xun had been able to add him on WeChat.

Bitterness welled up in Jiang Zixing's heart. He lowered his head and stared at the water in his glass, his eyes reddening in silence.

Fu Yanli was already married. Jiang Zixing knew he had no chance, but he just wanted to be a little closer to him, and then closer still, even if he did nothing at all.

Jiang Xun changed his clothes and emerged from his room with a backpack slung over one shoulder.

Jiang Zixing was still sitting on the sofa, but Fu Yanli was no longer in the living room.

"Let's go."

Jiang Zixing did not want to leave so soon. He had come here just to catch another glimpse of Fu Yanli.

"Second Brother, shouldn't we say goodbye to Maternal Uncle Fu?"

Jiang Xun could have guessed Jiang Zixing's convoluted thoughts without even trying. "No need."

With that, he headed out first.

Jiang Zixing looked reluctantly toward Fu Yanli's study, then followed Jiang Xun out.

The driver drove up front while the two of them sat in the back.

Jiang Xun looked down at his phone and tapped the screen a few times, sending Fu Yanli a message for the first time.

-Uncle, I'm heading home. See you the day after tomorrow.

A text-only message seemed too plain. After a moment's thought, Jiang Xun sent a little yellow [Smile] emoji as well.

It was the default one that generally conveyed a sarcastic "heh."

But a big shot like him, an elite who knew nothing but work, surely had no time to browse the internet. He probably had no idea what that smile really meant.

Jiang Xun only wanted to show his friendliness toward the big shot.

Five minutes later, Fu Yanli finally replied:

-All right [Smile]