Bai Xiaoze also desperately wanted to know exactly what Bai Qianhua had done without telling anyone. All he could feel now was his heart aching in spasms, that misery of having something stuck in his throat.
That misery made his nose sting and his throat tighten. He really wanted to cry, but he did not know where to begin, or who he could turn to and cry.
*[ε=(´ο｀*))) Sigh, his dad was a pitiful kid too. He had parents, but neither loved nor cared for him, and he had to work to earn money to raise his child himself. Who knows how many meals he skipped to scrape together money for formula? And he still raised Bai Xiaoze into a chubby little thing.*
Once Bai Qianhua made that promise, it meant a huge amount of money. He had no choice but to go into sales.
*Ah... yeah, he started working the moment he opened his eyes every day, from six thirty in the morning until eleven thirty at night. Sometimes he even had to get up in the middle of the night to work overtime. He was worked like a dog.]*
The more Shang Shujue discussed this with Nuomi in his mind, the harder he cracked his sunflower seeds. He really felt that silly kid Bai Xiaoze did not know how good he had it.
The longer Bai Xiaoze listened, the paler he grew. His roommates all noticed something was wrong and found opportunities to come over and ask for sunflower seeds, then handed Bai Xiaoze water and patted his shoulder to comfort him and encourage him to hold on.
Bai Xiaoze could not worry about manners now. He only wanted to know what had happened to Bai Qianhua in the end, and what his own best possible ending was.
Fortunately, everyone asking for sunflower seeds did not interrupt the rhythm of Shang Shujue's conversation with that system called Nuomi. He continued lamenting inwardly.
*[What? You're saying Bai Qianhua finally worked his way up to supervisor and had time to spend with his son, only to come home and discover that, without his knowledge, his precious son had been dressed up as a girl by his bizarre parents until he developed confusion about his gender.*
Uh... I seriously give up. How can parents like that exist? Were they so desperate for a daughter they'd gone mad? Did they actually want a daughter, or did they want to marry a daughter off to some filthy-rich upstart for the bride price?
They were so shortsighted. Bai Qianhua was so capable and impressive. He made supervisor in just two or three years. Wasn't that enough to prove how outstanding he was?
*ε=(´ο｀*))) Sigh, their lack of education really cost them. They missed their chance to invest. Thankfully, Bai Qianhua eventually brought his son to live with him.*
*By the time Bai Xiaoze was nine, he finally set him straight and made him understand clearly that he was a boy, not a girl. Otherwise, his whole life would have been ruined.]*
Bai Xiaoze suddenly remembered things related to this. Back then, he had been practically clueless. It was the first time he had lived with Bai Qianhua for so long.
Bai Qianhua was very handsome. In a suit, he naturally exuded the imposing air of a senior executive. Bai Xiaoze was a little afraid of him, but also felt close to him.
He still remembered the shocked and dejected expression on his face the first time he called him his brother. At the time, he had thought this older brother did not like him.
Only now did he finally understand. How had that been dislike? It had clearly been the helplessness of being unable to acknowledge their relationship.
Was that why he went to every parent-teacher meeting?
Was that why he was so strict with him?
Was that why he cared whether his grades were good?
Was that why he gave him his living allowance directly?
Was that why he asked if he was doing well?
Everyone's gazes grew complicated as they looked at Bai Xiaoze. As bystanders, they could say nothing and express no position.
After all, this sort of thing was hard to put into words on the spot. It seemed difficult from either side's perspective.
*[Huh? What did you say?*
Bai Xiaoze got into cosplay because Bai Qianhua's bizarre parents deliberately exposed him to it.
But the community they learned about veered into the pedo community, and they had no idea. They just thought the boys dressed as little girls in that community were cute, so they coaxed Bai Xiaoze into doing it?
*That's vicious. Absolutely vicious! How many sick perverts like that must Bai Xiaoze have encountered as a child? No wonder Bai Qianhua was so strict after taking him back!]*
Bai Xiaoze no longer remembered any of this at all, much less what he had looked like dressed up to suit pedos' tastes.
He only remembered that after he became more aware, he learned about the cosplay community again and discovered that he still liked cosplaying female characters. But he was afraid his parents would dislike it, so one day he worked up the courage to cosplay a schoolgirl from a Japanese anime and appeared before them.
When his parents saw him, they were first shocked, then pleasantly surprised, and finally ecstatic. They pulled him around to show him off everywhere, saying she was their daughter.
They also bought him lots of things that day and took him out to have fun. His parents had never doted on him like that before, and he lost himself in it for a while. Afterward, he would cosplay a female character every few days.
But when Bai Qianhua found out, his expression turned awful. Without allowing any explanation, he came over, grabbed a bamboo switch, and lashed him so hard that he nearly died on the spot from the pain.
After that day, his cosplay props were seized and burned. They were his most treasured possessions, and they went up in smoke right before her eyes. Furious, he packed his things and left that home, even dropping out of school...
But now there seemed to be more to it. Yet what hidden circumstances could justify Bai Qianhua disregarding his wishes and burning the things for his hobby, showing him no respect at all?
Shang Shujue did not know what Bai Xiaoze was thinking, but he soon gave him a reasonable explanation that filled him with guilt and left him stunned for a long time.
*[Bai Xiaoze was still too young. He thought this would win him his selfish parents' love, so he cosplayed a female character every few days and paraded around in front of them.*
Little did he know that behind his back, they told all the neighbors Bai Xiaoze was their daughter, not their son.
So... that was why that rich, perverted pedo in the city noticed Bai Xiaoze, huh.
I can already imagine what happened next. After getting in touch, they definitely wanted to marry him off as their daughter.
And he offered them some huge bride price or something? Those two old bastards would definitely be willing. After all, wasn't that the whole reason they wanted a daughter?
*They went to wedding banquets all the time. When they saw other people's daughters getting married and the red silk displaying the bride price, they were sick with jealousy.]*
Shang Shujue took a sip of water, grabbed another handful of sunflower seeds, and glanced at everyone as they gradually began dancing again. Then he looked away and continued enjoying the gossip. Once he lowered his head, everyone stopped again and discreetly glanced at Bai Xiaoze.
It was over. The kid looked like he had shattered.
*[If Bai Qianhua hadn't abandoned a fifty-million client and rushed back after finding out, rescuing Bai Xiaoze, who had cluelessly thought he was going there to have fun, he would have been done for.*
And this silly kid thought his dad burned his precious things because he begrudged the money and didn't support his hobby?
He probably has no idea that with his face, all he needs is a wig and a skirt, even without makeup, to give a man perverted ideas, does he?
*Once he went somewhere like that, he wouldn't have escaped even if they discovered he was male. And he was still being rebellious?]*
Bai Xiaoze sprang up from the sofa with a whoosh, making Shang Shujue turn to him in bewilderment. "What did you jump up all of a sudden for? You little brat, you gave me a bit of a fright."