Yan Heqing remained silent, quietly accompanying her until she had vented her emotions.
After crying her fill, Mother Lin looked at Yan Heqing again, and her feelings were even stronger; this didn't seem like an 18-year-old boy.
Perhaps it is because he has witnessed all walks of life and tasted all the hardships of life since childhood that he has developed such steely resilience and ice-clear insight.
Mother Lin couldn't help but ask him, "What else can I do now?"
"Let's find a quiet place to relax and clear your mind." Yan Heqing gestured for her to look at the hydrangeas in the pond. The hydrangeas, which had been wilting just moments before, were now vibrant with life again after being soaked in the water. "Your condition requires a change of the water in the pond."
Mother Lin was stunned. She hadn't thought of this, or rather, she hadn't considered herself.
Yan Heqing remained silent.
The pond, fed by fresh water, makes the garden quiet and murmur gently. The hydrangeas in the pond ripple slightly with the water, creating a breathtaking scene.
A long, long time passed before the garden lights came on, and the sorrow between Mother Lin's brows gradually faded.
She didn't know if Yan Heqing had something else in mind, but she certainly had a sudden realization.
She was also the soil that Lin Fengzhi. Once she left, whether he liked it or not, Lin Fengzhi would have to find his own water.
She finally showed her first genuine smile in a long time. "You're right, I really need to take better care of my health. This illness will soon prevent me from flying. If I don't get out and about now, I might never have the chance again."
Yan Heqing knew that it was time for a family meeting, so he declined dinner and took his leave.
He had been walking along the path for a short while when he heard hurried footsteps behind him.
Lin Fengyi caught up with him.
The streetlights on both sides weren't very bright, and Lin Fengyi's gaze towards Yan Heqing was extremely complicated.
He only found out today that Yan Heqing almost became his younger brother.
Lin Fengyi found it hard to believe, but with the house in such a mess, he didn't have time to think. He finally found a chance to speak and solemnly thanked Yan Heqing, "The doctor said my mother was safe this time because someone performed emergency treatment beforehand. I know it was you, thank you."
Yan Heqing remained noncommittal, "Spend more time with her; she needs companionship right now."
Lin Fengyi nodded. "She wants to go abroad to recuperate, and I'll go with her." He paused for a second, then added, "I know where Lin Fengzhi went; he's safe. You don't need to worry about him."
Yan Heqing also knew that Lin Fengzhi angry, he would hide in the same place and wait for Lin Fengyi to come to him.
Yan Heqing nodded politely, "Goodbye."
He walked along the path for a while, and when he reached the gate of the residential area, he changed direction, crossed the path on the left, and walked to a children's playground.
Yan Heqing bypassed the amusement park and went to a treehouse at the back.
This treehouse was Lin Fengzhi and Lin Fengyi's secret base when they were children.
Lin Fengzhi stumbled and ran to hide in the treehouse. His eyesight had deteriorated significantly recently, and his vision was completely blurred.
He was terrified, hugging his knees and trembling uncontrollably.
He waited for a while, and finally heard footsteps outside, followed by someone pushing open the door to the treehouse.
He quickly looked up, and through his tear-filled eyes, he could only see a faint light.
Lin Fengzhi couldn't see clearly, so he spoke first, "Brother..."
The sound stopped abruptly.
He smelled a faint scent of cedar.
It was his brother, but not the Lin Fengyi he had imagined.
Lin Fengyi even told Yan Heqing about their secret base...
Lin Fengzhi's mind was buzzing. Just then, Yan Heqing turned on his phone's flashlight.
The sudden light Lin Fengzhi instinctively close his eyes to avoid it. In the blink of an eye, fragmented images flashed through his mind.
"Don't play with fire, baby!"
A woman in a light purple cheongsam rushed over and took the lighter from the little boy's hand.
The little boy puffed out his cheeks, unhappy, "My brother played it yesterday too!"
The woman was both amused and exasperated. "That was my brother lighting incense for Mom."
The scene shifts again, and the little boy is crouching behind the sofa, lighting sandalwood incense with a lighter.
"I can do that too!" he muttered.
The bedroom door opened, and a man came out yawning. "What 'Songsong doing instead of sleeping?"
As the man approached, the little boy quickly stuffed the half-burnt sandalwood incense and lighter under the sofa, then scrambled up and pounced on the man, crying, "I want Daddy to hold me while I sleep!"
The man laughed heartily, then carried the little boy back into the house.
Lin Fengzhi froze. He opened his eyes in shock, trying to shake off the images.
It wasn't him!
He didn't do it...
Then he saw Yan Heqing's face.
"Get away!" Lin Fengzhi terrified. He kept backing away, shaking his head.
Seeing his unusual fear, a strange glint flashed in Yan Heqing's eyes, but he quickly regained his composure. "No one will come looking for you."
Lin Fengzhi's pupils dilated, the faces of Yan Heqing and the little boy constantly overlapping. His heart pounded wildly as forgotten memories flooded back: his mother, his father, Yan Heqing, and even himself...
Lin Fengzhi hard to accept; he was extremely tense and on the verge of collapse, feeling only that Yan Heqing's gaze was sharp and piercing.
"It wasn't me..." he stammered, his words trembling. "Go away, go away now!"
Yan Heqing keenly sensed something was wrong with him, and he frowned slightly.
Lin Fengzhi suddenly stopped speaking. He burst into tears, almost pleading, "I'll move out of the Lin Family. I don't want it anymore. I'll give it all to you. Please leave, okay?"
He didn't want to see anyone now, and struggled to stand up. "No, I can walk by myself, I don't need you..." But his leg cramped up, and he fell back down.
His behavior was becoming increasingly strange, and Yan Heqing's heart was racing. He crouched down close to Lin Fengzhi, "What do you mean it wasn't you? What did you do?"
Lin Fengzhi's fear reached its limit. He cried and grabbed Yan Heqing's hand, "Brother, I'm sorry, I didn't want to play with fire, I just wanted to light sandalwood incense for Mom..."
Yan Heqing understood every word Lin Fengzhi, but when put together, he couldn't understand it. His mind was in turmoil, as if countless hands were pulling at his nerves.