Yihua Entertainment —

Dressed in a suit and tie, President Lu Sheng leaned lazily against the door of the practice room, watching his younger brother Lu Yuqi... and the boy next to him with great interest.

The boy was wearing a loose short-sleeved T-shirt and jeans. He was tall and slender, and his flexible body moved rhythmically to the music. His movements were clean and neat, with a touch of youthful innocence, and he didn't look greasy at all.

Add to that his delicate face, slightly flushed from exercise, his bangs damp with sweat, and large beads of sweat rolling down his fair and clean cheeks, and he exuded an unexpected sexiness and charm.

Lu Yuqi next to Lin Qingyan was dancing the same dance, but he gave off a different vibe. Lu Yuqi was also handsome and cool, but he was also a bit arrogant and cocky, very cool, and had a strong aura.

In short, each has its own charm and uniqueness.

Lu Sheng couldn't help but sigh inwardly, wondering where Gu Fei had found such a precious treasure.

He originally thought Lin Qingyan was just a pretty face, but he didn't realize she was a talented and persevering treasure. She could sing and dance, and not only was she talented, but she was also hardworking and had a likable personality.

Lin Qingyan is much more likable than his younger brother Lu Yuqi, who always acts cool, has a straight face, and is arrogant and sarcastic.

Tsk... No wonder Gu Fei values ​​it so much.

Lu Sheng narrowed his eyes slightly, a hint of a smile in them, and gently stroked his chin. He had a premonition that this child would amount to something great.

The music stopped, and the two stopped what they were doing. Lu Yuqi ignored the people at the door and tossed a towel and a bottle of mineral water to Lin Qingyan, saying, "You've made great progress these past few days. You'll be fine tomorrow."

"I think so too." Lin Qingyan wasn't modest at all, her slightly upturned peach blossom eyes carrying a mischievous smile.

He casually wiped the sweat from his face with a towel, then unscrewed the bottle cap and took a couple of sips of water before noticing Lu Sheng standing at the door. He politely greeted him.

“Lu Yuqi, you should learn from him. Lin is so polite, but you don’t even greet your own brother.”

Lu Yuqi remained unmoved. "Get to the point."

Lu Sheng was clearly used to his brother's attitude, so he simply ignored it and calmly smiled at Lin Qingyan, "You danced well. Are you confident for tomorrow?"

Lin Qingyan nodded and said, "Yes, Mr. Lu, don't worry, I won't let you down."

Lu Sheng chuckled and patted him on the shoulder, "Yeah, good luck tomorrow." Then, he looked at Lu Yuqi, his smile fading, and said with disdain, "You too, if you embarrass me, you're dead meat."

Lu Yuqi is destined to debut as the center of the group. His singing and dancing skills are top-notch. It's impossible for him to embarrass himself, Lin Qingyan thought to herself.

It was already evening, and the sky had darkened. Lin Qingyan didn't stay at the company for long. The Gu family's driver was already waiting for him downstairs. As soon as he got into the car, his phone rang.

The caller ID showed his mother's name on the phone; it was Zhou Yuelan calling. This was the first time Zhou Yuelan had contacted him in the two weeks since his rebirth, and he hadn't taken the initiative to contact his family.

His younger brother, Lin Qingyang, had asked him for money a while ago, but Lin Qingyan brushed it off with a few words. He had long been disappointed in these so-called family members, so he no longer placed any hope in them.

Lin Qingyan hesitated for a moment, then answered the phone and calmly called out, "Mom."

Zhou Yuelan didn't detect anything amiss. She said, "Xiao Yan, why haven't you called home lately? Your brother said he wanted to contact you, but you hung up on him."

Lin Qingyan said, "I've been busy lately. Is there something you need?"

Zhou Yuelan sighed, "Oh... Mom slipped and fell while cooking just now, and now she can't even walk. Your dad is never home, and your brother lives at school."

“Xiao Yan, if you have time, could you go home and take care of your mother…” As she spoke, she groaned in pain, “Mom can’t even go to the hospital alone at home.”

Lin Qingyan frowned slightly. He felt some resistance, but he eventually agreed. Although he was disappointed in this family, Zhou Yuelan was, after all, his mother who raised him, and he couldn't just abandon her.

It's a bit far from here to his home, so Lin Qingyan asked the driver to take him to a nearby bus stop and then took the bus himself. He made a phone call to Butler Shen.

"Uncle Shen, I suddenly have something to do and need to go back to my hometown. I won't be going back tonight. Um... goodbye, Uncle Shen."

Lin Qingyan's home is in the old town. It took him almost two hours by bus to reach his destination. It was almost nine o'clock at night. He walked on the familiar, somewhat dilapidated streets, with the streetlights on the side emitting a faint light because they were old and in disrepair.

After walking for a few minutes, he stopped in front of a very old and dilapidated building. It was an old building with more than ten floors and no elevator. Fortunately, Lin Qingyan lived on the second floor, so walking up the stairs wouldn't be too tiring.

The hallway was dimly lit. Lin Qingyan walked up and down the narrow stairs that he used to run up and down as a child, but suddenly felt that this place was very unfamiliar. He did not feel a sense of belonging to home here.

I remember once when I was a child, I was running fast and accidentally missed a step and fell down this staircase. Not being able to feel pain is not a good thing. At that time, I didn't even know that my right hand was broken.

Later, he found that he couldn't use his right hand properly and cried for his mother. Zhou Yuelan took him to the hospital for examination and found that her son's hand was broken. At that time, she scolded little Lin Qingyan for not walking properly and for not knowing how much it would cost to go to the hospital.

She was more concerned about money than her son's health.

If she had been a little more attentive and cared more about her son, she would have discovered that her son had a problem with his pain receptors. Ironically, only Lin Qingyan himself knew that he had no sense of pain.

He realized he was different from others when he was a child. Other children would cry and complain of pain when they fell, but he never cried and never felt pain.

At that time, Xiao Lin Qingyan told his mother Zhou Yuelan that he could not feel pain, but Zhou Yuelan did not take it seriously, thinking that her son was just talking nonsense. Later, she became impatient after he said it many times.

"You're so young and you're already learning bad habits, lying and cheating time and time again. How did your mother teach you? Did you even listen to her teachings?"

Later, as Lin Qingyan grew up, she never mentioned the matter again, since it wouldn't be taken seriously anyway.

Sometimes he wondered how Gu Fei would react if he told him that he couldn't feel pain. He didn't know, but he knew Gu Fei definitely wouldn't react like his mother.

...

With her thoughts returning to normal, Lin Qingyan walked up the stairs step by step and stood in front of her house.

He knocked on the door, and after a moment the door opened. Zhou Yuelan stood inside, leaning against the wall, her back slightly hunched, her weight on her left foot, making it seem like she was having some difficulty standing.

Lin Qingyan looked at the woman in front of him. Compared to the woman he remembered five years later, she hadn't aged much. Although she was only in her forties, her hair was already turning gray. Her once pretty face now had many wrinkles, making her look like someone in her fifties.

She smiled at the boy in front of her and said warmly, "Xiao Yan, you're back! Come in."

Lin Qingyan nodded and said, "Let me help you." He helped Zhou Yuelan sit on the sofa in the living room, and seeing how she walked, he realized that her injury was indeed quite serious. "Where are you injured? Your right foot?"

Zhou Yuelan frowned slightly, her voice weak, "Yes, my right foot hurts terribly."

"Let me see." Lin Qingyan squatted down and was about to roll up Zhou Yuelan's right trouser leg when Zhou Yuelan stopped him and said, "Oh, there's nothing to see, it's just swollen. I remember there's Yunnan Baiyao in your brother's room, but I couldn't find it just now. Why don't you go look for it?"

Lin Qingyan got up and went to his younger brother Lin Qingyang's room. He didn't see it on the desk, and he opened all the drawers underneath to check, but it was still not there. He also couldn't find it on the bookshelf or on the bed.

"Mom, are you sure you're not mistaken?" he said, turning to look outside. The door, which had been open a moment ago, was now closed. He went over and tried to turn the doorknob, but it wouldn't open.

His hand paused, his heart skipped a beat, and he quickly realized that the door was locked from the outside and he couldn't open it no matter how hard he tried.

A torrent of emotions surged within her, but Lin Qingyan's expression remained unusually calm, a mocking smile even playing on her lips. It turned out that the fall and injury were just excuses.

"Mom, did you trick me into coming back just for this?"

Why did you do that?

Zhou Yuelan stood outside the door, looking completely different from her previous weak state. Her eyes held a hint of guilt, but her tone was earnest and earnest: "Xiao Yan, I'm doing this for your own good."

"I heard you suddenly want to participate in some talent show. You've never studied singing or dancing, what are you doing doing this stuff? That's for rich people!"

"Xiao Yan, your mother has always taught you to be down-to-earth and not to do anything crooked or dishonest. There are no shortcuts in life..."

“So…” Lin Qingyan abruptly interrupted her, “You’re not planning to let me out today, are you?”

The person outside was silent for a moment before saying with difficulty, "Xiao Yan, don't blame your mother. Just stay in your room today. There's food in the drawer. I'll let you out tomorrow."

How did you find out about this?

"That's not important. Just know that your mother would never hurt you..."

"Okay, I understand, you don't need to say anything more."

Lin Qingyan clenched his fists tightly, leaned against the door, closed his eyes, took a couple of deep breaths, and forcibly held back the tears in his eyes. Everything was for his own good, which sounded very noble.

He'd heard that kind of talk enough in his past life.

This house... he really shouldn't have come back.

His interview is tomorrow afternoon, so I need to find a way to leave.

The people outside didn't speak again. The boy sat down on the floor by the door, his legs bent, his thin back slightly hunched, looking exceptionally lonely and helpless.

He sat motionless for several minutes until the sound of his phone vibrating broke the silence of the room.

It was Gu Fei calling.