Chapter 282 Do You Want Me?

The morning light shines and the breeze blows gently.

In front of the gate of Zhaoyuan Palace, maids were coming in and out carrying all kinds of flowers and bonsai, finally bringing some life to the courtyard that had been abandoned for a long time.

"Your Highness, the tranquilizing soup you requested has been delivered."

Yan Sheng opened his eyes and looked at the handsome man standing outside the door. His gaze fell on his face, and a look of surprise flashed in his eyes.

Such good looks actually belong to a man.

"Wait." Yan Sheng turned the wine glass in his hand and said lazily, "Come in and talk."

Xie Jinyu's eyes drooped slightly. Although she was puzzled, she still obeyed and bowed, "Your Highness."

"Are you Doctor Xie's younger brother?" Yan Sheng raised an eyebrow, his eyes showing a hint of interest. "What's your name?"

Xie Jinyu's black hair was half tied up, and his shoulders were lowered. As he moved, a few strands of hair fell down in front of his forehead. His tone was neither humble nor arrogant, "To answer your Highness, my name is Xie Jinyu."

"I heard you came in first in this year's Imperial Hospital assessment?" From his gentle gaze to his deliberately soft tone, it was clear Yan Sheng wanted to establish a good relationship with him. "Those old-timers in the Imperial Hospital are notoriously strict, and you're so far ahead of the second-place finisher. You're clearly a talented individual, on par with your brother."

Xie Jinyu lowered his eyes, hiding the sharpness in his eyes, "I really have nothing to hide in front of Your Highness."

"Don't mind me. I'm not trying to pry. You're just in the limelight these days." Yan Sheng rubbed his brows and secretly observed him from the corner of his eye. "I've been away from Beijing for many years. Now that I'm back, I haven't been sleeping well. From now on, you can deliver my tranquilizing soup."

Xie Jinyu nodded and said softly, "Yes."

-

Xie Family House

In front of the red gate, a small figure curled up in a ball, twisting a dogtail grass in his hand, with a gloomy expression.

Xie Jinyu looked at him quietly for a long time before asking in a deep voice, "Why are you sitting here?"

Hearing the familiar voice, Ping'er slowly raised her head, met his gaze, and after a long pause said, "You're back."

Seeing him like this, Xie Jinyu frowned and asked impatiently, "Why are you sitting here alone? Where are Cuicui and Chen'er?"

"Grandpa Du sent them to the academy." Ping'er shook the dogtail grass in her hand and said sullenly, "I'm waiting for them to finish school. Grandpa said I'm still young and can only go in half a year."

Xie Jinyu withdrew her gaze, ignored him, and stepped onto the stairs.

"Sister Fairy said...we look alike, so you are my biological brother."

Xie Jinyu paused, her body froze, and she slowly turned her head to look at the short figure.

He gained some weight after coming to the Xie family, but he was still not as tall as Cuicui.

"Why do my brothers and sisters all have mothers, but I don't?" Ping'er looked up at him, a hint of hope in her eyes. "The Fairy Sister said that I hit my head and have completely forgotten everything in the past. Do you still remember what my parents look like? Can you tell me about it?"

Xie Jinyu was stunned for a moment, her thin lips slightly opened, but she couldn't utter a single word.

What do my parents look like?

He could hardly even remember what the old couple of the Xie family looked like.

"Why are you asking this suddenly?" Xie Jinyu frowned and said calmly, "Have you been wronged?"

"No." Ping'er shook her head. Her face looked 80% like Xie Jinyu, and she pouted to look cute. She looked well-behaved and lovable. "It's just that I saw my brothers and sisters being loved by their mother, so I felt jealous."

Ping'er raised her hand and pointed at her heart.

"Although Sister Shenxian is also very kind to Ping'er, the feeling is still different." Ping'er pursed her lips, looking melancholy. "I also want to be like Sister Cui, nestled in mother's arms, and let mother sing songs to put me to sleep."

Xie Jinyu fell silent for a rare moment. He was usually sharp-tongued, but today he couldn't even utter a complete sentence.

Ping'er looked up at him and said, "Sister Fairy said that you and I are the closest people in the world... Are you willing to have me?"

Xie Jinyu was silent for a long moment before he sighed deeply. Resigned to his fate, he bent down and lifted him up from the cold steps. He brushed the dust off his little butt, then passed his hands through Ping'er's armpits and picked up his small body. "What do your parents look like? I'm even more unfamiliar with them than you are."

"What's the point of having parents? Isn't having a brother enough?" Xie Jinyu carried him towards the mansion with a calm expression. "I was kidnapped by a boy when I was younger than you. If it weren't for my kind-hearted second brother, I'm afraid I wouldn't have lived to your age."

Ping'er hugged his neck obediently and said sharply, "Then you are even more pitiful than me."

Xie Jinyu was rarely choked by words, and glared at him secretly, "Don't you want me to coax you to sleep?"

"I do!" Ping'er suddenly became anxious. She scratched the air with her little hands and put them back into her mouth. "I take back what I said."

Xie Jinyu lowered her head and laughed, her beautiful eyes curved, and even the line of her jaw softened a little.

It's quite interesting to raise such a little thing.

"Let's go." Xie Jinyu weighed him, "Let's get you to sleep."

When Su Cheng rushed back, he saw Ping'er lying in Xie Jinyu's arms, her big eyes wide open.

"This..." Su Cheng paused, surprised, "What are you two doing?"

The two brothers thawed their relationship, which should have been a heartwarming scene, but Ping'er's expression was full of weirdness.

"Sister..." Ping'er's face turned pale, and her voice trembled. "He's so mean. He originally wanted to put me to sleep... but he kept telling me ghost stories..."

God knows how I got through these two hours.

She wanted to escape, but the man above her head held her down and she couldn't move. They were the only two people left at home.

Those stories were so terrifying that as soon as I closed my eyes, I felt like things were floating everywhere in the room.

But that bastard said impatiently that he was hard to coax.

"A ghost story?" Su Cheng glanced at the man sideways and said in a bad tone, "Xie Jinyu, are you itching again?"

Seeing Su Cheng, Xie Jinyu's eyebrows curved, and she pushed the child in her arms aside without mercy, and said softly, "Ah Cheng, why are you here?"

"If I hadn't come, the child would have been scared to tears by you." Su Cheng glared at him, walked to the bedside, and gently rubbed Ping'er's little head. "Look, the child is sweating profusely from fright."

Xie Jinyu shrugged, a flash of impatience crossing his handsome face. He said nonchalantly, "A boy's courage should be cultivated from a young age. If even a fictional story can scare him this much, won't he be unable to hold a knife steady when he kills someone in the future?"

"What nonsense are you talking about!" Su Cheng raised his hand and pinched his ear, twisting it hard, "Can't you teach me something good?"

Xie Jinyu covered her ears which had turned red after being pulled by the head of the family, and dared not be angry or speak.

Seeing him make a fool of himself, Ping'er finally felt a little happier.

"Ping'er, go out first. Your brother and I have something to talk about." Su Cheng turned around and looked at him, his smile almost overflowing from his eyes. "Your brother and sister are back, go play with them."

"Okay." Ping'er obeyed obediently and spat softly at Xie Jinyu before leaving.