He pushed open the door and went in. Although he had prepared himself mentally, he was still suddenly moved when he saw the three of them sitting at the table waiting for him to eat, just like always.

"Chen Zhuo, you're back! Hurry up and give me your schoolbag so I can wash my hands and eat. Mom really showed off her skills today; she made so many dishes."

"Thank you, Mom, but you don't need to cook so much. It's not like we have any important guests. Also, didn't we agree that Dad and I would come back tonight to help us move things? Why did you carry them all back by yourself? Aren't you tired?"

Song Xiaowen quickly took Chen Zhuo's schoolbag, and while pushing him to wash his hands, said, "I didn't carry this by myself, your brother helped—"

“He’s not my brother.” Chen Zhuo’s face immediately darkened.

Song Xiaowen was stunned; she thought Chen Zhuo had already...

"I'm sorry, Mom, I'm going to wash my hands."

"Are you alright, Xiaowen?" Zhou Shanhuai quickly came over.

Song Xiaowen smiled and shook his head, "What could be wrong with me? It's just... Chen Zhuo, why don't you go and see him?"

"Hey, Mom, you guys eat first." Chen Ke suddenly walked over and said.

Song Xiaowen guessed that Chen Ke was unaware that Chen Zhuo had developed a mental illness because of his departure, so he could only say tactfully, "Let your dad go instead. If you go to him, he might react more violently."

"It's okay, I'll handle it. Alright, Dad, take Mom over for dinner, I'll talk to him."

Zhou Shanhuai wasn't as worried as Song Xiaowen. He had witnessed Chen Zhuo's behavior in front of Chen Ke several times, and he was much calmer than when he was with them.

So he said, “Let’s go. This is originally a matter between the two brothers. If we interfere too much, it will only complicate things. Let the two brothers handle it themselves.”

Since Zhou Shanhuai had said so, Song Xiaowen could only nod in agreement, "Alright then, but you must call us if he gets agitated."

"Okay, Mom, you guys go eat quickly, the food will get cold."

After Zhou Shanhuai and Song Xiaowen left, Chen Ke went straight to the bathroom door and knocked. "Chen Zhuo, open the door if you're not in the bathroom."

"Get out!" came a suppressed roar.

Chen Ke chuckled lightly, "What, you came back today and found that your parents weren't giving me the cold shoulder but were actually getting along well with me, so you got jealous and threw a tantrum?"

As soon as Chen Ke finished speaking, Chen Zhuo yanked open the bathroom door with a loud bang.

The boy behind the door, his face dripping with water, had a fierce look in his eyes, like a wolf cub. "What did you say? I'm jealous of you? Ha! Your parents didn't hold you accountable because they're magnanimous. They're willing to sit down and eat with you again because they're loyal and affectionate people. What do you think it is? Because of love? Do you deserve it?"

"Chen Zhuo, only children who are extremely deprived of love talk about love all the time."

Chen Ke's condescending and lecturing attitude, which completely disregarded him, pierced Chen Zhuo's eyes. How could he be so disregardful of his own brother?

"Chen Zhuo, are you lacking love?" Chen Ke decided to take drastic measures, looking at Chen Zhuo with an indifferent gaze and asking word by word.

·······

Time seemed to stand still.

Chen Zhuo's dark pupils trembled, as if a tremendous change was taking place in his mind.

Perhaps three seconds had passed, but Chen Zhuo felt as if three years had gone by.

Finally, he replied in a hoarse voice, "I don't lack anything. I didn't lack anything before, and I won't lack anything in the future either."

Seeing Chen Zhuo's visibly cold and calm demeanor, Chen Ke felt a pang of pity. This was just a boy who longed to be loved and cared for by his older brother. Perhaps because he lost his parents when he was young and relied on the original owner of the body, Chen Zhuo had an almost obsessive attachment to the original owner.

In modern parlance, he's definitely a brother-obsessed guy.

However, this was a kind of obsession, and Chen Zhuo was already depressed because of the original owner's two abandonments, and his emotions became extreme and out of control, so Chen Ke had no choice but to resort to extreme measures.

"If you have any opinions about me, then work on strengthening yourself. When you can stand in a place that I can look up to, I will definitely listen to your thoughts."

"Alright, if there's nothing else, come out for dinner. Don't act like a child and throw a tantrum, waiting for someone to coax you." Chen Ke said and strode away.

Chen Zhuo stood frozen in place for a long time, until he heard Song Xiaowen calling his name again.

Stand where he can look up to you? Then he'll listen to whatever you say?

Hehe, he'll do it.

Chen Ke, that day won't keep you waiting too long.

Chen Zhuo's trembling eyes hardened, filled with a resolute determination that disregarded everything.

At that moment, Chen Ke had no idea that his words would create a cold-blooded general who would become a famous figure in history. He was still discussing with Song Xiaowen whether the stir-fried bamboo shoots were too salty...

By the time this final "reunion dinner" was finished, it was completely dark.

The three of them stood on the steps to see Chen Ke off to his car. Song Xiaowen felt a little regretful that Chen Ke couldn't come back to live at home, but when she thought about Chen Ke's "work", she didn't insist on keeping him.

This surprised Zhou Shanhuai quite a bit.

When I was going to bed that night, I asked Song Xiaowen, "You don't seem angry with Chen Ke, so why did you agree so easily to not come home?"

Song Xiaowen paused in covering the blanket with his hand. "Knowing too much about some things is not good for you. Don't ask too many questions; they're all things you can't understand."

Zhou Shanhuai: ......

Sometimes, communicating with your wife really requires careful consideration.

"But have you noticed that ever since Chen Ke talked to Chen Zhuo, Chen Zhuo seems like a completely different person?"

"It seems so, but the doctor said that as long as his emotions can stabilize, that's a good thing."

"Sigh, I wonder what those two brothers were talking about. I'm so curious."

"Don't pry into things, go to sleep."

······

The next morning, Chen Ke picked up his small suitcase and drove to the Japanese concession.

After arriving at the checkpoint and announcing his name, the Japanese guard respectfully let him through.

Very good, it seems that Mr. Matsumoto is not only rich, but also quite powerful.

Even Li Gang, who had been to the Japanese concession, had never been there before. In the end, he had to ask for directions all the way to his destination.

Chen Ke looked at the magnificent villa in front of him, a gloomy look flashing across his eyes.

"Hey, Mr. Chen, I saw a car coming and guessed it was you. I rushed down to check and sure enough, it was you. What a coincidence!" Xu Manling stood elegantly and gracefully on the steps in a plain white cheongsam, her voice clear and melodious.

Chen Ke put on a friendly smile, "It's not a coincidence at all. Miss Xu is clearly quick-witted. She was able to guess that it was me, Chen, just by looking at the time and the car."

"Hehehe, Mr. Chen's words are much more interesting today than yesterday."

"Really? Maybe it's because of the location." After all, you have to speak human language to humans, but if you're facing Japanese soldiers, you have to speak ghost language.