When Lu Tianchen received An Zhaoming's call, he was working overtime in the office.
Lu's business had grown under his parents' leadership, and now it had become a large group with dozens of branches and subsidiaries, with a huge number of business decisions to be made every day. As the heir of Lu's business, although his father and mother were the final decision makers, he still had to bear a lot of pressure.
Even so, when he saw it was An Zhaoming's call, he picked up the phone immediately because An Zhaoming would not call him casually, so something must have happened to An Xing.
"Heaven, do you know where the stars are?"
As soon as the call was connected, An Zhaoming's somewhat anxious voice sounded. Lu Tianchen frowned slightly.
"We didn't have any contact this afternoon. Shouldn't Xingxing go home today?"
He took a moment to check the time and found that it was already 8:30 in the evening. At this time, An Xing usually prepared to wash up.
An Zhaoming's voice was obviously more urgent: "Chen, are you busy now? Give Xingxing a call? His mother and I called, but the child didn't answer."
Little idiot, don’t answer the phone?
Lu Tianchen suddenly became serious and responded. He was very familiar with the little fool's temperament. Unless there was an unexpected situation, he would never deliberately ignore his family's calls. Now Uncle An said that An Xing didn't answer the phone...
"Uncle An is suspicious of what Sun Cheng said that day?"
"Although this child looks soft, he is actually very stubborn sometimes!"
The middle-aged man on the other end of the phone sighed, and Lu Tianchen nodded in agreement.
Don't be fooled by the little fool's soft and easy-to-touch appearance. In fact, when he is really stubborn, no one can persuade him. This little thing has its own logic and its own little persistence. Unless he changes his mind, no one can say anything.
Lu Tianchen thought about it again, wondering if this little fool had any intention of running away from home... The answer was definitely yes.
Needless to say, the fact that he was not a child of the An family but a child of the Ning family was enough for the little fool to make up his mind to leave the protection of the An family.
"Uncle An, I'm hanging up now. I'll call Xingxing and contact you after I find him."
Lu Tianchen said, and hung up the phone. Without looking through the address book, the man's slender fingers quickly typed out a string of mobile phone numbers on the screen.
The call was made and the note showed "Little Star".
Lu Tianchen was prepared for the call not to be answered, but he didn't expect that the other party would pick up the phone after only two rings.
"Hey, Brother Chen?"
The boy's voice was clear and had a sense of excitement, and it didn't sound like he had encountered any accident.
Lu Tianchen turned on the speakerphone of his mobile phone and hurriedly sent a message to An Zhaoming on the computer.
[Found it.]
Ignoring the voice call that quickly popped up from An Zhaoming on the other end, the man asked An Xing.
"Xingxing, where are you? Why didn't you answer the calls from Uncle An and Aunt Shen?"
"Ah, I didn't mean to." The boy's voice sounded a little guilty, "My phone was on vibrate, I didn't notice."
"Xingxing's phone was on silent. She didn't mean to ignore the call."
At the An family, An Zhaoming breathed a sigh of relief, but Chen Ying still had some worry on her face.
"Xingxing's get out of class ended at 4:30, why is she still silent now? Isn't the child really avoiding us?"
An Zhaoming's worry, which had just been put to rest, was lifted up again.
Ning Rong's expression was also very serious: "Where is he now?"
The head of the family quickly acted as a messenger, and after a while, An Zhaoming gasped as he looked at his phone.
"Tian Chen said that the stars are in the North Square... draw them for people!"
"Xingxing is going to perform!"
Chen Ying covered her mouth with tears in her eyes, "Performing for money? Does Xingxing think we won't give him money in the future, so he wants to go out and earn money on his own?!"
Ning Rong's expression darkened instantly: "How does he make a living by performing? Is it dangerous? There are so many mosquitoes in the summer, and he paints for people in the square..."
That delicate skin and tender flesh must be eaten by mosquitoes!
An Zhaoming also became serious and quickly sent a message to Lu Tianchen, hoping that he could help bring An Xing back.
"Shouldn't we go and pick her up in person?" Chen Ying asked worriedly.
"The child may not want to see us now."
The man hugged his wife, patted his son's shoulder, and sighed.
"Let Tianchen go and bring Xingxing back. When Xingxing comes back, we can't make him uneasy anymore!"
*
North Square was an amusement park more than a decade ago, but it closed down due to poor management. As the city developed, the park was demolished and high-rise residential buildings were built around it. However, due to the large area of the original amusement park and the existing green space, a piece of vacant land was eventually left, which became the North Square today.
Later, the street stall economy flourished in the North Square. Many vendors came here to sell snacks, and it became a good place for nearby residents to stroll around at night, making it even more lively.
It was past nine in the evening, and the square was still crowded. Young people wanted to enjoy their weekends, and now was the time for them to go out and do some activities. In the corner of the square, a group of people gathered.
Most of the people in the group were young people, either good friends or couples, standing in groups of three or four. Surrounded by them were a man and a woman, sitting on a small bench.
The girl seemed to have never been watched like this before. She held her phone nervously and looked down from time to time. There were two beauty lights for live broadcasts around her, lighting her from different angles.
On the other side was a young boy, who was drawing seriously on the drawing board, and occasionally looked up to glance at the girl opposite him.
Every time the boy looked up, there would be a slight gasp from the crowd.
Nowadays, there are many handsome boys, but there are not many boys who can take good care of themselves. This is why boys who take good care of themselves can be called handsome on the street.
Even in the night with poor visibility, people can still see the boy's fair skin and delicate features, with his curly hair neatly styled. He wears a loose light green short-sleeved shirt with a hand-painted cat lying on its back and stretching its paws, and a pair of denim cropped trousers, revealing his straight, white calves.
When the boy looked up and said to the girl with a smile, "Don't be nervous, no need to pose, I can capture your expression and draw you," the boy's round almond-shaped eyes looked like the cat on his body.
The kind that can really inspire women's maternal love, so cute.
This was the scene that Lu Tianchen saw when he found the North Square - the girls around him looked at An Xing with glowing eyes, and the boy in the crowd was like the brightest little star.
The man felt a little sad and walked around the girls. Before he could say anything, the boy looked up as if he had sensed something, and when he saw him, he smiled brightly.
"Brother Shen!"
As soon as the boy smiled adorably, a girl in the audience screamed softly. The boy looked at the crowd with wide eyes in confusion, which immediately caused another round of gasps.
Lu Tianchen: ...
Lu Tianchen walked over with a headache, stood next to An Xing, put on the aura of a domineering president, and glanced around.
Young people and students who have just started working don’t get the domineering boss’s gaze at all. As they look at the two attractive men, one standing and one sitting, their smiles become even weirder.
"...How long will you continue to draw?"
Unable to understand what these girls were so excited about, An Xing had already lowered his head to continue painting and responded.
"The last one will be ready soon!"
Lu Tianchen had accompanied the young man in collecting folk songs before, and seeing that there was no third stool around, he stood quietly by.
Ten minutes later, An Xing put away his pen with satisfaction, tore off the drawing paper from the sketchbook, and handed it to the girl on the stool.
"It's done, little sister, take a look!"
The girl took the painting and looked at it, her eyes suddenly widened.
She was originally fascinated by the boy who was painting on the stall. She saw that the boy was very cute and each painting was only 30 yuan, so she agreed to try it. But she didn't expect that the boy's paintings were... so beautiful.
Well, it's not a completely realistic sketch, it's more like a sketch that has been beautified with photoshop, and a background has been added. Although this kind of painting is not realistic, it's so beautiful and so cheap, and it's custom-made, it's worth it!
The girl scanned the code and left with satisfaction.
An Xing waved to the onlookers with a smile.
"I'm closing the stall today! I'll draw for you guys next time if we're lucky enough!"
The eyes of the onlookers were green, and if it weren't for the fact that Lu Tianchen, who was very difficult to deal with, was standing nearby, they would probably have rushed over and pinched the boy's paw.
After everyone left, Lu Tianchen didn't care about his domineering image anymore. He sat next to An Xing and helped him pack up.
"Why don't you go home instead of coming out to paint?"
"Well, I'm preparing myself mentally."
An Xing said slowly.
Lu Tianchen was stunned, and looked at the display brochures that the teenagers used to attract customers. When the little fool was in a mess, he really liked to draw and collect folk songs to calm his mood. This time, he was doing psychological preparation...
"Or is it because of what Sun Cheng said?"
Lu Tian thought carefully, maybe he could just find someone to beat Sun Cheng up.
“No, I was thinking about myself.”
An Xing slowly put the sketchbook into her bag and turned her head to look at the man.
The evening breeze blew down from the treetops, sliding through their hair, taking away the last bit of the day's heat. They were so close that they could see themselves clearly in each other's eyes.
"Brother Chen, even though you all comforted me, I still felt a little useless the past two days."
Not only can he not protect his family, but he is also treated like a soft persimmon.
Lu Tianchen's expression softened and his voice became very soft. It was unclear whether he was afraid of disturbing the night wind or the young man in front of him.
"What about now?"
“Now I think I’m pretty good.”
An Xing muttered to himself, feeling that he had been being too stubborn before.
Although others don’t know, An Xing understands that he has done great things in his life!
Not only did he find Ning Rong ahead of time, he also made the atmosphere in their family very good now. It was also after his reminder that Xiao Yi's leg was saved.
Thinking about it this way, An Xingxing is simply awesome! He can completely rest on his past achievements!
"Actually, I just need to be myself, right? Just like this time, when Sun Cheng bullied me, as long as I didn't suffer a big loss and didn't just stand there and let him bully me, it was fine. As for revenge..."
The boy rolled his eyes and moved closer to the man, his almond eyes sparkling.
"You guys can vent my anger for me, right, Brother Shen?"
Everyone has strengths and weaknesses. An Xing doesn't think he is a genius and should be an omnipotent person. He just needs to do his best and maintain his dignity. So...
It should be reasonable for him to act like a spoiled child and let the person closest to him help him vent his anger, right?
An Xing thought about it, looking at the man eagerly with a flattering smile on her face.
The boy himself did not realize that, besides his family, the closest person to him was Lu Tianchen.
Lu Tianchen looked at the young man who was so close to him, the corners of his lips slightly raised, then he reached out and touched the young man's head, rubbing it hard.
"Yes, we would love to."
*
It was almost ten o'clock in the evening when An Xing returned to the An family. When An Xing entered the house, he was in a particularly good mood.
Oh, his brother Chen was so nice, he comforted him, was affectionate and caring, and even accompanied him to buy stinky tofu from the stall!
Such a big boss, eating stinky tofu with him, who dares to say that Brother Chen is not his best brother!
When An Xing first saw Su Yiran's true face, he felt lost and thought he had lost a good friend. Strangely enough, although he had many classmates since he was a child, they could all be considered his friends, but they were just ordinary friends.
There is no such thing as a close friend who is always by your side and with whom you can talk about anything. It seems that there is a lack of fate between him and others, and there are always some accidents that prevent him from getting closer to others.
Su Yiran was just a little bit away from becoming his best friend - now it seems fortunate that it didn't happen.
But after tonight, An Xing suddenly realized that his brother Chen is not only his best childhood friend, but also his best brother and friend!
The two of them are very close. Although they are not inseparable, they will definitely get together when they have time and always talk about everything. This is simply a perfect match for "best friends". How come I never thought of it before?
An Xing entered the house happily, with the smile on his face still fresh, when he met the sad gazes of his family.
An Xing: “…I’m back?”
The An family was even more sad. The little fool was so hesitant when he said he was going home. Sun Cheng was going too far!
An Zhaoming suppressed his grief and asked the child as kindly as possible:
"Xingxing, you're back so late. What did you do today?"
"Go to North Square to paint and earn money!"
The boy raised his head proudly, his curly hair fluttering in the wind.
"I drew five pictures and earned two hundred dollars!"
An Zhaoming couldn't hold back his expression for a moment, and his eyes widened in anger.
"Nonsense! It's not like my An family can't afford to support two sons! Why do you need to work so hard to earn money!"
Chen Ying sat on the sofa, wiping the corners of her eyes with a handkerchief, with tears in her almond-shaped eyes.
"Xingxing, are you really going to leave us? Don't you want me anymore? My heart aches!"
In front of the veteran actor, Ning Rong was unable to keep up with his acting, and the expression on his young and handsome face was a little awkward.
"I, I really treat you as my own brother, you can... you don't have to leave."
An Xing: ...?
An Xing looked at the way An Zhaoming glanced at her, sniffed and smelled the onion smell coming from the handkerchief thrown away by Chen Ying, then looked at Ning Rong who was pretending to be expressionless but with shame in his eyes.
The living room fell into an awkward silence.
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