Chapter 61
Tao Xi walked up to Lin Qinhe, who was holding a bag of sugar-roasted chestnuts and handed it to him.
The chestnuts were still warm and the fragrance was overwhelming. Tao Xi took out one, peeled it and ate it. The sweet and smooth taste made him squint his eyes, and his irritability seemed to fade away.
He asked Lin Qinhe: "How did you know I wanted to eat sugar-roasted chestnuts? Where did you buy them?"
Lin Qinhe glanced at Yang Zhengming who was still standing there, and walked with Tao Xi to the elevator entrance, saying, "There is a shop selling sugar-roasted chestnuts next to the fruit shop."
When buying fruits before, Lin Qinhe saw Tao Xi looking at the sugar-roasted chestnuts next door for several times, and knowing that he wanted to eat them, he went to buy them while they were talking.
"Really? I have no impression of that." Tao Xi peeled another chestnut and fed it to Lin Qinhe.
Seeing that Tao Xi looked normal, Lin Qinhe was relieved. He did not ask about what happened in the ward, but only asked, "Are you going back to school this afternoon?"
Tao Xi continued to eat chestnuts, nodded and said, "I missed so many classes yesterday afternoon and this morning, I have to catch up on my classes and homework."
After following Lin Qinhe out of the hospital, Tao Xi suddenly looked back at the tall building of the inpatient department. Lin Qinhe seemed to know what he was thinking and asked him, "Do you want to go and take a look?"
Tao Xi drooped her eyelashes and remained silent for a while, then finally shook her head.
They returned to school, and life seemed no different from before. High school studies were intense, and Tao Xi didn't have the energy to think about too many other things. He focused on preparing for the TOEFL and final exams.
Just the day before New Year's Day, Fang Zuqing called him personally. The old man spoke sincerely and hoped that he could come home for dinner in the evening.
Tao Xi agreed.
Yang Zhengming drove to Wenhua No. 1 Middle School to pick up Tao Xi. The guard at the gate saw him and asked politely, "Mr. Yang is here to pick up his son?"
Yang Zhengming just smiled and nodded.
After school, Tao Xi and Lin Qinhe walked to the school gate and saw Yang Zhengming at a glance. Yang Zhengming had come very frequently in the past two days, bringing gifts and food. He was almost used to this man.
Yang Zhengming quickly stepped forward, picked up Tao Xi's schoolbag under the guard's surprised gaze, and said with a smile: "I'm here to take you back to your grandfather's house."
Tao Xi felt that the smile on Yang Zhengming's face looked strangely familiar. He thought about it and decided not to refuse. After all, after so many years, no matter what kind of person Yang Zhengming was, their father-son relationship could not be changed.
Lin Qinhe had never been in a good mood towards Yang Zhengming, and now he looked even worse. He only asked Tao Xi in a low voice: "Will you come back tonight?"
Tao Xi hesitated for a moment, and then, remembering that his grandfather had said on the phone that he wanted to stay overnight, he said uncertainly, "He should be back."
Lin Qinhe didn't say anything else, just said "OK".
Tao Xi said goodbye to Lin Qinhe and got into Yang Zhengming's car. Bi Chengfei, who happened to witness this scene, almost popped his eyes out. He walked up and put his hand on Lin Qinhe's shoulder, and asked in shock: "God of Learning, why did Brother Xi get into Yang Duole's father's car?"
He suddenly remembered that Yang Zhengming was also involved in the CAC competition, and suddenly realized: "Could it be that Brother Xi is being asked to apologize? Or is it to use coercion or inducement?"
Lin Qinhe threw away Bi Chengfei's hand and turned away without saying a word.
Bi Chengfei stood there, worrying about Tao Xi's safety, and suddenly thought of Lin Qinhe's expression just now. That expression was as if he saw Tao Xi being abducted.
Tao Xi sat in the passenger seat, watching Yang Zhengming frantically adjusting the music. She asked him what songs he liked, and he said it didn't matter.
Yang Zhengming played some songs that he thought high school boys would like to listen to, and tried to find topics to talk to Tao Xi, which were mostly about study and painting. However, the two were not familiar with each other and had nothing to talk about. Tao Xi's answers were perfunctory, but Yang Zhengming didn't get annoyed at all.
In the car, Tao Xi finally remembered why Yang Zhengming's smile looked familiar. She had met Yang Zhengming and Yang Duole playing catching dolls at Crab House before. At that time, Yang Zhengming had a smile of flattery and indulgence on his face, but now the flattery was more intense and a little embarrassing.
He suddenly found it a little funny. Yang Zhengming failed to please his fake son, and now he is trying to please his real son. The roles changed so quickly, it seemed as if he had no feelings for Yang Duole at all.
Perhaps only such a heartless person would look for a lover without any hesitation after the death of the one he deeply loves.
Seeing that Tao Xi had no interest in talking to him, Yang Zhengming stopped talking after a while.
There was a traffic jam during the evening rush hour. The sound of horns honking one after another came from outside the car window, mixed with the unpleasant music inside the car. Tao Xi closed his eyes and pretended to doze off. Just when he was about to fall asleep, he suddenly heard Yang Zhengming say:
"Tao Xi, I haven't been able to tell you sorry during this period of time. I am responsible for what happened between Yang Duole and Guan Fanyun. I have broken up with Guan Fanyun."
Tao Xi closed her eyes and did not respond.
Yang Zhengming knew Tao Xi was listening. He stroked the steering wheel with his fingers. After hesitating for a long time, he finally took a breath and said, "In fact, I have not fulfilled my responsibilities as a father all these years. It seems a little ridiculous to say that I should start to be a good father now, but I really think so. I hope you... I'm not saying that you should accept me as soon as possible, but I just hope you won't resist me and give me a chance to make it up to you."
Yang Zhengming has always been eloquent, but he spoke these few words hesitantly and with great trepidation, but it was obvious that he had prepared these words for a long time.
Tao Xi half opened his eyes. Yang Zhengming suddenly became so serious that he didn't know what to say for a moment and just pursed his lips.
Seeing that Tao Xi didn't say anything, Yang Zhengming asked cautiously, "You and...Qin He are living together now, right?"
Hearing Lin Qinhe's name, Tao Xi's gaze instantly turned to Yang Zhengming, with obvious vigilance in his eyes.
Yang Zhengming saw the guard, smiled bitterly, and quickly explained: "I'm not against anything, Qin He is a very good child. I just want to say that you can be free to do what you like and be with the people you like. Dad will always support you."
He could see the relationship between Tao Xi and Lin Qinhe at a glance. He had no opinion on this, nor was he qualified to have an opinion. It was just that the Lin family had a strict family tradition and the old man of the Lin family was notoriously old-fashioned and conservative. When he thought of his father-in-law who was exactly the same, he couldn't help but worry that Tao Xi would experience the same hardships in the future as himself.
Tao Xi was a little surprised by Yang Zhengming's sudden words. He was silent for a while and turned to look at Yang Zhengming.
Yang Zhengming looked at the traffic ahead, noticed Tao Xi's gaze, turned to look at him, and asked in a gentle voice, "What's wrong?"
Tao Xi pursed her lips and did not respond to Yang Zhengming's previous words. She only said: "Turn off the music, it's unpleasant."
Yang Zhengming was stunned for a moment, a smile appeared on his face, he said okay, and quickly turned off the music.
After moving out of the professorial building at the University of Literature, the Fang family has been living in a villa area on the outskirts of the city. The house has its own door and yard and is well managed by the two elderly people.
There was a bright moon in the night sky. The car drove slowly into the yard. A light was on in the yard. From the car, Tao Xi saw two old people in the warm yellow light. They were supporting each other and standing at the door of their house. When they saw the car coming in, they took two steps forward and waved at him with a smile.
For some reason, Tao Xi remembered this scene for a long time. After he got off the car, he was welcomed into the house by two old people. The aroma of food and warmth greeted him.
Ye Yurong helped him hang up his schoolbag and coat, and took him to wash his hands. She and Fang Zuqing took him to the restaurant where dinner had been prepared. There were rich dishes on the table. Ye Yurong asked him to sit down and introduced the dishes she had made to him with a smile.
"I don't know what you like to eat, so I made a variety of dishes. If you like any of them, just tell grandma and she will make them for you later."
Tao Xi felt a little uncomfortable for some reason. It was not because he was uncomfortable, but because he had never experienced such attentiveness before. He curled up his fingers and said "thank you" softly.
"What's there to thank about in my own family?" Ye Yurong said with a smile. She heard a "ding" sound from the kitchen and was about to turn around to get the last dish from the oven. Yang Zhengming hurriedly asked Ye Yurong to sit down and went to get the dish.
It is a dish of garlic roasted wings, roasted to perfection, emitting a sizzling hot aroma.
Yang Zhengming placed the dish on the empty space on the dining table, but Fang Zuqing, who had already sat down, climbed up the table slowly.
The old man had just been discharged from the hospital and his hands and feet were still a little inconvenient. He supported himself on the table with one hand, leaning slightly towards Tao Xi, and with the other hand he slowly moved the plate of grilled wings towards Tao Xi, saying kindly:
"The kids love to eat these, but we are too old to chew them."
Tao Xi looked at the hand that was shaking uncontrollably, and when he heard the word "child", his vision suddenly became blurred. He blinked quickly, stood up, and helped Fang Zuqing sit down on the chair.
Yang Zhengming took out the various drinks that had been prepared and asked Tao Xi what she wanted to drink. Tao Xi said she only wanted rice wine. The rice wine was made by Ye Yurong. Seeing that Tao Xi liked it, she smiled happily and said:
"Your mother has loved drinking the rice wine I made since she was a child, but she would get drunk if she drank more than one bowl. One time, she secretly drank too much and passed out. I thought she was sick, so I sent her to the hospital, but it turned out to be a joke."
Tao Xi was longing and curious about his mother, so the two old people told him a lot about Fang Sui's past.
From their stories, Tao Xi knew that her mother was probably like all daughters from wealthy families, simple and innocent, and grew up in an environment full of love, but none of them explained why Fang Sui ended up going to Taoxi Bay alone.
The atmosphere of this meal was just like the New Year's Eve dinner of an ordinary family. Perhaps it was because the heating in the house was too strong, which made it easy for people to relax. Tao Xi suddenly had an illusion that he seemed to have been here for the past 17 years. Every day when he came home from school and threw his schoolbag on the sofa, his grandmother would prepare a table of dishes and call him to eat, and his grandfather would ask him what he had learned in school that day.
After seventeen years of absence and blankness, no matter how deep the blood ties are, it is impossible to eliminate the unfamiliarity overnight. It may take one or two years, or even longer, to fill these gaps.
Or maybe one day the cracks will be smoothed out by time, and they will eventually get along well with each other.
In the middle of dinner, Fang Zuqing hesitated for a long time, but still mentioned Yang Duole to Tao Xi. This was a decision they had to make.
"It's mainly our fault that he did such a wrong thing. We spoiled him too much and let him learn the wrong way."
Speaking of this child, Fang Zuqing's eyes revealed a look of regret: "We raised him, and we don't ask for anything in return. We won't continue to raise him after he grows up. He made his own mistakes, and he should pay the price himself. The school's decision was to expel him, and we won't stop it for him, but..."
But after all, he raised the child with his own hands. He could be cruel enough to sever the grace of raising him, but he still couldn't bear to watch him and his own grandson get involved in a lawsuit.
Fang Zuqing sighed. The sudden changes in the past few days made the old man look much older. He pleaded with Tao Xi, "Child, I know you won't forgive him, and I don't ask you to forgive him. I just want to ask you to stop pursuing his legal responsibility for grandpa's sake. You will have no relationship with him in the future, and we will never keep him here. This will always be your home."
If Yang Duole had not done such a thing, with so many years of friendship, they might have continued to keep Yang Duole at home. But now they know that there is no possibility for them to live in harmony with their own grandson. If they keep him, Tao Xi might not want to come back at all.
The restaurant fell silent. Ye Yurong looked at Tao Xi earnestly, while Yang Zhengming remained silent.
Tao Xi was quiet for a while, and finally said, "Okay."
He was not a very generous person, but he just didn't want to see his grandparents being caught in the middle and feeling distressed.
Even though he knew that the two old people might not be as heartless as they said, and might really just ignore Yang Duole, he no longer cared, because Yang Duole was no longer in his eyes at all.
After that, the atmosphere at the table gradually became lively again. Tao Xi finished a bowl of rice wine and couldn't help but have another bowl. His eyes were still clear after drinking it. Ye Yurong smiled and sighed that he could drink much better than his mother.
After dinner, the family sat in the living room and chatted for a while. Fang Zuqing wanted to let Tao Xi stay and took him to see the carefully tidied new room. The room was very large, with a wide balcony and several easels of different sizes.
But Tao Xi declined, saying that he had to go to school very early the next day and the place was a bit far from the school by car. Seeing the disappointment on the faces of the two elderly people, he promised that he would come and stay here during the holidays. The elderly people thought he lived in the dormitory and asked Yang Zhengming to take him back.
Yang Zhengming followed the address given by Tao Xi and sent him to the gate of the residential area where Lin Qinhe lived. Before Tao Xi got off the car, Yang Zhengming hesitated for a moment, but couldn't help but reminded his son vaguely:
"You are still young. Some things are better done when you are an adult."
Tao Xi had been sleeping on the way back. She had just been woken up. She looked at him blankly and asked, "What's the matter?"
"Haha, nothing." Yang Zhengming stopped talking awkwardly. When he saw Tao Xi like this, he knew that this kid was still a blank slate. He thought that Lin Qinhe, who was so steady, would not do anything reckless.
He watched Tao Xi enter the community with a smile, but the more he thought about it, the more he felt something was wrong.
He didn't object to his son dating Lin Qinhe, but what about his son living in someone else's house? At least he should let Lin Qinhe stay in his son's house occasionally.
Yang Zhengming shook his head and decided to transfer the river view apartment he had just bought to Tao Xi's name as soon as possible.
When Tao Xi returned home, Lin Qinhe was taking a shower in the bathroom.
As soon as Lin Qinhe opened the door in his bathrobe after taking a shower, he saw a figure flying towards him. He quickly hugged Tao Xi, holding her hips and waist with his hands. His expression was calm, but he couldn't hide the smile of surprise in his eyes.
"I thought you were going to stay at Grandpa's."
Tao Xi clamped her legs around Lin Qinhe's waist, put one arm around Lin Qinhe's neck, and lifted Lin Qinhe's chin with the other hand, and said with a smile: "I want to come back to spend the New Year with you."
Lin Qinhe raised his chin obediently, looking at Tao Xi who was inexplicably clingy tonight, a smile appeared on the corner of his mouth, and he asked in a low voice: "How can I accompany you?"
Tao Xi didn't react, and her mind was stuck as she kept asking, "How do I accompany you?"
Lin Qinhe stared at Tao Xi's confused eyes for two seconds, sighed in his heart, and walked towards the bedroom with Tao Xi in his arms, asking in a leisurely voice, "How was the meal at grandpa's house?"
When Tao Xi heard this question, her eyes sparkled and she smiled and said, "It's delicious. My grandma cooked a lot of dishes for me."
“What’s your favorite dish?”
Tao Xi tilted her head and hesitated for a while, and finally said, "Garlic grilled wings." After thinking for a while, she added, "And the rice wine made by grandma is delicious!"
No wonder.
Lin Qinhe held Tao Xi and walked to the floor-to-ceiling window. This day was the last day of the year. Through the floor-to-ceiling window, they could overlook the neon-lit riverside square, where there was a bustling crowd, waiting for the New Year to come with great fanfare.
Lin Qinhe originally wanted to put Tao Xi on the recliner, but Tao Xi wrapped his arms and legs tightly around him and seemed unwilling to get down, so Lin Qinhe continued to hold Tao Xi, walking slowly around the room like coaxing a child, and asking him about his first experience returning to his grandfather's house.
"I have a room now. It has a big balcony that overlooks the garden. Grandpa said I can paint there." Tao Xi whispered to Lin Qinhe.
"Do you like that room?"
"I like it! I'll take you there next time."
Lin Qinhe smiled and said, "Okay."
"Grandma said she wanted to knit a scarf for me and let me choose the wool." Tao Xi leaned close to Lin Qinhe's ear and whispered, as if sharing some happy secret.
Lin Qinhe followed up and asked, "What color did you choose?"
Tao Xi curved her lips and said, "I think both grey and black are very nice looking. Grandma asked me to knit both for her. I'll give you one when the time comes!"
"Okay." Lin Qinhe's smile deepened.
There was nothing left to say at the end. Tao Xi started to feel sleepy after the excitement. She rested her chin on Lin Qinhe's shoulder. Lin Qinhe tilted his head and kissed Tao Xi's hair, and asked, "Do you want me to help you take a bath?"
Tao Xi no longer felt embarrassed as before and nodded, saying, "Okay, okay."
Lin Qinhe carried Tao Xi into the bathroom and put him on the sink. Tao Xi sat obediently, his hands on the sink, his lips slightly open, looking at Lin Qinhe eagerly, as if he was waiting to be served, and he didn't even know to take off his clothes.
Lin Qinhe stared at Tao Xi's lips for two seconds, raised his hand and pinched Tao Xi's chin, and warned: "Don't drink alcohol outside in the future, not even rice wine, understand?"
Tao Xi was a little confused, but still nodded and said "OK".
But Lin Qinhe knew that if he asked Tao Xi to go to bed with him, Tao Xi would say yes without hesitation, even though he didn't know what going to bed meant.
Tao Xi didn't notice that Lin Qinhe was looking at her strangely. She still remembered about taking a bath, so she gently kicked Lin Qinhe's leg and urged him, "I want to take a bath."
But the next second he was kissed by Lin Qinhe who leaned over to him. His legs were opened artificially, and his waist and neck were tightly clamped. He was forced to tilt his head back and close his eyes to endure Lin Qinhe's gentle kiss.
He felt very comfortable being kissed, and his hands consciously hugged Lin Qinhe's neck, but the kiss became more and more intense, making his scalp numb. He couldn't help but straighten his chest unbearably, and his legs unconsciously clamped around the person in front of him.
A hand stroked up from the side of his waist, making him tremble every time it passed a place. The hand finally stopped in front of his neck, and the fingers nimbly unbuttoned his school uniform shirt. He was dizzy from the kiss, and it was not until he was carried into the bathtub that he realized that his clothes were almost stripped off.
Lin Qinhe took off the bathrobe that was already mostly wet, and stepped into the bathtub.
The not-so-small bathtub suddenly became cramped. Warm hot water slowly poured into the bathtub. Tao Xi moved aside to make room for Lin Qinhe and planned to take a bath with him, but for some reason, he was pressed down by Lin Qinhe while he was dizzy.
As the New Year was approaching, Tao Xi had been washed and was lying on the bed. Lin Qinhe half-hugged him and applied ointment on the inside of his thighs.
Tao Xi was so sleepy that he almost fell asleep in Lin Qinhe's arms. He let Lin Qinhe's hands play with and caress his legs. The originally fair and tight skin was now a little red and swollen, as if it had been rubbed hard by something.
The moment the bell rang, the Ferris wheel in the distance outside the floor-to-ceiling window flashed brilliantly, the dazzling fireworks sparkled on the night sky of the city, and the people gathered like a tide in the riverside square shouted "Happy New Year" to the sky, and everyone's face was filled with anticipation for the New Year.
Lin Qinhe held Tao Xi's hand, leaned over and kissed Tao Xi on the lips, who had closed her eyes, and whispered, "Happy New Year, baby."
"Happy New Year." Tao Xi woke up from her sleepiness, hooked her neck to kiss Lin Qinhe back, but the kiss landed on her chin.
Lin Qinhe held the back of Tao Xi's head and lowered his head to complete the kiss.
With the arrival of the new year, people in the square went home with smiles on their faces after a grand carnival.
The author has something to say:
We are not yet adults, we can only satisfy our addiction
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