Chapter 194 Good Advice to Resolve Doubts
In the next few days, Lin Yan did what he said and treated Si Zhui coldly.
When Sizhui woke up in the morning, a warm breakfast was already on the table, but there was no sign of Lin Yan; when he came back from school in the evening, the lights in the villa were on and there were cut fruits in the refrigerator, but Lin Yan stayed in the study, and refused to say a word except for the necessary explanations.
This "caring yet deliberately distant" attitude was more painful to Sizhui than any harsh scolding. The bruises on his face gradually faded, but the grievance in his heart grew deeper and deeper. His eyes were always red, like a rabbit drenched in rain.
He tried to apologize, tried to please, and even handed over the wooden sign he had secretly carved for a long time - it was engraved with two little people standing side by side, holding kites in their hands - but Lin Yan just said lightly "I know", put the wooden sign on the table, and never looked at it again.
On Friday afternoon after school, Si Zhui couldn't help himself and pulled Uncle Mo, who had just parked the car, and said in a nasal voice, "Uncle Mo, can you take me to Uncle Xie Lian and Uncle Hua Cheng's house?"
Uncle Mo was stunned for a moment, looked at his red eyes in the rearview mirror, and nodded: "Okay, I'll tell the gentleman."
Si Zhui quickly waved his hands: "Don't tell him! I...I'll just be gone for a while."
Uncle Mo hesitated for a moment, but in the end he felt sorry for the child and started the car: "Just for a while, I'll pick you up later."
The place where Xie Lian and Hua Cheng lived was full of flowers, and the yard was filled with a faint fragrance. Si Zhui stood at the door and knocked twice before it opened.
"Si Zhui?" Xie Lian was a little surprised to see him. "Why are you here? Didn't Lin Yan come to pick you up?"
When Si Zhui saw Xie Lian's gentle smile, the grievances that had accumulated over the past few days burst out in an instant. Tears fell from his eyes, and he shouted hoarsely, "Uncle..."
Hua Cheng walked out of the house and frowned when he saw him like this: "What's wrong? Who bullied you?"
Si Zhui shook his head, threw himself into Xie Lian's arms, and burst into tears, pouring out all the grievances he had suffered in the past few days - Lin Yan ignored him, he knew he was wrong but Lin Yan was still angry, and the fear he felt after the fight that day, all of which came out mixed with tears.
Xie Lian patted his back gently, his eyes filled with heartache as he listened to his incoherent sobs. Hua Cheng stood by, his expression growing increasingly gloomy. He waited until Si Zhui had almost finished crying before speaking, his voice carrying an unprecedented seriousness: "Just for a recorder, you fought with someone? And you almost got cut by a knife?"
Si Zhui was startled by his question. He looked up and saw Hua Cheng's cold face. He shrank back in fear and whispered, "They want to rob..."
"Give it to them if you want to rob them!" Hua Cheng interrupted him, his tone filled with disappointment. "It's just a pen, is it worth your life? Lin Yan is right to punish you! If I were him, I'd beat you so hard that you couldn't get up for three days!"
Si Zhui didn't expect that his uncle Hua Cheng, who always protected him, would stand on Lin Yan's side. His tears fell even harder: "But that was given to me by Brother Lin..."
"You're not going to die just because I gave it to you?" Hua Cheng raised an eyebrow. "Does Lin Yan want you to worship that pen like an ancestor, or does he want you to live well?"
Si Zhui was speechless after being asked this question. His lips trembled and he couldn't speak.
“Alright, Ah Cheng, don’t be so serious.” Xie Lian wiped his tears, his tone gentle but serious. “Si Zhui, tell me why you care so much about that recorder?”
Si Zhui sniffed and said in a muffled voice, "There's Brother Lin's voice in there... there's the voice of New York... When I'm alone, it sounds like he's right next to me."
“So, you’ve placed all your reliance on Lin Yan on this pen, right?” Xie Lian looked into his eyes and asked softly.
Si Zhui was stunned for a moment, then nodded slowly.
"Silly boy." Xie Lian smiled, picked up the teacup on the table, poured a glass of warm water and handed it to him. "Think about it, if Lin Yan really didn't want to care about you, would he rush forward to block the knife for you when you were fighting? Would he have ignored you these past few days while taking good care of you?"
Si Zhui held the cup of water, and his fingertips felt a little hot.
"He's angry, not because you protected the recorder, but because you put yourself in danger for an object." Xie Lian's voice was soft, but it brushed against Si Zhui's heart like a feather. "You value the recorder more than yourself, but in his eyes, you've trampled on his feelings—what he cares about most is you, not that pen."
Si Zhui's eyes became hot again. So... this is what Brother Lin thought.
"Furthermore," Xie Lian paused, then continued, "true peace of mind can't be maintained by a pen. When Lin Yan is by your side, you should trust that he will protect you; when he's not by your side, you should trust that he will return. This kind of trust is more effective than any object."
He picked up the phone that Sizhui had placed on the table and handed it to him: "Do you know what to do now?"
Si Zhui looked at his phone and nodded vigorously. Tears fell again, this time with a mixture of relief and regret. He quickly dialed Lin Yan's number, thought for a moment, and sent him a message: "Brother Lin, I'm at my uncle's house."
Not long after I sent the message, I received a reply with only two words: [Wait.]
Si Zhui looked at the two words and suddenly smiled, his eyes red, but with a sense of relief.
Hua Cheng snorted, but his tone softened: "It's good that you know you're wrong. If you dare to be so impulsive again, I'll show you how I'll deal with you."
"Yeah!" Si Zhui nodded vigorously and leaned closer to Xie Lian. The knot in his heart was finally untied.
He knew why Lin Yan was angry, and he also knew where he had gone wrong. No matter how important the recorder was, it was not as important as Lin Yan's worry, nor as important as his own safety.
The setting sun streamed in from the window, casting a warm glow on Si Zhui's tear-stained face. He held onto his phone, suddenly eager to see Lin Yan—he wanted to tell him in person that he knew he was wrong and would never do it again.
Some truths need to be broken down and explained to him before they can truly sink into his heart. He was very fortunate to have so many people willing to patiently teach him how to grow up.
Just like Xie Lian said, true peace of mind never relies on objects, but on the trust and concern hidden deep in the heart.
His trust in Lin Yan should be like a seed buried in the soil, slowly sprouting and growing into a big tree, and will never be shaken by a little wind and rain.
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