Chapter 53 Adopted Brother [VIP]
Qingran understood Pei Xuhui's meaning.
Pei Xuhui wanted him to one day... to be able to resent him and blame him as a matter of course, so that he could use him as an outlet for his emotions.
"Am I that fragile in your heart?" Qingran touched the handsome face that was close to her.
Not to mention that he never regrets the decisions he makes.
Even if he regrets it someday, he doesn't have the habit of shifting the blame onto others.
"It would be best if that day never came," Pei Xu said, a slight smile playing on his lips, his tone questioning, "Are you hungry? Shall we go downstairs for dinner?"
Qingran nodded.
Pei's parents were waiting for them downstairs; he had overheard everything. If only this hadn't happened…
Upon hearing the reply, the man stepped back and looked down at something on the ground. His figure stood amidst the splendid colors, like a perfectly balanced oil painting.
Her eyes, tinged with a misty light, seemed both near and far.
After a short while, Pei Xu found his target, picked up the ointment, and pondered as he looked at the person sitting on the locker.
This height is also quite suitable for applying ointment.
"Just wipe it like this?"
Qingran smiled and said, "Okay."
So the man walked over and rolled up his trouser leg.
These loose and comfortable mid-length trousers can be easily rolled up to the upper thigh, revealing the fair and translucent flesh of the legs, like peeling a lychee.
Pei Xu looked down at the perfectly intact white skin in front of him, then raised his eyes: "Did it hurt when you took a bath?"
It's no wonder it hurts, since there's not even a trace of redness.
Qingran nodded calmly: "It hurts."
Pei Xu smiled back.
To be honest, he was both surprised and unsurprised to be deceived, and sighed, "You really have me wrapped around your little finger."
He shook his head and lifted the person off the locker.
Since Qingran's leg is fine, there's no need to apply ointment.
The two tidied themselves up quickly and went out. After meeting up with Mr. and Mrs. Pei downstairs, they headed to the restaurant.
The two walked a step behind on the road.
Pei's father and mother chatted and laughed ahead, the two of them walking side by side, sometimes answering and sometimes interrupting each other, their hands occasionally brushing against each other as they walked.
Then a large hand firmly grasped another, more symmetrical hand, their fingers interlocked, until they quietly released each other at the restaurant entrance.
But there was an unexpected person waiting for them in the restaurant.
"Haha, Lao Pei, Madam Pei!" A portly middle-aged man walked up with a hearty laugh. "I heard that you two rarely have time to come and visit, so I rushed to finish my work to come and keep you company."
Mr. and Mrs. Pei were also delighted to see their old friend.
After exchanging pleasantries, the middle-aged man turned his attention to Qingran and Pei Xuhui.
"These two must be the two young masters of the Pei family."
Looking at Pei Xuhui, he praised him as a dragon among men; looking at Qing Ran, he praised him as a handsome man.
"I've long heard of Chairman Pei of Qingniao Technology. As expected of Old Pei's son, he has surpassed his master..."
Pei Xuhui entered social mode and shook hands with him, saying politely, "Chairman Hu, you flatter me..."
Qingran smiled politely with a faint smile.
He has no interest in expanding his network and is happy to be ignored.
Led by Chairman Hu, the group went to the restaurant and took their seats.
Dinner was Western food, with classic dishes such as roasted foie gras, baked snails, rosemary lamb chops, snowflake beef steak, and truffle pumpkin soup...
This wasn't Qingran's first time trying Western food. She found the taste strange at first, but she got used to it and found it quite good. Some of the dishes were actually quite tasty.
While the Pei family of three had to socialize during their meal, he focused ninety percent of his attention on the meal.
The remaining 10% of attention was focused on listening to the middle-aged man talking to Pei Xuhui.
"Your company..." I'm too lazy to listen to the work.
"I heard about the xx project..." It's still work, I can't be bothered to listen.
"Young Chairman Pei is young and promising. Everyone says to settle down and start a career first, but it's the other way around for Chairman Pei."
Um?
Sure enough, the next second, Chairman Hu jokingly asked, "With such success in your career, shouldn't you start thinking about settling down?"
After speaking, he looked at Pei Xuhui and Pei's father and mother.
If the three of them had this idea, they could then continue the conversation.
However, Pei's parents said, "We've never been able to make decisions about him. He's very opinionated, and it's up to him to decide whether he gets married."
Pei Xuhui replied, "I do have this idea, and I plan to discuss it with my parents when the time is right."
As soon as he said it, everyone present except Qingran was shocked.
Pei's parents were surprised that Pei Xu hadn't mentioned it before; he was still single when the two families had a meal together last month.
Chairman Hu was surprised that the family had acted so quickly, considering they had only recently returned to China.
He confirmed, "Does this mean he has a girlfriend?"
Pei Xu calmly replied, "I do have someone I'm currently dating." He said he had been dating her for about an hour.
pity.
Mr. Hu felt genuinely regretful, and still somewhat unwilling to give up: "I wonder which family's daughter she is? Is it possible to break up even after dating?"
Pei Xu replied, "They're not from our circle."
The implication of politely declining to answer is quite clear.
Everyone here is a smart person. Pei's parents intervened to defuse the situation, and Chairman Hu also changed the subject at the right time, inviting everyone to eat and drink as they pleased.
Just as we finished our main meal, the waiters and chefs came forward to prepare dessert.
It's actually a very visually appealing flaming ice cream.
The chef gave a live demonstration, showing how the ice cream, after the flames were extinguished, had a fruity, caramelized, and alcoholic aroma on the outside, while the inside was cool and delicate, perfectly illustrating the concept of "a world of fire and ice."
Not content with finishing one, Qingran, under Pei Xuhui's disapproving gaze, asked the chef to make a second one.
By the time Qingran said goodbye to Chairman Hu and left the restaurant, the moon was high in the sky, and she hadn't even finished her second ice cream.
On the way, Pei's mother complained to Pei's father, not very happy.
"I was wondering why Lao Hu kept reminding us that we could come as a family to relax when he invited us. It turns out he wasn't really inviting us to have fun; he had ulterior motives!"
Pei's father comforted him, "People in business should take it easy. If you have to blame someone, blame your son for being too outstanding. He's a hot commodity in the marriage market."
Pei's mother nudged him.
What nonsense are you talking about? The protagonist who gets his relationship status subtly questioned is a hot commodity, but what about Ranran who is ignored by everyone?
Although Ranran herself doesn't care much about these things, her parents can't help but care.
Pei's father understood immediately and coughed twice: "Ahem, when did Xu Hui start dating?"
Qingran was leisurely licking her ice cream when she heard this and cast an interested look at the man, curious about his answer.
His expression of watching the show was so obvious that Pei Xuhui didn't need to look closely to see it.
“Two hours ago,” he replied, then pinched the face that looked like it was about to have a good show in front of his parents.
Pei's mother rolled her eyes: "You're just trying to fool Lao Hu, aren't you? I was wondering how you could have time to find a partner when you're working overtime every day. It turns out you're just making it up."
“Who’s making this up? You don’t believe me when I tell the truth.”
Pei Xu replied in a serious tone, but it was precisely this serious demeanor that made it seem more like a joke.
This was also something Pei Xuhui did intentionally.
Pei's mother pursed her lips: "Fine, then tell me your boyfriend's name and where he lives."
Pei Xu replied, "Keep it a secret."
Rolling her eyes even wider, Pei's mother said, "Talking to you is such a waste of breath." She pulled Pei's father, who was amused by their conversation, and pushed open the door to go back to their room.
The door closed in front of her. Qingran blinked innocently at the culprit, then pushed open her own bedroom door and went inside.
The young man didn't close the door, and soon warm orange light poured out from the half-open door, spreading to the man's feet.
Pei Xu's memory resurfaced, and he suddenly recalled a similar scene from many years ago, except that the door was tightly closed back then.
The sense of déjà vu made the man smile, and he stepped inside, closing the door behind him.
In the room, Qingran was sitting on the edge of the bed eating ice cream and playing on her phone. She had just finished one of the two scoops of ice cream she ordered.
Pei Xu understood; he was getting a little tired of it. He walked over and reached out his hand: "Eating so much cold food before bed, aren't you afraid of getting a stomachache?"
Qingran naturally handed him the ice cream, then looked up after replying to the message.
"Why didn't you just take the opportunity to tell us about our situation?" He was referring to the way back, not the restaurant.
Pei Xu raised an eyebrow: "The timing isn't right. Besides, didn't you say you didn't plan to let Mom and Dad know?"
Qingran: "You agree?"
“We can’t keep this a secret forever,” Pei Xu said with a deep gaze. He didn’t want to hide it forever either.
Qingran deliberately teased him: "...Maybe we'll break up before we're even a lifetime apart."
The man frowned: "Are you deliberately trying to annoy me again?"
Qingran snorted: "You always have regrets on your mind, but when I say it, it just makes you angry?"
These are clearly two different things. He said those things because...
Pei Xuhui admitted defeat: "Okay, I was wrong before."
"I was wrong too, brother, don't be angry." Knowing when to stop, Qingran smiled and wrapped her arms around his waist.
Pei Xuhui couldn't get angry at his ingratiating manner, and he couldn't do anything about it.
"As for the timing and deadline for confessing, you're in charge of setting that."
Qingran: "A lifetime?"
Pei Xu replied: "..."
The person with their face tilted back had a pair of beautiful peach blossom eyes, with clear distinction between the pupils and the whites of their eyes, which looked like they were filled with twinkling stars under the light.
Pei Xu gently brushed his nose with his finger and replied, "I'm serious."
Qingran thought for a moment and said, "After the New Year next year?"
By then, he and Pei Xuhui will have already left this world, so it won't matter whether they confess or not.
Pei Xu, who knew nothing about this, replied, "Okay."
As soon as I finished speaking, I felt a chill on my hand; the ice cream had melted and dripped onto my fingers while I was talking.
The man frowned slightly, switched hands, and ate the nearly melted ice cream ball in a few bites. This way, the rest could be served in the cone, so he didn't have to rush to eat it.
She then lowered her eyelashes and teased, "Big eyes, small belly."
Qingran disagreed, reminding her, "Who said eating too much cold food will cause stomach aches? I was clearly listening to advice!"
Pei Xu smiled and said, "Why don't you listen to other things?"
The sticky feeling on his fingers was really unpleasant, so the man turned his head away, intending to quickly finish the rest of the ice cream and then go to the bathroom to wash his hands.
During the process, I only felt my hands, which had just been cold, suddenly become hot again.
The man glanced to the side as if sensing something, and saw the young man with long, black eyelashes drooping, obediently licking the melting ice cream on his hand like a kitten licking water.
This scene made Pei Xuhui's breath catch in his throat.
Almost without hesitation, the man grabbed the young man's cheek and kissed him fiercely.
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