flowers in water
"Brother Xu, I've really troubled you during this period. You even sent us home after we were discharged from the hospital. It's really..."
You Yi was still on crutches and could only watch the bodyguards move things. He sincerely thanked Xu Zhiyuan. Beside him, Xu Zhiyuan also rolled up his shirt sleeves and just helped a little.
You's parents were busy in the kitchen, insisting on having Xu Zhiyuan over for dinner. There were several boxes in the living room, and in the kitchen waste bin were a lot of seafood that even You Yi couldn't eat. They were bought specifically for Xu Zhiyuan and his brother Jin Nan.
But unfortunately, Jinnan didn't come.
"Xiao Nan has to go back to school to give a speech today, and he has a meeting afterwards," Xu Zhiyuan said. "It's the same if I'm here on his behalf."
"Speech?" You's mother was surprised. "Could it be that Xiaonan hasn't graduated yet?"
"They've graduated, and it's been so many years." You Yi chuckled, "Their family donated a building to the school, and they're going to hold a dedication ceremony after it's renovated."
Father You bit his chopsticks and nodded repeatedly: "You two brothers are great. You made money and didn't forget to give back to society. That's great."
You Yi was helpless, but Xu Zhiyuan was calm. He asked You's father if there were any public projects in Liancheng that needed donations.
"How is the Liancheng Orphanage?"
"The Liancheng Orphanage...it's a bit difficult there. Although Liancheng isn't big, due to local customs, many children are sent there at birth, especially little girls. It's very difficult to adopt them out there, and we rely entirely on government funding."
"In the past two years, it's been quite a bit. Lifang, who does square dancing, used to do charity work there. She said that in recent years, a kind-hearted boss has donated millions every year. Those children are well fed and well clothed."
Xu Zhiyuan nodded in relief. You Yi knew the inside story and wouldn't tell anyone about the Jin family's private affairs. After dinner, Xu Zhiyuan wanted to help wash the dishes, but You's father kicked him out along with You Yi: "I've been washing dishes for decades, it's become my profession. You two shouldn't steal my job."
You Yi had no choice but to take Xu Zhiyuan to visit the new house.
Xu Zhiyuan helped him rent the house, negotiating directly with the real estate agent, and all the formalities went through very quickly. He offered a 20% discount from the market price, a nice touch considering his salary.
Xu Zhiyuan has always done things in this way, being thoughtful and considerate, and never embarrassing anyone.
You Yi was very grateful, but at the same time he was a little worried about what he had observed during the days in the hospital.
"Is Xiaonan angry with you?" Youyi opened the balcony door and sat on a small stool with his plaster leg raised.
The warm winter sun shone on the two of them. Xu Zhiyuan had a layer of cashmere underneath his shirt, which was a size smaller.
He stole it from Jinnan's closet.
"He's grown up and has his own ideas," Xu Zhiyuan said. "I can't restrict him too much."
You Yi let out a long breath.
"You're always like this. Back in high school, you were always hiding behind the scenes, always asking me to be the face of everything. So what if I just wanted him to know how good you are? You're not the kind of person who'd ask for anything in return."
"Jinnan is meticulous and has many ideas," Xu Zhiyuan said. "I do too much, which makes him feel unbalanced."
You Yi was even more confused: "You are helping him, why would he be unbalanced?"
Xu Zhiyuan chuckled: "Why do you think I can help him?"
Youyi shook his head.
"Because I took what was rightfully his, I rode his ladder to heaven. I wasn't doing him a favor, Ayi. I was repaying him."
After listening to him, You Yi stared into the distance for a long time and shook his head: "I don't think Xiao Nan thinks so."
Xu Zhiyuan's heart moved slightly.
"He mentioned you to me many times, he said..."
"What did you say?" Xu Zhiyuan couldn't help but ask.
You Yi chuckled: "Are you still this anxious?"
Xu Zhiyuan also laughed.
Inside the room, the music of "Flower in Water" flowed from the speakers, and the deep cello gradually brought Xu Zhiyuan back to his senses. Following You Yi's words, Xu Zhiyuan thought of the person he dared not think about.
"Every time Xiaonan mentions you, his eyes light up. He says you're amazing, knowledgeable, and kind."
No, Xu Zhiyuan murmured in his heart. No, he wasn't great, it's just that he entered the ivory tower earlier, it's just that he was more favored. If it was Jin Nan who grew up with Uncle Jin, he wouldn't be worse than him.
"Xiao Nan said he was very scared when he first arrived. He said he was worse than a savage in this steel jungle, and you taught him everything. The first time he took the subway, went to the mall, and rode in a car, it was all with you."
Those are little things, very small things, just a piece of cake.
"Xiao Nan always mentions you. He'll memorize the words you wrote on the honor roll when he sees them. He said he wants to catch up with you and can't let you fall too far behind."
"Brother Xu, Xiaonan probably likes you."
"Like it?" Xu Zhiyuan heard himself ask.
You Yi nodded: "You are his eldest brother. If you become estranged from him, he will have no relatives in the world."
Big brother.
Xu Zhiyuan held the word in his mouth, savoring it in a trance.
Jinnan treats him as an elder brother, but he doesn't want to be a brother. He is incompetent and probably doesn't deserve Jinnan's love that has nothing to do with romance.
"Bring Xiaonan with you next time," You Yi said. "My mother likes Xiaonan very much. We will cook Liancheng dishes for him, and he will definitely like them."
"good."
Xu Zhiyuan's smile was still gentle.
*
Lido No. 1 Middle School, new school building donation and completion ceremony.
Jinnan, wrapped up in his down jacket, took the stage, stood in the open, cold breeze, and spoke with the microphone. While fighting the microphone's howling, he told jokes that would make 17 or 18-year-olds laugh.
Xu Zhiyuan stood in the crowd, his ordinary coat making him disappear among the faculty and staff. Like all the other children, his eyes were drawn to the person on the stage.
Returning home at the age of fifteen, Jin Nanxin spent the first three years of his life here, with Xu Zhiyuan rarely participating.
He was exactly three years older than Jinnan. He brought Jinnan from Liancheng to Lido. One third of the new semester had passed. There were new classes and new classmates. Xu Zhiyuan was a graduate and could not help at all.
He asked Youyi, who was one grade younger than him, to often deliver things to Jinnan's class, sometimes lunch, sometimes stationery, and sometimes limited edition sneakers bought from somewhere.
Youyi's family was not well-off, and he was studying away from home alone, so Jinnan knew who had sent the gift at once.
But he did not thank Xu Zhiyuan in person.
Xu Zhiyuan thought that Jinnan always ignored his little moves to gain peace, but thanks to Youyi, he found out that Jinnan would show off outside.
Show off what a good brother he is.
Today, Jinnan no longer has the thorns all over his body that he had when he first came to Lido. He has a wider view of the world and has become another legend of Lido No. 1 Middle School after Xu Zhiyuan.
In the first fifteen years, the poor educational environment and the pressure of being single at a young age left Jin Nan with no time to study. His poor grades initially made Jin Licheng give up the idea of training him as his successor.
At the beginning, Xu Zhiyuan also thought about giving up on him. As long as he was healthy and happy, Xu Zhiyuan could ensure that he would live a carefree life.
But they were all wrong.
Jinnan's self-esteem is much stronger than they imagined.
No one was optimistic about him, so he fought tooth and nail to grow. In his freshman year, he went from the bottom of the class to the middle, in his sophomore year, he was in the top 100. By his junior year, Jin Nan's grades were good enough to put him on the same page as the likes of "Xu Zhiyuan."
The 18-year-old Jin Nan, holding up her admission letter from Lido University, said to him, "Xu Zhiyuan, do you think I can't do it? Don't underestimate me. Even if I'm a few years behind you, I can still catch up with you."
"Just wait and see!"
At that time, Xu Zhiyuan began to regret that he had given up his plan to study abroad for his undergraduate studies and stayed in China for Jinnan.
If he and Jin Nan had not had so much contact, if he had not been so self-righteous as to want to "save" Jin Nan, his feelings probably would not have deteriorated.
Jinnan can grow on his own. He only needs a little sunshine and rain. He is not the grass protected by Xu Zhiyuan, but another big tree.
By the time Xu Zhiyuan noticed something was going on, he couldn't move his eyes away. He was watching, watching all the time, even before Jinnan started watching him. Xu Zhiyuan had already been keeping an eye on Jinnan.
Even during the years when he studied abroad, Xu Zhiyuan called Jinnan every week, memorized Jinnan's class schedule, adjusted his schedule, and took one more look at Jinnan in the name of giving lectures.
Nan is growing up now, becoming taller, more outspoken and freer than yesterday.
Xu Zhiyuan loved him more than yesterday.
Jinnan stood on the stage, shining brighter than any other star, and everyone applauded him. Such a brilliant and colorful life should have belonged to him long ago.
Students discussed his name, teachers discussed his family background, and everyone focused on his handsome and elegant smile. No one, not even Xu Zhiyuan, could clearly understand how his life had unfolded.
What was Jinnan like before he was fifteen? How could he reject his original background and comfortable life without hesitation, and how could he choose to leave Xu Zhiyuan without hesitation?
Xu Zhiyuan knew he wasn't doing it for money. He was doing it for stability, to stop being bullied, and for his "family."
Jinnan never called him brother. Since he was fifteen years old, Jinnan called him by his full name. Only when he needed to show intimacy in front of outsiders would he call him "Zhiyuan" once or twice.
Is he Jinnan's family member?
Any further would be the ruin of the family.
Xu Zhiyuan thought deeply. He was willing to stop here before, but the appearance of Ke Zhuo disrupted all Xu Zhiyuan's thoughts.
Jinnan has grown up. If he needs a confidant to accompany him for a while, why can't that person be Xu Zhiyuan?
Things between them couldn't get any worse than they already were.
Xu Zhiyuan would learn everything for him, would keep his distance, and would step back out of the circle and become a "family member" again when he needed him.
Since Jinnan chose to play games himself, why couldn't his playmate be Xu Zhiyuan?
Jin Nan might be afraid of him now, or even hate him for monopolizing everything, but judging from the pen, Jin Nan does not resist his touch.
Xu Zhiyuan was confident that he was better than any of the fleeting romances Jinnan could find.
After his speech, Jin Nan stepped down from the stage and spotted Xu Zhiyuan in the crowd. He was very discreet, silently watching him, waiting for him to approach. Jin Nan didn't say anything, but greeted the staff and quietly left.
"Xu Zhiyuan."
Xu Zhiyuan nodded and walked beside him.
"Where is the bodyguard?" Jin Nan asked.
"At the gate, the school won't let me in," Xu Zhiyuan said. "I'm wearing a tracker."
After the activity ended, the students returned to the classroom in groups of three or four. Jinnan secretly observed the backs of the students under the shade of the trees and thought of the past.
He stayed here for three years. Because of Xu Zhiyuan, he was taken care of a lot. No one bullied him. The teachers and classmates treated him kindly. He could always get a lot of money from his extra-dimensional meal card.
Having enough food is no longer a luxury, he even dares to treat himself to a big chicken drumstick every day.
Xu Zhiyuan knew him very well, and that was meticulous care. What did he do to Xu Zhiyuan?
"Xu Zhiyuan," Jinnan called him. "You donated the building yourself, why don't you come up on stage?"
"What?"
Xu Zhiyuan didn't look like he was pretending to be stupid. Jinnan looked at his profile and it seemed that he was also stupid because of the sun.
"You're just being nice to me, but you don't want the flowers and applause. What do you want?"
Because Xu Zhiyuan enjoyed it.
But he wouldn't say that. He would just tell Jinnan: "Happy birthday to you."
From then on, Xu Zhiyuan disappeared, and Jinnan embarked on the smooth path that belonged to him.
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