In the blink of an eye, the weekend arrived. Qi Zhi woke up very early, changed into his formal attire, and, escorted by Lu Yuan, hobbled back to the Qi family residence with his crutches. His foot was nearly healed and no longer hurt unless he put weight on it, but to avoid aggravating the injury, he still used the crutches.
Qi Ran had already returned yesterday, bringing his sidekick, Zhang Dong, along with him.
Seeing Qi Zhi come home on crutches, the eldest brother of the Qi family, Qi Sen, hurriedly stepped forward: “What happened here? Are you hurt? Why didn’t you tell the family?”
Qi Sen was unlike Rong Li; he didn’t care much about blood relations. Compared to the overly ambitious Qi Ran, he preferred the gentle and unassuming Qi Zhi.
Afraid that Qi Zhi would say the wrong thing, Qi Ran hastily cut in to explain: “During the recent physical fitness test, he and I tripped and fell together.”
“You fell too?”
Rong Li’s initially indifferent expression instantly grew tense. She hurriedly checked Qi Ran’s legs, “It’s been so long, why didn’t you tell Mom? Quick, let Mom see if you’re hurt.”
Qi Ran supported Rong Li’s arm, his tone gentle: “Don’t worry, Mom, I’m fine. I just scraped a bit of skin, and I’ve already applied medicine.”
Saying this, he cast a glance at Qi Zhi, “Qi Zhi, on the other hand, probably ran too fast and accidentally tripped over me. He fell much harder than I did, and he’s still using crutches after half a month.”
Rong Li immediately glared at Qi Zhi, her eyebrows knitting fiercely, “Did you do it on purpose?”
It had to be intentional; otherwise, her precious Ranran wouldn’t keep getting hurt time and time again.
Hearing this, the father of the Qi family looked over as well, frowning as he questioned: “Did you do that on purpose?”
Although he had prepared himself mentally long ago, seeing the parents he had lived with since childhood show him a complete lack of trust still made Qi Zhi’s eyes well up with grievance. Yet, instead of crying, he laughed, “That’s right, I did it on purpose. I wanted nothing more than to trip him to death. I’m glad when he’s hurt, and I’m thrilled when he’s miserable.”
“…”
“…”
The guests had not arrived yet. At this moment, apart from the Qi family, there were only the butler and a few domestic helpers present, and everyone was momentarily stunned by his words.
How could the usually gentle and quiet Qi Zhi ever say something like this?
Qi Ran was also choked up by the response. He had prepared counter-strategies for whether Qi Zhi denied it, defended himself, or remained silent, but he had never imagined Qi Zhi would speak this way.
…
The Qi family’s villa was very grand, the courtyard was quite spacious, and there were enough helpers and cleaners available, making it more than adequate to host a substantial birthday party without needing to book a private venue at a hotel.
As the sun climbed higher, the invited guests began arriving one after another.
Father Qi took Qi Ran to greet guests at the entrance, while Qi Zhi silently stayed in a corner, leaning on his crutches.
The coming and going guests were all familiar faces. Seeing Qi Zhi on crutches, a few naturally asked about it, and Qi Ran took the opportunity to spread the story of how “Qi Zhi tried to trip him but fell instead.”
Some believed it, and the looks they directed at Qi Zhi became increasingly disdainful.
Some did not believe it, but anyone with a discerning eye could see the Qi family’s attitude. Not wanting to ask for trouble, they treated Qi Zhi as if he didn’t exist, revolving around Qi Ran to ask about this and that according to Father Qi’s wishes.
The contrast between the biological son and the adopted son was clear as day.
Qi Zhi had anticipated this kind of scene long ago, so it didn’t feel too unbearable.
If he behaved well today, people would bring up the past again, saying that if he hadn’t stolen everything, Qi Ran wouldn’t be so ignorant of high society.
If he behaved poorly, people would say: a fake is a fake; even being raised in luxury cannot change the lowliness in his bones.
No matter what, they could praise Qi Ran and smoothly introduce him into the social circle.
“It’s fine!”
Qi Zhi lowered his head to fiddle with his phone, flipping through it repeatedly but not knowing what to play.
At this time, Qi Zhennan and his parents arrived as well. The Qi family and the Qi family lived in the same neighborhood; although they had no business dealings, they visited each other quite often, which was why Qi Zhi and Qi Zhennan had played together since childhood.
Qi Zhennan carried a gift in each hand, first handing the larger one to Qi Ran: “Happy birthday, Xiao Ran.”
“Thank you, Brother Zhennan,” Qi Ran accepted the gift box personally, then pointed toward the corner where Qi Zhi was standing, “Qi Zhi is over there. Do you want to go over and talk to him, Brother Zhennan?”
“No need, you can keep the gift for him and give it to him later,” Qi Zhennan handed the smaller gift box to Qi Ran as well.
“Okay.”
Qi Ran smiled happily, accepting the gift box and handing it along with his own to Zhang Dong behind him, “Dongdong, help me take these to my room and put them away separately.”
This gesture also signified his high regard for Qi Zhennan.
Then he asked tentatively, “Brother Zhennan, do you want to hang out together after the banquet? They are all relatives of the Qi family. Mom wants me to get familiar with them, but I don’t know them well and feel a bit nervous. Can you accompany me?”
“Sure,” Qi Zhennan agreed, but his gaze involuntarily drifted toward Qi Zhi.
The Qi Zhi of the past was never short of people around him; whether sincere or hypocritical, everyone wanted to hang out with him. He always carried a smile, treating everyone with courtesy, never getting too close to anyone but never offending anyone either.
Now, he could only stay in a corner all by himself, with his head lowered, and no one knew what he was thinking.
For a split second, Qi Zhennan wanted to walk over and talk to him, to tell him that he hadn’t stopped liking him, but was merely constrained by other reasons and couldn’t be with him for the time being.
As long as he behaved well, he would go find him once he secured everything he deserved.
But Qi Zhennan held himself back.
The Qi family’s attitude was very clear they were obviously going to discard Qi Zhi, and today’s birthday banquet was the turning point. He could not afford to fail at this critical juncture.
Sensing the gaze on him, Qi Zhi looked up, only to see Qi Zhennan looking gently at Qi Ran, and Qi Ran returning the look with deep affection.
As their eyes locked, the atmosphere between them became indescribably ambiguous.
“This is the love you once treasured like a gem; how did it become so cheap?” Qi Zhi murmured to himself, his eyes reddening as they gradually filled with a mist of tears.
Before one wave could settle, another rose.
An untimely figure suddenly appeared at the Qi family’s entrance, dressed in simple and plain clothes, holding a carton of pure milk and a basket of eggs.
It was none other than Qi Zhi’s biological mother and Qi Ran’s adoptive mother Liu Guifen.
Following behind her was a fifteen- or sixteen-year-old girl dressed in a white dress, holding a black-boned chicken in her hands.
It was Liu Guifen’s youngest daughter Qi Weiwei.
“Mom, Weiwei,” Qi Ran was delighted to see them arrive, personally taking the eggs and milk from Liu Guifen’s hands, “Are these local eggs from back home? Did you bring them for me, Mom?”
“Of course I brought them for you. You work hard studying, you need to nourish yourself,” Liu Guifen beamed with joy, though her eyes were slightly red.
“And a black-boned chicken.”
Qi Weiwei lifted the chicken contained in a small burlap sack, “Grandmother raised it. Mom specifically caught it for you. It’s still alive, Brother can slaughter it to make soup.”
“Great, great, let’s make soup.”
Qi Ran handed the items to the helper himself, embracing his mother and sister as his eyes reddened.
Liu Guifen also had red eyes, constantly stroking Qi Ran’s head and calling him her precious youngest child, completely failing to remember that she had a biological son right there.
As this heartwarming drama unfolded, it made Qi Zhi look more and more like a clown by comparison.
The onlookers began to gossip. At first, they lowered their voices, but upon realizing that this was exactly the attitude the Qi family wanted, they threw away all caution.
“This scene, I feel embarrassed on Qi Zhi’s behalf.”
“What else can be done? Who told him not to be biological?”
“This is probably fate. What if he replaced him for twenty years? What isn’t his must be returned in the end.”
“This woman is strange too, isn’t she? No matter what, he’s her biological son, yet she doesn’t even spare him a glance.”
“Who can blame this on? I heard that since their identities were swapped back, Qi Zhi hasn’t returned over there even once, clearly disdaining them for being poor. Since they have no bond to begin with, instead of being disliked by him, she might as well dote more on Qi Ran; he can always help them out in the future.”
“True, and there’s a younger daughter. With Qi Ran bridging the gap, things won’t be too bad for her in the future.”
“This Qi Ran is quite kind, not disdaining his adoptive mother at all. Look at how red his eyes are; if he weren’t mindful of the occasion, he probably would have started crying already.”
“If you ask me, is it really necessary? It’s not like the Qi family forbids Qi Ran from acknowledging that side, what’s there to cry about?”
“I also feel it’s a bit of an act.”
“It should be said that it’s a bit too deliberate. The identity swap wasn’t Qi Zhi’s fault, is it necessary to target him like this?”
“Is twenty years of affection really worth nothing in the face of blood relations? I really don’t know what the Qi family is thinking.”
“…”
“…”
Seeing the direction of the gossip shift, Zhang Dong suddenly asked Liu Guifen in a voice pitched an octave higher: “Auntie, aren’t you going to see Qi Zhi? His leg is injured.”
He pointed toward Qi Zhi in the corner as he spoke.
Liu Guifen’s body stiffened. She looked cautiously toward the corner, but immediately averted her gaze: “He… he is different from Ranran. He is doing very well, Ranran is different.”
Different?
Qi Zhi laughed upon hearing this.
This was exactly the effect the Qi family wanted, wasn’t it?
How unlikable must a person be for even their own biological mother to be unwilling to get close to them?
The tears he had held back for so long finally escaped his eyes and rolled down, splashing onto the back of his hand, burning so hot it made Qi Zhi’s heart ache.
Pitter-patter
Just when Qi Zhi was feeling incredibly miserable, a round grape suddenly smacked against his face. Looking up, it was the Qi family’s young grandson, Qi Siyuan, Qi Sen’s son. He was five years old this year, right at his most mischievous and bratty stage.
“Bleeeh~~”
As the most pampered little darling in the household, Qi Siyuan had been thoroughly spoiled. He wasn’t afraid of Qi Zhi, his young uncle, at all, making funny faces while continuing to pelt grapes at him.
“Come hit me if you have the guts!”
“Cripple, a cripple on crutches.”
Pelting grapes wasn’t enough; Qi Siyuan then grabbed a dollop of blueberry cream cake and threw it, hitting Qi Zhi squarely on the face.
The birthday banquet hadn’t officially started yet, so this cake wasn’t Qi Ran’s birthday cake, but rather pre-meal snacks prepared for the children among the guests.
“Today is the cripple’s birthday too, hurry up and eat the cake.”
Qi Siyuan giggled, grabbing another piece of cake and throwing it over. This time, it smacked onto Qi Zhi’s clean formal suit.
Qi Zhi wiped his face haphazardly. With blueberry jam mixed with cream and tears, he knew exactly what he looked like right now without even looking.
Lifting his head to look at Qi Ran, their eyes met, and the latter hurriedly averted his gaze, though the successful smirk on his lips couldn’t be hidden in time.
Qi Siyuan was lawless, but he wouldn’t go so far as to throw cake on an occasion like this; he must have been instigated by Qi Ran, just to see him make a fool of himself.
Was trampling him underfoot not enough? Did he absolutely have to see him sink into the mud to be satisfied?
He didn’t want anything and was willing to cooperate with everything, so why wouldn’t Qi Ran leave him even a shred of final dignity?
Qi Zhi shook all over with rage. The emotions he had suppressed for a month finally broke down at this moment. With his face covered in filth, he cast aside his crutches and lunged toward Qi Siyuan.