The Banquet
Outside, snow had begun to fall again, whispering softly.
The road to the Lu villa was inconvenient. The taxi refused to go any farther once it reached the halfway point up the mountain where the villa stood.
Lu Yuan didn’t insist. He still had enough strength to walk.
He made his way up the winding mountain road, his steps sinking unevenly into the snow. His white suit wasn’t made for a road like this, and no matter how careful he was, flecks of snow clung to his trouser legs.
The Lu villa was hosting a banquet, and luxury cars streamed along the mountain road. What made the walk difficult was that his right ear had been severely damaged during the years he was sold, leaving him almost completely deaf in it.
With only one good ear, he couldn’t tell which direction a sound came from, so he could only walk along the outer edge of the road, beside the cliff.
Several flashy sports cars, led by a bright yellow supercar, honked as they deliberately forced him toward the edge of the steep slope, then sped past so close their sides brushed his clothes.
Their tires sprayed black water across his ivory-white trousers, but he had nowhere to dodge.
Lu Yuan knew they were doing it on purpose.
They were all rich kids from Nan City, playmates who had grown up with Lu Yuning.
Lu Yuning was popular in their circle. Almost everyone liked the sweet, well-behaved younger brother.
When Lu Yuan was found and brought back, they had all worried about what would happen to Lu Yuning. A few of the more shameless ones had even urged their parents to take Lu Yuning in as their own little brother.
They had all taken Lu Yuning’s side. Naturally, ostracizing and ignoring Lu Yuan had become an unspoken rule of their circle.
Lu Yuan didn’t care, but he wasn’t entirely unfamiliar with them.
He vaguely remembered the leader of the rich kids, the one driving the bright yellow sports car. They had been playmates when they were little. He seemed to remember they had even hooked pinkies and promised to be best friends for life.
But how could anything from childhood be taken seriously?
He rested by the roadside as he walked, and his strength held out until he reached the Lu villa halfway up the mountain.
The sun was sinking, and dusk was falling. A line of luxury cars was already parked outside the villa. The house blazed with light, and the banquet seemed to have begun.
The hems of his trousers were soaked by melting snow. The fabric was thin, clinging coldly to his skin and quickly leaching the warmth from his body. His legs had grown stiff with cold. That discomfort was still within his ability to endure. What hurt more was the deep, instinctive fear of the cold, carved into him long ago.
Among the guests dressed to the nines, he looked wretched and out of place.
He had never cared about or feared the eyes of others.
He only wanted to be a better son to Lu Zhengqing and a better brother to Lu Wangbei.
Fortunately, the guards at the entrance recognized him and didn’t stop him. Under the guests’ curious, knowing looks, he walked into the Lu estate.
“Is that the child the Lus found later?”
“He really… really doesn’t look like a Lu.”
“He doesn’t look a bit like Uncle and Aunt. Ningning is much more like them. If you ask me, they must have made a mistake. How could he possibly be a Lu?”
The speaker raised his voice on that last complaint, as if deliberately saying it for Lu Yuan to hear.
Without turning around, Lu Yuan knew it was Lu Yuning’s biggest fan, the youngest of this generation of the Lu family and everyone’s darling: his cousin by blood.
From the very first second Lu Yuan had set foot in the Lu household, his cousin had picked at him relentlessly, trying to shield Lu Yuning beneath his wings like a mother hen. Most of Lu Yuan’s arguments in the Lu family, as it happened, had been with this cousin.
But this time, instead of arguing as he usually did, Lu Yuan walked on through the crowd without even looking back.
One benefit of being diagnosed with cancer was that Lu Yuan could finally accept the fact without flinching.
What they said was true, and if anything, they were being polite.
He really didn’t look like a member of the Lu family, not in appearance or in temperament.
The Lus were a family of scholars, famous throughout Nan City for their learning and refinement. Every one of the three Lu men was a gentleman, modest and warm as jade.
And he was the sharp, ill-fitting stone among their jade.
Even so, he wanted to be the stone that looked most like jade, to be a little closer to his father and brother.
It was his father’s birthday. His father and brother were busy, and neither was in the main hall.
In the crowded hall, surrounded by elegant clothes and glittering figures, he held his back straight. He looked a little bedraggled, but not the least bit timid. He ignored the curious eyes fixed on him. His steps faltered, and he hugged the backpack in his arms a little tighter, almost imperceptibly, his gaze fixed on the door leading to the villa at the back. He knew his father and brother were there.
He shouldn’t selfishly interrupt them when they were so busy.
They had told him many times that they hated it when he acted selfishly.
Lu Yuan wasn’t weak. From the moment he was diagnosed with cancer to the day he settled on conservative treatment, he had faced it all alone. But now, with his father and brother less than a hundred meters away after a year apart, the vulnerability he had forced himself to ignore since falling ill welled up inside him. His longing to see his family overwhelmed everything else.
Without hesitation, he walked around to the garden and headed straight for the villa at the back.
In less than a year, the Lu family’s garden had changed considerably.
The elm tree that had once dominated the garden, growing right beside the second floor, had been cut down. In its place was a bed of delicate roses. The ornamental pond beside them made the roses look even more vibrant. With the tall tree and its leaves no longer blocking the light, the second-floor windows let in much more sun. Through the half-drawn pale gray-blue velvet curtains, he could see an easel.
That had been his room.
Now it must have been turned into a studio, Lu Yuning’s studio.
Lu Yuan stopped for a moment, then stiffly rotated his ankle. His leg must have gone numb from poor circulation. That was probably why he’d felt unable to take another step.
“Second Brother.” A voice came from the other side of the garden, jolting Lu Yuan out of his thoughts.
His pale face tightened almost at once. He knew that voice too well.
Sure enough, Lu Yuning came running up behind him in a white suit and a matching cashmere coat, then hurried around to stand in front of him. His brown eyes, bright as a fawn’s, shone with delight as he panted and blocked Lu Yuan’s way. “Second Brother, you’re finally back! We’ve all been so worried about you.” His voice was clear and sweet, with a softness that easily won people over.
Lu Yuan drew his clothes closer around himself, his brows faintly furrowed. “Move.” His voice was listless.
He never hid his dislike of Lu Yuning.
He really was narrow-minded, unable to accept Lu Yuning, and he didn’t think there was anything wrong with that.
Not everyone could be friends. Just as so many people hated him, why couldn’t he hate Lu Yuning?
The hurt look on Lu Yuning’s face vanished in an instant. Lu Yuan’s coldness did nothing to deter him. If anything, as though afraid Lu Yuan would run away, he stepped forward and stood even more firmly in his way. “Second Brother, do you know how much we’ve missed you? This time, please don’t leave again, okay?”
Lu Yuan didn’t want to say another word to him. He turned to leave.
Lu Yuning hurried to grab his arm, but missed and lost his footing, sliding to one side.
Lu Yuan frowned and reached out to catch him. The ornamental pond was right beside them, and its winter water was icy. Lu Yuning was in poor health. If he fell in, he would surely be sick for days.
Lu Yuan might hate Lu Yuning, but he would never stoop to something like that.
But he was too late.
With a splash, Lu Yuning’s upper body plunged into the water.
Lu Yuan went down into the icy pond with him. The freezing water made him shudder, and before he could think, his backpack fell in too.
Lu Yuan ignored Lu Yuning, who had fallen into the water, scrambled up, and retrieved the backpack. He unzipped it and took out the painting, checking that it was still safe inside its wrapping.
Gongbi paintings couldn’t get wet, but fortunately the wrapping had kept the painting inside dry.
He had just breathed a sigh of relief.
“Lu Yuan!” A furious voice demanded an explanation. He couldn’t tell which direction it came from. Glancing from side to side, flustered and ridiculous, he finally spotted his father striding angrily toward him from the villa entrance.
Lu Yuan froze.
A few steps away, Lu Zhengqing’s chest heaved as he strode toward them, his sharp eyes fixed on Lu Yuan. “What did you just do?”
Lu Wangbei, the handsome young man at his father’s side, had lost his usual composure. He didn’t care about the winter-cold water. He stepped into the pond and helped the bedraggled Lu Yuning up.
As he passed Lu Yuan, the brief, cold glance he gave him made Lu Yuan feel as though he’d been plunged into an ice cellar.
The word “Brother” died on Lu Yuan’s lips before he could say it.
“Brother, I’m fine.” Held in his brother’s arms, Lu Yuning turned his deathly pale face toward Lu Wangbei and gave him a reassuring smile. “Don’t worry.” He was considerate and well-behaved.
Lu Wangbei carefully lifted Lu Yuning out of the icy water and set him down beside the pond. His voice was cold, but his concern was impossible to hide. “Your heart surgery is next week. What if you get sick?” Before he had even finished speaking, he had already draped his still-warm coat over Lu Yuning’s shoulders.
The oversized cashmere coat made Lu Yuning look especially small. He wrapped it around himself and smiled impishly. “You’ll take good care of me, won’t you, Brother?” His playful words eased the deep furrow in Lu Wangbei’s brow. How could he not feel for such a sweet, considerate younger brother?
Lu Yuan looked away, expressionless. Protecting the bundle in his arms, he climbed out of the pond, stiff and almost clumsy.
Cold water streamed from his soaked clothes and dripped onto the ground. A gust of wind swept away the last of his warmth.
Under Lu Zhengqing’s dark suit, his shirt rose and fell with his heaving chest. The calm that usually marked his face had given way to fury, veins standing out. He took a long stride forward, his broad back, a father’s back, almost blotting Lu Yuan from view.
Lu Yuan looked at Lu Zhengqing with dark eyes. His bloodless lips moved almost imperceptibly. He hadn’t even had time to say “Father.”
The next instant, a sharp slap rang out.
Lu Yuan’s head jerked to the side. He stumbled, and the thin boy had to catch himself against the railing to stay upright. A red mark rose almost immediately on his pale cheek. The blue diamond cufflink had cut him, and fine threads of blood quickly welled from the wound, stark against his snow-white skin.
There was no doubt about it. The wound was serious.
Lu Zhengqing hadn’t expected a slap delivered in anger to have such an effect. His body instinctively moved to step toward Lu Yuan, but he only shifted almost imperceptibly before forcing himself to hold back and stay where he was. His gaze fell on Lu Yuan’s wound as he ordered stiffly, “Apologize to Yuning!”