Even though they eventually discovered that Xiaoyin was not acting like his usual self and dealt with Liu Shenmiao, everyone naturally assumed that Xiaoyin, just like their eldest brother, would be able to bounce back and regulate his emotions on his own.
They failed to realize that people are different. Who could have known that beneath Xiaoyin’s calm and nonchalant exterior, his heart had already withered away like deadwood?
When it came down to it, he was still just a child. How could anyone expect him to act like a grown-up?
Lu Shijian sighed and patted Lu Shiyin on the shoulder. “Besides checking on Xiaoyin, I have another reason for coming back this time. I plan to develop my career here in China and will not be returning abroad. Once Xiaoyin recovers and is discharged from the hospital, I will find a time to go back to Country F to wrap up my remaining affairs, and then I will return to start my own studio.”
Lu Shiyin was surprised. After all, Lu Shijian had gone abroad to study and live at a very young age, so logically he should have built his career over there. Yet now, he was abandoning everything abroad to start over from scratch at home.
“Is your teacher willing to let you go?”
“Not really, but I have already made up my mind. I will go back to visit him when I have time.”
“Alright. Since you have already decided, I will not say anything more.”
Lu Shiyin glanced down at his watch; it was almost time for dinner.
“I have a business dinner tonight, so I will not be eating with you two. You stay here and look after Xiaoyin.”
“Assistant Mo has already instructed Aunt Zhang to cook and bring dinner over. It is all suitable for Xiaoyin, and from now on, Aunt Zhang will deliver his meals.”
“Got it.”
After saying goodbye to Lu Shiyin, Lu Shiyin packed up his things and turned to leave. Suddenly, as if remembering something, he hesitated for a moment before walking back over to Lu Shijian. He pulled him into a hug and patted his back. “Welcome back.”
Lu Shijian froze for a second. With stiff arms, he raised his hands and awkwardly returned the embrace.
“Yeah, Big Brother.”
After Lu Shiyin left, the two of them had dinner. Lu Shiyin felt a bit bored; he had already slept far too much today.
“Assistant Mo, do you know where my phone is?”
Lu Shiyin had left Assistant Mo behind just in case Xiaoyin needed anything done.
“Young Master, your old phone is no longer usable, so the boss had me get you a new one. The contact information for your family members and your counselor has already been saved inside. You can reach out to them if you need anything.”
“The boss also transferred some money to you and linked his card. You can buy whatever you want directly without needing to ask him.”
Sitting nearby, Lu Shijian understood immediately. Xiaoyin’s old phone must have been bombarded with messages, and the backend was probably filled with abusive texts. There was no way they could give that phone back to Xiaoyin under those circumstances.
Lu Shiyin nodded to show he understood. He took the phone, which had no passcode set yet and opened right up.
He opened a certain green messaging app and found that Assistant Mo’s and his older brother’s contact information had already been saved. Remembering what Assistant Mo had just said about money, he curiously tapped in to check the balance.
Those digits seemed to glow, stinging Lu Shiyin’s eyes: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7. Seven zeros.
And that was not even counting his bank cards.
Instantly, Lu Shiyin’s aching back and sore stomach vanished.
Big Brother! You are my forever big brother!
Seeing the sparkling look in Lu Shiyin’s eyes, the second brother sitting nearby felt a sudden spike of annoyance. He had money too!
With that, he pulled his wallet out from his jacket pocket, drew out a bank card, and handed it to Lu Shiyin.
“Take it and spend it. Your second brother has money too. The PIN is six stars. Just use it however you want. It does not matter if you spend it all. If you take a liking to any cars or houses, just tell me and I will buy them for you.”
Seeing his second brother acting so wealthy and generous, Lu Shiyin’s eyes shone brightly as well. Still, he suppressed the smile at the corners of his mouth, taking the card while putting on a reluctant expression.
“Big Brother, this does not seem right. Spending all this money would make me such a big spender.”
“Spend it. The more you spend, the better.”
Fearing that Xiaoyin would feel too shy to spend the money, Lu Shiyin helped him download a shopping app and linked the bank card to it.
“Now, immediately spend one million on there and buy whatever you want.”
This was how wealthy second-generation heirs went shopping!
Lu Shiyin found himself caught between sweetness and distress. He had no idea how to spend an entire million.
He added shoes, clothes, watches, and electronic devices he liked to his shopping cart, but the total still fell short of a million. As he scrolled through the page wondering what else he could buy, he suddenly caught sight of a pair of ear studs. Set with a multifaceted blue sapphire in the center and surrounded by a ring of sparkling small diamonds, they gave off a mesmerizing, mysterious vibe.
He looked up at his second brother’s blue hair. Hmm, a perfect match.
Shifting his gaze to his second brother’s ears, he saw he was wearing small square studs. Great, he has pierced ears.
And so: add to cart, place order, done.
It happened to use up the remaining money.
Over on his side, Lu Shijian kept up a calm expression while playing on his phone, but inside he was wildly excited.
He took a screenshot of Lu Shiyin’s payment history and sent it to Lu Shiyin.
[My younger brother spent my money.]
[Did he not spend yours? How pitiful, you two are so distant.]
[Unlike me, he just spent one million right after I got back.]
After finishing his business dinner, Lu Shiyin saw the message Lu Shijian had sent and stared in silence.
He checked his text messages and mobile banking app. Not a single cent was missing—in fact, his balance seemed to have grown, and there were zero text alerts.
Lu Shiyin felt a slight pang of disappointment, but quickly regained his composure. Since his younger brother would not use his money, he would just buy things for him instead.
And so, he called his secretary over.
“Do you know what young people nowadays like?”
The secretary was astonished. This was the first time the CEO had ever asked her about something outside of work, and it was all because of someone else.
“Mr. Lu, is that person male or female? How old are they?”
“Male, twenty years old.”
Her younger brother was also twenty years old, making this much easier to answer.
“People their age all like limited-edition shoes, clothes, and things like that, as well as electronic devices like game consoles and computers. If he plays games, you can also top up his account for game currency, gear, or skins.”
Lu Shiyin pondered for a moment and instructed his secretary to contact the shopping mall and have all the latest seasonal clothing, shoes, and watches delivered to the manor according to his measurements, along with a few computers and game consoles as she had just mentioned.
Remembering a business dinner with several corporate executives where they mentioned that young people nowadays enjoyed blind boxes and collectible art toys—with one executive’s son sinking hundreds of thousands into them and wanting to buy more—he told his secretary to find a way to have a truckload of blind boxes delivered back so his younger brother could unbox them for fun.
Only after finishing all these tasks did Lu Shiyin feel satisfied.
He went back to work on his documents, determined to earn even more money to buy things for his younger brother.
Back at the hospital, Lu Shiyin was lying in bed playing a game when a notification suddenly popped up on his phone.
[Xiaoyin, you have been resting at home for several days now. Why are you still not back at school? We are all worried about you.]
Faced with this unfamiliar message, Lu Shiyin suddenly felt nervous.
Who was Lin Fu? We…? Could this be a classmate?
Lu Shiyin sat up, looked over at Lu Shijian who was reading a book on the sofa, and tentatively asked, “Second Brother, do you know who Lin Fu is? He just sent me a message.”
Of course, Lu Shiyin did not really expect Lu Shijian to know who this person was.
“Lin Fu? Oh, he is your roommate. He seems alright. What did he say?”
“Second Brother, how do you know he is my roommate?”
“To understand you, I looked through the records of everyone in your department. Plus, since you have amnesia, it never hurts for me to know a bit more.”
“He asked why I am not back at school yet. Can I tell him that I am in the hospital?”
“Go ahead.”
Getting a definite answer, Lu Shiyin replied to the message.
[I have been injured and am in the hospital these past few days, so I cannot return to school just yet. Sorry to have made you worry.]
Before long, a reply came back from the other end.
[Injured? How did you get hurt, and is it serious? Could it be because of those rumors? That is all utter nonsense. We all believe you.]