Ji Leyu didn’t expect to be caught by him, feeling awkward for a moment.
He hurriedly lowered his head, afraid to look at Lin Fei, and denied, “It’s nothing.”
Lin Fei didn’t press him further, casually sitting down beside him.
Ji Leyu was puzzled, “Why did you come here?”
At this moment, he felt fortunate that each training room was independent. Otherwise, if Lin Fei saw that punching bag, he might have realized what Ji Leyu was thinking.
“I came to bring you a robe. Since you weren’t in your room, I came up to check on you,” Lin Fei turned to him. “I didn’t expect you were hiding here to cry quietly.”
“I already said I wasn’t. You must have mistaken something!” Ji Leyu refused to admit.
Lin Fei chuckled and didn’t pursue the matter further.
He raised his hand and rubbed Ji Leyu’s head.
“Don’t be afraid,” he said, “Big brother will comfort you.”
In an instant, Ji Leyu was captivated by his words.
He looked at Lin Fei, dazed, quiet yet obedient, with a hint of innocent purity.
Lin Fei withdrew his hand from Ji Leyu’s head, but instead of pulling it back, he pulled Ji Leyu into an embrace.
He held the person in front of him, wrapping his arms around his shoulders, gently stroking his hair.
Ji Leyu felt his entire heart calming down.
All the restlessness, unease, sadness, and gloominess dissipated into the wind with each gentle touch.
He hugged Lin Fei’s waist tightly, leaning against him and softly calling out, “Brother.”
Affectionately, he nuzzled against Lin Fei’s chin and involuntarily tightened his grip around Lin Fei’s hand.
He looked up at Lin Fei, his eyes full of deep affection.
Lin Fei, seeing the dependency in his eyes, reached out and brushed his eyes.
He felt Ji Leyu rubbing against his palm, tickling him, like a spoiled little creature.
Lin Fei said, “I’ll talk to Jiang Jingshuo tomorrow and clarify things. From now on, I won’t associate with him anymore.”
Ji Leyu was startled, stopped his coquettish gesture, and asked in surprise, “Why?”
He almost instantly had the answer — Lin Fei guesses it, realizes his thoughts, so he chooses to back down..
Looking at Lin Fei, even though there was wind blowing, he didn’t feel cold.
Ah, he remembers now. Last night, he mentioned liking this robe and wanting to wear it another day. Lin Fei didn’t say anything then, but now he drapes it over him.
— He drapes his robe over him, so he doesn’t feel cold.
He is always like this, not saying many sweet words, but never sparing in showing his favoritism towards him.
Just like now, he discovered it, and wouldn’t blame him, only saying he would no longer associate with Jiang Jingshuo.
Ji Leyu felt soft and sour inside again, like fermenting wine, slightly astringent yet fragrant and long-lasting.
He shook his head and said to him, “That’s not what I meant. I didn’t intend for you to stop associating with him.”
Lin Fei found this statement quite believable.
If Ji Leyu wanted him to cut off contact with Jiang Jingshuo, all he needed to do was straightforwardly tell him so. If he didn’t say it, it meant he genuinely didn’t want that.
As for what he had done, the choice lay with Jiang Jingshuo. Jiang Jingshuo could choose not to take Ji Leyu seriously, or he could choose to become closer to him.
This depended on Jiang Jingshuo himself, not on Ji Leyu, and certainly not on him.
“I understand,” Lin Fei’s tone was gentle. “That’s why, at the beginning, I didn’t reject his approach.”
“Then why reject it now? Because of me?”
Lin Fei looked into his puzzled and saddened eyes, softly saying, “This is my own decision.”
He had thought Ji Leyu could accept Jiang Jingshuo, after all, he hadn’t forbidden their interaction when Jiang Jingshuo approached.
He smiled and talked with Jiang Jingshuo, introducing him to his friends.
He had thought Ji Leyu could adjust his mindset.
But Ji Leyu cried.
He cried alone, hiding it from him.
From that moment on, he and Jiang Jingshuo were destined not to be friends.
“It has nothing to do with you,” Lin Fei gently touched his face and said softly, “It’s just that I don’t think it’s necessary.”
“If you really didn’t think it was necessary, you wouldn’t have given him your WeChat.”
Ji Leyu held his hand, staring into his eyes, “You clearly wanted to be friends with him. For so many years, he’s the only one you’re willing to befriend. We both know that. You can’t cut off contact with him because of me; that’s not fair to you.”
“There’s nothing unfair about it,” Lin Fei said decisively. “I don’t like making friends in the first place, and Jiang Jingshuo is not synonymous with ‘friend.’ His presence doesn’t make me happy, and his absence doesn’t make me sad. He’s not important, so there’s nothing unfair about it.”
“But I don’t want that,” Ji Leyu insisted. “I’ve already decided to accept him, brother. I’ve made up my mind to accept him. I will accept him.”
Lin Fei shook his head. “There’s no need.”
He said, “There’s no need to wrong yourself. I’ve told you before, do what you like. Jiang Jingshuo is not important; you don’t need to wrong yourself for this.”
‘And you certainly don’t need to shed tears because of him.’
Ji Leyu didn’t expect him to say such words at this moment, and his heart ached even more intensely.
When did he ever wrong himself?
From childhood to adulthood, he has never wronged himself, and Lin Fei is even more reluctant to let him suffer.
The closer he got to Lin Fei, the more he liked him, and the more he liked him, the more he hoped that he would be the only one in Lin Fei’s eyes.
His possessiveness was like vines growing under the sun, thriving in the wind, entwining Lin Fei. He was afraid of hurting Lin Fei with his thorns, and he was also afraid that Lin Fei would break free from his vines.
But Lin Fei only gently soothed his unease, coaxing him again and again, saying, “Be good.”
Since he was a child, Ji Leyu’s favorite word was “good.” He loved hearing it from his parents, from Ji Yuxiao and Lin Luoqing, and even more so from Lin Fei.
As long as Lin Fei was willing to coax him and say this word to him, he could always obey him, always be well-behaved and sensible in everything he did.
He hugged Lin Fei tightly, resting his chin on his shoulder.
He said, “But brother, I want you to continue communicating with him according to your own thoughts and pace.”
“Everyone else has friends. My brother is so good; how can he not have any?”
“Those who approached you before were all people you didn’t like. If you didn’t like them, they weren’t worthy. Jiang Jingshuo isn’t worthy either, but you’re willing to talk to him, so he should cherish it and be your friend.”
He looked up, gazing at Lin Fei with gentle eyes and a sincere tone, “Go and be friends with him. If he ever does something to wrong you, I’ll help you teach him a lesson.”
Lin Fei: …
In that case, he thought Jiang Jingshuo’s life might be in danger.
Lin Fei felt a bit helpless, “If you really want me to be friends with him, no matter what he does in the future, you shouldn’t interfere. I’ll handle it myself.”
Ji Leyu became anxious, “How can that be okay?”
What if Jiang Jingshuo doesn’t appreciate it and hurts Lin Fei?!
Lin Fei raised his hand and patted his head, “Be good.”
Ji Leyu pouted, unwilling in his heart but unable to refuse when Lin Fei told him to be good.
He reluctantly replied, “Okay, I’ll be good.”
Seeing him agree, Lin Fei finally felt relieved.
He patted Ji Leyu’s head again as a reward, “You should still remember our childhood agreement, right? Besides fighting, nothing else is allowed.”
“I know,” Ji Leyu said sulkily.
He looked at Lin Fei and couldn’t help but hug him, nuzzling against him in a coquettish manner, “But you can’t care too much about him. Caring too much about someone makes it easy to get hurt. Just treat him as an ordinary friend, the most ordinary kind. That way, you won’t get hurt by him.”
Lin Fei: “…”
Is that really how his brother sees him?
Easily hurt by others?
Ji Leyu nodded, as if answering the question in his heart, “Because you’re really good, brother.”
“You are the best person in the world.” He tilted his head, resting it on Lin Fei’s shoulder, looking at him with sparkling eyes.
All the starlight seemed to be hidden in his eyes, pouring out onto Lin Fei with his gaze.
Gentle as water, bright as the moon.
Lin Fei looked down at him, “Then it’s settled. I can continue being friends with Jiang Jingshuo, but if you ever feel unhappy or unwilling, you must tell me.”
Ji Leyu nodded obediently and reminded him, “But you can’t care too much about him, and you can’t be too close to him.”
“Got it.” Lin Fei pinched his fair cheek, “I can only care most about you and be closest to you.”
Ji Leyu caught his hand, brought it to his lips, kissed it, and gently nuzzled it, cherishingly.
“Okay,” he said softly.
After comforting Ji Leyu, Lin Fei took him out of the training room.
Ji Leyu remembered that he had broken the punching bag in the training room and thought he should quickly replace it tomorrow; otherwise, it would be bad if Lin Fei found out.
He held Lin Fei’s hand as they went downstairs.
Lin Fei accompanied him to his bedroom. Ji Leyu saw the papers on his desk and noticed that the parts he had finished were already corrected by Lin Fei, with mistakes circled in pencil.
He remembered something and turned to Lin Fei warily, holding his test papers and saying, “You are not allowed to help Jiang Jingshuo correct his homework.”
Lin Fei: …
“He has a teacher,” Lin Fei said helplessly.
Ji Leyu snorted, “Well, I have a teacher too.”
Lin Fei nodded, “You know you have a teacher, but do you listen to them?”
Ji Leyu: … Fine, he indeed didn’t listen.
“I’m different,” Ji Leyu said proudly. “I have you.”
Lin Fei raised an eyebrow, thinking that he had certainly come back to life now.
Ji Leyu indeed felt alive again, vibrant and full of energy, completely forgetting about his earlier sadness and tears.
He quickly packed his schoolbag, wanting to go to Lin Fei’s room to finish the rest of his papers. “I’ll write them in your room.”
Lin Fei responded with an “mm,” having no objections.
— Ever since he moved in as a child and inadvertently caught a glimpse of Ji Leyu’s true nature, Ji Leyu’s bedroom had become almost like a decoration.
If one day he were willing to stay obediently in his own room and not go over to Lin Fei’s, then there would be a real problem.
He turned around and saw the cactus Ji Leyu had placed on the windowsill.
The cactus had grown quite large, lush and green, with its spines much harder now, no longer as soft as when he had given it to Ji Leyu.
He had taken great care of this plant and protected the pot well.
Following his gaze, Ji Leyu saw the cactus that Lin Fei had given him.
“Isn’t it beautiful?” Ji Leyu said proudly. “I take care of it very diligently every day.”
Lin Fei glanced at him without saying a word.
“But why hasn’t it bloomed yet?” Ji Leyu wondered. “Yours hasn’t bloomed either. We bought them from the same store, and Dad’s and Father’s have both bloomed. Why haven’t ours?”
“Just wait a bit longer,” Lin Fei said. He always had enough patience for many things, especially when it came to growing plants.
“Anyway, it’s already grown up, so there’s no rush.”
Once, when he gave this cactus to Ji Leyu, they were still very young, too young to live independently in this world.
At that time, he felt like a dandelion, drifting away with the slightest breeze, without a flowerpot, unable to take root, and forced to move in the direction of the wind.
So, he wanted a flowerpot, one where he could take root and not be affected by the wind.
He wanted to grow, to protect himself, and to be like a cactus, with hard spines and the ability to protect himself.
So, when he met Ji Leyu, he gave his peer a small cactus.
And now, they had both grown up, they had their own flowerpots, and they had the ability to protect themselves.
The rest, naturally, didn’t need to be rushed.
Not every cactus will bloom. It’s best if it does, but if it doesn’t, there’s no need to force it.
Of course, he hoped that Ji Leyu’s cactus would bloom.
He hoped that Ji Leyu’s life would be healthy and smooth, always free of worries, able to protect himself, and always stay in his own flowerpot.
Lin Fei turned to look at the person beside him, raising his hand to pat his head.
Ji Leyu looked at him in confusion, as if he didn’t understand why he was suddenly comforting him again.
Lin Fei smiled and gently pressed his head, saying nothing.
Seeing the smile on his face, Ji Leyu also started to smile.
His eyes curved, like flowers blooming in Lin Fei’s palm.
—He himself was the most dazzling and brilliant flower.
Author’s note:
Feifei: Finally smiling again.
Xiaoyu: My brother is so good; he spoils me so much!
PS: For the story of Feifei giving Xiaoyu a cactus when they were young, see chapters 22 and 43 of “I am the Father of the Villain.” In chapter 22, Feifei gave Xiaoyu the cactus, and in chapter 43, Feifei discovered that Xiaoyu didn’t like it and wanted to take it back. Xiaoyu hurriedly reassured him, saying he would take good care of it and give it to Feifei once it bloomed. Of course… the flower still didn’t bloom [cover face].