Lin Shen didn’t expect Lu Chengxuan to say that—he was totally caught off guard.
“Sincerity?”
Lu Chengxuan didn’t reply. He just stared at him in silence, like he was waiting for Lin Shen to prove just how sincere he really was.
While Lin Shen was completely distracted and not paying attention to the board, Lin Wangye sneakily cheated, nudging his red plane—already the closest to Lin Shen’s yellow one—a few spaces forward.
Lin Shen didn’t notice a thing. He stared at Lu Chengxuan in disbelief, blurting out, “Dude, we’re brothers and you’re hitting me with this crap?!”
“Aren’t I brothers with those two as well?”
Lu Chengxuan tilted his head toward Lin Wangye and Shi Yuan, then looked back at Lin Shen. “If either of them asked me for help, would I just say yes without a good reason?”
Always the most street-smart, Lin Wangye instantly jumped in with a dramatic shout.
“I’m sincere! Don’t help him—help me! Brother Lu, Brother Lu, Brother Lu!”
Lu Chengxuan didn’t say anything right away. He just looked at Lin Shen and casually raised an eyebrow. There was a hint of a smirk tugging at his lips.
Seeing this, Lin Wangye made one last attempt to win him over. After all, Lu Chengxuan had four planes on the board—the most out of anyone. If he wanted to, he could easily gang up on Lin Shen and crash all his planes straight back to base.
But before he could open his mouth, he felt a gentle pinch on his fingers under the table.
He turned to see Shi Yuan giving him a look—clearly telling him to shut up.
So he zipped it and settled in to watch the drama unfold.
Lin Shen looked down at Lu Chengxuan with his arms crossed. “So what do you want?”
“Show me some sincerity,” Lu Chengxuan said.
Their eyes clashed in the air like a spark off flint. Just a second ago, Lin Wangye had been picking up on some faint tension between them—now, all he could smell was gunpowder.
Lin Shen wasn’t the type to back down. Getting him to say something nice was harder than pulling teeth.
Especially in front of Lu Chengxuan.
His rebellious streak exploded on the spot. He turned to the fridge, grabbed a Coke, flopped down in front of the mahjong table, and waved a hand like a general going to war: “Come at me! I’m going one against three today!”
Lin Wangye and Shi Yuan exchanged a look—both clearly confused by how they’d ended up here.
The game picked up again, and with Shi Yuan lending a hand, things quickly started going downhill for Lin Shen. Lu Chengxuan stayed true to form—completely neutral. Even though he had four planes on the board, he acted like he wasn’t even part of the game.
The longer Lin Shen played, the more frustrated he got.
And it wasn’t even because the couple was ganging up on him—what really drove him nuts was that every time the dice rolled just right, giving Lu Chengxuan the perfect number to slam into either the red or blue plane, he would purposely avoid the hit and pick some other route instead, dodging the fight altogether.
Basically, he was trying to keep the peace with everyone.
And with that kind of attitude, of course Lin Wangye and Shi Yuan weren’t going to pick a fight with him either.
Every time, they would steer clear of the green planes and just focus on attacking Lin Shen.
Pretty soon, Lin Shen’s rage shifted from red and blue to green. He figured with so many green pieces on the board, he was bound to hit one eventually.
But nope—he just couldn’t touch a single one of Lu Chengxuan’s planes.
It wasn’t like the green planes were actively avoiding him either. They were always parked just six spaces away—not too close, not too far. Close enough to taunt him, but never close enough to strike.
Round after round passed, and Lin Shen finally tossed out the idea that it was all coincidence.
There was no way this was just random luck.
This had to be intentional!
Who the hell plays a board game like this—calculating every move just to drive someone up the wall?!
With planes constantly getting sent back to base and the fight growing more intense, the game turned into a full-on tug of war. It dragged on forever.
Luckily, even though Lin Shen was under siege from both sides, he had good luck on his side. Every time one of his planes got knocked back to base, he’d roll a six right after and send it back out again.
But this had already turned into a fight of four planes versus eight.
And when the numbers pile up like that, luck just isn’t enough.
No matter how good his rolls were, he only had so many pieces to play with. There was no way to turn things around.
All this time, if he had just said one nice thing—just one soft word—Lu Chengxuan, with his overwhelming advantage, might’ve jumped in to help.
But Lin Shen? He was born stubborn, through and through.
Even when Lu Chengxuan’s four green planes crossed the finish line first and won the game, Lin Shen still refused to back down. He kept going, head-to-head with Lin Wangye and Shi Yuan.
But no matter how tough you are, two fists can’t take on four hands. He didn’t stand a chance.
Once Lin Wangye’s last two planes started getting close to the finish, he stopped focusing on attacks and went all in on speed. Lin Shen tried to chase him down, but he couldn’t let all his planes rush ahead of Shi Yuan’s either.
With Shi Yuan running cover for him, Lin Wangye ended up as the second to win the game.
What followed was a one-on-one between the blue and yellow planes, with Shi Yuan narrowly pulling off the win.
Truly, nothing kills time better than this game.
By the time it was finally over, half the day had already flown by.
Just looking at Lu Chengxuan made Lin Shen fume, but as much as he wanted to complain, he also knew how childish that would be. So he simply ignored him and turned to Lin Wangye instead, ready to settle the score.
Lin Wangye took off running, dodging as he went. Lin Shen, who still wasn’t fully back on his feet, stubbornly insisted on giving chase. The two of them laughed and shouted as they ran circles around the suite, just messing around.
It was just a game—no one was actually mad.
They’d been playing for so long that everyone was wiped out. Lunch, arranged by Lu Chengxuan, was delivered straight to the suite. Lin Shen, the poster child for laziness, was yawning non-stop the minute his belly was full and headed off to take a long nap.
Lin Wangye, still itching to see more of the sights, grabbed Shi Yuan and headed out right after lunch.
The natural scenery around Mount Yingtian was famous for a reason—especially in winter, with the snow making everything look like a dream. The young couple, drunk on love, held hands openly and stuck together like glue, walking around the entire day and only coming back after dark.
The next morning, the four of them slept in and then took a car back to Ningchang.
Lin Wangye was reluctant to part with Shi Yuan, but Shi Yuan had to go back to work at the pottery studio. He’d taken four days off for the trip and now had to work every single day until school reopened after winter break.
Lin Wangye had even asked if they were hiring part-timers, but the shop didn’t need extra hands. If he hung around, he’d only be a distraction for Shi Yuan—and probably annoy the boss too—so he had no choice but to give up.
Since the person he liked had to work, Lin Wangye figured it was time for him to start focusing on his own stuff, too.
When the DNA test results came out, Lin Qianqian happened to be performing out of town, so the report was still sitting at the hospital.
Lin Wangye went to the hospital himself and got the two DNA reports from Dr. Bai.
The sheets were filled top to bottom with tables, codes, and a bunch of technical medical terms he couldn’t make heads or tails of.
But the bold, black text at the end—the analysis and conclusion—he could read just fine.
Analysis Summary:
Based on the test results, the alleles at genetic loci XXXXX, XXXXX, XXXXX… cannot be traced back to the genetic profile of XXXX.
Conclusion:
According to the available data and DNA analysis, there is no biological relationship between the tested samples.
The numbers on the two reports were different, but the conclusion was the same.
The evidence was clear and undeniable. Lin Wangye, who had already prepared himself mentally for this, read through the entire thing without a word, then silently tore the report into pieces and tossed it into the trash can in the hospital hallway.
“Thank you for helping me.”
He gave a polite bow.
Working in the genetics department of the reproductive medicine wing, Dr. Bai had seen it all—parents going ballistic after finding out the child they’d raised for years wasn’t biologically theirs, or long-lost family members reuniting in tears after years of separation.
But standing calmly in front of a report denying all blood ties? That was still rare—especially for someone this young.
Dr. Bai was curious, but didn’t pry. He responded politely, “No need to thank me, it was nothing.”
Lin Wangye thought for a second, then asked, “So does this result mean there’s absolutely no relation at all? Like, not even distant relatives?”
“Biologically speaking, yes,” Dr. Bai replied, hands tucked in his coat pockets. He tried to put it in simple terms: “The test checks for similarities in DNA between the samples. If the match rate crosses a certain threshold, it indicates a biological relationship. If there are no matching segments, then there’s no relation. Of course, we can’t rule out the possibility of some shared ancestry way, way back—but at the very least, nothing within five generations.”
Hearing that, Lin Wangye let out a soft sigh.
“Got it. Sister Qianqian asked me to tell you she’s still working out of town, and it’ll be a few more days before she’s back. She said she’ll treat you to a meal then.”
“It’s no big deal,” Dr. Bai said with a smile, his eyes crinkling slightly. “So Lin Qianqian’s your sister? That makes you Lin Shen?”
He was remembering an old photo from Qianqian’s Moments—one of her and her younger brother. But something about this kid in front of him didn’t quite match.
Lin Wangye lifted his gaze and blinked, and then it hit him—put together, everything that had happened so far could totally lead to the wrong idea. He quickly shook his head and explained.
“No, no—I’m not Lin Shen. My name’s Lin Wangye.”
Even after saying that, he felt like it wasn’t enough, so he added, “They’re real siblings. I’ve got nothing to do with it! I’m Lin Shen’s classmate, that’s how I met his sister. I grew up in a welfare home and thought I might’ve found my real family, so Sister Qianqian helped me get in touch with you for the test!”
As it turns out, some things only get messier the more you try to explain them.
If he’d just stopped at the first line, Dr. Bai might not have thought much of it. But everything he said afterward? It sounded way too much like ‘I swear I’m not lying’—the kind of over-explaining that only makes things sound more suspicious.
Sure enough, Dr. Bai’s eyes—visible above the mask—narrowed slightly, a shadow flickering in his gaze.
He remembered hearing that the Lin family had only one pair of siblings.
So far, the whole situation was turning out way more complicated than he’d imagined. Damn—these rich families really were a mess.
It hit Lin Wangye a beat too late that the more he tried to explain, the worse it sounded. Now he was freaking out, worried that people might start thinking he was some hidden illegitimate child of the Lin family, dragging Lin Qianqian into unnecessary drama. He scratched his head like crazy, trying to figure out how to clear things up.
People who work in hospitals have seen it all—probably more than anyone else.
Dr. Bai quickly pieced everything together just by watching the boy’s reactions and thinking back to what he’d said earlier. He opened his mouth and said, “So what you mean is, it’s just a coincidence that your last name is Lin, right?”
Lin Wangye nodded like his life depended on it. “Yes, yes, exactly!”
Dr. Bai smiled. “No need to panic. As long as you explain it clearly, it’s all good.”
Hearing that, Lin Wangye finally let out a breath of relief. He was just about to say goodbye and leave when Dr. Bai turned and walked into the office next door. When he came back out, he was holding a few brown paper bags.
“Miss Lin dropped these off before she left Ningchang,” Dr. Bai said, handing the bags to him. “She asked me to give them to you when you came by to pick up the report.”
Lin Wangye took the bags and peeked inside. There were a few seasonal clothes and shoes.
And some random snacks, too.
It was the coldest time of year in Ningchang.
Lin Qianqian must’ve been worried he didn’t have enough warm clothes, so she went out and picked some up for him. Besides the down jacket, there were also a few layers for wearing underneath.
His nose stung. He held the bags a little tighter.
“Thank you.”
Dr. Bai smiled kindly. “No need. Well then, see you around? I’ve got to get back to my shift.”
“Oh right, one last thing,” Lin Wangye said, chasing after him, “Could you tell me where the hematology ward is? My little sister just got transferred here.”
Funny how things worked out—Xu Suihe’s transfer had landed her in this exact hospital.
Ningchang Central People’s Hospital was massive, and it was Wangye’s first time here. The moment he walked in and saw all the different buildings, he was completely lost.
Dr. Bai glanced out the window, then pointed. “Hematology is in another wing—it’s over that way.”
“Okay, thank you so much.”
Lin Wangye bowed again, grabbed the bags, and took off running without even looking back.
Dr. Bai watched him disappear down the hallway, then turned and walked back through the corridor into his office. He took out his phone and opened his messaging app.
[Dr. Bai, my little brother just asked for your contact info. He should be on his way to you now.]
[Please make sure you give him the stuff I left with you! ovo!]
Sure enough, there was an unread message from Lin Qianqian—he’d just been too busy earlier to notice it.
After replying, Dr. Bai suddenly remembered something. He opened her Moments feed and started scrolling down until he found the photo he’d seen before.
In the picture, besides Lin Qianqian, there was a boy with tea-colored hair. The two of them had similar eyebrows and features—definitely looked like real siblings at a glance.
Thinking back to the hair color in the two samples from the DNA test… and comparing it to the boy he saw today…
Dr. Bai’s eyes darkened slightly as he fell into thought.
Under what kind of circumstances would someone use a peer’s hair for a paternity test?
Hello, everyone ヾ(＾∇＾). I hope you enjoyed the story! If you’re feeling generous, please buy me a coffee, share/comment on my translated works! Check out the link below for early chapters. (๑>ᴗ<๑)
