Nan City possessed the gentle charm unique to the Jiangnan water towns. Shen Lin wandered around, wanting to buy some local specialties for his mother. Yunshui Town had started developing tourism in recent years, and Yunshui Street, with its scenic river, had been included in the renovations.
Shen Lin had grown up in the Shen family and had never been to this kind of water town before. As he looked around, a rainbow hung in the distant mountain mist. Yunshui Street didn’t have many tourists; most residents were locals. Walking along, he could hear people chatting in their local accents.
As he was about to walk back to his parking spot, his gaze was caught by a group of children. They were all only a few years old. At first, they were playing marbles, but then, for some reason, they started playing a chasing game. Watching children argue was actually quite interesting to him—everything was about going home to find mom and dad.
The child in the middle was the prettiest; he was being snatched back and forth, but didn’t dare to speak. Not long after, the child who had been knocked down earlier indeed called for a “grown-up.” Although he was called a grown-up, he was actually just a teenager who looked to be about the same age as Shen Lin.
Shen Lin passed by the center of the storm nonchalantly, overhearing the teenager’s threat about throwing the smaller child into the river. The pretty child didn’t cry by wailing loudly; instead, he sobbed with a pitiful grievance, tightly clutching his brother’s clothes. He looked afraid that if he let go, his brother would truly be thrown into the water.
Shen Lin stared at the boy’s eyes. The more he looked, the more he felt this little pitiful child was exceptionally well-behaved. It made his heart soften. The boy even tried to protect his brother. Shen Lin wondered why he didn’t have such an obedient younger brother. By now, the other children didn’t dare to say anything. They had made Youyou cry, and they knew they were in trouble.
“Youyou, I’m sorry. Don’t cry.” Li Bei regretted it immensely; he felt he shouldn’t have brought his older brother along. Among the kids on the street, Li Bei was the most influential because he had a brother in high school, and no one dared bully him. He had just wanted Youyou to play with him, not make him cry.
One child turned and ran to the Su house to tell on them. “Uncle Su, Uncle Qin, your Youyou is crying!”
The three men inside the house had been at a stalemate. Hearing the news, Yuanzi stood up from under the eaves, wagging his tail as he went out to find his little master. Youyou, coaxed by the group, sat on the stone post. He had already stopped crying, but his eyes were still a bit swollen. Children’s skin was delicate and tender; because he had rubbed his eyes with the back of his hand, his face looked alarmingly red. Yang Yang jumped anxiously, wishing he could chase everyone away so he could take his brother home and have Grandma apply some ointment.
“Youyou, Youyou!” “Woof! Woof! Woof!!!”
Both the humans and the dog arrived on the scene. Seeing his daddy, Youyou’s tears, which he had just held back, poured out again with a wail.
“Daddy’s here, daddy’s here.”
Qin Kun picked up his son and hurried home, followed by the group of children. Shen Lin had watched the whole show and was about to leave when he looked up and saw Assistant Zhang standing at the door of that pretty child’s house.
…?!
“Assistant Zhang?” “Second Young Master?!”
By the time Shen Lin followed Zhang Shun inside, the pretty child had already been soothed. He was nestled in his daddy’s arms, tilting his little face up for his daddy to wipe his tears.
“Li Dong, don’t scare your little brother like that in the future. You can’t just say things like ‘throw him in the river’ casually,” Su Siwen said, his expression very serious after understanding the situation. Youyou had personally seen a child from the street fall into the water once; of course, he was afraid. Li Dong, leading his younger brother, apologized profusely.
Su Siwen then looked at Yang Yang. “Yang Yang, you too. How could you headbutt Li Bei in the stomach? What if you hurt him?”
Yang Yang stood next to Li Bei. The two exchanged a glance. He huffed angrily, “He snatched my brother! I had to snatch him back!”
Li Bei retorted, “Youyou isn’t your brother! Why does he only get to play with you?!”
“He is my brother! We’ve even slept together!”
Li Bei had only wanted to play with Youyou, not cause trouble. But today he had made Youyou cry, and he was certain Youyou wouldn’t play with him anymore.
“Waaah—” Li Bei burst into loud sobs himself.
Youyou sat up in Qin Kun’s arms, rubbing his eyes in disbelief. Why is Brother Li Bei crying? The adults present found it both funny and exasperating. Shen Lin raised an eyebrow, looking at the pretty child sitting in the man’s arms. None of you are his brother; I am, he thought to himself.
But even Assistant Zhang couldn’t be sure if this child was really his biological brother yet. They had to wait for his father to arrive. Finally managing to coax the group of children away, only the family and the visitors remained in the house.
“Daddy,” Youyou rubbed his eyes with the back of his hand, already getting a bit sleepy. Qin Kun patted him gently, and within seconds, the little child was asleep.
Shen Lin watched him. The boy’s chin and cheeks were chubby, and his two little hands rested on his body, showing tiny dimples on the backs of his hands. Shen Lin swore this was the most beautiful child he had ever seen. Only his mother could give birth to such a beautiful younger brother.
“And this is…?” Qin Kun had settled Youyou to sleep and only then noticed the youth standing next to Zhang Shun.
The youth had black hair and dark eyes, possessing looks that anyone would praise. His eyes were fixed intently on the stairs.
“Uncle, hello. I’m Shen Lin.”
Once the name was spoken, Qin Kun understood his identity. He hadn’t expected Shen Lin to come with Zhang Shun. Besides surprise, it also alleviated some of his dissatisfaction. The Shen family had not only sent an assistant but also a young master; it seemed they weren’t disregarding Youyou. Shen Lin wasn’t yet aware that his decision to skip school and follow them to Nan City was being misinterpreted as a deliberate trip to find his brother. He was busy messaging his own older brother.
That night, Zhang Shun and Shen Lin stayed at a newly opened guesthouse in the town. Shen Lin hadn’t been involved in the search for his brother before and hadn’t expected the process to be so difficult. He really liked Youyou. The more he looked, the more he thought Youyou resembled their mother. But he couldn’t take Youyou back yet. They had to do a paternity test to confirm Youyou was a Shen family child. Sitting in the guesthouse courtyard, Shen Lin thought of his mother’s despondent state, and his heart ached. If only Youyou were his real brother. Such a beautiful, well-behaved little brother—his mother would definitely love him.
At the guesthouse entrance, Zhang Shun was on the phone, looking submissive. Shen Lin immediately guessed he was reporting to Shen Minyan. A new message came in. Shen Lin opened it; it was from his older brother, Shen Yan.
[Is it really him?]
Shen Lin took out his phone. He had secretly taken a photo of Youyou on the street that day and sent it over.
[Assistant Zhang and I both think he looks a lot like you.]
Shen Yan, who was filming in a studio city in faraway Beicheng in full costume, found his brother’s message somewhat amusing.
[How could he look like me? If anything, he should look like Dad.]
Shen Lin replied: [Don’t mention him. He doesn’t deserve it.]
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