Chapter 78: Sticky Butterfly
“Are you angry?”
“Yes.”
“…”
“But I’m angry at myself, not you.”
Despite saying he was angry, Yu Shi’s face remained emotionless.
He was angry at himself for allowing Feng Xuexiang to act in such a way in front of the entire Feng family, as if claiming him.
At the root of it, Yu Shi knew he had given Feng Xuexiang the wrong response.
In the past, Yu Shi had faced similar accusations countless times.
After rejecting someone’s advances, most people would become furious, claiming that Yu Shi had treated them too kindly, giving them the wrong impression and leading to misunderstandings.
Would Feng Xuexiang think the same? Would he also blame Yu Shi?
Regret welled up in Yu Shi’s heart. He shouldn’t have agreed to come with him.
Getting involved in a client’s family matters was a major mistake, and Yu Shi had never made such an error before.
Without looking at Feng Xuexiang, who was now walking beside him, Yu Shi was deep in self-reflection.
In the past, he had family members he cared about, and even though he was equally attentive to his employer, he always kept a safe distance.
Here, there were no trustworthy or beloved family members, nor was there a home of his own. From the beginning, he had been by Feng Xuexiang’s side, taking care of him.
Feng Xuexiang seemed noble in status, but in reality, he was pitiable and weak, with both psychological and physical issues. He desperately sought warmth from him.
Yu Shi personally rescued him from his predicament, and without realizing it, he became more indulgent and caring toward him.
He even did some things that changed the course of Feng Xuexiang’s life, things that originally had nothing to do with him.
When Feng Xuexiang saw the frown between his brows, he reached out to stroke his eyebrows, speaking in a pitiful tone, “It has something to do with me, it’s about me. You’re mad at me, aren’t you?”
Yu Shi pulled his hand away. “It has nothing to do with you. I won’t be mad at you.”
He returned to his place and pulled out a large pile of dried fruits: dried longans, peanuts, sunflower seeds, and dried walnuts.
Yu Shi had a habit when he was angry. He never argued with anyone but would find a pile of dried fruits to shell, silently digesting his emotions.
After shelling them, he would store them in a sealed container and put them in the fridge. His brothers would take them out to eat whenever they were free.
Whenever they saw newly shelled nuts in the fridge, they knew their fourth brother was angry again.
Yu Shi sat in the courtyard, shelling walnuts. Feng Xuexiang hesitated before sitting down beside him and tentatively asked, “Let me shell them with you.”
Yu Shi did not stop him and sat there with a calm expression, cracking the walnuts.
The paper-shelled walnuts were thin, and he cracked one in each hand with a loud crunch, smashing the walnut kernels inside into pieces.
From this small detail, Feng Xuexiang could tell that Yu Shi was truly angry. After all, when he wasn’t angry, he would carefully shell the walnuts to keep the kernels intact.
Absent-mindedly, Feng Xuexiang shelled a few walnuts as well. Seeing that Yu Shi still didn’t say a word, he couldn’t help but grab Yu Shi’s hand, stopping him from continuing. He stared at Yu Shi’s reddened palms:
“They’re all red. Does it hurt?”
He himself was the true delicate young master. After shelling a couple of walnuts, his fingertips were red, and he held Yu Shi’s hand with a look of deep concern.
He’s a grown man who looked quite impressive on the outside. He hadn’t spoken any harsh words to him, and yet his eyes were red.
Seeing the anxiety in Feng Xuexiang’s eyes, Yu Shi sighed inwardly.
He picked up another walnut, shelled it to reveal a whole kernel, and handed it to Feng Xuexiang, his tone softening, “Here, eat this.”
Feng Xuexiang took it with a look of astonished delight and smiled again, “Aren’t you angry anymore?”
Accustomed to Yu Shi’s gentle care, he couldn’t stand it when Yu Shi ignored him. He couldn’t bear it at all.
Though Yu Shi seemed to have calmed down after only a brief anger, Feng Xuexiang felt that something was off.
…
A couple of days later, while they were sitting on the sofa after a meal, Yu Shi suddenly mentioned in a casual tone, “I’m planning to take a few days off. Should I ask Steward Sui to send someone else to take care of you for a few days?”
Feng Xuexiang paused, his hand holding a puzzle piece suspended in the air, and turned to look at him.
Xiao Chuang, who had barely been noticeable, shrank into the corner, focusing intently on the puzzle and afraid to make a sound.
“Or,” Yu Shi met his gaze and added slowly, “should I just leave you in Xiao Chuang’s care?”
Xiao Chuang held her breath, seeing the puzzle pieces distort in her view, thinking, Oh no, Ninth Master is definitely going to be angry! He’s going to lose his temper!
Moments later, she heard Ninth Master’s voice, filled with a hint of frustration, say, “Then you can go. Xiao Chuang will take care of me.”
Xiao Chuang: “?”
Is he serious? Did he really agree?
Yu Shi was also a bit surprised, but he thought it might be because Feng Xuexiang’s condition seemed stable.
Before speaking, he had checked the values displayed above Feng Xuexiang’s head.
The pollution level had stabilized at 10, the clarity level had risen to 90, and the danger level had dropped to 60. The system indicated that his condition was stable.
That was why Yu Shi felt reassured enough to request time off.
“Are you taking leave because of something at home?” Feng Xuexiang still asked reluctantly.
“I have a personal matter,” Yu Shi replied.
After thinking for two days, Yu Shi decided it was necessary to distance himself a bit from his employer. He needed to reflect on things himself, or Feng Xuexiang would continue to be a distraction.
He also needed a break, so he planned to use the half-month of leave he had accumulated to take a short trip.
His work affairs were usually managed by Steward Sui, so Yu Shi followed the rules and contacted Steward Sui for this leave request.
Steward Sui hesitated on the phone, and Yu Shi knew he was concerned about something. He reminded him, “Ninth Master has already agreed.”
Hearing this, Steward Sui finally relented and expressed his concerns, showing a much more humble attitude than before.
After the death of the family head, the most affected were the trusted stewards who had been heavily relied upon, and Steward Sui had been having the hardest time.
With Feng Houzhan busy with affairs, Steward Sui had often taken on the role of suppressing and managing Feng Xuexiang.
Now that Feng Houzhan was gone and Feng Xuexiang was unmanageable, Steward Sui could only humble himself to the utmost in hopes of securing a stable old age without facing retribution from Feng Xuexiang.
When Feng Houzhan’s funeral and the selection of the new head of the family had taken place, Steward Sui had learned early on that Zhou Shi held an unusually significant position in Feng Xuexiang’s eyes.
He dared not handle matters carelessly now and actively reached out to Feng Xuexiang to gauge his thoughts.
Feng Xuexiang, who was struggling to control his impatience, received Steward Sui’s inquiry and responded in a cold, gentle tone, “Didn’t you hear him? I already agreed.”
Steward Sui forced a smile and tentatively asked, “If you don’t want to…”
“If I don’t want to,” Feng Xuexiang sneered, “what can you do about it? Make him even angrier?”
“Don’t make unnecessary trouble for me.”
Noticing Feng Xuexiang’s terrible mood, Steward Sui dismissed his own concerns. “Yes, yes, I understand!”
…
Yu Shi was packing his suitcase, preparing to leave the next day.
Feng Xuexiang watched him by the door for a while, then put on a smile and approached. He pretended to be nonchalant while asking where Yu Shi was going and later mentioned casually that he also wanted to go out and see things.
He was restless, as if suffering from separation anxiety.
Yu Shi, resolute, did not respond to him. He only said, “I’ll be back in a few days.”
Early the next morning, Yu Shi left with his suitcase, and Feng Xuexiang went to the door to see him off.
“You’ll come back, right?”
“Yes, I still have work. Of course, I’ll come back.”
Yu Shi took a taxi to the high-speed train station. He planned to visit Mount Jingshi in the neighboring province. This was a famous Taoist mountain where one could see the most beautiful sunrise and sea of clouds from the summit. Additionally, the temple at the top was said to be very effective.
Yu Shi boarded the train, helped a mother struggling with two children by placing her suitcase in the overhead compartment, and also assisted a short, thin girl by putting her suitcase up there. He then settled into his seat and began searching for travel guides for Mount Jingshi.
He had always wanted to go out and travel. He had even planned trips when he was in the previous world.
However, unfortunately, whenever he prepared to leave, his eldest brother would suddenly fall ill or get injured, needing his care.
After this happened several times, Yu Shi began to suspect that his eldest brother seemed to not want any of them to leave his side. Growing up, they had only gone to school near home.
He knew his eldest brother might have some secrets, but he was aware that his eldest brother loved them dearly, so he didn’t mind too much.
Now that he was here, he could finally travel without any concerns.
Perhaps, once work was over, he could visit even more places.
Looking out the window, the scenery outside began to move slowly.
At that moment, a commotion of discussions suddenly erupted from the back of the train car.
“He looks so handsome. Is he a celebrity?”
“Oh my, so tall, and with long hair!”
“Ah, look at that, a classical beauty!”
Yu Shi turned his head and saw a familiar figure walking down the aisle from the back of the car. Even though the figure had covered half his face with a hat, Yu Shi could not mistake who he was.
It was like covering his ears and stealing a bell.
Feng Xuexiang, with his face covered by a hat, walked to a seat in the row behind Yu Shi.
The girl sitting by the window was stunned, and after a moment, quickly got up to let him sit by the window. Feng Xuexiang avoided Yu Shi’s gaze and sat behind him.
Yu Shi: “…………”
How did the Feng family let him come out alone?
Well, no one could control him now.
Yu Shi leaned back in his seat and closed his eyes, preferring not to see.
The train car swayed slightly, moving forward steadily. Inside the car, various sounds filled the air: a mother in the front soothing two crying children, people chatting, watching videos, and eating.
Yu Shi didn’t hear any noise from the person behind him for a long time. He was tempted to turn around and check, but he didn’t really want to engage with him.
The train had been moving for a while, and a fragrant smell of instant noodles began to fill the car.
Finally, Yu Shi heard Feng Xuexiang speaking from behind. He said softly, “What is that? It smells really good.”
The young girl sitting next to Yu Shi responded with excitement and nervousness, “It’s instant noodles. Haven’t you had any before?”
Feng Xuexiang murmured an “mm.”
From that single “mm,” Yu Shi could tell how much Feng Xuexiang was craving it.
When the girl offered him some, Feng Xuexiang politely declined, saying, “Thank you, but no need.”
Yu Shi ignored him. Until it was time to get off the train, he helped the mother and the girl with their luggage, then dragged his own suitcase out of the station without glancing back.
He heard footsteps following him at a distance, and when he exited the station, the person behind was stopped.
“Ticket?”
“Yeah, your train ticket. You need to show it.”
“…”
“Or your ID card. You can use that too.”
“What’s taking so long up there? Hurry up!”
“No ticket? Are you trying to evade the fare?”
Yu Shi turned around with his suitcase and led the person who had never traveled alone out of the station.
“I’m on leave right now. It’s not my work time, so I’m not obligated to take care of you. Do you understand?” Yu Shi spoke curtly, which was unusual for him.
But Feng Xuexiang’s smile was bright. Despite being surrounded and criticized earlier, he didn’t react much. He just looked at Yu Shi not far away. Seeing that he really turned back to find him, he couldn’t help but smile brightly.
He said with a grin, “Then I’ll take care of you!”
