Chapter 28 Part 1

The afternoon sun sprinkled down, as if draping a layer of golden gauze over the beach, falling into Gu Yuan’s astonished eyes.

A warm breeze stirred, tousling his hair strands. He paused for a long time, words on the tip of his tongue but held back.

“Brother, look!” Zhou Chiyu’s smile shone brightly. “This seashell is pale yellow!”

“Mm.” Gu Yuan nodded mechanically. By the time he snapped back to reality, Zhou Chiyu had already trotted off with his little feet to dig for more seashells elsewhere. His fingers lightly twisted the hem of his clothes, and his heart pounded wildly, just like a coconut tree battered by the wind.

With those words, they wouldn’t have to separate.

That was truly wonderful.

It wasn’t until Zhou Chiyu had made a Shell Necklace to his satisfaction that the two returned to the hotel. As a little owner of the hotel, Zhou Chiyu received super VIP treatment. After playing for half the day, he was covered in mud and sand—even his little belly had smears of it. The general manager held a bath towel, ready to personally clean him up, but Gu Yuan blocked him vigilantly. “Don’t touch him.”

Gu Yuan took the bath towel, bent down, and carefully wiped Zhou Chiyu clean. Zhou Chiyu’s skin was tender, so he was very gentle, afraid of scraping him.

The general manager smiled. “This must be Little Young Master Gu.”

“Yes.” Zhou Chiyu proudly held up the necklace. “He’s my real brother.”

The general manager nodded slightly. “You two have such a great relationship.”

“Mm.”

Gu Yuan quite liked hearing that. After cleaning the mud and sand off Zhou Chiyu, he curved his lips slightly and took the little chubby hand, boarding the hotel’s welcome sightseeing cart.

Upon hearing that Zhou Chiyu had arrived, all the hotel’s top executives paid great attention. Not only did they prepare the highest-spec sky villas for the kids, but they also specially invited Michelin chefs to cook local specialties for Zhou Chiyu.

Exhausted after a full day, Zhou Chiyu was starving. He clutched his little bowl and devoured his food frantically. The general manager found Zhou Chiyu amusing. With six years in the hotel service industry, he’d seen plenty of rich kids, but this was the first time he’d seen such clear, pure eyes.

Zhou Chiyu was very polite and even invited him to join for lunch.

“I’ll handle peeling the shrimp for the Little Young Masters.”

The general manager had just put on his gloves when he noticed a pair of eyes filled with hostility.

He looked down and saw that Gu Yuan was also peeling shrimp.

“Open up.”

“Brother, I love you.”

Zhou Chiyu curved his eyes into crescents and chomped away. “The shrimp meat is so sweet!”

Gu Yuan revealed a satisfied expression and leisurely began peeling the second shrimp. “Uncle, I’ll handle the shrimp peeling.”

The general manager raised his brows with a smile. “Little Young Master Gu is so thoughtful. He must be the best brother in the world.”

He seemed to have found the secret to getting on good terms with Gu Yuan.

Sure enough, Gu Yuan looked a bit surprised, and the gaze he directed at him lost its hostility, gaining a touch of friendliness instead.

“Little Young Masters, the hotel’s executive garden is hosting a dance tonight. If you’re interested, you can go play.”

Though it was an adults’ party, there were some kids’ entertainment facilities nearby for guests to park their children.

“A dance?” Zhou Chiyu wiped his oily little mouth and mimicked the adults from TV dramas by stroking his chin. “But we didn’t bring formal clothes.”

The general manager said, “No problem. We can prepare some for you.”

…

That evening, Zhou Chiyu brought his friends to the executive lounge, which buzzed with energy. In the pool, handsome men and beautiful women played a volleyball match. Surrounded by bodyguards, the kids sat on high stools, each with a bottle of fresh juice in front of them.

“This is the best whiskey.” Zhou Chiyu raised his glass enjoyably, quoting a TV line. “Tonight, we won’t go home until we’re drunk.”

Little Mango pursed her lips in a sneaky giggle. “Little Fish, you sound just like an adult. Super cool.”

“I am an adult.” Zhou Chiyu pulled out a white swan from the fruit platter to play with. “I’m already eight years old.”

Zhou Junyi nodded in agreement. “I think Little Fish is especially brave and smart—smarter than a lot of adults.”

Langlang nodded frantically through his straw. “Me too.”

“Thanks, Little Yi. I super like you.” As the center of praise, Zhou Chiyu felt extremely pleased. He looked toward the only one who hadn’t complimented him—Gu Yuan—and raised a brow. “Brother, do I look like an adult or not?”

Gu Yuan answered a different question entirely, glancing at Zhou Junyi instead. “Haven’t your parents finished their work in the country yet?”

Zhou Junyi froze, then scratched his head with a laugh. “Yeah.”

Gu Yuan coolly withdrew his gaze and pressed his lips together without a word.

As expected, he still disliked Zhou Junyi.

“Not really.” He finally answered Zhou Chiyu’s question.

Zhou Chiyu’s smile froze instantly. He puffed out his cheeks in accusation. “How am I not like an adult?”

Today, he’d specially worn a little white tuxedo. The sisters who helped him change had all said he looked like such a refined little gentleman.

“Adults don’t cry just because they can’t have chocolate.” Gu Yuan drawled leisurely. “And they don’t need someone to accompany them in the bath.”

In recent years, Zhou Chiyu had picked up quite a few little quirks. Thanks to the internet’s powerful features, he’d fallen in love with horror movies—despite being a total wimp who loved to play brave. Every time, he’d be so scared he couldn’t sleep, and at worst, he’d need Gu Yuan to accompany him even for baths or using the toilet.

Once, he dreamed of ghosts at night and wet the bed in fright.

Zhou Chiyu felt a bit embarrassed, his little chubby face flushing red with annoyance. “Brother! I won’t need you to accompany me in the bath anymore!”

To prove he’d grown up, he declared with utmost determination, “I won’t need you for the toilet anymore! Or sleeping! Or homework! I won’t need you for anything!”

Faced with this barrage of denials, Gu Yuan’s eyes grew dimmer and dimmer. The initial teasing and amusement shattered, leaving only regret and unease.

He hadn’t meant it. He was just jealous of Zhou Junyi.

Zhou Junyi always knew how to say nice things to make Zhou Chiyu happy.

What he’d wanted to express was that, in his eyes, no matter how old Zhou Chiyu got—even if he turned into a little old man—he’d always be a kid.

“Little Young Masters, the Forest Amusement Park is open.”

Reminded by the staff, everyone jumped down from the high stools and dashed into the amusement park twinkling with colorful lights.

Zhou Chiyu sprinted a few steps at first, then realized Gu Yuan couldn’t do strenuous exercise and had fallen to the back. He slowed his pace.

But they’d just argued, and he was still mad. He refused to talk to Gu Yuan.