“Watch out!!”
Along with a shout in his ear, Guan Mulin felt himself pulled into an embrace, and then his vision spun wildly…
Space seemed to twist, time stretching out endlessly.
Or perhaps it had only been a split second.
Thud.
Guan Mulin and the person holding him crashed to the ground together, rolling hard twice before coming to a stop.
An amplified shrill voice rang in his ears:
[Host!! Why did you go and save Guan Mulin?!]
Save?
The one who saved him was Shen Ju?!
Guan Mulin’s pupils snapped into focus, his blurred vision locking onto a tense little face.
Shen Ju furrowed his brows as he climbed to his feet, then extended a hand to Guan Mulin. “Are you okay?”
[Host…]
[996!]
996 was about to say more but fell silent at the sudden greeting of its full name.
It mumbled, [What’s wrong?]
[You’re supposed to be the vicious true young master who’s at odds with Guan Mulin. Saving him is totally out of character…]
996 seemed to sense some emotional shift in Shen Ju.
?This was something it had never felt before, so its voice grew quieter and quieter until it trailed off into a mumble, unsure what else to say.
But it didn’t think it was wrong.
Wasn’t it just diligently doing its job?
[996, I can pretend to be bad, but I can’t actually be bad.]
Shen Ju closed his eyes briefly, his tone uncharacteristically low and serious. [Besides, he’s family.]
Guan Mulin froze.
Even knowing that Shen Ju’s outward behavior might not always come from the heart, hearing those words still made them hit a little harder.
“Brother” in name only.
No matter the angle, it was undeniable.
This wasn’t just about rejecting the label—it was like having the joy of suddenly gaining a little brother doused with cold water the moment he felt it.
Like he’d been overly forward.
After all, for Shen Ju, his identity might prick like a thorn in occasional moments of reflection.
But now Shen Ju was calling him family.
“What’s wrong?”
Shen Ju had just finished talking to 996 when he saw Guan Mulin still dazed, worry creeping in. “Are you hurt somewhere…”
“Baby! Arlin!”
Before he could finish, a figure rushed over from the side.
She enveloped both him and Guan Mulin in a hug.
Qin Soxi was terrified, her face still pale. “Are you two hurt? Does anything hurt?! Are you okay?!”
She’d watched from afar, too far to stop it!
“I saw you get grazed, baby…”
Qin Soxi released them and turned to Shen Ju. “Baby, does it hurt anywhere? You have to tell Mommy if it does!”
“Did my little brother get grazed?”
Guan Mulin immediately looked at Shen Ju too, his expression tense. “Where did you get grazed?”
Shen Ju opened his mouth.
He suddenly realized he and Guan Mulin looked pretty disheveled, but Qin Soxi wasn’t much better off.
She’d probably rushed over in a panic and flung herself at them, kneeling on the ground—her pants were covered in dirt, her hair a mess, eyes red-rimmed, face smudged with grime from them. It was a far cry from her usual meticulously polished appearance; now she looked utterly bedraggled.
Her eyes gazing at him brimmed with concern and love.
Mommy…
Shen Ju abruptly lowered his gaze and shook his head.
“I-I’m fine.”
A hand reached out to touch his face.
“Really fine?”
Shen Ju said softly, “I’m fine.”
“I’m really fine… Mommy.”
For some reason, Qin Soxi hadn’t cried earlier, but now tears spilled instantly.
She pulled Shen Ju back into her arms, patting his back. “Good, as long as you’re fine. That’s all that matters.”
“Baby, don’t worry—Mommy’s got your back no matter what.”
Pei Haochuan stood nearby.
He’d just managed to calm the freaking-out horse.
Everything had happened in a flash: one second he was arguing with Shen Ju over Guan Mulin, the next Shen Ju had saved Mulin?!
It was all too fast.
Even now, Pei Haochuan hadn’t fully processed it.
He felt baffled and confused.
How had Guan Shen Ju ended up saving Mulin?
In that situation, there hadn’t been time to think, right?
“Damn it! Pei Haochuan, apologize!”
“What?”
Pei Haochuan frowned at Han Chengfeng. “What the hell’s wrong with you?”
“What do you mean ‘wrong with me’?”
Han Chengfeng rolled his eyes.
He’d been startled too, but now that he’d processed it…
“Shen Ju saved Guan Mulin! You were just railing on him for Mulin’s sake, and now he risks it all to save Mulin anyway. Don’t you, the one badmouthing him, owe Guan Shen Ju an apology? Tsk tsk, isn’t this judging a nobleman’s heart with a petty man’s mind?”
Pei Haochuan: “…”
Do you even hear your own messed-up metaphors?
Or maybe recall what Shen Ju said earlier?
Pei Haochuan grew annoyed. “Why should I—”
Before he finished, he felt a gaze land on him.
Pei Haochuan turned and shivered.
“Little Uncle…”
“You’re way too idle on break, Pei Haochuan.”
Pei Yan glanced at Shen Ju, who was now standing and seemed fine, before turning back to Pei Haochuan. “Didn’t you say you needed tutoring?”
Pei Haochuan was dumbfounded. “When did I—”
“Perfect. For the rest of the holiday, stay at my place. I’ll tutor you.”
“But Mulin’s already tutoring me…”
Guan Mulin had stood up too and blinked at that. “Just going over some exam mistakes temporarily.”
Pei Haochuan: “Huh?”
Guan Mulin thought it was about time someone reined in Pei Haochuan’s mouth.
Earlier, when Pei Haochuan spoke up for him, Guan Mulin had been torn, unsure how to stop them without seeming ungrateful. He didn’t want to be stuck in the middle, but Pei Haochuan couldn’t hear Shen Ju’s true thoughts and harbored misunderstandings. He couldn’t reveal it…
This was something only family should know.
That was their private agreement.
Fortunately, if Pei Haochuan’s little uncle could handle him…
Pei Yan turned to Guan Mulin. “Guan, you’re friends with Haochuan—why not join? Our families are neighbors anyway.”
Guan Mulin let out an “Ah?” and pointed at himself. “Me?”
“I know you’re a good student, Guan, but I’m still tutoring Shen Ju these next couple days. Adding one more might stretch me thin.”
Pei Yan said politely to Guan Mulin, “You could just keep Haochuan company…”
“Sure, I can keep my little brother company.”
Guan Mulin nodded immediately.
Pei Haochuan: “?…”
Wait, excuse me?!
But seeing Guan Mulin agree, Pei Haochuan dropped his excuses to refuse. He couldn’t leave Mulin alone with Shen Ju.
Han Chengfeng watched from the side.
What about me?
His gaze flicked to Pei Yan… Nah, forget it. With the rare holiday left, he wanted to sleep till he woke naturally and play till his brain farted!
The match naturally didn’t go on.
But as they left, Han Chengfeng was pretty satisfied.
He didn’t think much of Shen Ju saving Guan Mulin—on the contrary! For Guan Shen Ju to throw himself in like that was a life-saving debt. Whether Pei Haochuan or Guan Mulin, they couldn’t just shamelessly pretend it didn’t happen, right? Tsk tsk, see how those two could still give him attitude now! After all, Shen Ju was on his side!
Ha! Shen Ju’s got guts.
He could never pull that off—not bad for the little bro he picked!
As Han Chengfeng left, he patted Shen Ju’s shoulder, telling him to come find him at school if bullied—he’d have Shen Ju’s back from now on!
Guan Mulin watched without comment.
He and Pei Haochuan had never gotten along great with Han Chengfeng… Mainly because the guy had a foul mouth, always picking on them for some reason. As class president, Guan Mulin had to deal with him, and over time, bad blood built up—they both wanted to one-up each other, peaceful moments rare.
But if Han Chengfeng was friendly to Shen Ju, that was that.
Guan Mulin even thought, for Shen Ju’s sake, he could tolerate Han Chengfeng a bit. The guy’s brain was wired weird anyway—just call it good karma.
Four days left in the National Day holiday.
Everyone from the Guan Family returned to He Yuan except Guan Jianshan.
After all, with Shen Ju and Guan Mulin nearly hurt, Qin Soxi and Guan Muya hadn’t gone back that day.
The next day, Guan Lifeng got chased back by Guan Jianshan too, told not to hover—it was annoying.
Guan Lifeng: “…”
Guan Jianshan didn’t come, saying to just WeChat if needed—it was convenient.
He wasn’t ready to leave He Yuan; he was used to living alone and could invite old friends over now and then. Way easier than at Yujinfu.
“Same as always—come back more during breaks to see me.”
“Don’t rush things with that kid.”
Guan Jianshan stayed level-headed. “He might be doing this out of necessity, so take it slow. Play it by ear, adapt as we go.”
So the Guan Family privately agreed.
Keep things as before—no need to rush.
They hadn’t expected Shen Ju and Pei Yan to get along well, though.
Or rather, from their observations, Shen Ju seemed happy to head next door to the Pei Family kid’s place—even for tutoring, he went cheerfully.
No idea how he decided that Pei kid was a good guy.
Cough, not saying Pei Yan isn’t good.
Just…
Qin Soxi thought it over but said nothing more.
It was just tutoring, after all.
