Chapter 13: Fei Luo
Fei Zhiyan remembered it clearly. He had found Fei Luo on a rainy day.
At that time, Fei Luo was only four or five years old, dressed in rags, his little face dirty as he sat next to a trash can. He was using the trash can lid as a makeshift roof, his eyes staring blankly at the traffic outside the alley.
The alley and the world outside were like two different worlds.
Inside, it was dark and filthy. Spoiled leftovers soaked in the rainwater, forming a stinking puddle of filth. Wine bottles and cardboard boxes were scattered around the trash can, cramming the narrow alley so full there was nowhere to step.
Outside was a bustling modern city, with neon lights flashing and alternating, decorating this glamorous world.
Fei Zhiyan’s car had unexpectedly stalled. The driver had no choice but to temporarily park the car next to the alley and go out with an umbrella to check the engine.
Through the car window, Fei Zhiyan saw Fei Luo huddled in the alley.
Fei Luo seemed to have seen Fei Zhiyan in the car as well, but he was very quiet. His expression didn’t change at all as he continued to shrink back and watch the traffic outside.
If it were just this brief encounter, Fei Zhiyan wouldn’t have brought trouble upon himself by taking a child home.
But fate is always strange. Just as the driver was about to fix the car and they were preparing to leave, a young man holding an umbrella walked by the alley.
The man was cursing under his breath. Seeing Fei Zhiyan’s low-key luxury car, he nervously shied away. Not watching where he was going, he stepped right into the puddle of spoiled leftovers in the alley.
“Fuck!”
The young man swore unhappily, scraped his foot on the ground in a foul mood, and then looked up to see Fei Luo sitting by the trash can. His anger flared up.
“You did that on purpose, didn’t you, kid! You saw it and didn’t even warn me!”
The man’s tone was full of irritation. As he cursed, he saw the car he could never afford in his lifetime next to him, and a hint of resentment grew in his heart.
This envy temporarily numbed his brain. When he saw Fei Luo’s dark eyes, his anger surged, and he kicked over the doll next to Fei Luo. He didn’t dare to hit the child directly, afraid someone would jump out and condemn him, so he could only vent his anger by stomping on the little doll.
But that doll was Fei Luo’s most precious possession.
Even in the heavy rain, he had kept the doll inside, afraid it would get wet.
He had nothing of value, only this broken doll he had picked up from some trash heap to keep him company. It was as if, with it, he was no different from the children who lived in warm houses.
But now, the doll had been stomped flat and was lying in the muddy rainwater. The already frayed threads had completely come apart, revealing the half-new, half-old cotton inside.
Fei Zhiyan watched from the car, with no intention of getting out to help.
Just as he was starting to feel bored, Fei Luo moved. He made it so that the young man’s left leg, the one that had kicked the doll, would remain forever in that alley.
It was only then that Fei Zhiyan felt a flicker of interest. He got out of the car, picked Fei Luo up, and took him back.
In all the years he had been raising Fei Luo, Fei Zhiyan had barely paid him any mind. Fei Luo’s personality was simply too reclusive. He could stay by himself for most of the day without saying a word, making it easy for people to overlook him. The conversations between them were so few they could probably be counted on one hand.
But Fei Zhiyan didn’t care. He was not a very responsible father to begin with.
Therefore, for Fei Luo to take the initiative to speak to him for Nuonuo’s sake truly surprised Fei Zhiyan. He couldn’t help but look up and study Fei Luo carefully, suddenly realizing that he seemed to have grown much taller. The thin little cub who had once huddled by the trash can had now grown into a handsome young boy.
Fei Zhiyan raised an eyebrow, feeling that his impression of Fei Luo had become quite blurry. It seemed that from the very beginning, that withdrawn child had been very protective of the things he cared about. Before, it was that tattered doll. Now, it was Nuonuo.
I didn’t expect the little one to be so charming, Fei Zhiyan thought, ruffling Nuonuo’s short hair with a soft laugh.
Nuonuo, dissatisfied, hugged his head and let out a couple of “ah”s, protesting against having his head touched. “No touch, ya!” Nuonuo said, his little face tilted up, his voice milky.
Fei Zhiyan’s fingertips itched. He insisted on ruffling Nuonuo’s hair, messing it up until it stood on end like a fluffy mess. Nuonuo’s hair was very fine and soft, usually as mild-tempered as he was. Now, after being thoroughly ruffled by Fei Zhiyan, it all stood up, making him look like a little squirrel with its fur puffed up.
Quite cute, Fei Zhiyan thought, a hint of a smile in his eyes.
Nuonuo, with his messy hair, pouted and turned his body to open his little arms to Fei Luo. “Bwo-bwo, hwug!”
Fei Luo instinctively took a step forward, but when he glanced at Fei Zhiyan, who was propping his chin on his hand with an unreadable expression, his arms couldn’t help but stiffen.
But Nuonuo didn’t care about all that. In a small fit of pique, he hugged his brother, determined to ignore his papa for the rest of the day!
Fei Luo, afraid that Fei Zhiyan would continue to bully his little brother, had no choice but to hug him and turn around, not looking at Fei Zhiyan.
Fei Zhiyan let out a scoff, crossed his arms, and leaned back on the sofa, watching the two little ones huddle together on the other side of the sofa, even turning their heads to avoid him as if that would make them invisible.
A sense of helplessness and amusement rose in his heart. Fei Zhiyan flicked his clothes and stood up calmly. “Since Nuonuo is ignoring me, I’ll go up to bed first.”
Nuonuo was in the middle of complaining to his brother about his papa in a milky voice. The next moment, hearing his papa’s words, his little ears immediately perked up. His eavesdropping was so obvious that even with his back turned, Fei Zhiyan could see it clearly. After taking two steps, Fei Zhiyan even said deliberately, “Nuonuo can sleep alone tonight.”
Hearing this, Nuonuo whipped his little head around and said anxiously, “No… no, ya! Sweep with Papa!”
Fei Zhiyan stood at the bottom of the stairs with his arms crossed and shook his head lightly. “That won’t do.”
Nuonuo’s lips puckered, his eyes welling up with wronged tears. He clutched Fei Luo’s clothes and sniffled sadly.
Fei Luo looked at his little brother, then glanced up at Fei Zhiyan, and finally spoke up. “Father, little brother is very good.”
In Fei Luo’s heart, Nuonuo was a very well-behaved and good little brother. But it seemed that his father didn’t like his little brother very much. Fei Luo frowned and sighed with worry.
Fei Zhiyan looked at the two little ones with their identical long faces, and a soft laugh escaped his lips. To prevent himself from laughing too obviously, he even coughed into his fist.
“Alright, I know.”
Fei Zhiyan pulled himself out of the fun of teasing the child and went over to pick up the still-wronged Nuonuo.
“Little crybaby,” Fei Zhiyan poked Nuonuo’s soft cheek and shook his head as he carried him upstairs.
Fei Luo also followed behind, afraid that his father, being unhappy, would abandon his little brother again. He had been abandoned himself and didn’t want his little brother to be disliked by their father too.
It was only when he saw Nuonuo being placed on the bed that Fei Luo breathed a slight sigh of relief.
Nuonuo was happy the moment he was on the bed. As if he knew he would definitely be sleeping with his papa tonight, he started to wiggle his bottom and fool around again.
Seeing his brother standing by the door, Nuonuo even happily asked his brother to come and play with him.
“Bwo-bwo!” Nuonuo grinned and called out happily.
Fei Luo was still a little afraid of Fei Zhiyan and didn’t dare to easily enter his father’s bedroom. He could only shake his head at Nuonuo, indicating that he wouldn’t come in.
Nuonuo didn’t understand. He tilted his head, thinking it was some new game. He covered his eyes, then suddenly uncovered them, and seeing that Fei Luo was still there, he rolled over and giggled.
Fei Luo was also infected by his joy. He clutched his trousers and stayed at his father’s bedroom door for a little longer, playing this “peek-a-boo” game with his little brother.
In the end, it was Fei Zhiyan, who had finished washing up, who came out and saw the two of them still playing. He rubbed his forehead and sent Fei Luo to bed.
“Hurry up and go to sleep. Fei Luo, you have school tomorrow.”
Hearing his father’s words, Fei Luo spoke up softly. “Tomorrow is Saturday. We have a holiday.”
Fei Zhiyan: “…”
Right. Fei Zhiyan was an adult with no holidays and had forgotten about things like weekend holidays.
“You still can’t play anymore. It’s too late today. You must go to sleep.”
Children were supposed to go to bed earlier, but today it was almost midnight, and Nuonuo and Fei Luo were still full of energy and playing.
For some reason, Fei Zhiyan was inexplicably experiencing the troubles of having children in the house.
Fei Luo was quite obedient. He saw his little brother lying obediently on the bed, giggling at him, and couldn’t help but smile himself before leaving.
Back in his bedroom, Fei Luo opened his small backpack, took out his doll, and placed it on the table.
“I played with my little brother for a long time today… but Father seemed a little angry.”
Pausing, Fei Luo propped his head on his hand and, for a rare moment, sighed.
“What if Father doesn’t like little brother?”
Fei Luo’s own understanding of emotions was somewhat flawed. In his eyes, the fact that Fei Zhiyan had pinched his little brother’s cheek until it was red must mean he disliked Nuonuo.
But little brother is so soft and well-behaved, why would anyone dislike him?
Fei Luo couldn’t quite figure it out.
The doll he was confiding in also seemed a little dejected. The matching curly hair on both their heads drooped listlessly.
After a long while, Fei Luo pursed his lips and stood up. “If Father throws little brother away, then I’ll take him and we’ll wander together.”
Fei Luo had experience with wandering, and he had grown a lot. He had even been in primary school for two years. He was sure he could find more food for his little brother in the trash cans in the future.
Hearing this, the little doll seemed to perk up, its little curls standing up straight.
Having reached a consensus, the boy and the doll happily fell asleep.
