ATIBESLM 27

Ye Lingwei looked at him for a moment. He withdrew his gaze and looked at Li Lan. “He isn’t my ge.”

“Fei Lan is.” Ye Lingwei lifted his chin toward Fei Lan.

Ye Cen’s brows furrowed.

He had been passing by No. 3 High when he saw the banner hanging at the school gate; only then did he recall Ye Lingwei calling him a few days ago about the parent-teacher meeting.

The car was parked at the school gate. For some classes where the meeting had already ended, students were walking their parents out. Ye Cen leaned back against the seat, watching those scenes with an indifferent expression.

His thoughts were pulled back to the day of Ye Lingwei’s birth.

Their father, Ye Fengmian.

That day was Jiang Hui’s due date. Ye Fengmian had originally taken leave specifically to be with Jiang Hui at the hospital, but as luck would have it, an urgent matter at the company demanded Ye Fengmian’s immediate attention.

After handling the issue, Ye Fengmian was on his way back to the hospital when he received a call halfway there—Jiang Hui’s water had broken. Ye Fengmian urged the driver to go faster, only to collide head-on with a truck. The entire car was crushed beneath the body of the truck.

Sixteen-year-old Ye Cen held his father’s death certificate in one hand, while numbly holding Ye Lingwei in the other.

Ye Lingwei was the name Ye Fengmian had decided on before the child was even born. Whether it was a boy or a girl, the name would be Ye Lingwei.

Wei, meaning lush and flourishing.

As Ye Fengmian’s eldest son, the burden of the Ye family that had rested on Ye Fengmian was entirely crushed onto Ye Cen’s shoulders—regardless of whether he was in high school or university, or whether he was capable or not. Ye Zumin cherished Ye Fengmian, so, as a matter of course, he doted on Ye Cen. He taught Ye Cen everything he had learned from a lifetime in the business world. Starting from the age of sixteen, Ye Cen attended normal high school classes by day, and by night, he studied specialized knowledge from tutors arranged by Ye Zumin.

Even knowing that Ye Lingwei was innocent, back then, the person Ye Cen hated most was still Ye Lingwei. If only he hadn’t been born, then their father wouldn’t have died.

Perhaps knowing he wasn’t liked, Ye Lingwei was well-behaved from a young age; when hungry, he would only make a couple of soft whimpering sounds. The only time he ever cried and shouted at Ye Cen was during his first heart attack. No one had really taught him to speak; presumably because he often heard Ye Xuan call out like that, the very first person he called for was ‘Da-ge.’

Ye Cen came out of the study, looking down from above at Ye Lingwei sitting amidst a pile of blocks. He closed his eyes for a moment, then slowly opened them. He said to the bewildered nanny standing nearby, “Send him to the hospital. Am I a doctor?”

Until he got into the car, Ye Cen could still hear Ye Lingwei sobbing and calling out ‘Da-ge.’

—

As his assistant, Xu Mei was certainly crystal clear about the details of her boss’s younger brother’s parent-teacher meeting. She was just about to ask if he wanted to go in for a look, but before the words could leave her mouth, Ye Cen pushed the door open and got out of the car.

The man possessed an imposing aura. With pristine leather shoes that shone as if they had barely ever touched asphalt, and pant cuffs with creases as sharp as knife blades, the moment he appeared in view, many parents at the school gate gasped in awe.

Which ‘golden phoenix’s¹A metaphor for a child who is extremely precious, talented, or of high status.’ parent is this?

Xu Mei followed him out of the car, her head bowed slightly as she whispered, “The young master’s classroom is in the building directly opposite, on the fourth floor. Turn right, it’s the first classroom—Class 1.”

Even long after Ye Cen’s figure had disappeared through the school gates, the crowd at the entrance was still buzzing with whispers.

No. 3 High wasn’t some aristocratic academy; it was just an ordinary high school with the best college acceptance rates and the most abundant educational resources in Shencheng. It had never encouraged students to compare luxuries. Of course, there were rich second-generation kids among the students—the teachers were well aware of this—which is why the school enforced the uniform policy with a strictly non-negotiable attitude. It was because once, during a sports meet where casual wear was allowed, a group of students wore shoes costing four or five thousand and jackets that were limited editions hyped up to sky-high prices, parading through the school and causing a very negative influence.

However, while the school had the authority to demand students wear uniforms, they had no right to demand that parents follow suit in being low-key and frugal.

The parent-teacher meeting had effectively laid every student’s family situation right out in the open.

Gao Linhao’s clothes were usually wrinkled, and his shoe uppers filthy; he claimed it was ‘street style.’ However, everyone knew his dad was a loan shark with a gang of brothers under him, and his mom ran a beauty salon. Those shoes of his—maybe they really were ‘street style.’

Xiao Chengzi, the most popular girl in Class 1—her stepmother was only five years older than her. Although they looked quite wealthy, a family like that, pardon the others for feeling it was a ladder too high to climb²Literally “Cannot afford to climb high.” This is a humble (often sarcastic) phrase used when someone of lower status declines to associate with someone of higher status. In this context, the other parents are judging Xiao Chengzi’s family (young stepmom = scandalous/messy)..

As for Fei Lan, he was an enigma. At every parent-teacher meeting, he was always alone, but they all knew the Fei family had money. In their imagination, it was the kind of wealth where one played marbles with gemstones.

After the school issued strict orders prohibiting showing off, Fei Lan’s shoes became consistently low-key, never drawing attention. Later, Chen Fengbao once accidentally let it slip that while the shoes were indeed low-key—rotating between black, white, and gray—they ranged in price from a few thousand to over a hundred thousand. Even a single shoelace was custom-made.

—

Ye Cen ignored the astonished gazes of the students and parents he passed on the way up. He stood outside in the corridor; the classroom was so bustling that no one noticed him immediately.

Until Ye Cen’s gaze landed on Ye Lingwei and Fei Lan by the window.

The two of them appeared to be on very good terms.

Ye Cen didn’t mind the two of them being close, provided that Ye Lingwei could hold his own against Fei Lan. That kid, Fei Lan, had been different from ordinary children since he was small. Ai Shu’s death was indirectly related to Jiang Hui; Ye Cen did not believe Fei Lan would truly treat Ye Lingwei with the same sincerity he had shown in their childhood.

Of course, Ye Cen had also suggested transferring Ye Lingwei to another school. On the day he notified Ye Lingwei to prepare for the transfer, Ye Lingwei climbed onto the open-air terrace on the fourth floor, shouting that if he were forced to transfer, he would jump. Ye Cen didn’t know what had birthed this obsession in Ye Lingwei to stay at No. 3 High, but since the boy didn’t know what was good for him, Ye Cen just let him be.

Fei Lan had noticed Ye Cen before Ye Cen even saw him. His expression was cold, though that coldness was not directed at Ye Lingwei.

He submissively allowed Ye Lingwei to lift his chin, and successfully caught sight of Ye Cen’s brows furrowing slightly.

That’s the way. As long as the Ye family was unhappy, he was happy.

Of course, Ye Lingwei was the exception.

—

The last one to appear in his notice was Li Lan.

Ye Cen greatly disliked Li Lan’s tone. At the very least, a child of the Ye family should not be treated with such disrespect, no matter where they are. Ye Cen detected the implied fault-finding and targeting between her words the moment Li Lan opened her mouth.

Xu Mei whispered, “Last time when you had someone investigate, didn’t that person say quite a few people in school bully the young master? And yet you didn’t believe it…”

Xu Mei’s voice grew fainter and fainter until she finally shut her mouth. She looked at that female teacher and her boss’s younger brother. It’s fortunate the boss’s younger brother has a good temper; if it were her, she would have rushed up and ripped that teacher’s mouth to shreds.

Ye Cen stepped forward at that opportune moment and said indifferently, “Teacher, I am his ge. If there is any matter, you can speak to me.”

Ye Cen thought that no matter how rebellious or disobedient Ye Lingwei was, he would at least call him ‘Da-ge.’ Who would have thought he would just glance at him and say he wasn’t his brother—but Fei Lan was.

Ye Cen, “…”

Ye Lingwei hadn’t expected Ye Cen to come to the school. He hadn’t counted on it, nor had he looked forward to it. Now that he was here, he felt no pleasant surprise; it was just… unexpected.

Ye Lingwei suddenly wanted to know that if Ye Cen and Ye Xuan knew that the original host had actually died long ago, would they still be standing here so calmly?

The original host had died long ago—died amidst their indifference.

Yet unfortunately, he couldn’t do that. He could only declare to Li Lan once again, “Teacher, he really isn’t my ge.”

Li Lan was getting thoroughly confused.

She said sternly, “Ye Lingwei, do you think this is a game of playing house? Please fix your attitude!”

Her voice was ear-piercingly shrill, as if she treated students like objects she could mold and handle at will.

“Teacher, please fix your attitude.” Ye Cen said coldly, “If this is the standard of your honorable school’s faculty, then pardon me, but I will no longer provide the computers dedicated for future teaching use at your school.”

Li Lan opened her mouth, and then stood completely frozen on the spot.

Ye Lingwei also looked up at Ye Cen. He curved his eyes into a smile. “Da-ge, why are you being so fierce…”

Ye Cen didn’t look at Ye Lingwei; he gave a cold snort, turned around, and walked away. Xu Mei sighed and poked Ye Lingwei’s forehead with her fingertip. She asked, “Are you always this infuriating?”

Without waiting for Ye Lingwei to answer, she chased after Ye Cen on her high heels. The moment the two of them left, Li Lan finally snapped out of her daze and frantically chased them out of the classroom. As for what she was chasing them for, everyone present knew exactly why.

Many of No. 3 High’s hardware facilities were built with government funding, but some were provided by outside entrepreneurs. It was just that the donor information was never publicly displayed, though school leaders and a portion of the teachers were in the know.

Li Lan was one of those in the know.

On a list arranged from top to bottom by donation amount, the Ye family was listed right after the Fei family. However, Li Lan had never connected Fei Lan to the Fei family on that list, nor would she ever have associated Ye Lingwei with Ye Cen.

Now, she finally understood why, when she went to the principal last week to report Ye Lingwei’s potential puppy love, the principal had merely smiled and asked, “Why bother with all that?”

It was because the school didn’t want to lose a major financial backer like the Ye family.

The refusal to let him transfer was also because the faculty arrangement for Zhang Xian’s class was the best. Even Li Lan hadn’t been able to squeeze Lin Chudong in, but Ye Lingwei with such poor grades, managed to stay. Li Lan had always assumed it was the principal’s soft-hearted support for underachievers. She never considered that perhaps there was another reason—one that forced the principal to bow his head.

As Li Lan chased them all the way down, her back was already drenched in sweat. Whether it was cold sweat or just the heat, only she knew.

—

“What’s up with you guys? The vibe isn’t right.” Gao Linhao, having finally escaped Lin Shuang’s punches and kicks, snuck over sporting a bird’s-nest hairstyle. He found Lin Chudong there too, but one look at Ye Lingwei—holy cow—he was using his fingers to tease the hair at the back of Brother Lan’s head.

Fei Lan tilted his head slightly away. “Sit properly.”

Ye Lingwei let out an “oh” and slumped onto the desk. It was more comfortable that way.

Gao Linhao rushed over like a big dog, squatting at Ye Lingwei’s feet and asking with starry eyes, “Ye Lingwei, who was that guy standing by the window just now? I still caught a glimpse even while my mom was beating me. Who is it? Who is it?”

“My Da-ge,” Ye Lingwei said indifferently.

“Whoa.” Gao Linhao punched Ye Lingwei on the thigh. “Your da-ge is so handsome.”

Ye Lingwei glanced sideways at Gao Linhao with a half-smile. “If you like him, you can take him down.”

“No way!” Gao Linhao didn’t even think and refused with absolute decisiveness. “Your da-ge looks like a top at first glance, and I’m a top too. The ultimate conflict of interest has already arisen.”

Gao Linhao’s solemn refusal and analysis made both Ye Lingwei and Fei Lan unable to resist looking at him.

Ye Lingwei couldn’t listen to it anymore. “Just shut up.”

Lin Chudong stood to the side; a beat too slow, he perceived how out of place he was here. Even though the others weren’t intentionally excluding him, he began to feel awkward.

However, he still had one thing he needed to confirm.

“Ye Lingwei, you…”

“Yes, my family is very wealthy, stop asking.” Ye Lingwei interrupted Lin Chudong directly, looking up at Lin Chudong with zero emotion, his tone extremely cold.

“Wow… oh,” Gao Linhao said, while slowly looking over at Lin Chudong. If you asked him, the class monitor was just asking for humiliation right now. Why bother? Ye Lingwei doesn’t even give Brother Lan a face, let alone him.

Ye Lingwei had obviously had his fun with him—he was an old news.

Lin Chudong’s face turned red instantly. He said in a rough voice, “I wasn’t going to ask you that.”

“Um, let me interrupt.” Gao Linhao slowly raised his hand and whispered, “Allow me to run my mouth for a sec. No, seriously, class monitor, why must you insist on pestering our Ye Lingwei? He already said he doesn’t like you anymore; shouldn’t you be happy about that? I really don’t get you.”

The way Gao Linhao was acting really made one want to punch him.

And that is exactly what happened. As soon as he finished speaking, with the words barely out of his mouth, Lin Chudong lunged at him in a rage born of humiliation.

With Lin Chudong’s physique, how could he compare to Gao Linhao? Gao Linhao also felt that fighting someone weaker than himself was pointless so he just kept dodging continuously. However, his dodging only infuriated Lin Chudong further, as Lin Chudong felt that Gao Linhao was looking down on him.

Gao Linhao shouted as he dodged, “Mommy, mommy, mommy, mommy, help! God, God, God, what is happening?! I am too f*cking innocent for this!”

He turned his head and saw Ye Lingwei slumped over the desk, laughing.

Laughing? 

Laughing?? 

Laughing??? 

How can this prick still be laughing???

“Ye Lingwei! You’re just relying on Lan-ge covering for you!” Gao Linhao howled.

Ye Lingwei leaned lazily against the windowsill. He glanced at Fei Lan and asked, “Fei Lan, are you covering me?”

He assumed the other wouldn’t answer him. Fei Lan was playing on his phone, and Gao Linhao getting chased around the classroom for a beating was hardly surprising anymore.

“Mm, I’m covering you.”

Fei Lan didn’t look up. With his head lowered, he spoke in a low voice.

Ye Lingwei paused for a moment, then let out a light chuckle. His fingers quietly crept onto Fei Lan’s collar as he whispered, “Gege is the best.”

Before his collar could be teased open, Fei Lan turned his head and said indifferently, “Ye Lingwei, just where are those hands going?”

Gao Linhao, having suffered a drop in grades, had already received a thrashing from Lin Shuang only to get beaten again for fighting. He stood in the hallway, his hair a total mess and his face covered in Lin Shuang’s pinch marks, feeling aggrieved to death.

“Why am I the only one being punished and not the class monitor? I was the one getting hit!”

Pokémon and the other parents were conversing inside the classroom, none of them heard Gao Linhao crying out about the injustice.

Watching the comings and goings in the hallway, Gao Linhao felt even more aggrieved.

He lowered his head and muttered some curse or another. When he looked up and turned his head, he saw Ye Lingwei’s head sticking out of the window, peering at him eagerly.

“What are you staring at?” Gao Linhao snapped viciously.

Now he felt kind of bad about it.

“Here, have some candy.” Ye Lingwei spread his palm open. Inside were the hami melon-flavored candies he often ate himself.

“Candy? What candy? Let me see…” Gao Linhao mumbled, shuffling step by step toward the window next to Ye Lingwei and Fei Lan’s seats, reaching out to take the candy from Ye Lingwei’s palm.

Gao Linhao lowered his head to peel the wrapper and popped one into his mouth—the familiar taste of hami melon.

Like a cow chewing on a peony³This is a vivid Chinese idiom used to describe someone who has no taste or refinement, wasting a beautiful or delicate thing by consuming it crudely., he wolfed down the few candies. He assumed Ye Lingwei and Brother Lan were staying there to keep him company in solidarity, so just as he was prepared to be moved to tears, he turned his head only to find that Ye Lingwei was already slumped over, fast asleep.

“Ye…” Just as Gao Linhao was preparing to yell, Fei Lan looked up and swept a cold glance over him.

“Shut up.” Fei Lan said indifferently, “Stand there and don’t move.”

Gao Linhao: “…”

He knew ‘shut up’ was because he was too loud and would disturb Ye Lingwei, but what did ‘stand there and don’t move’ mean? He was just standing in punishment—why wasn’t he allowed to move?

Time ticked by, second by second. After a long while, with the afternoon sun beating down on his face, a drop of Gao Linhao’s sweat fell to the ground. He couldn’t help but raise his hand to wipe it away, but before his hand could drop back down, his movements froze.

Staring at his own shadow on the ground, Gao Linhao instantly understood what Brother Lan meant by ‘stand there and don’t move’!

It meant he was blocking the sun for Ye Lingwei!!!

Infinite sorrow and rebellion welled up in Gao Linhao’s heart. He was just about to move, but before he did, he stole a glance at the sleeping Ye Lingwei.

The sleeping Ye Lingwei looked much more well-behaved than usual. He was white—a transparent kind of white. Without the bright light to offset it, he appeared pale, and his eyelashes, thick and dark as crow’s feathers, made him appear even more fragile.

After hesitating for a moment, Gao Linhao ultimately didn’t move.

Fine, he won’t move then.

—

Ye Cen sat in the principal’s office having tea—longjing tea costing five thousand a jin, a gift from the principal’s relative. When the principal drank it himself, he would count the leaves one by one: ten leaves, not a single one more.

Yet now, in the glass before Ye Cen, a thick layer of tea leaves had settled at the bottom. Ye Cen, however, hadn’t taken a single sip nor had he even spared it a glance.

“I recall that before I sent Ye Lingwei here, you made me a promise,” Ye Cen said without any particular emotion, using a tone that sounded like routine business.

It was precisely this tone that made the principal feel so unsettled. Many people knew Ye Lingwei was being ostracized at school; the principal had told his homeroom teacher to keep an eye on things, but he couldn’t very well stand guard in Class 7 every day. Zhang Xian was the one who knew the specifics best.

Besides, Ye Lingwei had already transferred to Class 1 now, so what could possibly have happened?

The principal’s gaze fell upon Li Lan, who was sitting to the side, and he suddenly remembered the matter of Ye Lingwei’s puppy love that Head Li had mentioned to him a few days ago. Could it be that Head Li had said something to President Ye?

However, since Ye Cen hadn’t explained the full story, the principal didn’t dare speculate too much on his own. He could only keep shooting glances at Li Lan, signaling her to speak up.

Li Lan’s hands trembled involuntarily. She gripped the fabric of her trousers at her thigh and said in a hoarse voice, “It was my mistake. I misunderstood President Ye’s younger brother. I apologize, and I hope President Ye can forgive me.”

She offered no explanations nor did she try to shirk responsibility, because she knew perfectly well that Ye Cen wouldn’t listen to excuses. All he wanted right now was an apology and a result.

The principal was a smart man. As soon as Li Lan finished speaking, he had a rough idea of what had happened. Li Lan must have brought the matter of Ye Lingwei’s puppy love to Ye Cen, and Ye Cen simply didn’t believe it, leading to this situation.

Useless at getting things done, but an expert at screwing them up.

“President Ye, look… Head Li has already apologized, so perhaps you could…”

“Principal Fang.” Xu Mei stepped out from behind Ye Cen. Her pitch was raised and though her voice was soft, it brooked no argument. “We at the Ye Corporation have always provided all computer equipment used for teaching at your esteemed school free of charge, with the hope that your school can focus on the cause of education without any worries for the future.”

The principal broke out in a cold sweat across his forehead, nodding incessantly and saying yes, yes, yes repeatedly.

Xu Mei ignored his cold sweat and continued to speak at an unhurried pace, “We have always believed that Ye San⁴Literally “Ye Three or Ye the Third” This refers to Ye Lingwei being the third child in the family. Using this address is affectionate but also asserts his status as a young master of the Ye clan. would surely get along harmoniously with his classmates at your school. Even if his grades fail to meet the teachers’ expectations, Ye San is innocent and adorable, kind and lively, optimistic and cheerful—it is impossible for teachers not to like such a student.”

Li Lan: “…”

She simply didn’t recognize the person being described by President Ye’s assistant.

Xu Mei, showing not a hint of guilt, continued, “However, the scene today was unbelievable to us. The teacher’s aggression, accusing Ye San of puppy love without any evidence whatsoever… Everyone knows high school students are under heavy pressure from their studies. This teacher’s various behaviors have undoubtedly caused Ye San severe psychological trauma.”

“Therefore, we demand—” Xu Mei said, coming to the main point now. Li Lan’s teeth couldn’t help but start chattering.

All that talk was, in truth, merely a buildup to these next few sentences.

Xu Mei let out a scoff and said in a strictly businesslike tone, “We demand that Head Li be demoted. For the next ten years, she is barred from holding any position with the title of director or head, including but not limited to homeroom teacher or grade head.”

In short—all administrative titles.

Given Li Lan’s conduct, if this were reported to the higher authorities, her punishment likely wouldn’t be much better than this.

The principal sat stunned for a long while. Li Lan’s way of handling things was indeed a bit extreme, but her teaching ability was plain for all to see.

He wanted to plead her case further, but Ye Cen had already stood up.

The principal glanced at the cup on the coffee table. The tea inside hadn’t been touched by a single sip. His heart instantly seized with a wrenching pain.

He attempted to chase after him, but Xu Mei reached out to block him, offering a sweet smile. “Principal, Teacher Li—do look out for yourselves.”

“Oh, and remember to be a little nicer to Ye San.”

The principal collapsed onto the sofa. He had intended to give Li Lan a dressing down, but seeing that she also looked dazed, as if her soul had left her body after suffering a massive blow, he sighed. He waved his hand and gestured for her to sit for a moment too.

It’s the death of him. Dealing with people like Ye Cen is like fighting a war.

—

Ye Cen walked out, but hadn’t gone far when he suddenly stopped in his tracks. Ye Lingwei was sitting on the edge of the flowerbed at the school gate, twirling a few tree leaves in his hand.

A leaf drifted down from overhead. The boy tilted his head back, narrowing his eyes.

Xu Mei leaned in close to Ye Cen. “He ran down specifically to wait for you at the gate, didn’t he?”

Ye Cen acted as if he hadn’t heard a thing.

For a fleeting moment, Ye Cen seemed to see his father.

Before this, everyone could only see traces of Jiang Hui in Ye Lingwei—especially in his eyes.

Jiang Hui was gentle, and Ye Lingwei was quiet; because of those eyes, everyone felt that Ye Lingwei took after Jiang Hui.

However, a mere resemblance in the eyes was far from enough.

Until he saw the Ye Lingwei of now.

Radiant as the sun currently hanging in the vaulted sky—rays of light piercing through the clouds to strike deep into one’s heart.

Just like Ye Fengmian in his youth.

Ye Lingwei bore at least a seventy or eighty percent resemblance to their father from back then.

The only difference, however, was that their father had been gentle; whereas Ye Lingwei right now, every single strand of his hair seemed capable of piercing a person until they were dripping with blood.

It wasn’t just Ye Cen who saw this version of Ye Lingwei. A low-profile business vehicle was parked at the school gate. While the interior was invisible from the outside, a handsome middle-aged man sat in the back seat.

His gaze rested on the face of the boy at the gate.

The look in his eyes shifted from astonishment to a pitch-black darkness. As he pulled himself out of memories from which he could not extricate himself, a trace of obsession—elusive, yet undeniably present—mingled into his gaze.

• 1
  A metaphor for a child who is extremely precious, talented, or of high status.
• 2
  Literally “Cannot afford to climb high.” This is a humble (often sarcastic) phrase used when someone of lower status declines to associate with someone of higher status. In this context, the other parents are judging Xiao Chengzi’s family (young stepmom = scandalous/messy).
• 3
  This is a vivid Chinese idiom used to describe someone who has no taste or refinement, wasting a beautiful or delicate thing by consuming it crudely.
• 4
  Literally “Ye Three or Ye the Third” This refers to Ye Lingwei being the third child in the family. Using this address is affectionate but also asserts his status as a young master of the Ye clan.