ALCSRB Chapter 77

Early the next morning, the four of them returned from the hot spring resort.

An Shi was practically dragged straight to the airport by An Jiancheng.

Before leaving, his grumbling complaints echoed from the airport crowd, making Jiang Mingyi sigh, “Isn’t his brother being a little too forceful?” He was just one step away from throwing the guy over his shoulder and boarding the plane caveman-style.

“Not really,” Shen Xingyan replied as he stood beside him, carefully shielding Jiang Mingyi from oncoming travelers. “An Shi used to be quite the flirt. An Jiancheng is just being extra cautious.”

It was the first time Jiang Mingyi had heard anything about this. “A flirt? I totally didn’t get that vibe.”

As they walked, their hands brushed. Shen Xingyan simply took his hand and interlaced their fingers.

“An Shi fell for An Jiancheng but got rejected, so he spiraled a bit—started dating a bunch of people. He eventually broke things off with all of them, but he’s smooth-talking and still stayed on good terms with most. That’s why An Jiancheng’s always on edge—he’s scared someone’ll sneak in and steal him away when he’s not looking.”

That reminded Jiang Mingyi of the time he first met An Shi at the airport—when he got flirted with and teased instead.

He gave a dry laugh.
“Well, now I don’t feel bad for him anymore.”

The two of them left the airport and got into a car.

As soon as Jiang Mingyi buckled his seatbelt, he turned to Shen Xingyan and said, “I want to stop by the Pei house first.”

He’d been worried sick last night. Thankfully, they found him safe in the middle of the night. He heard that Pei Shiqing had passed out drunk and gone to bed early, so Jiang Mingyi didn’t disturb him.
But now that he was finally at ease, he still wanted to see him.

“Alright, let’s head to the Pei house first.”

Shen Xingyan nodded and quickly started the car.

---

Pei Shiqing had just woken up from his hangover, his head still foggy. But memories from last night soon came rushing back.

Remembering how his brother had come out to find him, carried him home on his back—his heart filled with a warm, sugary sweetness.

All the hurt he’d felt about being left behind at the hot spring resort instantly vanished. It was clear his brother still cared about him, and hadn’t cast him aside for work.

He lay in bed grinning like an idiot for a while before finally getting up to wash.

After having breakfast downstairs, he got a message from Jiang Mingyi.

When Jiang Mingyi arrived, Pei Shiqing was already sitting on the living room sofa, looking fresh and clean.

Jiang Mingyi walked in and immediately gave him a light punch on the arm. “What the hell happened last night? You scared me half to death.”

Pei Shiqing saw Shen Xingyan also looking at him, and scratched his cheek a little awkwardly. “It’s just…”

“You two talk,” Shen Xingyan cut in before he could finish, “I need to stop by the office. I’ll pick you up later.”

After giving Jiang Mingyi a few instructions, he left.

Now only the two of them were left in the living room.

Jiang Mingyi sat down, raising an eyebrow. “Alright, now tell me everything.”

“It’s really nothing special. I just ran into some high school classmates last night—you should remember one of them, He Kai,” Pei Shiqing said, recalling the name of the guy.

“Nope. Don’t remember. Don’t care,” Jiang Mingyi replied mercilessly. “Who cared about those classmates back then anyway? But you—what, you just let a couple of strangers drag you off?”

“Dragged off?!” Pei Shiqing gave him a look. “I was just going to the café to kill some time. I happened to run into them and decided to hang out for a bit, that’s all.”

“That’s all? I heard your big brother nearly turned the whole street upside down looking for you.”

Pei Shiqing was stunned. “It wasn’t that dramatic, was it?”

“I didn’t see it myself,” Jiang Mingyi admitted, “but Qin Hao reported what happened. Said your brother was about to cry when he couldn’t find you.”

Of course, Jiang Mingyi was exaggerating. Considering how stoic and emotionless Pei Mingyue usually appeared—like the sky could fall and he wouldn’t flinch—the fact that he’d spent two hours scouring the streets in a mess was already a shocking show of emotion.

He said all this because he wanted Pei Shiqing to realize:
His brother really, truly cares about him.

Pei Shiqing seemed to understand. He quietly murmured,
“Do you think… maybe the reason I’ve never dared to test it is because… my brother’s feelings for me aren’t purely familial?”

Jiang Mingyi thought for a moment.
“I think you’re right.”

From the way Pei Mingyue had shown such worry and concern, it clearly went beyond what was normal between brothers. Even though the two of them had always had a seemingly harmonious sibling relationship, when Jiang Mingyi put himself in that position and thought about it, he realized—this really might be something.

Pei Shiqing suddenly sighed and collapsed into the sofa.
“I’m both happy and sad right now.”

If his brother truly liked him, even just a little, that would make him so happy he could die from it.

Last night, just from their fingers interlacing, Pei Shiqing had already been on cloud nine.

But what weighed heavier was the sadness.
After all, they were brothers.

“Why is it that the law won’t allow brothers to…”
He stopped halfway through the sentence, unable to bring himself to finish it.

Romance between brothers—whether in ancient times or modern—was scandalous, taboo. Pei Shiqing knew that this was probably a love he’d have to carry in silence for the rest of his life.

And yet, even loving in silence brought him joy.

As if he’d come to terms with it, a simple, almost innocent smile spread across Pei Shiqing’s face.
“Maybe I’m just destined to be single in this lifetime.”

Jiang Mingyi bit his lower lip, hesitating.

He was thinking about what he knew from the original storyline—about Pei Shiqing’s true parentage.
Right now, all the confusion could be cleared up with just one truth: Pei Shiqing and Pei Mingyue aren’t really brothers.

But Jiang Mingyi also feared the consequences that might come with revealing that.

He didn’t know why the boys had been switched at birth, or why it had gone undiscovered for so many years. Maybe the original author had thrown in that twist on a whim, but for Pei Shiqing,
it was a life-altering secret.

Should he reveal the secret or not?

That thought had been haunting him for days.

Shen Xingyan watched him sighing repeatedly at the computer and couldn’t help but feel a bit helpless.

He got up from behind his desk and walked over to Jiang Mingyi, noticing the deep frown on his face—clearly troubled.

“You’re the one who insisted on coming to the office with me, so why have you been sighing nonstop ever since?”

Jiang Mingyi’s train of thought was interrupted. He puffed up his cheeks slightly and said seriously, “I’m thinking about a major life decision.”

“Our major life decision?” Shen Xingyan raised an eyebrow in surprise. “You’re still young. Even if we were to get married, it’s a bit early.”

Jiang Mingyi hadn’t expected him to twist his words like that. Hearing what he said made him both embarrassed and annoyed. His pretty, peach blossom-shaped eyes glared accusingly at the man in front of him.

“Who said anything like that?”

“Then what else could it be? Are you saying your major life decision has nothing to do with me?”

Shen Xingyan’s dark eyes narrowed slightly, clearly threatening: if Jiang Mingyi dared to say yes, they were going to have a serious talk about this so-called “major life decision.”

Jiang Mingyi suddenly felt a bit guilty. What he had actually been thinking about was Pei Shiqing’s life decision—it had nothing to do with Shen Xingyan.

But obviously, now wasn’t the time to admit that.

So he said instead, “My mom and dad still don’t know about us.”

Shen Xingyan fell silent for a moment. “Alright. We’ll put that off for now. When the right time comes, I’ll talk to them.”

“Oh.” Jiang Mingyi blinked.

“Why such a lukewarm reaction?” Shen Xingyan reached out and pinched his soft cheek. “Don’t tell me you want us to sneak around in secret?”

They had, after all, been sneaking kisses and cuddles at home behind their parents’ backs—it was thrilling and intimate, and Shen Xingyan rather enjoyed it.

“Who wants to sneak around with you?” Jiang Mingyi pouted. “If Mom and Dad ever find out, I’m going to tell them you lured me in. That you’re a scheming, no-good big brother.”

He gave Shen Xingyan a loud huff and, before the latter could respond, got up and left the office.

The sound of the office door closing was a bit loud, drawing the attention of several secretaries who were working nearby.

Jiang Mingyi gave them a friendly smile and asked, “Where’s Assistant Qin?”

“Assistant Qin just went to the finance department. He should be back shortly.”

Jiang Mingyi nodded and went straight to Qin Hao’s office to wait for him.

When Qin Hao returned from handling business, someone informed him that someone was waiting in his office.

As soon as he walked in, he saw Jiang Mingyi sitting at his desk, playing on the computer.

“Young Master Jiang, did you need something from me?” Qin Hao put away the documents in his hands and stood politely to the side.

Jiang Mingyi hesitated a little. “Assistant Qin, do you remember I asked you something about a friend of mine last time?”

Qin Hao nodded. “You’d like to ask about it again?”

“Mhm.” Jiang Mingyi saw that he had to look up while speaking, so he simply stood up. “Here’s the thing. Recently, my friend had some developments with his older brother—their relationship has gotten a bit better.”

Qin Hao listened quietly. He of course already knew that the young master and the boss were officially together now and currently deeply in love.

Jiang Mingyi continued, “But… My friend still hasn’t dared to come clean about it. After all, they’re still technically brothers in name.”

Qin Hao had a question mark pop up in his mind. They’re already a couple, and this still doesn’t count as coming clean?

After thinking about the second half of what Jiang Mingyi said, he suddenly understood—Could it be that he’s worried about how the public will view their adoptive brother relationship?

“If the concern is just about being brothers in name, then the easiest solution is to dissolve that relationship. That way, they become legally independent individuals, unrelated to each other. There’d be no need to worry about public criticism.”

Jiang Mingyi sighed. “The problem is… how to dissolve the relationship without hurting my friend.”

Wasn’t he just worried that if Pei Shiqing’s true parentage was ever exposed, the Pei parents wouldn’t approve of him? After all, that heartless couple had never truly cared about Pei Shiqing. If they ever found out he wasn’t their biological son, they’d probably kick him out without hesitation.

And if that happened, it would be even harder for him and Pei Mingyue to be together.

Great. One more complication to add to the growing pile.

Jiang Mingyi’s head was practically spinning.

But Qin Hao didn’t think it was such a difficult problem. Given how much the Shen family adored Jiang Mingyi, even if the “brother” relationship were legally dissolved, it wouldn’t have any real impact.

Still, seeing how anxious he looked, Qin Hao offered a new suggestion:
“Young Master, why not leave this matter to your friend’s older brother to handle?”

“Young Master’s friend is still young, and may not see the full picture. But the older brother—he’s mature, steady, and methodical. He’ll definitely come up with a more appropriate solution.”

Jiang Mingyi’s eyes lit up at that.

Why hadn’t he thought of that?

As long as Pei Mingyue had feelings for Pei Shiqing, he’d be thrilled to find out they weren’t actually biological brothers. Then all the follow-up headaches could be left for Pei Mingyue to deal with.

Thinking about it that way… he’d really been stressing himself out for nothing these past few days.

Sometimes it really does take an outsider to see things clearly. He should’ve just come to ask Qin Hao earlier.

Feeling a surge of excitement, Jiang Mingyi grabbed Qin Hao’s hand and exclaimed,
“Assistant Qin, you really are a reliable love expert. I seriously owe you one!”

Qin Hao gave a professional smile.
“As a competent assistant, this falls perfectly within my scope of duty.”