HSS CH44

Chapter 44: What Do You Want to Ask?

Lin Miao couldn’t stop worrying about Teacher Yu being with He Congshan. Teacher Yu was gentle and frail, while Boss He was rugged and sturdy. If they ever got into a fight, Teacher Yu wouldn’t stand a chance against Boss He’s two slaps. Although, it seemed Teacher Yu had only slapped Boss He twice.

He also recalled the first time He Congshan saw Teacher Yu at the school gate, drunk and acting like a hooligan, pinching his chin and kissing him. It was truly terrifying.

Lin Miao anxiously asked Huoyuchuan, “He won’t do anything to Teacher Yu, right?”

Huoyuchuan replied, “You don’t care about me, but you care about He Congshan?”

Lin Miao said, “But Teacher Yu…”

“Teacher Yu is an adult too,” Huoyuchuan said. “He knows what he should do.”

Lin Miao was taken aback. “But he can’t fight against Boss He…”

“If he doesn’t want to, there are plenty of people who can fight He Congshan,” Huoyuchuan said.

Lin Miao was a bit surprised. “Are you saying Teacher Yu doesn’t hate Boss He? Then why does he always run away whenever he sees Boss He, as if he doesn’t want to meet him?”

Huoyuchuan said, “I don’t know.”

He glanced at Lin Miao and added, “Don’t you always want to run away too?”

Lin Miao instinctively denied it. “I don’t.”

Huoyuchuan said, “Oh, so you’re not leaving tonight?”

Lin Miao: “……”

Lin Miao retorted, “I’m not running away. I’m going to work.”

Huoyuchuan said, “Then why not work here with me?”

“I…” Lin Miao opened his mouth but didn’t know what to say.

He wanted to earn money, but strangely, earning money from Huoyuchuan didn’t feel like earning at all. Maybe it was because he owed Huoyuchuan too much money.

“No,” he muttered, “I want to earn money from someone else.”

Huoyuchuan said, “Hmm, I’m not someone else.”

Lin Miao’s face turned hot, and he hurried downstairs, saying, “I’m leaving. You take your medicine!”

When he came down, he saw Lv Hanxiu standing by the sofa, silently watching him with an inscrutable expression.

“Aunt,” Lin Miao suddenly felt a bit uneasy for some reason, “I… I’m leaving now.”

Lv Hanxiu didn’t say anything, just nodded.

Lin Miao also said goodbye to Aunt Chen and then left in a hurry.

Lv Hanxiu watched him leave and then turned to go upstairs.

Huoyuchuan was leaning against the headboard, looking at his phone, probably handling company matters.

Lv Hanxiu stood at the door and watched him.

Huoyuchuan didn’t look up and just asked, “What’s up?”

Lv Hanxiu looked at him as if she didn’t recognize him, then slowly said, “Towels, toothbrushes, cups, slippers… Everything in this house, except for the color, is in identical pairs.”

Huoyuchuan didn’t react much, “What do you want to ask?”

Lv Hanxiu’s eyes suddenly sharpened. She strode over, opened Huoyuchuan’s wardrobe, and pulled out a set of pajamas, demanding, “Why do you have his fitting pajamas here?! Is he really just staying here for a day or two?!”

“No,” Huoyuchuan said calmly, “Two years.”

Lv Hanxiu was almost in disbelief, stunned, “Two years? You two……”

Huoyuchuan said, “I haven’t won him over yet.”

Lv Hanxiu was even more shocked, “You’ve been cohabiting for two years without winning him over?!”

Huoyuchuan said, “I tricked him into coming here.”

“You…” Lv Hanxiu’s hands trembled slightly as she murmured, “You can’t do this. Your father won’t accept it.”

Huoyuchuan nonchalantly said, “I don’t need his acceptance.”

“You’ll be kicked out!” Lv Hanxiu exclaimed sharply, “You’ll lose everything you have now!”

Huoyuchuan replied, “I know what I’m doing.”

“What do you know?!” Lv Hanxiu couldn’t calm down, “It hasn’t been easy for me to get to where I am today! How can I stay in the Huo family with you being ambiguous with a man? What will others think of me? What am I supposed to do?!”

Huoyuchuan finally put down his phone and looked up at her.

That familiar yet strange look made Lv Hanxiu feel like she was back in that standoff eight years ago, when she held a fruit knife to her neck and said to fifteen-year-old Huoyuchuan, “If you don’t go back with me, I’ll die right in front of you!”

Time seemed to warp backward, and she heard the voice of the Huoyuchuan in front of her overlap with the voice of his younger self, asking, “What about me?”

Huoyuchuan had never thought about finding his father.

But when he was in the eighth grade, Lv Hanxiu came back with a smile, saying she had found his dad.

Apparently, she had finally found the man who had abandoned her at a banquet, caused a scene, and the Huo family had agreed to let her bring Huoyuchuan back.

But Huoyuchuan didn’t want to go back.

That place, which had rejected him since birth, couldn’t be considered his home.

He wanted to stay here, work hard, save money, and go to high school and college with Lin Miao…

But Lv Hanxiu held a sharp knife, threatening to die in front of him.

Bright red blood stained her light-colored dress, spreading slowly…

The day before leaving, Huoyuchuan went to school as usual, dozed off in class, and rode his bike home with Lin Miao after school.

Lin Miao sat on the back seat, explaining problems to him, talking about the cats and dogs they passed by, and laughed happily, just like any ordinary day.

Only he knew it was the last day.

Lin Miao waved goodbye to him at the doorstep, saying see you tomorrow.

Huoyuchuan didn’t speak.

He didn’t want to say goodbye.

Perhaps, they would never see each other again.

“You always ask, ‘What about you?'” Across eight years, Huoyuchuan looked at his mother again, “Have you ever thought about, ‘What about me?'”

Lv Hanxiu was stunned for a moment, “I……”

She tried to persuade herself and Huoyuchuan, “I was doing it for your own good. Going back to the Huo family is the best for you. You won’t have to suffer from hunger and hardship anymore. You’ll have family…”

Huoyuchuan asked, “Are they my family?”

Lv Hanxiu was speechless for a moment.

“They don’t welcome us,” Huoyuchuan said, “You’ve always known that.”

Lv Hanxiu’s face turned pale. She said urgently, “But it’s different now. You’ve grown up. You won’t be bullied by them anymore!”

Huoyuchuan repeated in a low voice, “Yes, I’ve grown up.”

He said, “So you should stop worrying about me too.”

“I’ve given him up once, and there won’t be a second time.”

Lv Hanxiu’s face turned even paler. She seemed to remember something again, “But you were supposed to get engaged to Miss Zhao, right?!”

Suddenly, there was a “bang.” Huoyuchuan turned his head and saw Lin Miao standing outside the room, his school bag smashed on the ground.

He frantically picked up the school bag, looking dazed and helpless, “I… I… my school bag, get my school bag.”

“School bag… I’m leaving.”

Then his legs gave way, and he sat down on the ground with a thud.

Lin Miao: “……I’ll sit here for a while… and then I’ll leave.”