Volume One, Chapter 27: Are You Interested in My Sister?

Huo Lintong lingered outside, listening to half a class before leaving.

He wasn’t worried about his son being bullied; although Xiao Bei wasn’t aggressive, he could take care of himself and adapt quickly to new environments, always making friends easily.

That temperament was nothing like his own—perhaps more like his mother’s?

Though, to this day, he still didn’t know who her mother was…

As soon as Huo Lintong got into the car, he received a call from Ye Zhun. “What is it?”

After years of friendship, their conversations skipped all pleasantries.

“So, you’re interested in my sister?” Ye Zhun’s opening words were as blunt as ever.

Huo Lintong paused. “Did you take the wrong medicine?”

“Then why are you playing Good Samaritan first thing in the morning?” Ye Zhun’s tone was anything but friendly.

Huo Lintong nearly laughed in exasperation. “Is it a crime to be kind now? And besides, I was helping Ye Sheng—what’s it to you? What, did she complain to you?”

“Complain? She was showing off.” Ye Zhun sounded as if he’d just been jabbed, clicking his tongue before continuing gruffly, “If you don’t mean anything by it, don’t be so nice to her. Don’t go out of your way to look after her just because she’s my sister. She doesn’t need it.”

“Oh? And how do you know she doesn’t need it?” Huo Lintong gestured for the driver to get moving and spoke into the phone. “But you’re right. Maybe she needs you more than my kindness. But are you willing to give her that?”

One sentence, swift and precise, struck straight to the heart.

Ye Zhun choked on his words, lighting a cigarette and taking a harsh drag. “What have I ever done to her? Why do all of you take turns standing up for her in front of me? I’ve raised her all these years, paved every road for her, and in the end, she gave it all up for a man—dropped out of school, got married without a word, played housekeeper for three years, and got nothing for it. Am I supposed to praise her for that?”

“Don’t say that.” Huo Lintong frowned. “Ye Sheng will take responsibility for her own life. Did you raise her just to fulfill your own ambitions?”

“Bullshit!” Ye Zhun swore. Someone thumped him on the back, and he fell silent, his anger snuffed out.

Huo Lintong’s voice grew heavier, the tone of an elder brother emerging. “Ye Zhun, it’s one thing for others to hurt her. But you’re her brother—the one she’s closest to and cares about most. The last person who should hurt her is you.”

“Hurt her? I never hit her, never cursed her. And that’s hurting her?” Ye Zhun bristled. “Don’t forget, she married into your Huo family. It was your family who wronged her! That debt—I’ll settle with the Huo family sooner or later!”

“Settle it whenever you like. I’m not stopping you.” Huo Lintong sounded indifferent. “Ye Sheng is a wonderful girl—thoughtful and sensible. If I had a sister like her, I’d spoil her rotten. You don’t know how lucky you are.”

“Then she’s yours,” Ye Zhun snorted, a trace of jealousy inexplicably coloring his words. “She calls you Lin-ge so sweetly, doesn’t she?”

“Mmm,” Huo Lintong added fuel to the fire. “Frankly, I find Ye Sheng much more pleasant than you. From now on, she’ll stay with me. I’ll take care of her.”

Ye Zhun was silent for a long moment before he ground out through clenched teeth, “Huo Lintong, damn you!”

He hung up.

Professor Huo certainly knew how to get under someone’s skin.

Huo Lintong chuckled, contemplated for a moment with the phone in his hand, then sent Ye Sheng a message: Xiao Bei’s enrollment is all settled. The school is very good.

As they pulled out of the school district, the driver glanced back. “Ninth Master, are we going back to the old residence now?”

“Yes,” Huo Lintong replied, putting away his phone and gazing out the window. “Since we’ll be in the capital for a while, it’s unavoidable. The sooner we go back, the less trouble later.”

“Should I notify everyone in advance?”

“No need,” Huo Lintong said coolly. “I’m not planning on seeing that many people.”

As for Huo Mingting, their paths would cross sooner or later—there was no rush.