QT: LAC Chapter 6: First World (6)

Chapter 6: First World (6)

Translated by Addis of Exiled Rebels Scanlations

Editor: Sulo

 

After a pleasant summer vacation, Bai Duan and Bai Xu finally stepped into the junior high school campus, but apart from the more tense schoolwork, there was no other change in life. Bai Duan thought that he and Bai Xu could grow up together carefree, but unexpectedly the wind and clouds changed abruptly.

One day, he and Bai Xu returned home from school as usual, but just after leaving the school gate, they were stopped by several men in black suits and bodyguard-like appearance.

Bai Duan immediately tightened up his body, there was a strong sense of crisis, but nothing could be done, Bai Xu raised his hand and stopped him, “Who are you? What do you want?”

“Young Master.” The first man’s tone was respectful but particularly severe. “Your biological father has come to see you, and I hope to take you home.”

“Biological father?” Bai Xu’s expression was startled and seemed to be changing.

Likewise, Bai Duan was shocked by the man’s ‘biological father.’ He grabbed Bai Xu’s sleeve, and his expression was full of fear, “Brother..”

“Duan, don’t be afraid.” Bai Xu returned to holding Bai Duan’s hand, squeezed it forcefully, then turned his head to the man, “What if I don’t want to go back? Will you still tie me up?”

“Young Master, your father misses you very much. Please don’t put us in a dilemma.” The man said that he was in a dilemma, but his expression remained unchanged. “If we have to, we will have to use some crude means.”

Speaking of this, Bai Xu and Bai Duan both understood the other side’s determination not to stop until they reached their goals. Faced with a few powerful adult men who could deal with them just by looking at their appearance, the two children, who just entered junior high school, could not resist.

“Brother…” Bai Duan muttered, grasping Bai Xu’s hand more forcefully; he was afraid, afraid that his brother would be taken away, fearful that he would never see his brother again.

“…Little Duan, don’t be afraid. Brother will go with them for a while and come back soon.” Bai Xu sighed softly and patted Bai Duan’s trembling shoulder with a soft voice.

“No! I don’t want brother to go!” Bai Duan shook his head in horror. “I’ll go with brother!”

“Don’t make any noise.” Bai Xu slowly pulled his hand away, it didn’t matter how tight Bai Duan’s hold was, he looked at Bai Duan carefully. “Brother will come back, we agreed, right?”

Bai Xu’s attentive eyes calmed Bai Duan’s mood slightly. He looked at Bai Xu helplessly and reached out unconsciously to catch him, but Bai Xu stepped sideways to avoid him. “Little Duan, you go home and wait for me. Brother will come back, I promise.”

“… Brother will come back? Are you making an appointment?” Bai Duan opened his mouth. He had always trusted Bai Xu, and the other party had never failed his trust — he hoped it was the same this time.

“Un, it’s agreed.” Bai Xu nodded heavily, raised his hand, and touched Bai Duan’s hair, then stepped back.

Instantly, a man in black clothes on one side took a step forward, blocked Bai Duan from Bai Xu, completely isolating them, but in a few seconds, Bai Xu was forced by the black clothes men to get in a black car that had already started and drove away.

Bai Xu was taken away by the two men so quickly, but even after a few minutes, Bai Duan stood alone at the school gate, looking at the car that had disappeared in the dust. He could not recover, as if he had encountered a nightmare.

His expression was dull, his lips trembled, and he was in a state of despair. It seemed that something important had been lost, gained then lost again. After the dream was broken, there was nothing left but sadness.

A moment later, the Bai family driver came to pick up Bai Duan. He lifted his hand and gently grasped Bai Duan’s shoulder, and nudged him into the car, “Duan, it’s time to go home…”

“Brother… Brother, he…” Bai Duan hesitated, even his sentences were incomplete.

“Your brother, he… Mr. and Mrs. know that his father came to get him. Let’s…go home first.” The driver quietly reassured Bai Duan as he got him settled into the car, then quickly got into the driver’s seat and started the car.

Bai Duan looked out of the window at the street, even when he arrived at home, he did not realize where he was. When he saw the familiar house, he regained consciousness, after the car stopped, he rushed out quickly and ran straight into the house.

In the living room, Papa Bai and Mama Bai, who were usually busy with their work and seldom came home so early, were seated together and holding hands as if they were giving each other strength. When they heard the loud noise of the door hitting the wall, they didn’t speak out and reprimand Bai Duan. On the contrary, their looks softened. 

“Duan, come here…” Mama Bai stretched out her arms toward Bai Duan, her eyes reddened slightly.

But instead of rushing into Mama Bai’s arms for comfort, Bai Duan, who had always liked to be coquettish, stood stubbornly in front of the two, “Brother was taken away, did you know about it beforehand? Why didn’t you stop it?!”

Mama Bai’s nose was sour, and she almost shed tears. She quietly wiped the wet corners of her eyes.

Papa Bai patted his wife on the arm and answered softly, “… It’s his biological father. He brought the DNA certification and took XuXu away, reasonably and legally.” 

“Un, XuXu’s father’s family is very good, and he also cares about XuXu, so he couldn’t wait.” Mama Bai sniffed and smiled forcefully. “Don’t worry about him, Duan. Brother will surely have a good time when he goes back to his biological father.”

“…Liar.” Bai Duan’s voice was chilly, he really had no heart and liked to push things to others. Even though he hid under the shelter of others to enjoy happiness, this did not mean that he was foolish. On the contrary, at some times, he was very keen and concise, “If this is the case, why are you crying like this, Mom?”

“Because, because Mother does not want to give up Xuxu, ah…” Mama Bai’s mouth twisted somewhat unnaturally. “Although he is not my biological child, after all, we have been together for more than six years. How can I possibly have no feelings at all?”

“I believe Mom won’t give up Brother.” Bai Duan licked his lips. “But this is absolutely not the reason! Brother’s biological father doesn’t like Brother at all, does he? It’s impossible for Brother to get along well when he goes back to his father, right?! You sent Brother away regardless of his wishes, whether he was happy or not, right?!!”

Mama Bai could not bear her son’s accusation and her inner torture. She stood up with a sob, turning her head and walked away quickly. Papa Bai’s face warped and whispered, “Bai Duan! Why are you talking to your mother like that?!”

Bai Duan choked, he looked at Mama Bai’s back, opened his mouth, and eventually softened down, “Dad, I want to know the truth… I…I also have the right to know the facts!”

Papa Bai sighed and dragged his youngest son to his side. He took him and sat down. “Okay… I’ll tell you, you really have the right to know…”

Then, Papa Bai slowly opened his mouth and told Bai Duan everything he knew.

Bai Xu’s father was surnamed Zheng, lived in Beijing and was part of a big family with deep roots, rich and powerful. Due to this, Bai Xu’s family was very chaotic, and his children fought for power endlessly. Even ordinary rich people in other cities like Papa Bai had heard about it.

Bai Xu’s father, Zheng Ershao, had a brother who inherited the family business. He was a regular entertainment journalist, and his wife came from another powerful family, having a fierce and domineering personality. They had a son and had been living well and did not try to find Bai Xu.

Bai Xu was obviously not the child of Zheng Ershao and his wife, so the highest possibility was that he was Zheng Ershao’s illegitimate son. Papa Bai didn’t know why Zheng Ershao brought his illegitimate son back to the Zheng family in such a cruel way, but it had nothing to do with the relationship between father and son. After all, according to Zheng Ershao’s lifestyle, his illegitimate son would not just be Bai Xu.

Papa Bai did not know what Zheng Ershao was doing since he could not find out anything at his level, but according to the attitude of the people who approached them, Bai Xu’s life in the Zheng family could never be stable in the future.

“That…why didn’t you refuse…?” Bai Duan could hear his heart grinding as if it was going to be crushed in the next second.

“We also wanted to refuse… Who wants to push their children into a pit of fire?” Papa Bai smoked a cigarette and breathed it out gently. He never smoked much, nor did he smoke at home, but now he subconsciously relieved his mood by taking it. “But Zheng Ershao is XuXu’s biological father. We can’t compete with each other, let alone… What’s more, the Zheng family is not someone we can fight against. They have done a lot to oppress people with their power. Your mother and I can’t help it, because we not only have XuXu but also you, Duan. Even if we go against the Zheng family, Xuxu will not be able to come back. Even you will suffer, Duan.”

“… I’m not afraid to suffer, I just want Brother back…” Bai Duan buried his head in his father’s neck, and his voice trembled.

“I know, I know.” Papa Bai held his youngest son in his arms, felt the hot and moist feeling around his neck, and rubbed his head. “If we can get XuXu back by scattering our wealth, we are willing to…”

After a quiet snuggle between father and son for half a day, Bai Duan’s mood finally calmed down. He sniffed, stood up, apologized to Papa Bai, then walked quickly back to his room, where he saw Mama Bai sitting by the bed.

“… Mom.” Bai Duan whispered, “Just now, I’m sorry.”

“… It’s me who should say I’m sorry.” Mama Bai wiped her tears, stood up, and gave Bai Duan a hug. “It’s useless for us to be parents when we can’t protect our children.”

Bai Duan licked his lips, but he did not reply.

Mama Bai sighed and kissed Bai Duan’s heard. She knew that her youngest son wanted to be in the quiet room he shared with Bai Xu, so she did not say much. She walked out of the room and closed the door lightly.

Bai Duan took off his shoes, climbed into bed, and stayed there for a while. Then he buried himself in the quilt and breathed in the scent left by Bai Xu. Tears flowed uncontrolled, silently. After a while, he wiped his tears, jumped out of bed, walked quickly to the computer desk, and turned on the computer.

In the search engine, he typed the words [Zheng Family in Beijing], [Zheng Ershao] and so on, Bai Duan carefully browsed various sites for information about the Zheng family, but the more he read, the more familiar he felt.

More than a dozen pages were clicked in succession, each of which caused Bai Duan to feel a familiar feeling. He tried to think about why he felt this way, and at last, he had a flash of inspiration.

He felt this way because he had seen it before, not on his own initiative, but…he glanced at where Bai Xu usually nested near him.

Bai Duan never cared for these reports, but at this moment, when he recalled everything, it suddenly clicked and caused him to realize everything.

Brother knows the Zheng family and has been following the news on the Zheng family. Why? Why did Brother pay attention to the Zheng family? Because…did he know his relationship with the Zheng family? So…did he know long ago that he would be taken away by the Zheng family? Was that why he was so calm today?

Bai Duan’s thinking was in disorder. He tried to sort out the relationship and figure out what Bai Xu wanted to do, but before he could catch any clues, a new email message popped up in the lower right corner of the screen.

Bai Duan glanced at it carelessly, but in the next moment, his eyes were fixed on the name of the sender.

Pressing the button with a beating heart, Bai Duan quickly opened the mail, staring at the new mail received in the inbox. His right hand which was holding the mouse, slowly tightened, eager to open the email, but timidly not wanting to see the contents. 

The sender of this email was his brother, Zhao Xu.