Lan Xi, of course, could not type, so he sent Fu Hui a voice message.
Fu Hui was in class and still did not dare be too brazen. He first hid his phone inside his sleeve, then brought it to his ear.
Lan Xi’s childish voice slipped straight into his ear.
“Want to see Fu Hui pho-tos!”
Lan Xi rarely spoke in a clingy, drawn-out way. He always called Fu Hui’s name full of energy and stated his demands with perfect confidence. Whenever something was too hard to explain, his first choice was to become mute.
Fu Hui thought it was adorable and could not resist replaying the voice message several times.
Lan Xi then sent several more voice messages, stumbling through an explanation of exactly what he wanted.
He wanted to see Fu Hui eating snacks and Fu Hui seriously paying attention in class.
Fu Hui thought, I don’t even get snacks.
And how was he supposed to take a picture of himself seriously paying attention in class?
He could not exactly be that outrageous during class, could he?
Lan Xi waited and waited without receiving any photos and began expressing his displeasure.
Fu Hui had no choice but to call the bodyguard inside. “Pick a corner and, um…”
Fu Hui had never made such an absurd request before. He fell silent for thirty seconds. Only thirty seconds, because with Lan Xi urging him on, time was tight. In the end, he forced out three words: “Secretly photograph me.”
The bodyguard was confused, but the bodyguard was professionally trained.
He answered, “Yes, Young Master.”
Fu Hui did not even consider that there might be anything wrong with this.
Lan Xi sent him photos, so he should send Lan Xi photos too. It was only fair.
It was not until school let out that Fu Hui suddenly remembered… was it really a good idea for Lan Xi to spend all day playing with a phone at kindergarten?
But then he thought about what that kindergarten actually taught. Whether Lan Xi learned it well hardly seemed important. …No, that was not right. Lan Xi still needed to learn to read. He could not keep playing around like this forever.
Fu Hui became deeply worried.
The kindergarten teachers were deeply worried too and reported something to Secretary Li: 【One of the children brought a big phone to kindergarten, and the other children were so envious they cried.】
They really cried.
At an age when everyone else was still wearing children’s smartwatches, Lan Xi already owned a big phone.
The other children had already been scrambling to be Lan Xi’s friends. Now they adored him even more, voluntarily offering food in exchange for a look at his phone.
Lan Xi was unimpressed and rejected every offer.
Naturally, kindergarteners could not be reasoned with. After being rejected, they started crying.
And Lan Xi?
He sat beside them with his face propped in his hands, watching them cry with great interest.
After watching for a while, perhaps because their crying gradually grew quieter, or perhaps because he simply became bored…
Lan Xi grabbed the phone in both of his chubby little hands, fiddled with it for a while, and started playing his favorite Tom and Jerry. Fu Hui had downloaded it especially for him, and Lan Xi was delighted.
But this was also a favorite of most of the children.
The children could hear it but could not see the screen, so they immediately cried even louder.
The teachers could not possibly comfort all of them, and their faces quickly fell one after another.
【We think this might not be very good.】
The teacher offered the suggestion tactfully.
Secretary Li was clicking his tongue too. He turned and asked Fu Lin, “Did you buy little Lan Xi a phone?”
Fu Lin: “…” “Most likely Fu Hui bought it.”
That reminded Fu Lin of the card he had given out, so he called to pull up the transaction history.
The first purchase was… a hair tie?
All right. No question about it. It was probably for tying up Lan Xi’s hair.
After that came hair ties, clothes, shoes, toothbrushes, little cups, little plates, then backpacks, pens, notebooks… He had even bought baby herbal balm and baby moisturizer…
At first Fu Lin found it amusing, then shocking. In the end, his feelings became so complicated that he could not say anything at all.
He had never been this meticulous with Fu Hui himself… He was too busy, and there were people in the household whose entire job was to handle these things. From making sure every meal was nutritionally balanced to choosing shoes that were both attractive and good for proper arch development, professionals took care of everything.
Fu Hui was not simply treating this child like a little figurine and dressing him up.
…Fu Hui was genuinely raising him with great care.
＊
After school, Fu Hui picked Lan Xi up from the reptile pet shop with practiced ease and took the car home.
Lan Xi was still dissatisfied. Pointing at the photos on his big phone, he complained, “No snack-eating.”
“Lan Xi, did you forget? That day when you came to class with me, we didn’t have snack time.”
Lan Xi stopped complaining and instead gave Fu Hui a pitying look.
Fu Hui is so pitiful.
No snack time.
Lan Xi leaned his head against Fu Hui’s shoulder without even bothering to take off his backpack, using himself to offer consolation.
When the two children got home, the first thing they saw was Fu Lin sitting on the sofa.
Fu Lin had not appeared for several days again.
Fu Hui could not help being surprised. “Dad, you’re not busy today?”
That only made Fu Lin feel even guiltier. “Mm. Let’s have dinner together.”
Lan Xi did not particularly like this “outsider” and secretly pouted.
The little expression made Fu Lin pause.
That was right. Lan Xi did not understand anything about adults being the ones with money. The first person he had seen was Fu Hui, and Fu Hui’s word carried a lot of weight in this house. Therefore, the house belonged to Fu Hui!
He ate with Fu Hui and slept with Fu Hui. He and Fu Hui belonged together.
So Fu Lin, who had suddenly appeared, was naturally the “outsider.”
Fu Lin stood up then and approached like a loving father, taking Fu Hui’s backpack from the bodyguard first.
As for Lan Xi, he did not even wait for Fu Lin to offer. Taking advantage of the situation, he slipped his own backpack off and stuffed that into Fu Lin’s hands too.
Fu Lin froze again, then laughed and carried both. “Come on. Let’s eat.”
Fu Lin had specially invited two chefs to the house today.
Cabbage in clear broth, tender braised eel, Longjing shrimp, crab roe tofu… Delicate dishes were arranged across the table, fragrant steam rising from them. Fu Hui had no reaction. He had eaten these things often since childhood, so there was nothing novel about them.
Fu Lin could not help sighing.
Then he looked at Lan Xi, whose eyes were shining and who had become extremely enthusiastic.
Fu Lin thought, Fine. At least this little thing gives plenty of emotional payoff.
Fu Lin ate in silence while thinking about how he should bring up what he wanted to say later… Then his gaze shifted and landed on the big phone still hanging around Lan Xi’s neck.
It really was enormous.
The corner of Fu Lin’s mouth twitched. He could not resist asking Fu Hui, “Doesn’t that feel heavy to him?”
Lan Xi spared enough attention from eating to pop out one word. “No.”
Then he looked warily at Fu Lin, very clearly treating Fu Lin as an enemy.
Fu Lin: “…Doesn’t the strap choke his neck?”
Fu Hui lifted part of the phone strap and explained, “I had it made extra wide.”
Fu Lin: “…” My son really is thoughtful.
Fu Lin asked again, “Do you know he made all the other children at kindergarten cry today?”
Lan Xi’s hand, still holding his training chopsticks, abruptly stopped.
But he did not raise his head. He kept his face buried over his bowl.
Fu Hui frowned. “Why?”
Fu Lin pointed at the big phone and retold the whole story Secretary Li had told him.
After listening, Fu Hui’s cold expression immediately relaxed. He nodded lightly. “They were being too greedy. The phone belongs to Lan Xi. If Lan Xi doesn’t want to let them see it, Lan Xi did nothing wrong.”
Only then did Lan Xi lift his head with a beaming smile and add, “Fu Hui bought phone for Lan Xi. Not showing them.”
Fu Hui nodded, pursed his lips, and then actually had something else to say. “I don’t think this kindergarten is very good, Dad. Let’s move Lan Xi to another one.”
Fu Lin: “…”
If his son had lived in ancient times, he could at least have qualified as a foolish ruler.
“The children there aren’t very clean, they’re noisy, there’s no order, and the kindergarten teaches very little…” Fu Hui began listing the kindergarten’s ten great offenses.
Lan Xi wriggled in his seat, becoming a little anxious.
He thought the kindergarten was actually very good.
Although he did not like his classmates very much… there were teachers there who took pictures of him to send Fu Hui, there was snack time, there was a slide…
But Lan Xi did not want to reject Fu Hui in front of the “outsider.”
He could only tug hard at Fu Hui’s sleeve to make him stop talking.
Fu Lin smiled. “Looks to me like Lan Xi likes it very much.”
Fu Hui pouted, then realized that was impolite and stiffly stopped himself. Switching to a calm tone, he said, “Oh. Fine. If Lan Xi likes it, then leave things as they are. We can hire a separate teacher to teach him to read.”
“Fu Hui, there’s something I need to discuss with you.” Fu Lin’s voice suddenly turned serious.
Fu Hui paused in surprise and put down his chopsticks.
Lan Xi, now overflowing with a sense of security, did not insist on following them. He stayed in his seat and continued eating slowly by himself.
They went to the study.
Fu Lin turned the laptop screen toward Fu Hui. The surveillance footage showed Haohao’s grandparents arriving at the kindergarten.
“Don’t their body language and speech look strange?” Fu Lin chose his words carefully, wondering how to tell Fu Hui that there was something strange about that child.
Fu Hui: “Mm.”
“Did you notice? Throughout the entire process, their eyes only ever met Lan Xi’s.”
“Dad, what exactly are you trying to say?”
Hearing that, Fu Lin knew his son understood everything.
“Lan Xi appeared very suddenly from the beginning, and now he’s shown this frightening ability… Even if he’s only a child, Fu Hui, I still don’t feel comfortable letting him remain by your side.”
“I know you like him very much. Maybe we can raise him somewhere else. Dad can still support him until he grows up.”
It had been difficult to get the words out, and Fu Lin had already imagined how violently his son would react. But he had no choice.
“Have you watched the earlier footage?” Fu Hui asked instead.
His attitude was far calmer than Fu Lin had expected. It suddenly reminded Fu Lin of the time he had told Fu Hui that his father and mother might separate.
Fu Hui had never really had moments when he seemed particularly heartbroken.
“Earlier footage?”
“Ask the kindergarten for it. The surveillance footage from when the fight happened that day.”
Fu Lin nodded and immediately made the call.
Fu Hui often seemed so much like an adult that even his parents had grown used to speaking with him as an equal.
Less than five minutes later, Fu Lin received a longer, more complete recording.
Fu Hui dragged the progress bar and showed him. “Lan Xi kicked that little boy because the boy was trying to wipe snot on me.”
Fu Hui moved the progress bar again. “Lan Xi used that strange ability when Haohao’s grandfather tried to grab my collar.”
Fu Lin fell silent.
He had been so focused on judging what was strange about Lan Xi that he had actually overlooked details like these.
But… Fu Lin still shook his head. “Yes, he treats you very well and relies on you a great deal. But have you really thought carefully about what this strange ability of his actually is? He makes eye contact with people, speaks to them, touches them… and he can make their minds become confused, make them say things against their own wishes and do things against their own wishes.”
Fu Lin asked a very serious question. “Fu Hui, can you guarantee that every bit of affection you feel for Lan Xi right now comes from your own heart and not from his ability?”
“You’re a smart child. Having someone manipulate your mind is frightening, isn’t it?”
Fu Lin had to admit that if an adult had displayed an ability this frightening, he would have had the person bundled up, taken away, and locked up immediately.
Controlling other people was terrifying whether you thought about it deeply or not.
Fu Hui pressed his lips tightly together, looking as though a storm had broken loose inside his head.
Very soon, he pointed at the old man and old woman in the video and said, “Anyone can tell their reactions are strange. Their speech is broken, their logic is incoherent. I don’t have any of those symptoms.”
Fu Lin frowned. “The samples are different, so that proves nothing. You learned that in experimental science.”
Fu Hui pressed his lips even tighter. “Fine. Then I’ll prove it another way.”
“Eye contact, speech, touch… those are required for his ability to work. So what if there’s no eye contact, no talking, and no touching?” Fu Hui walked to the door and pulled it open. “They recovered their senses the next day. So I’ll increase the distance and increase the time…”
Fu Lin hurried over and grabbed his son’s arm. “Where are you planning to go?”
Fu Hui arranged everything perfectly clearly for him. “You stay here and watch Lan Xi. I’ll go somewhere and prove it.”
After saying that, he went downstairs, took the bodyguards with him, and left.
Fu Lin: “…”
Why isn’t the temporary solution to move Lan Xi somewhere else?
This is your house, son.
Fu Lin took a breath and still turned back toward Lan Xi.
Lan Xi was still eating.
He did not even lift his head when he heard the footsteps, because he knew those footsteps did not belong to Fu Hui.
Fu Lin pulled out the chair opposite him and sat down, staring at Lan Xi for a while.
Lan Xi remained completely focused on eating.
Lan Xi quickly discovered that Fu Lin was not interfering with how much he ate today, and Fu Hui still had not come back… Oh!
Lan Xi feasted to his heart’s content.
He ate from seven in the evening until ten at night.
Fu Lin finally came out of his thoughts and took one look. This was bad. He hurriedly scooped Lan Xi away from the table.
Lan Xi was still clutching his spoon. His belly was round and swollen from eating, and, mm, he was a little sleepy.
He yawned, exposing a hint of small white teeth. “Where’s Fu Hui?”
“He won’t be home tonight.” Since Fu Hui wanted to prove it, Fu Lin guessed he would not come back until tomorrow. In any case, he had bodyguards with him. He would either go to the old residence or another Fu family property, so there was no real need to worry.
But to Lan Xi, this was a bolt from the blue.
“Fu Hui… not home?” The spoon in Lan Xi’s hand fell to the floor with a clatter.
“Where did he go? I find Fu Hui.” Lan Xi immediately made his request.
“I don’t know either.”
Lan Xi’s brows knotted together. He bit his fingertip, thought of an idea, then patted Fu Lin’s arm and urged him, “Call. Call Fu Hui.”
Fu Lin knew very well. “He won’t answer.”
Lan Xi’s little face fell. He picked up his big phone, poked at it randomly until he found the call icon, and finally managed to dial.
But just as Fu Lin had said…
After a long stretch of ringing, the call went unanswered.
Lan Xi’s sky collapsed all over again.
He accused Fu Lin, “You made him run away!”
Fu Lin thought about it and found he could not really argue.
Lan Xi: “You’re bad. You go away!”
Fu Lin: “…” So both father and son are supposed to leave the house?
After all, he was dealing with a child. Strange and dangerous though Lan Xi might be, Fu Lin still adopted the manner of an elder and said gently, “Before Fu Hui left, he told me to stay here and watch over you.”
Lan Xi rolled his eyes at him, turned his back, and ran off.
Fu Lin looked more closely and saw Lan Xi dragging a solid-wood dining chair, his face reddening with effort.
…It did not move.
Lan Xi stamped the floor angrily.
Pitiful and adorable at the same time.
Then he changed his grip, hugged the chair back, and kept dragging, refusing to admit defeat.
The next moment, the chair shifted. He had actually managed to move it!
Startled, Fu Lin hurried over. “What are you doing?”
Lan Xi: “Waiting for Fu Hui.”
He pointed at the front door.
Fu Lin hesitated for a moment, then carried the chair over for him.
Lan Xi thought this outsider was not very bright. He lifted a little hand and patted the seat. “Want butt cushion.”
Fu Lin: “What?”
The nanny immediately brought over a soft cushion shaped like a turtle shell and placed it on the chair. Lan Xi climbed up and sat down, finally comfortable.
He sat there for a while.
Lan Xi patted Fu Lin’s trouser leg beside him. “Want water.”
Fu Lin: “…”
Both children were remarkably good at ordering him around.
Lan Xi drank some water and watched Tom and Jerry for a while. It was already very late, and the sky outside had grown terribly dark.
He became anxious. “Fu Hui still not back.”
“That’s right. I told you he won’t be back until tomorrow.”
Lan Xi’s anxiety was far greater than anyone had expected. He bit his lip, looking as though he was about to cry. “No, no…”
For a moment, even Fu Lin wondered whether he had committed some terrible crime.
He reminded Lan Xi, “It’s time for you to sleep.”
Lan Xi stared at the pitch-black sky. “Outside dark. Lots of bad things. Fu Hui still not back…”
Lan Xi looked to Fu Lin for help.
“He’ll be fine.” Fu Lin softened his voice.
The bodyguard had just told him that Fu Hui had gone to find his mother, Song Xu.
Lan Xi was so anxious he stood up on the chair. “No, no…”
He did not know how to describe what was frightening about the darkness.
Clutching the chair, Lan Xi suddenly bent over and vomited.
He felt awful, sobbing while he threw up, and it frightened Fu Lin badly. At that point, whatever Lan Xi actually was no longer mattered. Fu Lin hurriedly took him to the hospital.
After an examination…
“The child simply ate too much,” the doctor said.
Fu Lin: “…”
Even so, Lan Xi stayed in the hospital overnight and eventually fell asleep in a daze.
Fu Lin was afraid he would have no way to explain things to his son, so he stayed by Lan Xi’s bedside the entire night.
The next day, just after dawn, Fu Lin was awakened by the sound of Lan Xi sniffling.
He jolted awake, feeling as though he had aged ten years overnight.
“What’s wrong?” Fu Lin asked.
Lan Xi was deeply aggrieved. “Fell asleep. Didn’t wait for Fu Hui…”
Fu Lin understood. With a weathered expression, he sighed softly.
He was conflicted too. The guiltier he felt toward his son, the less willing he was to gamble with his son’s safety.
At eleven that morning, Lan Xi, once again full of life, returned home and sat in the same chair.
Fu Lin also received a call from his son.
Hearing the rush of wind on the other end, Fu Lin asked, “Where are you?”
“On a plane. I’m in Russian airspace right now, forty thousand feet above the ground.” Fu Hui paused, then said with great seriousness, “I still really like Lan Xi, Dad.”