AAWOMAHI Chapter70

After Lu Yan and Xia Yuefang returned, they had only one thing on their mind: how to get Lu Xingmian to come back. But they quickly realized they didn’t know how to do it.

 

They didn’t know his likes or dislikes. They didn’t know what style of clothes he liked, what food he preferred, or what his hobbies were. Lu Xingmian had been with the Lu family for several months, yet they knew absolutely nothing about him.

 

With no other choice, Lu Yan called Song Mingyi to ask what Lu Xingmian liked.

 

Song Mingyi had just moved into his new, spacious, and bright house. His baby had just passed its 100th-day milestone, and he was rocking the child to sleep when he saw the caller ID. He was quite surprised; this was the first time the Lu family had ever reached out to them.

 

Lu Yan got straight to the point. The sudden question left Song Mingyi speechless. After thinking for a long time, he realized that he and his wife also had no idea what Lu Xingmian liked. It seemed they had paid very little attention to him since he was a child.

 

Lu Yan was annoyed. “He grew up with you, and you don’t even know what he likes?” Song Mingyi immediately grew defensive, thinking, “You’re his biological parents, and you don’t know either, do you?”

 

Unable to get any information from Song Mingyi, Lu Yan and his wife gave up. They tried to recall any details about Lu Xingmian but came up empty. They had to admit that they had never truly cared about him.

 

The only thing Xia Yuefang could remember was Lu Xingmian mentioning his insomnia and the time she got up in the middle of the night and was startled by him.

 

A thought sparked in Xia Yuefang’s mind. “We’ll buy him some calming things to show we were listening and that we care.” She said.

 

Lu Xingmian’s deepest desire was for family affection, wasn’t it? They would use that very thing to win him back, certain that Lu Xingmian would eventually soften.

 

But they had a new problem: neither of them had his contact information. This wasn’t a huge obstacle, though. Since Lu Xingmian was with Lu Shiran, he must be living with him.

 

Xia Yuefang staked out Lu Shiran’s villa for several days but didn’t see a trace of Lu Xingmian or even Lu Shiran himself.

 

With no other options, they paid a housekeeper at the villa for information. Lu Shiran hadn’t been home in a long time. Butler Hou frequently sent things to Shanglin Manor, so Lu Shiran was likely living there now.

 

Shanglin Manor is the most expensive residential area in Yancheng, with an excellent location. The price per square meter exceeds one million, and a single apartment costs over 100 million yuan. It’s a place most people could never dream of living in. Even at the height of his success, Lu Yan couldn’t bring himself to buy a property there.

 

The residents are mainly important figures and big celebrities. Naturally, the security is extremely tight, making it the safest community.

 

There was no way for Lu Yan and his wife to get in, and even if they did, they wouldn’t know which building Lu Shiran lived in either. So, they resorted to the most basic method: waiting at the community gate. They believed they would eventually see Lu Xingmian.

 

They took turns waiting at the entrance every day, from morning until night. After several days, they started to catch the attention of the security guards.

 

They initially thought they were dealing with paparazzi from a media company, since several big-name celebrities and important figures lived in the complex. But since they couldn’t get any good shots from this location, they figured the two were just very dedicated and persistent.

 

With the New Year approaching, the security guards couldn’t afford to be careless and kept a close watch to respond to any issues.

 

After several days, the two finally saw Lu Xingmian who was accompanied by Lu Shiran.

 

Lu Xingmian and Lu Shiran had just finished grocery shopping. The weather was nice and not too cold, so they decided to walk back to the complex from the supermarket.

 

Halfway there, Lu Xingmian got tired and asked Lu Shiran to carry him the rest of the way.

 

From a distance, Xia Yuefang spotted two blurry figures.

 

She didn’t think much of it, instinctively assuming they couldn’t be Lu Xingmian and Lu Shiran. “Lu Xingmian must be getting around in luxury cars now,” she thought.

 

Xia Yuefang recalled the days of being chauffeured in luxury cars. It felt like yesterday, a lifestyle they had enjoyed just a few months ago.

 

They had never waited so patiently before. The two figures slowly came closer. To her astonishment, it was Lu Shiran carrying Lu Xingmian on his back, a bag full of groceries in his hand. The head of the Lu clan was carrying someone.

 

Meanwhile, Lu Xingmian was eating an ice cream cone on Lu Shiran’s back.

 

It was a cold day, but Lu Xingmian insisted on having ice cream. When he didn’t get his way, he refused to walk, so Lu Shiran bought him one.

 

As they neared the complex, Lu Xingmian still had half his ice cream left. It was starting to melt, and some dripped onto Lu Shiran’s clothes. Lu Xingmian quickly tried to wipe it off, only to smear it more. This was a custom-made suit, after all.

 

Lu Xingmian said, “Ge, I got your clothes dirty.”

 

Lu Shiran replied, “It’s fine, it’s just a stain.”

 

Lu Xingmian couldn’t finish the rest of his ice cream. “Ge, I can’t eat any more. How about you help me finish it?”

 

Lu Shiran said, “Okay.”

 

Lu Xingmian held the remaining ice cream cone out, and Lu Shiran took a bite without hesitation.

 

Lu Xingmian kicked his legs to hurry Lu Shiran along. “Ge, walk faster. I have something to do at home.”

 

This kind of behavior was a bit rude, especially with Lu Shiran. Xia Yuefang expected the head of the Lu clan to be angry, but to her surprise, Lu Shiran didn’t look upset at all. Instead, he smiled and said, “Alright, I’ll walk faster.”

 

Xia Yuefang was taken aback. She had already found it unbelievable when she once saw Lu Shiran polishing his shoes, but what she was witnessing now surpassed even that.

 

Lu Shiran was so incredibly good to Lu Xingmian.

 

The two were getting closer.

 

“Mianmian,” Xia Yuefang hurried over. “You’re back.”

 

Seeing her and Lu Yan nearby, Lu Xingmian wasn’t surprised. He looked at her calmly and motioned for Lu Shiran to put him down. “Hello. May I know if there is something you need?”

 

Xia Yuefang froze. She had never seen Lu Xingmian act so polite and distant, so calm and indifferent toward her. Her heart sank. This was not a good sign.

 

She smiled gently. “Mianmian, Mom and Dad know we were wrong. Can you forgive us?”

 

Lu Xingmian had a look of confusion on his face. Did she not understand that day? I was so clear, he thought. But to Xia Yuefang, it looked like he was moved. She let out a small sigh of relief, convinced that Lu Xingmian was a soft-hearted child.

 

Lu Shiran’s brow furrowed slightly.

 

Xia Yuefang continued, “Mianmian, are you still having trouble with insomnia? Mom bought some calming and sleep-aiding tonics. I asked a doctor I know, and he said these should help with your symptoms.”

 

“We were wrong before. The reason we acted that way was because we didn’t raise you from a young age. When you suddenly appeared in front of us as a grown man, we didn’t know how to face you or how to get along with you.” She explained.

 

“We love you, Mianmian. If we didn’t, we wouldn’t have brought you back right away, would we? You don’t know how excited we were when we were about to get you back.”

 

“Mianmian, Mom and Dad know we made a mistake. Please forgive us. We’re a family.” She pleaded, her eyes welling up with tears that soon streamed down her face.

 

In her youth, Xia Yuefang had been a great beauty, and even in her forties, she was still very pretty. Her tearful, pitiful display was quite moving.

 

“Mianmian, please come back. Come back to your mom and dad. We can be a family together, okay?” She begged, a mother’s plea to her child.

 

To an outsider, it might have seemed like a touching scene. But Lu Xingmian knew full well they had never liked him—not from the beginning.

 

Unmoved, Lu Xingmian pulled out his phone.

 

An audio recording began to play. [Lu Xingmian, from now on, you have no more ties to the Lu family. Lu Sihang is our only son…]

 

When Xia Yuefang heard her own voice, she froze, staring at Lu Xingmian and the phone in his hand. Her tears stopped falling.

 

She clearly heard her own voice and Lu Yan’s, transporting her back to that day. The memory of them yelling at Lu Xingmian, their absolute resolve, and their arrogant behavior. Lu Yan had even hit him. At that time, it never once occurred to them that Lu Xingmian was their son.

 

Xia Yuefang opened her mouth to speak, but the words wouldn’t come out. She had no way to refute her own words. They were like clowns, their flimsy act exposed, their mask of hypocrisy ripped away.

 

She couldn’t bear to listen anymore.

 

When the recording finished, Lu Xingmian put his phone away. “These are your own words. Please don’t come looking for me again.”

 

He took Lu Shiran’s hand and walked into the complex.

 

Xia Yuefang watched Lu Xingmian disappear, unable to move or follow him. They had severed their relationship with him with their own hands.

 

In the elevator, Lu Shiran looked at Lu Xingmian with a sense of relief. He hadn’t been affected by the encounter.

 

“Why are you looking at me like that?” Lu Xingmian asked.

 

Lu Shiran patted his head. “What do you want for dinner tonight?”

 

“Hmm, let me think,” Lu Xingmian said, forgetting his question. “Ge, let’s have tomato beef.”

 

“Okay.” Lu Shiran agreed, knowing they had fresh tomatoes and beef in the fridge.

 

After they got home, Lu Xingmian took out all the groceries from the supermarket and put them away.

 

It was almost the New Year, and he had bought a lot of decorations.

 

Last year, Lu Xingmian thought he would be alone for the holidays, so he hadn’t bought anything. He was even prepared to make do with a bowl of instant noodles. But Lu Shiran had brought over many things to celebrate the New Year with him.

 

This year was different. Lu Xingmian had bought paper cuttings for the windows, couplets, lucky charms, and wall decorations. His back view as he unpacked the items radiated joy and anticipation.

 

While Lu Xingmian was busy, Lu Shiran sent a message to Butler Hou.

 

That evening, just after dinner, Lu Shiran received a call from Butler Hou.

 

Butler Hou, as efficient as ever, had already investigated and found that a housekeeper from the villa had revealed their current residence to Lu Yan and Xia Yuefang. He had already fired the person.

 

The housekeeper had worked for the Lu clan for nearly three years. Easily betraying the family’s trust was something that neither Lu Shiran nor Butler Hou would tolerate.