Su Ran keenly sensed that something was off between the two.
Not exactly confrontational,
but there was a kind of distance that seemed deliberately maintained by mutual consent.
Old Master Fu made some small talk before turning and heading upstairs.
In the living room, Chu Xiyao kept bonding with Mrs. Fu.
"Don’t judge Qi Yuan by his cool and aloof childhood demeanor, but even then, he showed quite a bit of leadership. All of us kids liked to follow him and would always turn to him whenever there was trouble.
Especially Qi Xiu, he was the naughtiest and most mischievous as a kid, and he loved to stir up trouble. Every time he caused a problem, he’d try to pin the blame on Qi Yuan, but despite that, he couldn’t escape a good beating! Yet, he never seemed to learn, continuing his mischief and mishaps, which really angered Grandpa Fu!"
"Hey, what do you mean I loved causing trouble? What do you mean I never learned? I was clearly the most well-behaved, obedient, sensible, honest, and simple kid, okay?"
Fu Qixiu couldn’t stand it anymore, making it sound as if he deserved a good thrashing.
Chu Xiyao covered her mouth with a smile, "Yes, yes, yes, you didn’t break Grandpa Fu’s favorite vase and blame it on Qi Yuan, and you didn’t overfeed all the goldfish in the aquarium to death and blame it on the servants, Second Young Master is the most simple indeed!"
Su Ran arched an eyebrow and smiled as she looked at a red-faced Fu Qixiu nearby.
So, someone’s talent for courting disaster had been brewing since childhood!
Mentioning her sons’ childhood stories, Mrs. Fu also showed great interest.
Her face maintained a smile, and her eyes were curved into crescents from laughter.
"Indeed, compared to Qi Yuan, Qi Xiu was much more mischievous as a child. There was this one time he wrongfully blamed his brother and got caught by his father. He nearly got hung up and beaten. I asked him later why he didn’t take responsibility for his own mistakes and instead blamed his brother. Do you know how Qi Xiu answered?"
Everyone looked at Mrs. Fu with curiosity, even Fu Qixiu pricked up his ears.
Mrs. Fu smiled and said,
"Qi Xiu said, isn’t the role of a brother to take the blame and face the trouble? Otherwise, why would he be the younger brother, and Qi Yuan the older brother!"
After Mrs. Fu finished speaking, the living room fell silent.
Su Ran couldn’t help but twitch at the corners of her mouth as she looked up at Fu Qiyuan beside her.
Could this be the legendary... throwing his brother under the bus?!!!
Fu Qixiu grinned smugly, "So, young master me already had such strategic brains back then!"
Have some shame, will you?
Mrs. Fu smiled again and added,
"Later, I also asked Qi Yuan why, knowing that Qi Xiu was at fault, he was still willing to take the blame for him. Guess how Qi Yuan replied?"
"How did Qi Yuan respond?"
Chu Xiyao asked curiously, and everyone in the living room, except for Fu Qiyuan, turned their attention to Mrs. Fu.
"Qi Yuan said, Qi Xiu’s brain has never worked well, and as a brother, it’s no big deal to sometimes take the blame for him!!"
The living room was quiet again, and then,
Someone couldn’t hold back their laughter!
Afterward, Chu Xiyao also started laughing quietly.
She looked up at Fu Qiyuan’s face with an elegant and beautiful smile.
"The relationship between Qi Yuan and Qi Xiu has always been good..."
Su Ran turned her head to look at the man beside her, ignoring Chu Xiyao’s deliberate past stories that left her with no chance to interject, but she had to admit,
The relationship between these brothers really was very close.
One willing to hit, the other willing to endure!
Fu Qiyuan raised an eyebrow at the girl, "What’s up?"
"I didn’t expect you to be such a good brother who cares for his younger sibling!"
Fu Qiyuan tugged at his lip, "No matter how poorly his brain functions, he still is my brother."
Su Ran couldn’t help but laugh softly.
Meanwhile, upon hearing this, Fu Qixiu looked as if he had been struck by lightning?
"What?! My brain doesn’t work?! Who said that? I’m obviously smart, clever, wise, insightful, not only intellectually outstanding but also incredibly knowledgeable. In what way does my brain not work?!!"
Having some self-awareness is better, right?
Fu Qixiu was heartbroken, his face showing resentment. He looked at his mother with a face full of grievance and hope.
"Mom, is my brain not working well?"
Tao Wanqing nodded, "Mmm, it’s not working well."
He then turned to look at the servant standing nearby. "Is my brain not working well?"
The servant immediately cast down their gaze, nodded, then shook their head.
The expressions on Fu Qixiu’s face instantly collapsed, and at last, he turned to Su Ran, pinning all his hopes on her.
Su Ran laughed, "Second Young Master is very smart."
Fu Qixiu’s eyes suddenly lit up as he blinked his large eyes.
At this moment, Chu Xiyao sighed softly, seemingly lamenting, "The days of our childhood were truly beautiful, carefree. Qi Yuan was like an older brother, protecting me and everyone. It’s a pity that we’ve all grown up now!"
Tao Wanqing merely smiled faintly, not continuing the conversation.
Whereas Fu Qixiu, as if he hadn’t heard a thing, still blinked his bright, gleaming eyes at Su Ran.
"Sister-in-law, sister-in-law, am I really smart? Where? Where am I smart?!"
Su Ran: "You look smart."
In just four words, Fu Qixiu’s joyous expression plummeted from the heavens into an abyss.
Trembling, he pointed at Su Ran, his lips quivering as if he were at a dance party, his sadness overwhelming.
Finally, with a "woof", he threw himself next to Tao Wanqing and began to tattle without a second thought.
"Mom, sister-in-law is picking on me."
Tao Wanqing glanced at him with irritation, "Nonsense, your sister-in-law simply spoke the truth."
Fu Qixiu, stabbed by his mother’s betrayal: "..."
He clutched his little heart, utterly heartbroken.
"Mom, I’m your own son. You can’t forget your son just because you have a daughter-in-law."
Tao Wanqing huffed lightly, "You can also bring me a daughter-in-law home!"
Fu Qiyuan added salt to the wound: "He’d have to be capable of that first!"
Fu Qixiu, already backstabbed by his sister-in-law and mother, then undercut by his own brother: "..."
It’s as if he never said anything.
Seeing that no one was paying attention to her, Chu Xiyao’s face stiffened a bit. She looked straight at Fu Qiyuan, her expression tinged with concealed sadness.
However, Fu Qiyuan’s attention was fully on Su Ran, and from beginning to end, he hadn’t spared her a single glance.
Chu Xiyao bit her lip sharply, sat on the sofa, her face embarrassed and awkward.
Why can’t he ever see her in his eyes?
For him to take just one look at her?
After the lunch was prepared, Old Master Fu came downstairs again. He gave Mrs. Fu a glance but said nothing.
Finally, at his insistent request, Chu Xiyao stayed at the Fu family home to have lunch together.
Mrs. Fu returned, and today, the Fu family was unusually lively.
Throughout the meal, Chu Xiyao kept observing Fu Qiyuan and Su Ran across her.
Fu Qiyuan habitually served food to Su Ran, putting peeled shrimp into her bowl, followed by a piece of fish. After picking out the bones, he placed it in her bowl and didn’t forget to remind her.
Su Ran gave him a sweet smile in return and then started enjoying her food.