The Heir to the Seven Killers in the City

Chapter 47: So-Called Fun

After the big fight, Qin Yu had gone straight to the Police Station, so he’d been on edge the whole time—it hadn’t been easy. Seeing these three finally put his mind at ease. So he leaned against Zhang Xiaofei’s car and fell into a deep sleep. The other three tried to be considerate of him, even speaking in much softer voices. In fact, the three of them didn’t have much to say anyway—especially Zhang Qiqi and Lin Xiaorui. While Lin Xiaorui was still somewhat okay because she understood Qin Yu’s feelings, Zhang Qiqi was truly suffering. Lin Xiaorui could see the pain behind Zhang Qiqi’s forced smile. She actually wanted to treat the young girl like a younger sister, but at that moment, she didn’t know how to comfort her. So she glanced at Zhang Xiaofei, who immediately understood what she meant. “Hey, my cutest little sister, what are we having for lunch today? I’m starving,” Zhang Xiaofei said. Zhang Qiqi stared at her older brother for a moment, then pretended nothing was wrong and said, “Don’t just bring up random topics. Didn’t we just have breakfast half an hour ago?” “What your brother means is, we could make something nice for lunch today. Since I’m here, how about I help you in the kitchen?” Lin Xiaorui said, speaking as if they were old friends. “No need. You’re our guest—I’ll handle it. Besides, if you help out, my brother will just sit around. I can’t let him get off that easy,” Zhang Qiqi said without even glancing at Lin Xiaorui. After that, the three didn’t exchange many more words. Before long, they arrived home, and Qin Yu woke up on his own. After getting out of the car, he looked up and took a good look at his home—a villa that was by no means small, set in pleasant surroundings. Only then did Qin Yu realize just how wonderful his new home was; it seemed he hadn’t known how to enjoy life before. Zhang Xiaofei tapped him on the shoulder from behind. Qin Yu turned to him and asked what was wrong. Zhang Xiaofei immediately lost his patience and snapped, “Haven’t you noticed you’re blocking the doorway, you idiot!” Zhang Xiaofei and Qin Yu bickered their way inside like that, while Zhang Qiqi and Lin Xiaorui followed awkwardly behind. Qin Yu must have been too exhausted; once inside, he barely exchanged a few words with everyone before asking to go to his room to sleep—though he didn’t forget to take a shower before bed. After Zhang Xiaofei’s relentless matchmaking efforts, Zhang Qiqi and Lin Xiaorui were practically dragged into the kitchen. As for him, he settled into the living room to watch TV. “Don’t take this the wrong way, but my brother… well, he’s not always the sharpest tool in the shed, so sometimes I don’t even want to treat him like a human being,” Zhang Qiqi said awkwardly, making Lin Xiaorui laugh. “That’s the first time I’ve ever heard someone talk about their own brother like that,” Lin Xiaorui said with a smile, then continued, “But your brother really is quite a character.” The two of them seemed to have struck up a conversation thanks to Zhang Xiaofei, and Lin Xiaorui didn’t want to let the opportunity slip by. She kept asking questions, and Zhang Qiqi eventually revealed that she, too, was an orphan—a revelation that instantly brought them closer. Lin Xiaorui then shared some stories from her own childhood, and the tactic worked like a charm; Zhang Qiqi began telling her own stories as well. As she spoke about her brother, she suddenly thought of Qin Yu. The moment she mentioned his name, she froze and looked at Lin Xiaorui, who also froze, unsure of what to do. Zhang Qiqi swallowed hard, then decided to continue. “Big Brother Qin has always been the best friend to both my brother and me. He got along really well with my brother, but back then, my brother thought he was always up to mischief and didn’t want to take me along. Big Brother Qin was different—he loved playing with me.” Zhang Qiqi smiled as she recalled the memory, then continued. “I remember back then, when I was being bullied, my brother was out playing, and only Brother Qin was there. Back then, Brother Qin wasn’t as burly as he is now. The food at the nursing home really wasn’t very good, so everyone was thin and frail. Brother Qin got into a fight with three guys for my sake, and he even got a little hurt.” As she spoke, tears began to fall down her cheeks for some reason. Lin Xiaorui could see how pitiful the little girl really was—she even felt sorry for herself—so she pulled her into a hug and patted her on the back. Zhang Qiqi began to cry even harder, and for some reason, Lin Xiaorui felt like the TV in the living room had suddenly gotten a notch louder. “Sister Xiaorui, I know you’re a good person. You’re beautiful and graceful. I have no complaints that Brother Qin likes you, but I… I’m just such a failure,” Zhang Qiqi sobbed heavily as she leaned against Lin Xiaorui’s chest. Lin Xiaorui patted her on the back and comforted her, “Silly girl, just don’t let this get you down. Brother Qin will still be Brother Qin, and I’ll always treat you well too…” Zhang Qiqi gave a soft “Mm-hmm,” then continued crying in Lin Xinrui’s arms for a while longer. Finally, with red-rimmed eyes, she broke into a smile and said, “I guess I’ve gained another older sister now. That’s actually pretty nice. Dealing with those two rough-and-tumble guys every day was driving me crazy.” After she’d cried it out, Zhang Qiqi felt much better, though Lin Xiaorui wasn’t sure if she’d truly let go of her troubles. Still, there was nothing to be done about it—getting this far had already exceeded her expectations. Then the two suddenly started chatting and laughing as if they were close sisters, and they cooked a truly delicious meal. Even Qin Yu, who woke up later, was surprised to see them getting along so well. He glanced over at Zhang Xiaofei in the living room—he’d fallen asleep while watching *Animal World* on TV. To celebrate the fact that everything from the past few days had finally come to an end, they prepared a truly lavish lunch—with dishes and soup, the table was piled high even though there were only four of them eating. “Oh my gosh, sis, your cooking skills have really improved! Wait, wait—Miss Lin Xiaorui deserves a lot of the credit here,” Zhang Xiaofei said, unable to hold his tongue even as he ate. “You’re finally saying something right. Sister Xiaorui really deserves the credit for making this so delicious. It’s not like you usually say you’re just helping me out, but in the end, isn’t it still all me doing the work?” Zhang Qiqi said with a laugh, not missing a chance to take a dig at her older brother even while praising Lin Xiaorui. “Hey, what’s that supposed to mean? Your big brother worked really hard too. Haven’t you always been praising my knife skills? Let me tell you, I honed those skills back when I was out on the streets.” “Shut it. That was only because I really didn’t feel like cutting anymore, so I just let you take over to keep you happy.” As they exchanged these words, everyone laughed heartily. Qin Yu couldn’t have been happier as he watched this thriving scene. He thought to himself that having achieved all this, all his past efforts had been well worth it. Of course, he knew this wasn’t over yet, but for now, he’d allow himself a brief respite to savor this genuine happiness.