Billionaire's Long Journey of Chasing His Love-Chapter 253 - 241: Braised Chopped Paws (Third Update)
After Mi Chenshuo came out, he actually talked to Yan Zi. Yan Zi was so moved that she nearly burst into tears.
Seeing his sister feeling so wronged, Long Che couldn’t hold back anymore. He raised his leg and kicked Mi Chenshuo, sending him staggering and nearly falling down.
"Get back to your room! Clean it up properly before you come out again."
Mi Chenshuo didn’t dare utter a word and quickly went upstairs.
Tong Yao glanced at Long Che displeasedly, "That kick may have felt good for you, but imagine how much Yan Zi and Xiaotian must worry about him."
"Worry? Are you kidding? If you don’t kick him awake, who knows how far gone he’d end up!" Long Che frowned and looked at Yan Zi. "Don’t let him go home to live. Leave him here; I’ll take care of him for you!"
"Brother, Rui’er and Nuo’er already have girlfriends. How do you expect him, as their older brother, to live here?" Yan Zi was still a little worried about her son, trying to find a way to avoid having him stay.
Long Che lifted his eyelids and shot his sister a look, "He’s been living here since his teens. Did I not raise him well, or beat him to death?"
Mi Xiaotian quickly grabbed Yan Zi’s hand, "Listen to Brother."
"I’ll listen to Brother, but what about Shuoshuo? Will he listen?"
"He wouldn’t dare!" Long Che slammed the teacup heavily onto the coffee table.
Yan Zi pouted and didn’t dare say another word.
Lady Jing Ya rubbed her forehead, "Yan Zi, just listen to your brother. You can’t keep letting Shuoshuo continue like this. Isn’t there me and your sister-in-law at home? Your brother won’t make things too hard for Shuoshuo."
"I wouldn’t mistreat him—I’d hit him so hard he wouldn’t dare act up again! A kid with no bigger worries, and now he thinks he rules the world. Look at my five children; none of them behave like this."
"Were the five siblings raised by you? How they turned out well is thanks to my sister-in-law!" With her sister-in-law and mother backing her up, Yan Zi’s courage grew.
"Always arguing back with me. If you’re so capable, why don’t you start arguing with your son instead?" Long Che shot her a sharp look.
Lance and Qiqi had been silent for a while. They exchanged a look and quietly slipped out of the living room. Monica, carrying Duoduo, followed them out.
"You two bite at each other for no reason, making the children feel awkward!" Tong Yao stood up, separating the siblings’ glaring competition. She turned to Yan Zi, "If you let Shuoshuo go home now, he obviously wouldn’t go. But letting him wander outside all the time isn’t a solution either. Let him live here for a few days. If you’re worried, you could temporarily move back too."
Yan Zi furrowed her brows. "If I come back, he’ll definitely run away again. Why has this child grown to resent me so much? Sigh... I might as well keep my distance from him."
"Then how about I look after him for a few days? Would that ease your mind?"
Yan Zi glanced at Tong Yao apologetically. "Sister-in-law, these two kids have troubled you since their childhood, and now that they’re grown, you’re still burdened. I don’t even know what to say anymore."
"We’re family; what’s there to say?" Tong Yao smiled. "Your brother cares about you—he’s just terrible at expressing it. Don’t take it personally."
Long Che unhappily tugged at Tong Yao’s hand.
Tong Yao shot him a warning glare.
Long Che immediately released his grip.
Seeing her brother being put in his place, Yan Zi laughed out loud.
Long Che let out a disgruntled snort in her direction before turning to Tong Yao, "Talk to Rui’er about the house—it’s already renovated. Tell them not to keep Yi Luowa traveling back and forth. It’s not safe."
Tong Yao suddenly turned her head. "Do those two really need you spelling it out? When you were scolding Ni’er earlier, Yi Luowa already understood what you meant. Stop meddling in everything. Young people need their own lives. If you keep tying them down, it’ll backfire."
"I’m just worried about her!" Long Che mumbled, feeling his wife’s temper today was unusually fierce. He decided it was best to say less.
Seeing him go quiet, Tong Yao sighed and sat down. "Thinking about how Yake suddenly has to carry such a heavy burden—it’s hard for me to feel okay about it."
Long Che took her hand and held it tightly. His wife’s bad mood clearly stemmed from Yake’s situation. But this was Yake’s fate, and no one could change it.
Not long after Ai Ni and the old man returned, Tong Aino brought Connie back as well.
Yi Luowa was sitting on the balcony. Seeing everyone returned, she gently helped Tong Airui, who was lying on her lap, get up and head downstairs.
"Finally, you’re coming down!" Tong Aino joked. "We were just debating who’d go fetch you two upstairs."
"Scram!" Tong Airui shot him a sinister look.
Tong Aino made a face. "Tonight, I’m ringing your doorbell!"
"I’ll chop off your hands and stew them!" Tong Airui scanned the living room. "Why’s everyone still sitting here? Is anyone missing?"
"Kaikai called—he’ll be here soon." Tong Yao smiled and patted the sofa. "Yi Luowa, come sit."
"Slowpoke is coming?" Tong Airui pulled Yi Luowa down to sit, his face suspicious. "Did he say what brought him here?"
Tong Yao nodded. "Said he has a patient he wants to check on."
Tong Airui glanced at Mi Chenshuo.
"Old Seven is coming. Stay here for a few days, okay?"
"Okay." Mi Chenshuo responded sullenly.
"Look at your sorry face—it could entertain fifteen people for half a month!" Tong Airui tossed an orange at him.
Mi Chenshuo caught it quickly and threw it back.
Startled, Yi Luowa immediately dodged into Tong Yao’s arms.
Tong Airui caught the orange with ease, smiling as he said, "Don’t be scared. Watch this—I’m aiming for his right eye this time."
Mi Chenshuo instinctively protected his right eye, but Tong Airui, true to form, didn’t do what he said—the orange landed squarely on Mi Chenshuo’s stomach.
"Tong Fourth, are you even a man?!" Mi Chenshuo shouted in annoyance.
Tong Airui curled his lips into a smirk. "Whether I’m a man or not, my wife knows—that’s all that matters. Why should I prove it to you?"
"Tong Fourth isn’t a man—I can vouch for that!" Mai Kaikai laughed as he walked in.
"Tch~" Tong Airui rolled his eyes at him. "You’re only here to annoy me. If I’d known earlier, I wouldn’t have waited for you to eat dinner!"
Tong Yao chuckled and got up, calling everyone to eat.
Yan Zi stole a glance at Mi Chenshuo. Seeing the smile return to his face, she felt relieved—it seemed letting her son live here was a good choice.
The house turned lively again. Everyone was present except Sha Xuan. That evening, the group gathered to chat and laugh, filling the air with warmth.
At ten o’clock sharp, Tong Airui stood up, pulling Yi Luowa with him. "My wife has class tomorrow—time for us to head to bed. Don’t stay up too late chatting."
The group waved dismissively, urging them to go quickly.
Tong Aino quipped, "Hurry, once night falls, you lose all interest in chatting with us. Sticking it out this long is impressive!"
Yi Luowa playfully waved a fist at him and followed Tong Airui back to the bedroom.
As Yi Luowa was getting her pajamas, Jimo Shanshan called.
Tong Airui frowned. "It’s this late—why’s she calling? Don’t answer. We should shower instead."
Yi Luowa handed him the pajamas. "You shower first. Shanshan wouldn’t call unless it was important."
Seeing her answer the call, Tong Airui resigned himself and went into the bathroom.
"Shanshan, why are you still awake at this hour?" Yi Luowa climbed into bed, pulling the duvet over herself.
"I’m on night shift today—just dealt with an emergency. Yi Luowa, has Mai Kaikai arrived yet?"
"Mm-hmm, we were chatting just now. Shanshan, if you’re so concerned about him, why don’t you call him directly?" Yi Luowa teased with a laugh.
Jimo Shanshan sighed. "He blocked me."
"Haha... Why’d he block you?"
"Remember when I mentioned to his senior sisters that we were cohabiting...?"
"Hold on!" Yi Luowa burst into laughter, clutching the duvet. It took her a while to respond. "Haha... Shanshan, you’re bold! Pulling out a move like that!"
Jimo Shanshan pouted. "You don’t understand—he asked one of his senior sisters to introduce girlfriends to him in front of me! I was so mad, I blurted it out. I was just scared those senior sisters would really find him a girlfriend."
"Shanshan, you amaze me!" Yi Luowa rubbed her stomach, sore from laughing. She glanced at the door. "I’m back in the bedroom. How about this—I’ll find a chance to talk to Old Seven tomorrow."
"Yi Luowa, I’m not calling so you’ll talk some sense into him. I need to confirm something."
"What is it? Go ahead."
"What’s Mai Kaikai’s dad’s name?"
"Huh?" Yi Luowa scratched her head, stumped. Tong Airui’s family was large, and the eldest uncle hardly ever visited. She couldn’t think of it immediately. "Well, it’s definitely Mai something..."
"Haha..." Jimo Shanshan’s laughter came from the phone. "Of course Mai Kaikai’s dad’s last name is Mai!"
"Shenglun... Mai Shenglun!" Yi Luowa suddenly recalled the name. "Why are you asking about this out of the blue?"
"Ah! It really is him! You know I mentioned the emergency earlier? The people who brought him in said he fainted from exhaustion. When I checked, his heart wasn’t in great shape. At that moment, I realized he looked a lot like Mai Kaikai, which made me want to confirm it with you."
"The eldest uncle fainted?!" Yi Luowa grew tense. "Is it serious?"
"He’s fine now—already awake. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have time to chat with you."
"Should I tell Old Seven?" Yi Luowa was uncertain.
"Don’t tell him. He’s about to perform a highly important surgery. If successful, he’ll become a leading figure in our field. And when his dad woke up, his first words were to keep his illness a secret from his wife and son. If he wants to hide it, let’s help him. Plus, I’m here—I won’t let anything happen to him."
Yi Luowa thought for a moment. "Shanshan, I’ll leave it to you then."
"Don’t worry about it, Yi Luowa. I’m not telling you so you’ll care. But don’t mention this to Mai Kaikai. Whether he returns or not won’t make a difference. If it impacts his focus and the surgery fails, it wouldn’t be worth it."
After saying goodbye to Jimo Shanshan, Yi Luowa dashed to the bathroom door. Just as she was about to knock, Tong Airui came out.
"Uncle’s sick—what should we do?"
"I’ll call them to check. You go shower first."
"You finished showering?" Yi Luowa stared at him, noticing his hair wasn’t even wet.