Spoiled by a Paranoid Big Shot Since Childhood - Chapter 18

The teary-eyed Qin Siyu finally got to eat the tiramisu he had been longing for, and this incredibly delicious dessert was more than enough to soothe his spirits. He solemnly declared that from this day forward, Comrade Xi Bei was his official idol, and if anyone dared to mess with Xi Bei, he would be the second person to rush into the fray.

As for why he was the second well, that first spot obviously had to belong to Qin Yian.

Uncle Gu watched the now-spirited Qin Siyu, whose face was still streaked with dried tears, and couldn’t help but chuckle before turning his gaze to a beaming Xi Bei.

Xi Bei was truly a little sun. He always faced everyone he met with warmth and openness; even if people treated him poorly at first, he never held a grudge. A sun would never stop shining just because someone didn’t like it. The sun was always radiant. It wasn’t just this difficult, rebellious Qin Siyu; even the cold and sharp-tongued Qin Yian treated Xi Bei as his most precious treasure. He might ignore anyone else’s words, but he would never disregard Xi Bei’s.

Qin Siyu wanted more tiramisu. He gazed at Xi Bei with pleading eyes, even calling out “Brother Bei, Brother Bei” with great enthusiasm. Xi Bei opened the refrigerator door to check, but besides the portion reserved for Qin Yian, there wasn’t much left. He scooped out his own portion and placed it happily into Qin Siyu’s bowl. “Here you go!”

Qin Siyu cheered, “That’s great! Thanks, Brother Bei! You gave me so much!! Wait, Brother Bei, you didn’t eat any yet, did you? Should we eat together?”

Bang. The refrigerator door slammed shut.

Qin Yian caught Xi Bei’s hand and displayed his own portion to Qin Siyu. A full, panoramic display. The ladyfingers were soaked to soft, fragrant perfection in coffee liqueur; the cocoa powder was rich and mellow; the mascarpone cream was full and smooth; the presentation was impeccable. It was larger and more neatly plated than Qin Siyu’s.

“Mine,” Qin Yian said calmly. “It’s fine. I can’t finish it anyway.”

Xi Bei couldn’t help but burst into a soft giggle. Qin Siyu pouted in defeat, not daring to talk back like a timid quail. He muttered a silent “I’m not jealous” to himself and continued to urge Xi Bei, “Let’s eat together?”

Qin Yian didn’t say a word. He simply used his spoon to dig out a large portion and quickly fed it into Xi Bei’s mouth. Then, he used his fingertip to wipe away a smear of cream from the corner of Xi Bei’s mouth and, without a hint of hesitation, licked the cream off his own finger.

“…” Qin Siyu’s nose twitched; he felt like crying again. Why was Qin Yian like this?! Was Xi Bei his alone!?

Before they could fully appreciate Qin Siyu’s inner “meltdown,” Qin Yian noticed Uncle Gu walking over with a smile, gently interrupting them. “Young Masters, you haven’t had lunch yet; you must be hungry. Let’s have dinner a bit earlier today.”

By around four in the afternoon, dinner was ready.

“Let’s sit together, young masters,” Uncle Gu said as he served them. “Mr. Qin will likely call to check on Young Master Siyu during the meal, so please be ready to take the call when it comes.”

Qin Yian picked up food for Xi Bei, and Qin Siyu, refusing to be outdone, reached out to do the same. Xi Bei set down his own small bowl and picked up some dishes for both of them.

“Mmph, thanks…”

Qin Siyu took a few bites of what Xi Bei had served him, his cheeks puffed out. While he was talking to Xi Bei and Qin Yian, that feeling of being “abandoned” by his parents seemed to have vanished, and he had been quite happy for a while. But now, that feeling seemed to be creeping back. His mom and dad weren’t calling him; it was Qin Yian’s father who would be calling.

He slowed his chewing, his eyes reddening. After a moment, he pretended nothing was wrong and shoveled his food into his mouth.

The others at the table noticed the shift. The atmosphere suddenly turned unexpectedly heavy. Qin Yian observed his demeanor, slowed his own pace, and said calmly:

“I can’t finish these shrimp balls.”

Xi Bei’s eyes flickered. He bit the tip of his chopsticks and gently rested his leg against Qin Yian’s. Qin Siyu had just finished all the shrimp balls in front of him, but he was a bit too embarrassed to reach for someone else’s. Hearing Qin Yian’s words, his eyes lit up. He whispered:

“Can I have them then?”

Qin Yian didn’t respond; he simply pushed the plate toward him. The stifling atmosphere suddenly lifted. Qin Siyu, cheered up, took a big bite of a shrimp ball with a smile.

Xi Bei’s eyes curved into little crescent moons. He reached out and tugged on Qin Yian’s sleeve. His look of adoration was incredibly cute, his pink lips slightly parted, his sparkling, watery eyes almost hypnotic. He smiled and mouthed: An’an is the best.

Qin Yian’s lashes fluttered and then trembled. He still wouldn’t let his tongue be soft: “Can’t finish it feed it to the glutton.”

Qin Siyu didn’t get angry; he just stuck his tongue out behind Qin Yian’s back.

As the three of them were finishing their meal, Qin Yueyuan’s call came right on cue.

“Beep—beep—beep—”

“Hello, sir. It’s me,” Uncle Gu nodded. “Yes, I understand.”

Uncle Gu put the call on speaker and placed the phone next to Qin Siyu. The group immediately heard Qin Yueyuan’s voice.

“Xiaoyu, how was your day? Are you getting settled in?” Qin Yueyuan was flipping through documents. “Your parents asked me to take good care of you; they’ve been—”

Qin Siyu hung his head over his bowl, looking a bit miserable as he turned his face away. “I’m doing great! Thank you, Uncle! But I still don’t want to talk to them right now. They’re already divorced! Even though I still love them, I don’t need them to love me anymore—”

“…Huh?”

Qin Yueyuan stopped flipping through his files.

“It doesn’t matter if they don’t love me, I’m very strong! After they divorced, I’ll live by myself, go to school by myself, and be by myself…”

Qin Siyu choked up, but when he thought of his “strong” idol, Xi Bei, he proudly and stubbornly lifted his head, looking like a martyr ready to face his fate. The others at the table were almost moved to tears, and even Uncle Gu looked on with a sense of relief.

Qin Yueyuan: “…?”

Qin Yueyuan took a deep breath. “Who told you that your parents are divorced?”

“…?”

Everyone was dumbfounded. Wasn’t that a fact? Uncle Gu had heard that Qin Siyu’s parents were arguing about a divorce, and Qin Siyu had said directly that they didn’t want him… how could what he heard with his own ears be wrong?!

“Ten years ago, when your parents were dating, they’d threaten to break up every three days and divorce every five. Every time, they’d use the excuse of ‘not knowing who gets custody of the family dog’ to justify their arguments, and then they’d make up.”

Qin Yueyuan’s voice went numb. “After you were born, they started using the excuse of ‘not knowing who gets custody of you’ instead…”

Qin Siyu’s mouth hung wide open in shock; Xi Bei blinked in deep thought. Only Qin Yian caught on immediately. He crossed his arms, leaned back in his chair, and said coldly:

“As expected, the dog is the main character.”

“…!?!” Qin Siyu shouted in shock. “Th-then they didn’t divorce? Why did they dump me here then?”

Qin Yueyuan was silent for a moment, seemingly finding it hard to say: “…Because they went on their honeymoon.”

“Their… eighty-ninth or ninetieth honeymoon, I believe.”

“…”

The entire Qin residence fell into silence. A profound, deep silence. In that deathly stillness, Uncle Gu couldn’t help himself and burst into a laugh. The servants working nearby couldn’t contain their mirth either, laughing until they were doubled over. In the end, even Xi Bei covered his face and chuckled, watching Qin Siyu, whose face had turned a deep, burning red, bury his head in his bowl.

A moment later, Qin Yian called out to Qin Siyu: “Do you want me to help you find something?”

Qin Siyu’s ears were bright red, his voice trembling as he muffled, “…Find what?”

“A crack in the floor to crawl into.”

After Qin Yian delivered his cold, stinging sarcasm, even he couldn’t help but quirk his lips and let out a soft laugh.

At 7:30 PM, after the evening news ended, Qin Siyu finally grabbed the remote to change the channel, shouting as he flipped through the stations. If Xie Ye was destined to be a wild, playboy young master, Qin Siyu was destined to be a… failed rebel, a silly goose.

When he started howling along to Fairy Tail for the second time, Qin Yian grabbed Xi Bei, ready to head upstairs. Qin Siyu reached out to stop them, calling out, “Hey! This is really good! Don’t you guys want to watch?”

Xi Bei couldn’t help but smile. “It does look really good! But An’an…”

“Ahhh, Brother Bei, stay and watch with me! It’s really good,” Qin Siyu wailed. “I beg you…”

Xi Bei hesitated, instinctively looking up at Qin Yian, testing the waters: “How about…”

Qin Siyu was also very expectant: “How about…”

Both sets of eyes focused on Qin Yian.

“How about? No.”

Qin Yian stopped him coldly, swept him up in his arms, carried him right past Qin Siyu, and quickly headed upstairs. He shut the door with a loud bang.

Alone in the room, Xi Bei sat on the soft quilt, not angry in the slightest, waiting for Qin Yian to speak.

“He’s happy enough now,” Qin Yian declared. “I’m not.”

Xi Bei said obediently, “Why aren’t you happy?”

Qin Yian had hidden his thoughts for a long time. He paused for a while before asking slowly: “If he thinks the tiramisu isn’t good, will you be sad?”

Long used to Qin Yian’s slightly jumping train of thought, Xi Bei propped his chin on his hands and mused, “Hmm…”

Before Xi Bei could answer, Qin Yian, unable to contain his obvious restlessness, pinched his lips shut:

“Don’t say it.”

Xi Bei couldn’t help but smile: “Why, mmph?”

“You said you only care if I think it’s tasty,” Qin Yian frowned. “Now you care about him too.”

If this kept up, what would happen? Would Xi Bei give him little milks to drink later? Would he want to be best friends with him, too? Impossible!

Xi Bei was stunned for a second, then couldn’t help but laugh. His eyes curved, his expression bright, and he collapsed onto the bed.

“…Don’t laugh.” Qin Yian leaned over and covered his little mouth, frowning. “Why are you laughing?”

“…Mmph, laughing at An’an, you’re a silly goose, mmph,” Xi Bei laughed until he was shaking in Qin Yian’s arms. “I’m just being nice to him because of you.”

Finally, Xi Bei rolled over, smilingly releasing the constraint on his lips. “Because he’s An’an’s cousin, and An’an doesn’t hate him anymore, right? So, I want to be a little nicer to your cousin.”

Qin Yian froze. His fingers curled involuntarily, seemingly still lingering on the soft touch of Xi Bei’s lips.

One laughing, one stunned their gazes remained locked together. The air was surprisingly quiet. It wasn’t awkward or strange; it was just their hearts beating wildly out of control, likely because they both felt that the person in front of them was simply too good, too wonderful, and thank goodness, they were mine.

The quiet atmosphere was eventually broken by a light knock on the door. Xi Bei glanced at Qin Yian, climbed off the bed with a smile, and went to open it.

“…Brother Bei!” Qin Siyu poked his head in cautiously. “Um, you two aren’t fighting, right?”

Xi Bei’s eyes remained on Qin Yian, who had regained his calm expression. He shook his head and smiled: “Of course not!”

“Then I…” Qin Siyu squeezed in, grabbing his shirt in embarrassment. “I saw this morning that you two sleep together, right?”

Qin Yian answered for him: “Yes.”

“Then today…”

Xi Bei tilted his head in confusion.

“Can I sleep with you guys today?!” Qin Siyu’s eyes were super bright. “Can I sleep in the middle?”