This was a rare exchange that didn’t devolve into a sarcastic argument.

After saying this, Li Yunhui himself found his “gentleness” unbelievably amusing.

…Perhaps it was because he hadn’t slept well these past two days and didn’t have the energy to wrangle with Li Zhengshen.

Li Yunhui found a reason for himself for the time being.

Having two video calls with Li Zhengshen in such a short period of time made Li Yunhui feel a bit unaccustomed.

However, he soon discovered that while the live stream didn’t bring much progress to their project, it had greatly increased the frequency of their video calls with Li Zhengshen.

Ever since the live stream was canceled, Li Shuyun would schedule a video call with Li Zhengshen every few days.

If he scheduled them, so be it. Li Yunhui felt uncomfortable and annoyed, and didn’t plan on continuing to be a bystander next to them.

Unfortunately, his brother had become clingy again.

If he refused to go, his brother would look at him with those obedient yet disappointed eyes, blinking, and then softly and gently call out in his ear, “Brother~ Brother—Brother!”

What older brother in this world could refuse his younger brother’s sweet pleading?

Of course not!

And so, Li Yunhui had no choice but to accompany his brother, completing every video call with Li Zhengshen.

…Was this perhaps the period in his life when he had seen Li Zhengshen the most frequently?

Li Yunhui thought with some uncertainty.

When Li Shuyun was on a video call with Li Zhengshen, he would always show great concern for Li Zhengshen:

“Dad, why do you have a new injury today? Does it hurt? How long will it take to heal? What did the doctor say?”

“Dad, when can you come back to the country and live with us? It’s much safer here than outside!”

“Dad, does the wound from last night still hurt? Have you been applying medicine properly? Has the previous wound healed completely now?”

“Dad, I want to buy you some snacks. You probably rarely get to eat things from home when you’re out there, right? I recently tried a super delicious cake and want you to try it too…”

Li Yunhui rarely inserted himself into their conversations.

More often, he was like a bystander accompanying his brother, listening to the father-son exchange between them.

Listening to Li Zhengshen’s injuries come and go, go and come.

Listening to his brother chat with Li Zhengshen about everything under the sun, from the general situation of the region to the business he was doing, and then to his life preferences, food, clothing, housing, and transportation—he showed concern for everything.

For the first time, Li Yunhui learned that Li Zhengshen had also once liked extreme sports, that Li Zhengshen also hated suits, that Li Zhengshen didn’t actually like work, but the nature of his work was special—if you don’t advance, you retreat; if you stop, you lose—and he often couldn’t rest. He learned that Li Zhengshen…

Li Yunhui had to admit that, even setting aside all other factors, his brother deserved to be loved more by Li Zhengshen than he did.

Li Yunhui couldn’t count how many times he had seen Li Zhengshen during this period.

He didn’t know if it was because he was tired of seeing him, tired of hearing him, but Li Yunhui always felt that his resistance to Li Zhengshen’s various words had risen by more than one level during this time.

Just like now.

His brother and Li Zhengshen were talking about the butler taking his annual leave, and Li Zhengshen casually said, “Little Zhao won’t be around for these two weeks. Don’t you two take the opportunity to go play with things you shouldn’t be playing with.”

If it were before, Li Yunhui’s rebellious mentality would have definitely kicked in immediately, or at the very least, he would have become annoyed.

But now? Perhaps because he had to listen to similar words every few days during this period, Li Yunhui was extremely tired of it. He was even too lazy to respond to this sentence, not even bothering to lift his eyelids.

He absentmindedly and extremely boredly de-seeded a strawberry on the side.

Just as he finished one and handed it to his brother, only to be firmly rejected, he was forced to eat the overly ugly strawberry himself.

Li Shuyun smiled and agreed with Li Zhengshen’s words.

Then he naturally changed the subject. “By the way, Dad, I’m starting school soon, and there are still many things I haven’t bought. Since Uncle Zhao isn’t here, I have to prepare them myself, but I don’t have much money on my card…”

Li Zhengshen answered very naturally, “Okay, I’ll have someone transfer you money in a bit. Is one hundred thousand enough? Forget it, let’s make it five hundred thousand. His birthday is coming up, and you’ll need money for the banquet.”

Halfway through chewing the strawberry, Li Yunhui couldn’t help but be stunned.

“His birthday”? Whose? The butler’s?

No, wait.

…Could it be about him?

…Li Zhengshen actually remembered his birthday??

Li Yunhui looked up in shock and met Li Zhengshen’s eyes.

As Li Zhengshen spoke, his hand was stirring a cup of dark brown medicine.

Their eyes met. Li Zhengshen calmly looked away and dropped two rock sugar cubes into the medicine.

Li Shuyun said happily, “Okay, thank you, Dad! I was just thinking about how to celebrate brother’s birthday with him!”

He envisioned it beautifully. “We’ll have a banquet with brother’s friends at noon, and then in the evening, we’ll celebrate brother’s birthday again, just the two of us… What do you think, brother?”

Li Shuyun turned his head.

Li Yunhui had just recovered from his shock.

He doubtfully recalled if Li Zhengshen had ever celebrated his birthday in his entire life. After getting a negative answer, he immediately felt the suggestion was tasteless.

So he answered casually, “…I’m fine with whatever. You can arrange it, Shuyun.”

His brother then asked Li Zhengshen expectantly, “Then will you have time then, Dad? Around seven or eight in the evening!”

Li Zhengshen frowned. “My schedule is quite tight that day. And I can’t return to the country during this time.”

Li Shuyun pleaded softly, “Participating online is also possible, Dad. It’s brother’s birthday!”

Li Zhengshen thought for a moment, then said concisely, “I will find a way to make time.”

Li Yunhui: “…”

He heard their conversation, but in his heart, he was dismissive.

Li Zhengshen would come to celebrate his birthday? What a joke. Something that had never happened in the past twenty-plus years… how could it come true just because of his brother’s casual invitation?

He blandly popped a strawberry into his mouth, recalling his childhood. Parent-teacher conferences were always parentless, hospital stays for fevers were always parentless, and his birthday was naturally also parentless.

…”Find a way to make time”?

Li Yunhui suddenly let out a soft sneer.

That was a rather early excuse.

Li Yunhui thought so, but he did not tell his brother his thoughts.

His brother was quite looking forward to his birthday. He didn’t know what his brother was looking forward to, but he didn’t want to dampen his brother’s positive emotions.

Time passed quickly, and soon it was August 29th.

The birthday banquet was held perfectly. His brother gave him a handwritten book titled “<<Code 03> Pie-in-the-Sky Diary!” as a gift.

“Code 03” was the initial code name for their game project.

As he opened the notebook, the neat handwriting paired with simple hand-drawn illustrations depicted his brother’s various ideas for the game project.

On the way home for the second round of celebrations, Li Yunhui flipped through the pages, reading and exclaiming in amazement, “You even drew the pie-in-the-sky for me. What, you think I haven’t been working hard enough these days and want to use this to rush me?”

Li Shuyun’s eyes curved. “Of course not, brother. I was just thinking, this is the first project we’re doing together. If we record the initial ideas, when the game is actually made in the future, looking back on it should be very emotional.”

Li Yunhui raised his eyebrows and smiled. “Shuyun has a point. This is a very thoughtful gift. Thank you, Shuyun.”

Li Shuyun blinked his eyes and asked him expectantly, “Brother, can you guess what gift Dad will prepare for you later?”

Li Yunhui said casually, “Li Zhengshen? He doesn’t even know if he can make the time. Don’t expect too much from him.”

He carefully put the notebook away and smiled at his brother. “With Shuyun accompanying me, this year’s birthday is already special enough. It’s actually better if he doesn’t come tonight, so I can spend the birthday alone with Shuyun.”

Li Shuyun was surprised. “What are you talking about, brother? Of course Dad will come today!”

Li Yunhui snorted lightly. “That’s not for sure. He remembers my birthday but never celebrates it for me. If it weren’t to give you face, I bet he would have been too lazy to even make that excuse last time on the video.”

Li Shuyun was not happy hearing this. He turned to face him and said seriously, “But brother, I heard that Uncle Zhao has been preparing the banquets for you all these years. Didn’t Dad pay for them? Uncle Zhao only ever listens to Dad’s orders. Maybe it was Dad’s idea to have Uncle Zhao celebrate your birthday for you?”

Li Yunhui was stunned.

The butler had indeed always silently helped him organize the banquets.

Where the money came from, he had never thought about. Whether it was the butler who remembered, or Li Zhengshen who remembered, he had of course never paid attention.

However…

If it was really Li Zhengshen who had instructed it, how could he not have known after all these years?

The butler had never told him.

He had never seen it with his own eyes.

Then… of course, it had never happened.

Thinking of this, Li Yunhui couldn’t help but feel a little annoyed again.

But a birthday was a happy occasion, and he didn’t want to dwell on this matter too much.

What’s wrong with having an unforgettable and happy birthday night alone with his brother? It was great! He didn’t need Li Zhengshen to celebrate his birthday for him!

However, his brother didn’t think so.

As soon as the appointed time of seven o’clock arrived, Li Shuyun had already taken out his phone and insisted on pulling him to his side.

Li Shuyun opened Li Zhengshen’s Green Letter page, placed his finger on the “Video” button, and said to him seriously, “Brother, I’m going to invite Dad to celebrate your birthday with us!”

His brother’s gaze was serious and stubborn.

Li Yunhui knew he couldn’t resist his brother. He said, “Alright, then you can call. But whether he comes or not, today will be a good birthday.”

Li Shuyun immediately made the video call.

Five seconds passed. Ten seconds passed. No one answered.

Li Yunhui thought faintly, Li Zhengshen was indeed still the same.

He pulled the cake in front of him, lifted the lid, and admired the cake his brother had personally chosen for him. He didn’t look at the phone and said, “Don’t wait. Li Zhengshen definitely won’t come. He never thinks about others in his heart… Why don’t you look at the cake? Which side do you want to eat?”

However, as soon as he finished speaking, he heard Li Zhengshen’s voice say, “Who won’t come?”

Li Yunhui looked up in astonishment.

On the phone screen, Li Zhengshen was hastily entering a room. He was covered in dust, looking like he had just finished work.

Li Zhengshen strode to the coffee table, poured some water, drank it down in one gulp, then casually hung his coat on the coat rack and sat down on the sofa. Only then did he greet them. “Good evening.”

Then his gaze fell on Li Yunhui, and he said calmly, “Happy birthday.”

Li Yunhui: “…”

Li Yunhui was stunned. “Why did you actually come?”

Li Zhengshen frowned. “Didn’t I say I would find a way to make time?”

Li Yunhui’s eyes met his. The overly unfamiliar feeling made him feel uneasy all over, so much so that for a moment, he didn’t know how to answer Li Zhengshen’s words.

Answering “oh” was wrong, and answering “thank you” was even more wrong.

And so, after killing countless answers in his mind, Li Yunhui squeezed out a sentence: “After more than twenty years, you’ve finally made time once. Awesome.”