A massive ringing sound filled Qi Xiuyi’s ears. His father and the doctor seemed to be discussing something, but he couldn’t hear or notice anything. At this moment, the only thing left in his sight was the silent emergency room with its open door at the end of the corridor. The indicator light above the emergency room had gone completely dark.

He took a dazed step forward, and then another. It was as if something was calling to him from ahead.

His pace quickened. So fast that his legs tangled and he fell to the ground, yet he felt nothing. He used all fours to scramble up from the floor, continuing to run forward. He stumbled through the doors of the emergency room.

As soon as he entered, he saw the emergency bed covered with a white sheet. The sheet was uneven, and underneath it was clearly the shape of a person. In terms of height and build, this figure was very similar to Qi Wendong.

Qi Xiuyi didn’t even need to go closer to check; his subconscious was one step ahead of his conscious mind in realizing who was lying there.

A large hand rested on his shoulder, and his father’s steady voice sounded in his ear.

“Not calling you back was Wendong’s last request. He said he was very sorry for using such means to make you a fake young master for a year. So, at least when he left, he didn’t want to affect your final exams.”

His father paused for a moment, then asked him, “Do you want to go up and see him?”

Qi Xiuyi didn’t know. He felt he should go up. But his legs were rooted to the spot, trembling slightly. His hands were also shaking uncontrollably. He felt like he must be in some kind of hell right now, and walking forward would only lead him deeper into it.

The temperature in the emergency room was bone-chillingly cold. Qi Xiuyi felt as if every one of his joints was about to freeze solid in this lifeless room. He stood at the entrance of the emergency room, unable to advance, unable to retreat. The increasingly suffocating air was crushing him, making it hard to breathe.

He didn’t dare to go forward.

But his silence seemed to give his father the wrong impression. His father sighed softly and said, “It’s better not to see him.”

Not see him? How could I not see him?

“No!” he roared hoarsely, swatting away his father’s hand from his shoulder and stumbling to the side of the emergency bed. The closer he got, the louder the pounding of his heart became. For a moment, he wondered if the white sheet were never lifted, would he always have a chance to wait for Qi Wendong to come home?

Unfortunately, his brain registered this thought and coldly negated it.

Qi Xiuyi’s hand trembled as he pinched the corner of the white sheet. Using all the courage he had in his life, he lifted it, inch by inch.

The first thing that came into view was the fine, soft black hair scattered carelessly on the emergency bed. Qi Wendong’s black hair had always been beautiful. It was glossy, so black it shone, and always neatly styled. It was smooth and soft to the touch. But now, the black hair scattered on the gurney was dry and messy. It seemed to have completely lost its luster, presenting a lifeless, pale black.

Tears dripped unconsciously from Qi Xiuyi’s eyes onto the white sheet, spreading into a noticeable wet spot. His hand stiffly continued to pull back the sheet, and the familiar face was finally revealed to him.

Qi Wendong lay there with his eyes closed, his expression peaceful and still, as if he were just sleeping normally. But his lips were completely drained of color, and his chest no longer rose and fell rhythmically as it had in life. He lay there, like a perfectly preserved flower specimen, utterly devoid of life.

Qi Xiuyi’s fingertips trembled as he lightly touched the young man’s cheek. An icy chill traveled up from his fingertips to his brain, instantly breaking the dam of tears that had been welling in his eyes.

“Qi Wendong… Qi Wendong!”

Qi Xiuyi ripped the white sheet off Qi Wendong’s body and threw himself onto him sideways. He grabbed Qi Wendong’s shoulders, shaking him forcefully and anxiously.

“Qi Wendong, wake up! I-I’m back from my exams. I really can get first place in my major this time! Qi Wendong, didn’t you really want to see it? Didn’t you promise that after I did it, you’d spend a whole vacation playing with me? Qi Wendong, I did it, so when are you going to give me my reward? …Qi Wendong!”

His voice was hoarse, and the tears wouldn’t stop. The initial choked sobs turned into loud wails as his words finally trailed off. His cries and gasps echoed throughout the emergency room, filling the air.

But Qi Wendong didn’t respond. No matter how he shook him, how he called out to him, Qi Wendong would never respond again.

Qi Jingming couldn’t bear to watch any longer. He pressed down on his hands and gently laid Qi Wendong back on the gurney with a frown. He said to him, “Do you want him to not even rest in peace at the end?”

Qi Xiuyi didn’t answer. He stared blankly as his father leaned over to tidy Qi Wendong’s messy hair. The neat and clean appearance made Qi Wendong’s face look almost the same as when he was resting in life.

But why? Why didn’t Qi Wendong suddenly open his eyes at this moment and laugh mockingly at his tear-streaked nose? Why didn’t Qi Wendong taunt him, just as he always liked to do, calling him fragile, weak, and gullible—calling him anything at all?

Qi Wendong… Qi Wendong…

Qi Xiuyi dazedly squatted down, resting his head on the side of Qi Wendong’s emergency bed. He tremblingly took Qi Wendong’s left hand, pleading in a small, panicked, and lost voice.

“Qi Wendong… c-can you open your eyes and laugh at me, please?”

“Didn’t you really want to hear me call you brother? Brother… brother, open your eyes. I’ll call you brother from now on, okay?”

“Didn’t you just lie to me that I wasn’t father’s biological son? I-I don’t mind. I’m not angry. I won’t hold a grudge against you for that. Can you just wake up, please?”

But there was no response. Qi Wendong’s hand was ice-cold. No matter how he tried to warm it, it remained cold. Qi Wendong’s face was as handsome as it had been in life, but without its color, it looked pale and plain.

Qi Wendong lay there quietly with his eyes closed, and he would never again respond to his words. Qi Xiuyi became无比 acutely aware of this fact.

His body went completely limp, and he slumped to the floor. He stared blankly at Qi Wendong’s hand, which had fallen limply over the side of the gurney, and tears flowed uncontrollably from his eyes.

“Dad… Dad!” he cried, grabbing his father’s pant leg, sobbing as if asking for help. “Dad, Qi Wendong… Qi Wendong… sob sob sob, Dad… I don’t have a brother anymore…”

His father squatted down on the floor, let out a long sigh, and pulled him into an embrace, his gentle and strong hand patting his back softly. “At least, before your brother left, he came back to our home and spent a year with you, didn’t he?”

“Alright, stop crying. Pull yourself together. If Wendong saw you crying like this, how disappointed would he be in you?”

Qi Xiuyi’s crying stopped instantly. He stared blankly at his father, not even daring to breathe, afraid that if he did, the tears would burst out again and make Qi Wendong disappointed in him.

His father pulled him up from the floor, held him in his arms, and let him rest his head on his shoulder, preventing him from looking at Qi Wendong’s body any longer. He called the doctor in, spoke to him in a low voice, and then took Qi Xiuyi’s hand, leading him out of the emergency room.

Qi Xiuyi looked up blankly and asked his father, “Where are we going?”

His father said gently, “Let’s go home first. Take a good bath, change your clothes, get some rest, and tomorrow is the farewell ceremony. Don’t let him see you looking so disheveled then.”

Qi Xiuyi seemed to hear, but also not. He returned home in a daze, was pushed into the bathroom by the butler in a daze, was seated at the dining table in a daze, and was put to bed by the butler in a daze at night. He lay in bed with his eyes open all night, his mind a complete blank, and watched the sunrise of a new day.

He ate breakfast in this same numb state and was led to the car by his father. It wasn’t until the scenery outside the car window changed that he suddenly realized something and asked Qi Jingming in a panic, “Dad… Dad! After… after today, will Qi Wendong, will he be…”

Qi Jingming waited for a long time, but the word never came out of his son’s mouth. He sighed and finished the sentence, “Yes, cremated.”

Qi Xiuyi sat there stunned, then suddenly burst into loud sobs again. He cried and asked, “Then… then in the future… I won’t be able to see… Qi Wendong anymore?”

Qi Jingming answered concisely, “That’s right.”

Qi Xiuyi: “…”

Qi Xiuyi cried even louder.

Halfway there, Qi Xiuyi suddenly pulled out his phone and started scrolling through his contacts. Soon, a call was connected. He sobbed into the phone, “Sob… Ruyan, I… I have to tell you something…”

---

By the time Lin Ruyan arrived at the funeral home in a hurry in He Wenyan’s car, all the arrangements for the ceremony were complete. There weren’t many people attending the farewell ceremony. Qi Wendong had only been in the Capital for a year. He had limited relatives, and while he had many friends, very few were close enough to be invited to the farewell ceremony.

At the ceremony, Qi Xiuyi couldn’t control his emotions and broke down crying again. Besides him, there was one other person who was also crying so hard they couldn’t catch their breath, so hard that no one could console them—Qi Xiuyi’s roommate, Lin Ruyan.

During the viewing, as he passed by the body, he couldn’t hold back his tears or his emotions. He fell to the ground,趴 on the side of the coffin, and wailed. He cried until he had no strength left, unable to even use his crutch to support himself. In the end, He Wenyan had to go over, let him lean on his shoulder, and carry him away from the coffin.

After the ceremony, the body was to be sent for cremation. Seeing that Qi Xiuyi’s eyes were nearly swollen shut from crying, Qi Jingming simply forbade him from following and personally went with the funeral home staff to complete the cremation procedures.

Qi Xiuyi was left outside. He sat sadly next to Lin Ruyan. The two tear-stained figures sitting together didn’t look quite so lonely.

Since Qi Xiuyi had been crying for two days, his tears had run dry earlier. He sobbed softly, feeling his heart become empty, as if the entire world he had possessed for the past year had been hollowed out by someone. The feeling made him sad, terrified, and utterly lost.

Fortunately, in this empty world, the sound of loud wailing next to him kept capturing his attention. Qi Xiuyi turned his head and asked Lin Ruyan with a choked voice, “Lin Ruyan, why are you crying for my brother?”

Lin Ruyan cried as he answered, “Senior Wendong… Senior Wendong was the one who changed my life! My leg, my job, my life—Senior Wendong changed it all!”

Qi Xiuyi’s choked sobs paused. He asked blankly, “When did this happen? How come I don’t know? What did you guys do behind my back?”

Lin Ruyan looked at him with tear-filled, aggrieved eyes. “…”

Qi Xiuyi then remembered He Wenyan, turned to him, and asked with a sniffle, “What about you, He Wenyan? Weren’t you kicked out of your family? How did you know my brother? Why did you come?”

He Wenyan said coolly, “He was my investor.”

Qi Xiuyi: “…”

Qi Xiuyi wailed even louder. “Qi Wendong… Qi Wendong, just how many things did he hide from me! I never hid anything from him… Waaah!“

He Wenyan: “…”

He Wenyan’s head ached from listening to the two crying. He simply got up and walked to the side by himself. He silently grieved for Qi Wendong’s passing, recalling the last time he saw him in the coffin, and the last smile he saw from Qi Wendong in the hospital a few days ago. He closed his eyes dejectedly.

But his rational mind, disobediently, continued to work at this moment, pondering with confusion: Why would the Qi family rush to hold the farewell ceremony the day after Qi Wendong’s passing?

Unfortunately, it seemed this question would never have an answer.

After personally handling all the procedures and setting the date for Qi Wendong’s funeral, Qi Jingming finally returned home in the evening. After settling his biological son, whose eyes were swollen from crying, and replying to the polite condolences from various old friends, he began to act as a middleman for his own work.

Call to Lin Chen…
Unanswered.

Call to Lin Chen…
Unanswered.

Call to Lin Chen…
Unanswered.

Qi Jingming’s heart quietly skipped a beat. He expressionlessly edited a text message.

Qi Jingming: [Don’t tell me you really got into the incinerator?]

After waiting for a full half-hour, the phone finally dinged.

Third Son (Term Expired): [(Automated Reply) Hello, this shop will be temporarily closed from the 5th to the 7th of this month. For any after-sales service or new order inquiries, please contact me after the 8th of this month. Thank you for your trust and support. Sincerely, the entire staff of the ‘Professional True Young Master Actor for Hire’ studio ^ ^]

Qi Jingming: […]

Qi Jingming: [Dropping a multi-million dollar deal just like that. As expected of my good Third Son. [Thumbs up]]

At the same time. On a private tourist island overseas.

Lin Chen, who had rushed to catch his flight, turned off all his phones, and fully entered a zero-work concentration, completely private, off-duty vacation mode:

Moonlight, beach, vacation! He had arrived ^^