Ch56 - Object

After Ma Zhishan retreated in anger, Qin Lang called Ji Xianzhi and roughly explained what had happened. Shortly after Ji Xianzhi hung up, Ma Zhishan arrived at his door.

Unlike the tough front he put up in front of the juniors, Ma Zhishan started crying as soon as he saw Ji Xianzhi. He tearfully complained about how his innocent child had died unjustly, scolding Xie Yan for abusing his power, and cursing Ji Qinghuai and Qin Lang for not distinguishing right from wrong.

After listening, Ji Xianzhi pondered for a moment, “There may be some misunderstanding…”

Before he could complete his sentence, Ma Zhishan was displeased. “Lao Ji, you watched Wenbin grow with your own eyes. You can’t be so partial to Xie Yan because of your personal relationship with Mr Shen.”

“I’m not trying to favour anyone.” He said, “I just don’t understand why Xie Yan would want to kill Wenbin.”

“Whatever the reason, my son is dead, it’s a fact that Xie Yan killed him.” Ma Zhishan sat on the sofa, tormented by the sudden loss of his son. The only thought in his heart was to avenge his son.

“But that Xie Yan refuses to admit it and keeps on being so arrogant, I couldn’t do anything about him, so I came to you for help.”

Ji Zhenzhi was also a father. He also knew how big the blow of losing a child was. Now that his friend has come to the door asking for help, it would be heartless to ignore him.

Ji Xianzhi deliberated for a while and said, “There is something strange about this matter. I’m afraid it will take some time to figure it out, you should go back and get some rest first, I’ll let you know if there is any progress.”

When Ma Zhishan heard this, he looked like he wanted to say something, but held back his words.

Ji Zhenzhi knew what Ma Zhishan was worried about and comforted him. “You can rest assured, if this matter was really done by Xie Yan, Mr. Shen will not let it go.”

With Ji Xianzhi’s words, Ma Zhishan was finally relieved. He thanked him and got up to leave. Just when he took a few steps, he remembered something and turned to Ji Xianzhi, “Lao Ji, I have to remind you, Ji Qinghuai and Xie Yan are too close. You should look over them and control them a bit.”

After speaking, Ma Zhishan stopped Ji Xianzhi who wanted to send him off, “Sit down, you don’t have to send me off.”

Ji Xianzhi watched Ma Zhishan walk away and replayed his words in his mind.

Connecting the previous events and Ma Zhishan’s words, Ji Xianzhi had a guess in his heart.

Ji Qinghuai’s lover couldn’t be…

He picked up the phone on the table and sent a message to Ji Qinghuai.

At this time, Ji Qinghuai and Xie Yan had just returned to the community. After Ji Qinghuai replied to his father’s message, he put down the phone and went to get two bottles of milk.

They left early in the morning without eating breakfast, so he was a little hungry. He handed the other bottle of milk to Xie Yan, sat beside him and asked, “Yanyan, did you and Ma Wenbin know each other before?”

“I don’t know him,” Xie Yan replied.

“Don’t know?” Ji Qinghuai wondered, “Then why did Uncle Ma say you almost strangled Ma Wenbin the last time?”

Xie Yan unscrewed the bottle cap and took a sip of milk, “I don’t remember.”

Don’t remember?

Ji Qinghuai didn’t believe this. He was certain that Xie Yan was concealing something and became more and more curious. “Yanyan, have you ever lied?”

“With your memory, you’re telling me you don’t remember, do you think I’m easy to deceive?”

Xie Yan didn’t speak, he wasn’t keen on talking about this topic.

Ji Qinghuai refused to stop here, determined to figure out the reason. He thought and said, “If you don’t want to say it, forget it. I’ll ask Young Master Su sometime. He was there that day, he’ll tell me.”

Xie Yan screwed the cap on the bottle and put the remaining half bottle of milk on the table, “He was badmouthing you, I just happened to pass by.”

Ji Qinghuai was stunned by the nonchalant explanation.

He knew Xie Yan’s character very well. As long as you don’t provoke him to death, Xie Yan wouldn’t take the initiative to find trouble. He thought that there was some unexplainable reason behind this incident, but it turned out that it was just because Ma Wenbin badmouthed him…

He raised his eyebrows and asked with a smile, “When did it happen?”

“Before I went to your house to visit you.”

Ji Qinghuai calculated the time. That should be when he couldn’t leave the house after his punishment. Everyone knew that he had been beaten and Ma Wenbin was probably happy to hear that. He could even imagine him gloating in the hotel.

“That was a few months ago.” Ji Qinghuai tilted his head and stared at Xie Yan, “Yanyan, is this proof that you were…”

Ji Qinghuai deliberately didn’t complete his sentence, he knew that Xie Yan understood what he meant.

Xie Yan’s face looked apathetic. “At that time, I knew why you always fought with him.”

Ji Qinghuai: “…”

“You know I don’t want to hear this.” Ji Qinghuai curled his lips and looked at Xie Yan. “Can’t you cooperate with me?”

Xie Yan originally meant to make fun of Ji Qinghai but looking at the unhappy and silly cat, his eyes softened. “At that time, I already liked you.”

From the time they first met to the time they established their relationship, Xie Yan had never said “I like you” to Ji Qinghuai. This was the first time he had done so.

If Ji Qinghuai was a cat now, he would have jumped up from the chair in joy. Although this sentence came late, it was not too late.

The two smiled at each other.

A bottle of milk was quickly drunk and Ji Qinghuai threw the empty bottle into the trash can. He went back to the sofa and picked up the phone to look at the time, and his face immediately turned bitter.

“What’s the matter?” Xie Yan asked.

“My father asked me to return home.” Ji Qinghuai continued, “But I expected it too.”

Xie Yan was silent for a moment, then got up and said, “I’ll go back with you.”

“No need.” Ji Qinghuai shook his head. “It’s nothing more than Uncle Ma claiming that I’m being partial to you. My father is a reasonable man, I’ll explain it to him.”

Seeing Xie Yan still uneasy, Ji Qinghuai patted him on the shoulder and said with a smile, “It’s all right, I’m on my own. I’ll be scolded if it’s serious, and if it’s really bad, I’ll be beaten. I’m used to it.”

This was what Xie Yan was worried about.

Ma Wenbin’s death had nothing to do with him, but at present, only Ji Qinghuai believed in him. Even Qin Lang believed in Ji Qinghuai, and not him.

If it was before, Xie Yan wouldn’t have cared about it. All he had to do was find out the real murderer and return his innocence. It didn’t matter whether others believed him or not, but now he realized how heartwarming it was to have someone willing to face and bear the burden together with him when he couldn’t prove himself.

Xie Yan was very glad that he obeyed his heart and didn’t miss Ji Qinghuai.

However, he was not been able to intervene in the affairs between the father and son. He could only say, “Call me if you need anything.”

“Okay.” Ji Qinghuai answered and wondered how to deal with his old father when he returned. He smiled and waved to Xie Yan as he left.

On the way home, Ji Qinghuai thought about how to explain the matter to Ji Xianzhi. He didn’t know what would happen later when he talked with his father, so at present, he could only take things step by step.

Ji Qinghuai stopped the car, unfastened his seat belt and pushed the door. His foot had just landed on the ground when a familiar black car drove towards him. Then, Qin Lang stepped down from the car.

Ji Qinghuai and Qin Lang walked home side by side. “Have you figured out a way to deal with it?”

Qin Lang responded, “No.”

“What a coincidence, I don’t either.” Ji Qinghuai shrugged. He walked into the living room and glanced around, but did not see Ji Xianzhi.

Qin Xiaorou was leisurely pruning the flowers and branches when Ji Qinghuai walked over and whispered to her like a thief, “Mom, where’s Father?”

“He said he was waiting for you in the study.” Qin Xiaoru answered casually. She placed the flowers in the vase and inspected it, then took them out to continue trimming.

Ji Qinghuai and Qin Lang glanced at each other and walked up the stairs. After walking halfway, Ji Qinghuai felt that something was wrong and turned around. Qin Lang was still standing in the same place looking at him.

“You’re not coming?” Ji Qinghuai wondered out loud.

Qin Lang shook his head, “Father didn’t look for me.”

Oh…

Ji Qinghuai understood then.

He thought that Qin Lang was also called back by his old father but it turned out to be just a coincidence.

He didn’t think too much about it. He turned around and continued to walk upstairs. He walked through the quiet corridor and stood still outside the study before he reached out and knocked on the door.

“Come in.” Ji Xianzhi’s voice came from the study.

Ji Qinghuai took a deep breath and pushed the door in. He saw Ji Xianzhi standing beside the bookshelf, flipping through a book in his hand. Ji Qinghuai closed the door and called out, “Father.”

Ji Xianzhi closed the book at the sound of his voice and put it back in its place. He walked slowly to the desk and sat down. “I have something to ask you.”

Ji Qinghuai was already prepared in his heart. “What do you want to ask?”

Ji Xianzhi was silent for a moment and hesitantly opened his mouth, “You and Xie Yan…When did it start?”

Ji Qinghuai answered truthfully, “A month ago.”

The answer was a bit unexpected, but Ji Xianzhi still had a bit of difficulty accepting it, “End it here ba.”

Ji Qinghuai was stunned and his heart thudded, “Why?”

Ji Xianzhi said in a serious tone, “This person, he’s someone we can’t afford to climb.”

“What?!”

Having said that, Ji Qinghuai understood that Ji Xianzhi was not looking for him for Ma Wenbin’s business. His previous worries were swept away, and he exclaimed in surprise, “There are still people in this world that I can’t afford?!”

Ji Xianzhi: …

Actually…There was nothing wrong with that sentence.

Ji Qinghuai wasn’t convinced, “According to you, if Mr Xie wanted to find his match, he would have to be a bachelor for the rest of his life. After all, if even I can’t afford him, no one in this world can.”

Ji Xianzhi: …

He summed up confidently, “Therefore, if you talk about family background, I’m his best choice.”

Ji Xianzhi couldn’t refute his words. Although Ji Qinghuai’s words were meant to be joking, Ji Xianzhi could hear the stubbornness hidden in them. He originally had something else to ask, but suddenly changed his mind when he heard this.

After a while, Ji Xianzhi waved at him, “Go ahead ba.”

He couldn’t interfere when it came to matters about love, just let nature take its course.

Ji Qinghuai stood still, “Father, I have a question for you too.”

There was a reallyyy long authors note and they were just asking the readers what work they wanted to see next and inserted the synopsis of 3 stories lol. They accounted for a full 500 words…