Blinded by Lust chapter 29
Even though Chen Xian had informed him that Wu Bie’s ship was temporarily safe, Huo Zhanyan still didn’t give up on contacting Wu Bie. He not only sent messages but also tried to video call and voice call him every day, only to get no answer.
“Wu Ge, how are you guys doing?”
“I saw on the news that the typhoon in the Naya Sea is shifting west. You should be safe soon.”
Huo Zhanyan kept a close eye on international news. If it weren’t for the fact that he hadn’t seen any reports of a maritime accident, even with Chen Xian’s assurance, he wouldn’t have been able to sit still.
“Wu Bie, I’m really worried about you. If you see my messages, please reply.”
Huo Zhanyan paused for a moment, then added, “You might be facing all kinds of unexpected situations, so if you can’t reply, that’s okay. Just stay safe. I’ll wait for you to come back.”
Putting down his phone, Huo Zhanyan glanced down at his legs. He had never felt so helpless before, as if all he could do was pray. He felt utterly useless.
“Xiao Yan.” A knock on the door interrupted his thoughts as a nurse entered. “Your parents are taking you home tonight.”
That day was his older brother’s birthday. Seeing that Huo Zhanyan was in decent condition, his parents planned to take him home to celebrate.
Huo Zhanyan didn’t have much opinion on the matter. The nurse kept reminding him to be careful with his knees and not overuse his legs, but his mind was entirely occupied with thoughts of Wu Bie, and he didn’t hear a word.
His mother and sister came to pick him up. Liu Fei was packing some of his things when she found a wig beside his pillow.
“What’s this?”
Huo Zhanyan stared at the wig for a long time before snapping back to reality, his face turning red and pale in turns. Just as he was about to snatch it away, the distance between him and his mother was too great, and he nearly stumbled. It was Huo Zhanting who discreetly stepped forward, taking the wig from their mother’s hands and placing it on the nearby table.
“Ge bought it for me.”
The topic shifted from Huo Zhanyan to Huo Zhanting. Surprised, Liu Fei asked, “Why did you ask your brother to buy this?”
In Liu Fei’s eyes, Huo Zhanting was an obedient and well-behaved child who wouldn’t get involved in any strange activities.
Huo Zhanting, calm and composed, replied, “I just wanted to try a different hairstyle. I won’t wear it to school, so I left it here with Ge.”
The wig looked quite ordinary, long and straight black hair, making it hard for anyone to find fault with it. Liu Fei felt like something wasn’t right, but she couldn’t figure out what it was, so she reluctantly accepted Huo Zhanting’s explanation.
With Huo Zhanting’s calm demeanor and lack of any nervousness, she even confidently urged, “Mom, let’s hurry up and pack. Ge hasn’t been home for a long time.”
Seeing the improvement in the sibling relationship, Liu Fei felt relieved. Since Huo Zhanyan hadn’t been home for a while, her attention soon shifted back to him.
The trip from the hospital to their home took about forty minutes. After entering through the large iron gate, the car slowed down, and a three-story villa gradually came into view. Huo Zhanyan glanced at their home through the gap in the car window; it had indeed been a long time since he’d been back. The plants in the yard were all new to him.
As soon as the car stopped, before anyone could get out, the front door of the house opened. Besides his father, Huo Zhanxing, whom he hadn’t seen in a while, also stepped out.
Huo Zhanxing took a wheelchair from the trunk, then walked straight to the back seat, opened the door, and winked at Huo Zhanyan.
“Can you get out on your own, little bro?”
Still in a daze, Huo Zhanyan didn’t quite understand what his brother meant. Noticing his hesitation, Huo Zhanxing misinterpreted it, bending down as if to carry him out of the car.
Startled by his tall brother suddenly leaning in, Huo Zhanyan quickly pressed a hand against his brother’s shoulder. “I’ll get out myself.”
Amused by his awkwardness, Huo Zhanxing stood up, backed away a few steps, and made room for him.
It was both a birthday celebration for his older brother and a family gathering. The atmosphere at the dinner table was harmonious, though Huo Zhanyan was distracted and didn’t feel like joining the conversation.
However, when his father called his name, he could no longer pretend to be deaf and mute.
“Xiao Yan, once your leg heals, you’ll have to go back to school. University will be over soon. What are your plans after graduation?”
Huo Zhanyan had thought about his future, but his dreams were worthless in his parents’ eyes. To be precise, anything other than a job like his older brother’s was seen as unproductive, so he just made something up.
“Ride motorcycles.”
Mentioning motorcycles turned a peaceful conversation into chaos. His father’s face changed drastically. “You’re still talking about motorcycles? You almost lost your life! I told you that you’re not allowed to ride that damn motorcycle anymore. I’ll get someone to get rid of it!”
Huo Zhanyan knew it; his father revealed his true colors within three sentences. The act was over. Just as he was about to respond, his older brother calmly said, “The traffic accident report came out, didn’t it? It wasn’t Xiao Yan’s fault. He was acting heroically.”
This interruption stopped their father from continuing. Huo Zhanyan took a few more bites and claimed he was full before limping back to his room.
Lying in bed, he considered calling Chen Xian again, but he knew it wouldn’t go as smoothly as last time. Last time, it was unexpected, but if he called now, Chen Xian would definitely ask who he was. He wasn’t ready to come clean with Wu Bie yet.
A knock came from the door.
Annoyed, Huo Zhanyan turned over, thinking if he stayed quiet, the person would leave. To his surprise, the door creaked open.
“Xiao Yan, it’s me, your older brother.”
Great, another lecture on behalf of their parents.
Huo Zhanyan lay facing the window, arms crossed. But his older brother walked around to block his view directly.
“I know you’re not asleep. Come on, get up. Let’s talk.”
Huo Zhanyan resisted. There was a big age gap between the two brothers, and as he grew older, he felt more and more that his brother was just another ally of their parents.
Huo Zhanxing sat beside him, continuing, “The company’s been too busy lately. I couldn’t get away. I only got back from abroad a few days ago.”
Even his excuses sounded like their parents’. They were definitely family. Huo Zhanyan stayed silent, coldly staring at his brother.
“I know you probably don’t appreciate this and think I’m heartless, but that’s the reality. It’s harsh. The company is waiting on me. If you were fine, I wasn’t going to waste time doing pointless things like coming back.”
Huo Zhanxing understood that he was a bit cold-blooded, but he had grown used to their parents’ way of raising them and had eventually become just like them.
“Don’t worry, your motorcycle will be fine.” Huo Zhanxing slapped his leg. “If you still like motorcycles after you graduate, I’ll fund you. Even if mom and dad disapprove, I’ll give you the money.”
Huo Zhanyan eyed his brother cautiously, trying to figure out his angle. “You’re being so agreeable? What’s your game? Are you like those TV villains, planning to turn me into a good-for-nothing so you can inherit everything?”
Huo Zhanxing laughed out loud, adjusting his glasses. “If you want, you can come to the company now. I’ll step down immediately. You can take over the entire Huo family business.”
What a lunatic.
Huo Zhanyan rolled his eyes at his brother, cursing him internally. He wasn’t interested in the family business at all.
“I work hard so that you and Zhanting can have a bit more freedom. If you’re upset just because Mom and Dad won’t let you ride a motorcycle, you’d lose your mind if you had to deal with the company.”
Thinking about how he had missed Huo Zhanyan’s birthday and hadn’t visited him in the hospital, Huo Zhanxing felt a bit guilty.
“How about I make it up to you with a birthday gift? What do you want?”
Huo Zhanxing had even thought about asking his assistant to find the best motorcycle, but Huo Zhanyan slowly said, “Can you help me find someone? Check if he’s okay.”
“Huh?” Huo Zhanxing was surprised, but willing to grant such a small request. “Who?”
Huo Zhanyan mentioned the name of a shipping company and briefly explained the situation of Wu Bie’s ship.
“Shipping… Hmm, that sounds familiar.” Huo Zhanxing suddenly remembered. “Isn’t this a company that CEO Qin invested in? I heard he sent his youngest son onto the ship for some training. We all laughed about it.”
Huo Zhanyan’s eyes widened. He had only mentioned it casually but didn’t expect his brother to actually have connections.
“I’ll ask around.”
Huo Zhanxing didn’t have Qin’s son’s phone number, so he contacted CEO Qin. After exchanging pleasantries, he got straight to the point.
“The ship is fine. It was delayed. As for Wu Bie, I heard he disembarked for some reason.” CEO Qin clicked his tongue. “Why he disembarked, I’ll have to ask.”
A few long minutes later, CEO Qin got back to Huo Zhanxing, saying Wu Bie’s phone had been lost, and that’s all they knew.
Just as Huo Zhanxing finished reading the message, Mr. Qin called him again, apologizing profusely. “My son, he throws a fit whenever I ask him questions. He even dares to hang up on me! Now I can’t reach him, probably because there’s no signal at sea.”
After thanking CEO Qin, Huo Zhanxing hung up and looked at Huo Zhanyan curiously. “I asked for you. Why are you so interested?”
Huo Zhanyan ignored his brother, pulling the covers over his head. “I’m going to sleep. You can go now.”
Meanwhile, Qin Mochong was furious, wanting to smash everything in the room. Receiving a call from his father, he hadn’t expected the first question to be about Wu Bie instead of him.
Already irritated from arguing and being given the cold shoulder by Tan Yi over Wu Bie, he was in no mood to be asked about him. Even if he knew, he wouldn’t say!