Moonlight Left Behind chapter 25
“What?!” Before Qin Yue could react, Lin Qinzhou jumped up. It was one thing to let this annoying kid shelter from the rain and have a bite to eat, but staying here? Did that mean he’d have to deal with this annoying kid day and night?
And when he returned to Dongcheng after summer break, would the annoying kid be left alone with his grandma? When he came back next time, would his grandma still be his, or would this annoying kid have completely taken over?
No way!
Lin Qinzhou threw down his spoon and stood up. “I don’t agree!”
Qin Yue lowered his head and said nothing, but his grandma’s face was already stern. She said to Lin Qinzhou, “Xiao Zhou, come with me. I need to have a word with you.”
Qin Yue watched as the grandmother and grandson went into the nearby kitchen. He didn’t know what Dou Xiaohua said to the temperamental young master, but when they returned, the boy’s lips were pouting, and his face was long, yet he didn’t bring up kicking him out anymore. It seemed he had already agreed.
In this situation, anyone with a bit of pride would understand they weren’t welcome, and would thank the kind offer and refuse it.
But Qin Yue wasn’t the type to care about pride. If he were, he wouldn’t have survived this long. He had nowhere to go and wanted to stay here.
So he acted as if he didn’t see Lin Qinzhou’s glaring eyes or the anger written all over his face, and simply nodded to Dou Xiaohua, “Thank you. I won’t stay for free. I can help you with the work.”
Dou Xiaohua smiled happily. “Good, good…”
After that, Lin Qinzhou stormed back to his room in a huff, while Qin Yue followed Dou Xiaohua to clean the guest rooms. He was very smart, remembering everything after watching her clean just one room. He neatly and quickly made the beds, which pleased Dou Xiaohua to no end, and she praised him for being capable.
“Child, you can settle in here without worries. Xiao Zhou is spoiled by us and has a bad temper. Don’t take it to heart. After all, he only stays here during the summer vacation. Most of the time, it’s just the two of us. So if he says or does anything to upset you, don’t let it bother you, okay?”
“I’ve always wanted to find someone to help out. I’m getting old, and my mind isn’t as sharp anymore. There are so many things I can’t keep up with. Now that you’re here, it’s better. Plus, I’ll have someone to talk to…”
From her words, Qin Yue could guess what the grandmother and grandson had talked about earlier. It must not be easy for the old lady to run such a large guesthouse on her own.
He quickly finished mopping the floor and began wiping the tables and chairs. “Mm.”
The typhoon had caused heavy rain, which continued until around eight in the evening when it finally started to let up. The wind also died down, but the young master’s anger had yet to subside, and he didn’t even come down for dinner.
The old lady probably wanted to ease their relationship and asked Qin Yue to take the meal up to him.
Lin Qinzhou was lying on his bed, reading a storybook, his legs dangling over the edge. He seemed to be in a good mood. But when he saw Qin Yue, that good mood instantly soured. He glared at Qin Yue with a fierce expression and said, “Why did you come in? Who said you could enter my room?!”
Qin Yue didn’t say much, just placed the basket with the meal on the bedside table and quietly said, “Grandma Dou asked me to bring your dinner.”
Lin Qinzhou was actually quite hungry. When his grandma had called him earlier, his stomach had already been rumbling. But pride wouldn’t let him go down—he was holding his ground.
You’ve been allowed to stay, and I can’t even be mad? Shouldn’t you come and coax me?
“You can leave now. Seeing you makes me lose my appetite,” Lin Qinzhou said.
Leaning against the wardrobe, Qin Yue replied indifferently, “Then I’m afraid you’ll be disappointed. Grandma Dou said that until the room downstairs is cleaned, I’ll be sleeping here with you.”
“What?!” Lin Qinzhou couldn’t believe his ears. He sat up, leaning his whole body toward Qin Yue. “Don’t even think about it!”
“Grandma Dou said so,” Qin Yue replied with the same expression.
Lin Qinzhou was about to explode with anger. “You’re doing this on purpose! You’ve been acting all pitiful in front of Grandma, but in reality… you’re just a nuisance! A liar! A pest!”
The short-tempered young master, having been spoiled all his life, couldn’t even come up with better insults, repeating the same few words over and over. Qin Yue pressed his lips together and calmly said, “I know you hate me, but I have to stay.”
To Lin Qinzhou, this calmness felt like a provocation. “You—”
“But don’t worry, I don’t have any ulterior motives. I just want to stay here.”
After saying that, without caring whether the young master understood, Qin Yue turned and left the room.
“You liar!” Lin Qinzhou hurriedly chased after him, yelling downstairs, “Grandma! I’m not staying with him! He’s a liar! I’d rather sleep under a bridge or on the street than share a room with him! I hate him!”
Dou Xiaohua was sitting in the hall, sorting vegetables. When she heard her grandson yelling like that, her head instantly throbbed.
“What nonsense are you spouting? Do you think I want you to stay with Xiao Qin? I’m more worried you’ll bully him! But the guesthouse has no spare rooms right now. You two will have to endure it for a few days. When the storage room downstairs is free, Xiao Qin will move there.”
“Even a few days is too long! Why should a stranger get to stay in my room? And he’s a liar! He has ulterior motives for staying in our house. Aren’t you worried he’ll attack me in my sleep?”
Lin Qinzhou was now completely distressed. But instead of believing him, Dou Xiaohua laughed. “What kind of treasure do we have in this house that he could want? Stop making a fuss. You promised Grandma earlier, didn’t you? We even pinky-swore. No going back on that.”
“But I never agreed to sleep with him! I can’t sleep with someone else in the room!”
“Alright, alright, be good. I know you, don’t I? Every night you sleep like a little pig. Thunder and earthquakes can’t wake you. You’ll be just fine.”
Why was Grandma undermining him today? Lin Qinzhou’s eyes were turning red with anger. “But—”
“How about we forget it,” Qin Yue, who had been silent until now, suddenly spoke. “If Little Brother really doesn’t want to, I can sleep in the lobby.”
Lin Qinzhou was furious. “Who’s your little brother?!”
“That won’t do. You can’t sleep in the lobby,” Dou Xiaohua said.
“It’s fine. I can put a few chairs together and sleep on them. I’ve been sleeping on the benches outside for the past few days,” Qin Yue said.
This annoying kid was playing the victim again!
Lin Qinzhou was livid.
“Fine! I’ve changed my mind!” Lin Qinzhou lifted his chin, glaring at Qin Yue. “You can sleep in my room!”
Anyway, whatever he said now, Grandma wouldn’t believe him. Instead of letting the annoying kid gain more sympathy from Grandma, he might as well keep him under his watch to prevent him from causing trouble.
And maybe he could even catch Qin Yue doing something wrong, giving him a legitimate reason to kick him out.
“That’s better. You’re about the same age, so it’s nice to have company,” Dou Xiaohua said, apparently not noticing Lin Qinzhou’s clenched teeth. She seemed quite pleased.
Qin Yue also looked happy and shyly said to Lin Qinzhou, “Thank you.”
Lin Qinzhou forced a smile. “You’re—wel—come.”
Go on, keep pretending! You’re a big liar. I’ll catch you showing your true colors one day!