Blazing fire is hard to extinguish chapter 63
Extra: If Line Personal Nurturing 3
Lin Chi also found Li Tingyan strange.
It seemed like he was playing a game, but he kept glancing at Li Tingyan.
Counting it up, it had been over a month since he met Li Tingyan.
Back in that dilapidated temple on the mountain, when he freed Li Tingyan and helped him escape, it was entirely a gamble.
Later, when he was taken in by the Li family, a bunch of inexplicable people came to comfort him, praising him for his kindness and bravery.
But only he knew that his interaction with Li Tingyan was purely a transaction.
Li Tingyan, with blood on his face but calm expression, promised him that if he managed to escape, he would help him and his mother leave Changyu County, provide medical treatment for his mother, and give him a large sum of money to ensure a good life for him and his mother.
He only thought for a minute and agreed immediately.
He only had one life.
The worst outcome was just getting caught with Li Tingyan, and death was the worst that could happen.
Without him, maybe his mother could live more comfortably and completely leave that scumbag.
So he wasn’t brave or kind; he was just calm and numb, taking risks for the sake of benefits.
Now, staying with the Li family was the same.
Li Tingyan said that as long as he stayed, he would receive rich rewards every year, more than he had before, and his mother would get the most professional and expensive treatment.
He also agreed without much thought.
He was already dealt the worst hand, and this outcome was a hundred times better than he had expected.
He didn’t care why Li Tingyan wanted to keep him.
It couldn’t be that he was sold; he wasn’t worth much.
Anyway, he just treated it as working for Li Tingyan.
He would decide once he had enough.
With a loud bang.
The little character controlled by Lin Chi fell to the ground with a thud on the screen.
He pouted and found it uninteresting.
He put the iPad aside, staring at Li Tingyan, looking a bit hesitant, yet frowning.
Li Tingyan noticed and looked up at him, “What’s wrong?”
Facing him, Lin Chi was actually a bit nervous, like a small leopard cat facing a much larger beast with instinctive fear.
His fingers were picking at the edge of the pillow, and he asked unhappily, “When are you going to take me to see my mom?”
After leaving with Li Tingyan, Li Tingyan soon sent someone to bring his mother, Zheng Xin, as well.
However, when Zheng Xin was picked up, she had collapsed from overwork at the construction site.
Besides that, after a hospital check-up, Zheng Xin was found to have stomach cancer. Although it was still in the early stages and could be treated with surgery, it was still a severe blow to her health.
In the past month, Lin Chi had only seen his mother twice, and he subtly felt that Li Tingyan’s generous rewards were probably intended to keep him under his watchful eye, so he cooperated.
Fortunately, Zheng Xin had no objections.
He didn’t know how the Li family explained things to her, but she had fully believed in it.
The eldest son of the Li family decided to keep her son by his side to care for him out of gratitude.
She was very grateful for this.
For her, there was nothing more reassuring than having Lin Chi close.
Especially since Li Tingyan was gentle and warm, communicated very kindly with her, showed her videos of him teaching Lin Chi horse riding skills, and promised to send Lin Chi to the best schools for the best education.
She immediately started crying.
“You mentioned this…”
Li Tingyan closed the book.
He had indeed promised Lin Chi that he would take him to the hospital to visit this weekend.
But there had been a lot going on this week, and he almost forgot.
His gaze swept over Lin Chi, who had a small, gloomy face, probably suspecting him of going back on his promise, looking very doubtful.
He couldn’t help but smile.
He deliberately teased Lin Chi, “I did promise, but I didn’t say how long you should stay there. If you want to stay a bit longer, don’t you need to do something to make me happy?”
His words were rather harsh.
It was natural for a child to want to see his mother.
Moreover, Lin Chi was, after all, his savior.
But Lin Chi took it seriously. After all, Li Tingyan transferred money to his account every month, without fail, and always asked him to confirm.
As a minor, his account was still managed by Li Tingyan.
In a sense, Li Tingyan was even like his employer.
So Lin Chi looked at Li Tingyan with distress.
He sat next to Li Tingyan and asked earnestly, “What should I do to make you happy?”
His black eyes, almost amber in the sunlight, revealed his gradually emerging features, as he had been well-groomed and gained a bit of weight over the past month.
He stared at Li Tingyan, both serious and confused.
He frowned, “You don’t lack anything.”
This remark made Li Tingyan chuckle in surprise.
Indeed.
He was born a favored child of heaven, having received so much materially that he lived in a cloud compared to someone like Lin Chi.
What could he possibly be dissatisfied with?
And what could make him happy?
He felt somewhat disheartened, especially since he was just teasing Lin Chi.
He stood up, took the car keys from the tray, and said, “Alright, I was just joking. Let’s go.”
The hospital was just a bit over half an hour’s drive away, and Lin Chi soon saw his mother.
Zheng Xin was a slender, beautiful woman with slightly dark skin. Despite the hardships life had brought her, a month of slight recuperation had somewhat restored her former beauty.
As soon as Lin Chi saw her, he couldn’t help but rush into her arms.
He was already fifteen, and considered himself quite mature.
But since learning that Zheng Xin had been diagnosed with stomach cancer, he had been very anxious, unconsciously wanting to be closer to his mother.
Especially since Zheng Xin was about to undergo surgery soon.
Li Tingyan watched Lin Chi’s worried face through the window, much more vividly than when he was beside him.
And Zheng Xin, with a gentle expression, kept stroking Lin Chi’s arm.
Li Tingyan blinked, his gaze falling on Lin Chi’s face through the blinds.
Just now, Lin Chi had been troubled, saying he lacked nothing.
But that wasn’t entirely true.
At least this kind of motherly love and filial piety had never appeared in his own life.
He didn’t even know if he had had it in his infancy.
He had received his mother’s embrace before.
Just…
He didn’t really care that much.
Li Tingyan left the window and went to the adjacent lounge.
He didn’t disturb Lin Chi’s parent-child time at all, nor did he hurry him. He just quietly read a book in the next room.
It wasn’t until dusk that Lin Chi lazily came over and said they could leave.
Li Tingyan shifted his gaze from the book to Lin Chi’s face.
“Are you sure?”
He could tell Lin Chi was a bit reluctant.
“If you want to stay here and spend more time with her, it’s fine. I’ll come back to pick you up tomorrow,” Li Tingyan said lightly.
He wasn’t really someone who wanted to separate a mother and her child.
Lin Chi hesitated for two seconds but still shook his head.
“No, my mom needs to rest.” But then he used a little trick, “I’ll come to see her next time. She’s going to have surgery soon, and I’ll stay here then.”
Li Tingyan couldn’t help but smile slightly, hearing Lin Chi’s little scheme.
“Okay.”
He said.
.
After saying goodbye to Zheng Xin, Li Tingyan took Lin Chi back home.
As soon as Lin Chi entered the house, he disappeared somewhere, and Li Tingyan didn’t pay him any attention.
He was already involved in some investments and went straight to his study to attend a video conference.
It wasn’t until two hours later that the video conference ended.
He slumped back in his chair and rubbed his temples.
After a few more minutes, his phone buzzed with a message from Lin Chi.
“Are you free?”
Li Tingyan raised an eyebrow, not understanding what Lin Chi was up to.
It couldn’t be that he needed help with homework or something.
But he still replied, “I’m free. In the study, you can come over.”
After a few minutes, Lin Chi came over.
He was carrying a tray, and a servant had helped him push open the study door but didn’t follow him in. The servant just nodded to Li Tingyan and left.
Li Tingyan looked at Lin Chi with the tray, puzzled.
When Lin Chi set it down, he realized it was a bowl of wontons.
“What’s this?” he asked.
Lin Chi looked at him as if he were an idiot and answered, “Chicken soup wontons.”
Li Tingyan was speechless.
“I’m not blind,” he said coldly, “but I didn’t ask the kitchen to prepare a late-night snack. Why did you bring this over?”
Lin Chi lowered his head.
At this point, he seemed a bit at a loss.
“This is something I made.”
He muttered, his face scrunched up.
He explained to Li Tingyan.
“You said I should do something to make you happy, but I don’t have anything that can please you.”
“Just now, I asked my mom at the hospital, and she told me to make something with my own hands to show my gratitude for taking care of us lately.
But this is all I can make.”
Lin Chi actually found it quite self-deprecating.
Li Tingyan had everything; why should he be so considerate?
But he was just a country bumpkin, and the money was given by Li Tingyan. Besides some handmade items, what else could he offer?
He pursed his lips, somewhat giving up, and pulled out the thing he had been holding behind his back.
“I don’t have any other skills. I used to learn knot tying and weaving from others and sold them to schoolgirls for pocket money. I made one for you too.
It’s not much, just a peace charm.
I know you might not want it; if you don’t like it, just throw it away.”
Lin Chi tossed the red string knot into Li Tingyan’s arms.
It was indeed a very beautiful, intricate peace charm, with red and golden threads and transparent beads, showing that effort was put into it.
After tossing the gift, Lin Chi tried to leave. Although he came to give a gift and felt like he was a guest in someone else’s home, his face was tight, showing no warmth.
But before he could take two steps, he felt a force on his arm, pulling him back.
Lin Chi was too thin and small.
Li Tingyan easily caught him and placed him on his lap.
“Did I ever say I didn’t want it?” he asked Lin Chi in response.
Author’s note:
It seems like this side story might need around ten chapters…