The winter was a little harsher that evening. Snow flakes fell on the streets of Beijing, coating the roads and houses in white. But nonetheless, the residents were unbothered. Most were out in the streets going about their usual daily routines.
Amidst the hustle and bustle, two black Maseratis drove out of the Yan's villa and headed towards the eastern province of the city. The cars drove in sync; one behind the other, their tires wheeling over the coats of snow on the roads as they headed for the suburbs.
In the second car, Yan Nuan leaned back into her seat as she calmly gazed at the canopies of trees their cars drove by as they headed into the suburban district. She was caught off guard in the morning, when her father suddenly announced over breakfast, that they were all going to the ancestral mansion.
Yan Nuan's gaze seemed very indifferent as she thought of the memories of her grandfather which she remembered. He was unlike her own grandfather. Despite being strict, her grandfather had treated her well. But this current grandfather was an eyesore. Not only was he overly strict, he was extremely biased towards male children.
If one were to ask Yan Nuan how she felt about visiting him, she would definitely grumble that she couldn't be bothered to see that stereotypical old geezer.
She adjusted in her seat, shutting her eyes slightly and from the corner of her eyes, she could see a little round oddball staring at her. He was her youngest half-brother, Yan Li. His gaze was fixated on her as he discreetly reached out towards her. However, when his fingers nearly touched the hem of her coat, he abruptly retracted his hand. He seemed scared of touching her. Wanting to get near but not daring to.
He leaned over a little to probably check if she was really asleep and when he saw that her eyes were shut tightly, he seemed to release a sigh of relief. He lowered himself on his seat once more and looked around the car. He glanced at his elder brother who was asleep beside him and the driver whose gaze was fixated onto the road before reaching out to hold her sleeve.
His chubby little face instantly brightened up and his cheeks widened slightly. He seemed rather satisfied and Yan Nuan held back a smile at the sight.
'So adorable,' she cooed in her mind as she watched him fiddle with the sleeve of her coat.
He probably sensed her gaze on him though, for he lifted his head to look at her suddenly, catching her abrupt. His round black eyes instantly widened and he jumped backwards in a panic, releasing his hold on her coat. Yan Nuan instinctively stretched out her palm over his head to shield him from hitting his head against the roof of the car.
She sat up straight staring at him as he cowered into his chair and his eyes were shut. She glanced at her palm and at his panic stricken face before sighing helpessly.
Did he think she was going to hit him?
Yan Nuan gave a rare smile as she leaned in, letting her palm descend towards his face before flicking his forehead gently. His skin was as soft as a feather to the touch. He opened her his eyes in surprise, gazing at her with his black, misty eyes.
She called out to him, "Silly boy. I'm not going to hit you. Why are you so scared?"
Of course, Yan Li knew she wouldn't hurt him. But ever since that incident, his brother Yehan had been ignoring him and it made him wary. Yan Li's eyes moistened even more at the thought. He felt so wronged. Although, he was close with his brothers, she liked Yan Yehan more. After all, he was very protective of him. He always gave him candies and lego. He also helped him beat up the boys who bullied him at school. However, due to that matter, his brother no longer cared for him...
The boy choked and instantly burst into tears.
Yan Nuan was caught off guard. She furrowed her brows and stared at his trembling shoulders as he cried. She reached out and pulled him into her arms, gently patting his back.
Her actions were gentle and her fair, slender hand gently moved up and down his back. But, that seemed to trigger his tears even more.
"Waa...waa... You don't want me anymore."
Yan Nuan was speechless. She looked awkward as he rested his face in her arms and slowly calmed down while she lifted her head. She could feel the gaze of the driver on them through the rear mirror and saw that Yan Jing was also startled awake due to his cry.
Yan Jing stared at them in confusion for some minutes before slowly withdrawing his gaze. Yan Nuan also looked away, instantly lowering her head to look at the small head of the round little dumpling in her arms.
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"You, let go," he yelled at her but Yan Nuan remained unfazed.
She straightened her back, making her look even more cold and aloof as she glared at him back. Yan Nuan wasn't exactly comfortable acting childish with him but she had no idea why she didn't want to let go. "You let go first. Even Little Li doesn't want to go with you. Why are you acting like a nosy prude?"
"Little Li," he snorted. "You're even calling him nicknames now?"
Yan Nuan remained unmoved. She held Yan Li's hand tightly and the little dumpling rejoiced even more in his heart.
'Brother is not ignoring me. He is even fighting for me. So cool,' he chanted countlessly in his heart.
Yan Jing was even more incensed when he saw her expression. It felt as though he was only fighting with himself. The other party was looking down on him. This brat wouldn't usually bother to fight with him even when he deliberately caused trouble for him. Why was he suddenly so adamant on carrying Little Li today? Or, was he unaware of something?
He glanced at Little Li and narrowed his eyes.
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Few minutes back...
Yan Nuan lowered her gaze to look at the small round dumpling lying in her arms. He seemed to have dozed off. She felt an itch to pinch his chubby cheeks but didn't want to wake him and so decided against it. He was so adorable that he made her heart soften. She was an only child in her past life, so, didn't have much experience regarding kids. The only thing she knew was that they were clingy, annoying little creatures. Yan Li also seemed to be very clingy but she didn't feel repulsed. She felt the urge to dote on him, rather.
The car shook a little before coming to an halt. Yan Nuan looked at the boy's face and saw that he was sleeping peacefully. She carefully placed and hand under his head and lifted him properly. The driver had gotten out to open her side of the car. She got out of the car with Little Li lying on her shoulder. She was about to walk forward when she felt a tight grip on her wrist.
Yan Jing was holding her wrist tightly while giving her a death glare. Yan Nuan raised an eyebrow when he asked, "What are you doing?"
She glanced at Little Li and sneered coldly, "He's sleeping. Don't wake him up."
"So? Hand him over!"
Little Li stirred in her arms and jolted awake due to his loud yell. Yan Nuan instantly glared at him. He woke him up. Little Li scanned her face tensely until he noticed that he was in her arms and brightened up.
Yan Nuan placed him on his feet and held his hand as she glanced at Yan Jing indifferently. They were about to walk forward when Yan Jing grabbed his other hand. His gaze was hostlie as he yelled,
"Let go of him.Who knows what you have done to him?"Yan Jing felt really annoyed.