Ning Wang Shu wanted to grab his father's clothes, but seeing the insidious gaze Wang Ma casted at him, he trembled in fear, then stiffly let Zhao Xin Fang hold him.
"Aaahhh, open your mouth. This is baby's favorite purple yam congee, very sweet and fragrant." Zhao Xin Fang softly crooned, coaxing, her bearing kind, extremely patient. If Zhou Yun Sheng wasn't long aware of her true nature, he would've almost been deceived by her.
Ning Si Nian and Zhao Xin Fang met at an orphanage. She was a volunteer, every weekend she would go help take care of the children. Ning Si Nian witnessed how tenderly, considerately and patiently she treated the children, and this aroused the idea of marrying her. Right now, he was very satisfied with Zhao Xin Fang's performance, his grim face eased up slightly.
Zhou Yun Sheng picked at his rice, his line of sight only staring at the plate in front of him, he didn't look elsewhere.
Wang Ma finished the dishes and cleaned the kitchen, laughing while wiping her hands, she said, "Madam, it's better if I feed the baby, you've had an exhausting day."
Ning Wang Shu's face paled, but because he was scared to death of Wang Ma's beatings, he merely gritted his teeth in silent tears, not daring to resist. Wang Ma pretended to cry out in alarm, "Aiya, what's the matter? You were just in a good mood, why are you crying suddenly? Lately, the baby has been refusing to talk, eat, and even go to sleep. He'll inexplicably start crying, but even when crying, he refuses to make a sound. It's really distressing. This is a sin, how could a good child become like this….."
As she spoke, tears started falling, looking more pitiful than Ning Wang Shu.
Ning Wang Shu was already scared into a quail, stiff and shrinking in her arms, he was even too afraid to breathe. After only being here one day, Zhou Yun Sheng could already see Ning Wang Shu's fear of Wang Ma, but unfortunately, Ning Si Nian was too involved, and was raised up by Wang Ma. He loved her like a mother, so he really didn't notice the slightest strangeness.
Right now, his rage was provoked by Wang Ma's few words. His ice-cold, sharp gaze swept Zhou Yun Sheng, but because he needed to attend to the child, he reluctantly restrained himself. He picked up his son, gently comforting and coaxing, singing the nursery rhyme Wang Ma sung to him as a child. But when Ning Wang Shu heard it, not only did he not calm down, his whole body started convulsing.
Ning Si Nian's heart burned with worry, he immediately brought his son back to his room and repeatedly called the family doctor. Wang Ma and Zhao Xin Fang urgently followed him.
In the blink of an eye, only Zhou Yun Sheng was left in the dining room. He put down the bowl, unhurriedly wiped his mouth, washed his hands, and returned to his room.
Wei Xi Yan's room was arranged very simply, the bookcase was full of books related to painting, and the drawers were mostly filled with paints and artboards, all kinds of brands. He was clearly a painting otaku, there was nothing in life but painting.
But the current Zhou Yun Sheng was a hacker, he needed a computer to live. After rummaging through the room for a while, he finally found a laptop in a trunk under the bed. He turned it on and connected to the web.
The light from the screen cast a shadow on the boy's delicate, androgynous face. He stared intently at the screen, his fingers moving over the keyboard at speeds the naked eye couldn't follow. A few minutes later, he was interrupted by a fierce knock on the door. He couldn't help but frown.
"Wei Xi Yan, we need to talk, come out!" Ning Si Nian shouted while knocking on the door. There was no sign of movement inside, so he was a little agitated, unable to hold back from kicking to the door.
Fortunately, Ning family was very rich, the doors were all well-made, solid wood doors. Unless he brought in another two big men, it wouldn't be so easy to break into the room.
Zhou Yun Sheng's tight nerves relaxed, he pursed his lips, then picked up a tea cup on his desk and ruthlessly smashed it on the door, expressing his determination not to meet with him.
The former Wei Xi Yan was afraid to talk with Ning Si Nian, but Zhou Yun Sheng simply didn't want to talk to him. Ning Si Nian had sentenced Wei Xi Yan to death in his heart long ago, no matter how Wei Xi Yan explained it, he probably wouldn't listen.
Ning Si Nian heard a loud noise, and saw the tea seeping out along the carpet. Apparently, the man inside was also very agitated. Thinking of his parents' warning to 'not upset Wei Xi Yan under any circumstances', he pulled his tie, having no choice but to walk away. His son had purple bruises on his body, he'd already sent photographs to his parents on the other side of the ocean, but they resolutely didn't believe him, only saying that Wei Xi Yan would never hurt others.
Even a cup could be smashed, was that the attitude of someone who would never hurt others? If he didn't do it, then was it Xin Fang? Wang Ma? One was a gentle, introverted, and kind-hearted wife, the other was Wang Ma who raised him up, she was like a mother to him. If Ning Si Nian had to doubt someone, it would never be those two. Not to mention, his son himself said that his Xiao Shu hit him, he was so small, how could he lie?
Hearing the footsteps gradually going away, Zhou Yun Sheng clicked the Enter key, and a small program was sent to Ning Si Nian's computer.
———————
Ning Si Nian kept watch at his son's bedside, looking at his panicked and restless sleep, despite being injected with a sedative, his heart suddenly twisted in heartache. The family doctor's words echoed over and over again in his mind: Mr. Ning, looking at the situation, your son's abuse has left a psychological shadow, you need to find him a psychologist as soon as possible, and keep him away from his source of terror.
Keep him away from his source of terror?
Ning Si Nian mused for a moment, quietly walking over to his study. Zhao Xin Fang stood under the hallway's lamplight, seeing him approaching, she said in a low voice, "I'm sorry Si Nian. I didn't take good care of the baby. Do you want me to quit my job at the orphanage? Wang Ma is watching the baby by herself; she'll inevitably have times where her hands are full. Also, I've already contacted a psychologist from the capital's Medical University's Department of Psychology, Dr. Sun Wen. He has done a lot of research on child psychological problems, he's second to none in the country. This is his business card, you keep it. I'll take the baby to see the doctor every Wednesday."
"You don't have to resign; you only go on the weekends, it doesn't take much time. Besides, there's a thousand days to be a thief, but not a thousand days to guard against theft. I told my parents; I'm striving to send Wei Xi Yan out as soon as possible. I originally planned to contact Dr. Curran, but you were a step faster than me. Dr. Sun Wen is also very good, plus he's currently in the country, very convenient. Xin Fang, you've worked hard." Ning Si Nian took a look at the business card.
Zhao Xin Fang saw his very exhausted expression and opened her mouth, but ultimately didn't say anything. The two brothers' time together wasn't long, their feelings were weak, but if they got the chance to grow closer someday, who knew if Wei Xi Yan might speak about that day. Now, not only did her scheme work, that little bastard Ning Wang Shu was turned into an idiot. Zhao Xin Fang's heart was filled with pleasure.
She smiled pleasantly as she opened the door for her husband.
Ning Si Nian walked up to the window and lit a cigarette, the orange-red cigarette butt flickering rapidly, as if he was in an anxious mood. In less than half a minute, he'd smoked the whole cigarette, so he turned on the desk lamp and called his parents.
"The number you have dialed is turned off …"
"The number you have dialed is turned off…"
"The number you have dialed …"
After consecutively failing to connect a few times, he exasperatedly threw away the phone. However, it accidentally hit the mouse, activating the standby computer. An ad box jumped out, the orange font was very eye-catching.
Ning Si Nian was reaching to turn it off, but froze when he saw the contents clearly.
"Are you still worried about theft? Are you still worried about the lazy nanny? Are you still angry about your child being abused by the nanny? Pinhole cameras, solve all your worries! On site installation, convenient and practical …"
Ning Si Nian ignored the following content, his eyes quickly flashing a bright light – since his parents didn't want to believe, he'd place the evidence in front of them. With irrefutable proof, even if Wei Xi Yan stubbornly refused to go, he could call people to throw him out, and also let him pay a painful price.
He picked up his phone again and dialed Zhao Jun's number.
Zhao Jun lived west of the Ning family mansion, a former mercenary, he now served as Ning Si Nian's driver and bodyguard, but he was also responsible for handling Ning Si Nian's many matters that should not see the light. After he received the call, he didn't ask any questions, quickly preparing a set of monitoring equipment.
The next day, Ning Si Nian went to work. Zhao Jun pretended to clean the air conditioning units, installing the pinhole surveillance cameras in every corner of the Ning residence. He didn't even let off the bathrooms. Finally, a rice grain sized eavesdropper tool was placed inside Ning Wang Shu's longevity lock.
Now was summer vacation, Zhou Yun Sheng didn't need to attend classes. After getting up and eating breakfast, he shut himself in his studio. He was now replacing Wei Xi Yan, naturally, he would help Wei Xi Yan achieve his dreams.
There was no doubt, Wei Xi Yan's dream was to become a great painter.
Sensing the many monitoring tools in the house, his originally unhappy mood slowly brightened. He stretched out white, slender fingers and pulled off the white cloth on the canvas.
This was a nearly completed rural landscape painting. It was the scenery around the Ning mansion, under the brilliant sunshine was a blooming garden of Chinese roses and Japanese roses, the large expanse of warm hues made people feel delighted. But to be honest, Wei Xi Yan's painting style indeed had a little spirituality, but because of his narrow scope, and closed-off personality, it was missing something more in-depth.
His paintings were very delicate, very beautiful, and gave visual enjoyment, but it couldn't shake people's souls.
Zhou Yun Sheng had reincarnated hundreds of times, although he played the villain in every life, it couldn't be denied that if the villain had no ability, how could they compete with the protagonist? In every reincarnation, he not only strived to complete the tasks, he also didn't forget to learn a variety of skills. He has been a scholar, state teacher, emperor, immortal cultivator, also a knight, duke, the Pope, magician, etc. These experiences gave him endless pain, but also gave him priceless wealth.
He'd picked up many diverse skills, which naturally included painting. Whether it was traditional Chinese painting, oil painting, sketching, or watercolor, as long as he had a brush, he could create a world.
His mastery of painting was totally incomparable with Wei Xi Yan, even in this world, there was no one who could stand toe to toe with him. So, when it came to completing Wei Xi Yan's dream, Zhou Yun Sheng was simply not troubled.
He unhurriedly observed Wei Xi Yan's painting, analyzing his painting technique. The room was extremely quiet, only the sound of the breeze blowing the tree leaves could be heard.
At this time, a little figure walked in. He stood in the doorway, looking in, apparently attracted by the fascinating scenery on the canvas. Step by step, he soundlessly and cautiously walked up to behind Zhou Yun Sheng.
Zhou Yun Sheng finished analyzing Wei Xi Yan's painting style. He turned to pick up the brush and palette, but met Ning Wang Shu's eyes.
The two were both somewhat autistic, obviously shocked by each other. They shared a 'you look at me, I look at you' blank look.
After a long time, Zhou Yun Sheng slowly, slowly stretched out his hand and picked up the palette on top of the small stool beside Ning Wang Shu. Ning Wang Shu intended to retreat backwards, but stopped when he found that he wasn't trying to touch him. With a pair of wide open, big eyes, he raised his head and looked up.
Zhou Yun Sheng ignored him. He diluted the paint and focused on painting the canvas. Uncle and nephew stood close together, one seriously painting, the other focusing on watching. Two exquisite faces with the same deadpan expression, the scene seemed a little funny, but also looked so warm and lovely.
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T/N:
there's a thousand days to be a thief, but not a thousand days to guard against theft – the thief will just wait for you to relax before striking.
brothers – They're brothers remember? But idk how you'd call it if the tie is through adoption. Adopted step-brother?
longevity lock- Chinadaily, "The longevity lock, also known as the "Baijiabao lock", which a baby wears on its hand or neck, expresses people's good wishes that the lock will bring health and good luck to the child."