Chapter 18: Family Teacher Six

  Liu Dao Yu didn't say anything else and just calmly looked at Lv.

  Lü Zhen slowly came back to his senses from the shock, lowered his head and muttered to himself. "No, this can't be..."

  Liu Dao Xiao didn't refute, but instead smiled slightly, with a hint of nostalgia in his tone.

  "How many flowers fall in dreams."

  Nan Xiao. Nan Xiao. No wonder I once heard someone say that the shortest curse in the world is a person's name.

  Not even having time to express it, just thinking about it in my heart is enough to make me hesitate.

  He slowly took one step at a time towards him, with each step bringing back memories.

  One step.

  A little boy took small steps trying to catch up with his mother who was pulling a suitcase, but accidentally fell to the ground.

  He desperately amplified his crying voice in the hope that she would turn back, but no matter how he cried and begged, the woman didn't budge.

  The boy who realized he was left alone stopped crying and just sat on the ground blankly, as if his soul had been lost.

  He just sat there, not crying, not making a fuss, and not saying a word.

  Until he felt the warmth that seemed to scorch him. The unfamiliar boy squatted down, his voice gentle.

  "What's wrong with you? Don't sit on the ground, what if you catch a chill?"

  The boy didn't speak, so the youth patiently asked again.

  The boy hung his head and said, "Anyway, no one cares about me."

  It had been a long time since he heard any response, and the boy became even more sorrowful. However, just then, a hand landed on his head.

  "I care about you."

  The boy looked up and asked blankly, "Why?"

  The boy smiled and said, "I want you to care about me too." After finishing, he took off the scarf from his neck and tied it around his neck.

  Two steps.

  "What are you looking at, Xiao Nan?" The boy was already ten years old, and the youth had also entered high school.

  The boy smiled slightly and patted his head, without answering.

  But the boy didn't seem to care much either, and after the youth left, he secretly ran back to the study, took down a book from the bookshelf.

  Curious, he flipped open one of the pages, and it was a short poem.

  I remember when I was young at that time

  You love to talk and I love to laugh.

  Once sat shoulder to shoulder under the peach tree

  The wind is in the forest, the birds are singing.

  We don't know how we fell asleep.

  How many flowers fall in dreams? (Note 1)

  The boy pouted and said, "What's this? None of these rhyme!"

  He casually put the book back, but didn't notice that when he closed it, a small corner had been accidentally folded down.

  Three steps.

  A boy who has already entered junior high school should be called a teenager, while Nan Xiao is studying in the Chinese department of a well-known university and has become a refined and knowledgeable young man.

  It's said that the young man who returned from summer vacation excitedly rushed to the study, but calmed down when he saw the youth holding a brush. He didn't immediately go forward to disturb him, but instead walked to the youth's side and quietly looked on.

  How many flowers fell in dreams, how much confusion and recklessness in youth

  Nan Xiao's writing is typically in the style of seven purple and three sheep, with a beautiful small regular script under his pen. The tip of the pen is warm and gentle, revealing a character as calm as water, just like himself. However, it also has the vigor unique to young people, bringing out a sense of elegance.

  The young man stared blankly at one side and couldn't help but praise, "What a great handwriting."

  He put down his pen and turned his gaze to him, saying with a hint of amusement, "What else have you figured out?"

  The young man shook his head and said, "Although I don't understand it, can't you just take a look at whether it's good or not?"

  Nan Xiao smiled and wanted to touch his head, but stopped in mid-air, hesitated for a moment, then put it down again.

  The boy didn't notice as he was busy finding out the gift he had prepared for him.

  Handing it over carefully, the young man cautioned, "Be careful, this is a good thing."

  Nan Xiao opened the box and raised an eyebrow. "Inkstone?"

  The young man proudly puffed out his chest and raised his head. "I've been to several houses before deciding on this one."

  Nan Xiao picked up the inkstone and examined it carefully.

  This inkstone is a fine-grained ancient rhinoceros pattern, with a beautiful shape. Moreover, the She inkstone is smooth and jade-like, grinding ink silently, and can be considered a truly good inkstone.

  He smiled and said, "Rough but leaving no mark on the brush, smooth but refusing to be obscured by ink, with a voice like gold and virtue like jade."

  The young man didn't fully understand the difficult classical language, but he roughly knew it was praising him, so he said with pride.

  "Look, I'm being good to you. Take care of it properly."

  Nan Xiao smiled and nodded, carefully putting away the inkstone.

  Four steps.

  "Nan Xiao, my father has found me, he wants to take me away."

  There was no sound on the other end of the phone.

  "Nan Xiao, you tell me, should I go back with him?" The young man's voice was filled with hesitation, but also with longing.

  “……”

  "Xiao Nan? Are you listening?"

  "...If you want to, just go back with your father..." The young man, completely immersed in the joy and conflict of having a family again, did not hear the youth's tone of bitterness and persuasion.

  "If you also think I should go back, then I'll pack up and leave tonight."

  No, I don't think so.

  "I'll be back to see you, Nan Xiao."

  Don't go, just smile.

  "Well, it's like that then."

  Stay, I need you.

  Nan Xiao's voice finally sounded again, and the fake calmness was full of loopholes but went unnoticed.

  "If anything happens, come find me. I'll be waiting for you... Come home." Back to our home.

  "Uh-huh, I'm hanging up then."

  "Wait, I'll rush back home right away, you wait at home first."

  Five steps.

  The young man stared blankly at the black and white photo frame above the dark coffin, unable to believe that the person who had been smiling in front of him just a while ago, showing such care and concern for him, was now dead.

  Died in an airplane accident.

  If he hadn't suddenly said he wanted to leave, how would he have hastily boarded this flight?

  If he hadn't been too caught up in his own affairs and neglected to pay attention to Nan Xiang's emotions, how could he have failed to notice that something was off about him?

  All along, he has been taking for granted the care and concern of Nan Xiao, all along, he has been enjoying Nan Xiao's selfless devotion to him.

  If he had cared a little more about Xiao Nan, even just a little bit more, would the outcome have been different?

  If he hadn't been stunned by this sudden relative, would Nan Xiao still be alive?

  He should have been crying bitterly, but his eyes were dry and couldn't squeeze out a single tear.

  He finally walked up to him.

  "I don't know if Nan Xiao is one of your reincarnations, but I'm willing to believe that you are him."

  He doesn't want to experience loss again. What's past is past, and people can't stay submerged in painful memories forever; they have to look towards a future full of hope.

  "I'll help you evade the Avengers' pursuit of the prison break, but..."

  He looked at Liu Dao's corpse, and a big smile suddenly appeared on his mouth.

  "You can help with household chores as compensation, and the Setoda Inn warmly welcomes your arrival!"

  Do you know what it means to reasonably utilize cheap labor? That's it.

  Welcome, Liu Daoxuan, to stay at Zetian Hotel and start a new brilliant life!

  Ugh... all I want to say is that Kawen and whatnot are really too painful...

  It's really hard to follow Qiong Yao's style, I'm all confused...so in the end it became a mess again.

  Considering how much pain this thousand-word essay has caused, let's use comments or something to blow away the happiness of Certain Thousand!