Chapter 438
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25 years ago,
At a beautifully decorated Ye Mansion, children were crowding around the staff as they asked for their help to either call their parents or for some other things that kids needed help with.
"Xiao Tian, I've to go back soon," said a younger Old Madam Du as she knelt on one knee to talk to her young nephew. It was his 5th birthday and since Little Ye Tian was so adorable, she could not resist but organize a birthday party for him.
Despite his father's absence, the little fellow had plenty of fun of his little friends. For the last few hours, he kept dragging Old Madam Du around as he showed her the new things at the house. When he got tired, they sat down at the bar table in the living room, and he showed some of his new gifts from his "dad" to her.
It was a lie of course. Old Madam Du knew that her brother would not have time to shop for anything himself. Whatever gifts that came from him most likely came from the servants. She knew that, and she had a feeling that her little nephew knew it as well.
Her little nephew was smart. Well, he was definitely smarter than Little Luo Yin who was currently picking on the other children at the balcony. Old Madam Du signaled a staff to go over and help out before something major happened.
She then looked back at Little Ye Tian and fully paid attention to him. Both of them did not say anything and they pretended everything was alright as they played with some of the gifts.
When Old Madam Du saw her teenage son walking around with a glass of champagne, she signaled him to come over and chided him for underage drinking. She knew that her son was at that age where he was eager to try things, and while she could understand it, there were certain things that she would not tolerate and drinking was one of them.
Young DX was a little embarrassed at being scolded in front of a kid but he did not say anything as he handed the glass to his mother. Since Old Madam Du knew that it was very likely that her husband allowed it, she did not scold her son too harshly and merely told him to behave more like his age.
She then made him stayed and hung out with them for a while. Little Ye Tian did not mind his cousin's presence. Instead, he kept showing off his knowledge about cars to his cousin who played along and pretended that he knew nothing.
Little Ye Tian even showed his new shiny, red Ferrari toy car to Young DX and asked his older cousin if it was cool.
"Em. It's cool," answered Young DX briefly. He held up the custom built Ferrari and admired the handiwork on it before handing it back to Little Ye Tian. When he received a call from his father who called him to meet him in the garden, Young DX told his mother about it and patted Little Ye Tian on the head before he walked away.
Little Ye Tian smiled brightly as he turned to his aunt and whispered, "Big Brother XiAn said that it's cool…"
"Yeah, it's a cool car…" whispered Old Madam Du back as she smiled at the little boy.
Little Ye Tian gently kicked his legs underneath the table as he rolled the car on the bar table. With a gentle voice, he said, "I'm going to drive a Ferrari when I'm older, and I'll take daddy and you for a ride… Oh, and Uncle Du Jin and Big Brother XiAn. I'll take them as well…"
"Ah, that would be great!" Old Madam Du said before she ruffled his hair.
Old Madam Du played with him the entire night and entertained him until most of his little guests had left, and she herself had to leave soon. However, she did not feel right to leave her little nephew alone even though there were servants around.
She looked at Little Ye Tian who was standing beside her as he waved goodbye to the last of his friends. When Little Ye Tian looked up at her and saw the worried expression on her face, he knew what was on her mind.
With a bright smile, he said, "Don't worry about me. It's getting late now. You should go home. Uncle Du Jin has to work tomorrow, right? And Big Brother XiAn has to go to school too..."
Old Madam Du glanced at her husband who was standing behind her with her son. Both of them came because she wanted to come, and even though they both seemed tired, they never complained about anything.
The two men in her life had always given in to her wishes, however ridiculous it might be.
Little Ye Tian gently pushed her toward them as he said, "Really! Don't worry about me. I'm going to sleep soon anyway. Also, there are the servants here, so I'd be fine…"
Old Madam Du sighed. She was angry at her brother who would leave his son alone on his birthday. However, she could not openly scold him for it because today was also the anniversary of his wife's death. It was too sensitive a subject to be brought up. All she could do was to help out whenever possible.
With a sigh, Old Madam Du patted Little Ye Tian's head and asked, "Xiao Tian, why don't you come and stay with us for tonight? You can bunk with your cousin. I'll talk to your daddy about it. I'm sure he won't scold you."
Young DX raised an eyebrow at his mother's suggestion. He had never bunk with anyone before, but when he saw his cousin's face, he sighed and kept his mouth shut. Everyone in the family knew that Little Ye Tian was all but abandoned by his father. He figured that his bed was large enough that he would not even notice the little boy.
However, Little Ye Tian shook his head and rejected the offer. With a serious expression, he said, "No, thanks. I want to stay here and wait for Dad to come back. Maybe he'd come back early. If I'm not here, he's going to be sad."
Old Madam Du sighed. She wanted to tell him the truth, that his father might not return before the end of the day, but she held her tongue. Kneeling down on her knees, she gently caressed Little Ye Tian's face before she hugged him tightly.
As she rubbed his back, she whispered, "Alright then… If you get scared, then give me a call, alright? Aunt will come right away!"
Little Ye Tian nodded into his aunt's shoulder. He hugged her for a long time before he released her. For him who had lost his mother, his paternal aunt was the closest thing to a mother. He liked how she smiled so sincerely whenever she saw him, and how she always seemed to smell great no matter what.
He sent his aunt and her family off and waved at them until he could no longer see their car. After they left, he dropped his smile. It was hard to keep smiling but he did it because that was what his aunt wanted, and he wanted his aunt to be happy.
Truth be told, he was a little jealous and envious of his older cousin who had Old Madam Du as a mother. He often wondered if his own mother would have loved him in the same way if she was still alive... or would she ignored him as well?
Little Ye Tian sighed. He then shook his head a little and lightly tapped his own cheeks before saying to himself, "I'll be like Big Brother XiAn in the future… Maybe Daddy will like me more…"
He then went back to his room and started to do his homework. Since his aunt organized the party for him, he felt bad to reject it. Now that he had some time while he waited for his father, he figured he might as well get some work done.
Not long after he started on his multiplication and division assessment, he heard someone knocking at his door. Without looking up, he said, "Come in…"
It was one of the maids. When she walked in, she saw Little Ye Tian sitting at his desk and she sighed at the sight of her pitiful young master. A little boy should be playing and creating a mess, but this young master of hers was always either studying at his desk or reading on his bed.
"Young Master Tian, it's getting late now. Why don't you go to bed?" asked the maid politely. Even though Little Ye Tian was a boy, he was a very mature boy and he did not like to be talked down to.
Little Ye Tian shook his head. He stopped writing and looked at the large slice of chocolate cake that was on a China plate and sitting on his desk. As he looked at the cake, he said with a gentle smile, "I want to wait for Daddy to come home. The cake is tasty, and I want him to give it a try. He has been working hard lately… I want him to have something sweet… "
The maid did not say anything. Everyone knew that at this time of the year, Mr. Ye would never return before 12 a.m. No one knew where he went, but no one dared to ask either.
Once she helped her young master changed into his pajamas, she left the room. As a maid, there was nothing she could do for him. If she tried to be a busybody, she might even lose her job.
At about 12 a.m, Little Ye Tian took the cake and went to his father's bedroom. However, his father was not there. So, he waited inside the room by sitting at the couch. He did not know how long he had been waiting, but his eyelids were feeling heavy and he nearly planted his face into the slice of cake that he was holding.
When he heard someone yelling from outside the room, he immediately looked toward the door before he ran to hide inside the walk-in closet. Holding the plate with the slice of cake tightly, Little Ye Tian smiled. He wanted to give his father a surprise.
"Bet Daddy would like this…" thought Little Ye Tian as he continued to hope that his father would be happy with it.
As for the man himself, he was badly drunk and was yelling at nobody in particular while two butlers helped him into the room. The Head Butler followed behind them as he instructed them to be careful. Once the junior butlers helped him changed out of his clothes and wiped his body clean, they left the room. Only the previous Head Butler remained.
The Head Butler looked at the sorry state of his young master and he sighed deeply.
"Master Xuanyuan, why did you make yourself go through this every year?" The Head Butler knew that his master hated drunkards and that he forced himself to get into a stupor every year on this day because he wanted to forget about everything.
"It's hard… to face him…" murmured Mr. Ye. His face was flushed from the alcohol and he felt miserable. However, he felt good… He could not even remember much at this point in time.
The Head Butler shook his head before saying, "The young master wants to see you… Even if it's just a little while, can't you stay by his side…"
Mr. Ye groaned, "That boy… He's not my son… He's not…"
As he looked at his butler, Mr. Ye cried and said, "That white hair of his… That was a curse placed by the god… He was placed here by the gods to kill his mother… Why would they be so cruel..."
Little Ye Tian, who was in the walk-in closet, heard everything clearly. His hands trembled and he had to sit down on the floor before he collapsed. With tears falling down his eyes, he placed the plate of cake aside gently before he cupped his mouth to prevent noises from going out.
As he hugged his knees tightly, he cried silently when he recalled how his father used to call him a little monster. The staff told him that his father called him a little monster as a form of endearment and he had foolishly believed them.
"Daddy never loves me…" thought Ye Tian as he wiped his tears back. He knew that his mother passed away because of him, and so, he tried his best to make his dad happy. He studied hard and was way ahead of his peers, but no matter what he did, Mr. Ye barely glanced at him.
To know that his father thought of him as a cursed being… It broke his little heart.
Little Ye Tian's silent tears and snot soaked through the sleeve of his right hand as he kept using it to wipe them off. He wanted to stop crying, but he could not. His heart was hurting and he wanted to hug someone, to get comfort from someone, but there was no one there for him.
It took a while, but when he heard the sound of the door being closed, he forced himself to calm down. He wiped his tears off and put on a smile before he picked up the cake. Little Ye Tian went to stand next to his father who was still mumbling something.
"Go away… Don't bother me…"
Little Ye Tian smiled and said, "Daddy, I brought you the birthday cake that aunt brought today. It's good…"
Mr. Ye opened his eyes slowly and when he saw his son, he smiled foolishly, "Ah… My beautiful wife…"
The one that he was looking was not his son, but his late wife. He gently caressed Little Ye Tian's face as he said, "My wife… A-Are you back… back to take me with you? Are you…. angry at me because I haven't been paying attention to Xiao Tian?"
In his mind, his wife was crying as she looked at him.
His head hurt but he still sat up and patted his "wife's" head as he asked, "W-Why are you crying? Is it because I was mean to Xiao Tian?"
He then sighed and said, "I love him… I do love him… Even if I know he's Luo Han's son, I still love him…"
Little Ye Tian's eyes opened wide when he heard the words coming out from his father's mouth. He knew Luo Han was his uncle's name.
"Is that why you hate me, Daddy? Because I'm not your son?" asked Little Ye Tian with a tremor in his voice. Even though he was young, he knew based on the staff's conversation that a drunk man could not lie. Which meant that his father was speaking the truth at the moment.
Mr. Ye placed his head back down on the pillow. As he covered his eyes with the back of his hand, he cried, "I love Xiao Tian… But I can't face him… His hair… His face… Everything reminded me of that b*stard… My wife… I'm sorry, but I'm not strong enough to kill him… I-Is that why you left me in this world all by myself?"
"Daddy…" cried Little Ye Tian. He placed the cake on the nightstand before he hugged his father as he cried, "Daddy, you've me… You're not alone."
Mr. Ye glanced at him. This time, the person he saw was his young son. He thought that he was in a dream and so, he smiled at the boy as he said, "Xiao Tian… You're such a good boy… So smart… So adorable… If only you're my son…"
"But I'm…"
Mr. Ye caressed Little Ye Tian's cheek and said, "I wish you… you look less like him… I wish... I'm strong enough to fight back against them… The Luo Family… I wish they were gone… "
He then mumbled something inaudible before he turned away to sleep.
Little Ye Tian looked at his father for a long time before he asked in a soft voice, "Daddy... If I get rid of them, would you be able to love me? Even if it's just a little bit more? Just… Maybe… Hug me?"
Still semi-conscious, Mr. Ye mumbled a "Mmhmm".
Little Ye Tian placed his right pinky and hooked it with his father's right pinky as he whispered, "It's a promise..."
Mr. Ye grunted, and Little Ye Tian took it as a seal of promise.
Of course, Mr. Ye could remember nothing about the conversation that night. However, Little Ye Tian had never forgotten about it.
From then onwards, Little Ye Tian changed. He started spending more time at the Luo Mansion and he would always try his best to impress his uncle. He knew that he was still young and powerless, but if he was patient, he knew that one day, he would be able to get rid of the Luo Family for his father.
...
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....
25 years ago,
At a beautifully decorated Ye Mansion, children were crowding around the staff as they asked for their help to either call their parents or for some other things that kids needed help with.
"Xiao Tian, I've to go back soon," said a younger Old Madam Du as she knelt on one knee to talk to her young nephew. It was his 5th birthday and since Little Ye Tian was so adorable, she could not resist but organize a birthday party for him.
Despite his father's absence, the little fellow had plenty of fun of his little friends. For the last few hours, he kept dragging Old Madam Du around as he showed her the new things at the house. When he got tired, they sat down at the bar table in the living room, and he showed some of his new gifts from his "dad" to her.
It was a lie of course. Old Madam Du knew that her brother would not have time to shop for anything himself. Whatever gifts that came from him most likely came from the servants. She knew that, and she had a feeling that her little nephew knew it as well.
Her little nephew was smart. Well, he was definitely smarter than Little Luo Yin who was currently picking on the other children at the balcony. Old Madam Du signaled a staff to go over and help out before something major happened.
She then looked back at Little Ye Tian and fully paid attention to him. Both of them did not say anything and they pretended everything was alright as they played with some of the gifts.
When Old Madam Du saw her teenage son walking around with a glass of champagne, she signaled him to come over and chided him for underage drinking. She knew that her son was at that age where he was eager to try things, and while she could understand it, there were certain things that she would not tolerate and drinking was one of them.
Young DX was a little embarrassed at being scolded in front of a kid but he did not say anything as he handed the glass to his mother. Since Old Madam Du knew that it was very likely that her husband allowed it, she did not scold her son too harshly and merely told him to behave more like his age.
She then made him stayed and hung out with them for a while. Little Ye Tian did not mind his cousin's presence. Instead, he kept showing off his knowledge about cars to his cousin who played along and pretended that he knew nothing.
Little Ye Tian even showed his new shiny, red Ferrari toy car to Young DX and asked his older cousin if it was cool.
"Em. It's cool," answered Young DX briefly. He held up the custom built Ferrari and admired the handiwork on it before handing it back to Little Ye Tian. When he received a call from his father who called him to meet him in the garden, Young DX told his mother about it and patted Little Ye Tian on the head before he walked away.
Little Ye Tian smiled brightly as he turned to his aunt and whispered, "Big Brother XiAn said that it's cool…"
"Yeah, it's a cool car…" whispered Old Madam Du back as she smiled at the little boy.
Little Ye Tian gently kicked his legs underneath the table as he rolled the car on the bar table. With a gentle voice, he said, "I'm going to drive a Ferrari when I'm older, and I'll take daddy and you for a ride… Oh, and Uncle Du Jin and Big Brother XiAn. I'll take them as well…"
"Ah, that would be great!" Old Madam Du said before she ruffled his hair.
Old Madam Du played with him the entire night and entertained him until most of his little guests had left, and she herself had to leave soon. However, she did not feel right to leave her little nephew alone even though there were servants around.
She looked at Little Ye Tian who was standing beside her as he waved goodbye to the last of his friends. When Little Ye Tian looked up at her and saw the worried expression on her face, he knew what was on her mind.
With a bright smile, he said, "Don't worry about me. It's getting late now. You should go home. Uncle Du Jin has to work tomorrow, right? And Big Brother XiAn has to go to school too..."
Old Madam Du glanced at her husband who was standing behind her with her son. Both of them came because she wanted to come, and even though they both seemed tired, they never complained about anything.
The two men in her life had always given in to her wishes, however ridiculous it might be.
Little Ye Tian gently pushed her toward them as he said, "Really! Don't worry about me. I'm going to sleep soon anyway. Also, there are the servants here, so I'd be fine…"
Old Madam Du sighed. She was angry at her brother who would leave his son alone on his birthday. However, she could not openly scold him for it because today was also the anniversary of his wife's death. It was too sensitive a subject to be brought up. All she could do was to help out whenever possible.
With a sigh, Old Madam Du patted Little Ye Tian's head and asked, "Xiao Tian, why don't you come and stay with us for tonight? You can bunk with your cousin. I'll talk to your daddy about it. I'm sure he won't scold you."
Young DX raised an eyebrow at his mother's suggestion. He had never bunk with anyone before, but when he saw his cousin's face, he sighed and kept his mouth shut. Everyone in the family knew that Little Ye Tian was all but abandoned by his father. He figured that his bed was large enough that he would not even notice the little boy.
However, Little Ye Tian shook his head and rejected the offer. With a serious expression, he said, "No, thanks. I want to stay here and wait for Dad to come back. Maybe he'd come back early. If I'm not here, he's going to be sad."
Old Madam Du sighed. She wanted to tell him the truth, that his father might not return before the end of the day, but she held her tongue. Kneeling down on her knees, she gently caressed Little Ye Tian's face before she hugged him tightly.
As she rubbed his back, she whispered, "Alright then… If you get scared, then give me a call, alright? Aunt will come right away!"
Little Ye Tian nodded into his aunt's shoulder. He hugged her for a long time before he released her. For him who had lost his mother, his paternal aunt was the closest thing to a mother. He liked how she smiled so sincerely whenever she saw him, and how she always seemed to smell great no matter what.
He sent his aunt and her family off and waved at them until he could no longer see their car. After they left, he dropped his smile. It was hard to keep smiling but he did it because that was what his aunt wanted, and he wanted his aunt to be happy.
Truth be told, he was a little jealous and envious of his older cousin who had Old Madam Du as a mother. He often wondered if his own mother would have loved him in the same way if she was still alive... or would she ignored him as well?
Little Ye Tian sighed. He then shook his head a little and lightly tapped his own cheeks before saying to himself, "I'll be like Big Brother XiAn in the future… Maybe Daddy will like me more…"
He then went back to his room and started to do his homework. Since his aunt organized the party for him, he felt bad to reject it. Now that he had some time while he waited for his father, he figured he might as well get some work done.
Not long after he started on his multiplication and division assessment, he heard someone knocking at his door. Without looking up, he said, "Come in…"
It was one of the maids. When she walked in, she saw Little Ye Tian sitting at his desk and she sighed at the sight of her pitiful young master. A little boy should be playing and creating a mess, but this young master of hers was always either studying at his desk or reading on his bed.
"Young Master Tian, it's getting late now. Why don't you go to bed?" asked the maid politely. Even though Little Ye Tian was a boy, he was a very mature boy and he did not like to be talked down to.
Little Ye Tian shook his head. He stopped writing and looked at the large slice of chocolate cake that was on a China plate and sitting on his desk. As he looked at the cake, he said with a gentle smile, "I want to wait for Daddy to come home. The cake is tasty, and I want him to give it a try. He has been working hard lately… I want him to have something sweet… "
The maid did not say anything. Everyone knew that at this time of the year, Mr. Ye would never return before 12 a.m. No one knew where he went, but no one dared to ask either.
Once she helped her young master changed into his pajamas, she left the room. As a maid, there was nothing she could do for him. If she tried to be a busybody, she might even lose her job.
At about 12 a.m, Little Ye Tian took the cake and went to his father's bedroom. However, his father was not there. So, he waited inside the room by sitting at the couch. He did not know how long he had been waiting, but his eyelids were feeling heavy and he nearly planted his face into the slice of cake that he was holding.
When he heard someone yelling from outside the room, he immediately looked toward the door before he ran to hide inside the walk-in closet. Holding the plate with the slice of cake tightly, Little Ye Tian smiled. He wanted to give his father a surprise.
"Bet Daddy would like this…" thought Little Ye Tian as he continued to hope that his father would be happy with it.
As for the man himself, he was badly drunk and was yelling at nobody in particular while two butlers helped him into the room. The Head Butler followed behind them as he instructed them to be careful. Once the junior butlers helped him changed out of his clothes and wiped his body clean, they left the room. Only the previous Head Butler remained.
The Head Butler looked at the sorry state of his young master and he sighed deeply.
"Master Xuanyuan, why did you make yourself go through this every year?" The Head Butler knew that his master hated drunkards and that he forced himself to get into a stupor every year on this day because he wanted to forget about everything.
"It's hard… to face him…" murmured Mr. Ye. His face was flushed from the alcohol and he felt miserable. However, he felt good… He could not even remember much at this point in time.
The Head Butler shook his head before saying, "The young master wants to see you… Even if it's just a little while, can't you stay by his side…"
Mr. Ye groaned, "That boy… He's not my son… He's not…"
As he looked at his butler, Mr. Ye cried and said, "That white hair of his… That was a curse placed by the god… He was placed here by the gods to kill his mother… Why would they be so cruel..."
Little Ye Tian, who was in the walk-in closet, heard everything clearly. His hands trembled and he had to sit down on the floor before he collapsed. With tears falling down his eyes, he placed the plate of cake aside gently before he cupped his mouth to prevent noises from going out.
As he hugged his knees tightly, he cried silently when he recalled how his father used to call him a little monster. The staff told him that his father called him a little monster as a form of endearment and he had foolishly believed them.
"Daddy never loves me…" thought Ye Tian as he wiped his tears back. He knew that his mother passed away because of him, and so, he tried his best to make his dad happy. He studied hard and was way ahead of his peers, but no matter what he did, Mr. Ye barely glanced at him.
To know that his father thought of him as a cursed being… It broke his little heart.
Little Ye Tian's silent tears and snot soaked through the sleeve of his right hand as he kept using it to wipe them off. He wanted to stop crying, but he could not. His heart was hurting and he wanted to hug someone, to get comfort from someone, but there was no one there for him.
It took a while, but when he heard the sound of the door being closed, he forced himself to calm down. He wiped his tears off and put on a smile before he picked up the cake. Little Ye Tian went to stand next to his father who was still mumbling something.
"Go away… Don't bother me…"
Little Ye Tian smiled and said, "Daddy, I brought you the birthday cake that aunt brought today. It's good…"
Mr. Ye opened his eyes slowly and when he saw his son, he smiled foolishly, "Ah… My beautiful wife…"
The one that he was looking was not his son, but his late wife. He gently caressed Little Ye Tian's face as he said, "My wife… A-Are you back… back to take me with you? Are you…. angry at me because I haven't been paying attention to Xiao Tian?"
In his mind, his wife was crying as she looked at him.
His head hurt but he still sat up and patted his "wife's" head as he asked, "W-Why are you crying? Is it because I was mean to Xiao Tian?"
He then sighed and said, "I love him… I do love him… Even if I know he's Luo Han's son, I still love him…"
Little Ye Tian's eyes opened wide when he heard the words coming out from his father's mouth. He knew Luo Han was his uncle's name.
"Is that why you hate me, Daddy? Because I'm not your son?" asked Little Ye Tian with a tremor in his voice. Even though he was young, he knew based on the staff's conversation that a drunk man could not lie. Which meant that his father was speaking the truth at the moment.
Mr. Ye placed his head back down on the pillow. As he covered his eyes with the back of his hand, he cried, "I love Xiao Tian… But I can't face him… His hair… His face… Everything reminded me of that b*stard… My wife… I'm sorry, but I'm not strong enough to kill him… I-Is that why you left me in this world all by myself?"
"Daddy…" cried Little Ye Tian. He placed the cake on the nightstand before he hugged his father as he cried, "Daddy, you've me… You're not alone."
Mr. Ye glanced at him. This time, the person he saw was his young son. He thought that he was in a dream and so, he smiled at the boy as he said, "Xiao Tian… You're such a good boy… So smart… So adorable… If only you're my son…"
"But I'm…"
Mr. Ye caressed Little Ye Tian's cheek and said, "I wish you… you look less like him… I wish... I'm strong enough to fight back against them… The Luo Family… I wish they were gone… "
He then mumbled something inaudible before he turned away to sleep.
Little Ye Tian looked at his father for a long time before he asked in a soft voice, "Daddy... If I get rid of them, would you be able to love me? Even if it's just a little bit more? Just… Maybe… Hug me?"
Still semi-conscious, Mr. Ye mumbled a "Mmhmm".
Little Ye Tian placed his right pinky and hooked it with his father's right pinky as he whispered, "It's a promise..."
Mr. Ye grunted, and Little Ye Tian took it as a seal of promise.
Of course, Mr. Ye could remember nothing about the conversation that night. However, Little Ye Tian had never forgotten about it.
From then onwards, Little Ye Tian changed. He started spending more time at the Luo Mansion and he would always try his best to impress his uncle. He knew that he was still young and powerless, but if he was patient, he knew that one day, he would be able to get rid of the Luo Family for his father.
...
....25 years ago, At a beautifully decorated Ye Mansion, children were crowding around the staff as they asked for their help to either call their parents or for some other things that kids needed help with. "Xiao Tian, I've to go back soon," said a younger Old Madam Du as she knelt on one knee to talk to her young nephew. It was his 5th birthday and since Little Ye Tian was so adorable, she could not resist but organize a birthday party for him.Despite his father's absence, the little fellow had plenty of fun of his little friends. For the last few hours, he kept dragging Old Madam Du around as he showed her the new things at the house. When he got tired, they sat down at the bar table in the living room, and he showed some of his new gifts from his "dad" to her. It was a lie of course. Old Madam Du knew that her brother would not have time to shop for anything himself. Whatever gifts that came from him most likely came from the servants. She knew that, and she had a feeling that her little nephew knew it as well. Her little nephew was smart. Well, he was definitely smarter than Little Luo Yin who was currently picking on the other children at the balcony. Old Madam Du signaled a staff to go over and help out before something major happened. She then looked back at Little Ye Tian and fully paid attention to him. Both of them did not say anything and they pretended everything was alright as they played with some of the gifts. When Old Madam Du saw her teenage son walking around with a glass of champagne, she signaled him to come over and chided him for underage drinking. She knew that her son was at that age where he was eager to try things, and while she could understand it, there were certain things that she would not tolerate and drinking was one of them. Young DX was a little embarrassed at being scolded in front of a kid but he did not say anything as he handed the glass to his mother. Since Old Madam Du knew that it was very likely that her husband allowed it, she did not scold her son too harshly and merely told him to behave more like his age.She then made him stayed and hung out with them for a while. Little Ye Tian did not mind his cousin's presence. Instead, he kept showing off his knowledge about cars to his cousin who played along and pretended that he knew nothing. Little Ye Tian even showed his new shiny, red Ferrari toy car to Young DX and asked his older cousin if it was cool. "Em. It's cool," answered Young DX briefly. He held up the custom built Ferrari and admired the handiwork on it before handing it back to Little Ye Tian. When he received a call from his father who called him to meet him in the garden, Young DX told his mother about it and patted Little Ye Tian on the head before he walked away. Little Ye Tian smiled brightly as he turned to his aunt and whispered, "Big Brother XiAn said that it's cool" "Yeah, it's a cool car" whispered Old Madam Du back as she smiled at the little boy.Little Ye Tian gently kicked his legs underneath the table as he rolled the car on the bar table. With a gentle voice, he said, "I'm going to drive a Ferrari when I'm older, and I'll take daddy and you for a ride Oh, and Uncle Du Jin and Big Brother XiAn. I'll take them as well" "Ah, that would be great!" Old Madam Du said before she ruffled his hair. Old Madam Du played with him the entire night and entertained him until most of his little guests had left, and she herself had to leave soon. However, she did not feel right to leave her little nephew alone even though there were servants around. She looked at Little Ye Tian who was standing beside her as he waved goodbye to the last of his friends. When Little Ye Tian looked up at her and saw the worried expression on her face, he knew what was on her mind. With a bright smile, he said, "Don't worry about me. It's getting late now. You should go home. Uncle Du Jin has to work tomorrow, right? And Big Brother XiAn has to go to school too..." Old Madam Du glanced at her husband who was standing behind her with her son. Both of them came because she wanted to come, and even though they both seemed tired, they never complained about anything. The two men in her life had always given in to her wishes, however ridiculous it might be.Little Ye Tian gently pushed her toward them as he said, "Really! Don't worry about me. I'm going to sleep soon anyway. Also, there are the servants here, so I'd be fine" Old Madam Du sighed. She was angry at her brother who would leave his son alone on his birthday. However, she could not openly scold him for it because today was also the anniversary of his wife's death. It was too sensitive a subject to be brought up. All she could do was to help out whenever possible. With a sigh, Old Madam Du patted Little Ye Tian's head and asked, "Xiao Tian, why don't you come and stay with us for tonight? You can bunk with your cousin. I'll talk to your daddy about it. I'm sure he won't scold you." Young DX raised an eyebrow at his mother's suggestion. He had never bunk with anyone before, but when he saw his cousin's face, he sighed and kept his mouth shut. Everyone in the family knew that Little Ye Tian was all but abandoned by his father. He figured that his bed was large enough that he would not even notice the little boy.However, Little Ye Tian shook his head and rejected the offer. With a serious expression, he said, "No, thanks. I want to stay here and wait for Dad to come back. Maybe he'd come back early. If I'm not here, he's going to be sad."Old Madam Du sighed. She wanted to tell him the truth, that his father might not return before the end of the day, but she held her tongue. Kneeling down on her knees, she gently caressed Little Ye Tian's face before she hugged him tightly.As she rubbed his back, she whispered, "Alright then If you get scared, then give me a call, alright? Aunt will come right away!" Little Ye Tian nodded into his aunt's shoulder. He hugged her for a long time before he released her. For him who had lost his mother, his paternal aunt was the closest thing to a mother. He liked how she smiled so sincerely whenever she saw him, and how she always seemed to smell great no matter what. He sent his aunt and her family off and waved at them until he could no longer see their car. After they left, he dropped his smile. It was hard to keep smiling but he did it because that was what his aunt wanted, and he wanted his aunt to be happy. Truth be told, he was a little jealous and envious of his older cousin who had Old Madam Du as a mother. He often wondered if his own mother would have loved him in the same way if she was still alive... or would she ignored him as well? Little Ye Tian sighed. He then shook his head a little and lightly tapped his own cheeks before saying to himself, "I'll be like Big Brother XiAn in the future Maybe Daddy will like me more" He then went back to his room and started to do his homework. Since his aunt organized the party for him, he felt bad to reject it. Now that he had some time while he waited for his father, he figured he might as well get some work done. Not long after he started on his multiplication and division assessment, he heard someone knocking at his door. Without looking up, he said, "Come in" It was one of the maids. When she walked in, she saw Little Ye Tian sitting at his desk and she sighed at the sight of her pitiful young master. A little boy should be playing and creating a mess, but this young master of hers was always either studying at his desk or reading on his bed. "Young Master Tian, it's getting late now. Why don't you go to bed?" asked the maid politely. Even though Little Ye Tian was a boy, he was a very mature boy and he did not like to be talked down to. Little Ye Tian shook his head. He stopped writing and looked at the large slice of chocolate cake that was on a China plate and sitting on his desk. As he looked at the cake, he said with a gentle smile, "I want to wait for Daddy to come home. The cake is tasty, and I want him to give it a try. He has been working hard lately I want him to have something sweet " The maid did not say anything. Everyone knew that at this time of the year, Mr. Ye would never return before 12 a.m. No one knew where he went, but no one dared to ask either. Once she helped her young master changed into his pajamas, she left the room. As a maid, there was nothing she could do for him. If she tried to be a busybody, she might even lose her job.At about 12 a.m, Little Ye Tian took the cake and went to his father's bedroom. However, his father was not there. So, he waited inside the room by sitting at the couch. He did not know how long he had been waiting, but his eyelids were feeling heavy and he nearly planted his face into the slice of cake that he was holding. When he heard someone yelling from outside the room, he immediately looked toward the door before he ran to hide inside the walk-in closet. Holding the plate with the slice of cake tightly, Little Ye Tian smiled. He wanted to give his father a surprise."Bet Daddy would like this" thought Little Ye Tian as he continued to hope that his father would be happy with it. As for the man himself, he was badly drunk and was yelling at nobody in particular while two butlers helped him into the room. The Head Butler followed behind them as he instructed them to be careful. Once the junior butlers helped him changed out of his clothes and wiped his body clean, they left the room. Only the previous Head Butler remained. The Head Butler looked at the sorry state of his young master and he sighed deeply. "Master Xuanyuan, why did you make yourself go through this every year?" The Head Butler knew that his master hated drunkards and that he forced himself to get into a stupor every year on this day because he wanted to forget about everything. "It's hard to face him" murmured Mr. Ye. His face was flushed from the alcohol and he felt miserable. However, he felt good He could not even remember much at this point in time.The Head Butler shook his head before saying, "The young master wants to see you Even if it's just a little while, can't you stay by his side" Mr. Ye groaned, "That boy He's not my son He's not" As he looked at his butler, Mr. Ye cried and said, "That white hair of his That was a curse placed by the god He was placed here by the gods to kill his mother Why would they be so cruel..."Little Ye Tian, who was in the walk-in closet, heard everything clearly. His hands trembled and he had to sit down on the floor before he collapsed. With tears falling down his eyes, he placed the plate of cake aside gently before he cupped his mouth to prevent noises from going out. As he hugged his knees tightly, he cried silently when he recalled how his father used to call him a little monster. The staff told him that his father called him a little monster as a form of endearment and he had foolishly believed them."Daddy never loves me" thought Ye Tian as he wiped his tears back. He knew that his mother passed away because of him, and so, he tried his best to make his dad happy. He studied hard and was way ahead of his peers, but no matter what he did, Mr. Ye barely glanced at him. To know that his father thought of him as a cursed being It broke his little heart. Little Ye Tian's silent tears and snot soaked through the sleeve of his right hand as he kept using it to wipe them off. He wanted to stop crying, but he could not. His heart was hurting and he wanted to hug someone, to get comfort from someone, but there was no one there for him. It took a while, but when he heard the sound of the door being closed, he forced himself to calm down. He wiped his tears off and put on a smile before he picked up the cake. Little Ye Tian went to stand next to his father who was still mumbling something. "Go away Don't bother me" Little Ye Tian smiled and said, "Daddy, I brought you the birthday cake that aunt brought today. It's good" Mr. Ye opened his eyes slowly and when he saw his son, he smiled foolishly, "Ah My beautiful wife" The one that he was looking was not his son, but his late wife. He gently caressed Little Ye Tian's face as he said, "My wife A-Are you back back to take me with you? Are you. angry at me because I haven't been paying attention to Xiao Tian?" In his mind, his wife was crying as she looked at him. His head hurt but he still sat up and patted his "wife's" head as he asked, "W-Why are you crying? Is it because I was mean to Xiao Tian?"He then sighed and said, "I love him I do love him Even if I know he's Luo Han's son, I still love him" Little Ye Tian's eyes opened wide when he heard the words coming out from his father's mouth. He knew Luo Han was his uncle's name."Is that why you hate me, Daddy? Because I'm not your son?" asked Little Ye Tian with a tremor in his voice. Even though he was young, he knew based on the staff's conversation that a drunk man could not lie. Which meant that his father was speaking the truth at the moment. Mr. Ye placed his head back down on the pillow. As he covered his eyes with the back of his hand, he cried, "I love Xiao Tian But I can't face him His hair His face Everything reminded me of that b*stard My wife I'm sorry, but I'm not strong enough to kill him I-Is that why you left me in this world all by myself?""Daddy" cried Little Ye Tian. He placed the cake on the nightstand before he hugged his father as he cried, "Daddy, you've me You're not alone." Mr. Ye glanced at him. This time, the person he saw was his young son. He thought that he was in a dream and so, he smiled at the boy as he said, "Xiao Tian You're such a good boy So smart So adorable If only you're my son" "But I'm" Mr. Ye caressed Little Ye Tian's cheek and said, "I wish you you look less like him I wish... I'm strong enough to fight back against them The Luo Family I wish they were gone " He then mumbled something inaudible before he turned away to sleep. Little Ye Tian looked at his father for a long time before he asked in a soft voice, "Daddy... If I get rid of them, would you be able to love me? Even if it's just a little bit more? Just Maybe Hug me?" Still semi-conscious, Mr. Ye mumbled a "Mmhmm". Little Ye Tian placed his right pinky and hooked it with his father's right pinky as he whispered, "It's a promise..." Mr. Ye grunted, and Little Ye Tian took it as a seal of promise. Of course, Mr. Ye could remember nothing about the conversation that night. However, Little Ye Tian had never forgotten about it. From then onwards, Little Ye Tian changed. He started spending more time at the Luo Mansion and he would always try his best to impress his uncle. He knew that he was still young and powerless, but if he was patient, he knew that one day, he would be able to get rid of the Luo Family for his father....
