Chapter 17: Everyone Calls Me Brother Now
Library.
Having finished the essay, Lin Shu flipped open his math test paper, biting the end of his pen as he worked through the problems, his face etched with deep frustration.
…
Coffee shop.
After questioning one person, Lin Zhou turned to the next. The young man was dressed flamboyantly, sipping coffee with elegant ease, a look of carefree nonchalance etched between his brows.
…
“So, none of you know who’s been targeting Lin Shu?”
Lin Zhou set down his cup, uncrossed his legs, and curled a mischievous smile.
Two friends beside him straightened up; one with a buzz cut lifted his chin, holding out his phone and pointing at the group. “Why isn’t Xie Buchen here?”
No one answered, standing silently.
Lin Zhou chuckled, “Lao Xu, me being away hasn’t affected things, but look at you—you still can’t keep the kids in line.”
The buzz-cut guy, nicknamed Lao Xu, wiped his forehead and clicked his tongue, suddenly raising his voice, “I’m asking you all—why the silence?”
“Chen… doesn’t get involved in this stuff,” muttered a short boy with textured curls.
The tall, lean man with long hair on Lin Zhou’s right side sneered, “The brothers are treating, and he refuses to come, doesn’t answer calls—no respect at all.”
Well, with that, Lao Xu’s temper flared, and he declared that since Xie Buchen wasn’t coming, no one was going home today—they’d just stay at the coffee shop.
After a half-hour stalemate, the boy with textured curls reluctantly called Xie Buchen, and only then did the three of them finally get to speak with the top dog from No. 1 High School.
Lin Zhou, barely containing his anger, pressed speakerphone and asked Xie Buchen, “Kid, do you know who I am?”
“…I don’t buy insurance,” came the dry reply.
…
Someone couldn’t hold it in and snorted a laugh. Lin Zhou lost face, scanning the room with growing ire. His previously calm tone hardened, adding a hint of menace: “Xie Buchen, I’m asking you—who’s bullying my sister at school?”
“Oh, so it’s her brother,” came the subdued response.
No one laughed now.
Everyone, including the kids from No. 1 High School, looked at Lin Zhou with sympathetic eyes.
Whose cabbage got trampled by pigs?
Well, anyway, he was called “brother” now.
Lin Zhou’s voice turned fully masculine, radiating a deadly aura. “Who’s your brother?”
“Sorry, Brother Lin Shu, I’m a bit busy right now. I’ll come find you after I’m done. Is the coffee shop on Youth Road?”
Before Lin Zhou could respond, Xie Buchen hung up.
Finally, only a clear sound of someone begging for mercy echoed, along with the thud of fists on flesh.
---
What a kid.
Truly a troublemaker.
First day of vacation and already fighting outside.
Lao Xu kept wiping his head, clearly taken with Xie Buchen even before meeting him. He was easy to read—whenever he found someone interesting, he'd fiddle endlessly with the few strands of hair on his head.
The tall, lean man with long hair folded his arms, smiling, though no one knew why—it probably wasn’t at Lin Zhou; friends teasing each other like this was normal.
Lin Zhou had no choice but to wait.
After two rounds of desserts, Xie Buchen finally arrived, riding a mountain bike.
The group from No. 1 High School parted like the Red Sea upon seeing him, as if a savior had appeared. Xie Buchen came over, plopped down, and curiously asked, “Zhang Bing, why aren’t you sitting?”
Zhang Bing was the short boy with textured curls.
He and Xie Buchen had known each other since elementary school—childhood friends. His grades were poor, and he paid high fees to get into No. 1 High School just to be with Xie Buchen.
Zhang Bing looked toward Lin Zhou.
Xie Buchen glanced over too. His hands bore scrapes, and a faint sheen of sweat glistened on his face. Even facing people older than him, he radiated an unyielding rebellious spirit.
“What's this, Brother Lin Shu? Punishing my friend with standing?”
Lin Zhou said nothing.
Lao Xu slammed his phone on the table, twisted his neck, and leaned in, his face full of hostility like a wild dog on a leash. Xie Buchen knew him well—a rather notorious figure. But so what? The boy placed his hand on his knee, leaned forward, and locked eyes with Lao Xu, asking calmly, “Got a problem?”
Lin Zhou grabbed Lao Xu and asked who was targeting Lin Shu at school.
Xie Buchen sat back and said, “No need to worry, it’s all handled. He won’t dare do it again.”
“She’s my sister,” Lin Zhou said coldly.
“I know,” Xie Buchen replied coolly. “She told me.”
Before Lin Zhou could speak, Xie Buchen chuckled twice, his voice low and rough, his mischievous face adopting a serious tone. “Brother Lin Shu, please don’t cause trouble for Lin Shu. She just wants to study quietly at No. 1 High School, not get famous. If even one person slips up and says something, what do you think others will say about her?”
Lin Zhou was speechless.
He hadn’t wanted to escalate things either, but hearing that Lin Shu was being bullied and forced to seek protection ignited his anger. He had thought such things wouldn’t happen in a good school and had let his guard down. Now he knew it happened everywhere.
And then there was this handsome, hot-tempered brat.
Damn it.
Xie Buchen said, “Alright, brothers, let them disperse. I’ll stay with you, as long as you want.”
Zhang Bing looked at Xie Buchen worriedly; Xie Buchen shook his head slightly.
The tall, lean man waved the others away.
Once everyone left, Lin Zhou continued questioning. The previously defiant Xie Buchen did not hide anything and recounted everything, including how he handled it: after the bookstore incident, Xie Buchen had warned Fang Chao alone. Surprisingly, the kid hadn’t learned; he caught him again in the bathroom and confronted him. Since it was vacation—five days—he was worried Fang Chao would forget the lesson, so he took time to teach him again.
The tall, lean man glanced at Xie Buchen’s hand and laughed even harder.
Lao Xu’s face shifted from tense to one of elder’s contentment.
Only Lin Zhou, as the protective brother, remained suspicious and caught a blind spot. “No blood relation, no reason—why do you care about my sister?”
Xie Buchen raised a brow but stayed silent.
---
Lin Zhou said coldly, “We’re both guys. Don’t think I don’t know what you’re thinking. Let me tell you…”
Xie Buchen wore a resigned expression and lazily said, “Brother Lin Shu, to be honest, it seems Lin Shu has a bit of a thing for me.”
…
The tall guy turned his head away, barely able to keep a straight face.
Lao Xu, a straightforward man, actually pondered Xie Buchen’s words seriously, then muttered, gripping Lin Zhou’s shoulder, “Ah Zhou, it’s possible. That kid’s pretty handsome; it’s normal your sister might like him.”
Lin Zhou pushed Lao Xu’s hand away, grabbed Xie Buchen’s shoulder, and led him to a corner on the second-floor terrace of the coffee shop.
Lighting a cigarette, Lin Zhou exhaled slowly, “…Even if my sister has feelings, you’re not allowed to get close to her.”
“Don’t worry, I have no interest in her.”
…
Huh?
Lin Zhou held his cigarette, turned, and snapped, “Are you seriously rubbing it in? What’s wrong with my sister? Why wouldn’t you have feelings for her?”
“Brother Lin Shu, you’re a bit twisted,” Xie Buchen said, standing at the terrace’s edge, pausing for a moment before calmly stating.
Lin Zhou’s expression twisted oddly, testing, “Gay?”
Xie Buchen was speechless.
These two siblings must share the same brainwave.
Xie Buchen chuckled and candidly said, “Brother Lin Shu, we’re the same type. Tell me, would you go for a good girl?”
Obviously not—it’d be a hassle.
Not into partying, serious to a fault, and if he ever hurt someone, he’d wake up in the middle of the night feeling like garbage. Lin Zhou was just after fun, not a scoundrel.
Hearing this, Lin Zhou reluctantly accepted it.
Still, he couldn’t look at Xie Buchen without some resentment—probably because having a male dog around his sister felt wrong.
“Thanks for looking out for my sister.”
Lin Zhou tossed a pack of cigarettes to Xie Buchen and added, “Since you don’t have those feelings, just stay away from her. Don’t give her any hope—girls at this age don’t know anything and tend to obsess. Loving someone means wanting a lifetime with them. It’s maddening.”
Xie Buchen threw the pack back but accepted the single cigarette Lin Zhou handed him, lit it with Lin Zhou’s windproof lighter, and nodded lightly.
No need for Lin Zhou to say it—Xie Buchen had the same plan.
Every day he’d deliver breakfast, walk her to the street corner at night, chat occasionally. Though trivial and never crossing any boundaries, he knew matters of the heart were judged by actions, not intentions.
No matter what, no contact was best for them.