Chapter 318 - 316: A Meeting of Brothers

Chapter 318: Chapter 316: A Meeting of Brothers

Li Xiu glanced at Ping’an, rubbed his forehead in resignation, and got up. He went to the door and told the squad leader to quietly ask Ping Jing to come over from the garden.

’It’s best to get this over with quickly,’ he thought. ’Ping’an is about to collapse. He has to rush back tonight. If we solve this now, he can get some proper rest. If we don’t, he won’t be able to rest at all!’

"Brother, why is being a person so hard?" Ping’an mumbled to Li Xiu, looking dejected.

"This is what you call hard? What will you do in the future? Is that all the backbone you have? Pull yourself together!" Seeing the listless and utterly demoralized Ping’an, Li Xiu’s heart ached. In both his lives, his family ties had been weak. Although he was on good terms with Li Bao and the others, Ping’an was different in his eyes. He was a younger brother, a friend, a confidant—perhaps all of the above.

Ping’an rubbed his face hard with his hands and forced himself to rally his spirits. ’My brother... what should I do?’ He was the brother who had raised him, who had protected him all this way. He couldn’t blame his brother for becoming like this; that incident had changed his brother’s entire life. Gritting his teeth, he resolved, ’No matter what, I have to try!’

A short while later, Ping Jing knocked and walked in. Seeing Ping’an slumped on the sofa, he paused for a moment, and then his face instantly broke into a wide smile. The joy bursting from his eyes was practically overflowing.

"Brother, you’re here! Come in, have a seat!" Li Xiu glanced at the silent Ping’an on the sofa, then quickly stood up and spoke to Ping Jing with a smile.

Sitting on the adjacent sofa with a beaming smile, Ping Jing looked at Ping’an, then at Li Xiu, and said with a laugh, "When did you get back? Did you two come back together?"

"Brother, I got back less than an hour ago. I had someone call you over right after I washed up." Ping’an rubbed his forehead, a headache starting. ’Just how suspicious has my brother become?’

Li Xiu glanced at Ping’an with a smile and said to Ping Jing, "Brother, I came back the night before last." ’No wonder Ping’an is at a loss,’ he thought. ’How did he get so paranoid? No, he wasn’t like this before.’

"Oh. How many days can you stay, Ping’an?" Ping Jing nodded nonchalantly after hearing their answers, then asked Ping’an with concern.

"Brother, I have to head back tonight. I snuck back!"

"Driving for a full day and night by himself, without any sleep. And tonight, he’s going to drive another night and day to get back, again without any sleep. Brother, don’t you think Ping’an is getting more and more capable these days?" Li Xiu added from the side, his tone casual but his words pointed.

"Brother!" Ping’an looked at Li Xiu in shock. He never imagined Li Xiu would just throw it all out in the open to his brother.

Li Xiu gave Ping’an a calm look and said unhurriedly, "Am I wrong?"

Slowly turning his head, Ping Jing looked at Ping’an, who was slumped on the sofa, opening his mouth to say something before closing it again. Ping Jing shut his eyes, trying hard to suppress the rage in his heart, but his voice was still full of fire when he spoke: "Ping’an, what’s stopping you from ascending to the heavens!"

Hearing those words from Ping Jing, which sounded as if they were squeezed through his teeth, Ping’an cautiously glanced at his brother, who looked like a powder keg ready to explode. Then he looked at the expressionless Li Xiu and cursed inwardly. ’Am I ever going to hear the end of this? When these two decide to teach someone a lesson, it’s an unforgettable experience. Surely I can’t be so unlucky as to be dealt with by both of them at once!’

"Brother! Li Xiu! I was wrong! It won’t happen again, I’ll never dare to do it again!" Knowing this wasn’t going to end well, Ping’an caved instantly.

Seeing Ping’an’s pathetic display, Li Xiu sighed inwardly and said to Ping Jing, "Brother, you should talk to him. He hasn’t eaten or slept for a full day and night. I’ll go get him something easy to digest."

Watching Li Xiu close the door and leave, Ping Jing looked at Ping’an quietly and said, "Speak. What was it for?"

"Brother, you don’t trust Li Jincheng! Why?"

Ping Jing let out a sneer, but his voice was calm. "Ping’an, besides you and your sister-in-law, I don’t trust anyone."

"I know that. But do you know what Jin Chen has done, or how much he’s done? Brother, all these years! It was Jin Chen who carried me, first in his arms, then on his back, and now he supports me as I take each step forward. You know Father and Mother—they couldn’t help with anything. To get to where I am today... Brother, do you really think I’m some kind of genius?" Ping’an said with a look of helplessness at Ping Jing.

Frowning at Ping’an, Ping Jing said with some confusion, "Didn’t you just stay by his side for a year at the very beginning? Weren’t you two just partners after that? Is there something in between that I don’t know about?"

"Brother, you know that Father and those other elders wanted Jin Chen to join the system, right?"

When Ping Jing nodded, Ping’an continued softly, "He didn’t want to. No matter how those elders tried to persuade him, Jin Chen absolutely refused to join the system. Mother said that Jin Chen takes after his master, that he loves the romantic, unrestrained spirit of the Wei Jin era. He reveres the idea of ’abandoning the classics for Laozi and Zhuangzi, scorning rites and laws to embrace a life of freedom.’ Brother, Jin Chen is the type to be wild and free, utterly unrestrained. He despises the backstabbing and deception of the world of fame and fortune, yet now he’s right in the middle of all these schemes and plots. Brother, why do you think he’s doing it?"

Ping Jing shook his head. He truly couldn’t understand why Li Xiu was doing this. ’He doesn’t like it, refuses to join the system, and yet now he...’

"Brother, Jin Chen told me these things once, and it’s impossible he’ll ever say them again. I only ever told Father, and that was because he overheard our conversation. This will be the last time I say it, and I’m telling you."

"Brother, Jin Chen said: ’Ping’an, you know I’ll never join the system. What I’m telling you here today, I will not say a second time. So listen carefully. No matter which path you choose in the future, you must remember my words!’"

"’The Eldest Young Master is already disheartened. The future of the Ping Family now depends on you. Elder Ping and Aunt Zhou genuinely act for the country and its people. They are too selfless and impartial, and besides, they could never bring themselves to force you. Furthermore, they place too much importance on the bonds of life and death from the past. But they’ve forgotten that not everyone is as single-mindedly devoted to the public good as they are. Who doesn’t care about their own children and grandchildren? It’s not that other people are bad; on the contrary, they are just normal people. Didn’t they risk their lives so that their descendants could live good lives?’"

"’Descendants of other families can have that, so why can’t their own? So, Ping’an, look—aside from the Ping Family, what about you? What do you want? Or let me ask you another way: Ping’an, once Elder Ping passes away, what will you and the Ping Family do?’"