Chapter 110: They Are the Same Kind

Chapter 110: Chapter 110: They Are the Same Kind

"Don’t think you can win me over like this! I can buy them myself! And I’ll buy some for my mom, too!"

Nan Yi had no concept of what owning one hundred convenience stores represented.

Or rather, even if he did, he wouldn’t care.

He used to be a little beast guarding a barren territory.

Now, he had a treasure to guard: his mom.

No matter what anyone else offered, he would never push his mom away.

She was his priceless treasure.

So...

"Stay away from us!"

Nan Yi bared his teeth, trying to scare away the man before him.

Unfortunately for him, his little threat was nothing but amusing to Lu Shixu.

Lu Shixu let out a cool "oh."

"I’m not trying to win you over."

"You can’t try to win over my mom, either!"

’Don’t think I can’t see through your little scheme!’

This time, Lu Shixu didn’t reply.

After a long moment, he spoke out of the blue, asking a completely unrelated question.

"Do you know what it feels like to hold sand?"

Nan Yi turned his face away. ’What is this guy talking about?’ he wondered.

Lu Shixu continued, "The tighter you squeeze, the faster the sand slips through your fingers."

Nan Yi’s small body went rigid.

A bone-deep chill crept up his spine, making him feel as if he’d been stripped bare and tossed into a frozen wasteland.

Fighting back a shiver, he tried to sound defensive.

"...That has nothing to do with you!"

The little beast brandished its less-than-sharp claws, but Lu Shixu paid it no mind.

He was simply sinking into the mire of his own emotions.

Because the "holding sand" analogy stung not only Nan Yi, but himself as well.

It was as if he, too, had once had such a personal and painful experience—

The desperate need to hold on, to squeeze tighter, only made him lose it faster.

In the blink of an eye, it was all scattered by the wind, leaving him standing there, a ridiculous, solitary figure...

His chest tightened, making it hard to breathe.

Lu Shixu reached up and loosened his tie.

But he realized the suffocating feeling wasn’t from the tie.

It came from the emotions lying dormant in the deepest corners of his being.

Just when he thought they were gone, they would suddenly surface and strike him with vicious force.

Lu Shixu’s mind went blank for a moment.

Nan Yi waited for a long time for the man’s next words. When nothing came, he looked over in confusion and noticed something was wrong with him.

’Hmph. Serves him right!’

The thought of helping never even crossed Nan Yi’s mind. Instead, he cheerfully swung his little legs.

Of course, Lu Shixu noticed Nan Yi’s small movements.

He forced down his discomfort and said,

"That’s what you think. Is that what your mother thinks, too?"

Nan Yi’s swinging legs stilled.

"It’s none of your business."

"You’re scared."

"I..."

"Scared that she’ll hate you when she finds out who you really are."

"..."

"She must want a child who lives in the light, but you have nothing. So you can only put on a disguise to please her. Or to deceive her."

"..."

Nan Yi clenched his jaw, his lips pressed into a thin, tight line.

He whipped his head to the side, wanting to argue, but he couldn’t find the words.

Besides, there was something wrong with the man before him. His gaze was distant and blank, as if he were enveloped in a viscous shadow.

Just like him.

Nan Yi’s wariness and defensiveness instantly slackened. His lips curled in a sneer, his disdain unconcealed.

"So you’re the same way."

’We’re the same kind,’ he thought.

Lu Shixu wanted to shake his head, to deny it.

Because he had no memory of ever being like that.

Even with his mother, the woman who had become the demon of his heart, he had never tried to win her over as a child.

He knew it was useless. His mother loved only his father, not him.

So why... did he empathize so strongly?

Those words weren’t just for Nan Yi; they were for himself, too.

"I..."

In a flash.

A figure as gentle and bright as moonlight broke through the haze-filled world of his vision.

Lu Shixu froze instantly, staring blankly ahead.

Nan Yi, who had been watching him closely, sensed something was off and followed his gaze.

"Mo... Mom!"

Nan Zhi had already strode into the convenience store.

She must have been in a hurry; she hadn’t even taken off her apron.

Her hair, which had been neatly tied back for working in the kitchen, had come slightly loose.

She was breathing heavily as she pulled Nan Yi to her side and looked him up and down.

"Yiyi, are you okay?"

Naturally, Nan Zhi couldn’t ignore the towering figure of Lu Shixu.

Her displeased gaze swept over to him.

Lu Shixu had been feeling unwell, his body slumped slightly forward.

But the moment Nan Zhi’s gaze fell on him, he immediately straightened up.

"It was him..."

"I just ran into this uncle. He looked like he wasn’t feeling well, so I sat with him for a bit!"

The words tumbled out of Nan Yi’s mouth like a machine gun as he rushed to explain.

He was like a well-behaved kitten, nestling against Nan Zhi’s side, his voice soft.

"Mom, I didn’t run off."

"I know. Yiyi is a good boy who knows his boundaries."

As she spoke, Nan Zhi glanced at Lu Shixu.

As if to say *he* was the one who didn’t know his boundaries.

Lu Shixu: "..."

He fell silent.

He thought about how he was usually the one setting traps for others.

But today, a four-and-a-half-year-old child had trapped him with just a few words.

He had underestimated Nan Yi.

Meeting Nan Zhi’s displeased scrutiny, Lu Shixu silently swallowed the explanation on the tip of his tongue.

"My apologies."

Seeing him bow his head, Nan Zhi had a change of heart.

In truth, she had watched Nan Yi and Lu Shixu interacting through the glass window before she came in.

Although they sat with two empty seats between them, the boundary clearly drawn, the atmosphere was a far cry from their previous hostility.

Instead, there was a strange sort of harmony between them.

"...Never mind."

Nan Zhi’s tone was no longer so harsh.

Lu Shixu sensed it.

So did Nan Yi.

Taking advantage of his small size, he clutched his mother’s hand tightly.

"Let’s go back! The restaurant must be busy!"

How could Nan Zhi not see through her son’s little ploy?

She ruffled the top of Nan Yi’s head and smiled with gentle indulgence.

"Alright, let’s go."

With that, she gave Lu Shixu a brief nod.

Then she took Nan Yi’s hand and left.

She didn’t spare him another glance, as if they were nothing more than strangers who had briefly crossed paths.

Lu Shixu slowly rubbed his fingers together, his throat terribly dry.

He recalled the way Nan Zhi had looked down at her child, her tenderness flowing like water.

It was like a soft but resilient silk that wrapped around him, binding him, strangling him until he couldn’t breathe.

The feeling was familiar, just like the sense of suffocation from moments before.

Lu Shixu suddenly understood the source—

It was Nan Zhi.

Meanwhile, Nan Zhi had already led Nan Yi back to Nan Family’s Small Restaurant.

The convenience store was only a few dozen meters from their restaurant, just a short walk away.

However, worried that she might disturb the diners by going through the front entrance, Nan Zhi took the long way around to the back door, which took a little more time.

The whole way back, Nan Yi was on edge, terrified of what Nan Zhi might ask.

But in the end, Nan Zhi said nothing, only showing him concern.

Growing more and more anxious, Nan Yi quietly squeezed Nan Zhi’s hand.

Nan Zhi immediately squeezed back.

She then looked down and smiled at him.

That familiar warmth slowly settled Nan Yi’s anxious heart.