Qi Zhi Hears Nothing

Because Qiao An An had to be driven home, the journey was much longer.
In the seven-seater MPV, Qiao An An and Xie Zhi Lan sat in the middle row. She turned to look at Xie Qi Zhi. The child had fallen asleep not long after getting into the car, held tightly by the seatbelt, his head tilted to one side. His sleeping face under the slightly yellow reading light looked incredibly pure, with a nascent beauty between his brows and eyes that was hard to forget at first glance.
She remembered again how, after school, Xie Qi Zhi had pulled Xie Zhi Lan's hand, calling "Brother," saying he was sleepy and wanted to go home early.
Qiao An An didn't care if a child was sleepy, but she noticed the fleeting hesitation in Xie Zhi Lan's amber eyes when he looked down at him.
Xie Zhi Lan was a little tired, staring blankly out the window.
She reached out, gently placed her hand on the back of his hand, and softly asked, "Brother Lan, why have you never mentioned having a younger brother?"
Xie Zhi Lan turned his head, his eyelashes curling up habitually, and asked back, "I didn't?"
Qiao An An replied, "No."
"Then I must have forgotten. Qi Qi wasn't often home before."
Qiao An An gave a half-understanding "Oh," unclear where "not often home" meant he went, or how it related to him never mentioning his brother.
She didn't think much of it, switching to small talk about trivial conflicts and minor incidents in her class. Xie Zhi Lan always listened attentively to her, the corners of his lips slightly upturned, a look she had seen countless times in a crowd and fallen for.
His phone suddenly vibrated.
Seeing the name on the screen, Xie Zhi Lan paused for a moment, then answered, saying, "Mom, good evening."
"Good evening what? Your father and I are busy to death. Have you finished school for the evening? Are you almost home?"
From the other end of the line came the faint clinking of cups. His mother took a sip of water, her voice moistened but still revealing undisguised fatigue. "I called your homeroom teacher this afternoon. I'm too lazy to repeat the old issues to you: lazy in studies, inconsistent grades, and even liking to tease girls. Is your mind only on these things?"
"Your father and I aren't often home. You're the eldest brother in the family. I always hoped you could shoulder responsibility, but what about you? You're this old and haven't made any progress. Xie Zhi Lan, how long do you want your father and me to be disappointed in you?"
The voice leaked out, reaching Qiao An An's ears. Hearing those negative words, her heart was filled with surprise.
Xie Zhi Lan was good at studies, had high EQ, was handsome, and excellent in every aspect, completely unlike the immature, vain boys in her class. Even if they were given another 800 years, they probably wouldn't evolve to be like him.
She had always thought he must come from a warm, respectful, and well-educated family...
It turned out that even Xie Zhi Lan's own parents had so many dissatisfactions with him.
Xie Zhi Lan's expression remained unchanged, as if he was too used to it. He lowered his eyes slightly, smiled, and said, "Mom, you've been tired all day. Do you still have so much energy to lecture me? It's late, you should rest early."
"Do you think I don't want to rest? Who do you think I'm doing all this for?" His mother snorted, "Your father is drunk again. Those people at the dinner table..."
Qiao An An knew Xie Zhi Lan was good at sweet-talking people, but this was the first time she realized he could comfort his tired, irritable mother as skillfully as he would a girlfriend.
When his mother's voice softened a little, Xie Zhi Lan said, "You've talked so much about me, why don't you ask about Qi Qi's situation?"
"Huh? How's his health?"
Xie Zhi Lan didn't answer. He lowered his eyes and asked back, "Are you only concerned about his health?"
The atmosphere stiffened for a moment. He heard his mother's angry voice become slightly distorted through the phone static: "How I treat him, is it your turn to teach me?"
"Why are you angry again? Getting angry a lot isn't good for your health, Mom. Don't you often complain about chest pain and shortness of breath? You'll have to take medicine again." The end of Xie Zhi Lan's sentence carried a chuckle, both spoiled and reassuring, "Qi Qi is very good. He's adapting well to studying at Yi Zhong, and his health is quite stable. After switching to new medicine, he coughs less than before. Are you relieved now, Mom?"
"What can I be relieved about? You joke about everything I tell you. When will you be a little serious?" His mother said impatiently, "I don't have time to worry about him anymore. It's enough if he can live healthily. You're the older brother. Your parents aren't home, so you must take on the responsibility of an older brother and take good care of your younger brother."
"Yes, I understand," Xie Zhi Lan said, "Mom, please rest. Good night."
The call ended.
He tossed his phone onto the seat, one hand on his forehead, slowly bowing his head. His dark hair fell, concealing the fleeting emotions in his eyes at that moment.
Qiao An An looked at him, feeling as if her heart was pricked by something, sour and aching.
Everyone only saw his glamorous, carefree, and skillful exterior, but at this moment, his melancholic and vulnerable side was reserved solely for her.
Qiao An An pursed her lips and softly asked him, "Brother Lan, are you alright?"
Xie Zhi Lan looked up, his eyes slightly bright. The fatigue inadvertently revealed was like a wisp of smoke under the sun, just her fleeting illusion, vanishing before it could truly exist.
The car stopped. Xie Zhi Lan looked out the window, took her hand, and said, "You've arrived. I'll walk you a bit."
When he returned, Xie Zhi Lan walked to the back and sat next to Xie Qi Zhi.
The boy had woken up a while ago when his brother got in the car, sitting blankly in the faint yellow glow, rubbing his eyes and asking why they weren't home yet.
Xie Zhi Lan said, "Soon, about half an hour more."
Xie Qi Zhi "oh"-ed, leaned against his shoulder, and slowly said, "I just heard you talking on the phone with Mom. Did Mom say anything?"
"Mom said, Qi Qi must take his medicine on time and take good care of his health."
Xie Qi Zhi asked, "Anything else?"
"If you encounter any difficulties, just come to me. I'll help you solve them."
Xie Qi Zhi closed his eyes and said, "Brother is so good."
He heard Xie Zhi Lan chuckle and wanted to say something else, but his head felt heavy, and he quickly fell asleep.
It wasn't until Xie Zhi Lan carried him out of the car that Xie Qi Zhi wrapped his arms around his neck, once again smelling a scent on his lapel that didn't belong to him. Only then did he remember what he had wanted to say earlier.
He looked up at his brother's jawline, wanting to ask him: Have you ever hugged anyone else the way you hug me?
Before, when he was hospitalized, only Xie Zhi Lan visited him frequently. He traveled between the hospital, home, and school, the only person he could see immediately after waking up, during those struggles between life and death.
Xie Qi Zhi had never thought that he was actually just one point among three on his brother's straight line, one of many who called him "brother."
His brother treated others well, just as he treated him... he wasn't his only brother.
The next day, Xie Qi Zhi woke up very early and went to school with his brother.
This was nearly two hours earlier than his usual wake-up time. Xie Zhi Lan always worried that he wouldn't get enough sleep and would be listless during the day. Fortunately, his deskmate was someone who often skipped morning reading and evening self-study, so that spot was perfect for Xie Qi Zhi to catch up on sleep.
For a whole week, Ying Huai didn't notice this until the opening ceremony on Monday.
At seven in the morning, Lin Jian Shan from the student council called, asking him to help take some photos for the school magazine. Ying Huai agreed. After hanging up, he scrolled down his call history and saw five missed calls, all from Xie Zhi Lan.
Xie Qi Zhi rested his chin on his hand, reading a Chinese language textbook. After a while, he lost his place, and the Chinese characters spun around him.
He propped the textbook up and dozed off. When he opened his eyes again, he heard Ying Huai and his brother arguing.
His brother said, "Anyway, you weren't coming, so what's the big deal?"
Ying Huai sneered, "Why don't you just cross my name off the list and put his name instead?"
Xie Qi Zhi startled, fully awake.
He suddenly sat up straight, making too much noise. Xie Zhi Lan and Ying Huai both turned to look, neither saying another word.
His brother winked at him, trying to suppress a laugh, and turned his face away.
Ying Huai's voice sounded fierce, but his expression was very calm, not like he was angry. He bent down, suddenly shortening the distance to a degree that made Xie Qi Zhi very uncomfortable, staring at his face, and asked a seemingly random question: "Dong Lin Jie Shi, Yi Guan Cang Hai, what's the next line?"
"Huh?" Xie Qi Zhi was stunned. Before he could think of an answer, Ying Huai stood up straight. His dark bangs gently swayed, the amusement in his eyes undisguised.
Xie Qi Zhi was a little bewildered, completely unaware that one side of his face had been pressed red, and even had an ancient poem, which he couldn't answer earlier, imprinted on it.
His skin was very fair, and the lines of the poem "Guan Cang Hai" stood out prominently on his face.
His brother couldn't stand it anymore and handed him a small mirror. Xie Qi Zhi took it and looked, his face immediately flushed red. He tried to rub it off with the back of his hand.
Xie Zhi Lan held his hand tightly, helplessly saying, "Are you wiping your face or kneading dough?"
He borrowed a wet wipe from a female classmate to help Xie Qi Zhi clean his face.
Ying Huai leaned against the blackboard at the back of the classroom, standing behind Xie Qi Zhi.
When he argued with his brother, he seemed very annoyed that someone was occupying his spot, but now he appeared indifferent. Xie Qi Zhi secretly glanced at him several times but didn't see him pick him up and throw him out.
Teacher Tang entered through the front door. Ying Huai casually picked up an English book and pretended to read, then lowered his head and said to Xie Zhi Lan, "Why did you call me last night?"
"You saw it and didn't call back?"
"I was showering then, didn't check my phone. Only saw it after waking up."
"Don't make excuses," Xie Zhi Lan said without looking up, "You just didn't want to answer."
Xie Qi Zhi was surprised by his brother's assertive tone. It sounded like Ying Huai was someone who often didn't answer calls and loved to make excuses, sometimes his phone was dead, sometimes he was showering.
Ying Huai looked up and asked, "Did you have something urgent?"
Xie Zhi Lan also looked up at him, his expression a little strange: "Not very urgent, I thought you'd call back."
"When do I ever call you back?" Ying Huai said, "If you really had something, why didn't you call again?"
Xie Zhi Lan's expression became even stranger: "How would I know how long you'd take?"
"How long can a shower take?"
"Are you just showering?"
"What else?"
Xie Qi Zhi listened, confused, suspecting they were talking about two different things.
Ying Huai also realized this. He said to Xie Zhi Lan, "Didn't Xiao Dao answer the last call? You didn't call again after that. I threw my phone to the dog. What else could I be doing besides showering?"
"Was that a dog answering the phone?"
Xie Qi Zhi read the "what else" in Ying Huai's eyes. He asked, "Do you think Xiao Dao would use my voice to say hello, or that I would inexplicably like to learn dog barking to talk to you?"
Xie Zhi Lan blinked, looked at Ying Huai's expressionless face, then suddenly burst out laughing: "It didn't bark, it just kept panting."
Ying Huai froze, not understanding what he was laughing about.
"I thought you were..." Xie Zhi Lan said, still laughing, "It confused me for a while. I even wondered since when Ying Huai became so open, truly not treating me as an outsider."
Ying Huai: "..."
He was silent for a long time, then couldn't help but say, "Xie Zhi Lan, have some shame. Your younger brother is sitting right next to you."
Xie Qi Zhi turned to look at them, not understanding what his brother was laughing about, or why it involved him again.
It took a long time for Xie Zhi Lan to stop laughing. He reached out, covered Xie Qi Zhi's ears, and said, "Qi Qi hears nothing."
Xie Qi Zhi blinked a few times, protesting, "I heard it."