Don’t Covet the Beautiful System!! - CH 22

The moment these words filled the air, Luo Xiuyun felt like she had been pricked by a needle and she started sweating.

Yan Yan called her Auntie…

Maybe it was because the sunshine of the autumn afternoon was too dazzling. Luo Xiuyun’s face gradually turned red and she looked at this child who had depended on her with a bit of loss.

The waiter who led her over to the side didn’t notice the abnormality and said politely, “Ma’am, please sit here. This is the menu of the store. Do you need me to recommend something?”

Luo Xiuyun gave a blank ‘oh.’ She sat down and took the menu, flipping through it quickly as if to avoid something.

On the beautifully printed menu, fresh and awkward terms flashed before her eyes. They glowed like phantoms and made her dizzy.

She never drank such things and couldn’t understand the difference between the two strings of foreign characters that looked similar in length, such as caramel mocha and cappuccino.

Pei Yan seemed to see her confusion and took the initiative to say. “The coffee here tastes very pure. You don’t like to drink too bitter things then try the caramel macchiato?”

His words were very measured and there was a hidden concern that was difficult to detect.

Such a tone was similar to the graceful and gorgeous woman who lived in the Pei family.

This strange thought briefly crossed Luo Xiuyun’s mind.

She still didn’t know what a caramel macchiato was, but she at least understood the word caramel. She quickly nodded. The waiter smiled and bowed to them before leaving.

Yan Yan still remembered that she didn’t like to drink better things. Previously when she was sick, she wrinkled her nose as she poured the medicine down, causing Yan Yan to laugh at her. Why was an adult still afraid of taking medicine?

The long and rich memories were torn open and surged in. Luo Xiuyun suddenly forgot about being called ‘Auntie’ and all the subtle abnormalities. Instead, she smiled at Pei Yan.

Pei Yan in front of her wore clothes of good materials and looked well-behaved and handsome. He was living a very good life at first glance. His parents definitely didn’t treat him badly.

At the same time, she also saw a trace of fatigue on Pei Yan’s face and his right hand resting on the table subconsciously clenched. In the past, every time he was tired from studying, he would show similar small movements.

Luo Xiuyun couldn’t help feeling a bit sour.

She whispered, “Don’t be too tired. Rest more.”

Pei Yan was stunned when he heard this. He hesitated for a moment before shaking his head slightly. “I’m not tired. Don’t worry about me.”

The initial slightly awkward atmosphere gradually relaxed.

Luo Xiuyun tasted the caramel macchiato that had just been served. It really wasn’t that bitter.

A smile spread on her face. “Our Yan Yan has grown up and learned a lot.”

Hearing her words, Pei Yan showed a non-standard but sincere smile. “Yes, the outside world is really big.”

Next, Luo Xiuyun smiled and listened to him talking about what happened recently, her heart full of indescribable comfort.

This was until he mentioned a name.

“…Brother Qingyuan, is he still adapting to life there?”

Speaking of this, Luo Xiuyun was angry and worried. She reflexively said, “I have never seen such a child who never goes home! He goes out early every morning and comes back in the middle of the night. His home is like a hotel and his attitude toward learning is so bad!”

Her dissatisfaction with Pei Qingyuan had accumulated for more than a day or two and Pei Yan had heard it many times.

hearing her long and repeated complaints, Pei Yan suddenly remembered something. “The last time I moved, I left some old books that I didn’t take away. They take up a lot of space so you can sell them.”

“Those little books?” Luo Xiuyun recalled it for a moment before saying carelessly, “Just let it go. They don’t get in the way and you might need them in the future.”

“They are still there?” On the contrary, Pei Yan looked surprised. “Qing… does he have enough bookshelf space?”

“There is enough. He didn’t say anything to me.” Luo Xiuyun didn’t think about it. “If it isn’t enough, he can clean it up himself. It isn’t a big deal. I gave him a cardboard box for backup.”

At her understated tone, Pei Yan was stunned for a while.

He finally clearly realized that Luo Xiuyun barely cared about her long-lost biological son.

Pei Yan knew he shouldn’t be grateful for this, but human nature always seemed to be so mean. Being favored was always something that made people secretly happy.

Moreover, he was also worried about the possible preference of another person.

Pei Yan lowered his eyes and changed the topic. “Grandpa returned from abroad and I met him for the first time a few days ago.”

“Ah, he just came back?” Luo Xiuyun immediately asked nervously. “Does your grandfather have a good temper? Does he like you?”

“Grandpa is very kind and his temper is mild. He isn’t at all like my father. I heard that they always quarrel.”

Pei Huaishan was completely different from the serious and deep man that Pei Yan imagined. He was more like an ordinary old man who would go to the market every day to buy vegetables.

“That is a good thing.” Luo Xiuyun sighed with relief. “Your father doesn’t look easy to get close to. He always had a straight face. You should get along with your grandfather. You are so well-behaved and he will definitely like you.”

Did his grandfather like him?

Pei Yan thought that he should. The first time he had seen his grandson who had been away for over ten years, Pei Huaishan touched his head with a lot of emotions. He asked for many details about Pei Yan’s life, whether anyone bullied him in the past, whether he found his life at home suitable, if there was any gift he wanted…

Ye Lanting hadn’t even asked him these questions.

Yet unlike his parents, who never mentioned their other son again, his grandfather still remembered Pei Qingyuan and even criticized his mother because of Pei Qingyuan’s departure.

This made Pei Yan’s heart feel like there were tens of millions of ants gnawing at it.

It was because there was a word that kept circling in his mind.

‘Only.’

At least with his grandfather, he wasn’t the only grandson who was loved.

There was a faint shadow under Pei Yan’s eyes. He hadn’t gotten enough sleep for several days. He was either reading a book or suffering from insomnia.

At this moment, the unreserved preference of the woman in front of him made Pei Yan tell the truth in his heart that had nowhere to go.

“I’m afraid that Grandpa likes him more…” Pei Yan clenched his right hand tighter and tighter. “I know I’m not as smart as him. Even my tutor said so. Nevertheless, I’ve worked very hard.”

“I’ve always had a nightmare these days.” His tone became lower. “I dreamed that on my birthday, Grandpa opened the door and led him in. He said he wanted to celebrate our birthday today. We stood there shoulder to shoulder, receiving everyone’s blessing.”

“However, no one looked at me again. Everyone was smiling at him.”

“I was forgotten by everyone and didn’t even get a piece of cake in the end.”

Pei Yan didn’t mention that name again. He just replaced it with ‘him.’

Luo Xiuyun was distressed to hear it. She simply got up and sat next to him, wanting to comfort him.

Yet in the face of this deep fear, language seemed meaningless.

She caressed the slightly thin back of her former son. The autumn leaves outside the glass window were quiet. Pedestrians on the street intimately held their child’s hands and walked slowly. Time seemed to return to the past.

In the midst of this dense and melancholy emotion, the corners of Luo Xiuyun’s eyes were slightly wet as she blurted out, “I’ll go and celebrate your birthday, okay?”

The grand dusk poured down from the sky and the splashes of color were overwhelming.

Ji Tong saw today’s particularly gorgeous sunset through the TV and his tone was very excited. “Ruan Ruan, how about riding the roller coaster again?”

Pei Qingyuan sat on the bench of the amusement park, his face flushed slightly. He immediately shook his head when he heard the words and firmly replied, “No.”

Ji Tong didn’t give up. “Then take the pirate ship!”

“No.” Pei Qingyuan walked out the gate of the amusement park without looking back. “Go back to the store.”

Ji Tong failed to persuade him to stay and had to watch regretfully as his host rode on the bicycle and rode away as if fleeing from a demon cave.

He felt the host who went to bed late and got up early to work part-time even during the holidays had it too hard. Therefore, today he tried to trick the host into coming to the amusement park to relax.

After playing a few relatively relaxed rides, Ji Tong lined up with the host to ride the rollercoaster. Then he remembered that he was too young to ride it and had to hurriedly push the host in.

Ji Tong immediately found a place to magically disappear. He returned to Pei Qingyuan’s consciousness and experienced the feeling of a VR perspective rollercoaster ride.

He had to say that it was very exciting.

It was a pity that the host didn’t want to play a second time.

Ji Tong looked through the photos he had just taken for the host and couldn’t help feeling regret. “Host, you obviously had a lot of fun. Even your expressions were very rich. You look more like a high school student compared to your usual cold self. For example, this one. You are like—”

Pei Qingyuan: “……”

He didn’t want to hear it!

No man, no matter how cold, wanted to see a photo of himself that was captured when riding a rollercoaster.

When walking past the photo cabin that came with the rollercoaster, he deliberately ignored Ji Tong’s call to go in and see the photos. He didn’t expect that he would have a built-in photography system in his head.

The teenager riding the bicycle in the evening wind resolutely interrupted him, emphatically saying, “I won’t come to the amusement park again in the future.”

Ji Tong stopped talking and sighed in disappointment. “Okay, I’ll listen to the host.”

The one hundred types of flowers he planted with his own hands around him started to take shape. Flowers bloomed in the depths of the thick shade and the scenery was particularly beautiful.

But looking at this incomparably wide emotional area, Ji Tong always felt it was a bit deserted.

Perhaps he should build an amusement park here. This way, the host in the future could ride an absolutely safe rollercoaster without leaving home.

Good idea!

Pei Qingyuan seemed to hear his system hum a particularly cheerful song again.

He had a vague sense of foreboding.

The evening wind flowing by his side gently brushed his cheeks. Pei Qingyuan didn’t have time to ask when he heard Ji Tong’s happy voice.

“Ruan Ruan, look at the building on the right. There is such a big balcony!”

Pei Qingyuan followed the instruction. A light beige residential building was bathed in an orange glow, illuminating the lush green plants on the balcony.  The clothes drying next to it gently swayed in the wind.

“This balcony looks very warm. We can have breakfast while basking in the sun in the morning and watch movies while eating hotpot or barbecue in the evening. Then we can walk around and enjoy the night view after eating.”

The increasingly familiar voice was filled with reverie and anticipation.

“I found that there are several apartments in this community that are being rented out. The decorations and price are very suitable… do you want such a home?”

The clean and fragrant white shirts on the balcony were once again blown up by the wind.

The teenager, shrouded in the setting sun, gradually slowed down his cycling pace and stared up at the windows where the aroma of food was wafting out.

He responded gently in the wind.

“Yes.”