Chapter 9: Hug

While waiting for the results, Yan Mu Lin kept a relaxed att.i.tude, but to say that he wasn’t nervous was a lie. He couldn’t help but be nervous. Apart from the advertising voice-over, this was his first formal voice acting job, and he was eager to get it. It had nothing to do with his salary, his past, or his future. He did it for the sense of security.

After the audition, Yan Mu Lin went back to school.

After finishing PE cla.s.s, Yan Mu Lin felt that his bones were loose and relaxed. His whole body was no longer tense. He was comfortable, and his body’s flexibility was great. He would continue maintaining his body. He might have to use his body’s flexibility one day. [T/N: You sure will! :P]
PE cla.s.ses were not compulsory cla.s.ses for their radio broadcasting department, but was an elective course. This was not Yan Mu Lin’s choice, but the original owner. Everyone in the cla.s.s were basically girls, and boys were rarely seen. Sheng Xia Xiao, that childish boy who was almost everywhere, wasn’t there. Yan Mu Lin could guess what was going on.

Some time ago, he had been nervously preparing for 《Pan Jinlian》’s audition. Now, it was already mid-October. Two days later would be the annual Huaxia tradition–the Mid Autumn Festival.

After taking a shower in the dormitory, Yan Mu Lin checked the time in his phone. He saw that there was a missed call. The caller ID was “Mom”. Ever since Yan Mu Lin was little, he had low self-esteem, and had longing for paternal love. He only met his father when he went to college, and his mother, as he grew up, her att.i.tude soon turned like Sheng Xia Xiao’s father. She became particularly indifferent to him.

When he was a child, his mother took him to his grandmother’s house. He was better compared to his cousin.  The only person who could probably hurt him was his grandmother. Unfortunately, his grandmother died of cancer in his senior year. Since then, Yan Mu Lin became more reserved. The original Yan Mu Lin choosing radio broadcasting, rather than other majors, was a miracle.

Just when he was about to call back, his cell phone rang, so he subconsciously answered the phone.

After a closer look, he discovered that it was not the original’s mother who had called. Instead, it was “Mr. Sheng”. Yan Mu Lin was forced to be silent, he really did not know how to communicate with people he did not know. What more, this was the original owner’s father. The original Yan Mu Lin did not speak much, so they most likely won’t discover that he replaced him. He had his own principles. He did not want to partic.i.p.ate in family struggles, he would only avoid and hide. If he can’t go to the Sheng family, then he won’t go to the Sheng family. They don’t have anything to do with him anyway.
The other party seemed to have been accustomed to Yan Mu Lin’s silence, so he directly ordered. “Come and celebrate this Mid-Autumn Festival. I’ll take you to see your grandparents.”

If he did not want to go to the Sheng family, then Yan Mu Lin can only talk to Father Sheng about it. So in the future, he would not trouble anyone. Yan Mu Lin hesitated for a long time, and refused. “No. I’m not going. ”

Until now, Yan Mu Lin never refused Father Sheng. In fact, he never responded to him.

He wanted to tell him to go home this time. Did he hear wrong?

“Repeat what you just said?”

Yan Mu Lin pulled on the window curtains, and repeated. “Not going, Mr. Sheng.”

Yes. Although the original owner did not reject Father Sheng, he never called him “father”. Father Sheng probably thought that his son wasn’t in the family lineage, so he doesn’t call him dad. He didn’t think much about it. Today, those words had a different taste. Mr. Sheng. These three characters sounded like sarcasm. A person who was set up high was suddenly rejected. Naturally, his mood was not good. Father Sheng did not ask for a reason, and indifferently said. “As you wish.”

The corners of Yan Mu Lin’s mouth raised upwards. “Goodbye, Mr. Sheng.” He deliberately stressed on the word “Sheng”. As long as Father Sheng wasn’t a fool, he would understand what he meant.

What he meant to say was that he was surnamed Yan, and not Sheng.

Regardless of whether Father Sheng’s complexion changed or not, Yan Mu Lin was satisfied when he hung up. The original owner’s life was too sullen, he couldn’t put up with it any longer.

After Yan Mu Lin hung up, he did not know that Father Sheng’s face was ice cold. He was sitting next to Sheng Xia Chen, the eldest son of the Sheng family. Father Sheng calmed his anger and frowned. Yan Mu Lin never rejected him, he was probably rebelling.

Mr. “Sheng”. The more he heard it, the more it felt irritating.

Sheng Xia Chen saw that after his father called his “little brother” outside, his face didn’t look good, so he asked. “Dad, what’s wrong? Yan Mu Lin cannot come to the Mid-Autumn Festival?”

Father Sheng, who was called Sheng Qing Dong, listened to the words of his eldest son and understood what Yan Mu Lin meant. He cared about this? After thinking about it, Sheng Qing Dong said to Sheng Xia Chen, “In the afternoon, go to your third brother’s school and hand over the key to the suite in Chengdong to Yan Mu Lin. Let them transfer it to his name, and give this card to him.” Sheng Qing Dong took out a card from his wallet.

Sheng Xia Chen was not as ignorant as Sheng Xia Xiao, he knew of his father’s love debts. Sending a key and bank card to a b.a.s.t.a.r.d was something he wasn’t willing to do, but his father’s orders cannot be ignored. The company he was running still needed the support of his father.

Sheng Xia Chen took the card and promised to give it to Yan Mu Lin.

Father Sheng did not answer whether Yan Mu Lin would come during the festival, which meant that this was no longer a suitable topic. He cleverly changed the topic to a big situation.

After Yan Mu Lin’s phone call with Sheng Qing Dong, he recalled bits and pieces about the original owner’s mother. They did not have a lot of pictures, and their communication got less and less after his grandmother died. Mother Yan only gave him money, and did not care about other aspects. It was like she had no son. The only proof that she had one was her bank transfer records.

Mother Yan rarely contacted her son first. She would basically only ask about his life before and after the Spring Festival. They did not live together because Mother Yan was a famous actress. In front of the media, she was an unmarried forty-year-old woman. She should not have children. She was a public figure. Yan Mu Lin has not been discovered by the media. It was probably only Ji Jing Ren who knew she has a son, because she has been by her side for many years.

Calling before the Mid-Autumn Festival, Mother Yan probably had something in her mind. So, Yan Mu Lin thought about calling the other party back. It was a female voice that answered the phone, but as soon as she answered, she said: “Mu Lin, I was waiting for you to call back. It’s Aunt Zhou. Your mother is sick, she’s currently in the hospital. Can you make a trip here?”

Yan Mu Lin thought about who she was. The woman surnamed Zhou was Mother Yan’s agent. She was a capable and strong woman. He quickly responded, “Okay, Aunt Zhou. Give me the address of the hospital. I’ll come over right now.”

Since it was inconvenient to mention the illness on the phone, it was certainly not a minor illness. Yan Mu Lin did not need to think much, he packed his bags, locked the door of his room, and sent a text requesting a leave of absence to the cla.s.s monitor. He then took a taxi to the hospital.

Even if they had no affections with each other, he was still going to come. After all, this was the only person he could count as a loved one.

In his two lives, he had no family. He was already used to it. In his previous life, his parents had divorced. Later, when they had their own families, he lived alone. When a person had a family who wasn’t hungry, n.o.body would interfere in his job selection. When his parents came back to ask him when he would settle down, he could only smile and say that in this life, it was impossible to get married. Why? He did not know.

In this aspect, he was quite similar with the original owner. They had no family who would care for them, and no sense of security. They were also trying hard looking for a breakthrough. A corner where they could place their lonely feelings.

When he got out of the car, the hospital was right in front of him. Whether it was a work day or a weekend, there were many people in the hospital. They were often doctors, nurses, patients, and family members.

Yan Mu Lin bought a fruit basket at the fruit shop in front of the hospital.

On the ninth floor, Yan Mu Lin found the corresponding door number with the help of the person in the nurse station. He knocked. Someone inside responded, so Yan Mu Lin pushed the door open. He first saw the end of the bed, and then the woman sitting on the bed, drinking. Compared to the stills on the Internet, the woman in front of him looked gentle and serene. Just like a standard virtuous wife. Her appearance looked weak, but other people wouldn’t dare call her delicate.

She was Mother Yan. She looked like she was in her early thirties, but she was Yan Mu Lin’s mother.

“Aunt.” Yan Mu Lin greeted her. He called her aunt, and not mom. Because of his mother’s occupation, from his birth, Mother Yan never allowed Yan Mu Lin to call her mother. Her defensive awareness was very strong. If Yan Mu Lin called her mother, he would be hit. Over time, their relationship was only limited to “aunt”.

Mother Yan, whose name was Yan Zi Qiong, had various emotions flashed in her eyes, but as soon as he raised her head, those were suppressed. As if it had never happened at all.

Yan Zi Qiong said, “You’ve arrived. Take a seat.”

Yan Mu Lin placed the fruit basket on the nightstand and sat on the chair closes to the bed, “Where are you uncomfortable?”

Even though Yan Zi Qiong was pale and thin due to her illness, she still shook her head. “It’s just an ordinary cold and fever. Your Aunt Zhou was just too worried. It’s nothing important, go back to school right away.”

Yan Mu Lin nodded his head. Yan Zi Qiong obviously did not want him to come. It was obvious that Aunt Zhou would only call him if it was something important. The mother and child stopped talking about the topic. There was a moment of silence. Yan Mu Lin used the excuse of washing fruits, and left the ward. He believed that Mother Yan’s condition was definitely not as good as how she acted.

Just as he went outside the ward, Yan Mu Lin saw Aunt Zhou. She was indeed a smart and capable woman. There was not much difference in age between her and Yan Zi Qiong. At this time, she was wearing exquisite makeup, a simple professional suit. She was ready to face the media anytime. When she saw Yan Mu Lin, he brought him to the side.

Zhou Ya Xian asked him, “Have you seen your mother?”

This showed that Zhou Ya Xian wanted to tell Mother Yan’s illness to Yan Mu Lin. Yan Mu Lin did not act stupid, and nodded. “She doesn’t want to tell me what happened to her. Aunt Zhou, don’t lie to me. I’m an adult, not a three-year-old. ” Since he borrowed the original owner’s body, he felt obliged to help him take care of his mother.

Zhou Ya Xian reached out and knocked his head. The 1.7 meter woman wasn’t merciless at all. “Okay, I won’t lie to you, daren. I called you, so naturally I’ll tell you the truth.”
Yan Mu Lin grabbed his head which had been beaten, and looked at her innocently.
Zhou Ya Xian stopped bullying him, and whispered, “She has leukemia, and she did not want to tell you. ”

Leukemia. Leukemia was a very dangerous disease. The dreadful “cancer of the blood”.
Yan Mu Lin was stunned. “Was it already a definite diagnosis?”

Zhou Ya Xian nodded, “En.”

Somehow, Yan Mu Lin had a sour nose after hearing Zhou Ya Xian’s answer.

Just this morning, he was still thinking about his only relative. Now, he was told that his only relative could disappear at any time.

Regardless if this was his or the original’s mother, Yan Mu Lin could not stand idly. What he could do now was to improve the relationship between him and his mother. After all, Mother Yan was already his mother.

His nose felt really sour. Turning towards the ward, he looked at the ceiling before opening the door.

Yan Zi Qiong was holding a book in her hand. She was so quiet, an elegant woman. She should not have to suffer such hardships.

Yan Mu Lin stepped forward, and could not control his tone. His nasal voice was a little heavy. He asked politely, “Can I hug you?”

Yan Zi Qiong saw Zhou Ya Xian standing in front of the door. She immediately understood what the other person did.

She did not refuse Yan Mu Lin’s request and opened her arms to the child she was unfamiliar with.

When did she last hug him? Three years old? Or was it five years old?

。。。

Mid-Autumn Festival – A harvest festival celebrated, notably by ethnic Chinese and Vietnamese people. The festival is held on the 15th day of the 8th month of the lunar calendar with full moon at night, corresponding to late September to early October of the Gregorian calendar with a full moon at night. (from wiki XD)

cousin – biaodi in pinyin. A younger male cousin from his mother side.

three characters – Mr. Sheng in chinese is 盛先生 or shèng xiānshēng, which is three characters.

Spring Festival – Chinese New Year

Daren – adult / grownup / t.i.tle of respect towards superiors. She was probably joking with Yan Mu Lin.

d.a.m.ned ninjas cutting onions.
i might post another chapter as soon as i wake up…
see you in 8-10 hours, i guess.