Once he heard the news in the afternoon, An Yudong immediately rushed over to the hospital. Because of his wound infections, An Luo was placed in a completely sterile area in the ICU. Originally, no one was allowed to visit, but Zhou Chengping was a family acquaintance so that rule was let slide. After the nurse’s thorough explanation on the ‘dos and don’ts’, An Yudong was dressed from head to toe in sterile clothing and was finally permitted to enter the ward.
An Luo opened his eyes and watched as a strange man walked in the room.
He appeared to be in his fifties, yet he still had very elegant and handsome facial features, his posture was straight and tall. There was no doubt he’d been an extremely gorgeous man when he was younger, but at that moment, it was clear that the marks of time had not spared his body.
For a while, all he did was stare at An Luo, his eyes were filled with gentleness and affection. Then, he opened with, “Chengping told me you’ve lost your memories. You can’t remember anything?”
Strictly speaking, An Luo doesn’t think he has amnesia; he can distinctly remember his past life. However, he was completely ignorant to the life of this current An Luo, so he could only use memory loss as a reason.
He softly asked, “Are you my father?”
Due to illness, his voice sounded slightly rough and hoa.r.s.e.
An Yudong smiled. “You guessed?”
An Luo nodded. “Based on your age, I inferred you are unlikely to be my grandfather, so you must be my father.”
An Yudong stared blankly at him, then helplessly asked, “Can’t you just say words like ‘you look very kind and familiar’ and so on to comfort your father? Going as far as to deduce from age, you really don’t remember anything at all?”
“I really don’t remember.” An Luo replied.
At that, An Yudong sighed, then smiled fondly and said, “Although you lost your memory, your temper is still the same as before, like a hard stone.”
His son stared at him without answering.
A moment of silence pa.s.sed before An Yudong spoke again, “Xiao Luo, your memory loss…don’t let it become too big of a burden. You can still live well after all of this is over… Maybe it’ll all slowly come back to you.”
“Ah.” An Luo nodded.
An Yudong smiled. “Your current physical condition is not yet stable. The surgery for your fracture is scheduled for the day after tomorrow in the afternoon. Don’t worry, Dad found you the best orthopedic surgeon.”
“Ah.”
“Your younger brothers are unable to come back for the time being, but once everything is settled, they’ll return to see you. For now, Chengping will take good care of you in the hospital. If there’s any problem, you can find him directly.”
“Ah.”
“Then I’ll go back first. There are many important things I must deal with at home.”
“Okay.”
As he watched An Yudong’s back getting further away before disappearing, An Luo’s mood turned complex.
Such a mild-tempered and warm father… Once, he had yearned for such a figure, but that wish was left unattained.
As a part of the underworld, his father in the previous life was a grim and strict patriarch. Since he was fostered in his grandmother’s house in childhood, An Luo had a very vague impression of him. When he was taken to his place, he had already grown up, the man known as his ‘Father’ was awfully unfamiliar and strange. In his subconscious, only An Yan Gege was his own flesh and blood.
He never would’ve thought that in this life, his father would be so gentle and amiable. His small wish was satisfied.
Thinking of his old father looking at him with those affectionate eyes, An Luo laid in bed with his heart palpitating in fear for a long time.
He was used to living in a dark world-how many years had it been such he’s seen such warm eyes?
This An Luo, at least, was happier than the An Luo who died.
Maybe it was better to let go of the past and start anew.
After a week, An Luo was transferred from the ICU to the VIP ward. During that week, An Yudong visited him a total of three times: before surgery, after surgery, and on the day he transferred wards. The other family members never showed up.
According to Zhou Chengping, when An Laoye Zi caught wind of his amnesia, his weak heart couldn’t take it and he collapsed. For the past several days, he was in the hospital where they kept a tight watch on his condition. The other three brothers were busy with their own affairs; An Yan was still in Paris partic.i.p.ating in Fashion Week, An Mo was in New York preparing for his art exhibition, and An Ze was in the middle of carrying out a task for the military. All three individuals were unable to withdraw from their work and return just to visit a sick patient.
Not that An Luo minded.
For him, those three younger brothers were complete strangers he didn’t even know existed until a week ago. An Yan, An Mo, An Ze-their names didn’t ring a bell. They haven’t come to see him, but that only made him feel more comfortable and at ease. To say the least, he doesn’t need a whole day of dealing with, “You really don’t remember me?”, “I’m your younger brother,” and, “We grew up together.”
Zhou Chengping’s bombardment of questions from the last few days had been enough to give him a headache. He didn’t need another three people attacking him with the same questions.
However, things didn’t turn out the way he hoped.
In the afternoon, just when An Luo thought he’d have another couple more days of leisure, the ward’s door suddenly opened-
In came a man dressed in an all-body tailored white suit. He wore a wine-red blouse, the top three b.u.t.tons were arrogantly undone, exposing a large section of his honeyed hued chest. His hair was dyed a natural maroon, looking chic and fashionable, while his neck was claimed by a silver necklace, glistening enough to dazzle a person.
A pair of large sungla.s.ses covered half of his face but left his tall nose and beautifully shaped, slightly curved lips (that was letting out an unruly smile,) for all to see.
His attire was like that of a superstar about to be interviewed by the paparazzi, all the more so one about to walk down the red carpet to an award ceremony. Visiting a sick patient wearing sungla.s.ses is ridiculous, but he had to go as far as to come in holding a bouquet of white roses.
In his heart, An Luo prayed this man just went into the wrong room. Having him as a ‘younger brother’ cannot be good.
“Gege.” The other party’s voice was low and soft, his smile was warm.
The word ‘Gege’ completely shattered An Luo’s inner pleas.
He felt his temple beginning to twitch along with the pounding of his heart.
The man walked steadily to his bedside, pa.s.sing over the bouquet when he reached him. Sparkling and transparent dewdrops flowed down the rose petals, evidently having just been purchased. He raised a corner of his lips and said, “I heard Gege has amnesia. Do you want to guess which brother I am? What do you think…do I appear to be the second, third, or fourth brother?”
“…” An Luo frowned.
“Guess. If you answer correctly, I will give you a gift.”
“Take the flowers away.” His expression was heavy.
“They were bought specifically for you. The white roses won’t offend the eyes and their fragment is quite aromatic. Placing it in this room will harmonize with your state of mind. It’ll be beneficial to Gege’s health recovery.”
-The bouquet of roses had practically been described as magical healing medicine.
An Lou frowned at the roses in his arms, whispering, “Take them away. I’m allergic to pollen.”
“I’ve never heard of that before.” His younger brother took the roses from his lap, but instead of obeying his words, placed them neatly on the bedside table.
“…” An Luo turned his head away stiffly.
The younger man turned back to sit down on the edge of An Luo’s bed. He took off the sungla.s.ses that covered half his face, then moved closer, looking An Luo seriously in the eyes. After a moment, he spoke, “Do you really have amnesia?”
With their faces so close together, An Luo discovered that this brother was quite handsome. He had pale, limpid pupils resembling that of fine crystal; his face exposed a smile that can captivate a person.
This type of spoiled and handsome man should be well-conceived, but An Luo only felt a headache. He had long ago grown immune to this kind of vile smile. Calmly looking up, he inquired, “May I ask which younger brother you are? What is your name? How old are you this year?”
“…” At his three questions, his brother’s smile slowly solidified into a straight line.
An Luo raised his eyebrows in displeasure. “Take the flowers away, I’m allergic to pollen.” Pause. “I don’t want to say this a third time.”
The younger man stared blankly at him, then revealed a wounded expression. His voice sounded pitiful as he spoke, feeling somewhat wronged, “Gege, I’m your second brother, An Yan.”
An Luo nodded. “En, I see. Next time we met, I’ll remember you, An Yan.” Another pause. “Which character Yan?”
“…” An Yan remained uncommunicative for a moment, trying to process through a shock. Finally, he answered, “Mountain rocks.”
“Oh.”
An Yang hesitated, then asked, “Ah, I heard from Chengping that your leg…is fractured?”
“Yeah.” An Luo bowed his head to stare at the plastic cast wrapped around both his legs. “Once these are removed they’ll know if whether or not I can walk.”
Distressed by his words, An Yan’s hand reached out to An Luo’s leg, wanting to provide comfort. However, at the sight of his brother’s cold stare, he hastened to retracted his fingers, accidentally grazing the hard cast in the process.
“Does it still hurt?” He asked softly.
“To not be able to feel hurts even more.” An Luo replied.
“…”
Gege was always so calm and indifferent. He would never allow anyone to show their concern and care towards him, saying simple phrases to block them out whenever they try. An Yan hung his head and stared at the plaster on his leg, his heart filled with grievances.
He didn’t know how much time pa.s.sed before An Luo suddenly said, “Do you want to stare a hole into my cast?”
“…” An Yan looked up at him innocently, his expression similar to that of a tiny, bullied animal.
At his pitiful gaze, a burst of numbness tingled on An Luo’s scalp, and he hurried to change his line of sight. He said faintly, “If there’s nothing else, go back.”
“But it took me great difficulty to finally find time to see you,” An Yan complained, affronted.
An Luo responded by staring blankly at the ceiling.
Unmoved, An Yan shamelessly urged, “Gege, we haven’t seen each other for a long time, let’s talk about the old days…”
An Luo simply closed his eyes and ignored him.
It only took a moment for An Yan to give way. He reluctantly stood up to leave, not forgetting to take the bundle of roses on the table with him.
When he reached the door, he whispered, “I’m sorry, I didn’t know you were allergic to pollen. I won’t get roses next time.”
His voice was no longer filled with all smiles like it was moments ago, now strangely suppressed. There appeared to exist an indistinct sentiment in the m.u.f.fled sound, like that of transparent dewdrops sliding gently over gla.s.s windows without leaving any trace.
An Luo questioningly lifted his head, but only caught a glimpse of the tall and straight back of the man as he left.
T/N: Sorry for the month-long absence. My laptop broke and it was like my life collapsed with it. (≖ ‿ ≖) Things are about stable now so I should have at least two chapters out each week. Thank you for the patience.