Mistaken Canary Chapter 50
Chapter 50
Outside the operating room, Ying Tongchen sat numbly on a cold chair, eyes fixed on the floor in a trance.
A pair of feet stopped before him. He didn’t even need to look up—he already knew who it was. The person swiftly placed a cup of something warm into his hands.
Ying Tongchen cradled the cup, letting the warmth seep into his hands. He looked up at the other person and caught the many silent questions flickering in his eyes. Ying Tongchen felt a faint smile tugging at the corners of his lips. His voice was slightly hoarse as he cleared his throat and asked, "Are you curious about who he is?"
"Mm." Zhuo Shu sat down beside him, paused for a moment, then added, "Actually, I’m not that curious."
Ying Tongchen quietly smiled, turned his head to glance at the operating room doors, and softly replied, "He’s just my English teacher. Not even my homeroom teacher. Since we don't have any blood relations, I can't even help with things like signing papers when he's sick and needs surgery."
Zhuo Shu was momentarily taken aback. "I’m sorry, I thought he was... Since you always mention him, and you often post about his daily life on your Moments."
"Mm." Ying Tongchen smiled. "You’re not the first person to get it wrong. Don’t you want to ask me? Ask me why I’m with my teacher instead of my own father?"
"That isn’t something I should be concerned with," Zhuo Shu replied unconcernedly.
Ying Tongchen's finger twitched slightly as he turned his gaze toward him, a flicker of emotion passing through his eyes before it quickly disappeared. In a moment, his expression returned to calm, and he gave the warm drink back to Zhuo Shu. "I need a break," he said as he stood up.
Zhuo Shu waited a long time, but Ying Tongchen didn’t return, even after the surgery had already been completed.
Once the doctor had given him the necessary precautions, Zhuo Shu requested the old man to be moved to a VIP room and then relayed this through a text to Ying Tongchen.
Eventually, Ying Tongchen materialized at the VIP door with food in hand. "Let's eat."
"You went to get food?" Zhuo Shu asked.
"What else would I be doing?" Ying Tongchen sat down beside the dining table, his expression returned to his usual calm.
Zhuo Shu looked closely into his eyes but didn’t notice anything out of the ordinary, so he also relaxed and sat down to eat. "I’ve hired a caregiver, so you don’t need to trouble yourself."
"Thanks."
"There's no need to be so polite, we're—" Zhuo Shu glanced at the old man, who was still sleeping. He quietly nudged Ying Tongchen's arm, then couldn't help but gently pinch his cheek, speaking softly, "...with what we got going between us... right?~"
A pleasant tenor drifted from the door. "Hello, I’m the caregiver you requested. Is this the patient in bed?" A cheerful, middle-aged male caregiver stood at the door, smiling.
Zhuo Shu was taken aback by this sudden intrusion, his hand still not retracted. Without a second thought, he pinched Ying Tongchen’s cheek again and acted fiercely, "I’m talking to you, did you hear me?"
"..." Ying Tongchen kicked him.
"Aiyoyo, stop, stop! Don’t fight, don’t fight!"
The caregiver quickly stepped in to mediate. He had observed the luxurious hospital room, and the two young men bickering by the bed. This must be the classic "two brothers at odds over inheritance" scenario straight out of a high-society melodrama.
Ah, the wealthy—what a sinful existence.
Just as the caregiver shared his quick-witted counsel, the two sat down and resumed eating together as if nothing had happened. The caregiver, feeling that his intervention had made a significant impact, became even more enthusiastic about his work. He diligently walked over to the bed to begin his duties.
Ying Tongchen seemed to recall something, suddenly putting down his chopsticks and standing up, guiding the caregiver toward the door. "Sorry, I would like to switch caregivers."
The caregiver: "W–What?"
Zhuo Shu was equally confused. "Why change? Everything was fine!"
Ying Tongchen didn’t answer. He walked over to the nurse’s station and replaced the caregiver with a strong, sturdy woman. "Auntie, please follow me."
The auntie was delighted. As Ying Tongchen moved away, in a quick moment she pulled the previous caregiver aside to ask quietly, "Why did they suddenly want to switch?"
The male caregiver sighed heavily. "Sigh, it’s because I accidentally stumbled upon their secret."
"What secret?" The auntie immediately perked up, eager for the tea. "Tell me!"
"That family, you see—the old man was hospitalized for surgery, and his two sons actually got into a fight right by the bed. So, if you see them fighting again, don’t interfere. Or else you might be the next one replaced!"
The auntie, now slightly worried, followed Ying Tongchen into the VIP room. When she laid eyes on the other son—another strikingly handsome young man—she found it hard to believe that these two could really be fighting over an inheritance.
Zhuo Shu glanced at the auntie, then pulled Ying Tongchen to a corner and whispered, "Why the sudden change? Wouldn’t having a male caregiver be more convenient?"
"This is none of your business," Ying Tongchen replied.
Zhuo Shu tightened his grip on his arm and shoved his leg between his, lightly touching, leaning in closer. "Say that again."
Ying Tongchen met his gaze but didn’t repeat his words.
The auntie hadn’t expected to witness such chaos so early in her tenure. Fearing she might be caught up in it, she quickly turned her head away, oblivious to the moment when one of the sons leaned towards the other and stole a kiss.
Ying Tongchen shoved him away, both annoyed and embarrassed, shooting him a glare. "Get out."
Flustered, the auntie momentarily forgot her colleague’s warning and couldn’t help but intervene. "Hey, don’t fight now. Whatever it is, you should sort it out. Your elderly’s still sick, and if he wakes up and sees you two like this, it’ll only upset him."
Hearing this, Ying Tongchen’s ears reddened even more. He glanced back at the old man, still peacefully asleep, then let out a sigh of relief. Then, catching Zhuo Shu’s gaze filled with a mischievous smile, he pretended to steady his arm, but secretly pinched him hard. "You’d better watch yourself, understand?"
"Understood, understood," Zhuo Shu begged repeatedly, his features twisting in an exaggerated expression.
The auntie sighed deeply to herself. ‘The drama in these rich families is never-ending. These two brothers are already this estranged!’
In the evening, Zhuo Shu was adamant in staying, but Ying Tongchen drove him out.
…
The next morning, Zhuo Shu visited the hospital again, but when he arrived at the ward, he did not find Ying Tongchen there—only the old man still sleeping.
He quietly placed a fruit basket on the table and walked over to the bed. Looking at the old man’s kind face, his heart softened slightly.
Although he didn’t know the full story behind the old man and Ying Tongchen’s relationship, the bond between them, like father and son, must have had its reasons.
It was then when the old man opened his eyes and stared directly at him. "You’re here."
Zhuo Shu quickly nodded and greeted, "Good morning, Teacher."
The old man smiled. "Looks like he told you."
Zhuo Shu nodded, adjusted the bed to help the old man sit up, and poured him a cup of warm water, placing it beside him. "Are you hungry?"
"No." The old man glanced at the note on the table and said, "Tongchen went to buy breakfast. I bet he went somewhere far."
"Why?"
"He knows which breakfast place I like." The old man smiled warmly. "There's still plenty of time. Is there anything you'd like to know?"
Zhuo Shu pulled a chair over and sat down, curious. "How do you know everything?"
"I just understand him," the old man replied. "He probably didn’t tell you about his past." He took a sip of water and asked, "How long have you two known each other?"
"Since mid to late August."
"That’s about right." The old man sized him up carefully. "Not bad, you have auspicious features."
Zhuo Shu: "…You’re not moonlighting as a fortune teller, are you?"
The old man burst out laughing, then quickly clutched his stomach. "My wound hasn’t healed yet, stop making me laugh."
Zhuo Shu: “It’s not intentional.”
The old man finally caught his breath after a while, sighed, and patted Zhuo Shu's shoulder. "You’re good. You really are."
"Thank you."
"You're welcome." The old man said, then almost started laughing again. He quickly changed the subject. "Alright, alright, let’s get to the point."
Zhuo Shu sat up straight, all ears.
The old man took a sip of water to clear his throat. "I used to teach English at a public high school. Tongchen transferred in and became a re-entry student* in one of my other classes. I noticed he was always late and leaving early, so I asked his homeroom teacher about him and found out that his parents don’t really take care of him."
(TLN: basically a student who took a break from their studies and came back later.)
"Why not?"
"They were too busy fighting and getting a divorce while raising the kids," the old man said. "You must not be aware that he has two younger siblings, right?"
Zhuo Shu shook his head.
"His father secretly had a daughter with another woman, and to get back at him, his mother had a son with someone else."
Zhuo Shu: "..."
"What he hears most often at home is, 'I'm only staying in this marriage for your sake’."
Zhuo Shu’s expression shifted slightly.
"So, he gathered both his brother's and sister's families together for a meeting and helped them get a divorce."
Zhuo Shu: "..."
"When he transferred to our school, his handsome appearance and cold personality ended up attracting the attention of many female classmates."
"Heh."
"But that made the male students resent him. Some even started rumors that he was homosexual."
"That's too much."
"But they weren’t wrong—Tongchen really is homosexual. Not long after, there was this sunny, handsome boy in class who started being incredibly kind to him. Tongchen, who’d never had many friends, ended up treating that boy as a real friend."
Zhuo Shu suddenly had a bad feeling. "That person... he's not my rival in love, is he?"
"No, it withered before high school even ended." The old man said. "It was Christmas Eve. I was pulling overtime and passed by their classroom. Students were crouching outside, listening. I saw a boy confess to Tongchen right by the door. Tongchen looked hesitant for a long while, but finally gave a nod. That’s when everyone stormed in, pointing fingers, shouting ‘freak’—and the one who laughed the hardest was the boy who just confessed."
Zhuo Shu clenched his fists, already feeling anger rising.
"It’s easy to imagine what happened next—he faced a long period of bullying. His homeroom teacher would also occasionally make sarcastic remarks. His parents, now officially divorced, and fearing the bad reputation, both saw him as a burden and pushed him away, neither willing to take him in."
"Even though both his parents were still around, he ended up living like an orphan." The old man sighed deeply.
Zhuo Shu’s eyes reddened with fury. Just as he was about to speak, the old man continued, "Don’t worry, he soon bounced back. He sought out a master, trained in all the arts, and returned after mastering them..."
Zhuo Shu: "So he beat those people up?"
The old man shook his head mysteriously. "After completing his training, of course, he came back to become the top exam scorer!"
"......" Zhuo Shu suddenly understood. "You mean, he couldn't use physical force to suppress them, so he used his grades to punish them instead?"
"No, first, he crushed them with his intellect, then he became an evil tyrant."
"?"
"Can you imagine Tongchen with his hair dyed in all kinds of colors, wearing a big gold chain, squatting on the curb smoking and swearing, stopping little girls on the street?"
Zhuo Shu imagined the scene and was startled, quickly shaking his head. "No, I can't."
"Exactly. He never did any of that."
"......" Zhuo Shu couldn't help but roll his eyes. "You really live up to being a teacher, your stories are full of ups and downs."
"You're too kind," the old man bursted out laughing... but then speedily stopped, holding his stomach before continuing, "This tyrant was a different kind of bully. With his top grades, he started charging for tutoring sessions!"
Zhuo Shu: "..." That's a whole new level of bullying.
"The students who were close to him paid less, but those with a worse relationship had to pay several times more." Even now, the old man couldn't help but applaud his intelligence. "The tutoring was very effective, and soon Tongchen’s reputation spread. A lot of people started trying to get on his good side to pay less."
Zhuo Shu: "What a genius. No wonder he admires Ban Zhang so much."
"When it was time for the college entrance exams, all the students he'd tutored did quite well, and several of them even got into top-tier universities!" The old man said proudly.
"And him?"
"Oh, Tongchen? Just an average score, I suppose, enough for a regular university."
"Why?"
"He didn’t want to study back then; he wanted to make money and support me."
"?!"
"That's a whole other story." The old man raised an eyebrow, "As for the next part, you’ll have to wait for the next episode."
Zhuo Shu: "Teacher, you can't just leave me hanging like this! Tell me everything today!"
"Are you sure you want to hear it?"
"Absolutely."
The old man thought for a moment, then smiled and said, "I’m also homosexual."
Zhuo Shu: "..."
Zhuo Shu scratched his head, suddenly understanding why Ying Tongchen wanted to change caregivers. But then, he raised his head and looked at the old man's face, muttering, "You must have been pretty handsome when you were young."
"Don't make me laugh!" The old man clutched his stomach as he stifled his laughter, "I know what you're thinking. No way, I never saw Tongchen that way."
"Oh so he doesn’t interest you?" Zhuo Shu snorted, muttering, "Well, he doesn’t find you of interest either."
The old man had an uncontrollable wide grin and was gurgling helplessly. Worried he might lose control and aggravate his injury, he shouted, "Help, someone, anyone, please save me!"
Hearing the commotion, the first person to arrive was Ying Tongchen. He charged in, nearly flinging the lunchbox out of his hand.
"Are you alright?" Ying Tongchen quickly placed the food on the table and rushed to the bed, supporting the old man. "Where does it hurt?"
"My stomach hurts." The old man pointed at Zhuo Shu. "He’s going to make me laugh myself to death."
Ying Tongchen immediately glared at Zhuo Shu, who was completely confused. "I didn’t, don't listen to his nonsense."
Seeing that the old man was fine, Ying Tongchen finally relaxed. "Eat first. I bought congee. You can only have liquid food for the next few days."
"Okay."
When the caregiver arrived, she saw the old man sitting up in bed, sipping simple congee, while the two devoted sons quietly sat at the table, enjoying a luxurious meal of shumai, chow fun, eggs, etc. Nevertheless, her heart was full of joy.
It seems that true love still exists in this world, and genuine affection can be found even in wealthy families.
Ying Tongchen ate for a while, but when he noticed Zhuo Shu’s gaze fixed on his face, he absentmindedly touched his face and asked, "What is it?"
"Don’t move," Zhuo Shu grasped his hand, slowly leaning closer. "I’m imagining a scene... about you."
Ying Tongchen froze, staring at the face coming closer to him. In the stillness, he could hear his own racing heartbeat and couldn’t help but glance over at the caregiver and the old man, silently reminding Zhuo Shu that there were others around.
However, Zhuo Shu ignored the outsiders entirely.
Ying Tongchen finally asked, "What scene?"
"You, with your hair dyed in every color, wearing a big gold chain, sitting on the curb smoking, swearing, and blocking the paths of little kids."
A moment later, the caregiver suddenly heard the crisp sound of a slap, and she was so frightened that she didn’t dare turn her head, afraid she’d be fired.
But inside, she was struggling, looking after this whole family.
As expected, there was no such thing as genuine affection in wealthy families!
.
.
.
Author's Note: #(How to Stay) Single Tip of the Day#
Domineering Chairman Zhuo Shu’s Declaration: I have never been slapped before. It doesn’t make me feel any kind of way. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Mr. Ying: 🙃