Yun Fujin was taken aback. "What did you say?"
Yun Yi's face was streaked with tears. "Second Brother ran away this morning and hasn't come back since. I thought he was just angry with us, so I didn't bother. But when it was almost dark, I realized something was wrong. I ran out to ask around, but everyone said they hadn't seen him."
Yun Yi clutched tightly at Yun Fujin's sleeve. "Big Brother, you have to find Second Brother. Why did you scold him today!"
Yun Fujin's head was buzzing, feeling a bit dazed.
It was all his fault. He had been so preoccupied with other people's affairs that he had forgotten about his own family.
"Xiao Que'er, stay at home! I'll go find him with your Third Sister!"
Yun Fujin hurriedly gave instructions to Yun Que'er and then rushed out the door.
Yun Que'er, who was left at home, was also in a daze.
She spun around in place a couple of times, getting more and more anxious as she thought about it.
Yun Jianzhou must have run away because he was angry about what happened today.
But usually when he got angry, he would run out too, and he would come back on his own at night. It was so late. He wouldn't run into any trouble, would he?
Yun Que'er tried hard to recall where Yun Jianzhou might have gone, but he had always been so elusive. Who could know where he had run off to?
Just then, Ji Chengxuan showed up.
"I just ran into Big Brother Yun and Third Sister. I heard that Brother Jianzhou hasn't come back. What's going on?" He walked up in a hurry.
Yun Que'er had a splitting headache. "Our family saw Sister Yingying being bullied and wanted to help her. That's why Second Brother got angry and ran away. He hasn't come back since... Anyway, I can't explain it clearly in a short time."
"Don't be in such a hurry." Ji Chengxuan comforted her. "Think carefully. Where does your Second Brother usually go?"
"If only I knew." Yun Que'er anxiously rubbed her sleeve. "It's all my fault. I was so anxious that I came up with an idea without explaining it to Second Brother in time. I made him so angry that he ran away. Second Brother must feel so wronged. What if something happens to him?"
Wronged?
Ji Chengxuan seemed to have thought of something.
"Xiao Que'er, if you were wronged, what would you do?"
"I'd definitely go to Big Brother to pour out my grievances." Yun Que'er replied without hesitation.
"Your Second Brother isn't much older than you. He must do the same thing."
Yun Que'er thought it made sense after hearing this.
"Who could he go to pour out his grievances... "
Friends? Buddies?
Or...
Yun Que'er's eyes lit up. "I know! Mother's grave!"
Li Ruolan's grave was less than two li outside Yuhe Village. It was a geomantically auspicious place that Yun Motan had found back then.
He had also reserved a plot for himself, planning to be buried with Li Ruolan after his death.
Because he missed his wife, he hadn't chosen a place too far away so that he could come and visit from time to time.
Fortunately, it wasn't far. In a short while, Yun Que'er arrived.
From afar, Yun Que'er saw a figure in front of the grave. Who else could it be but Yun Jianzhou?
Yun Que'er was a bit angry and quickened her steps.
But as soon as she got close to Yun Jianzhou, she couldn't say a word.
She saw Yun Jianzhou leaning against Li Ruolan's tombstone, like a child snuggled in his mother's arms. There were two dried streaks on his face, clearly the marks of tears.
He had cried himself to sleep from exhaustion.
Yun Que'er looked at him and felt a pang of heartache.
Yun Jianzhou was tall and almost as tall as Yun Fujin, but he was still a child.
Thinking back, they really had paid a bit less attention to Yun Jianzhou.
It was said that the second child in a family was often overlooked. Since there was an elder sibling and younger ones, the second child wasn't the firstborn and was taken for granted to give in to the younger siblings. So, they often became the ones living in the cracks.
Now that she thought about it, it really felt like Yun Jianzhou was an outsider. Good things were never the first to be thought of for him, and few people ever listened to his suggestions.
Rome wasn't built in a day. They had ignored Yun Jianzhou for too long.
Yun Que'er slowly squatted down and placed her small hand on Yun Jianzhou's shoulder.
"Second Brother, Second Brother?"
Yun Jianzhou was startled awake and slowly opened his eyes.
"Why are you here so late?" Yun Jianzhou blurted out instinctively.
Then he remembered what had happened before he fell asleep and turned his head away from Yun Que'er in annoyance.
"Did Big Brother send you here? To find me and scold me again? I'm not going to look for trouble myself."
"I came on my own." Yun Que'er shook her head and sat down beside Yun Jianzhou.
"Second Brother, are you mad at us?"
Yun Jianzhou snorted. "Mad? I wouldn't dare. In our family, when have I ever had a say? You guys just make up your minds about things and don't even bother to ask for my opinion."
Yun Que'er knew that Yun Jianzhou was being sarcastic.
He must be feeling bad inside.
"Second Brother, today's incident is my fault."
She gently grabbed Yun Jianzhou's hand.
"Originally, Big Brother and I went to Sister Yingying's house today because we wanted to talk to her about the antique drawing. We didn't expect to run into her uncle bullying her. We were afraid that the man would keep pestering them, so we..."
Yun Jianzhou sneered. "So, it's my fault then? Right, I'm not as beautiful and generous as you guys. Unlike you, who can just take out two hundred taels without hesitation. I'm afraid of going hungry."
Yun Que'er couldn't help but laugh and pinched Yun Jianzhou's hand.
"Second Brother, you misunderstood me. Actually, you're a really good person. Today at Sister Yingying's house, didn't you also help protect them? If you weren't kind - hearted, would you have rushed to help?"
Yun Jianzhou snorted. "That sounds more like it."
"Actually, Big Brother and I never really talked about buying the box. It's just that the mahogany box has a special origin. We thought that keeping it could really help Sister Yingying a lot. There was no other way, so we had to tell Zhang Xiaokang in front of everyone that we had already reserved the box."
"Really?" Yun Jianzhou looked at Yun Que'er doubtfully. "So, you guys were acting? It seemed so real. I didn't notice at all."
Yun Que'er burst out laughing. "Silly brother. If you could tell, others would too. Anyway, the two hundred taels was just to calm Zhang Xiaokang down. We didn't really give it to him."
Then, Yun Que'er told Yun Jianzhou what had happened later.
Yun Jianzhou finally understood. "So, that's what happened."
Suddenly, he felt a bit embarrassed. Although he felt guilty, he still said proudly.
"Alright, then you guys did the right thing."
Yun Que'er leaned on Yun Jianzhou's shoulder. "Second Brother, I know you're doing everything for our family. Today's situation was urgent, and we didn't have time to explain it to you. What Big Brother said wasn't really blaming you. He was just afraid that Zhang Xiaokang would notice something. But it's also our fault that we ignored you. Second Brother, from now on, for all the family matters, let's sit down and discuss them together. We'll listen to everyone's opinions, okay?"
Seeing that Yun Jianzhou didn't say a word, Yun Que'er tugged at his sleeve.
"Okay?"
Yun Jianzhou couldn't stand Yun Que'er's coquetry the most. He pushed her away with a feigned "disgust".
"Tsk, my teeth are going to fall out from the sweetness."