Xu Yiyi calmly told Xu Qingqing the situation at home.
"Mom, Dad went out just now and hasn't come back yet."
"Not home so late?" Xu Qingqing frowned, thinking about the incident a few days ago when Lu Chuanbai asked her to borrow the employee ID to take a foreigner into the museum.
Xu Qingqing was worried that there might be a problem with the GH5 project. After chatting with the two kids in a hurry, she called Lu Chuanbai.
After Lu Chuanbai left the hospital, he bought a bouquet of flowers. Under the night, he went to his mother's tomb and laid the flowers in front of it.
Lu Chuanbai sat in front of his mother's tomb for a long time, enjoying the evening breeze. His presence gave a great scare to the patrolling tomb - keeper, who urged him to leave quickly before he finally got up.
On his way down the mountain, Lu Chuanbai was in a daze.
Since his step - mother entered the Lu family, Lu Chuanbai always thought that his mother still held a place in his father's heart.
It was not until today that he realized that place had long been taken by his step - mother.
And he had become the one who could be sacrificed between him and Lu Fenglin.
Although the two slaps his father gave him were not very heavy, they pushed Lu Chuanbai far away from his father.
It seemed that an irreparable rift would be forever buried between father and son.
Just as Lu Chuanbai was lost in thought, he received a video call from Xu Qingqing.
Lu Chuanbai parked his car at the foot of the mountain. Seeing Xu Qingqing's smiling face, his mood instantly brightened up. It was like the gentle sunlight shining through the cold mist on an isolated island covered in haze.
Xu Qingqing immediately noticed the wound on Lu Chuanbai's lip and the slap mark on his cheek. The smile on her face disappeared, and her heart skipped a beat.
"Lu Chuanbai, what happened to your face? Who hit you!"
Lu Chuanbai lowered his eyes and turned his slapped cheek away.
He didn't want Xu Qingqing to worry.
"I got a blister on my lip. No one hit me."
Even through the phone, Xu Qingqing could feel Lu Chuanbai's disappointment. With a cold face, she questioned him.
"Did Lu Fenglin cause trouble for you again? Did he deliberately disrupt the progress of the GH5 project to ruin your image!"
Xu Qingqing didn't need to think hard to guess that this must be Lu Fenglin's doing.
Lu Chuanbai remained silent. Xu Qingqing felt she was about to explode with anger. She started scolding Lu Fenglin without thinking.
"Lu Fenglin is so excessive! The most capable person should take the lead. Why did he hit you! Did you fight back?"
Xu Qingqing stared at Lu Chuanbai with raised eyebrows, wishing she could rush through the screen immediately to seek justice for Lu Chuanbai.
"If you didn't fight back, I'll look down on you!"
Hearing Xu Qingqing's cute and angry voice, Lu Chuanbai couldn't help laughing. His tone was doting.
"I was the one who hit him first."
"I see..." Hearing that Lu Chuanbai had struck first, Xu Qingqing blinked her eyes and immediately made excuses for Lu Chuanbai in her heart.
"Lu Fenglin must have done something bad to make you angry. Otherwise, you wouldn't have hit him!"
Regardless of who struck first, Xu Qingqing firmly stood by Lu Chuanbai's side.
Seeing Xu Qingqing's serious expression, Lu Chuanbai couldn't help thinking of the two unfair slaps from his father. His face showed a complex mix of sadness and amusement.
Seeing that Lu Chuanbai was in a bad mood, Xu Qingqing tried her best to comfort him. "If you're sad, tell me what happened. You'll feel better after talking about it."
"Um... Lu Fenglin started causing trouble this morning..."
Lu Chuanbai told Xu Qingqing the whole thing in detail. By the end, his face darkened again. He said dejectedly,
"I won't take on this project anymore. Since Lu Fenglin wants it so much, just give it to him."
"Anyway, Mr. Smith is no longer willing to cooperate with us. Everything has been ruined by that bastard!"
The angrier Lu Chuanbai got, the harder he punched the steering wheel. The car horn blared, scaring a flock of birds that had already roosted on the mountain.
Hearing Lu Chuanbai calmly talk about his grievances and the unfair treatment from his father, Xu Qingqing felt extremely sorry for him. She decided to support him with all her might.
"You can't give it to him!" Xu Qingqing said firmly.
"If you really hand this project over to Lu Fenglin and Mr. Smith changes his mind, Lu Fenglin will succeed!"
"How could Mr. Smith change his mind?" Lu Chuanbai sighed with a bitter smile.
Mr. Smith had been tricked twice today and was so angry that his face turned purple. He must have blacklisted Lu Chuanbai.
"I'll step in!" Xu Qingqing said confidently, patting her chest. "Isn't the Taoist temple in Yang Tianfu already under protection? No outsiders are allowed to enter except the staff."
"But I'm a staff member. I have the privilege to bring people in. You just tell Mr. Smith that if he wants to be the first foreigner in the world to see Yang Tianfu, he should cooperate with you."
"Is that really okay?" Hope flickered in Lu Chuanbai's heart.
Seeing how much Mr. Smith liked Xu Qingqing, there was probably a 50% chance that Mr. Smith would agree.
"Of course it is." Xu Qingqing winked playfully.
Lu Chuanbai's mood cleared up instantly, like clouds dispersing to reveal the sun. The corners of his lips curled up involuntarily.
If Xu Qingqing were right in front of him, he would surely pick her up and spin her around.
Unable to contain his joy, Lu Chuanbai pursed his lips and kissed the Xu Qingqing on the screen. His voice was filled with laughter.
"Qingqing, Qingqing. Do you think I saved the universe in my previous life to have you, a lucky star, by my side!"
"It seems that as long as you're with me, I can get through any difficult situation."
"I'm not that good, am I?" Xu Qingqing covered her face shyly and bit her lips.
Lu Chuanbai regained his spirit and decided to work harder the next day.
The hospital was filled with the strong smell of disinfectant. Father Lu borrowed some iodine and cotton swabs from the nurse and carefully cleaned Lu Fenglin's wound.
As he was cleaning, Father Lu was worried about Lu Chuanbai in his heart.
He had slapped Lu Chuanbai twice. Lu Chuanbai must be very angry.
Father Lu's thoughts wandered, and he pressed the cotton swab a bit too hard. Lu Fenglin let out a soft hiss in pain.
Frowning, Lu Fenglin could tell from his father's face that he was worried about Lu Chuanbai. Covering the wound on his lip, he complained, "Be gentle."
"Sorry." Father Lu put away the cotton swab and apologized to his second son. Seeing Lu Fenglin frowning tightly, he tentatively asked, "What on earth happened between you two brothers?"
"Is there something wrong with the GH5 project?"
A look of impatience flashed across Lu Fenglin's eyes. His tone was very perfunctory. "He sent me back. How would I know what's going on!"
"I was even punched by him for no reason. I'm so wronged!"
Hearing Lu Fenglin's complaint, Father Lu let out a long sigh and cleaned up the used cotton swabs.
He was old and didn't know much about most of the company's affairs now.
He couldn't do anything to stop his two sons from fighting each other. He could only feel anxious.