CEFYMA: Chapter 97

Shortly after returning to the apartment that night, You Mian received a call from Hong Sheng.

“You Mian, did you meet Pei Huaiji this afternoon?” Hong Sheng’s voice on the other end of the phone wasn’t as anxious as You Mian imagined. It was more curious.

According to the show’s recording requirements, his private contact with Pei Huaiji was indeed close to crossing the line.

Thus, You Mian stood at the dining table, poured a cup of hot water, and explained step by step what he had discussed with Pei Huaiji in the afternoon. He explained that it was just a coincidence.

Hong Sheng was silent for a few seconds. “Huh? Aren’t you dating?”

You Mian didn’t know why, but he sensed a bit of regret in Hong Sheng’s tone.

Hong Sheng also seemed to realize that there was something wrong with his tone. He immediately coughed a few times, cleared his throat, and said again, “A fan on the Internet posted a photo of the two of you. The popularity of the CP super talk is quite high, but it doesn’t matter. Just pay attention next time.”

In the past, fans like this often encountered two guests of a romance variety show on the street. It would mostly cause spoilers.

However, the third episode of the show would air soon. All the staff of the show were well aware of the CP-bound relationship between You Mian and Pei Huaiji. Thus, they didn’t care much about the chance encounter with fans.

You Mian hadn’t expected that this matter would be passed over so easily, so he responded with a soft smile, “Okay, Director.”

Hong Sheng asked You Mian to forward a Weibo post and hung up after exchanging a few more words.

You Mian immediately went on Weibo to forward the poster for the third episode of Matching Heartbeat. Almost instantly, his likes and number of comments increased rapidly.

[Is the third episode really coming? I’m so happy to have a variety show to enjoy again!]

[A fresh Mian Mian. I want to see a selfie.]

[Don’t mention a chance encounter or date. Just save some face for Brother Mian.]

[Date? What date? No one mentioned a date, let alone dating.]

[No one mentioned a chance encounter and no one mentioned @JL.]

[@JL what are you doing? I have to @JL. Brother Chair isn’t in charge of the @JL account.]

@JL, ask Chairman Pei when he will open his personal account.]

[Chairman Pei has a personal account.]

[I’m not talking about the robot who only knows how to repost blog posts. Woo woo.]

You Mian stared at these funny comments in a daze, his eyes gradually becoming more and more gentle.

In the comments, someone posted a photo of their encounter in the afternoon. You Mian clicked on the photo to see that he was holding a woolen hat in his left hand. His chestnut brown hair was slightly messy on his forehead and his eyes were curved in a smile. In the middle were the fans and standing on the far right was Pei Huaiji.

Pei Huaiji was too tall, so he needed to bend down slightly to be closer to the camera.

Even if these sharp, dark eyes weren’t making direct contact, the sense of oppression they caused was still strong.

The three-dimensional and deep facial features were wide open and the closed contours were particularly beautiful in the winter mist. His thin lips were slightly pursed and he seemed to be in a good mood.

You Mian unknowingly stared at the photo for a long time. By the time he came to his senses again, he found that the words ‘Picture saved successfully’ had appeared on the screen.

You Mian: “……”

He blinked, quickly picked up the cup, and took a sip of water. Then he continued to scroll down the comments in a panic, as if he wanted to scroll past the photo just now.

However, this photo didn’t disappear. It was included in almost every stacked reply.

[Here is a screenshot of Chairman Pei alone [Picture].]

You Mian put the rim of the cup to his lips. His right hand paused suddenly before he moved it casually.

He long pressed to save.

After a few seconds, a soft laugh appeared in the living room where the floor lamp was quietly on.

You Mian turned off his phone and rubbed his temples helplessly. What was he doing?

A few minutes later, You Mian turned on his computer. He logged into the official website of the Huajiang City Public Security Bureau and waited for the result of his re-registration.

If it had been half a month ago, You Mian wouldn’t have taken the initiative to inquire about issues related to his household registration. He only needed to know that he really had no relationship with the You family.

But now You Mian had a glimmer of hope in his heart.

The sound of the incoming call appeared along with a red dot on the message box of the computer screen.

You Mian clicked on the official reply while answering the call.

Pei Huaiji’s deep voice came from the other end of the phone. “You Mian, we found it.”

“The household registrations of the children who were admitted to the Anxin Welfare Home 20 years ago were all in the name of a sponsor called Miao Li.”

The moment Pei Huaiji finished speaking, You Mian also clearly saw the page of his reissued household registration.

The head of the household—Miao Li.

You Mian’s hand holding the phone suddenly tightened. His eyes went blank for a moment. It turned out that there was really such a person.

Did this Miao Li know what happened when the You family adopted him?

Did she know how he ended up in the Anxin Welfare Home? Maybe she knew his parents.

All these questions now had a thread that could be traced.

You Mian raised an arm to cover her eyes, and there was a smile on his face.

“I saw it too,” You Mian said in a hoarse voice.

Pei Huaiji’s voice disappeared for a few seconds, seemingly giving You Mian time to calm down.

Soon, Pei Huaiji spoke again, “20 years ago, Anxin was just a privately owned orphanage. At that time, they couldn’t register four or five children, so this caring sponsor appeared. Miao Li took the initiative to propose that the household registration of these children be put in her name.”

Pei Huaiji explained it clearly. “Registration at that time wasn’t as strict as it is now.”

The other children who weren’t adopted moved to their own household registration when they reached adulthood, so now there was only You Mian under Miao Li’s name.

You Mian stood up to control his emotions. He followed Pei Huaiji’s voice and said, “So she is probably a witness to the You family’s adoption of me.”

“Yes.”

“As far as I know, she still goes to the Anxin Welfare Home every Tuesday. Her financial aid is distributed to the welfare home at monthly intervals.”

She sounded like a very kind-hearted old woman.

“If you want to see her, we can go there tomorrow.”

You Mian listened to Pei Huaiji’s voice coming from the phone next to his ear. This time, he no longer hesitated. He chose to tighten his grip on the thread in front of him.

“Okay.”

Huajiang City had completely entered winter. The front yards of rows of single-family villas were covered with several layers of thick snow. Frost was also hanging on the branches of many beautifully trimmed dwarf trees and flower beds. The cold was oppressive.

Since it snowed heavily, the weather was unusually sunny today. Miao Li wrapped herself in a thick cotton coat, walked out of the house, and picked up a broom to clear the snow.

The rustling sound of cleaning was particularly noticeable on this quiet morning.

Miao Li bent down and lifted the plastic bucket filled with snow while continuing to move forward.

Suddenly, a black Maybach drove up from a distance and slowly stopped at the fenced gate of Miao Li’s front yard.

The silver-haired old woman held the broom and looked up in confusion. She didn’t recognize the license plate.

You Mian and Pei Huaiji got out of the car one after another. You Mian suddenly stopped when he saw Miao Li cleaning the courtyard.

Miao Li put down her broom and asked loudly, “Hello, who are you looking for?”

You Mian walked slowly behind Pei Huaiji. “I am looking for Ms Miao Li.”

Miao Li glanced warily at the two unknown men in front of her, especially Pei Huaiji.

The other person was very tall and looked like he could lift her off the ground.

Miao Li lived alone and had always been good at preventing dangerous situations.

So when You Mian handed over his household registration book, she didn’t go up to him to get it immediately. Instead, she carefully questioned it. It wasn’t until You Mian said the words ‘Anxin Welfare Home’ that Miao Li’s vigilance disappeared.

“Are you a child from the welfare home back then?” Miao Li’s eyes weren’t very good. She squinted hard to look at You Mian.

Nearly 20 years had passed since the incident. Even if Miao Li had a good memory, she had almost forgotten it at her age.

You Mian nodded and replied with a soft smile, “Yes, I was in the Anxin Welfare Home and was later adopted.”

It was only then that Miao Li approached and took the household registration book handed over by You Mian.

The moment she opened it, she suddenly saw her name on it.

At this moment, it was as if all the memories of those years came flooding back like the tide.

Miao Li clutched the household registration book tightly in her hand. She looked up at the young man in front of her. Sure enough, she found something familiar after many years in the color of his eyes.

“It is you.” A warm smile appeared on Miao Li’s old, wrinkled face. “Little You Mian.”

The moment the cold wind blew, Pei Huaiji stepped forward to block the wind coming from the left side for You Mian.

Upon seeing this, Mai Li immediately said, “Come into the house to chat.”

The fence of the front yard of the villa was opened. You Mian picked up the snow bucket for Miao Li while Pei Huaiji took the broom from You Mian.

Miao Li staggered in front of the two of them, stood at the door, and pushed. The heat in the room rushed toward her face.

The moment You Mian entered the house, he saw a warmly decorated living room. There were plush blankets piled on the sofa with two or three sleeping kittens curled up next to each other. The fireplace here wasn’t a decoration and a bright fire was burning inside.

Miao Li took off her heavy coat and poured two cups of warm coffee for You Mian and Pei Huaiji.

“It is really cold right now,” Miao Li said as she turned around and walked into the house.

You Mian and Pei Huaiji sat on the sofa in the living room and watched Miao Li take down a thick photo album from the bookshelf.

The old woman came back and sat down on her rocking chair. She also put on reading glasses.

“Little You Mian, I remember that you were adopted as a child by a couple.” Miao Li opened the photo album. She handed it to You Mian with a smile and said, “Look, you are in it.”

It was a mottled and old black and white photo.

There were two people sitting on chairs and four children standing in the back row. The oldest looked eight years old and the youngest was only two or three years old. They were held in the arms of the young woman on the chair.

The young woman had delicate eyes and fashionable, curly hair.

Miao Li pushed up her reading glasses and smiled shyly. “This is me.”

You Mian saw himself with curly hair while being held in Miao Li’s arms.

Pei Huaiji’s eyes were locked onto little You Mian’s body, and his eyes instantly became extremely soft.

Miao Li was such a smart person that when she saw You Mian holding the household registration book outside the house, she guessed why the two people came here at this time.

You Mian rubbed the photo a few times before asking in a low voice, “Aunt Miao, can you tell me what happened when the You family adopted me?”

Miao Li looked thoughtful. “Back then, Anxin was just an orphanage and didn’t have the qualifications to register as a household. Plus, there were only the children in the photo. I am unmarried, so I placed these children under my household registration.”

“But now there is no need for such trouble. The Anxin Welfare Home is state-owned, and all the children’s household registration is done at the police station.”

Miao Li looked at You Mian and said in a very soft voice, “Your situation was very special back then. The family that adopted you had a child of their own and didn’t meet the adoption conditions.”

“But at that time, the welfare home was on the verge of closing, and their family was very wealthy. I had no choice but to agree to their de facto adoption. In addition, the couple promised me that they would formally adopt you and they did.”

Miao Li paused for a few seconds before sighing. “But you have seen the current situation. Three years ago, they informed me that the previous adoption agreement was invalid. This means that while your household registration has been in their name on the surface for more than ten years, it was returned to me when the adoptive party raised an objection.”

You Mian understood You Jiyuan and Bai Peilan’s vicious plan as soon as he heard it.

They asked him to take Bai Lin’s identity and really did allow You Mian to have the You family’s household registration, but it was all superficial.

Before Bai Lin officially returned to China, You Jiyuan and Bai Peilan raised objections to the manipulated adoption agreement and proceeded to withdraw it.

Once the time came, You Mian was kicked out of the You family without getting anything from them, let alone shares.

You Mian could figure it out, but Miao Li couldn’t.

Miao Li couldn’t understand why the You family did this. She thought they just didn’t want You Mian to get a share of their assets.

The grievances of wealthy families were complicated. Miao Li was filled with emotion as she looked at You Mian in front of her.

“The welfare home has its own rules. I couldn’t take the initiative to look for you or interfere with your life.” Miao Li smiled and patted the back of You Mian’s hand. “Have you had a hard time these years, little You Mian?”

Pei Huaiji’s Adam’s apple moved suddenly, and his eyes darkened.

On the other hand, You Mian smiled brightly and shook his head.

Miao Li only thought that this was You Mian comforting the old woman. Her eyes behind her reading glasses were slightly moist.

“This group of children have all grown up. Now the youngest, little You Mian has also grown up,” Miao Li said with a smile.

You Mian looked down at the photo. He pointed to a young man sitting next to Miao Li and asked, “Aunt Miao, who is this person?”

Miao Li smiled slightly before sighing.

“His name is Song Zheng and he is the first director of the Anxin Welfare Home. You have been held in his arms since I met him. You were so young at that time, only four or five years old.”

You Mian was startled. “Then he is my…”

Miao Li knew what You Mian wanted to ask and shook her head. “No. Song Zheng said that your surname is You, and your name is You Mian. He raised you to fulfill a responsibility to a friend.”

“He probably knew your biological parents.”

Pei Huaiji immediately asked in a deep voice, “Then this person called Song Zheng, where is he now?”

Miao Li stroked the blanket on her knees. “Didn’t I just mention that the welfare home was on the verge of closing once? It was because there was a big fire at the Anxin Welfare Home. In order to save the children in the fire, Song Zheng went in and never came out again.”

“The moment Song Zheng passed away, the funds supporting the welfare home were cut off.”

You Mian felt confused and blank after hearing this.

Could it be that the only person who knew his biological parents had left like this?

Pei Huaiji frowned and asked, “Didn’t Mr Song tell you about You Mian’s parents at the time?”

Miao Li shook her head. “He was very shy about talking about it, but he often hugged You Mian.”

“Little You Mian was very smart. You showed amazing talent in mathematics at the age of two. You also showed a perception of color that was beyond the range of ordinary people.”

Miao Li looked at You Mian with a gentle smile in her eyes. “You were very young at the time, but you always liked to climb high and sit on top of the bookcase to do math problems like addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division.”

“Song Zheng said something at that time…”

You Mian’s eyes tightened instantly. “What was it?”

“Miao Li thought for a while before saying, “I only remember what Song Zheng said at the time. It was, ‘It turns out that Mian Mian is also a born adventurer’.”

White Lily

Avid fan of danmei novels! If you want access to advance chapters, you can subscribe on Patreon. Thanks!
https://www.patreon.com/WhiteLily476