Chapter 124: Going Together to Pick Up Lin Chen

Grandpa Lin’s illness was something Zhou Jingheng had heard about, but he hadn’t expected it to be so serious. Since returning to the country, Lin Xi hadn’t heard Grandpa mention her eldest brother even once; this was the first time.

“Big brother will be back in a few days,” Qin Yu’s voice broke the silence somewhat abruptly.

Hearing this, Grandpa Lin looked at him, seeming to recognize him after a moment. “Is what Xiaoyu said true?”

“Yes. I talked to big brother on the phone just a couple of nights ago.”

“That boy really should have called me.”

“It was too late then, and there’s a time difference on his side. You were already resting.”

“I see.” Grandpa Lin smiled gently. “How’s Chenchen?”

“Big brother is doing well. He told me not to let you worry too much.”

“That’s good, that’s good.” Grandpa Lin smiled again. “As long as he’s fine. It’s been a long time since he called me; I was starting to worry a bit.”

Mentioning Lin Chen seemed to open a floodgate for Grandpa Lin, who spoke intermittently, “I even dreamed about him yesterday. He asked me to take him to the east side to buy sugar cakes. That kid never wants anything delicious, only sugar cakes.”

“Fortunately, that boy will be back soon. Xi Xi... remember to buy sugar cakes for your brother and pick him up from work early. Drive there to avoid traffic jams; he’s impatient and might nag you otherwise.”

Lin Xi stood frozen, staring at Grandpa in bewilderment. She opened her mouth but couldn’t utter a sound for a long moment. Qin Yu, sitting beside her, placed his hand lightly on her shoulder and said, “Don’t worry, we’ll all go to pick big brother up together.”

“We’ll definitely bring big brother home.”

Qin Yu’s words seemed to reassure Grandpa Lin. With him there, the old man naturally felt more at ease.

Soon, Grandpa left, leaving the few of them behind, the atmosphere sinking to a low point.

Each harbored different thoughts, and no one spoke.

Zhou Jingheng, sitting there as the eldest brother, broke the silence after a couple of seconds, “Let’s keep Saturday free. We’ll go see big brother.”

“Mm.” Qin Yu’s eyes darkened like night as he looked quietly at Lin Xi.

Naturally, none of the others had issues with this plan; the concern was mainly Lin Xi.

Feeling his gaze linger on her face, Lin Xi spoke up in time, “That’s fine. You all decide the exact time. I’m available anytime.”

Her second brother smiled warmly, rubbing her head affectionately, “Then we’ll set off early Saturday.”

“How about seven o’clock? We’ll travel separately and not meet up beforehand to avoid delays. We can all meet at the entrance.”

“Sounds good.” Cheng Si agreed. “I’ve been staying at the hospital with Grandpa these days, so I’ll go alone then. Bai Xu and second brother will ride together. Xi Xi, you still go with third brother.”

If the three groups traveled together, it would indeed cause trouble.

They were heading in three completely different directions, and with Saturday being a peak tourism day in the capital, traffic jams were a real concern.

That night, after leaving the hospital, Lin Xi got into the car and immediately stopped Qin Yu’s movement.

He took his hand off the steering wheel and turned to look at her.

After a brief glance, Lin Xi got straight to the point, “Grandpa said big brother wants sugar cakes, right? If third brother isn’t busy, can you take me to the east side to look for some now?”

Grandpa had said the east side, but Lin Xi had no clear memory of exactly where.

So she planned to search now and bring some when they visited big brother on Saturday.

After a pause, she added, “Does third brother know where it is?”

“Are there any steamed bun shops or something on the east side?”

Sugar cakes covered a broad range. She wasn’t sure if it was the old-fashioned sugar cakes from a steamed bun shop or modern flaky pastries.

She could only hope Qin Yu knew something.

Because the age gap between her and her eldest brother was large, while Qin Yu was younger than her brother too, it wasn’t as extreme, so they had played together during childhood.

Maybe Qin Yu really knew.

Presented with the question, Qin Yu didn’t respond immediately. He lowered his eyes and recalled carefully for a moment before slowly saying,

“I have a rough idea of the direction, but I’m not certain.”

He continued, “Let’s go check it out first.”

“Okay.” Lin Xi nodded eagerly.

If Qin Yu couldn’t find it, she would try asking second brother next.

If that failed, she’d have to ask her aunt.

Qin Yu quietly started the engine, and the car slowly pulled out, only increasing speed once they left the courtyard.

“I originally thought it was near one of big brother’s old schools. But thinking carefully, none of his schools were on the east side.”

Except for her transfer to Linyi in the latter half of high school and Cheng Si’s childhood in Jiangcheng’s outskirts, they mostly attended the same schools from kindergarten through high school.

So Qin Yu was technically her senior, though they never appeared together officially at school.

Lin Xi had only seen Qin Yu’s photo and introduction on the bulletin board.

Qin Yu’s grades had always been excellent. Among her brothers, the top performers were Qin Yu and Zhou Jingheng, both strong but in different fields—one science, one humanities.

Her eldest brother ranked within the top ten, while Cheng Si and Bai Xu were in the upper-middle tier.

Cheng Si had been distracted from studying because he was the grandson of Old Mr. Cheng and the only heir, so the old man had set very high expectations. Cheng Si rebelled during middle and high school and didn’t focus on studies.

As for Bai Xu... he was actually smart. As a child, his grades matched hers.

They were just a grade apart, often listed side by side on school honor rolls.

Later, Bai Xu’s middle-upper ranking in high school was due to his own lack of effort. He never completed the long questions in exams, thinking it a waste of time and tiring on his hand.

He could have been admitted early to university without exams but ruined it himself.

Even so, Bai Xu’s college entrance exam performance remained stable, though Lin Xi suspected he manipulated his scores.

He barely scraped into the University of Political Science and Law, almost missing the cut.

When Grandpa Bai checked his exam results, his blood pressure soared, nearly causing him to faint.

“The east side should be near the gym big brother used to frequent. Let’s go there first and look around.”

Qin Yu wasn’t very sure. “But the gym is really the only place big brother often went to on that side.”

“There was a street nearby with some small shops, but it’s been so long, I’m not sure if they’re still there.”

Lin Chen had started boxing and taekwondo in childhood and occasionally played badminton. He learned independence early and often went alone to the gym for classes after school or during holidays.

Qin Yu remembered tagging along once or twice, but that was over a decade ago, probably before Lin Xi was born.