He had already passed away? And so long ago... Yu Shulin suddenly felt a hollow emptiness inside. He hadn't even had time to imagine meeting his father, and now the other person had completely vanished from his life.
"Then you..." he began, but didn't know what to say. Should he ask if, since his father was dead, he still wanted his guardianship? Or should he ask if his own mother really was the other woman?
"If you are willing, I will take care of you."
It was still that low voice, with a flat tone, but Yu Shulin heard a trace of sincerity in it. His chaotic thoughts gradually calmed. After a long while, he asked softly, "You're willing?" Why would he be willing? Shouldn't he despise his father's illegitimate child?
The noisy sounds on the phone gradually faded, followed by the sound of a car unlocking, a door opening and closing. "Yes. I couldn't reach you before, so there was no time to discuss this in detail. The lawyer and assistant I sent will arrive tomorrow. You can ask them any questions you have."
The quiet background made the other's voice even clearer. Even stripped of the slight hoarseness from fatigue and somewhat distorted by the phone line, this Liang Zhou's voice could still be called pleasant.
For a moment, he didn't know what to say. After a long pause, he finally asked, "You've been trying to contact me?"
"To be precise, since your mother passed away."
"Using this phone number?"
"Mhm. Because it was so sudden, I couldn't find any other way to contact you. Also, regarding your mother's passing... my condolences."
Perhaps unaccustomed to saying such things, the other's tone sounded a bit stiff. Hearing it, however, Yu Shulin couldn't help but feel a warmth in his heart. It had been a long time since he received that kind of comfort.
"Thank you for your concern."
"You're welcome."
"..."
Silence again. Neither knew what to say. In the end, Yu Shulin found his voice first and said softly, "It's very late. I should sleep. You... get some rest early."
"...Good night."
The first contact with his father's side was unexpectedly smooth.
Yu Shulin put down the receiver, replaying their conversation in his mind, and felt slightly more settled—the situation was better than he had imagined. This older brother... seemed not bad at all.
Although he felt the guardianship matter was almost certainly settled, Yu Xiu was still somewhat worried about Yu Shulin's sudden mood swings from the day before. Early the next morning, he personally went to pick him up, bringing breakfast. This time, he was more cautious; he didn't bring Zhou Mei or Yu Bo, appearing before Yu Shulin alone, playing the part of the concerned uncle to perfection. Anyone seeing him would not doubt his sincerity.
After waking from sleep, Yu Shulin's emotions were mired in the daze of "reincarnation actually isn't a dream." He automatically filtered out all of Yu Xiu's brainwashing chatter.
As they neared the law firm, he finally snapped back to attention, composed his emotions, and asked as if casually, "When did the people from my father's side start contacting me?"
Yu Xiu's words halted. He turned his head to scrutinize Yu Shulin's expression carefully before replying cautiously, "They haven't. They contacted Lawyer Zhou directly... Shulin, why do you ask?"
"No reason, just asking." Yu Shulin turned his head to look out the window again.
“Shulin, don’t be too sad.” Yu Xiu, however, seemed to have grasped a key point and launched into a new round of brainwashing. “Although that side has always been indifferent to you, and after your mother passed, they didn’t even try to contact you, only knowing to contact the lawyer to scheme about the inheritance, you are not alone. Don’t be afraid, your uncle is always on your side.” He spoke righteously, striving to paint the person fantasizing about snatching guardianship rights as utterly black, forever beyond redemption!
Yu Shulin blinked, sneering inwardly, and did not respond to his words. He had pretty much figured it out. Probably, in his past life, that Liang Zhou had also tried to contact him. It was just that he had been taken in by Yu Xiu too early, and coincidentally, that Lawyer Zhou was of one mind with Yu Xiu. For them to have been able to speak directly would have been a miracle.
The road was a bit congested. They arrived at the law firm exactly at nine-thirty. Yu Shulin thought he might have to wait a while to meet the people sent by Liang Zhou, but he didn't expect the other party to have arrived even earlier.
The sound of the door opening made the several people in the conference room, who were checking documents, look up. Lawyer Zhou, sitting in the middle, had a faint sheen of sweat on his forehead. Seeing Yu Xiu bring Yu Shulin in, as if rescued, he hastily stood up and went to greet them, saying warmly, "Brother Yu, you're finally here. Please, have a seat, have a seat."
Yu Xiu was somewhat taken aback by this enthusiastic attitude, his steps into the room becoming hesitant. After all, after the teapot shattered yesterday, he had practically been chased out of the law firm.
Lawyer Zhou didn't care what he thought. He directly pulled him and seated him on the sofa next to a handsome young man, then walked to the door and shouted outside, "Xiao Han, Xiao Han! Hurry up and bring tea for the guests!"
Yu Shulin's gaze fell on the handsome young man. The other happened to look over as well, blinked, and gave him a reassuring smile. He was momentarily stunned, somewhat surprised by the other's youthfulness. He nodded politely and returned the smile.
Once everyone was seated, the tall, silent man sitting next to the handsome young man suddenly stood up, walked over to Yu Shulin, extended his hand, and said, "Yu Shulin, hello. I am He Long, Mr. Liang's assistant. If you have any questions, you can ask me directly."
"Hello." Yu Shulin stood up, smiling as he shook his hand. His impression of Liang Zhou's side improved even more—the other party was willing to engage with him as an equal despite his age, which truly put him more at ease.
In short, the situation was far better than he had imagined.
He Long was somewhat surprised by his composure and poise. After all, in his conversations with Lawyer Zhou, the terms used to describe Yu Shulin were things like "well-behaved," "quiet," "introverted," "difficult to get along with," and "emotionally unstable."
The handsome young man also stood up, came over, nudged He Long aside, grabbed Yu Shulin's hand and shook it up and down, saying amiably with a smile, "Little Yu, right? Hello, I'm Ling Chun, the lawyer your big brother Liang Zhou sent. You can just call me Brother Ling. Not bad, not bad, the kid looks quite delicate and pretty. I like it."
"...Hello, Mr. Ling." Yu Shlin somewhat stiffly withdrew his hand, his mouth twitching slightly—this man who looked handsome and sharp actually spoke in this kind of tone... he had to admit he was having a bit of trouble accepting it.
Listening to their conversation, Yu Xiu grew restless. He hadn't expected the people from that side to arrive so early, leaving him no chance to prevent them from meeting Yu Shulin. What he feared most was Yu Shulin getting along well with them. If the two sides found more and more common ground, and Yu Shulin was easily swayed... Thinking of this, he could no longer sit still. He hurriedly stood up, walked in front of Yu Shulin, interrupted their conversation, and extended his hand towards Ling Chun. "Mr. Ling, hello. I am Shulin's uncle. I was wondering, what were you and Lawyer Zhou just..."
Yu Shulin frowned slightly and sidestepped, not allowing the man to block his path.
Ling Chun's gaze shifted between Yu Xiu and Yu Shulin before finally settling on Lawyer Zhou, who sat rigidly in his seat. He reached out perfunctorily to shake hands and said, "It's nothing much, just verifying some documents left by Ms. Yu and taking stock of the inheritance."
Upon hearing this, the smile on Yu Xiu's face faltered. He hurriedly interjected, "Isn't today about settling the guardianship? Shulin just finished his high school entrance exams and isn't feeling his best. Let's get the guardianship matter settled quickly. So, uh, Lawyer Zhou, the documents..."
"Mr. Yu, there's no need to rush," Ling Chun said with a smile, turning to sit beside Lawyer Zhou. He pulled a file from the table and continued leisurely, "Taking stock of the inheritance doesn't interfere with choosing a guardian. Besides, it's for Young Master Yu's own good. He's young and doesn't understand these things, so the adults naturally need to take extra care. You should know, my client is very concerned about Young Master Yu's welfare." As he finished, he even winked at Yu Shulin, his expression clearly seeking a bit of praise.
Yu Shulin blinked back, returning a slight smile—this Lawyer Ling was rather interesting.
