At first, Yan Zhuxi didn't realize that the call of "Sister-in-law" was directed at her.
It wasn't until Lu Xun shouted again, his voice hoarse with effort.
Yan Zhuxi looked over and saw Lu Xun being held by a security guard, struggling to break free.
She quickly walked over. "Lu Xun, what are you doing here?"
Lu Xun pouted pitifully. "Sister-in-law, I came to find my brother, but the security guard uncle insists on sending me to the police station. Guard uncle, this is my sister-in-law. Now do you believe me? Can you let me go now?"
The university had many students, and the guard didn't recognize Yan Zhuxi. He looked her up and down, then turned back to Lu Xun. "Didn't you just say you were here to find your brother?"
Lu Xun replied with perfect justification, "That's right! My sister-in-law and my brother are family. Looking for my brother is the same as looking for my sister-in-law."
Lu Xun's repeated calls of "Sister-in-law" left Yan Zhuxi feeling incredibly awkward.
After finding out that she and Lu Yu were dating, Shu Qingqing had enthusiastically invited her to their home as a guest. The moment Lu Xun saw her, he immediately started calling her "Sister-in-law."
Even though she explained that she and Lu Yu were only dating and not yet married, Lu Xun stubbornly insisted on addressing her that way. His reasoning was that they would get married sooner or later, so calling her that now or later made no difference.
Hearing the guard's words, Yan Zhuxi immediately pulled out her student ID. "Sir, this little boy is my boyfriend's younger brother."
The guard checked the ID and confirmed that Yan Zhuxi was indeed a university student before letting go of Lu Xun. "Alright then, you can take him in. But I still have to say, it's best not to let such a young child go out on his own."
Yan Zhuxi was about to agree when she heard Lu Xun protest—
"I'm not little! I'm in second grade this year, and I'll be in sixth grade soon!"
Yan Zhuxi couldn't help but laugh. "Yes, yes, you're a big boy. By the way, Lu Xun, how did you come to find your brother all by yourself? Did Aunt Shu drop you off?"
Afraid that Yan Zhuxi would call Shu Qingqing, Lu Xun stammered, "Um... yeah, Mom dropped me off. I missed my brother."
Yan Zhuxi didn't suspect a thing. She took his hand and led him inside. "Let's go. I'll take you to find your brother right now."
Meanwhile.
Shu Qingqing received a call from the driver. Upon learning that Lu Xun was missing, she nearly collapsed. She frantically took out her phone, ready to call Lu Bochuan.
But after opening her contacts, she felt something wasn't right.
Ever since Lu Xun started elementary school, she had constantly drilled anti-kidnapping knowledge into his head. Although Lu Xun's grades weren't great, he was actually quite a clever kid.
Moreover, there were traffic police on duty at the school gate every day after school, so human traffickers wouldn't dare to act rashly.
Then, she remembered an incident from when Lu Xun was in kindergarten. He had been mocked for farting and didn't want to go to school, so he secretly followed Lu Yu to his school instead.
Controlling her trembling hands, she called Lu Yu.
But Lu Yu said he hadn't seen Lu Xun.
"Mom, don't panic. I'm heading back right now." Lu Yu said as he walked out while on the phone. Just as he reached the entrance of his dorm building, he saw Yan Zhuxi walking over, holding Lu Xun's hand.
He instantly breathed a sigh of relief. "Mom, Lu Xun came to find me. I just saw him downstairs."
A vicious "You tell him to wait right there for me!" came from the other end of the line, and then the call was abruptly hung up.
Seeing Lu Yu, Lu Xun let go of Yan Zhuxi's hand and ran over to him.
"Brother!" He flashed a huge smile and was just about to hug Lu Yu's leg like he did when he was little, but his forehead was suddenly pushed back by Lu Yu's index finger.
"Lu Xun, did you sneak over here by yourself?" Lu Yu's voice was freezing cold.
Lu Xun had never been treated with such an attitude by Lu Yu before. He froze in place and blankly nodded.
Lu Yu said, "Do you have any idea how worried Mom was? She was so scared she was crying just now."
Somehow, a childhood memory suddenly popped into Lu Xun's mind. He remembered that he had secretly followed his brother to school before, and back then, his brother hadn't been angry. He had even taken his hand and brought him along.
Lu Xun voiced his confusion.
The expression on Lu Yu's face remained cold. "You were just a toddler back then. But you are seven years old now. You understand right from wrong, and you definitely know that running away without saying a word will cause a lot of people to panic and worry."
Lu Xun's expression instantly deflated. "Brother, I was wrong. But... but Mom spanked me yesterday. I was so heartbroken that I decided to run away from home."
Lu Yu's expression finally softened a bit. "So you even know what running away from home is. Tell me what happened. Why did Mom spank you?"
Lu Xun dramatically recounted the events of yesterday, and at the end, he even tattled, "When Mom spanked my butt, she even pulled down my pants! I was so angry!"
Lu Yu replied, "Mom's methods might have been a bit inappropriate, but you made a mistake first. Since you agreed to Mom hiring a tutor, you should have taken your lessons seriously instead of making the tutor cry from anger."
Lu Xun turned his face away. "Studying is so boring."
Lu Yu said, "Studying is inherently boring, but just like growing taller, it's something you must experience as you grow up. I know that with your intelligence, if you were willing to learn, your grades wouldn't be too bad. Forget it, let's not talk about this right now. Let's go, I'm taking you back."
Lu Xun immediately took a half-step back. "Brother, are you sending me to the guillotine?!"
Lu Yu frowned. "What guillotine?"
Lu Xun looked miserable. "I ran away from home, so Mom will definitely spank me again when I get back! It'll definitely hurt more than last time!"
Lu Yu patted his head. "I'll tell Mom to go easy on you."
Lu Xun's face fell even further. "Brother, do you not love me anymore? Shouldn't you be telling Mom not to spank me at all?"
"Yeah, right now I love your sister-in-law more. Besides, you should bear the consequences for doing something wrong," Lu Yu said with a totally straight face.
Yan Zhuxi secretly pinched him.
Lu Yu took the opportunity to hold Yan Zhuxi's hand. "Let's go, we'll take you back."
Lu Xun knew there was no escaping today, so he could only stall for time. "Then, Brother, before I go to the guillotine, can I have a meal at KFC?"
"I should at least have a full stomach before I'm executed," Lu Xun said, rubbing his belly.
Hearing him constantly talk about the guillotine, Lu Yu finally couldn't hold back a soft chuckle. "Where did you learn all this nonsense? Let's go, I'll take you to get some KFC."
The three of them went to a KFC near the school gates. After entering, Lu Yu secretly sent their location to Shu Qingqing.
Lu Xun simply assumed that Lu Yu would take him home later and had no idea that Shu Qingqing was on her way. He was in the middle of munching on a chicken wing when a voice suddenly rang out beside him—
"Lu Xun, you little brat!"
Lu Xun instantly dropped his chicken wing and hid behind Lu Yu.
Thinking better of it, he quickly darted over to hide beside Yan Zhuxi instead. "Sister-in-law, save me!"
