32 Shock

Getting back into his room, Fang Bai realised that he again let those stray emotions affect himself. These emotions only did him more harm than good, destroying his rationality and thinking. In these moments he was thankful that he never drank any alcohol or he might do something he would regret forever.

He decided to workout for some time so that he can clear his mind off useless things. Tang Rong and Duan Wei would come home later than usual, they said this morning.

Although, before going out they did not forget to remind Fang Bai about his punishment for cooking for 7 days. It seemed like they wouldn't forget the incident any sooner.

Little did he know that Tang Rong and Duan Wei had gone to pick Rong Qing from the airport and she was also the main catalyst who would take Fang Bai to his mate.

The rest of the day passed with Fang Bai organising his emotions and continuing his work. It was necessary for him to think about certain situations in advance or he might end up killing himself for no reason. He knew that in front of others he would never let anything slip, his body seemed to be programmed to go through any social situation. But his thoughts might chew him slowly before he would ultimately lose his rationality. Self-introspection always gives amazing results.

Somewhere not far away from their home, Tang Rong and Duan Wei walked with a tall, black haired woman to a hotel. The woman had a hot figure, she was wearing a simple but elegant dress that accurately flaunted her amazing body proportions. Her long black hair fell on her back like a waterfall, and with her heels, she was evenly matched with Tang Rong and Duan Wei in height. The hotel staff wanted to take another look of the beauty but they controlled themselves so that the guest wouldn't feel uncomfortable.

The lady was none other than Rong Qing who had arrived early to give a surprise to 'the crazy brothers' as she usually called them.

Rong Qing did not want to go back to the Rong family where those crazy hyenas would look for any way to ruin her. So for them, she was still in college, wasting their money on her fees. Actually, she had already become self independent a long time ago. It was just the power that the Rong family held that shackled her from revealing herself and her capabilities. Or she might have long been traded off to some of the business partners of her father. After one incident that really crossed her bottom line, which also made her fatefully meet Fang Bai, she was banished from the Dawn City and went to a 2nd rated college so that she won't 'spoil Rong family's reputation' by showing her filthy self in front of high class people.

'Those people better look at themselves first.'

Casually raining curses at the Rong Family members except her mother, Rong Qing entered the hotel room and prepared for the next day.

Duan Wei and Tang Rong knew about Rong Qing's plans for them all so they decided to do as much work as possible in the company for the next few days so that they won't have a problem when they go on a possible holiday.

Tang Rong was still quiet about the news he had overheard in the American Space Station as he wanted to see if the prepared missile could deflect the asteroid. There was no need to create possible tension in his family. Even if the mission failed, he wanted to make sure their family had a good time before they saw the end. He wanted to create the best memories in the possible available days. The next day was Fang Bai's twentieth birthday which was a great event. The old monk they once saw had also told them to visit him on Fang Bai's birthday so Mrs. Feng would go with them again to the monastery. They did not believe that the monk had powers, but if it was about Fang Bai and Fang Junjie, then they couldn't not care,

After that in the evening, they planned for a simple birthday party so they also had to make preparations for the things.

The next day came soon. As soon as Fang Bai opened his eyes in the morning, he found himself bathed with cake all over.

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!!!"

Next came shouts of three grown up men in his ears. Congratulations! He was as awake as if he never slept.

'These people are going to pay for it!'

He picked up the pillow in his right hand and threw it at the nearest person on his right. This was enough provocation for a full blown pillow-fight war to start!!!

Everything else need not be described.

It was 10 PM and Fang Bai, Fang Junjie, Duan Rui, Tang Rong all reached the monastery. There they saw Mrs. Feng waiting for them on the stairs. Mrs. Feng was in her fifties but she looked 10 years younger. She had a smiling face with naturally bent beautiful eyes from which she always looked at the children lovingly.

Fang Bai and Duan Wei quickly ran towards her and gave her a hug.

"Aunty!"

"Aunty Feng!"

Mrs. Feng quickly took these big babies on both her shoulders and patted their heads.

Her hands weren't soft but rough which conveyed her hard work throughout the years. Even at this age, she could sometimes be seen carrying some small muddy children around playfully and washing their clothes herself. Like any other old lady of her age, she was worried about the marriages, schools, and life of her children, except that she had about a hundred children. Many of which had become successful in life and given her grandchildren, while others were still in their cradles, their entire life waiting ahead for them.

She looked through the hug and saw Tang Rong and Fang Junjie smiling helplessly at the younger ones and going to hug Mr. Feng who just came back from parking his car.

On seeing Fang Bai, and his brothers, a loving smile appeared on Mrs. Feng's face. She could still remember the days when she welcomed Tang Rong and Duan Wei into the orphanage, their occasionally frightened and cautious appearance which told many things about their experience. She also remembered the small but brave Fang Junjie who entered her home taking the little Fang Bai's tiny hand. Then the meeting of these four, which slowly blossomed into an inseparable friendship.

Tears glistened in Mrs. Feng's eyes.

Time really flies very fast; those soft and cute faces changed in all these years to become these tall and successful young men. The ones who could easily fit inside her two arms were now too big for her to even look at them normally without craning her neck.

Mrs. Feng considered herself to be the mother of every child in her orphanage. She tried her best to give her all to every child she had, doing all the duties of a mother. Over the years, she also controlled the number of children in her orphanage to hundred so that she would not be drowned in a lot of people and give incomplete love to any child. Although hundreds were still a lot, she could manage this much.

Over the years, many orphanages like hers had started as few other couples watched her and wanted to also come forward to help the children. Although, she made sure that each of those orphanages had optimum condition with regular check-ups from the army.

Mrs. Feng never really stopped working. As Mr. Feng retired, he also started giving a helping hand in the orphanage. With all the work, as a result, the couple were still very fit in comparison to the other couples of their age. Their older children really worried about them, coming again and again to give them supplements or donations.

The couple often considered themselves fortunate.

"Bless you all with good lives and partners." Mrs. Feng quickly muttered a blessing.

After hugging Mrs. Feng, Fang Bai and Duan Wei went to hug Mr. Feng while Tang Rong and Fang Junjie came to hug the old woman.

"Ah-Bai really grew up. Look, he's twenty years old. I even have to crane my neck up to look at him."

Mrs. Feng teased Fang Bai as they all walked up the stairs. Fang Bai quickly muttered shy words and made everyone laugh. Oh, his three brothers laughed at how he was so miserable for having to act like that.

Ah, this is called happiness in other's misfortune.

Fang Bai did not have much interest in the so-called monk but he decided to go with the flow so as to not disappoint the old lady.

Even after all the love showered by Mrs. and Mr. Feng over the years, the only major feeling Fang Bai had for the Feng couple was gratitude. However much he tried, he could not bring himself to love the couple like parents, or even possibly getting attached to them.

'Am I too ruthless?'

He sometimes asked himself this question, but there was no-one to answer him.

He sometimes answered himself that it was because maybe he was always cautious towards Mrs. Feng. He used to always fear that if he acted badly in front of her she would stop loving him. He had often seen how Mrs. Feng got tired and massaged her own feet and back painfully during the night, so he always tried his best to not give her any trouble. He just couldn't bring himself to spend time with the lady, only talking when she came to him and his brothers for regular check-ups. He had always tried to be a loving and cute child as old ladies liked so that Mrs. Feng would not feel displeased with him.

Maybe because of this he never really tried to bond with the old woman, only staying at an appropriate distance.

Usually, the Old Monk of the monastery would come out once a year or even in two years. So Mrs. Feng was really unsure if the monk would come as he had said.

But, as they walked inside the monastery, they spotted the old monk sitting peacefully under an old tree. This really gave a shock to the party of six.

The real surprise came when the old monk looked at them and smiled at them as if he recognised them.

Fang Bai was really taken aback this time. Did the old monk really see his future? He was still a bit indifferent compared to others for his future.

All he had ever imagined of himself for the future was darkness. His most peaceful dream was a life with his whole family or his brothers where they had never left him. Was there a way in which he could get that?

'False hopes give the most pain.' Fang Bai said this in his mind and erased his thoughts. Despite his internal thoughts, it looked like he was always in sync with the outside and listening to all the words around him attentively.

Soon, Mrs. Feng greeted the monk and asked him if he really remembered them. The old monk said he remembered, and he had only come to say the words he promised he would say before.

The words that the monk said next almost shattered Fang Bai's whole pretense. On the side, facial expressions of Tang Rong and Duan Wei dropped as they looked dumbfounded at the monk.

While Fang Junjie, Mrs. and Mr. Feng had confused expressions, standing behind them, the other three felt their world-views shatter as only one sentence echoed in their minds.

"If benefactor Fang Bai had some interest in a person with thunder, he should go to the South. Maybe the benefactor will gain new surprises. The thunder has also been waiting for the benefactor for a long time."

['Lei means thunder.']

Fang Bai felt like his ears were buzzing as he looked with wide eyes at the old man who was still smiling.

Is Lei real?

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