Chapter 626 - RETURN TO MOUNTAIN RIDGE

Wang Che did not know what his youngest brother was up to. It was obvious that the whole invite to the Wang house was a ruse to manipulate him to do something. Otherwise, his mother would not have appeared at such an opportune time. 

He did not need to ask to know that they wanted him to invest in the family business to cover up for the cash flow issues. But Wang Ning was acting as if they were close brothers or friends. It made him raise his guard even higher. 

"What do you want, Wang Ning?" He asked. 

"Do not be so paranoid. I am offering free advice. You can take it or leave it." Wang Ning said without a sign of care on his face. 

Wang Che did not know how to react to this casual attitude. So, he just nodded. 

"The curse of the Wang men is the inability to open up about their real feelings. It is like a mental block that stands in the way of expressing feelings. Sometimes, you might say something you do not mean. And other times, you will be silent despite wanting to speak out. Am I right?" Wang Ning asked. 

Wang Che did not respond. 

"I will assume by your silence that this is the problem you are experiencing." Wang Ning chuckled. "The key to overcoming the barrier is becoming the worst version of yourself."

The younger man looked at his brother with mischievous eyes. He looked like a no-good imp with evil plans on his mind. Wang Che was aware that he was waiting to see his reaction, perhaps for his own entertainment or other purposes. 

"I am not going to do that." Wang Che said. 

"You really are the prince of Supreme City." Wang Ning took a sip of coffee. "I assume that you have always been the perfect guy with Furukawa Shun, right? You helped him with anything he needed, and you hang out with him, but as friends." 

He leaned to Wang Che. "Where has that left you? He abandoned you publicly, and your reputation has hit an all-time low. And now, you are here in the home you probably swore you would never return to again. From where I am sitting, it does not look like you are winning." 

Wang Che's jaw tightened in anger. "You do not know anything about us. You should stop your petty attempts to make me lose my temper." 

Wang Ning did not let up. "But there is no 'us', is there? You are just you, alone. Everything between you and that Shun is your wishful thinking. Everyone knows that he has always carried a torch for Zhong Feng. I bet that is where he ran off to." 

Wang Che's hand tightened around his mug. He knew that it was not true that Shun was interested in Zhong Feng, but he still could not deny that it stung quite a bit. Despite not remembering anything, he still chose to stay in Azure Woods than with him. 

Wang Ning laughed. "Oh, did I guess correctly? You should know by now that you cannot win against Zhong Feng. Just like you could never win against Brother Lu. How does it feel to always be the loser, no matter what you do?" 

The handle of the mug in Wang Che's hand shattered, and the cup fell to the ground and shattered into pieces. Coffee splatters on the polished stone surface, leaving a brown mark. However, Wang Che did not spare the cup a glance. 

He stared at Wang Ning who had that same irritating look in his eyes. It was almost like he was laughing at Wang Che. For a moment, Wang Che wanted to smack him in his smug face. However, he quickly realised he was being played like a fool. 

He stood up with a cold look in his eyes. "Thank you for the coffee." 

With that, he walked back to the house, intending to leave the Wang estate immediately. He was afraid that if he stayed longer in this place he used to call home, he would make things worse instead of finding out what he wanted to know. 

Behind him, Wang Ning smiled to himself and downed the rest of his coffee. "It seems like brother Che is tougher than I thought. But that is also good." 

He stood up and followed Wang Che because he knew what was coming next. 

*******

In Azure Woods, Shun was on the carpeted floor in the nursery. He was supposed to watch the baby, but he felt useless as he looked at Zhong Wang Lei piling up blocks with a weird type of focus. The entire scene was cute and amusing. 

Shun also had a pile of blocks in front of him. Somehow, he felt like he was having a showdown with Wang Lei. For some reason, the baby seemed to be looking at him with some contempt once in a while before continuing to pile up the blocks. 

But he was almost sure he was imagining it. 

"What are you two doing?" Hu Lei asked as she entered the nursery. 

Both Wang Lei and Shun looked up. However, Wang Lei went back to working on his little project without caring about the interruption. 

"We are building rival twin towers to dominate the world," Shun responded. 

Hu Lei laughed. "You will never beat Wang Lei. Where he lacks in arm strength, he makes up for it with focus. Thank you for watching him." 

"I did not do anything." Shun waved his hands awkwardly. "It was quite relaxing." 

"Still, thank you." Hu Lei said. 

"Did you finish up with your business?" Shun asked curiously. 

He was surprised to see Hu Lei leaving Azure Woods suddenly in the morning hours. She said an urgent matter had come up, and the nanny was not available. Even though there were other household employees, Wang Lei was not their responsibility. 

And Hu Lei preferred for Shun to watch the child. 

"I did what I wanted to do." Hu Lei replied, but Shun could see some tension on her eyebrows. 

Unfortunately, he did not feel like it was his place to ask about Hu Lei's business. If she wanted to say something, she would have probably said it herself. 

"You should go get some rest before dinner. Let me spend a little time with his Little Highness here." Hu Lei added before walking to sit down beside Wang Lei. 

The baby turned to look at Hu Lei with recognition. In a show of good faith, Wang Lei handed his mother one of his blocks before picking another one from the pile to continue the construction. The scene was cute and heart-warming. 

Shun smiled as he left the nursery. 

When he got to his room, he found his phone ringing. He had left it in the bedroom because when he carried it with him, he would obsessively check it. He did not know what he was hoping for, but he would constantly stare at his phone, waiting. 

He ran to the phone and looked at the screen. When he saw that the call was from his Eldest Brother, he was a little disappointed. Still, he picked the call. 

"Shun, how are you doing?" The reassuring and loud voice was comforting. 

Shun felt his heart aching, and his eyes stung a little bit. "I am alright. You do not have to worry." 

"Of course, I must worry. You are my baby brother. It does not matter how old you are or where you are." The words were spoken with indulgent care. 

"I know," Shun said obediently. "But I am really fine." 

"You sound a little different from the last time we spoke." The Eldest Brother paused for a moment. "I heard about your break-up with Wang Che." 

Shun's hand tightened around his phone. "It was not a break-up. We just had a disagreement, and I decided to get some space." 

"Is that really the case?" The Eldest Brother asked with tangible concern. 

"Yes. I just need to gather my thoughts a little. I am staying with Zhong Feng at the moment, so I am really fine." Shun replied. "How is everyone?" 

"Shun," The Eldest Brother did not answer the question. "You should come back home for a while. I will not force you to come back or insist that you stay in Mountain Ridge permanently. But if you need space, it would be better to stay with your family." 

"I know Zhong Feng is your close friend, but he has a family. You cannot keep inconveniencing him. You have to think about your long-term plan for your life. What if you do not remember everything? And do you plan to get back together with Wang Che?" 

"Brother," Shun started.

"Do not worry. I will not push you like I used to do in the past." The Eldest Brother chuckled. "You can do whatever you want without our micromanagement. I made everyone promise not to be disruptive. If you want, you can work in the family business or take up another project." 

"All I am asking is for you to consider coming back home, ok?" 

Shun thought about his current situation. If he were honest with himself, he wanted Wang Che to come to him. He did not want everything between them to be over. But he could not just go back because things would stay the same. 

And he did not want a relationship where he would yearn without fulfilment. 

Perhaps, he had been lavished with too much love that he could not be with someone who could not be open with his feelings. It was frustrating to be the one who always made the first step. He did not want to be vulnerable without getting anything back. 

So, he was waiting for Wang Che to break through his barrier and show that he did care enough. 

But it did not seem like it would happen any time soon. 

"I will think about it." He responded to his brother. 

"Thank you." The Eldest Brother was elated.

After a few more words, the call ended.