Aiden watched the numbers flash on the elevator. His feet echoed in the metal box. Agonizingly, the light shifted from the second to the third floor.Just one more.He tapped his fingers against his sides.Was it always this slow?Aiden counted seconds to the change from third to fourth floor, heaving when the doors finally dinged open.
He dashed to his apartment door, coming face to face with his stepmother, already with brows furrowed. Beside her, He Bao snickered and Zhu Zhu remained empty. A pile of suitcases was stacked around them like the moat of a castle.What is going on?
“You should always be on alert for my calls,” she snapped.
“I don’t understand why you’re here?”
“Just let us into your stupid apartment. We were waiting for way too long.” He Bao kicked at the door.
“Okay—just stop that.” Aiden’s hand shook when grasping the key and unlocking the door.
He Bao slammed his way into the apartment, dragging the suitcases into the living room and watching them topple over. “You’ve been livinghere? It’s tinier than anything I’ve ever lived in! Ma, please tell me we arenotliving in this trash pile.”
“Not permanently. We shall go house hunting tomorrow while you and Zhu Zhu work with your tutors here.”
“I’m sorry—what is going on?” Aiden asked.
Zhu Zhu slipped her way past the group to head straight for the restroom.
“Have you already forgotten our predicament? You cannot run away from your duties.” His stepmother gestured toward the open door. “Quickly now. And do make sure to close all the blinds.”
Of course, of course.Aiden tripped over the suitcases.
“How do you even survive here?” He Bao tugged the fridge open.
Before Aiden could stop his stepbrother from grabbing anything, his stepmother sat down on the couch, making a show of coughing and dusting the air around the couch. Brows furrowed deeper, she slipped off her designer sunglasses. “Hui Lang. I don’t know how else to break this to you, but we are, to put it simply, in trouble.”
“We’re completely fucked.”
“He Bao!”
His stepbrother shrugged and returned to a carton of ice cream.
Brother’s dead. What can be worse than that?
Drawing out a never-ending sigh, she leaned forward. “Hui Lang. Hui Ye made an error. The location of the will was false. There was nothing there.”
The world tilted. “Are you certain?”
“Yes. We looked everywhere, but we found nothing. You understand, don’t you? Without the will, we’re not guaranteed the businesses or the money. We could be living in poverty for the rest of our lives.” Her voice broke. “And what will happen to Zhu Zhu and He Bao? We must think of their futures.”
“That—that doesn’t make sense.” He stumbled backward, reaching for a chair in time to lower himself onto it. “Ge’s too careful to let something like that happen.”
“Do you know something?”
“No! I just don’t think this sounds like his doing.”
“Someone might’ve stolen the will. Regardless, he likely left everything to you. From today onward, we are dependent on you. I will speak to the other families to acclimate you to the work—do not worry, I will take care of everything. No matter what, we must stick together. That is why I’ve decided to buy a house closer to your college. It’s a manageable distance from the other families anyway.”
Who would want it?A beat later, he shook his head.What a stupid question. So many people would want it.A breathlessness rushed through Aiden, exacerbated when he looked up to see his stepmother watching him. Her eyes roamed his face, down his body, and back to his face. Searching.Exactly like how Ge taught me. Exactly like how everyone operates in Infinite.Confusion settled in.Does she think I know more than her?
He thought further of her words, blinking. “Why…are you buying a new house then?” he asked instead. "If you’re essentially saying that our family fortune is no longer guaranteed?”
She blinked back. “Surely that is obvious. We cannot live in such a dump as here. Zhu Zhu and He Bao are growing children. They need to be as comfortable as they can, so that they can grow up as handsome and beautiful as possible. You are already in college. You have no chance of growing more beautiful. Or taller.”
He opened his mouth to inquire about the other house, but she looked away. “For that reason,” she continued, “while we find the perfect house to live in, you must now sleep out here. It is the right thing to do as an older brother. Now, come help an older woman carry her stuff into her room. We are tired.”
Before Aiden could blink, he found himself ushered into grabbing the suitcases and stumbling into his room. As he mindlessly returned to the living room to grab the remaining items, he saw Zhu Zhu sit down on the living room floor, scrolling through her cell phone without sparing him a glance.
