Good Luck in the Year of the Pig - Chapter 45

The brighter the smile on Lu Ying’s face was, the more restless Lu Qianchuan’s heart became. He had been lectured by Yang Sigu for what he had done for such a long time that his ears almost fell off. He admitted that he had done something wrong, but what was done was done and there was no turning back time.

He had no other choice but to tell Lu Ying honestly, and he was afraid that the child would not trust him in the future and would be disappointed in him. After all, it was the child he had brought up, and it would be very difficult for him if there was a rift between them.

Lu Ying’s mood was not much calmer at the moment. Qin Zhuopu was coming up the mountain. This was a very exciting moment, and he was coming to see Brother Yang’s child. Would Qin Zhuopu be suspicious?

Lu Ying stood at the door looking down the mountain and wondered if he should take this opportunity to tell Qin Zhuopu about Lu Zaizai’s origin and let Qin Zhuopu know that Zaizai was his own son and that Lu Ying had a special physique. Or wait until Zaizai was able to openly accept two fathers and could willingly call Qin Zhuopu ‘Dad’… Lu Ying was torn for a moment.

He was curious to see how Qin Zhuopu would react if he knew that Zaizai was his own son. Lu Ying thought suddenly: I really want to see what he looks like at that time, will he be happy like a fool?

Elder Xu brought over tea and snacks, “Lu Ying, come and try the snacks I made today and the flower tea we just collected in the autumn. Ahem, you can communicate properly about anything, don’t get angry with your grandfather.”

“Oh, thank you, Elder Xu.” Lu Ying was a little puzzled, biting into a small snack and looking at the silent Grandpa Lu strangely: “Why should I be angry with Grandpa Lu?”

Elder Xu laughed dryly and Lu Ying blinked, “I’m not angry, I’m just a little annoyed that he woke up and didn’t tell me. He lived in the same community and still hid from me, huh? But it’s just a little bit annoyed. Now that Grandpa Lu is well, of course I’m happy more than anything. And now he’s with Brother Yang and has a little baby. It’s good there’s someone to keep him company. Grandpa Lu used to be so stubborn, staying in the mountains all the time and refusing to go out to meet people. Now he has changed a lot, and I think that’s good.”

“That’s right, Lao Lu has changed a lot. Before… ahem, he was indeed a bit stubborn.” Elder Xu put down the refreshments and hurried away.

Lu Ying ate two small biscuits and finally felt that Grandpa Lu who was silent for a long time was very strange.

“Grandpa Lu, why aren’t you talking? You aren’t angry with me for talking back to you, are you?” Lu Ying looked at Grandpa Lu: “I won’t do that in the future, just as long as you’re well.”

Grandpa Lu drained his tea in one gulp and let out a long sigh.

“As I said, it was Grandpa who did something wrong and Grandpa is sorry.”

Lu Ying couldn’t help but tense up, “What exactly?” He couldn’t imagine what Grandpa Lu would do. After all, he was now living a good life with his son and Qin Zhuopu, every day fulfilling and happy. A long-distance relationship occasionally made him miss his absent lover, but every time they met again, they could experience a deep joy. There was nothing wrong with this life.

Lu Qianchuan estimated that Qin Zhuopu should almost be here, and he had to say it sooner or later.

“I deliberately avoided you because I didn’t know how to face you. Seven years ago, I took it upon myself to prevent you and that person surnamed Qin from seeing each other. This time when I regained my life, your Brother Yang scolded me when he found out and lectured me a lot before I reflected on the fact that I was wrong. He was right to scold me. I used to be stubborn and old-fashioned and hated people outside, thinking that we should stay in the mountains away from humans.”

Hearing the truth, Lu Ying was stunned and spilled half a cup of water in his hand.

“What did you do back then?” Lu Ying’s eyes widened; he couldn’t believe it.

Lu Qianchuan said bluntly, “That boy found his way to Qixia Mountain. I stepped in and asked him to leave and erased that memory…” At that time, as soon as Lu Ying had come back, he immediately noticed that something was wrong with Lu Ying’s body. Still in shock, before he had time to tell Lu Ying, he found out that Qin Zhuopu came looking for him.

Lu Ying stood up abruptly, his chest heaving. Never in his wildest dreams did he think that Grandpa Lu, who had doted on him so much and indulged him so much, would do such a thing. And he was stupid and ignorant, and kept blaming Qin Zhuopu for not coming to him.

Qin Zhuopu himself thought that his brain and his memory were confused and he was physically ill.

“You…” Lu Ying panted, unable to speak for a long time.

“At that time I just found out that your body had changed and I was very angry.” Lu Qianchuan said.

“But you knew I was waiting for him, and you said as long as I liked him…”

Lu Ying’s eyes were red and his voice was trembling.

Lu Qianchuan’s expression darkened, “I actually had no other thoughts but anger at the time. I was afraid you would be sad before I had time to coax you. In my eyes he was not a good thing, and his mother dared to bully you, even more inappropriate. I never went down the mountain because I hated humans. How could I tolerate him when you went down for a year and were driven back in disgrace? He was not good enough for you!”

His white, tender little pig that was raised so well was dug up by a stinky cabbage gang, and he was almost irate(1).

“Then why didn’t you tell me the truth? You kept it from me, and I waited foolishly, resenting him and missing him, and it turned out it wasn’t like that at all! No wonder you said that if he didn’t come for three years, I wasn’t allowed to look for him, you knew he wouldn’t come at all… anymore and might even forget me.”

Lu Ying was really crying, unable to control his tears. He couldn’t say the words of forgiveness to Grandpa Lu, nor could he hate him.

If, after those three years, he had forgotten Qin Zhuopu, then he might have just smiled when he mentioned it now.

Unfortunately no, there was always the only person he had liked.

“Lu Ying…” Yang Sigu pushed the door open and walked in, looked at the two with a complicated expression and said helplessly, “Lu Qianchuan is a dummy, you can scold him if you want, don’t be polite. I understand how you feel. He is particularly old-fashioned and stubborn, unable to accept new things. He was not even willing to accompany me on trips down the mountain. I had to nag him every day to set his brain right, and it took him a long time to realise that his behaviour was wrong.”

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Lu Ying wiped his tears, drew in his breath and said, “Qin Zhuopu thought he had a problem with his brain. He kept saying he couldn’t have done that, but I didn’t believe him. He had headaches several times and I didn’t suspect for a second that someone had done something to him, and that it was Grandpa Lu.”

Lu Qianchuan was silent.

“He’s just an ordinary guy who doesn’t know anything. He doesn’t even know that Zaizai is his child. You treat him like this, when he finds out, how am I going to face him? Even if you think he’s bad and doesn’t fit with us, you should have told me.” Lu Ying’s heart was clogged.

Lu Qianchuan sighed, “He should have recovered his memory. I gave it back to him.”

Lu Ying was stunned, “Recovered?”

“Of course.”

Lu Ying recalled in a daze the abnormal Qin Zhuopu of the last time, and the leaf in his pocket. Suddenly it became clear: Qin Zhuopu regained his memory. But he didn’t even mention it to him.

Lu Ying lowered his head and didn’t speak for a long time.

He didn’t want to talk to Grandpa Lu now. No amount of talk could change the past. This kind of uncomfortable, heavy and complicated feeling he had experienced seven years ago, the day Mrs. Qin asked him to leave.

Elder Xu pushed the door open again and looked at Lu Ying, “Mr. Qin has arrived at the foot of the mountain, do you need me to go and pick him up?”

Lu Ying rubbed his eyes and stood up, “I’ll go.”

“Lu Ying…” Lu Qianchuan wanted to say something else but didn’t know what to say. He could only watch as Lu Ying darted down the mountain.

Yang Sigu sat down to pour himself a cup of tea, “Hey… it’s good to say it, you finally confessed.”

“I don’t know if he’ll still be willing to recognise me in the future…” Lu Qianchuan drank two cups of tea in a row.

Yang Sigu glanced at him: “You deserve that. What if your daughter brings a boyfriend back when she grows up?”

“Of course, I’ll break that man’s legs!” Lu Qianchuan blurted out.

“……”

Yang Sigu took a deep breath, got up and walked away with a cold snort: “You’d better live alone in the mountains.”

Lu Qianchuan was instantly chagrined and hurriedly followed behind him to reflect and admit his mistake.

Qin Zhuopu, dressed in a light sports outfit and shoes, carrying a backpack, was climbing up Qixia Mountain. The clothes he had found at Lu Ying’s place, brand new and in the right size. They looked like they had been bought especially for him. Although they were not necessarily expensive, he liked Lu Ying’s choice. Last time he wore a .99 t-shirt as pyjamas, he had a very good night’s sleep.

Despite the sweltering heat of the night and the fact that he was already sweating from the rush, Qin Zhuopu was in a happy mood, as comfortable as on a spring walk. He even hummed a light-hearted tune as he walked along the mountain path with his flashlight in hand.

He remembered the time he had entered Qixia Mountain on New Year’s Eve, when the path was rocky and thorny and there was no way to go. Today, the mountain path was magical, open to his eyes and accepting him.

In the darkness of the night, Qin Zhuopu made his way forward.

Far away, Lu Ying in the forest could already hear Qin Zhuopu’s footsteps and the softly hummed tune. Without seeing him yet, Lu Ying knew that he was in a happy mood.

It was not often that one saw such a relaxed Qin Zhuopu.

Lu Ying’s irritable and heavy mood was relieved by half. He wiped his face, pulled himself together and ran quickly to Qin Zhuopu.

Qin Zhuopu raised his eyes and saw his lover rushing to him in a gust of wind. He subconsciously opened his arms and caught his lover’s strong impact. Fortunately, he spent an hour a day lifting iron recently, otherwise he would not have been able to keep his balance so steady.

“Why are you so excited to come to pick me up?” Qin Zhuopu asked with a smile as he hugged his lover firmly.

Lu Ying wrapped his arms around Qin Zhuopu’s neck and wrapped his legs around his waist, burying his head in his shoulder like an aggrieved child, making himself completely dependent on him.

Qin Zhuopu held Lu Ying’s ass with both hands and pawed it with a smile on his face, saying nonchalantly, “You can’t learn from your son to be coquettish and expect me to carry you around. To be honest, I can’t walk a few steps with you in my arms. Tsk, you look thin, but you hide all the flesh under your clothes. You’re really heavy, what if I sprain my old back?”

Lu Ying moved, but still didn’t go down. His head rubbed against Qin Zhuopu’s neck as he said in a cranky voice, “Are you a fool?”

“What’s this?” Qin Zhuopu was helpless, “Come on, why don’t you get onto my back and I’ll try to piggyback you?”

“No, I want it this way.” Lu Ying decisively refused.

“Okay, then I’ll try my best. Let’s just think of it as lifting iron for fitness.” Qin Zhuopu smiled and really carried Lu Ying as he continued his way. It was a heavy burden, but he was willing and quite enjoying the sweetness.

Lu Ying bowed his head and muttered, “I’m not a lump of iron… I said you were a fool, didn’t you hear me?”

“I heard. Last time you even called me big pig trotters, what’s next time?” Qin Zhuopu teased.

“……” Lu Ying bit him on the ear, not too hard, not even leaving a mark, only to make Qin Zhuopu itch and shrink his neck, swaying on his feet and almost dropping Lu Ying.

Qin Zhuopu was distraught and yelled at Lu Ying softly, “Don’t mess with me, do you want to fall? Don’t even think about it now, I still have to meet your grandfather in a decent manner, so be good.”

“No!” Lu Ying stiffened and gasped.

Qin Zhuopu was stunned, “Why, what happened?”

Lu Ying buried his head, “You fool, the person who gave you a leaf that day was my grandfather. Your memory was restored, you obviously know better than I do. Why didn’t you tell me then?”

“…your grandfather told you?” Qin Zhuopu breathed a sigh of relief and patted his back, “I would be lying if I said I didn’t care at all. I found the mountain but lost you, missing out on seven years. But… I can understand how he feels.”

In the short time after his memory was restored, the fire of his anger had no time to rise before it was completely extinguished by the mystery of Grandpa Lu and Lu Ying’s origin.

More than dwelling on the painful events that had passed, he cared about what was in front of him. Grandpa Lu and Lu Ying were both non-human beings, and the differences between the races were so great that Grandpa Lu might still oppose him. Would the other clansmen on the mountain be unable to accept him as an ordinary human either?

But thinking about it in a different way, he was already a father, and Zaizai was a good boy. How would he cope as a father if Zaizai fell in love with someone particularly different in the future? Without having encountered and experienced it himself, he would not dare to say that he would be 100% supportive of his child’s choice.

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Besides, Grandpa Lu’s family was so magical and mysterious that he wouldn’t have believed it existed if he hadn’t met it in person. The more alternative it was, the more cautious you needed to be against the eyes of the outsiders. If you accidentally met someone and exposed yourself, more than just one or two people would be involved. There were many other companions on the mountain. Grandpa Lu wanted him to forget about Lu Ying, and Qin Zhuopu could really understand that.

It is impossible to argue with the fact that different people have different hearts. Not to mention the hearts of non-humans.

Lu Ying’s eyes widened. Qin Zhuopu’s tolerance made his heart beat nervously, “You can understand?”

Qin Zhuopu nodded, “I have long since reconciled. As long as he is willing to bless us now, it is more important for us to be happy together as a family than anything else.” After a pause, he sighed sadly, “Really, I’m happy that your Grandpa Lu allowed me to come up the mountain. I’m not afraid of anything, but I was afraid he would still oppose us. But now it feels like he has accepted me?”

“…you…” Lu Ying, who was full of sorrowful thoughts, was dumbfounded, grabbed Qin Zhuopu by the shoulders and stared at him in a daze, “Why are you like this…”

Qin Zhuopu pressed his forehead to Lu Ying’s: “What else? If he makes me lose my memory again, I don’t know if I will meet you again in the next seven years. A fairy like you, where can I find the second one in the whole world?”

“You, woo… there will never be a second time. Even if there is, I will take Zaizai to you, and I will definitely come.” Lu Ying whimpered in a low voice, remembering that he had wanted to go to Qin Zhuopu many times. Even if he was shameless, he wanted to go. But in the end it all remained a fantasy. He hadn’t acted on it, he felt that Qin Zhuopu, who hadn’t appeared once, might really not care too much about him. He was timid, and he didn’t have the courage to go and make sure.

Raising his hand to wipe Lu Ying’s reddened eyes, Qin Zhuopu comforted him softly: “Don’t cry. What if Zaizai sees you, he will definitely laugh at you.”

“He won’t…” Lu Ying smiled and sniffled, “He will comfort me and say ‘Dad, don’t cry’.”

Qin Zhuopu kissed his eyes, “Yes, with such a sweet son and such a handsome husband, don’t cry in the future. If you are happy every day, we will be happy.”

“Pfft…” Lu Ying snorted out a snot bubble and hurriedly wiped it off, glaring bitterly at Qin Zhuopu, “You are so lame, nice try, I won’t call you husband.”

“You really won’t?”

“No.”

“I don’t believe you.”

“Absolutely not.”

“I have the proof on my phone, haha.”

“…when did you record that?”

“Not telling you.”

“Honestly!”

“Haha, I’m going to treasure it…”

“You piss me off!” Lu Ying really wanted to transform and stomp all over this guy with pig’s hoof prints.

The two of them walked up the mountain hand in hand together, laughing and joking. Lu Qianchuan who had been waiting in the house for a long time could barely believe it. What was happening here, already happy in the blink of an eye?

Elder Xu, who was with him, smiled slightly: “Young people are impatient and their temper comes and goes quickly. Even if you have a problem with your family, you can’t keep thinking about it. Lu Ying is a child who doesn’t hold grudges, and Mr. Qin is also very considerate and stable. The fact that he recovered his memory but didn’t rush to tell Lu Ying the truth speaks volumes about his attitude. More than anything else, I see that he cares about the stability of the relationship between the two of them.”

Lu Qianchuan shook his head, “I hope so.”

As they chatted, Lu Ying led Qin Zhuopu into the house. When Qin Zhuopu saw Lu Qianchuan in the room, he was sure that it was indeed that man, the young Grandpa Lu.

“Mr. Qin, welcome to Qixia Mountain as a guest.” Elder Xu rose first and greeted him with a smile, politely pouring him some tea.

“Thank you…” Mr. Lu or Grandpa Lu, this was the question…

Lu Qianchuan glanced at the silent Lu Ying and coughed lightly, “You can just call me Grandpa Lu.”

Qin Zhuopu gladly accepted, “Grandpa Lu.” Unfortunately, he came in a hurry and only prepared a gift for his young niece, nothing for his elders.

“Huh… Didn’t you come to see my little niece? Let’s go, I’ll show you.”

“En, I’ve bought a gift for her.”

Lu Ying immediately pulled Qin Zhuopu to the back of the house. The sound of Lu Zaizai giggling reached them and the two of them smiled. A few people were sitting under the porch in the courtyard, and Brother Yang was no exception, looking in good spirits. Ji Xiaofeng and Lu Zaizai were playing a game; no wonder their son was laughing so happily. Even the little baby in Brother Yang’s arms was staring with round eyes, sleepless.

“Brother Yang, Zhuopu has come to see his little niece. Zaizai, look who’s here.”

“Uncle!” Lu’s Zaizai jumped up happily.

Qin Zhuopu took off his backpack and handed the gift he had prepared to Brother Yang: “Congratulations, Mr. Yang, on your newborn daughter. This is a small token of my appreciation.”

Yang Sigu smiled, “You are too kind, thank you, Mr. Qin. I’m too embarrassed to accept such a big gift.” This gold inlaid jade was of outstanding quality and was pricey at a glance, not to mention there was a red envelope.

“It should be so. Lu Ying usually thanks Boss Yang for looking after him, and now he is happy at work, all thanks to Boss Yang.” Qin Zhuopu was sincerely grateful.

“Then I’ll accept it.”

Lu Ying took Qin Zhuopu for a stroll around.

Qin Zhuopu asked him curiously, “Isn’t Boss Yang’s lover in the mountains?”

“……” Lu Ying rolled his eyes and glared at him, “Guess?”

Qin Zhuopu smiled bitterly, “I just didn’t see, so I’m asking you. He wouldn’t… be alone with the child?”

Lu Ying sighed, “Guess?”

“……” How naughty!

It was getting late, and after Qin Zhuopu had seen his little niece, Lu Ying wanted to go down the mountain. Originally he was going to stay on the mountain tonight, but now he preferred to take the child and Qin Zhuopu home.

When Lu Ying said he wanted to go down the mountain, Lu Qianchuan was a bit anxious.

Lu Ying told Lu Zaizai to get their things and urged Qin Zhuopu to get his bag. The family said goodbye to everyone and stepped into the darkness.

Lu Ying was in a good mood, holding his companion’s hands. Beside him, Lu Zaizai chattered with Qin Zhuopu non-stop, and the 100,000 questions were in full swing.

“Lu Ying.”

Suddenly, Lu Qianchuan’s voice came from behind them.

The three of them turned around together and saw that Lu Qianchuan had caught up with them at some point.

“Did you come to see us off, Grandpa Lu?” Lu Zaizai asked happily.

Lu Qianchuan stroked his head, looked at Lu Ying and then looked at Qin Zhuopu: “I came to say sorry to you in person. It was indeed my fault for bullying the big and the little.”

Qin Zhuopu quickly said, “Don’t mind too much, Grandpa Lu, as long as you bless us, I am already grateful, thank you.”

Lu Qianchuan took a deep breath and said, “Fine. You guys have a good life. However, I still have to say something bad. If you dare to hurt Lu Ying one day, I will never spare you!”

“……” Lu Ying held his forehead.

Qin Zhuopu nodded: “Grandpa Lu, don’t worry, in this life I will love and cherish Lu Ying and Zaizai, I will never hurt them.”

Grandpa Lu looked satisfied, and without further ado, he turned around and went back.

“Huh… let’s go.” Qin Zhuopu was stunned. Grandpa Lu had that invisible pressure that really made people breathless. It seemed he had seen the stag in front of him again.

Lu Ying grabbed his hand and shook it: “Don’t be afraid of him, Grandpa Lu… is usually very kind.”

“Don’t worry, I know.”

Lu Zaizai tilted his head to stare at his dad and uncle. The two of them “locked their gazes”, not even noticing the little fat guy’s probing, curious eyes.

Lu Zaizai suddenly howled, “Ah!”

“What, what’s wrong?” Lu Ying was startled.

Lu Zaizai pointed at the two of them in an exaggerated manner, as if he had discovered a great secret: “Dad, are you in love with Uncle? It must be so!”

“……” Lu Ying’s jaw dropped.

“Hahaha…” Qin Zhuopu erupted in laughter, “Why would Zaizai say that?” Are first graders that precocious?

Lu Zaizai gleefully said, “I just know! Hmph, you didn’t expect me to be the smartest one!”

“Uncle, Dad, let me tell you! It was like that on TV too! The old grandfather opposed the hero and heroine’s marriage, but the hero and heroine wanted to elope and the old grandfather had no choice, so he said similar words to what Grandpa Lu said, oh. It’s a blessing, a blessing! You want Grandpa Lu’s blessing, right? You must be in love! Look, look, you guys keep holding hands, shame on you.”

“……”

The two adults looked at each other, dumbfounded.

***

Mini-theatre:

Mr. Qin: Today I saw Grandpa Lu pushing a pram.

Lu Ying: So what?

Mr. Qin: I took a look and inside was Boss Yang’s daughter.

Lu Ying: So what?

Mr. Qin: …so she’s actually your little aunt?

Lu Ying: o(╥﹏╥)o

Mini-theatre-2:

Mr. Qin: My little niece is so cute.

Brother Yang: Thanks for the compliment.

Lu Qianchuan: Call her aunt!

Mr. Qin: …little aunt is so cute.

Lu Qianchuan: Hmm.

Mr. Qin: ……?????

Mini-theatre-3:

Teacher: Now let’s give an example of things that come in pairs, for example, a pair of chopsticks.

Classmate A: A pair of shoes.

Classmate B: A pair of gloves.

Lu Zaizai: A pair of dads.

Teacher: ……