051 Impulse

"No..."
"It's nothing."
Zhao Shumin wiped away her tears as she spoke.
A pang of heartache welled up in Li Zhiyan's chest.
He reached out to gently wipe the tears from Zhao Shumin's face.
Yet the tears continued to flow endlessly.
"Auntie's eyes have been acting up today, so they feel a bit uncomfortable."
"Xiaoyan."
"Why did you come here?"
Walking side by side toward the front, Li Zhiyan said, "Auntie, when I saw you hadn't returned, I figured you must be working overtime."
"Thinking about what happened last time..."
"I was afraid that punk might try to retaliate, so I came."
While chatting with Zhao Shumin, Li Zhiyan glanced at today's intelligence. Perhaps because he had won the grand prize yesterday, there was nothing particularly valuable in today's intel.
After a quick glance, Li Zhiyan lost interest.
Days of coming up completely empty-handed had happened before, too.
"Xiaoyan, you're really good to Auntie."
A warm feeling spread through her heart. At this moment, Zhao Shumin realized that the person treating her the best was actually an outsider.
When she was spending her birthday all alone and desolate, he was the one who came to pick her up.
"Aunt Zhao, you make breakfast for me every day. It's only right that I treat you well."
He grew increasingly convinced that affection and effort must be conditional: show Zhao Shumin ten points of care, and she would return ten points of care.
But give Xu Qianqian ten points of care, and she would only think she was extraordinary—that everything he did was due to her irresistible charm, something she rightfully deserved.
"Xiaoyan, go to sleep earlier from now on. You don't need to come pick Auntie up."
"There are security cameras everywhere on the road nowadays; it's actually quite safe."
"I didn't have anything to do anyway."
"And I couldn't fall asleep."
"It's perfectly normal for me to come check on Auntie."
Chatting along the way, the two soon arrived home.
Drenched in sweat, Zhao Shumin stroked Li Zhiyan's head and said, "Xiaoyan, go get some rest."
"Auntie is going to take a shower and go to bed now. It's getting very late."
"Auntie will make breakfast for you tomorrow morning."
Although she hadn't celebrated a proper birthday, Zhao Shumin's heart didn't feel quite as heavy anymore.
Li Zhiyan had truly made Zhao Shumin feel a touch of warmth. In this bustling metropolis, such tenderness was exceedingly rare.
"Auntie, come to my room for a moment later. I have something to tell you."
With that, Li Zhiyan returned to his own room.
Seeing Li Zhiyan acting so mysterious, Zhao Shumin felt a faint sense of puzzlement in her heart.
What on earth is this child up to?
Of course, Zhao Shumin didn't overthink it; she believed her relationship with Li Zhiyan was strictly that of an elder and a junior.
Perhaps he was looking to borrow some money or something.
Taking her pajamas into the bathroom to shower, Zhao Shumin's mind wandered back to the fact that Li Zhiyan hadn't returned home at all last night.
Could he have gone to visit a masseuse?
Or perhaps he went out stealing other people's clothes? Both possibilities were quite serious.
Besides, the last time she brought him watermelon, she had accidentally walked in on...
This boy possessed boundless energy; it was simply exaggerated.
As a kind-hearted child, she really needed to have a proper talk with him.
After finishing her shower, Zhao Shumin dried her hair, put on her pajamas, and walked over to Li Zhiyan's room.
"Xiaoyan, can Auntie come in?"
"Auntie, come on in."
Pushing the door open, Zhao Shumin prepared herself to hear that Li Zhiyan wanted to borrow money. She figured that if it was just tens of thousands, she could help him out.
Any more than that, however, would be out of the question.
She still needed to save money to get a bride for her son. No matter how much Shang Shunsheng broke her heart, he was still her flesh and blood.
This was the fundamental difference between a blood relation and an outsider. Unless Shang Shunsheng committed some heinous crime, a son would always be closer than a stranger.
Looking at Zhao Shumin in her pajamas, Li Zhiyan couldn't help swallowing hard.
For Aunt Zhao to have such an immaculate figure without the slightest sign of sagging was simply unbelievable.
"Aunt Zhao, look at the birthday cake I bought for you."
Li Zhiyan pointed to the birthday cake sitting on the table, then walked over to the door and clicked it shut.
This scene felt almost dreamlike to Zhao Shumin.
A three-tier birthday cake rested right on the table, with the words "Happy Birthday Aunt Zhao" written across the top.
She even suspected she was hallucinating because she wanted a birthday cake so badly!
A birthday cake that her own biological son hadn't bothered to give her was bought for her by Li Zhiyan?
"Xiaoyan, how did you know today is Auntie's birthday?"
Zhao Shumin's voice trembled slightly. She truly couldn't fathom why Li Zhiyan would present her with a cake at a time like this.
"When I first rented the room, I saw Auntie's ID card on the living room table and accidentally memorized it."
"Auntie has been so good to me lately, so I thought about buying you a birthday cake."
"Aunt Zhao, do you like it?"
Overwhelmed with happiness, Zhao Shumin was momentarily left speechless.
Tears streamed continuously down her face. She wiped them away, trying to maintain her composure.
At this very instant, Li Zhiyan's status in her heart underwent a complete and utter transformation compared to before.
"I love it..."
"Xiaoyan, Auntie doesn't even know how to thank you."
Li Zhiyan took Zhao Shumin's hand and led her to sit down at the table.
At that moment, Li Zhiyan caught sight of an unfathomably deep, snow-white cleavage, though his heart was filled mostly with a tender ache for Zhao Shumin.
When her birthday came around, not a single person had even bothered to send her a cake. While he himself was starved for affection, his parents always celebrated his birthday when he was home, and his dormmates never let it slide when he was at school.
"Auntie, let me light the candles for you and sing a song."
Li Zhiyan inserted the candles, lit them, and began singing the birthday song to Zhao Shumin.
Watching Li Zhiyan sing right before her eyes, Zhao Shumin's vision blurred with emotion.
"Auntie, make a wish now."
"Close your eyes and make a wish."
"Mm!"
Zhao Shumin murmured in assent, then closed her eyes, wondering what wish she should make.
At that moment, the sounds from next door rang out once again.
The tattooed man was utterly devoid of tact, and the tattooed woman had never once thought to keep things restrained.
Because the soundproofing was so abysmal, Zhao Shumin's fair, delicate face visibly flushed red.
That alluring expression was brimming with the mature charm of an adult woman.
And Aunt Zhao's skin was noticeably whiter than that of ordinary women—it was positively snow-white!
Gazing at the Zhao Shumin before him, Li Zhiyan found his breathing growing slightly rapid, captivated by her naturally exquisite face and snow-white cleavage.
Looking at Zhao Shumin's flushed cheeks, Li Zhiyan couldn't resist pressing a light kiss to her face.
As she made her wish, Zhao Shumin suddenly felt a warm sensation brush against her cheek.
What is Xiaoyan doing? Is he stroking my face with his hand?
No, it feels like he kissed my face!