Translator: Dj22031
Editor: Dj22031
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At 5:30 a.m., Chen Tanliang opened his eyes precisely on time.
He turned on the desk lamp, glanced at his watch, then sat up abruptly and pulled back the covers.
There’s a saying that goes, “People who can get up early on time and don’t linger in bed are truly terrifying.” Chen Tanliang was that kind of person. Not only that, but even in winter, he didn’t seem to miss his bed at all.
Because they arrived late, Jiang Shining’s villa had only two rooms left. Chen Tanliang let his sister stay in the larger one, while he stayed in the smaller one.
He got up to change his clothes, which Jiang Shining had forcibly taken from the Jing brothers yesterday. He changed into a black tracksuit, washed his face, and brushed his teeth before leaving the room.
The villa was quiet; everyone was asleep.
Chen Tanliang went downstairs and quietly pushed open the door to a bedroom. It was pitch black inside, with only the sound of soft breathing audible.
Chen Tanliang walked slowly inside and saw Chu Jingyuan sleeping face down, only half of his delicate profile peeking out from under the covers. As he took his third step, Chu Jingyuan suddenly opened his eyes. Before he even opened them, his movements were even faster, and Chen Tanliang felt something hurtling towards him.
He dodged to the side, and a knife grazed past him, whistling as it pierced through the wooden wardrobe door and came to rest on it.
All of this was a subconscious warning. Just as Chen Tanliang dodged, Chu Jingyuan had already moved forward like a ghost, and Chen Tanliang took the blow head-on.
All of this happened within seconds. When Chu Jingyuan saw Chen Tanliang’s face clearly, immediately frowned, released his attack, and took a step back.
“Chen Tanliang, are you sick? Who gave you permission to barge into my bedroom?”
Chen Tanliang pursed his lips into a thin line, his eyes showing no fluctuation. He turned his head and pulled the dagger off the cabinet door.
“You’re hiding weapons in your home?”
“It’s precisely to guard against people like you who have no sense of right from wrong,” Jing Yuan said coldly.
Aside from Jiang Shining and Jing Xuan, whose proximity allowed him to wake up naturally, he would instinctively attack any other unfamiliar presence.
Chu Jingyuan snatched his dagger back from Chen Tanliang’s hand. He then sat back on the edge of the bed, turned on his phone, and the screen illuminated the young man’s agitated face.
“…It’s only 5:40, Chen Tanliang, are you crazy?” Chu Jingyuan yelled. “I have to go to work soon, are you deliberately messing with me?”
“Didn’t she say we had to get up and go for a run in the morning?” Chen Tanliang asked curiously.
Chu Jingyuan: …
He never expected that Chen Tanliang’s rigid personality was beyond his imagination.
“We’ll be fine even if we don’t run,” Chu Jingyuan said impatiently. “She was just saying that in a fit of anger yesterday. She didn’t want the two of us to go out in this cold weather.”
Knowing Jiang Shining as he did, he figured she’d be fine after a good night’s sleep, and if he behaved well today, it would be another happy day.
However, Chen Tanliang said seriously, “We have already promised our mother, so we must keep our promise.”
……damn.
Suddenly, a sense of despair enveloped Jing Yuan. He turned to look out the window; it was the dead of winter, and the outside was pitch black, like midnight.
Jing Yuan slowly leaned back, lying on the bed with his face covered.
“I’ll give you five seconds to get out of here, or I’ll beat you up.”
Then, he closed his eyes…
Jing Yuan actually loved staying up late. He had only slept for less than two hours when he was woken up. If it were based on his previous personality, he definitely wouldn’t have let Chen Tanliang off the hook.
Okay, to be honest, if Jiang Shining’s bedroom wasn’t upstairs, he would definitely let Chen Tanliang experience the terror of an emperor’s morning grumpiness right now.
Alas, life had worn down his edges.
Being someone’s son was too difficult.
Jing Yuan was extremely tired, but he couldn’t fall asleep because his senses were too sharp. Chen Tanliang standing there was as dazzling as a light bulb.
He impatiently pulled back the covers.
“Are you a terracotta warrior? Are you going to guard my tomb?”
Chen Tanliang looked at him intently with his dark eyes.
“Since you were once an emperor, shouldn’t you understand even more the importance of keeping your word?”
“You’re saying the exact opposite, sir.” Chu Jingyuan sneered coldly. “It’s precisely because I was an emperor that I can do whatever I want. Morning exercises are a general’s job, so you’d better get going for your morning run.”
Chen Tanliang remained silent for a long time.
“You really aren’t going?”
“I’m not going,” Chu Jingyuan said defiantly. “What can you do to me?”
Chen Tanliang was silent for two seconds before saying, “I’m going to file a complaint.”
Then he turned around and left.
Chu Jingyuan: …
Isn’t it a normal, unspoken rule that classmates don’t tell the teacher when they argue?
Where the hell did this scoundrel come from, so disregarding industry norms?
Chen Tanliang stopped at the door, turned around, crossed his arms, and raised his eyebrows at Chu Jingyuan.
“Is five minutes enough?”
…He’s really arrogant.
Jing Yuan mentally beat Chen Tanliang a thousand times over before reluctantly putting on his clothes.
The two walked out of the house one after the other. The cold wind before dawn blew by, sending shivers down their spines. They were dressed lightly, and even though they were both physically strong, the hairs on their bodies stood on end.
“You need to warm up before running,” Chu Jingyuan said.
A question mark appeared above Chen Tanliang’s head. Because the two of them had nowhere to move while standing on the steps, the next second, Jing Yuan kicked him in the leg, sending him sprawling onto a snowdrift on the grass.
“You—” Chen Tanliang, his head covered in snow, angrily lifted his head from the snowdrift.
“Let’s get some exercise,” Jing Yuan said calmly.
You could say he held a grudge very much.
The two wrestled on the grass. Ten minutes later, sure enough, they were no longer cold!
He was covered in snow and dust. Chen Tanliang was a bit of a germaphobe; so he got up and coldly patted his clothes.
“Ten laps!” he grunted.
The two finally started running.
Chu Jingyuan felt an unnamed fire burning within him. Since yesterday, he had felt that life was bleak and uninteresting.
Jiang Shining’s new son had a grudge against him and was generally disliked. Now he was being dragged out to run before dawn!
Sigh, it seems he’s lost sight of the meaning of life.
The villa area was large, and Chen Tanliang actually ran along the furthest edge. Even if the two of them were in good physical condition and ran fast, it would still take them more than 30 minutes to complete one lap.
If Chu Jingyuan had to run ten laps, he won’t even get to eat breakfast before going to work.
After running three and a half laps, Chu Jingyuan gave up.
“She just said ‘ten laps’ offhand; running is something that’s optional anyway. Why are you so stubborn?”
This was because Chen Tanliang was used to it during his military service, and Chu Jingyuan was physically strong. Otherwise, an ordinary person couldn’t have run that far on the first day.
Chen Tanliang was slightly out of breath, his hair falling obediently down his back, a fine sheen of sweat on his forehead, a small strand of hair hanging down between his brows. His dark eyes, when not hostile, still looked quite docile.
He was almost thirty, but dressed in black sportswear with his hair unkempt, he exuded a pure and innocent aura, making him look incredibly young, like a college student doing morning exercises.
Jing Yuan stood there watching, unable to imagine what this guy would be like leading troops into battle.
“Let’s go back after we finish this lap,” Chen Tanliang suggested.
His demeanor made Jing Yuan extremely uncomfortable. If the other person were to spout arrogant words and provoke him, that would be even better; he could just start a fight. But if he was being polite, how can he actually attack him?
“Fine.” Jing Yuan was getting a little annoyed by him.
After the two finished running the lap, they arrived back at their front door and went inside one after the other.
When they got back around 7 a.m., everyone else was already awake.
Jing Xuan was cooking, Jiang Shining was braiding Guoguo’s hair, and Chen Ruozhi was sitting on the sofa reading.
There was a harmonious and joyful atmosphere.
The two were slightly taken aback; they had never experienced such a harmonious and joyful family gathering before. A touch of emotion welled up within them, but then they remembered there was another person standing beside them, and their hopes vanished instantly.
After Jiang Shining finished braiding Guoguo’s hair, she looked up and said with a smile, “You guys went to dig a hole?”
Both of them were covered in dirt. The snow on their bodies from when they were fighting and rolling around had dried, leaving patches of grime.
Jing Yuan changed his shoes and took off his dirty coat.
“Mom, it’s all your fault.”
“What’s wrong with me?” Jiang Shining asked curiously.
“Didn’t you make us run ten laps around the villa area? Do you even know how big this complex is?”
That was indeed her oversight. Jiang Shining almost laughed.
Why are you being so obedient today?
Jing Yuan gave Chen Tanliang a killer look with a sharp glare.
“Ask him, I’m going back to sleep.”
Jing Yuan walked inside, and Jing Xuan saw him. He handed him a slice of bread with a sausage on it and said, “Come and have something to eat before you go to sleep.”
“I’m not eating! I’m full of anger!” Jing Yuan snorted coldly.
Unexpectedly, Jiang Shining stopped him, saying, “Eat. Skipping breakfast is bad for your stomach.”
Jing Yuan felt that he had lost all his standing in this family.
He angrily took the bread sandwich with the sausage and bit into it as if it were someone else.
As he approached his bedroom door, he saw Jiang Shining waving at Chen Tanliang. Chen Tanliang walked over and squatted down beside her. Jiang Shining then reached out and touched his face.
“Are you tired? Are you getting used to it?”
Why not ask him if he’s tired? It’s like only seeing the new moths laughing while ignoring the old ones crying!
Chen Tanliang lowered his head and shook it gently. Then he said softly, “I’m fine, don’t worry about me.”
What a performance of feigning strength.
Then, Chu Jingyuan saw Chen Tanliang sigh softly and lower his eyelashes. His eyes were downcast, and he looked obedient.
“I just feel like an outsider. I have a feeling of not being accepted.” His voice trailed off.
He was really good at playing the victim. He didn’t believe someone who had been on the battlefield couldn’t handle something like this. Besides, it was not like he was the only one bullying him; Chen Tanliang was fighting just as hard!
Jing Yuan was mentally ranting and groaning when he felt Jiang Shining slowly turn her head.
The two locked eyes.
“Did you start the fight again?”
Jing Yuan: …
Damn it, that bastard Chen Tanliang, he’d fallen for it.
But anyone can play the victim.
Jing Yuan swallowed the last bite of bread, leaned against the wall, adjusted his expression, and looked immediately saddened.
“It’s okay, you can disregard my feelings. I’m used to it anyway,” he said dejectedly. “But… I’ll be hurt if you slander me like that. I’m really not that strong…”
Jiang Shining: …
Chen Tanliang: …
Jiang Shining felt her temples start to ache again.
—Raising so many dramatic creatures is truly a sin.
The author has something to say:
Moths: Mommy, am I your favorite little one?
Jiang Shining: I just want some peace and quiet…
The eldest sons’ daily fights are a given~
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