Lu Qiang was calm and said, "Grandpa, there is no need for this. My stamina is excellent. At least you should trust your own genes." His voice was firm, and he looked straight into elder Lu Huan's eyes. He didn't seem embarrassed. He just decided to play along.
Everyone was used to the bold words of elder Lu Huan but what surprised them most were the words they heard from Lu Qiang's mouth. He never talked this much and that too as shamelessly as his grandpa.
Elder Lu Huan smiled when he heard those words and said, "I just wanted to make sure that when a wild cat crosses your path in the future, you won't spill your coffee out."
"Don't worry grandpa I know how to tame a wild cat. I won't waste my coffee," he reassured.
"Wild cats! Are they good enough?" His grandfather countered in a teasing manner.
"Just need to tame them properly and make them civilized," the younger man said with a shrug.
"Haha! You truly inherited my genes." Elder Lu was delighted by this conversation.
Nobody spoke except for these two. It was as if the others were invisible. Their gazes were traveling from one end of the table to the other end as they heard shocking statements being thrown out by both parties. It left them flabbergasted.
Zhao Shuang sighed and said, "Enough, both of you! The food is getting cold. Stop talking and concentrate on your breakfast." Zhao Shuang's words were like the decree from a queen, so everyone obediently started to eat.
Suddenly, they heard footsteps coming towards them from the living room. Everyone looked towards the direction of the sound. A small figure finally entered the dining room and came running to embrace Lu Qiang tightly.
"Elder brother!" A small figure said. The younger boy looked at him with a bright smile and eyes sparkling like the bright stars in the night sky, showing his inexplicable happiness.
"Lu Lijun! Where have you been since morning?" Lu Qiang asked as he caressed his brother's cheeks with one hand. He was happy to see this little chipmunk.
Lu Lijun was the second son of Lu Jinhai and the younger brother of Lu Qiang. He was the youngest and most loved member of the family as he was just eleven-years-old.
For Lu Qiang, he had only three kinds of people in his life.
First: Lu Lijun.
Second: family members, and third—others.
Lu Lijun was the most important person in his life. Everyone knew how much he loved Lu Lijun. His polite and soft voice, the warmth in his eyes, and the way he handled Lu Lijun were enough to prove it.
"I was with brother Lu Feng. We were giving food to the fishes in the garden's pond," he said with a smile on his face. Suddenly his expressions changed, and he asked with a sad expression, "Why didn't you come for my birthday? I waited for you." After saying this, he lowered his eyes and looked at the ground.
"I know! And I am really sorry that I couldn't make it to your birthday." Lu Qiang hugged him gently, made him sit on the chair next to him, and said, "Have your breakfast first, then I'll show you something."
"What is it, brother Lu Qiang?" he asked curiously as the sadness on his face started to disappear.
"That's a surprise!" Lu Qiang said, winking at his brother. Then he started to fill his plate with food.
"Wow! Surprise! My...My birthday gift?" Lu Lijun asked, bursting with excitement.
"Mmm..." Lu Qiang nodded. "Now finish your breakfast first," he said firmly.
Lu Lijun started to dig into his breakfast as fast as he could, stuffing his mouth without leaving any space free. He looked adorable with his mouth stuffed like a squirrel.
Lu Qiang looked at him and said, "Slow down. Otherwise, you will get indigestion." He gently patted Lu Lijun's head, filled with admiration.
Lu Qiang's behavior was very different when it came to Lu Lijun. Anyone could see the various dimensions of his personality when he was with Lu Lijun such as loving and caring Lu Qiang, angry Lu Qiang, happy Lu Qiang, worried Lu Qiang, upset Lu Qiang, talkative Lu Qiang, childish Lu Qiang, and many more. Lu Lijun was able to pull out all these personalities out of his ice-cold elder brother.
Lu Qiang treated Lu Lijun more like his son than his younger brother. Lu Qiang took all decisions regarding Lu Lijun. He always fulfilled his demands, whatever it might be. Lu Qiang always wanted everything best for this brother of his. Everyone was worried that his love might spoil Lu Lijun, but Lu Qiang was still careful. He wanted his little brother to become a good person. He always made him understand what was right and what was wrong.
For Lu Lijun, he too loved Lu Qiang more than anyone else… even his parents were secondary to his elder brother. His whole world revolved around Lu Qiang.
"What a beautiful sight to see!" Everyone heard the voice come from the door as they watched the affection between the two brothers.
Everyone looked at the source of the voice. Lu Feng came to the dining room for breakfast.
"When you heard that Lu Qiang was back, you forgot this brother and ran to meet him, leaving me there alone. That's not fair," Lu Feng said as he stepped towards Lu Lijun.
Lu Lijun looked up at him and blinked his eyes like an innocent bunny. As his mouth was stuffed, he couldn't say a word.
Lu Feng looked at his round face and smiled. "I'll let it pass this once," he said. He looked at Lu Qiang, gave him a small smile, and sat on the chair beside his mother.
Lu Qiang smiled back and continued paying attention to Lu Lijun, asking him to slow down and eat less. Elder Lu Huan saw this and got irritated.
"Let him eat all he wants. Don't nag him too much. After all, in the near future, he would be the one to give me great-grandchildren when you are done emptying your coffee mug."
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