Hearing the commotion, the servants came running into the room. The moment they saw Ying Di sprawled on the floor with blood streaming from his nose, they immediately panicked.
Jua, however, was quick to put on an equally concerned expression.
"Oh my god, Ying Di! How can you be so clumsy?" he exclaimed, rushing over to him. "You really have to take better care of yourself. Look at you—you're bleeding all over!"
He pretended to help stop the bleeding, but instead of being gentle, his fingers deliberately pinched Ying Di's already broken nose a little harder.
"AHHHH!"
Ying Di let out a shriek that echoed through the room, his entire face twisting in agony.
"Young Master! The car is ready. Let us take you to the hospital and get you checked!" the servants hurriedly said as they moved to help him up.
But the enraged Ying Di shoved them away.
"Jua Haisin! Fucking cunt! I'll have your head for this!" he roared, glaring at Jua with murderous fury.
Jua merely stared at him for a moment before squatting down beside him. Then, without warning, tears began rolling down his cheeks.
"I think he hurt his head," Jua said in a trembling voice, looking toward the servants. "Please help him. Please."
The servants immediately went pale.
If something happened to the young master while his parents were away, they would be the ones held responsible. The last thing they wanted was to be blamed for leaving him injured on the floor.
"Quickly! Help the young master!"
The servants hurriedly gathered around Ying Di and lifted him up despite his furious protests. Still shouting and cursing, he was carried out of the room toward the waiting car.
As he was taken away, Jua stood by the doorway and gave him a cheerful little wave, a grin spreading across his face.
Ying Di could only glare back at him with pure rage.
Before he could say anything else, however, a small figure came running out of the hallway.
"Brother Jua!"
Ying Mao had rushed out of his room after hearing all the commotion. The moment he saw his older brother being carried away by the servants, blood dripping down his face, his heart tightened.
His first thought was that something terrible had happened to Jua.
"Jua, are you hurt?"
He immediately ran toward him and wrapped his arms tightly around Jua, holding onto him as though he needed to make sure he was really unharmed.
From the hallway, Ying Di saw the scene and became even more furious.
"I'll kill you both!" he shouted. "I'll kill you! I swear!"
Jua's eyes instantly turned cold.
He tightened his arms around the little boy, shielding him from Ying Di's furious gaze, and murmured softly, "You can try."
Ying Mao seemed to catch those quiet words. He slowly lifted his head from Jua's chest and looked up at him, a knowing expression appearing in his otherwise impassive eyes.
"Brother."
Jua's cold expression softened immediately. A small smile appeared on his lips as he gently patted Ying Mao's head.
"It's nothing," he reassured him. "Your brother just tripped, that's all. Looks like he hurt his head, which is probably why he's shouting like that."
Ying Mao glanced toward the doorway where Ying Di was being carried away, then back at Jua.
For some reason, he found that explanation perfectly unbelievable.
But Brother Jua was not a bad person. If he had hurt his elder brother, then Ying Di must have done something to him first. That thought only made Ying Mao's heart grow more anxious.
"Are you really not hurt?"
Jua squatted down with some difficulty and shook his head, giving him a reassuring smile. "I'm perfectly fine. There's nothing to worry about. Why don't you go back to sleep?"
"No." Ying Mao pouted stubbornly.
"But if you don't sleep, you might stay short for the rest of your life," Jua threatened playfully.
Ying Mao's eyes widened into saucers. "No! I want to grow taller than Brother Jua!"
"I bet you do." Jua chuckled, glancing down at his own hands. He honestly had no faith that this body would grow much taller than it already was. If anything, it was almost certain that Ying Mao would eventually tower over him. "But if you want to grow taller than me, you need to sleep on time. So go on. Back to bed."
Ying Mao stubbornly refused to move. Instead, he wrapped his small arms around Jua's neck and held on tightly.
"Can I sleep with you, Brother?"
Jua paused, slightly surprised by the request.
"You want to sleep with me?"
The young boy leaned back just enough to look at him and nodded.
"I'm scared…"
And he really was.
Ying Mao was afraid that Ying Di might come back in the middle of the night and try to hurt Brother Jua while he was sleeping. He didn't want to leave Jua alone. If he stayed beside him, he could at least make sure that nothing happened. He wanted to be close—close enough that Brother Jua would remain safe.
Seeing Jua hesitate, Ying Mao gazed up at him with a small pout.
"Can't I…?"
Jua looked at the worried expression on the little boy's face before his own expression softened.
"Okay."
He smiled and gently ruffled Ying Mao's hair.