Chapter 79 - Ignore him, Angela

Han Ye laughed softly as he explained to Angela, "Ignore him, Angela. My brother here is mature in every way except when it comes to his godmother's husband. You see, he has a godmother issue."

"Shut it!" Tian Le snapped as he threw a piece of black bean at Han Ye.

Before the bean hit Han Ye, it was caught by a pair of chopsticks that came out of nowhere. Han Ye was slightly stunned as he stared at the chopsticks a few inches from his face. 

"Sorry… Reflex…" Xiao Lei murmured before she pulled her hand back. She looked at Tian Le and said in a motherly tone, "Shouldn't waste this good food." 

When Tian Le looked apologetic, she added, "This one here as well. This bean is good for you." 

The moment she finished speaking, she put the bean into her mouth before she continued to eat. 

Seeing how hungry she was, Han Ye chuckled. He then picked up his chopsticks before he reached out to pick the last piece of siew mai. Placing it on her plate, he said, "If you're hungry, please don't hesitate to order more." 

She nodded but did not say anything. 

However, Lu Ziyan who was sitting opposite her noticed how she kept averting her gaze from Han Ye. "Interesting…" he murmured under his breath. 

"What's interesting?" Tian Le whispered. 

Before Lu Ziyan could say anything, Han Ye looked at Tian Le and said, "Xiao Lei has a son slightly younger than you. He's studying at Imperial Secondary as well."

"Oh?" Tian Le looked at Xiao Lei with a surprised expression. He then asked, "What's his name? Maybe I know him…" 

"Xiao Zhihao." 

Tian Le thought for a moment before he shook his head. "Erm… Well, I don't think we've met before." 

"Who's going to hang out with a gaming nerd like you?" Lu Ziyan smirked as he picked up his cup of hot Chinese tea. 

"Who's going to hang out with an old man like you?" Tian Le smirked as he imitated Lu Ziyan's action.

Xiao Lei chuckled as she watched those two bickered.

After they finished their breakfast, Han Ye decided to send Angela Zhang home. He looked at Lu Ziyan and the rest and said, "I've called for a driver. He should be arriving in another 15 minutes."

"Just go on your date already. We are not children," Lu Ziyan said as he made a "shoo" gesture at Han Ye. 

Han Ye nodded. "We are eating dinner with Kai Xin and her family at Du Mansion tonight. I'll be back before then. Get ready by 5 p.m." 

"We know… Go. She's waiting for you," Tian Le said as he pushed Han Ye toward the car. 

Once they left, the three of them sat at the bench outside the restaurant as they waited for the private car to come and pick them up. 

"Damn it… I'm going to miss you. You won't be back until after exam?" Lu Ziyan asked as he placed an arm around Tian Le. 

"I might come back next week, but not the week after. I want to spend most of my waking time studying..." 

"Don't overdo it. We are more than capable to send you to any university that you want… You don't have to work so hard for a scholarship," Lu Ziyan said before he pulled his arm away from Tian Le. 

"I'm doing it to prove myself, not just for the scholarship…" Tian Le said. It was actually his way of telling the world that whether or not he was an orphan and whether or not he was disabled, it meant nothing to him. Everything was just a small hiccup in his life, and one day, he would be better than everyone else that made fun of him because of something that he could not control. 

Tian Le then looked at Xiao Lei and asked, "So, your son… He didn't come back this weekend?" 

"No. I figure that I need some time to handle the things at the new place… But he might be coming back next week."

After a moment of hesitation, Xiao Lei said in a soft voice, "I think… Zhihao is having some trouble at school."

She knew that her son might be angry with her for this, but other than asking for someone to help, she did not know what else she could do. She did not want to trouble Han Ye, Callum or Luo Guangying because they seemed so busy.

Besides, since Tian Le was a student at Imperial Secondary, it would be easier for him to look out for her son.

Tian Le exchanged glances with Lu Ziyan before he asked her, "What kind of trouble?"

"Erm… He's being…"

"Bullied?" 

"Yeah."

Tian Le sighed. "That's a common thing. Sister Xiao Lei, people like us…"

"Tian Le…" Lu Ziyan frowned at what Tian Le said. He did not want his younger brother to feel as if it was OK for people to bully him. 

"Brother Ziyan, don't worry. I'm not looking down on myself or anything," Tian Le reassured him with a smile. He then looked at Xiao Lei and said, "I'm just stating the facts. An orphan like me, or a scholarship student like your son…"

When he looked at Xiao Lei's worried face, he added, "If we go to a posh school like Imperial Secondary, where most of the kids come from the Top 1% of the country, we would have to tough it out. I think that your son probably aims for bigger things in life. When he goes out into the working world, if he can't handle a bit of bullying, he wouldn't last long in those big companies… This is real life, and you can't forget that his classmates, even if they are incompetent, might become his bosses one day."

"Still… Those kids…"

Tian Le smiled. "I understand, and I'll try and help him wherever I can, but he has to be the one to break the cycle. No one can protect him forever." 

He then smiled and said with a proud expression, "My brother Han Ye is the best example. He had nothing when he was young, but now? Even CEOs have to bow down to him. Even Brother Ziyan here… He was also dirt poor when he was young, but he's living the high life now. "

"Aww… Is my baby brother proud of me?"

"I take it back. He's useless…" 

Xiao Lei smiled. "You guys are lucky to have each other…" 

Tian Le glanced at Lu Ziyan before he nodded back at Xiao Lei. "Yeah, I'm pretty lucky to meet these guys. But anyway, don't worry about your son. I do know some powerful juniors who are around his age; I'll ask them to watch out for him as well."

"Thanks, Tian Le," Xiao Lei said sincerely as she shook his hand. 

"No problem."

…