Chapter 126 - Xuan Xuan

Head Manager Han sat at the back of a Mercedes as he was being chauffeured around by his assistant manager, Jiang Cheng. He was so quiet that Jiang Cheng could not help but to glance at the rearview mirror every now and then to make sure that everything was fine. 

"I thought it's his off day. Why is he wearing his manager uniform?" Jiang Cheng thought to himself. 

As for Head Manager Han, he noticed that Jiang Cheng kept looking at him, so he said, "I can't be bothered to find anything else to wear. Pay attention to your driving."

"Yes, sir!" 

Head Manager Han closed his eyes to take a short break. 

...

8-year-old Little Han Xuan had just come back from school while wearing a blue cap. When he entered the house, he carefully closed the door behind him as to not make a sound. As he walked past the living room, he glanced at the clock and thought to himself, "Dad's still asleep by now..." 

Taking care not to make any sound, he then slowly went up to his little brother's room to check on him. When he looked in and didn't see his 4-year-old brother on his bed, he panicked a little. However, he still took care not to make any noise. 

"ARghh!" 

Little Han Xuan looked up when he heard that somewhat muffled noise. "Xiao Ye?" 

He then dropped his bag and ran toward the noise. When he arrived at the bathroom, he saw his father pressing his little brother's head down into a pail of water.

"I told you to shut up, didn't I?!" the man yelled as he continued to press his struggling son's head down. 

"Xiao Ye!" Little Han Xuan yelled. Without any regards for his own safety, he pushed his father aside. He could smell the alcohol on his father, but he ignored it as he pulled his younger brother out. 

The moment he was pulled out, Little Han Ye coughed out the water that was in his lung and hurting his nose before he cried loudly. 

"Are you alright?" Little Han Xuan asked worriedly as he patted his brother's back. From the corner of his eyes, he saw his father moving, and so, he immediately hugged his brother as he protected him from the incoming kick. 

"Urgh!" Little Han Xuan groaned out when the kick connected with his back. He had to place a hand on the wall so as not to push Han Ye into the wall. 

"A crybaby and an insolent brat!" Angered at being disrespected, their drunk father kicked Little Han Xuan continuously, "You little brat! Let me teach you what is respect!" 

When he was bored of kicking him, he dragged Little Han Xuan by the collar of his uniform, now stained with blood, and threw him out of the bathroom. He then continued to punch and kick Little Han Xuan. Used to it, Little Han Xuan did not make any noise. 

He knew. He knew if he were to make any noise, it would only be worse... Or his father might turn his target to Little Han Ye. His little brother was too small to bear the punches, and as the older brother, Little Han Xuan had to prevent that from happening. 

He could still hear his younger brother crying, and he prayed to god that the kid stopped crying soon. Otherwise, he might not be able to protect him longer. 

When his father got bored of pounding on him, he turned to glare at his younger son who was crying his lungs off. 

The moment Little Han Ye saw his father staring at him, he started to whimper and crawled to a corner. Shivering, both from cold and fear, Little Han Ye could only keep his eyes away from his father with the hope that his father could not see him. 

Just as their father was about to walk to Little Han Ye, Little Han Xuan threw himself at his leg as he said weakly, "Leave... him... alone..." 

The man got annoyed, but he was bored. Besides, people had been asking questions lately, and he knew that he had to be careful. With a curse, he gave Little Han Xuan one last kick before he left the house. 

BAM!

After Little Han Xuan heard the front door being slammed shut, he dragged himself over to Little Han Ye, who was still whimpering at a corner while he covered his mouth with both his hands. 

"Xuan Xuan..." Little Han Ye cried and ran over to help his brother to sit up. There were slap marks on his face which were obviously caused by their father.

As he sat with his bruised back against the door, Little Han Xuan groaned from the pain. It felt as if every inch of his body was in pain. It was a good thing that he blocked his chest with his knees earlier, so his father's kicks mostly landed on his knees, which were starting to bruise from knee to shin at the moment. 

"Xiao Ye... You aren't injured, right?" he asked worriedly as he looked at his younger brother, who was drenched. His right eye was swollen and he could barely see out of it. Despite that, his only worry was whether his younger brother was fine. 

"Wahhhh!" Little Han Ye cried and hugged Little Han Xuan. He was too young to realize that his older brother was badly injured. 

"Argh!" Little Han Xuan cried out when Little Han Ye hugged him. The pain was so bad that it almost knocked the breath out of him. It was a good thing that their father was gone, or he would have to endure another beating for crying out. 

His father kept telling them that men wouldn't cry, and every time they cried, that man would beat them until they learned not to make a sound. Little Han Xuan learned that lesson early on, but Little Han Ye was still too young to know how to control his tears.

Hearing his brother crying out, Little Han Ye immediately let him go. He was still crying and the tears kept falling like a waterfall. He looked at the cuts and bruises on his older brother's face and cried even louder. "Daddy's bad. Daddy's bad!" 

"Sshh... Don't... Don't cry... If he's back..." 

"Xuan Xuan..." Little Han Ye could not help but cry harder when he saw the bruises on his brother's face. He then took his brother's bruised covered arm and gently kissed it. "Pain go away..." he chanted as he kissed each of the bruises. He then kissed Little Han Xuan's bruised eye gently and whispered, "I love you, Xuan Xuan..."

Little Han Xuan smiled as he patted his little brother's head. 

....

"Head Manager Han, we are here." 

Jiang Cheng's voice caused Head Manager Han to snap out of the bad memories of his father. He nodded and when Jiang Cheng took off his seatbelt, Head Manager Han said, "No need."

He looked at the sign that said "Imperial Public Hospital". 

"Should I wait for you, Head Manager Han?" Jiang Cheng asked. 

"No. I can go back by myself. You can go home now," Head Manager Han said. Without waiting for a reply, he then walked into the hospital while bearing a grim expression. 

It was not visiting hours, but Head Manager Han pulled some strings. He knew that there would be no visitor. The person he was about to visit would be alone at this moment. 

....