In the Years When I Was a Father-Chapter 3: The Playboy Dad (3)

By the time they returned to the Qi household, it was already past seven. The old man was sitting in the living room. When he saw Qi Wenyu following behind, he suppressed the surge of emotions and smiled kindly at him. “Good child, you’re back. That’s all that matters.” As he spoke, he secretly shot a glare at Qi Sheng.
Qi Sheng rubbed his nose, looking like he was being wronged, and ignored the old man. Instead, he turned and glared at Qi Wenyu. “Don’t know how to greet people? You brat!”
“Grandpa!”
“Madam… Wenyan.”
Qi Wenyu first greeted his grandfather. But when it came time to address Bai Ruoqing and Qi Wenyan, he couldn’t help feeling nervous. Thankfully, Bai Ruoqing didn’t make things difficult for him. She simply said, “You’re back.”
It was Qi Wenyan who stood up and called out, “Brother.”
Dinner was quiet, save for Qi Sheng, who seemed completely oblivious and kept earning sharp glares from the old man.
After dinner, the old man asked Qi Wenyu to follow him into the study, leaving the three of Qi Sheng’s family to stare at each other. Qi Sheng looked at his biological son, who still seemed somewhat uncomfortable, and waved. “Come on, Xiaoyan. Take a walk with Dad.”
Bai Ruoqing frowned at him but didn’t say anything. She just went straight upstairs.
“Xiaoyan, have you been adjusting okay these past few days?”
In the garden room behind the Qi house, Qi Sheng turned to ask. It was winter and rather cold at night, but since they were both in loungewear, they stayed indoors instead of heading out into the chilly wind.
“It’s been good, Dad,” Qi Wenyan replied, glancing up at his biological father. But after speaking, he immediately looked back down at his toes like he was about to get scolded.
“Silly boy, this is your home. If you need anything, just tell Grandpa, Dad, or Mom.” Qi Sheng couldn’t help but ruffle his son’s hair. Compared to Qi Wenfeng, this son looked more like him.
“I understand, Dad.” Qi Wenyan wasn’t a talkative person, so his responses were stiff and dry.
He was anxious—he felt like he wasn’t doing things right. But the truth was, he didn’t know how to deal with this man. From what he’d seen or heard, this man was probably a carefree, lazy rich guy. But what exactly did “father” mean in practice? He had no idea.
His previous “father” was Shen Ping. But ever since he was little, he knew Shen Ping wasn’t his real dad. He knew that his “real father” had run away when his mother was five months pregnant. So, from a young age, he had instinctively learned to behave, to be sensible, to treat his younger brother well. He secretly envied the way Shen Ping doted on his brother—and even more so, how his mother loved his brother.
Back then, he thought his mother disliked him because his biological father had abandoned her at such a critical time. He could feel that sometimes, his mother even wanted to give him away. So he was extra careful, even when his mother just used him as a punching bag—he would quietly take the beating without a word.
The warmth of the hand on his head made Qi Wenyan feel a bit of an illusion—that maybe this man would actually be a good father.
“You’re in your last year of high school now. Did your mom say anything about hiring a tutor?” Qi Sheng could tell his son wasn’t good with words, so he took the initiative to find a topic.
“Mom said after the seventh day of the new year, the tutor will start coming to the house.” He and Qi Wenyu were the same age, but he was in a lower grade. His academic performance wasn’t as good either. He went to an ordinary high school, where his grades were just above average. Getting into a top-tier university would be hard—let alone getting into the best university in the city, like Qi Wenyu.
“Okay, that’s fine. Don’t stress about it. If your results aren’t great, your grandpa will help figure something out. Worst case, you just choose a decent school. I wasn’t any good at studying back in the day myself,” Qi Sheng said proudly. But to Qi Wenyan, it sounded kind of unreliable.
Fortunately, Qi Sheng still knew what Grandpa expected. If he kept talking like this, the old man might chase him with a stick. “Ahem, just listen to what I said earlier, but don’t repeat any of it to Grandpa, okay?”
“Okay!” Qi Wenyan couldn’t help smiling a little.
Having successfully helped his son relax, Qi Sheng began chatting with him about the Qi family—about Grandpa’s hobbies, Bai Ruoqing, and eventually, about Qi Wenyu.
“Son, what do you think of Wenyu?”
“Huh? I…”
“Just say what’s on your mind, don’t worry about saying the wrong thing.”
Qi Wenyan thought for a long moment and finally said in a low voice, “He’s very impressive.”
After that, he lowered his head again, eyes fixed on his toes. The light mood from earlier had completely disappeared.
He had seen many of Qi Wenyu’s trophies in his grandfather’s study—piano, horseback riding, calligraphy, math competitions, and more. So many fields, and all beyond his reach. He couldn’t help but feel a flicker of resentment in his heart. If they hadn’t been swapped, wouldn’t all those achievements have been his? Then he wouldn’t have had to endure all the pain he had gone through.
Once again, that warm hand rested on his head, and for a moment, he felt like maybe his dad was actually very gentle.
“You’re excellent too. My son—despite all the hardships—still grew into a kind and thoughtful young man. If your dad had been through the same, I probably would’ve ended up some street punk. Look at you—even without a great education, you’ve become someone we’re proud of. Silly kid, no need to envy Wenyu’s achievements. If you’re interested, you can learn all of that too. Your grandpa would be thrilled to see you working hard!”
Qi Sheng couldn’t help but ruffle his son’s soft hair again. “Xiaoyan, your life is still long. You’ll have plenty of chances to pursue whatever interests you.”
“As for the family business, if you’re interested, you can start learning any time. Your grandpa would be overjoyed to see you take the initiative. The Qi family has a big operation—it’s better for brothers to share the load than to have your grandpa running around exhausted, flying all over the place, never getting to enjoy life at all!”
Qi Wenyan was touched at first, but by the end, he couldn’t help but deadpan—Grandpa’s working so hard because you’re useless!
Still, after chatting like this for a while, the father and son felt noticeably closer. Qi Wenyan realized that his dad wasn’t nearly as irresponsible as the outside world made him out to be.
They talked a bit more, and as they were heading back, Qi Sheng noticed his son hesitating again, and raised an eyebrow. “What is it? Got something to say to Dad?”
Qi Wenyan hesitated for a while, then finally gathered the courage to look up. As soon as Qi Sheng met his son’s round, earnest eyes, he suddenly understood.
Awkwardly scratching his nose, Qi Sheng cleared his throat. “So… you want to ask about Wenfeng, right?”
“…Mm.”
Father and son stared at each other for a moment before Qi Sheng finally spoke. “Wenfeng is your little brother—he’s three years younger than you. But he lives elsewhere. I’ll introduce you to him when there’s a chance.”
Seeing the hesitation in his son’s eyes, Qi Sheng added, “Don’t worry. Dad won’t let anyone treat you unfairly. But, well, some adult matters aren’t easy to deal with. Just relax at home. I promise you—none of that mess will affect you.”
“…Okay. I trust you, Dad. Just… don’t make Mom sad either…”
“Haha, don’t worry about that. As long as you’re doing well, your mom won’t have anything to be upset about. Good boy. Let’s head back!”
When the two returned to the living room, the old man and Wenyu were already chatting on the sofa. When he saw the father and son come in, the old man ignored Qi Sheng and waved Wenyan over to sit beside him. With two grandsons at his side, he looked utterly content.
Qi Sheng didn’t mind being ignored. He flopped down onto the sofa and looked at the message he had just received on WeChat, feeling a headache coming on. The situation was far from over—his mistress was the real problem.
As he replied to messages and tried to figure out his next move, the old man turned a glare on him and fired the first shot: “There’ll be a lot of visitors coming and going these next few days. You’d better behave yourself and stay put—don’t go anywhere, you hear me?” He even emphasized the last part.
“Yeah, yeah, got it!” Qi Sheng had long since developed a thick skin. He wasn’t the least bit fazed by the old man’s constant criticism.
Still, to redirect the old man’s fire, he wisely changed the subject. Turning to the butler, he said, “Uncle Zhang, get a protocol instructor here tomorrow. Let Wenyan learn a few things.”
There were going to be quite a few guests in the coming days, and Wenyan would definitely need to accompany them. It was better to give the kid a crash course in basic etiquette first.
He then turned to both sons and added, “You two are going to have to work a little harder these next few days. You’re both grown now—it’s time you learned how to socialize.”
“Yes, Dad!” the two boys answered in unison. After speaking, they even exchanged a glance with each other.
The old man didn’t notice the look between them—he was just pleased to see how obedient both grandsons were.