In the Years When I Was a Father-Chapter 31: The Partial Dad (11)

Qi Xiangnan had a dream—a dream far too realistic. In it were the experiences of the first eighteen years of his life.
From as early as he could remember, he always saw his father favor his elder brother. Even though his brother was older, he never had to do any housework. Their father tacitly allowed all chores to fall on him. Even when his elder brother ordered him around, his father turned a blind eye. Qi Xiangnan felt a pang of pain in his heart, but thinking that in just a few more years, his father would dote on him more, he let it go.
Watching the small child crouched in the corner of the bed, crying in grievance, Qi Xiangnan couldn’t help but go forward to comfort him, “Don’t cry. Dad actually does care about you. Once you achieve something, he’ll see your worth…”
Unfortunately, the little version of him in the dream couldn’t hear those words. Everything still followed the trajectory of memory. Qi Xiangnan was momentarily confused. He had indeed once resented his father deeply. But after his father risked his life to protect him, and later moved to Beijing to build a new life for him, Qi Xiangnan had let go of that old resentment.
His father had made mistakes, but he had changed. So why cling to the past?
What’s more, he could feel it—his father was now clearly more partial to him. His father and elder brother had worked hard to establish Dongnan Food Group. In the eyes of outsiders, the company was run by his elder brother. Qi Xiangnan didn’t participate in management nor had he contributed much, yet his father had transferred most of the company’s share of fixed assets to him. The villas he and his brother lived in were adjacent, but their father chose to live with him. This had left his elder brother, the firstborn, bitter for a long time…
Watching these fragments of memory unfold, Qi Xiangnan couldn’t help but wonder—did he still harbor resentment deep in his heart?
He couldn’t understand why he was recalling his past like watching a movie, but he wasn’t anxious. Maybe he would wake up once the “film” caught up to his present self.
Bored, Qi Xiangnan watched the “memories” play out. When he saw the scene where he beat up his brother over the university admission letter, he almost laughed. That was the only time he had ever fought back—and he’d hit him hard.
Watching his past self walking away with his head down made him angry. How could he be so “dramatic” back then? He even caused their father to limp for a month.
However—
The memory didn’t follow what he knew. There was no rush forward. Instead, he, like a worn-out rag doll, was flung and fell heavily to the ground, lying in the middle of the road covered in blood. No one came looking for him.
The driver in the memory stumbled over in panic. Some villagers who happened to pass by also rushed to the scene—but his father was nowhere to be seen.
Eventually, his father and brother arrived. They asked about his condition but immediately turned to argue with the driver. The driver, unable to explain clearly, paid the medical expenses, left his car behind, and went home to gather more money for compensation…
Qi Xiangnan stared blankly at the unfolding scene, unable to process it. How could this be? That wasn’t how it happened!
The images continued. He saw himself waking up in utter grief and despair, watched that hopeless version of him being sent back home and left alone in bed. He saw the fleeting regret in his father’s eyes—followed by increasing disgust and aversion day by day. His room became the place the other two avoided at all costs.
Eventually, his father had enough of that life. He said one last thing to his elder brother and left home.
From then on, even his basic meals were no longer guaranteed. Until one day, unable to bear the stench of the room and the hunger gnawing at his belly, he used his last bit of strength to smash his head into the wall.
Qi Xiangnan felt cold all over. His body trembled uncontrollably.
How could this be? Why would it be like this?
That soul-crushing despair—why did it feel so real? That wasn’t him! It couldn’t have been him!
But a voice kept stubbornly whispering: it was him.
He wanted to wake up, to leave this place. But all he could do was watch that lifeless body in the room.
No one shed a tear for him. Only the silhouettes of two relieved backs remained.
When Qi Xiangnan finally woke up again, the first thing he saw was his wife sitting by his side. Her eyes were swollen from crying, filled with worry as she carefully wiped the tears off his face.
“Brother Nan, what’s wrong with you? Don’t scare me like that…”
Qi Xiangnan opened his mouth. It seemed to take all his strength just to speak: “It’s nothing, just a nightmare.”
Hearing that, Shen Qinglan finally breathed a little easier. Seeing the sorrow in his eyes, she leaned forward and gently kissed his lips, her heart aching, “It was just a dream. It’s all in the past. Do you know you slept for an entire day and night? You scared me to death. You’re not allowed to do that again!”
Listening to her concerned scolding and nagging, Qi Xiangnan habitually lifted his hand to her head, running his fingers through her hair, feeling the warmth under his palm.
“Are you hungry? Want some water?” Shen Qinglan loved how dependent the man looked at her, but she was more worried about his health. She gently removed the large hand on her head, gave it a kiss, and with a bright smile, stood up to pour a glass of water. Then she took out the porridge kept warm in the thermos and set it aside to cool.
“Drink some water first.”
Seeing him obediently take the glass and drink it down in one gulp, Shen Qinglan wanted to say something but ended up keeping it to herself. Instead, she picked up the bowl, blew on it gently, tasted it to check the temperature, and only when it was just right did she hand it over to him.
Qi Xiangnan stared intently at his wife’s every movement. Watching the smile on her lips, the coldness in his heart finally began to thaw.
In the quiet hospital room, the man drank the porridge spoonful by spoonful. Shen Qinglan, the only one present, felt both satisfied and reassured. When she finally took the empty bowl from him, she suddenly remembered—she hadn’t informed her father-in-law that he was awake yet.
“Wait here for a moment. I’ll go call Dad in his office. He’s been really worried about you.”
But just as she turned to leave, her hand was grabbed. Shen Qinglan looked back at him, puzzled.
“Wait… don’t call just yet. They might already be asleep.”
Shen Qinglan didn’t understand. It was just after ten o’clock, not yet her father-in-law’s usual bedtime. Without thinking too much, she gently placed his hand down. “Just wait a minute. Dad just left. He’s probably still worried. I’ll be right back after I tell him.”
Qi Xiangnan didn’t say anything else. Watching his wife hurry out, he lowered his head and stared blankly at the patterned hospital linens. Suddenly, he got out of bed.
When Shen Qinglan returned, she saw him quietly standing by the window, gazing outside.
“What are you looking at?” Hugging him from behind, she pressed her face tightly against his back. Now that he had finally woken up, the stone weighing on her heart had finally dropped.
Surrounded by her warmth, Qi Xiangnan finally managed to pull himself free from the memories that had been replaying endlessly in his mind. He turned around and hugged her tightly, closed his eyes, and said nothing.
Although he’d heard his son was physically fine, Qi Sheng still came to the hospital early the next morning.
Walking into the room and seeing his son already dressed, Qi Sheng approached, carefully examined his complexion, and asked, “All good now? Ready to go home?” As he spoke, he couldn’t help reaching out to ruffle his son’s hair.
Unfortunately, his youngest son, who used to obediently let him do that, suddenly turned his head away, leaving Qi Sheng momentarily stunned.
What was that about? Was he sulking because he wasn’t there to stay by his side last night? Acting spoiled?
Qi Sheng didn’t think much of it. Looking at him again, he said, “Did your boss give you a few days off? When we get home, Dad will make something good to help you recover.”
But that didn’t bring any joy to his son’s face. He remained silent.
Perplexed, Qi Sheng looked at him and asked, “Still not feeling well today?”
Qi Xiangnan didn’t want to respond. In fact, he was barely restraining the disgust and rejection in his heart. His left hand, holding his coat, quietly clenched into a fist. It took a tremendous amount of effort to suppress the abnormal surge within him. “No. Just tired.”
After speaking, he could no longer hold it in and directly turned to leave, leaving Qi Sheng full of confusion. The flash of pain and resentment in his son’s eyes hadn’t gone unnoticed. What could have happened to make him like this? And this was the first time his son had turned and left without a word.
“Host! Host! Detected abnormal soul fluctuations in the target!” 277, who hadn’t spoken in a long while, suddenly sounded.
“Abnormal fluctuations? What do you mean?” Qi Sheng had encountered this once before, back when he was on another mission. That time, someone with an unrelenting obsession had broken through the world’s consciousness and regained memories of their past life.
Could it be… his youngest son had also regained memories of a past life?
“277, confirm it immediately!”
“Yes, Host. After repeated verification by the system, the target has indeed recovered previous life memories. Task difficulty has increased. Host, please adjust your mission plan accordingly!”
Qi Sheng rubbed his temples. Thinking back on the story, Qi Xiangnan’s past life had ended far too tragically. His father and brother had been cold and indifferent, giving him every reason to be filled with hatred. The resentment must’ve been so deep that it allowed him, in that moment of unconsciousness, to reclaim the sealed-off memories.
The situation was getting too tricky. Qi Sheng, who had initially planned to go home, now didn’t know what to do. If there was someone Qi Xiangnan hated the most—it would be “him.” If he went back now and showed up in front of him, wouldn’t that just provoke him further?
Qi Sheng frowned deeply, helpless. Looking around the empty hospital room, he reached into the breast pocket of his coat to check his wallet. His documents, bank card, and money were all there. Qi Sheng thought for a moment and decided it was best to leave town for a while. Give Qi Xiangnan some time to cool off—maybe that way, he could calm down.
With the decision made, Qi Sheng pulled out his old-fashioned cellphone and called both his elder son and daughter-in-law, informing them that he had to go out of town for a while and wasn’t sure when he’d be back.
Qi Xiangdong, upon receiving the call, couldn’t quite figure out why his father was leaving all of a sudden. There was nothing urgent at the company requiring his presence. So why was he suddenly taking off?
“Dad, what’s going on? Where are you going?”
“It’s a personal matter. Don’t worry about it.”
Qi Sheng hung up after that. But thinking about Qi Xiangdong, one of the people involved, he gave a mischievous little smile—I’ll just go hide for a bit. You can take the brunt of the first wave of fury.