The real young master thought he was hated by everyone

Xie Shenzhi spent over ten seconds confirming that the boy following his younger brother was not a girl disguised as a boy or, for that matter, a transgender individual.

But he still couldn’t figure out the situation.

Before he understands something thoroughly, he never speaks hastily, nor does he make judgments or draw conclusions lightly. He could only remain silent, using his gaze to question Li Heng.

The problem was that Li Heng didn’t know how to explain it either.

“… This is a bit difficult to explain, but what he means by ‘dowry’ is probably not what we usually understand,” he attempted to clear up the earlier misunderstanding. “He’s saying he has money and can support himself.”

“Isn’t a dowry supposed to be a tradition where, upon joining a new family and becoming part of it, you have to prepare gifts for the new relatives?”

André was a bit confused. “Besides inheritance, I also have some stocks and collectibles in my name, but those are meant for you and aren’t part of the dowry.”

“There’s no such custom…!” Li Heng raised his voice instinctively.

Then he remembered Xie Shenzhi was right in front of him, so he softened his tone again. “In our culture, a dowry refers to the property and gifts given by a woman’s family when she marries a man.”

“Does it have to be a woman?”

André prided himself on his knowledge of Chinese language and culture. “I want to be your family member, to add your surname to the end of my name. If that’s not considered ‘marriage,’ what would it be called?”

He was genuinely curious, his expression earnest. “I really want to be part of your family.”

Li Heng swallowed back the word “matrilocal marriage” that almost slipped out, noticing his eldest brother’s expression had become even more complex after this question.

If he had to describe it, it was like three parts confusion, three parts bewilderment, two parts annoyance, and maybe two parts of a sense of being abruptly confronted. A colorful palette of emotions.

He resisted the urge to cover his face and quickly introduced André to Xie Shenzhi, giving a brief summary of how they had ended up together. “In short, he insists that I’m the angel who saved him when he was a child.”

When he got to the word “angel,” Li Heng found it hard to say and instinctively looked down at the floor.

Xie Shenzhi remained silent.

Back then, he was only in the fifth grade, getting picked up by the driver after school. He saw his mother frantically making phone calls to the police from the sofa, and from what he overheard, he realized what had caused the strange and tense atmosphere at home.

But all he knew was just that. His mother didn’t allow him or his brother to pay too much attention to the situation, merely saying that their younger brother would be home soon.

Besides, unlike Xie Duzhi, he didn’t have a memory that could retain every single detail from childhood. Even if he had heard about the case back then, it was hard to recall now.

“… Let me ask Mom,” he hesitated before speaking.

His mother would surely remember clearly what happened back then.

When he called, his mother was a bit surprised. The older Xie Shenzhi got, the less frequently he called her, and he rarely had more than a few words to say, growing quieter with age—a true chip off the old block.

“The child who was kidnapped with Heng?”

Her surprise reached a peak when he explained his question. “… Yes, there was indeed a foreign child. I remember the police found him in a shipping container in an abandoned warehouse. Only he was found, and he was picked up by the embassy.”

According to the kidnappers’ later confession, there were indeed two children who had managed to slip away from them at the time. They failed to catch them—one was their Heng, the other was that foreign child.

She never expected such a coincidence.

After hearing his mother’s several reminders to use moisturizer and wear a mask due to the dry air and poor air quality in the north, Xie Shenzhi carefully noted them all down before hanging up.

“Do you remember where you were rescued and what condition you were in at the time?” There was a hint of scrutiny in his tone.

He wasn’t one to believe in coincidences like his mother, and his first impression of André wasn’t great.

He thought the foreigner lacked solemnity and seemed too frivolous.

“Of course.” André blinked, then suddenly spoke loudly.

“I’d never forget something that important!” he declared.

So Li Heng had to listen to him recount once more how he had distracted their captors, creating a diversion, opening the window as if they were going to escape that way, and then hiding inside the house. Only when the guards were busy searching the surroundings did they sneak out through the front door, in the opposite direction.

“At that time, you were the only one who could understand me, so I followed you and did whatever you said,” André emphasized. “You told me to hide in that old, broken box and not to make a sound, unless it was the police…”

But after he was found by the police, he never had the chance to thank him or find him again. His family quickly sent him back home.

“…” Li Heng wanted to interrupt but held back several times.

He kind of wanted to ask why André remembered everything so clearly. He felt like even if he were kidnapped now, he wouldn’t think of playing such psychological tricks with the kidnappers.

“Big brother, André must be mistaken, right?” He looked at Xie Shenzhi with an expectant, almost prompting gaze. “Mom said that back then, kidnapping cases happened all the time. Maybe it’s just a coincidence that we both had similar experiences.”

“I’m afraid he’s not mistaken.” Xie Shenzhi shook his head and responded gravely.

Most of what André described matched up.

“But I was only five years old at the time. I might not have been able to speak clearly, let alone communicate with him.”

If he was five, André must have been even younger.

Suddenly, Xie Shenzhi found it hard to tell him: “… You really liked a cartoon back then, one that wasn’t officially imported yet. Mom used to watch it with you, translating it and teaching you words.”

“You loved imitating the characters.”

Li Heng: …

He suddenly felt like he might genuinely be less capable now than when he was five.

“But I’m a genius,” André said. “I could clearly express my needs to my family when I was three, and I even tried to make a nuclear reactor when I was eight.”

He added that their communication back then wasn’t perfect. They had to use gestures and mimicry to get their points across.

Only after proving himself did he realize he’d passed the so-called “test.” Delighted, he hugged Li Heng.

“I knew it! I’d never mistake my angel!” he exclaimed.

Without thinking, Xie Shenzhi immediately pulled him off his brother, his brow furrowed deeply, and his tone was cold. “You’re hurting my brother.”

Andrè panicked, hastily apologizing and expressing remorse, afraid he’d be kicked out because of his sudden action.

Li Heng wasn’t actually hurt. Though being hugged out of the blue gave him the feeling of facing the two big dogs on their family farm.

He didn’t dislike André, even if he was a bit impulsive. His feelings were a mix of bewilderment and embarrassment.

He felt like he had an uncanny number of coincidences in his life—André, Ah Wei, and even little Gu before that.

Even the streaming incident felt like a coincidence—the platform he used got bought out by Xie Duzhi just like that.

It was almost like the world really had so many coincidences.

“Well… If there’s no problem, can I marry into your family?” André’s desire to repay his angel was as strong as his desire to be with him. “I’m very capable, and I can handle anything!”

“If marriage isn’t possible, then I can marry you,” he added, considering a different approach.

“Who are you planning to marry?”

Xie Duzhi had received Li Heng’s message saying he’d arrived at the hotel and would be coming up soon.

Since Xie Shenzhi had been sitting all afternoon, he’d volunteered to go downstairs to meet him, but it had already been over fifteen minutes. Concerned, Xie Duzhi decided to go down and check if something had happened.

He was surprised by what he heard.

He had never seen André in their home or in Li Heng’s social circles.

He must have met him through Gu Mingyue—Li Heng’s only contact that day.

Considering Westerners tend to be taller, Xie Duzhi narrowed down André’s age range, guessing he was either an exchange undergraduate at B University or a competitor Gu Mingyue met during an overseas event.

He ruled out other possibilities, like a foreign tourist they’d encountered that day.

After all, Gu Mingyue was selective, and it was unlikely he’d let a mere attractive tourist tag along all day or trust him around his best friend.

“Hello, I’m André Hugo, and I want to marry into the family.”

André eagerly introduced himself again. “If you won’t let me marry into the family, I’m fine with getting married to him.”

“… Didn’t Xie Heng escape when he was kidnapped before and then get abducted?” Xie Shenzhi whispered to him.

“This blonde guy escaped with him. I checked with Mom, and it’s true.”

Xie Duzhi nodded, already piecing together the fullstory.

No wonder André Hugo was so enthusiastic.

André, whose face brightened at their sibling’s approval, missed that both older brothers wore expressions of mild disapproval mixed with reluctance to crush his enthusiasm.

“Don’t worry. If you want to get close to my brother, you need to go through me.”

Xie Duzhi adjusted his glasses. He didn’t tell him that the statement applied even more strictly to him.

He made his statement in an understated way that André might not fully understand.

He was just about to wrap things up and get the group moving upstairs when the youngest of the four, Gu Mingyue, finally caught up, breathing hard after giving his permission slip to the school staff.

“Can I stay with you tonight, Heng?”

“No.” Xie Duzhi nodded at him, having already roughly deduced the full picture of the situation.

“It’s not convenient to talk here; let’s go upstairs first,” he said to André.

The “Hugo” in André’s surname was indeed the Hugo that Xie Duzhi knew of—a family that had made its fortune through colonization, settled in Canada, and later moved to the United States at the beginning of this century. Now, their primary industry was oil trading.

The Hugo family was fairly prosperous.

Considering that André had just emphasized that he had sufficient dowry and a pending inheritance, more than enough to cover family expenses and costs, Xie Duzhi had almost completely identified his background.

In the eyes of the young man, André wasn’t a particularly challenging target.

But to André, this newly appeared brother of his “angel” seemed noticeably kinder than the previous one.

He still had no idea what kind of blow he was about to face. Eagerly, he followed Xie Duzhi upstairs, continually expressing his loyalty from behind.

However, as soon as the door closed, the young man’s attitude plunged to sub-zero levels.

“First, I hope you understand something clearly.”

“No matter who my brother met, or who he was stuck in the same room with, he would have chosen to help.”

Xie Duzhi turned around. “It just happened to be you that he met at that time.”

Xie Shenzhi felt that there was something strange about his tone, but he couldn’t pinpoint it, so he nodded in agreement. “That’s right. Heng has always been a kind-hearted child who likes to help others since he was young.”

Li Heng was positioned protectively between them, shielded from either side.

André couldn’t even see him directly and had to crane his neck while explaining, “I know. That’s why I said he’s my angel. I want to build a family with him, to join your family.”

He didn’t believe in God—despite maintaining email correspondence with his current mentor for years before receiving the school’s offer.

His mentor believed in God and would often connect the simplest math problems to physics, and then from physics to God.

Whenever God came up, he would add sarcastic emojis or attach game music titled “The Gods Are Dead” to express his disdain.

After all, he was a genius, and geniuses had certain privileges that could be irritating to others.

However, after falling in love at first sight—and realizing that this love-at-first-sight was the very same person who had taken his hand and led him toward the light many years ago, he had to admit that his mentor might have been right.

If there were no God subtly guiding everything, how could such coincidences and good fortune exist?

“I sincerely want to live with him and have the same last name,” he said with a deep bow, hoping his solemn attitude would convey his determination.

“Your Chinese isn’t as poor as I thought,” Xie Duzhi suddenly remarked, then repeated himself in English and even French.

Unlike Xie Shenzhi, who would get misled by a couple of logically flawed statements, combined with a very obvious accent, Xie Duzhi remained cautious.

Aside from being a brother, he was actually in a similar position to André and was naturally wary of him.

His priorities differed from Xie Shenzhi’s.

“Perhaps you don’t fully grasp the cultural context of marriage here, but I’m sure you understand what it means for two unrelated strangers to form a family.”

He spoke with an unruffled calm, his gaze like an ancient well, showing not a ripple of emotion.

To André, Xie Duzhi felt “deep,” so deep that if one tried to see further down, they would only encounter an endless darkness with no sense of reality.

“From the moment we met, you’ve expressed only one intention.”

At this point, Xie Duzhi paused, swallowing a slight and complex emotion that rose in his throat. “You want to pursue him and try to obtain our permission without triggering our rejection.”

His words startled not only the person in question, who hadn’t realized he was being pursued, but also Xie Shenzhi, who hadn’t thought deeply about André’s relentless pestering.

The Xie family was relatively open-minded, and in front of them, their parents never shied away from discussing relationships. In fact, during their teenage years, because both he and Xie Duzhi showed no interest in such matters, Mrs. Xie had subtly tried to have a private talk with them.

But the eldest Xie brother had been entirely focused on work in recent years; his heart, encased in an iron shell, showed no signs of softening or even budding.

Plus, André’s light-hearted attitude about “marriage” gave the impression of a reckless decision, as if he’d made up his mind without understanding anything, with age being another factor.

Xie Shenzhi didn’t realize that André had just stated his determination to pursue—going so far as to suggest marrying into their family.

But did their family need someone to marry in???

Xie Shenzhi’s face darkened to the color of a pot’s bottom.

“My brother—” He cleared his throat, deciding to reject this golden-haired boy outright, no matter what.

“I’ll handle it.” Xie Duzhi shook his head at him, successfully stopping him before he could say anything.

“That’s exactly what I mean,” André admitted straightforwardly.

“I pretty much fell in love with him at first sight…” He tried to reveal his inner feelings to the two guardians of his “angel,” to explain how God’s arrangement had been so perfect.

Xie Duzhi didn’t let him finish.

“—But before you start your pursuit, I want to make a few things clear.”

He interrupted his enthusiastic speech. “First, family background.”

“Since you know something about our culture and understand the concept of adapting to local customs, you should be aware that we also value matching backgrounds.”

André nodded, almost impatiently. “I can prove I have the capability…”

“Quiet,” Xie Shenzhi suddenly interjected.

“As the eldest, in our father’s absence, I am temporarily taking on his role.”

“You are now facing an elder.”

He shot André a stern look, instinctively backing up Xie Duzhi to maintain order.

André immediately fell silent and stood even straighter.

He wanted to explain, but remembered he’d been asked to stay quiet, so he kept nodding vigorously, trying to greet them with his eyes.

Xie Shenzhi completely ignored him.

“My brother currently holds…”

Xie Duzhi listed everything, from shares to real estate, and finally those difficult-to-quantify antiques and jewelry, converting it all into USD to give André an estimated figure of Li Heng’s assets.

“The above is based on the most conservative calculations. I also didn’t include the profits generated from reinvesting these assets.”

Xie Duzhi’s tone was entirely businesslike. “Can you guarantee that you can support him?”

André was in disbelief, but under Xie Shenzhi’s imposing presence, he dared not speak and remained silent.

Li Heng noticed that his head drooped noticeably compared to earlier.

“You might say that the current amount of wealth doesn’t matter, that you’re still young and have a limitless future, that you can provide him with the best life through hard work.”

Xie Duzhi continued, “But from a family’s perspective, we wouldn’t agree to let him spend his precious youth betting on your potential achievements.”

“You should at least achieve something to prove your ability before you stand before us, making promises about the future and discussing courtship.”

Had there not been an outsider present, Xie Shenzhi would’ve clapped him on the shoulder, raised several thumbs up, and expressed his deep satisfaction.

See, this is what a proper brother should act like!

He even wanted to record it and, later on, force the second brother to watch the whole thing, demanding a proper reflection and a written response.

André, whose assets were frozen and who might have his mentor abandon him halfway, hung his head in shame, unable to refute a single word.

Without being richer than his angel and unable to prove his capability, how could he convince his angel’s family to accept his pursuit and trust that he could bring happiness?

“The third and most important point—above all, as family, we want him to be happy. Even if none of the above conditions are met, as long as he loves you, we won’t oppose it and would sincerely wish you both well.”

Unsurprisingly, a strong sense of hope burst from André, his head no longer drooping as it had before.

“But can you guarantee that your family would accept my brother the same way we’d accept you, without any objection to you giving your assets to him?”

Xie Duzhi’s lips curved upward slightly. “Mr. Hugo, I believe you can’t make that guarantee.”

“I have had business dealings with your family and I am familiar with its structure.”

The little bit of hope that had sprouted in Andre’s heart quickly vanished, his frustration deeper than before.

“I-I’m sorry… I was too rash,” he said with a touch of disorientation. “You’re right, I don’t currently have the ability to say I can marry him or ensure his happiness…”

He looked utterly devastated. Even his golden curls seemed to lose their luster, his shoulders slumped, and his expression revealed the heaviness of someone who had been rejected, like a large abandoned dog.

Li Heng couldn’t help but feel a bit sorry for him.

Because Xie Duzhi had cleverly shifted the topic from mere courtship to long-term commitment, increasing André psychological burden.

He had purposely led him into a logical trap.

Yet, feeling sorry for André aside…

On one hand, he was stunned by how ruthless his third and eldest brothers could be. On the other, he found his brothers—especially Xie Duzhi—oddly endearing.

However, when André had mentioned pursuing him, Li Heng found that he didn’t reject the idea of being pursued by someone of the same sex.

He just felt surprised.

Moreover, he was certain that he didn’t have any feelings for him beyond friendship.

André simply wasn’t his type.

He realized that, whether it was men or women, he seemed to be drawn to people who shared a particular quality.