The conversation between Qin Siyang and Li Tianming had an immediate effect.
That very afternoon, Li Tianming brought Li Pengfei to the guesthouse, specifically to meet Chen Fenghe.
"Little Fei, be good, listen to this Brother Qin. Uncle Li will come pick you up later."
"Okay."
Li Tianming gave Qin Siyang a meaningful look, and Qin Siyang understood.
"Alright, Little Fei, big brother will play with you for a bit."
Li Tianming temporarily entrusted Li Pengfei to Qin Siyang's care, while he went to have a private, long talk with Chen Fenghe in another room of the guesthouse.
Li Pengfei hugged his toy car, standing obediently in Qin Siyang's room, his big eyes staring at him.
"What are you standing there for? Sit down."
"Thank you, Brother."
Li Pengfei nodded politely to Qin Siyang, then sat down on the sofa.
He lowered his head, fiddling with the toy car in his arms.
From time to time, he'd sneak glances up at Qin Siyang, as if checking to see whether he was angry or unhappy.
In truth, Qin Siyang had never had a good impression of Li Pengfei.
After all, because of Li Tianming, he had already lost someone who had surrendered and given up resistance.
But looking at the obedient, cute little boy today, Qin Siyang couldn't help but feel a bit of sympathy.
'A child, naive and ignorant, how could he be blamed for anything?'
Besides, he was such a well-behaved kid.
Qin Siyang took a bottle of drink from the refrigerator, opened it, and set it on the table, then sat down beside Li Pengfei.
"If you're thirsty, have a drink. Big brother's treat."
"Thank you, Brother."
Li Pengfei placed his toy car in his lap, then took the bottle with both hands, drank a few sips, and let out a burp.
Then, picking up his toy car again, he asked, "Brother Qin, do you want to play?"
Qin Siyang took the toy car and examined it for a moment. He could see traces of sanding on its surface, it was well-crafted.
He handed it back to Li Pengfei, "Who gave you this toy car?"
At the mention of it, light flashed in the boy's eyes, "Uncle Li. He's amazing! I saw him buy the parts and slowly put the whole car together with my own eyes!"
Qin Siyang nodded, "Your Uncle Li has always been impressive."
"Brother Qin, you know Uncle Li really well, right?"
"How do you know that?"
"Because the first time I met you, you called him 'Old Li' like the other uncles did. But you're younger than all of them, and you can still call him that, so you must be close."
Qin Siyang glanced at Li Pengfei in mild surprise.
'So young, yet so observant and sharp.'
'As expected of Old Li's son, the genetics and talent are strong.'
"Yes, your Uncle Li and I are very close."
Li Pengfei continued, "You're close with Uncle Li, and Uncle Li is close with my dad, so are you close with my dad too?"
When he said this, Li Pengfei tilted his head up and looked straight into Qin Siyang's eyes.
Qin Siyang knew, the more you say, the more likely you'll slip up, and he originally wanted to deny it.
But those clear, innocent eyes made it impossible for him to lie.
He could only manage a stiff smile, "Mm, your dad and I are close too."
"Then do you know what my dad looks like?"
"Uh… messy hair, big eyes but kind of dull-looking, some stubble, pretty thin…"
Qin Siyang hesitated for a moment, then described Zhang Kuang's appearance.
"What does 'dull-looking' mean?"
"It means there's no light in his eyes."
"Oh. Then you really do know my dad."
"Of course."
After hearing that, Li Pengfei pursed his lips.
Then he asked softly, "Brother Qin, there's something I want to ask you, but you can't tell anyone else, okay?"
"Alright. Go ahead."
"Are my mom and dad both dead?"
Qin Siyang's heart skipped, "Huh? Why would you ask that?"
Li Pengfei fiddled with the toy in his hands, "I just guessed."
"Then, have you asked Uncle Li about it?"
Li Pengfei shook his head, "No."
"Why not?"
"Uncle Li told me my parents went away because they had something important to do, and that they'd come see me after a while. Since he said that, if I asked, he'd definitely deny it."
After clearly and fluently saying that, Qin Siyang was even more astonished.
'Such clarity, such logic.'
'Compared to him at six years old, I have practically been an idiot.'
Qin Siyang asked again, "So why did you guess your parents were both dead?"
Li Pengfei was still playing with the toy car in his hands, "My mom used to take me to school and pick me up every day. She told me that unless she died, she'd never leave me."
"Now, it's been so many days since I last saw her. I haven't gone to school in just as many days. If my mom were still alive, she wouldn't disappear like this without telling me anything."
After he finished, Li Pengfei fell silent.
He turned the toy car over and over in his hands, transforming it into the shape of a robot.
Qin Siyang asked again, "Then how did you guess your dad is dead too?"
"It's been a long time since I last saw my dad. I really miss him. I remember he said he missed me too. But my mom and dad didn't get along. At home, my mom wouldn't even let me mention his name."
"My mom's dead now. My dad should have come to get me."
"But the one who came wasn't my dad, it was Uncle Li."
After saying that, Li Pengfei's eyes dimmed.
"If my dad were still alive, he should've come for me."
Qin Siyang resisted the urge to sigh, forcing a smile, "Maybe Uncle Li didn't lie to you?"
Li Pengfei shook his head.
"Uncle Li said my parents left together to do something else."
"But my mom and dad's relationship was so bad, they haven't been together in years. How could they possibly leave together?"
When he said this, Li Pengfei didn't even look up at Qin Siyang for an answer.
He had already reached a firm conclusion in his heart.
Dad and Mom, they were both dead.
Qin Siyang was speechless.
Inside, he felt helpless beyond words.
'Old Li, oh Old Li… did it ever occur to you that you can't even fool a six-year-old child?'
"As for your parents, I really don't know as much as Uncle Li does."
Qin Siyang didn't try to hide behind lies anymore. He patted Li Pengfei's little head and asked, "Do you miss your parents?"
Li Pengfei nodded.
"Have you told Uncle Li?"
He shook his head again.
"Why not?"
"Since Uncle Li lied to me, that means he doesn't want me to be sad. If I ask him, it'll only make him feel bad."
Qin Siyang sighed softly.
As someone who had grown up an orphan, he didn't really understand what it felt like to miss one's parents. But still, he couldn't help asking, "When you miss your mom and dad, what does it feel like?"
"It makes me want to cry."
"Then do you cry?"
Li Pengfei shook his head again.
"You don't?"
"I hold it in."
"Why?"
"Uncle Li's really good to me. I don't want to trouble him."