Chapter Text
EXTRA 1
Muzha X Ao Jia First Meeting
The bell above the floral shop door chimed and in strolled someone who Muzha was pretty sure just stepped right out of his fantasies.
There was a bright smile on his handsome face, complemented by his stylish blonde hair. His white suit hugged his slender figure deliciously.
Muzha immediately threw whatever he had on hand aside, grabbed a nearby flower and hurriedly approached the man.
“Hello! Welcome to the Li Family Florals! Congratulations on being our 100th customer, here's a special prize for you,” He handed over the bunch of roses with his most charming smile.
Behind the counter, Jinzha snorted.
“Wow! Ah, but I'm afraid I'm not a customer,” Prince Charming rubbed the back of his neck apologetically and lifted up a cake box, “I'm Ao Jia, my brother Ao Bing had just opened his tattoo studio next door. I’m just here to drop a welcome gift and ask you to keep a lookout for him.”
“Of course! Nice to meet you, I'm Li Muzha, one of the three brothers who run this place,” He grabbed Ao Jia’s hand to shake it enthusiastically, relishing in the warm physical contact.
“That's my Da Ge, Jinzha,” He jabbed a thumb at the counter and Jinzha gave a wave.
“And don't worry, I'm sure our San Di, Nezha, will take good care of your Ao Bing,” He added with a knowing chuckle.
Ao Jia raised his brows in amusement. “Oh?”
“Anyway, it's okay! We can take this as a trade,” Muzha took the cake from him and pushed the flowers into his hands, making sure to curl his fingers around his.
“Ah.. alright then, thank you!”
They exchanged smiles, and Muzha could feel his stomach flutter.
Jinzha broke the sweet moment with a pointed cough.
Muzha pulled back with an embarrassed chuckle.
“I guess I should get going first, thank you two once again, I'll see you around!” Ao Jia bid his cheery goodbye and left.
The door clicked shut after him.
Muzha immediately turned around to gush, “Oh my god, Ge, did you see that??? A literal angel had just descended from above!”
He was answered with a flat, “That flower you gave him is coming out of your paycheck.”
“What?! Ge, how could you be so unsupportive in your brother's pursuit of love?” He whined.
Jinzha scoffed.
“If you gave every attractive person that walked through that door free flowers, I'll have no business to run.”
“Aha, so you do admit that he's attractive!” Muzha pointed out, ignoring the rest of his sentence.
He placed his face in his hands and sighed forlornly, “I really want to meet the people who gave the Ao family these genes.”
Jinzha rolled his eyes.
“Keep dreaming.”
EXTRA 2
Jinzha X Ao Yi First Meeting
Jinzha watched in amusement as a teal-haired man in a sharp, grey suit looked around the floral shop like the flowers had personally offended him.
Finally, he stepped forth towards him.
“Hello sir, do you need any help?”
The man blinked at him slowly.
“Do you sell plants apart from flowers?”
Jinzha nodded and directed him to another part of the store.
“Of course, we have a selection of potted plants and succulents here. Are you looking for a specific type?”
The man's brows furrowed deeper.
“I’m not sure. I'm buying it for my younger brother.”
“Oh. How old is your brother? What is he like?”
“He's 21. He's.. very obedient.”
Jinzha couldn't contain his chuckle.
First of all, the image of this serious man describing his adult brother like a child was hilarious.
Second of all, “Sorry, it's just. My youngest brother is also that age and ‘obedient’ is very far from what I would describe him to be,” He explained to the sullen customer.
The man eyed him consideringly for a beat.
“Do you.. know of a Li Nezha?”
Jinzha’s smile froze.
Usually this statement was followed by a myriad of complaints. He braced himself with an internal sigh.
“Yes, I'm his eldest brother, Jinzha. How do you know him?” He asked tentatively.
“Hm. I met him in the tattoo parlour next door yesterday. I'm Ao Bing's second brother, Ao Yi.”
Jinzha blinked and gave the man another quick once-over. Okay, yeah, Muzha's got a point on the good genes.
“Ah, so you're buying the plants for Ao Bing?”
He gave a short nod. “Yes. I thought that it would help brighten up the studio.”
That's pretty sweet of him.
Jinzha suddenly reflected on being an older brother himself.
But then he remembered the amount of messes he had cleaned up after Nezha, along with the amount of times he had protected Muzha from Nezha’s wrath, and concluded that he was actually, in fact, a goddamn saint.
Pleased with his introspection, he tuned back in to the present.
“I see, that's very nice of you,” He complimented with a sincere smile.
Ao Yi averted his gaze to the plants, but Jinzha noticed that the tips of his ears were red.
Cute.
“For indoor plants which don't require too much sun, I recommend the ones here, with your choice of either hanging or potted plants of varying sizes.” He gestured at the mentioned plants.
Ao Yi assessed each plant up close with the scrutiny of a police inspection before he straightened up and gave Jinzha a nod.
“Alright, I'll take one of each plant from here.”
Jinzha’s lips parted in silent surprise.
“Y-You mean all the plants?”
“Yes,” Ao Yi answered with a straight face. “It's that not allowed?”
“No, no, of course that's fine! Uh, but perhaps you might want to start with a few plants first, to see if Ao Bing is able to commit to maintaining them before getting more?” He suggested.
He wasn't too sure how Ao Bing would feel when he realised that he was suddenly a plant dad of 20.
Ao Yi’s brows’ furrowed again, and Jinzha realised it just happens when he's deep in thought.
“I will not ask Ao Bing to be in charge of these plants – I will tend to them myself. Alright then, please deliver any 5 of these to the tattoo studio and I will return for more in the future.”
There was just something so inexplicably sexy about claiming responsibility for the plants that prompted Jinzha to blurt out, “You can have my number.”
Ao Yi's eyebrows jumped.
“I m-mean, to contact me if you face any problems while taking care of the plants! If you want, of course,” He rambled, mildly horrified at what he had just offered. He thinks that Nezha's impulsivity was rubbing off on him.
Ao Yi blinked, looking away again with red ears. “...Okay,” He answered to the plants.
Jinzha felt his cheeks warm as his heart danced in celebration.
“That's great!” And before he knew it, he found the words tumbling out of his mouth, “In fact, we are actually having a promotion now – for bulk purchases, the first five plants are free!”
Li Jinzha, he scolded himself, you're no better than Muzha!
Thankfully, Ao Yi did not suspect anything unusual and just nodded.
Jinzha went to ring up his order and shyly added his number at the bottom of the invoice. “I will arrange the delivery timing with you on the phone.”
“Okay, thank you.”
Ao Yi took the sheet and turned to go but paused in his step.
“You.. when are you usually in?”
“Ah? I-I'm usually in from Wednesday to Sunday,” Jinzha replied to his back view.
“Okay. I'll see you then.”
Jinzha felt his heart skip a beat when he caught a glimpse of Ao Yi's quirked lips before he fled the shop.
“See you!” He belatedly called out after the door had shut.
5 minutes later, the florist's phone buzzed, breaking him out of his daze.
Text from Unknown
> This is Ao Yi.
> May I ask when is the earliest you can deliver the plants?
Jinzha broke into a giddy smile.
EXTRA 3
Current Ao Family Disaster Dinner
“Here, eat more.”
Jinzha picked out some ingredients from the table into Ao Yi’s bowl.
“Come, baobei, ahhh,” Muzha fed an embarrassed Ao Jia with his chopsticks.
Nezha was digging into his own bowl heartily, to which Ao Bing had to help him wipe his face clean of rice bits with a fond smile.
“...” Ao Guang has never felt more like a single dog in his entire life.
How did this happen?
It was supposed to be a precious time for him to catch up with his sons, but now they were stolen away from right under his nose!
Something must have shown on his face, because the next thing he knows, Ao Bing has picked out some ingredients into his bowl instead.
“Dad, please eat.”
His heart warmed. His youngest son was truly Daddy's best boy!
Probably realising they seemed to have forgotten about their father's presence, Ao Jia and Ao Yi follow suit to add more food into his bowl.
“Dad, please eat,” They echoed.
“Mn,” Ao Guang nodded with a sniff.
At least they remembered that they have a father at this table!
“Uncle, have more bok choy, it's good for your health,” Jinzha stood up and considerately picked out the vegetables into his increasingly crowded bowl.
Not one to miss out, Muzha also stood up and scooped some beancurd for him with a, “Uncle, this beancurd will keep your skin looking as good as it is now!”
Ao Guang gave a stiff nod.
But when Nezha wanted to contribute an entire chicken leg to his already overflowing bowl, he had to block it with his chopsticks.
“Enough. Please enjoy it yourself.”
Nezha shrugged and demolished it with gusto.
Ao Guang cleared his throat.
“So, all of you three are brothers working at the same place?” He questioned.
“Yes, Uncle,” Jinzha answered, “I'm in charge of the business side of things, Muzha oversees the marketing and Nezha does the logisitics. We all take turns to create the flower bouquets.”
Ao Guang made a noise of assent.
“And how is the shop doing?”
“It's good! We have a steady flow of orders from the bridal boutique down the street for weddings, and also many online orders thanks to Muzha's marketing efforts."
“It’s Da Ge’s idea to expand into selling plants as well, and they are all well taken care of by San Di,” Muzha chimed in.
Nezha preened and rubbed his nose. “It’s nothing, a mere few plants isn't enough to faze me!”
Apart from Ao Guang, the table broke into polite laughter. The man only acknowledged it with an unimpressed, “Mn.”
He suddenly held his stomach with a slight grimace, prompting Ao Bing to ask in concern, “Are you okay, Dad? Do you need your digestion pills?”
“I left them in the car.”
“Then I'll go get them for you,” Ao Bing offered.
Ao Guang nodded and passed him the car keys.
“I'll go with you!” Nezha stood up and followed after Ao Bing.
The moment the door had closed, Ao Guang straightened up in his seat to his full height.
He turned towards the newcomers with a solemn face.
“5 years back, the two sons of the Li Family were the top of their cohort in the police academy,” He started to narrate before questioning sharply, “Why did you two suddenly quit to open a floral shop?”
“Ah, when we were chasing a dangerous criminal, we got into a big confrontation and received major injuries. We didn't want to be bound to desk duties for the rest of our lives, so we switched careers,” Jinzha explained meekly.
“Yeah, and since Da Ge studied Business while I had my Marketing degree, we decided to to start our own business. Our mum had always liked flowers and we all had a hand in our family's garden, so we went into this industry,” Muzha added.
Ao Guang huffed.
He pulled out two folders from his briefcase and slammed them onto the table.
“I read your medical reports, your injuries weren't that serious to bind you to your desk permanently,” He stated before throwing another folder to the pile, “Meanwhile, Nezha had multiple property damage charges every year except for the year that you two quit."
He narrowed his eyes at them and snarled, "I hate liars the most, speak the truth!”
Jinzha and Muzha exchanged nervous glances.
Ao Jia frowned disapprovingly. “Dad, they don't owe you an explanation for their past.”
“They do if it concerns the safety of my family,” Ao Guang replied in a tone that brooked no arguments.
Ao Yi spoke up, “But –”
“It’s alright. We understand your concerns, just don't.. let my San Di know.”
Jinzha eyed the closed door before continuing with a sigh, “You see, Nezha has always been an.. energetic child. But our parents and us have always been too busy to burn his energy, so he'll take it out on other things instead.”
“But he's still a good kid,” Muzha insisted, “Most of the time, he's only destructive by accident. Like a puppy chewing your stuff when left alone.”
“We thought that he'll mellow down with time, but 5 years ago.. he offended the wrong people at the wrong place. The police caught him in a fight with a local gang who, when were found to be carrying drugs, wanted to drag Nezha down into the dirty waters with them. So they claimed that he was one of their runners.”
Ao Guang raised a brow.
“And you're so sure that he wasn't?”
“He obviously wasn't! Those bastards were all in various states of beaten up while Nezha only had bruised knuckles. Also, his blood was clean and he had no need for money,” Muzha defended hotly.
“He could be acting out to get your attention.”
Jinzha shook his head.
“Our grandparents were killed by a drug lord, he will never get involved with drugs.”
Muzha snorted. “Yeah, San Di had even said, and I quote, ‘If I wanted to work with a bunch of clowns, I would have just joined the circus.’”
Ao Jia and Ao Yi coughed.
“Anyone with eyes could see that they were lying. Unfortunately, our boss saw this as an opportunity. He had always saw me and Muzha as a threat to his position, so he offered us a deal..” Jinzha trailed off.
Ao Guang instantly understood.
“You two to leave your jobs in exchange for clearing Nezha's name.” He realised aloud.
The door of the private room suddenly opened with a bang and Nezha stood there with red eyes.
“Is that true?” He demanded coldly.
Jinzha and Muzha froze.
Nezha grabbed the folders on the table and flipped through them harshly. Finally, he threw them down and stalked off.
“Wait–” “Nezha–!” His elder brothers stood up to chase after him.
“Ao Bing,” Ao Guang called when his youngest son wanted to follow. “Let them settle their family dispute themselves.”
“But Dad–”
“Familial ties are stronger without secrets between them,” Ao Guang said sagely.
He picked up his chopsticks again and smiled for the first time that night.
“Come, let's have dinner.”
***
“Damn, that brat sure can run fast, huh,” Muzha cursed when they had exited the restaurant to be met with dark skies and an empty street.
“He's probably hiding somewhere nearby,” Jinzha guessed.
He whipped out his phone and clicked on the map app.
“Where's the last place he hid when he had a tantrum?” Muzha questioned.
Jinzha zoomed in on their location with a sparkle in his eyes.
“Got it.”
“Yoink!” Muzha pulled the man hiding inside the nearby empty playground slide out, holding him in the air by the armpits.
Nezha wasn't small by any means at 178cm, but his 193cm and 195cm brothers like to treat him so.
“Who is this poor little meow meow~~?” Muzha sung as he swung him side to side like he was handling a feral cat struggling in his grip.
“Fuck off! Let me go!” Nezha wiped at his wet face.
“Over on to you, Da Ge!” His second brother threw him onto a crouching Jinzha's waiting back.
The eldest brother immediately hiked up him with a strong grip on his thighs into a piggyback. To keep his balance, Nezha had to sling his arms around his brother's neck.
“Let me down, I'm not a child anymore!” Nezha kicked his legs fiercely.
“If you're not a child, then why are you still crying, hah?” Muzha ruffled his hair from beside them.
“Shut up! I'm not crying!” Nezha hid his face in his brother's back, which was as safe and warm as he remembered.
The last time he was carried, it was after he had managed to beat up a bunch of kidnappers when he was 12.
Unfortunately, he had accidentally tripped and sprained his ankle in the midst of running away. With an injured leg and up against 5 adults chasing him, his odds of winning are significantly lowered.
But that obviously didn't stop him from facing them head on. There was an instant when someone behind him was about to hit him with a metal bat, but he was blocked at the last moment.
Apparently, Jinzha had arrived in the nick of time and had took the hit with his leg. He very quickly took down the rest of the assailants.
“Nezha, are you alright?” His elder brother had fretted over him afterwards.
“I'm fine, just sprained my ankle,” He replied in faux nonchalance, “Why did you suddenly come?”
“The chauffeur called to say that they haven't seen you since school was dismissed. So they were worried that something had happened.”
Nezha scoffed, “Tch, I could have handled these losers with one eye closed if I hadn't tripped!"
“Of course they cannot hold a candle to you,” Jinzha agreed humbly, “But since I'm here already, I guess you'll have to let me do the lowly work and let me carry you to the car.”
Nezha relented with a harrumph, getting onto his brother's broad back.
It was strange, his brother’s gait seemed to be a little uneven.
Eventually, he got used to the up and down walking movement and was lulled to sleep.
It was only after that he had realised that his brother’s shin was actually slightly fractured by the blow he had took for Nezha.
“For my mistakes, I can face the consequences myself! I don't need anyone else to take the fall!” Nezha declared vehemently before muttering in a small voice into his Jinzha's back. “I just.. don't want to be anybody's burden.”
The elder brothers shared a look.
“Aiya, always so dramatic, are you trying to win an Oscar?” Muzha teased fondly. “Unless you need me to pick bugs off you everyday, you're can't be more burdensome to us than a plant!”
Jinzha let out a sigh.
“Di Di, we didn't quit the police force just because of you, we quit because–”
“Because it SUCKED!” Muzha admitted with a groan, throwing his hands up. “Like, we didn't want to ruin your impression of our parent's jobs, but the truth was that it sucks! Our boss was a cunning hypocrite that has it out against us—”
“The hours are long and unrewarding—” Jinzha interjected.
“And the coffee tasted like toilet water!” Muzha added with a look of disdain.
The oldest brother continued to list, “The murder cases makes you lose hope in humanity —"
“And that's only 20% of the work. The other 80% were writing boring reports and attending soul-sucking meetings that could've been an email!”
Jinzha nodded gravely and pointed out, “Not to mention the workplace politics.”
“Oh god, the politics!” Muzha bemoaned, rolling his eyes. “I swear if the people there spent half the effort and time on politics on doing their job, this country could actually be free of crime!”
They both huffed in exasperation.
Jinzha concluded, “Our point is—”
“We didn't sacrifice anything for you, Leonardo Dicaprio,” Muzha snarked as he gave Nezha a slap on the back.
“And even if we did, it'll be worth it." Jinzha added in an indulgent tone, “You're our baby brother, who else should we dote on, hm?”
“I'm not a baby!” Nezha denied grouchily, eyes welling up despite his statement.
“Alright not-baby, so when are you getting off Da Ge?” Muzha prodded, “I want a turn too!”
Nezha tightened his hold on Jinzha with a scowl. “Who wants to ride on your back?” He sniffled.
“Who wants you to ride on my back???” Muzha asked, baffled. “I meant that I want to be piggybacked by Da Ge too!”
Jinzha blinked.
“W-What?”
“What's the problem? Aren't I also your Di Di?" Muzha complained, “Don't be so biased, Da Ge!”
Jinzha gave him a flat look.
Their age difference was only 2 years, compared to Nezha who was 12 years younger!
Nezha eyed his second brother skeptically. While Jinzha had a few scant centimeters on Muzha, the latter was easily twice as broad as the former.
“You ride on Da Ge?” He sneered, tears momentarily forgotten. “Are you trying to snap his spine!”
“What are you talking about,” Muzha gestured to his own beefy build shamelessly, “I'm as light as a feather!”
“Pffft!” Both his brothers let out a snort.
“What are you two laughing about? I'll prove it to you this instant!” He advanced on them from the back, hands coming up on Jinzha's shoulders and prepared to pounce.
“H-Hold on– No! Nezha, stop him!”
Nezha turned his head to chomp on Muzha's forearm.
“Argh! Stinky brat!” He cried as he quickly let go.
“Run, Da Ge, run!” Nezha urged and Jinzha took off with Muzha hot on their heels.
Three grown men can be seen chasing each other in laughter, breaking the quietness of the neighbourhood.
“Time out! I'm too old for this! No more!” Jinzha announced 10 minutes later as he dropped Nezha off his back to catch his breath.
Muzha panted and grumbled, “You could have avoided this if you'd just carry me on your back.”
Nezha, tears now dry from the wind, let out a deep exhale.
At times like this, he's thankful to have his two brothers.
They all shared a moment of peace on a nearby park bench.
However..
Nezha scratched his chin and pondered aloud, “I keep feeling like we're forgetting about something..”
Jinzha and Muzha suddenly straightened up, exchanging a look.
“Daddy Ao!”
***
“Uncle, we're back, sorry for the disruption,” Jinzha apologised when they had returned to the restaurant. His two brothers followed behind him like little ducklings.
The Ao brothers perked up visibly, a contrast to Ao Guang's look of disappointment.
“Mn, sit,” He reluctantly instructed.
The Li brothers took their seats meekly. Their respective partners immediately asked after them in concern while holding their hands.
Ao Guang gave them a moment to settle down before dropping the bomb, “While I'm glad your family has resolved your problems, I'm afraid that I still can't accept you three.”
“Dad!” The three Ao brothers protested in unison.
“What? Why?” Nezha demanded indignantly.
“My old enemies.. have connections to some of the police. They will suspect us of spilling trade secrets and hunt us down if they knew that you are all dating my sons,” Ao Guang replied.
“Connections?” Jinzha echoed in thought. “You mean.. Bai Wuliang?”
Ao Guang paused, speaking his next words carefully.
“What do you know about Bai Wuliang?”
“Hah!” Muzha gloated gleefully, “We know that he and all his illegal associates have been imprisoned for good!”
Ao Guang’s eyes widened.
“What? Why haven't I heard any news of this?”
Jinzha revealed, “Bai Wuliang was a big name supported by many people, and his corrupted roots spread far and wide. Almost a quarter of the entire police force was found to be involved in his dirty dealings and have been subsequently imprisoned.”
“The police department didn't want the scandal to blow up and lose the people's trust, so the media was banned from reporting it,” Muzha explained.
Ao Guang raised a brow.
“Then how do you two know?”
“Our parents have long since suspected Bai Wuliang of his underhand dealings, but they could never find any solid trace,” Jinzha narrated with a sly smile, “So we gave them a recording of him blackmailing us about Nezha to use as an excuse to search his property, allowing them to dig up all sorts of evidence.”
“And now our evil boss is finally in jail! Look, I even took a photo!” Muzha pulled out his phone to show a selfie of him sticking out his tongue with the bald and angry Bai Wuliang clutching the prison bars behind him.
Ao Guang blinked at the picture.
"Right.."
He closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose in thought.
All these years of running and hiding from both sides of the law was just gone like that? No wonder there had been no recent news of his old enemies reported by the lookout he hired.
Who knew that all it took was just one Li Family. Even the Nezha rascal played a part in Bai Wuliang’s downfall. Without the mess he created, the old man wouldn't have revealed his true face.
Was this fate?
Nonetheless, although the net of justice had been cast, it's inevitable for one or two fishes to slip through. But was this small possibility enough reason to break up the children’s relationships?
Ao Guang opened his eyes to be met with all of his 3 sons’ big and watery eyes.
Combo attack!
His heart was instantly shot by three arrows.
Finally, he let out a deep breath.
“Very well. You three may continue seeing my sons.. for now,” He declared, not before warning sternly, “But one wrong move and you'll get it."
“Yes, Uncle!” The Li brothers saluted
"Thank you, Dad!" His sons ran over to give him happy hugs, reaffirming Ao Guang in his decision.
“And also, on one condition,” He added.
They all gave him a curious look.
“What?”
“Stop joining in on the Ao Family dinner,” Ao Guang told the Li family firmly, “Maximum of once per month.”
Quit hogging his quality time with his sons!
They all shared an embarrassed look, except for Nezha, who agreed with an eager nod.
“Deal!”