Zhou Chen and Zhang Xuan, along with Xingyue, Wang Maoxiu, Su Mengrou, Chen Ze, Director Lu and his wife Chen Chen, all came. Adding the entire Gu family, it was quite a lively gathering.
Chen Hui originally wanted to come, but she was too busy to attend Jiajia's birthday party. She heard that Jiajia liked the movie "I Am a Robot", so she specially asked someone to customize a model of the robot from the movie to give to him.
Chengjia was overjoyed and asked Mom, "With so many gifts, can I celebrate my birthday every day?"
Luo Zhengzheng looked at him with amusement: "Mom also wants to celebrate my birthday every day, but a person can only celebrate their birthday once a year."
Chengjia wasn't disappointed. Having one birthday celebration was already quite nice.
Clutching a huge pile of gifts, he went off to play with Chengrui, Chenghui, and Zhou Xingyue.
Chengrui, Chenghui, and Xing Yue have all gone to kindergarten. Jiajia was three years old now, so it was time for her to go to kindergarten too.
Luo Zhengzheng planned to send him to kindergarten in the second half of the year as it was a late for this year.
Zhou Xingyue had always adored this cute little brother, Jiajia, but he wasn't very close to her and only played with Chengrui and Chenghui, which troubles her.
It was not that Jiajia wasn't close to her, it was just that he didn't know how to interact with an overly enthusiastic young lady.
Compared to Zhou Xingyue, he preferred to play with his older paternal cousin sister and elder paternal cousin brother.
Upon seeing third aunt arrive with little brother Chengze, he immediately abandoned his elder cousins and ran to third aunt's side to coax younger brother.
Yu Shuang watched them with a smile and said to Luo Zhengzheng, "It seems that Jiajia prefers to be the older brother. Look, he likes to play with Zeze more."
Luo Zhengzheng didn't interfere with her son's social interactions, smiled, and let him play as he pleased.
Chen Ze picked Jiajia up and asked him, "Does Uncle have a beard today?"
Jiajia giggled and looked closely at his face: "No beard, Uncle is very clean today."
Chen Ze asked him with a smile, "You only let Uncle hold you if clean, right?"
Jiajia grinned and said, "I'll only let you hold me if clean, and I won't let you hold me if not clean."
Wang Maoxiu looked at him and said, "If you like children so much, hurry up and find a partner."
Chen Ze shook his head and looked at him: "Even if I get married and have children, they might not be as cute as our Jiajia. What's the point of getting married when already have a godson now?"
He had come to terms with it now. He would let things take their course. If he met someone he was attracted to, he would see. If he didn't, he wouldn't get married in this lifetime. It was not a big deal.
Anyway, he was rich, so why would he worry about not having a place to retire?
As for the parents wanting a grandchild?
His nephew from elder brother's family was already in elementary school. They already had a grandson.
Little Chengze was whimpering and crying at the side, so Jiajia quickly patted his arm and said, "Uncle, put me down. I need to go and coax my little brother."
Chen Ze deliberately teased him, refusing to let go, and said, "Your little brother has his mom to comfort him, how could you, a little rascal, comfort him?"
Extremely anxious, Jiajia looked at him seriously: "My little brother is crying. Put me down quickly. You're not being good."
Chen Ze chuckled: "Okay, okay, I'll be good and put you down."
When Jiajia touched the ground, he immediately took the little bell to comfort him. It just so happened Chengze was particular. His mom and his dad couldn't coax him, but he stopped crying as soon as his older brother came.
Yu Shuang found it strange: "These two children are destined."
Gu Boyuan and Ye Li arrived just in time to hear Yu Shuang's words. Gu Boyuan smilingly said, "They are cousins, isn't that destiny?"
Yu Shuang said with a smile, "Zeze kept crying and we couldn't comfort him, but he stopped crying as soon as Jiajia came over."
Ye Li loved it when people praised her grandson. No matter what aspect of him was praised, as long as he was praised, she was happy. She smiled and added, "Jiajia is popular with children. When he goes back to his maternal grandmother's house, all the children in the village like to play with him. When he goes to school in the future, the family may have to often help him entertain his classmates."
Realizing something was amiss, she added, "Of course, Zeze is a good kid too, otherwise why would his older brother like him so much?"
Yu Shuang wouldn't get angry over mother-in-law's slightly inappropriate words, after all, she was his own grandmother.
When Zhou Chen and his group saw Gu Boyuan and Ye Li arrive, they all stood up to greet them.
Gu Boyuan waved his hand, inviting them to sit down. He said a few words to them, gave Jiajia the gift, hugged him, and then went back to his side.
With the little brother asleep, Chengjia, carried his toys and led his friends to the toy room.
Chengrui looked at Chengjia with envy: "So many gifts. I want just as many gifts for my birthday."
Chenghui looked at him and asked a series of questions: "These are all gifts from uncles and aunts to Chengjia. Does your dad have many friends? Do your dad's friends like you?"
Chengrui's face scrunched up in a frown. After thinking for a long time, he said, "My dad also has many friends. Grandfather says they're all 'fox and dog friends.' What are 'fox and dog friends'?"
Chengjia propped his little face up and asked, "Uncle doesn't keep dogs or foxes, so how can he be friends with them?"
Chengrui nodded: "Dad doesn't have any fox and dog friends."
Chenghui looked at elder brother and then at younger brother, feeling that what they said was wrong, but she didn't know how to refute it.
Zhou Xingyue said, "You guys are really stupid. If you don't keep dogs and foxes at home, you can keep them outside."
Chengrui responded with an "oh".
Chengjia also responded with an "oh".
Chenghui rubbed her head, pursed her lips, and remained silent. She felt that what Elder Sister Xingyue said was also wrong, but she didn't know why.
After thinking for a moment, she said, "I'll ask my mom."
After saying that, she ran off.
When little Chengjia and the others saw their sister run out, they chased after her.
Auntie had just brought Little Chengze home to sleep. Yu Shuang was sitting on the sofa chatting with Luo Zhengzheng and the others when Chenghui ran to her mom's side and asked in a clear voice, "Mom, what does 'fox and dog friends' mean?"
Yu Shuang's face stiffened slightly: "Who told you that?"
The others were also stunned.
Chenghui looked up at her mom and said, "Elder Brother Ruirui said that Uncle's interact with all fox and dog friends. Uncle doesn't keep dogs or foxes, and he doesn't have any fox and dog friends."
Liu Hanyue abruptly spat out her tea.
Luo Zhengzheng couldn't help but laugh.
Wang Yaning was both annoyed and amused. She glared at her own son and then at Gu Ming
Zhang Xuan and Su Mengrou were also trying not to laugh.
Gu Ming sat quietly to the side, drinking tea and listening to his Fourth Younger Brother and his group of friends chat. He thought to himself that Fourth Younger Brother's friends were all doing well in business, and he might be able to learn something from listening to them and could figure out what kind of business he should do.
He never expected that listening to it would lead him to hear about himself.
He looked at Chengrui with his face dark and thought. "You brat, just you wait!"
Chengrui noticed the strange looks on everyone's faces and belatedly realized that he might have gotten into trouble. He immediately said, "It wasn't me who said it. Grandfather said that Dad's friends are all fox and dog friends. But we don't keep dogs or foxes at home, so he must be keeping them outside."
Liu Hanyue laughed uncontrollably and patted her nephew on the shoulder: "Your dad might be keeping a fox outside."
Gu Ming glanced at Wang Yaning, who was smiling and not looking at him. He then glared at Liu Hanyue and said, "Second Younger Sister-in-law, you can't say things like that and ruin my reputation."
Sitting at the side, Gu Xian had his shoulders hunched, trying his best to minimize his presence and afraid that Liu Hanyue would use this as an excuse to bring up past events.
Liu Hanyue smiled and wisely shut her mouth. She glanced at Gu Xian but didn't say anything. It was little Chengjia's birthday today and she couldn't be bothered to argue with him.
Gu Shi watched his two brothers from the side, finding it hard to put into words. Second Elder Brother was more capable than Eldest Brother, but he focused his attention elsewhere and didn't put his heart into his work. Eldest Brother, on the other hand, did put his heart into his work, but his abilities were somewhat lacking compared to his brothers. If he lacked ability, he could compensate with diligence and be more steady and that wouldn't be bad. Gu Shi suggested to their father give Eldest Brother more opportunities to develop.
Chen Ze and his friends burst into laughter, looking at the children's puzzled expressions.
Gu Ming decided to give up and leaned back on the sofa, letting them laugh all they wanted. He didn't believe they would still be laughing when it was time to eat.
Luo Zhengzheng laughed for a while, looked at eldest brother, whose face was flushed, and stood up, saying, "Let's eat cake, let's eat cake."
This helped Gu Ming out of his current predicament.
Gu Ming had never been so grateful to Fourth Younger Sister-in-law. No wonder her TV series was so popular. Look how well she knew how to help people out of difficult situations.
Actually, he didn't know the connection between the two sentences. He just wanted to express his gratitude to Fourth Younger Sister-in-law.
Luo Zhengzheng took out the cake, inserted the candles, and lit them.
Little Chengjia, wearing a birthday hat, stood happily in front of the cake.
Zhou Xingyue teased, "Jiajia, you should make a wish. You should make a wish on your birthday. Your parents will grant you whatever you want."
Little Chengjia looked at her: "Really? You're not lying to me?"
Zhou Xingyue shook her head: "I'm not lying to you."
Little Chengjia looked at his dad and then his gaze shifted to his mom: "I want a little sister. Is that possible?"
Zhou Xingyue blinked her eyes. She thought Younger Brother would want a big robot.
Gu Shi smiled and glanced at Luo Zhengzheng. Luo Zhengzheng didn't look at him, but looked at her son instead: "Change your wish. This wish can't be fulfilled."
Liu Hanyue leaned on Yu Shuang's shoulder: "Chengjia is going to be disappointed."
Wang Yaning glanced at Gu Shi: "That's not necessarily true."
Little Chengjia looked at Zhou Xingyue: "Can a wish be changed? Can't it not be changed?"
He received many gifts today, including toys. He didn't lack toys. He just wanted a little sister.
Zhou Xingyue looked at her parents and saw that they were just smiling at her and not helping her. She thought for a moment and said, "I didn't change my wish for my birthday."
After listening, little Chengjia thought for a moment, looked at his mom, and said, "I won't change my wish either." He then peeked at his mom.
Liu Hanyue looked at Luo Zhengzheng with schadenfreude: "What to do?"
Wang Yaning also looked at Luo Zhengzheng: "What to do?"
Yu Shuang then followed, "What to do?"
Luo Zhengzheng looked at them and said, "Don't start any more fires at the sides."
After saying that, she looked at her son and said, "This wish won't work, we can choose another one."
Little Chengjia was disappointed, but still asked, "Is it really impossible to have a younger sister?"
Luo Zhengzheng shook her head: "Not happening."
Little Chengjia sullenly blew out the candles with his head down: "I'm not happy at all on my birthday."
Luo Zhengzheng: "......"
That evening, after washing up, the two lay in bed.
Gu Shi looked at Luo Zhengzheng and said, "Jiajia wants a little sister, do you think we should grant his wish?"
Luo Zhengzheng smirked at him and shook her head: "I can fulfill other wishes, but I can't fulfill the wish for a younger sister."
Jiajia had always been an only child and she'd been there for him since he was little. She couldn't imagine having any other children.
Gu Shi looked at her and said seriously, "Actually, I also want to have a daughter."
Luo Zhengzheng stared at him: "No, you don't want to."
Today was Saturday, so Huo Mingcheng didn't need to go to work.
However, he was used to getting up early to exercise outdoors. At 7:00 a.m., after returning from his run, Meng Xi had already started eating breakfast.
Meng Xi sat upright in the chair, holding a spoon and drinking porridge. Her eating manners were extremely refined and elegant, and her eyes were also busy, as if she were reading a book.
This scenery was a stark contrast to her previous image.
However, Huo Mingcheng did not develop any goodwill towards this, but only felt that it was pretentious.
Because Fatty had told him two days ago that this woman was planning to buy books and pretend in order to win his favor.
It was just a tactic to seduce men.
Meng Xi's hearing was fine, so she naturally heard Huo Mingcheng return, but she was too lazy to look up. It wasn't until Ah Lan reminded her that Mister had returned that she reluctantly lifted her eyelids and casually said, "Good morning."
Without waiting for Huo Mingcheng's response, she lowered her head and continued reading her book.
This was a philosophy book.
The original owner bought it specifically to please Huo Mingcheng, but since she only had a vocational school education, she couldn't read such a book at all.
So, to avoid embarrassing herself, she didn't take it out.
Ah Lan brought over another breakfast.
Huo Mingcheng sat down opposite Meng Xi, and the two ate their food in silence.
In the spacious dining hall, the only sounds were the clinking of forks and spoons against bowls and the soft turning of pages.
For the first time, Huo Mingcheng felt that eating breakfast was not a pleasure, but an ordeal.
It was strange, even though it was the woman opposite him who was putting on an act, why did he feel like sitting on needles?
Finally, Huo Mingcheng couldn't help but secretly sized up Meng Xi.
This woman used to always wear revealing clothes and heavy makeup. The word "vulgar" didn't even begin to describe her.
But today.
She was wearing only a camel-colored knitted long dress, her face was clean and tidy, and the way she looked down at her book gave people a sense of peace and tranquility.
The aura emanating from her had also undergone a dramatic change.
...
Huo Mingcheng's heart pounded wildly, as if he were possessed. He quickly looked away, picked up his cup, and took a sip of soy milk.
Don't be fooled by appearances. She was intentionally putting on a show for him.
Intentional...intentional...
Huo Mingcheng kept reminding himself of this.
However, after a moment, recalling what happened yesterday, Huo Mingcheng finally couldn't help but speak, breaking the silence where everyone was lost in their own thoughts.
He asked, "Don't you have anything to say to me?"
"Hmm?" Meng Xi finally looked up from the book. "Say what?"
What should she say? Should she try to please him like the original owner did?
Sorry, she probably couldn't do that.
“Yesterday, I helped you solve that huge problem,” Huo Mingcheng said, his mouth agape as if he had a radish in it. “Shouldn’t you say thank you?”
Upon hearing this, Meng Xi suddenly realized that this was what he meant.
But what was there to thank?
She smiled slightly, closed the book, and put it aside, ready to have a good talk with that dog man.
"President Huo."
Meng Xi looked directly into Huo Mingcheng's eyes, her expression calm and composed. "Although I was the one who was smeared yesterday, husband and wife are in the same boat. You shouldn't be unaware of this principle, right?"
"I'm sorry that you got dragged into this and got scolded too, but honestly, were you standing up for me, or were you upset about the insults they gave you?"
"If you did those things because you were upset about the insults they gave you, then why should I thank you for everything you did to defend yourself?"
Huo Mingcheng was stunned.
A barrage of soul probing questions left him speechless.
That was right. He couldn't stand those people online who, without knowing the truth, treated him like a gigolo, which was why he reposted the VB post and acknowledged the identity as Meng Xi’s husband.
He got into a fight with the haters because they called him blind and so on.
Ultimately, it was all just to vent his own anger, not for Meng Xi's sake.
Now that the truth had been revealed, it was actually a bit embarrassing.
Meng Xi slowly finished the last mouthful of porridge in her bowl.
She put down her spoon and continued, "I know that you marry me only as a substitute for my elder sister. So, in public, we are husband and wife, but at home, we'll just be roommates."
"My decision to announce my married status and not to announce our relationship to the world, is simply to avoid certain people causing me similar trouble in the future."
"Also, if you ever want a divorce, just let me know, and we can part amicably."
"..."
Huo Mingcheng was completely overwhelmed by Meng Xi's rapid-fire remarks.
Because he simply couldn't be sure whether it was the truth or a trick she'd learned from somewhere.
Wasn't this exactly what they mean by "feigning indifference to lure the enemy"?
However--
Through Meng Xi's eyes, he also caught a glimpse of sincerity.
For a moment, he was a little confused.
"I'm finished eating. I'm going upstairs to read for a while. You can eat slowly." Meng Xi got up to leave.
"Wait, wait"
Huo Mingcheng called her back, realizing that he had indeed harbored selfish motives in this marriage, treating her merely as a substitute for Meng Yao, and suddenly felt a pang of guilt.
In return, he promised, "I will help you with the 'The Long Song of Prosperity
' project. The original second female lead role will be promoted to the female lead."
For something like this, the sponsor just needed to ask.
It was a matter of minutes.
However, the female lead—
Although it sounded quite appealing, Meng Xi knew that "The Long Song of Prosperity" was nothing more than a bad drama based on a big IP.
The novel had a large fan base, but the script had been completely ruined.
The final result was simply that the higher the audience's expectations, the more thoroughly the film flops.
"No."
Meng Xi resolutely refused, "Since Xu Yawei wants to act so much, let's give her the opportunity. As for the lead role, she got it through her own abilities. It would be too unfair for me to take it by force through connections."
She should go back to that small, low-budget web series that nobody thought would be a hit at first, but which turned out to be a huge success.
Meanwhile, an anonymous post on the Huaban forum was pushed to the top.
The original poster wrote: "Latest gossip, absolutely true, anyone want to hear it? Actually, Huo Mingcheng isn't a wife-protecting maniac at all, and he didn't want to marry Meng Xi, but Meng Yao. He only married Meng Xi, who had plastic surgery to look like Meng Yao, because Meng Yao married Gu Sinian. She's just a substitute. Their relationship is also very strained, not at all like the loving relationship they show on VB."
1st floor: Really? I'm so confused by all the gossip these past two days.
2nd floor: I've heard similar things too. It was said that Meng Xi made herself look like Meng Yao because she liked Huo Mingcheng and knew that Huo Mingcheng only had Meng Yao in his heart.
3rd floor: So she changed her surname because of Huo Mingcheng? Wasn't her original name Peng Xi? I thought she changed her surname to try and get attention from Meng Yao.
4th floor: Hearing this, why do I feel inexplicably sorry for her?
5th floor: Upstairs, put away your sympathy. That woman is trying to take advantage of our Yao Yao from every angle. Fans are disgusted by her.
After learning that she was healthy, Yun Chuman only hesitated for a short while before letting it go. She was in a state of "being in high spirits when good things happen", and her mood was particularly cheerful. When she saw Gu Jijing's unusual outfit, she blurted out a teasing remark.
But when the two children saw their mommy, whom they had been longing for, they beamed with joy and nodded vigorously, echoing her words, "We think so too!"
Looking at the happy group of one adult and two children, Gu Jijing suddenly felt superfluous.
Yun Chuman smiled at the two children with her eyes crinkling, "To express my apology for leaving Little Juan and Little Shu home alone today, I specially bought you a cake!"
As she spoke, she held up the cake in her hand, with all sorts of fresh fruits adorning the white cream, making it look very appetizing.
The two children's eyes lit up immediately, and they both exclaimed "Wow!" as they stared at the cake.
Yun Juan stretched out his little arms and wrapped them around Yun Chuman's neck. He nuzzled her shoulder with his little head, a rare display of affection, and whispered, "Mommy, you don't need to feel sorry. You were just busy. You didn't leave me and younger sister behind."
Yun Shu also hugged her, jumping and laughing, "We also saved pineapple rice for Mommy, it was made by Mr. Gu!"
Yun Chuman was carrying things in both hands, so she could only gently wrap her arms around the two pendants on her body.
She looked at Gu Jijing: "Thank you, Mr. Gu, for taking care of Little Juan and Little Shu for me today. If you have time, how about staying for dinner?"
"I have time."
Gu Jijing answered almost the instant she finished speaking.
He originally wanted to find an excuse to stay, not to refuse to leave, but to ask Yun Chuman if she had encountered any trouble and if he could help her.
Yun Chuman smiled, turned to look at the two children still clinging to her, and gently kissed their foreheads, "Little Juan and Little Shu, be good, let Mommy stand up, okay? It's so tiring to squat like this."
When the two children heard that she was tired, they immediately let go of her and stretched out their chubby little hands to support her arm.
"Thank you, Little Juan and Little Shu."
Yun Chuman stood up, thanked the two children, picked up her things, and turned to walk towards the kitchen.
As usual, little tails followed behind her.
However, this time, in addition to the two little tails, Yun Juan and Yun Shu, there was also the big tail, Gu Jijing.
Seeing him expressionlessly mingling with the two children, Yun Chuman felt somewhat amused and exasperated.
However, she was in a good mood and didn't want to tell him that she didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.
Yun Chuman bought a lot of things. When it came to celebrations, the most fitting thing she could think of was hot pot—it was lively enough!
So in addition to cake and braised dishes, she also bought a lot of hot pot ingredients.
Two children squatted on the ground, taking out all the things she bought and sorting them. Their chubby little backs looked especially cute.
Yun Juan found two packets of hot pot base and excitedly asked, "Mommy, are we having hot pot tonight?"
Upon hearing this, Yun Shu's chubby little hands rummaged through the bag even faster, and she asked softly, "Did Mommy buy the fish balls that Little Shu and Elder Brother like?"
Yun Chuman poured the braised food onto a plate and said with a smile, "I bought it. It's Little Juan and Little Shu's favorite cuttlefish balls."
Although this wasn't very healthy, it was okay to eat it occasionally.
At the same time, Yun Shu found the cuttlefish balls, and she and Yun Juan cheered in unison, "Mommy is the best!"
Gu Jijing, who had been standing to the side, finally realized what was happening and stepped forward, "If we're making hot pot, I'll wash the vegetables."
Yun Chuman was preparing the dried bean curd sticks and duck intestines when she heard this, she smiled and said, "Thank you."
The kitchen space was small, and it felt very crowded with two adults and two children inside.
Gu Jijing stole several glances at Yun Chuman through the two children. Seeing her smiling face, he couldn't help but frown. He wondered if it was just his imagination, but he felt that there was a hint of bitterness in Yun Chuman's smile.
He didn't try to hide his gaze, so Yun Chuman quickly noticed it.
Yun Chuman touched her face in confusion, thinking she had gotten something dirty on it.
She looked at herself through the reflection of the bowl and found that there was nothing on her face.
When Yun Chuman noticed Gu Jijing looking at her again, she suddenly realized that he might want to say something to her!
So she made an excuse to send the two children away: "Little Juan and Little Shu, could you please tidy up the snacks on the coffee table? I'll move the induction cooker over there in a bit. This way, we can have hot pot while watching TV."
Yun Shu looked at her in surprise and said happily, "Can we watch TV while eating today? Mommy, can I watch cartoons?"
"I want to watch Animal World!" Upon hearing Yun Chuman's words, Yun Juan ran off on his short legs. "Silly Little Shu, first come, first served!"
Yun Shu looked at him, bewildered before turning to look at Yun Chuman in confusion. Finally, she wrinkled her little nose, clenched her little fists, and chased after him, "You bad brother, you jumped the gun!"
As Yun Juan ran, he turned back to tease her, "Hehehe."
Yun Chuman watched the little figure chasing after him with a smile. It was her favorite "plastic siblings" theater.
She raised her voice and said, "Today is a special case. Afterward, you can't watch TV while eating!"
The two children obediently responded.
Gu Jijing rarely saw them act like "plastic siblings," and was slightly stunned, thinking to himself that Yun Juan and Yun Shu had this side to them and it was rather cute.
After regaining his senses, he moved to Yun Chuman's side with the vegetables, deftly preparing the mushrooms while actually thinking about how to start the conversation.
Yun Chuman waited for a long time but he didn't say anything. Seeing that the two children had almost finished tidying up the coffee table, she sighed and could only take the initiative to ask, "Mr. Gu, is there anything you want to say to me?"
Gu Jijing was slightly taken aback and subconsciously turned his head, only to meet her eyes.
He quickly lowered his eyes and said in a low voice, "Little Juan and Little Shu found an injured little black cat downstairs this afternoon."
Yun Chuman: ? ? ?
This was so hard to say? Why did it feel like Gu Jijing was talking about something he finds difficult to broach? This person was really strange.
Gu Jijing glanced at Yun Juan and Yun Shu in the living room and quickly said, "We took the little black cat to the vet."
Yun Chuman's first reaction was, could it be that he wanted to ask if the two children could adopt a kitten?
But she soon realized something was wrong. If Yun Juan and Yun Shu really wanted to raise a kitten, they would never ask Gu Jijing to ask for them. They would ask her the moment she returned.
“A vet…” Yun Chuman muttered. Suddenly she came to a halt and turned sharply to look at Gu Jijing, “The one across from the City Z Central Hospital?”
Gu Jijing hummed in response, avoiding her gaze, and said in a low voice, "I saw you standing in front of the hospital."
After he finished speaking, he added, "Little Juan and Little Shu didn't see it."
"Ah……"
Yun Chuman recalled that, according to him, it could only have been during the period when she doubted her life after meeting the original owner's attending physician.
Gu Jijing pursed his lips and tentatively asked, "Is there... something wrong with your health?"
Yun Chuman looked over and noticed that his brows were furrowed. Even the small red mole under his eye was distorted by the furrowing.
No wonder Gu Jijing's gaze and actions towards her have been so strange since she came back. He had noticed that she had a health problem, although it was actually a big misunderstanding.
But she still felt a warmth in her heart. Although she and Gu Jijing were not very familiar with each other, she could still feel that his concern for her was genuine.
Seeing how nervous he was, Yun Chuman wanted to make a joke to help him relax, so she smiled and said, "Isn't Mr. Gu supposed to know everything?"
Gu Jijing was stunned upon hearing this. What did she mean by knowing everything?
Meeting Yun Chuman's teasing gaze and recalling his previous actions, he panicked: "Investigating where you, Little Juan, and Little Shu were, and checking your phone number without permission, were all things I had no choice but to do."
He pursed his lips: "I'm sorry, I know this behavior is wrong, so I will never investigate you without authorization again."
Yun Chuman was taken aback by his reaction and couldn't help but laugh: "Mr. Gu, you sometimes seem a little dazed."
"ah?"
Gu Jijing was dumbfounded; no one had ever called him dazed before.
The woman in front of him had curved eyebrows and eyes, and the pale yellow light shone on her face, making her smile seem even more dazzling.
Gu Jijing's ears began to burn uncontrollably, and for a moment he couldn't tell if it was because Yun Chuman was teasing him or because her smile was too bright.
The two children were engrossed in watching the cartoon when they heard Yun Chuman's laughter. They looked over in confusion and saw her standing side by side with Gu Jijing.
Alarm rang off in Yun Juan and Yun Shu’s mind. They jumped off the sofa and tiptoed to the kitchen door.
The two children peeked into the kitchen, their little ears perked up, and was curious about what Mr. Gu had said that made their mommy so happy.
Yun Chuman immediately spotted the two fluffy little heads at the door.
She stopped laughing, wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes, and said loudly, "Don't worry, it's all a misunderstanding. I'm in excellent health! Living to be a hundred is no problem!"
The two children were completely bewildered. Could it be acceptable to laugh like this when discussing whether or not one was healthy?
However, they were still very happy that their mommy was healthy!
Gu Jijing's heart skipped a beat upon hearing this. The feeling was subtle, a mix of excitement and disbelief, and he couldn't quite describe it. He simply asked again, "Really?"
"Really." Yun Chuman smiled and nodded at him, her expression serious.
Gu Jijing stared into her eyes for more than ten seconds before letting out a sigh of relief.
His tense shoulders relaxed, the heavy weight on his chest disappeared instantly, and he didn't even realize that the corners of his mouth had turned up.
After learning that Yun Chuman was alright, Gu Jijing felt much more relaxed and even quickened his pace in washing vegetables.
It took him a while to realize how strange it was; it was just an answer, so why did his emotions change so much?
The two children exchanged a glance. Was Mr. Gu also happy that mommy was in good health?
Yun Shu leaned close to Yun Juan's ear and whispered, "Elder Brother, Mr. Gu is a good person."
Yun Juan pouted and reluctantly squeezed out a "hmm," barely qualifying as a good person.
Seeing Yun Chuman carrying the induction cooker out of the kitchen, the two children quickly ran back to the living room and sat nimbly on the sofa.
When Yun Chuman came over, they tilted their little heads up and obediently called out, "Mommy."
It was as if they weren't the ones who had just been eavesdropping.
Yun Chuman found it amusing, but she didn't intend to expose them: "We can eat soon, I'll go get the other things."
The two children jumped off the chairs again.
Yun Juan trotted up to her: "Mommy, let me help."
Yun Shu jumped up and down, raising her hand, and said, "Little Shu wants to help too!"
Yun Chuman naturally wouldn't refuse. Smiling, she said, "Then Little Juan and Little Shu can take the vegetables and meat over. I'll take the rest."
As she spoke, she took out the hot pot with the broth already poured in, and went back and forth several times to get bottles and jars of seasonings and ingredients such as duck intestines and duck blood.
After receiving their task, the two children took four boxes of meat rolls to the coffee table and stood next to Gu Jijing, craning their necks and gazing at him expectantly.
Gu Jijing originally planned to wash all the vegetables and take them with him.
But under the intense gazes of the two children, he could only wash a few and put them on small plates for them.
After receiving it, the two children trotted over to the coffee table with their short legs, then returned and stood beside him, gazing longingly.
After repeating this several times and when Gu Jijing finished washing the vegetables, he realized that he had nothing left to take with him.
Yun Chuman placed the cake on the table and turned on the induction cooker.
The induction cooker immediately started humming. She set it to hot pot mode, glanced at Gu Jijing standing in the kitchen in a daze, and said to the two children sitting on the sofa, "Little Juan and Little Shu, don't touch the pot, it will burn you when it gets hot. I'll go get some juice and we can start eating then."
The children nodded obediently and said in unison, "Mommy, we want orange juice."
“Okay,” Yun Chuman replied with a smile, turned around and walked to the kitchen, stopping in front of Gu Jijing. She said with a smile, “Mr. Gu, is there some mysterious world in the pool? Why are you looking at it so intently?”
Gu Jijing snapped out of his daze upon hearing her voice, looked up and saw her smiling face, and his ears began to burn again: "No..."
Seeing this, Yun Chuman couldn't help but think that Gu Jijing was indeed quite dense at times. He had hidden it so well when they first met that she hadn't noticed it at all.
She laughed and said, "Mr. Gu, Little Juan and Little Shu said you left me some pineapple rice, but I didn't see it."
Gu Jijing replied subconsciously, "It's in an insulated container, so it's probably already cold."
"May I try some?" Yun Chuman asked.
Gu Jijing looked at the coffee table in the living room, which was piled high with food, in surprise. He wanted to say, "You can't eat that much," but after thinking about it, he decided to swallow his words.
He turned around and took the insulated box out of the cabinet, feeling inexplicably happy: "I'll heat it up for you."
"Thank you," Yun Chuman said with a smile.
"You're welcome." Gu Jijing, with his back to her, put the pineapple rice into the microwave.
The two remained silent. The kitchen was quiet, but the sounds of cartoons and laughter from the living room could be clearly heard.
Gu Jijing suddenly felt a little nervous. He stared at the indicator light on the microwave oven, wondering in bewilderment if three minutes really was that long.
He pursed his lips, trying to find a topic to ease the awkwardness: "You didn't just buy that cake for Little Juan and Little Shu, did you?"
"Yes, it's also for myself, as a celebration." Yun Chuman didn't specify what she was celebrating, but she felt that Gu Jijing would understand.
She took four empty glasses, opened the refrigerator and took out a large bottle of orange juice, leaned back and looked at Gu Jijing, "Mr. Gu, what would you like to drink?"
Gu Jijing wanted to say that anything would do.
However, Yun Chuman was one step faster, "We have orange juice, grape juice, and apple juice, as well as carbonated drinks, but no alcohol. Mr. Gu, you don't mind, do you?"
"I... I don't usually drink alcohol," Gu Jijing blushed instantly.
At this time, the microwave beeped. He hurriedly took out the pineapple rice, turned around and walked towards the living room, muttering, "I can have the same thing as Little Juan and Little Shu, ."
Yun Chuman watched his retreating figure and reflected for a second.
She was so mean today. She shouldn't keep teasing Gu Jijing just because she was in a good mood, but his reaction was so interesting.
She shook her head, chuckled, and muttered softly, "My apologies, my apologies."
This must have been the most wonderful dinner Gu Jijing had ever had.
The small coffee table was filled with all sorts of ingredients, with a steaming hot pot in the center, half spicy and half tomato, and cake and pineapple fried rice in the corner.
Yun Juan and Yun Shu were in the middle and they needed to sit on small stools to be at the right height.
He and Yun Chuman sat on the ground on either side of him.
The television in front of them was playing cartoons, and the funny and exaggerated scenes made Yun Chuman and the two children laugh out loud.
Gu Jijing had never had the habit of watching TV while eating, nor had he ever chatted and laughed at the dinner table.
He was somewhat dazed. The billowing steam above the hot pot made everything seem both warm and unreal.
He picked up a piece of lettuce from the tomato pot, blew on it to cool it down, and slowly ate it, still feeling a little unsatisfied.
He was very curious about what Yun Chuman, Yun Juan, and Yun Shu put in the pot, and why it tasted better than what one got outside.
"Mommy, the fish balls are ready. Try them!"
Although Yun Shu's chubby hands were small, she was very skilled at using chopsticks. She dipped them into the pot and pulled them out, leaving a round fish ball in the middle of her chopsticks.
Yun Chuman was already used to being fed by her, so upon hearing this, she quickly finished the beef in her bowl, pushed the bowl over, and said frankly with a smile, "Thank you, Little Shu."
Yun Shu watched with a smile as she blew on the fish balls to cool them down before eating them, her eyes sparkling as she asked, "Is it yummy?"
"Yummy! The ones Little Shu picked are especially yummy!" Yun Chuman exclaimed.
Yun Shu's smile grew even brighter and the red mark on her face was radiating joy. She stretched out her little arm and picked up some more tripe and fish slices for Yun Chuman.
Yun Juan ate by himself, and when he felt he had eaten enough, he put down his chopsticks. He patted his round little belly, watched TV intently, and occasionally glanced at his younger sister and mommy, keeping an eye on how much they had eaten so as not to cause them to get a stomachache.
Gu Jijing sat to his right. Yun Juan tried not to look at him, but he could always catch a glimpse of him out of the corner of his eye. Noticing that Gu Jijing had been holding the bowl without moving for a long time, he finally couldn't resist his curiosity and looked to the right.
The man with his hair hanging down obediently, covering his forehead, stared intently at Yun Chuman and Yun Shu, holding chopsticks and a bowl in his hand.
Yun Juan narrowed his eyes, vaguely seeing a hint of envy in his gaze. He was puzzled; what was he envying?
He turned to look at his mommy and sister again, just in time to see Yun Shu put some more duck intestines into Yun Chuman's bowl.
Yun Juan's eyes widened slightly. No way, did Mr. Gu also want to be fed?
After spending the day together, he actually developed a bit of a liking for Gu Jijing. At least he knew that he was a good person who would cook for them, take little Black to the hospital, and most importantly, be happy for his mommy's health.
Yun Juan frowned in confusion. Although he was still wary of Gu Jijing, thinking that he would take his mommy away, Gu Jijing was, after all, a guest and had taken care of him and Yun Shu during the day. No matter what, he should repay him.
Thinking of this, Yun Juan clenched his fist as if he had made up his mind. He stood up, pursed his lips tightly, cooked a piece of tripe, and quickly put it into Gu Jijing's bowl, saying in a very fast voice, "Eat."
Gu Jijing snapped out of his daze upon hearing his voice, looked down blankly at the tripe in the bowl, and looked at him with some surprise.
Yun Juan awkwardly avoided his gaze, leaving him with only the furry back of his head.
Gu Jijing smiled at the little boy's red ears and finished the tripe with great care: "Thank you, it is delicious."
Yun Juan didn't turn around, and said in a muffled voice, "No need to thank me..."
At this moment, Yun Shu stood up with a spoon, stretched out her arm, scooped up a spoonful of pineapple rice, and brought it to Yun Chuman's mouth: "Mommy, Mr. Gu's pineapple rice is also very yummy."
Yun Chuman opened her mouth without hesitation. The rice had been fully mixed with the seafood and pineapple, and the saltiness and sweetness were just right. Even after being heated twice, it was still delicious.
She stared wide-eyed in surprise, puffed out her cheeks, looked at Gu Jijing, and gave him a thumbs up.
Yun Shu turned around and said with a smile, "Mr. Gu, Mommy said she really likes it!"
Looking at her smile, Gu Jijing's eyes suddenly stung a little. He felt that he must have been affected by the heat of the hot pot, so he quickly lowered his head and said, "I'm glad you like it."
Yun Juan secretly glanced back at him without saying a word.
He silently turned his head back, and seeing that Yun Shu was about to cook meat for Yun Chuman, he stood up with a stern face and pressed her hand down: "Little Shu! You can't cook anything for Mom anymore. She'll definitely want to eat cake later, and if she eats any more, her stomach will hurt!"
Yun Shu suddenly realized: "Right, right, there's also the cake! How can Mom possibly pass on it!"
Yun Chuman, who was stuffing pineapple rice into her mouth, paused. Had the two children seen right through her?
Seeing this, Gu Jijing couldn't help but chuckle and said lightly, "Ms. Yun, I'm glad you like pineapple rice, but don't eat too much, or you won't be able to eat the cake."
His tone remained unchanged, but his words sounded sarcastic no matter how one listened to them.
Upon hearing this, Yun Juan and Yun Shu simultaneously removed the pineapple rice from in front of her.
Yun Chuman: ...
She secretly glared at Gu Jijing. This guy had actually learned to fight back!
When most people were teased like this, they would generally give up on having cake as dessert.
But Yun Chuman didn't care about any of that; salty and sweet were a perfect match!
Yun Juan and Yun Shu had almost finished eating, and the two of them only ordered a small piece of cake, which looked about the size of their fists
Yun Chuman turned to Gu Jijing and asked, "Mr. Gu, how much do you want to eat?"
Gu Jijing was actually quite full and didn't want to eat anything more.
But he also didn't want to spoil Yun Chuman and the two children's fun: "I'm fine with the same amount as Little Juan and Little Shu."
Yun Chuman's eyes widened slightly. She remembered that Gu Jijing hadn't eaten much hot pot just now, so why was his appetite so small?
"That makes me look like I have a big appetite," she muttered under her breath, cutting him a small piece.
Gu Jijing took it and smiled, "Thank you."
Yun Chuman held the knife and measured the cake for a while before finally cutting herself a very large piece.
She picked up the small fork and said happily, "Let's eat!"
The two children, imitating her, picked up their small forks and said in unison, "Let's eat!"
Gu Jijing was slightly taken aback. What kind of ceremony was this?
He turned his head to ask a question, only to see Yun Chuman, Yun Juan, and Yun Shu putting a piece of cake into their mouths in unison, their cheeks immediately puffing up.
Then, the next second, they all showed the exact same smile and their eyes curved with happiness.
Gu Jijing, who had already eaten his fill, suddenly felt a bit hungry again and thought that the cake looked delicious.
He took a bite; the cream was sweet but not cloying, and there was pudding in the middle. The taste was indeed quite good.
Gu Jijing glanced at the adult and two children beside him again, still looking happy.
He ate the cake slowly, and couldn't help but think that Yun Chuman and the two children seemed to really like desserts. If he had the chance to meet them again, he would make some and bring them over.
The meal lasted almost two hours, and by the time Gu Jijing finished cleaning up the dishes, it was nearly 8 p.m.
He glanced at the time, feeling reluctant to leave, but he knew it wasn't right for him to stay any longer.
So he picked up his laptop, stood up, walked to the door, and said, "Ms. Yun, Little Juan, Little Shu, thank you for your hospitality today. I had a very pleasant time, but I should be going now."
The two children looked at him, somewhat bewildered, and blinked.
Yun Chuman looked out the window and realized that it was already very late when she saw that it was pitch black outside.
She quickly stood up and walked towards Gu Jijing, "Mr. Gu, if you'd like, you can come and visit little Juan and little Shu often. Perhaps we can become friends."
Yun Chuman said this after careful consideration.
When she mistakenly thought she wouldn't live much longer, she wondered if it was really the right thing to do to keep Gu Jijing away from the two children in order to avoid trouble.
Gu Jijing was clearly a good person and the biological father of Yun Juan and Yun Shu. Although she dared to promise to give the two children enough care and love, that didn't seem to be a reason to deprive them of contact with Gu Jijing.
Most importantly, if something really happens to her, Gu Jijing was definitely the best person to take care of Yun Juan and Yun Shu.
Therefore, from any perspective, she should have allowed Gu Jijing to develop a relationship with the two children.
Gu Jijing was clearly surprised by her words, and it took him a while to sincerely say, "Thank you."
He glanced at Yun Juan and Yun Shu sitting on the sofa, suppressing his somewhat excited emotions, and said to Yun Chuman, "Then I'll be leaving now, Ms. Yun. Goodbye."
After saying that, he pushed open the door and went out.
Yun Chuman waved goodbye to him, "Goodbye, Mr. Gu."
The two children finally made a move. They ran to the door and peeked their little heads out.
Yun Juan said awkwardly, "Goodbye, Mr. Gu. As long as you're not wearing your glasses, you can still come and visit us."
Yun Shu waved her chubby little hand with a smile: "Goodbye, Mr. Gu. Be careful on your way home. Let's go see little Black together next time!"
Gu Jijing still couldn't figure out why Yun Juan wouldn't let him wear glasses, but that didn't stop him from readily agreeing to the two children's request: "Okay, goodbye, Little Juan and Little Shu."
After he went down one floor, Yun Chuman patted the two children's heads and smiled, "You can't see anymore, let's go back."
Yun Juan and Yun Shu both hummed in agreement and withdrew their little heads.
After closing the door, Yun Chuman sniffed and made a surprised expression: "Huh? It's Little Juan and Little Shu who smell like hot pot!"
The two children lowered their heads and strained to smell their own scent.
Yun Juan looked up and said seriously, "I am spicy."
Yun Shu happily raised her hand: "I'm tomato flavored!"
"Then isn’t Little Juan and Little Shu yummy!"
Yun Chuman squatted down and kissed their chubby cheeks.
The two children giggled and kissed Yun Chuman's cheeks, one on each side.
Yun Juan whispered, "Mom is cake flavor."
Yun Shu smiled and said, "It's delicious too."
Yun Chuman smiled and hugged them: "How about we take a shower before going to sleep? Let's go get our new pajamas first."
The two children drawled, "Okay~"
Yun Chuman patted their little heads, got up, and walked towards their bedroom. The two children naturally followed behind her.
With a "click," the bedroom light came on.
Yun Chuman walked towards the wardrobe, and halfway there she suddenly noticed a bag of clothes on the ground.
She exclaimed in confusion, "Where did this bag come from? I've never seen it before."
Two children peeked out from behind her, saw the bag of clothes, and exclaimed in unison, "It's Mr. Gu's!"
How did Gu Jijing's clothes end up here?
Yun Chuman walked over and suddenly remembered that Gu Jijing seemed to be wearing a suit that morning. At the time, she was only focused on going to the hospital for a check-up, so she didn't pay much attention to him.
She asked, puzzled, "Why was Mr. Gu changing his clothes?"
Did he change into clothes that were easy to move in so he could play with the two kids?
The two children looked at each other and smiled upon hearing this.
Yun Juan opened the bag, pulled out a suit trouser, and with a flick of his chubby hand, the trouser unfolded completely in mid-air. He was so fast that even Yun Chuman couldn't stop him.
Yun Shu pointed to the back of the pants and said with a smile, "Because Mr. Gu's pants ripped!"
Yun Chuman paused for a moment, then looked in the direction she pointed and indeed saw a gap.
She tried to hold it in, but finally couldn't help burst out laughing. The dignified CEO of the Gu Corporation had actually ripped his pants in front of two children! How could she have missed such a hilarious scene!
On the other side.
Gu Jijing was in a daze ever since he left Yun Chuman's house. He couldn't believe that Yun Chuman had actually allowed him to see the two children, and he couldn't believe that he had been so close to Yun Chuman, Yun Juan, and Yun Shu today.
Even after he got home, he kept replaying the scene of eating hot pot with them.
Gu Jijing's lips curled up slightly. He walked into the bedroom and habitually started by loosening his tie, only to find that he had pulled at nothing.
He instinctively looked down, and his body froze again when he saw the casual clothes he was wearing. Oh no, he'd forgotten to bring back the evidence of his social death…
A note from the author:
Gu Jijing: As long as I don't say anything, and Little Juan and Little Shu don't say anything, no one will know that my pants were torn.
Yun Juan: [Showing pants.jpg]
Yun Shu: [Showing the gap.jpg]
Yun Chuman: Oh wow, I know! Surprised? Unexpected?
After his afternoon nap, Jiajia climbed upstairs, but didn't see mom. He only saw dad leaning against the bed reading a book. He huffed and puffed as he took off his shoes and climbed onto the bed.
Seeing that dad was engrossed in reading and ignoring him, he pursed his lips, stood up, and quickly took off dad's glasses.
Caught off guard by having his glasses taken away, Gu Shi finally looked at him and said, "Put the glasses on Dad."
Little Jiajia handed the glasses to dad, plopped down on his lap and hugged his arm: "Dad, take me to see the robot."
Gu Shi put on his glasses and continued reading: "Your mom said that watching it once is enough."
Little Jiajia shook dad's arm: "I want to go again. Take me there."
Gu Shi's tone remained firm: "No."
Little Jiajia looked at dad and said, "Go."
Gu Shi: "No."
Little Jiajia stared at him before forcefully pulling out several red envelopes from his clothes pocket and a few more from his pants pocket: "They're all for you."
Gu Shi glanced at the red envelopes: "Why are you giving them to me?"
Little Jiajia pointed to the red envelope: "I'll give it all to you, take me to see the robot. Not give Mom."
Gu Shi picked him up and sat him down: "Really want to go?"
Little Jiajia's face was extremely serious: "Want to go."
It was just watching a robot, yet he took out the red envelopes he received during the Lunar New Year. This showed his determination.
Gu Shi put down his book: "You go put on your shoes, Dad will get dressed, and we’ll go see the robot. What if Mom won't let us go?"
Little Jiajia was stumped. After thinking for a moment, he seriously gave Dad an idea: "Don't let Mom know."
Gu Shi looked at him: "You have quite an idea."
Little Jiajia found someone to take the blame for: "Learned from maternal uncle."
Gu Shi put on his down jacket: "You learned this from maternal uncle? Does maternal uncle know about this?"
Little Jiajia didn't answer him. He huffed and puffed as he got off the bed, sat on the floor to put on his shoes. Despite trying with all his might, he couldn't get them on. All of a sudden, he cried out, "Dad, the shoes are broken, they won't fit my feet!"
Gu Shi looked up and said, "You've got it reversed. Try the other foot."
Little Jiajia switched to the other foot. Although it took a lot of effort, he finally got his foot into the shoe. He puffed out his chest like he'd accomplished a major feat: "Dad, are you done?"
Gu Shi praised, "Great job!"
After the father and son got dressed, Gu Shi led his son downstairs.
Downstairs, Yuan Mei was shelling peanuts. Seeing the father and son, she smiled and asked, "Jiajia went upstairs to find dad?"
Little Jiajia ran to maternal grandmother's side: "Maternal Grandmother, Dad is taking me to see the robot."
Yuan Mei was taken aback and looked at Gu Shi: "You're going to see the robot again? Didn't you just see them yesterday?"
Gu Shi nodded: "Got pestered about it many times, so decided to take him to see."
Hearing their voices, Luo Can came out of the room: "I want to go too."
Little Jiajia ran to maternal uncle: "Let's go together."
Luo Can picked him up and hugged him: "Let's go together. How about we eat something nice outside tonight?"
Yuan Mei glanced at them and said, "Zhengzheng went to play in the village. Call her back and you can all go together."
Little Jiajia looked at his maternal grandmother with expectant eyes. Although dad and uncle were going, he would be happier if mom was willing to take him to see the robot.
Gu Shi glanced at his son, took out his phone, and called Luo Zhengzheng.
Luo Zhengzheng was chatting with her elementary school classmate when she received his call. Upon hearing that he was going to take their son to see a movie in the county town, she immediately objected, saying, "We just saw it once yesterday. We're not taking him today. We can't let him have his way with everything."
She wasn't surprised at all that her son liked watching robots. He had loved them in his past life, and when he grew up, she even prepared a room for him filled with all sorts of Lego sets that she couldn't name, all of which he had assembled himself. He was completely absorbed in them. After finishing his homework at night, he would go play with his Lego sets, and if she didn't urge him to go to sleep, he could play all night long.
She wouldn't stifle her child's interests, but she also couldn't let him become too obsessed. He just saw a robot movie yesterday and hadn't stopped talking about it since. He even wanted to see it again today. Of course, she couldn't agree to that.
Gu Shi asked definitively, "Really not going?"
Luo Zhengzheng: "Really'm not going."
Gu Shi glanced at his eager son and said, "Okay."
After hanging up the phone, he looked at his son and said, "Your mom isn't going. Dad and maternal uncle will take you."
Little Jiajia was a little disappointed, but the thought of seeing the robot again immediately cheered him up.
However, when they arrived in the county town, they couldn't buy tickets. Neither of the two adults had even thought to buy them in advance. Although little Jiajia was young, he knew that he couldn't watch the movie without a ticket. He stared blankly at his dad with a pout and held back tears.
Luo Can felt extremely sorry for him and hugged him, saying, "If you can't watch it, you can't watch it. Maternal uncle will take you to buy a big robot toy. You can play with it however you want when you get home."
So the two big men took him to the mall and bought him a Transformer. Hugging the Transformer, which was taller than him, he was so happy that he couldn't stop smiling.
They ate dinner outside before coming back.
Back home, Jiajia ran to mom clutching his Transformer toy: "Mommy, Transformers!"
Luo Zhengzheng glanced at him and said unhappily, "Going to the movies telling mom. You're so great!"
Little Jiajia looked at mom and said, "Didn't see it."
Luo Zhengzheng snorted, "Did not get a ticket?"
Little Jiajia fell silent.
Luo Zhengzheng looked at Gu Shi: "I told him not to take him to the movies, but you still went secretly without telling me."
Gu Shi said, "I asked you, and you said you weren't going. Didn't see it."
Luo Zhengzheng glared at him: "You're twisting the facts. I clearly said you weren't allowed to take him to the movies again, but you took him anyway. The reason you didn't see the movie was because you couldn't get tickets."
After she finished speaking, she went into her room, not intending to pay any attention to the father and son for the time being.
Gu Shi stared at Luo Zhengzheng's indifferent back and looked at his son, asking, "Mom is angry?"
Little Jiajia looked at dad and asked, "What to do?"
Gu Shi looked at his son: "Dad doesn't know either!"
Little Jiajia looked anxious: "Then should Daddy and I try to coax her?"
When he was unhappy, he needed mom to coax him. When mom was angry, he and his dad also needed to coax her, right?
Gu Shi looked at his son: "How do we coax her?"
Little Jiajia was stumped and looked at dad: "Hug Mom?"
Gu Shi entered the room and saw Luo Zhengzheng putting on a face mask. He sat down next to her and asked, "Are you really angry?"
Luo Zhengzheng glanced at him. "Why be angry? I'm not angry at all. You're the loving father, and I'm the strict mother. I've figured it out. If the son is in your care, he'll definitely be spoiled and turned into a little brat. You'll give in to his every whim."
Gu Shi, of course, denied it: "How can that be? Jiajia just likes robots. Look how happy he is when we buy him a Transformer."
Luo Zhengzheng felt that this wasn't a Transformers-related issue. It was about the education of their son, and a disagreement had arisen between them.
What she felt was wrong, Gu Shi thought it was no big deal.
Seeing that mom’s expression didn’t look good, Jiajia slowly walked over, took her hand, and whispered, "Mom!"
Luo Zhengzheng felt a little soft-hearted seeing his pitiful appearance, but she had to let him know that it was wrong to hide it from mom and go out and that mom was angry.
He was too young to understand the reason. The only way was to show him through actions what's acceptable and what's not. He needed to know that parents also have principles. Going to the movies with him today might be a small thing, but what if he makes unreasonable demands tomorrow or in the future? Should they give in to them all?
She needed to let her son know that she would naturally grant his requests if they were reasonable, but she will not soften her heart or agree to everything he asks for, even if he makes a fuss.
Gu Shi saw his son on the verge of tears, wanting his mom to hug him, but she ignored him. He adjusted his glasses and wisely kept quiet.
Little Jiajia burst into tears.
"Mom!" he cried, throwing himself into mom's arms.
Luo Zhengzheng picked him up and pinched his nose: "Will you go out without telling Mom next time?"
Little Jiajia was frightened and hid in his mom's arms without saying a word, only shaking her head.
Luo Zhengzheng patted his back: "Mom will take you to wash up, and then we'll go to bed?"
After Luo Zhengzheng helped him wash up, he climbed into his parents' bed and said, "Sleep with Mom!"
Luo Zhengzheng looked at him, thinking to herself that this was truly the first time.
She placed her son in the middle and lay down on the outside.
After washing up, Gu Shi looked at his son, who was fast asleep in the middle of the bed, and asked, "Anger evaporated?"
Luo Zhengzheng glanced at him: "You have no idea what the key issue is."
This wasn't a question of whether or not she was angry.
Gu Shi said, "I rarely spend time with Jiajia, so sometimes it's hard for me to refuse him."
Seeing him utter words with such pitiful tone despite having a calm expression and clearly aware of his own problem, Luo Zhengzheng was speechless for a moment.
Unwilling to let him off easily, she said, "I want to give you the cold war."
Cold war?
Gu Shi looked at her, wondering if it was being too cold.
Luo Zhengzheng glanced at the time on her phone: "Let's have an eight-hour cold war. Don't talk to me for the next eight hours."
As for why the cold war lasted eight hours, it was obviously because she was afraid her parents would worry.
Gu Shi: "......"
They stayed at the Luo Family's house until the fourth day of the Lunar New Year before returning to the capital. Luo Can went back with them.
When they arrived home, the two heads of the family had not yet returned.
Wang Yaning and Yu Shuang came over with their child. Wang Yaning said with a smile, "You two, may you both have a great harvest this New Year."
Yu Shuang also cheerfully congratulated: "Both the movie and TV series are doing well. Many people are extremely envious and think you've hit the jackpot."
Not only was the TV series a huge hit, the movie also grossed 600 million yuan in just four days. Moreover, its daily box office revenue remained consistently high, firmly holding the top spot and far surpassing other films, leaving other big-name directors' movies struggling to keep up.
Wang Yaning glanced at Gu Shi and whispered to Luo Zhengzheng, "I heard that Su Zhilan also bought a movie script and is contacting directors and actors, planning to make a big splash."
What could Luo Zhengzheng say? She could only say, "There are plenty of people making movies. Let her make them if she wants. Just mind our own business."
Yu Shuang added, "That's true. She can do whatever she wants. What's it to us?"
Wang Yaning said with a smile, "You don't know that Gu Ming spent the entire Spring Festival hiding in his study deep in thought."
Luo Zhengzheng looked at her: "What is he thinking about?"
Wang Yaning raised an eyebrow: "Since you and Gu Shi have made money investing in TV series and movies, shouldn't he be able to do something too?"
Luo Zhengzheng looked at her: "What is he planning to do?"
Wang Yaning made a speechless expression: "He hasn't figured it out yet, still thinking about it. It's possible that he'll never be able to figure out what kind of business he could invest in."
After watching two episodes of the TV series, Meng Xi lifted the blanket, sat up, and prepared to go upstairs to rest.
Although this world was somewhat unfamiliar to her, it was not complicated because she knew the plot inside and out.
She didn't need to use her brain much. She could simply deal with whatever comes her way.
"Does Madam want to rest?" Ah Lan came over and put away the blanket.
Meng Xi nodded, stretched comfortably, and said, "Yeah, I need to rest now. You should go to sleep early too. You must be tired after a long day."
"..." Ah Lan was so moved she wanted to cry.
Madam was so easy to get along with. She actually said "You must be tired" to her.
Ah Lan couldn't help but pray silently in her heart.
Good heavens, please let Madam continue to be so gentle and kind. She would be willing to accept even a hundred less in salary!
Meng Xi turned and walked towards the stairwell. Before she could even step onto the stairs, her phone rang. It was her agent, Jian Yue, calling.
She guessed it was about that matter again.
Meng Xi answered, "Hello."
"My goodness!" Jian Yue exclaimed, "I never expected your family’s President Huo to be so protective of his wife."
President Huo? Protective of a wife?
Was she referring to Huo Mingcheng?
Meng Xi was puzzled. "What do you mean? What are you talking about?"
Jian Yue: "What, you don't know yet? Your family’s President Huo retweeted your VB post, slapping those trolls in the face. Not only that, he even got into a fight with some of the haters. You should go take a look."
The internet had indeed exploded again.
The hashtag #MengXi#, which was originally at the top of the trending searches, had been replaced by #HuoMingcheng#, and several new hashtags have appeared below it, including #MengXi'sHusband#, #HuoMingcheng'sNetWorth#, #DongyuFilm#, and #ShengshiChangge'sSugarSponsor#...
Clicking on each entry in turn revealed a lively discussion in the comment sections.
"Holy crap, Meng Xi's husband is Huo Mingcheng???"
"I'm starting to understand the meaning of 'very successful' now. With a husband like Huo Mingcheng, who would even look at Jiang Heng, Pan Jiayu, or Ye Xiangyuan?"
"The main sponsor of 'The Long Song of Prosperity' is President Huo, but the director kicked President Huo's wife out of the show. That's ridiculous."
"So the question is, when did these two get married?"
Meng Xi went to Huo Mingcheng's VB again, and sure enough, he got into a fight with two trolls in the comments section.
1st Floor: Hello! May I ask which eye is blind enough to actually be interested in that slut Meng Xi?
Huo Mingcheng: May I ask where this dog came from, barking here?
Netizen A: Haha, Mr. Huo is really protecting his wife.
Netizen B: Brilliant reply.
Netizen C: I never expected that the aloof President Huo would actually be such a loyal dog. I love it!
2nd floor: President Huo, do you know that your wife is a "public bus" in the entertainment industry?
Huo Mingcheng: I know you just ate [poop][poop]
Netizen A: I support President Huo and Xixi. Some people's mouths are stinking more than a cesspool.
Netizen B: How could someone who married her not understand her as well as a hater like you do?
Netizen C: Haters spreading rumors like this is ridiculous.
Pff.
Meng Xi was amused by Huo Mingcheng's reply.
She guessed he might come out on his own, but she didn't expect him to clash with the haters.
Was it the man's pride that was acting up?
After thinking for a moment, Meng Xi politely commented below, "You're welcome."
...
Meng Yao had already arrived home. She changed her shoes at the door and went inside, only to find that Gu Sinian hadn't returned yet.
She placed the rose tea she had brought back from Huo Mingcheng on the coffee table, then took out her phone and dialed Gu Sinian's number, but no one answered.
She dialed again, but still no one answered.
The call went on and on, for almost five minutes, until Gu Sinian returned, brought back by his assistant.
"What happened?" Meng Yao frowned as she looked at the incoherent man in front of her and asked the assistant, "How did he get so drunk?"
"This..." The assistant's eyes flickered for a moment, but he answered without changing his expression, "The client had a high alcohol tolerance, so Mr. Gu drank a bit more with him."
Meng Yao hated drunkards the most.
After having his assistant help him lie down on the sofa, she immediately instructed the nanny to bring him hangover medicine and force-feed it to him.
After a long while, Gu Sinian opened his eyes groggily, but he still looked completely disoriented.
Meng Yao was so angry that she started scolding him, accusing him of coming home so late and being drunk.
Gu Sinian grew impatient and, fueled by alcohol, kicked over something on the coffee table before staggering to his feet.
Face flushed, he abruptly grabbed Meng Yao's collar and retorted rudely, "What the hell are you yelling at? I should come home early and you go entertaining clients? How can I do business if I don't drink? Where the hell do you get the money to live a carefree life if I don't do business?"
Meng Yao couldn't believe her ears.
She couldn't believe these words were coming from Gu Sinian's mouth. She felt a surge of grievance and tears streamed down her face.
"Crying! All you do all day is cry!"
Gu Sinian pushed her away irritably and was about to go upstairs to take a shower when his eyes were immediately drawn to something on the ground as he turned around.
Rose tea was nothing special. Meng Yao liked to drink it, so there was a lot of it at home.
It seemed that only Huo Mingcheng's family had these kinds of gift bags that could hold flower tea.
Gu Sinian picked up the gift bag, a spark igniting in his eyes. He held it up to Meng Yao, suppressing his emotions as he questioned, "Where did this come from? Did you go to Huo Mingcheng's house?"
"I..." Meng Yao was a little flustered. Her anger and grievances from before disappeared instantly.
Gu Sinian disliked her getting too close to Huo Mingcheng, especially after their marriage.
Quickly gathering her thoughts, she explained guiltily, "Meng Xi had been smeared. I went to check on her."
"Check on Meng Xi... When did you become so concerned about that younger sister? Are you checking on her or Huo Mingcheng?" Gu Sinian threw the gift bag back on the ground and stomped on it. "You still have feelings for him, don't you?"
"No, I just..."
*Smack*
Before Meng Yao could finish speaking, a loud slap echoed throughout the living room.
Gu Sinian laid a hand on her.
Meng Yao stood frozen in place for a long time before she came to her senses. She glared at the man in front of her with hatred and then ran upstairs crying.
Her face was burning with pain, and her heart felt like it was being stabbed with a knife.
For a moment, she doubted her own choice—why did she choose Gu Sinian?
Huo Mingcheng was clearly gentler, more reasonable, and even better looking than him.
Was it simply because he saved her when she accidentally fell into a lotus pond when she was thirteen?
Meng Yao's mind was in complete chaos.
She picked up her phone, wanting to talk to Huo Mingcheng and vent her frustrations, but suddenly saw a news post that had been pushed to her VB account not long ago.
"Actress Meng Xi's husband revealed: He's from the Huo Group..."
Meng Yao felt as if she had been hit on the head with a stick. When she logged into VB, she saw that Huo Mingcheng had actually reposted Meng Xi's VB post and proactively announced their relationship.
Furthermore, he got into a fight with haters in the comments section for Meng Xi.
After breakfast, Luo Zhengzheng picked up her phone and discovered that she was trending on social media again.
The reason was that the VB she posted last night was reposted by Hunan TV for profit. They shamelessly claimed that there was a village where the whole village stopped eating in order to watch "Home and Country". They even threatened their daughter to give away spoilers or they wouldn't cook. They also seriously advised her that she still had to eat, to watch the show in peace, and that the ending would come soon. Good food was worth waiting for, and good shows were worth waiting for, etc.
Upon seeing this, Luo Zhengzheng once again marveled at how, even as a reborn person, she was occasionally impressed by their opportunistic and ruthless marketing tactics. No wonder even Gu Shi wanted to poach them.
Luo Zhengzheng had been trending on social media a few times already. It was become commonplace for her to make headlines even for posting a VB.
The comments below were quite funny .
They even wanted to peek at a show that the whole village would go hungry to watch, just to see what kind of phenomenal show it was that captivated them so much.
Even the author of Home and Country joined in the fun, asking Luo Zhengzheng on her VB post: "Where is Auntie's address? I'll mail her a few autographed copies of the novel so she can know the rest of the story right away."
A group of readers behind him laughed and scolded him for being so unethical as the original author of the show, blatantly giving away spoilers.
Some comments even asked, "Are you sure you're not just promoting your own book?"
Director Lu got up late at night and replied to him: "Get lost!"
A group of people followed behind, laughing and saying that Director Lu was getting anxious, that this man was getting anxious.
At this moment, the village chief arrived at the house carrying half a sack of purple sweet potatoes. Luo Zhengzheng invited him to sit down and poured him a cup of tea.
Yuan Mei asked him, "Fourth Uncle, what are you carrying?"
The village chief tapped his pipe, sat down in a chair, took a sip of water, and said, "Yongsheng said yesterday that Zhengzheng wanted to eat purple sweet potatoes, but didn't have any at home, so I went to the cellar and got some for her. Wanting to eat purple sweet potatoes is easy. We might not have other things to eat here, but we have plenty of sweet potatoes."
Luo Zhengzheng said happily, "Fourth Grandpa, you brought me so many purple sweet potatoes? Mom, shall we steam some to eat?"
Yuan Mei poked her head: "You just ate, how can you still eat?"
Luo Zhengzheng covered her head and looked at Chengjia: "Son, your maternal grandmother hit your mom."
Chengjia grinned and said, "Mom is greedy and got scolded by Maternal Grandmother."
Yuan Mei glared at her daughter: "Look, Jiajia isn't on your side at all."
Luo Zhengzheng got glared at by her mom, so she could only glare at her son instead.
Little Chengjia wasn't afraid at all and hid in his maternal grandmother's arms.
Gu Shi sat down next to her and said, "Tell mother-in-law that I want to eat purple sweet potatoes, and she will definitely agree to steaming them."
Luo Zhengzheng rolled her eyes at him: "Are you implying that I'm not as important to Mom as you are?"
Gu Shi glanced at her, conveying wasn't it very obvious!
The young couple was trying to figure out how to get the mom's permission to steam purple sweet potatoes now.
After finishing his tea, the village chief looked at Yuan Mei and said slowly, "I heard you aren’t properly watching the TV series and you even wanted to cheat to know the ending in advance? That's not right of you. The whole village watches that TV series that Zhengzheng filmed because they want to help the child. If you cheat, wouldn't that be a waste of their help?"
Actually, he didn't know why knowing the ending in advance meant he couldn't help Zhengzheng. If he couldn't know the ending in advance, then so be it. What difference would it make? Already at this age and still making such a fuss over a TV series that one couldn't even have a proper New Year.
"Huh?" Yuan Mei was stunned. After hearing what the village chief had said, she sat up straight and asked, "Fourth Uncle, who told you that?"
As she spoke, she glanced at her daughter, the meaning of which was self-evident: She suspected Luo Zhengzheng.
Luo Zhengzheng was truly wrongly accused. Heaven knew she only dared to vent online. How could she dare to tell the uncles, aunts, grandpas, and grandmas in the village? What secrets could there be in the village? She suspected that if she told them, they would reach her mom's ears the very next minute.
The village chief glanced at Yuan Mei, his gaze like that of a teacher looking at a naughty, unmotivated child: "Do I need to say it? It's all over the internet. Da Qiangzi told me about it when he got back. You guys are really something, making a scene over a TV series. Can’t have peace at all."
They invested so much money in the village, building schools and repairing roads, and when they asked them for a small favor, things went wrong. How could he not be furious?
Seeing that Ms. Yuan's face was getting darker and darker, Luo Zhengzheng quickly said, "Fourth Grandfather, it's really nothing. They're just captivated by the TV drama plot and want to know the ending in advance. It's understandable. I was wrong yesterday too, venting online. It's all a small matter."
The village chief looked at Yuan Mei: "You call this nothing? If nothing happened, why would Zhengzheng think of complaining online? It's rare for a child to come home, so she should be allowed to have a proper New Year. But you tossed around to the point where she could only complain online. Next time anyone complains to me that their child is unfilial and doesn't come home for the New Year, I definitely won't listen."
He had originally planned to treat Zhengzheng's husband well during the Spring Festival, to show him the unity, harmony, friendship, and diligence of the people in their village, and that he might be able to invest in their village someday. But they couldn't even handle a small matter properly, so what could he expect from them? They all kept dropping the ball.
Yuan Mei's cold gaze kept shooting at her daughter, Luo Zhengzheng, who looked at her innocently. She really didn't mean anything by it.
Would Yuan Mei believe her? Certainly not.
The village chief said a few words and went home. Once home and feeling uneasy, he thought for a moment and then broadcast over the loudspeaker: "Just watch the TV series, stop making a fuss about spoilers. What spoilers are you talking about? Just watch the TV series honestly. Aren’t you afraid of being laughed at by other villages?"
As Luo Zhengzheng listened to the radio, she felt gusts of cold air rushing towards her, but she didn't pay heed at all. She hugged little Chengjia tightly for safety, thinking to herself that her fourth grandpa was really helpful. She would definitely remember to bring him a pack of good cigarettes next time she came back.
Gu Shi looked at Luo Zhengzheng and said, "Let's just wait for your mom to steam purple sweet potatoes for you at noon."
Luo Zhengzheng said with a smile, "You doubt that bringing up yourself would work?"
Gu Shi looked at his fuming mother-in-law, who was so furious that no one could reason with her.
Finally, noon arrived, and Luo Zhengzheng asked Yuan Mei, "Mom, what are we having for lunch?"
Yuan Mei looked at her with a cold expression: "Make your own food, don't call me."
Luo Zhengzheng: "......"
Fine, she would cook for herself and make whatever she wanted to eat.
When "I Am a Robot" was released on the first day of the Lunar New Year, Chen Ze called Gu Shi early on to ask him to help promote it. Gu Shi refused outright, saying that he was only responsible for investing and that the Lunar New Year was a time to spend with his wife, children, and family, and he would not discuss business.
Luo Zhengzheng thought she could help promote it. In their hometown, there was no movie theater. Their home was not far from the county town. It only took half an hour to drive there.
She booked the entire theater and took her family to see a movie.
After watching the movie, she posted on Weibo: "Happy Lunar New Year! I went to see 'I Am a Robot' with my parents, younger brother, husband, and child today. In short, it was great. Two word -brilliant watch. Three words - extremely brilliant watch..."
She turned to Gu Shi: "Wouldn't this be considered helping with the publicity?"
Gu Shi saw her perfunctory "brilliant watch" and said, “Yes."
Luo Zhengzheng said, "You invested 200 million after all, so you can't be too indifferent. Otherwise, Chen Ze will be sad, and it will make us seem like we have a lot of money and aren't afraid of losing money."
A few minutes later, she saw many comments saying that Ms. Luo had also gone to see the movie "I Am a Robot," and since it was so good, they would go see it too.
With such a large investment, it was impossible for "I Am a Robot" to falter at the final promotional stage. Everyone on the internet knew that Director Lu's sci-fi film would be released on the first day of the Lunar New Year.
Director Lu's reputation was so great that many people flocked to the cinema. When they came out of the cinema, most of them gave positive reviews, with only a very few negative ones.
Some people who were initially hesitant read the comments and decided to buy tickets, only to find that tickets for that day were sold out.
There were many good movies released on the first day of the Lunar New Year, with a few big directors competing, so the average screening rate of each movie was not very high.
Even so, "I Am a Robot" still had the highest box office today, reaching over 80 million yuan. It was a great start, and Chen Ze was so delighted that his mouth was crooked from smiling.
He arrogantly called Gu Shi: "Guess what your return rate is after investing 200 million?"
Gu Shi wasn't that bored, and said, "Congratulations, you received good news on the first day of the Lunar New Year."
Chen Ze struck while it was hot: "My movie starts filming in March after the new year. Why don't you invest some more?"
Gu Shi leaned against the headboard: "This movie only premiered today, are you so sure it will make money at the box office?"
Chen Ze rolled his eyes: "You're trying to dampen my spirits during the New Year."
Gu Shi said, "You want me to invest in another movie when one is only being released during the Lunar New Year?"
Chen Ze knew he had gotten a little carried away. The box office performance of the movie would depend on the audience's reaction: "If the movie makes money after it's finished, you must invest some more."
Gu Shi: "You're already making money, why would you need me to invest?"
Chen Ze: "A movie has a few investors, but in the end, I don't get much money. Besides, I also have two TV series waiting to be filmed. I need money everywhere."
If they could manage to get some investment from Gu Shi, they should. Otherwise, they won't be able to get any more when Luo Zhengzheng's company starts up.
Gu Shi did not give a definite answer: "We'll talk about it later."
Chen Ze: "Okay, a video company had contacted me about Luo Zhengzheng's TV series. They want to buy the video streaming rights and want to see what price you're willing to accept."
Gu Shi: "Aren’t you negotiating this?"
Chen Ze: "I'm really destined to be a workaholic. I'm still busy even during the Lunar New Year."
Gu Shi: "I'll give you a big red envelope then."
Chen Ze: "Being busy was fine. Anyway, I'm a single man, no one cares about me, and I don't need to spend time with my wife and kids."
Gu Shi: "......"
Little Chengjia really liked robot movies. He watched one and wanted to watch it a second time.
Luo Zhengzheng did not agree to take him to see it again.
He sat next to his maternal grandmother and whispered to her, "Maternal Uncle said that Dad paid for the robot movie, so support Dad."
Luo Zhengzheng, standing beside him, asked with a smile, "Oh, so Jiajia just want to support Dad, not to see the robot."
Little Chengjia sat in the chair, looking at his mom with a serious expression: "I support Dad, not because I want to see robots."
Luo Zhengzheng smilingly said, "Okay, give your New Year's red envelope to Mom. That will be considered supporting dad."
Chengjia clutched his pocket tightly: "Maternal Grandmother gave it to me, I won't give it to you."
Luo Zhengzheng: "Didn't you say you'd support Dad's movie? Then give me the money, and I'll buy you a movie ticket."
Little Chengjia looked at her, as if to confirm the truth of her words and tilted his head to ask her, "You're not lying to me?"
Luo Zhengzheng smilingly said, "I'm not lying to you."
Little Chengjia suddenly shook his head: "No."
Luo Zhengzheng asked him in surprise, "Why?"
Little Chengjia pointed to his eyes: "You smiled, you're lying to me."