“Just don’t come in,” insisted the little girl. Her voice was quickly followed by the sound of something falling onto the floor. Clang! Zong Jinghao was worried about his daughter, so he barged in immediately. That was when he saw a child in pink playing with some makeup. She had dropped the foundation and got the floor messy.
Zhou Chunchun stood at the side with her head down, while Zong Yanxi stood in the middle of that mess. She fidgeted her tiny fingers a little as she explained softly, “Uhm, daddy, we were just playing a game using the makeup.”
Zong Jinghao massaged his head in exasperation when he saw his daughter’s face being all red and pink like a circus clown’s.
“Daddy…” murmured Zong Yanxi. She didn’t think that she made a mistake, but she was still worried about her dad being angry.
Zong Jinghao took a deep breath and tried to speak as calmly as he could, “Go clean up and get ready for dinner.”
After instructing the kid, Zong Jinghao turned around to see Aunt Yu placing the cutleries on the table. He thought about how Qin Ya was staying with them, and how Lin Xinyan was pregnant. Add two children to the mix, and it was obvious that Aunt Yu couldn’t take care of everyone on her own. Hence, Zong Jinghao fished his phone out of his pocket to call Guan Jing.
The line was established soon after.
Zong Jinghao walked to the window with his phone and instructed, “Hire a reliable maid and send her over tomorrow. I will pay however much is needed. Do a background check and make sure that nothing is wrong, though.”
“Okay, understood, but the timing is a little tight,” informed Guan Jing. He was worried that he wouldn’t be able to locate an ideal candidate.
“Then you have two days,” replied Zong Jinghao before he hung up immediately.
Guan Jing was already used to Zong Jinghao’s style, so the former planned to search for a maid as soon as he finished working on his current task.
“Daddy, where is mommy?” asked Zong Yanchen as he headed over. He didn’t see Lin Xinyan in the kitchen or the living room.
Zong Jinghao put his phone back into his pocket and answered, “She’s on the second floor.”
“I’ll go tell her that it’s time for dinner,” said Zong Yanchen. He turned around to walk up the stairs, but Zong Jinghao reached out to hook the kid’s collar. Zong Jinghao banned, “No, you’re not allowed to do that.”
Confused, Zong Yanchen turned around and asked, “Did you and mommy get into a fight?”
Why won’t he let her come for dinner?
“Oh, c’mon. Can you guys really only stay civil for a couple of days?” protested Zong Yanchen. Are they trying to annoy the crap outta me? Wait, hang on. Weren’t they all lovey-dovey earlier today in the mall?
Zong Jinghao’s eye twitched before he asked, “Can you really not have a little more faith in your parents?”
Zong Yanchen pursed his lips and asked, “Is this because of the issue on the internet?”
“What happened?” asked Zong Jinghao, who thought that Lin Xinyan’s earlier question might have something to do with the incident Zong Yanchen was talking about. Zong Jinghao was about to check his phone when Zong Yanchen showed his dad everything. “See for yourself,” answered Zong Yanchen.
Zong Jinghao examined his son’s device and read the comments as the kid held the tablet.
“Where did this woman come from?”
Some replied that comment with: “A lot of female celebrities like to marry into rich families. Maybe this is one of those unknown actresses.”
Another reply went: “That is my guess too! Still, the internet has, like, zero information on this woman.”
Someone else commented: “I thought they look cute together.”
…………
There were too many comments, but Zong Jinghao could guess what was happening from the few comments he read.
How did these people know that’s me? Is it because I have gone to several public events? Still, I don’t even have a social media account, so how am I so popular? Given the number of comments and likes I received, I am almost on a par with trending celebrities. What is going on?
“Are you done? If not, hold it yourself as you read,” said Zong Yanchen as he tossed the tablet aside and swung his sore hands around a little.
Zong Jinghao wasn’t bothered by that attitude. He simply stroked his son’s tiny head and instructed, “Go wash your hands and get ready for dinner.”
“Daddy,” greeted Zong Yanxi, who had washed her face and was heading over with Zhou Chunchun.
Zhou Chunchun looked a little guilty when she explained, “She insisted that I put some makeup on her.”
Zong Jinghao hated Bai Yinning, but the former didn’t yell at Zhou Chunchun. Her husband is the horrible one, thought Zong Jinghao before he replied calmly, “Go have dinner.”
“Thanks, daddy,” said Zong Yanxi whose smile lit up instantly. After that, she dragged Zhou Chunchun along and said, “Hurry up, Aunt Chun, let’s go.”
“We haven’t fed Baymax yet,” reminded Zhou Chunchun.
“Oh yeah! I’ll go get him some food,” said Zong Yanxi. Baymax seemed to sense that he was about to be fed, so he wagged his tail and followed behind the duo. Zong Yanxi got the pack of dog food from the cabinet and poured some food for Baymax. Zhou Chunchun helped the kid with it.
After that, the duo went to wash their hands again before they sat down by the dining table. Aunt Yu had already served all the dishes on the table by then.
Zong Jinghao walked into the kitchen to see that Aunt Yu was placing some food on a tray. She was preparing everything to bring to Qin Ya’s room. When Aunt Yu saw Zong Jinghao there, she asked, “Do you need anything?”
“Did you prepare anything for her?” asked Zong Jinghao, who was worried about Lin Xinyan not having anything to eat after waking up.
“There’s some corn and pork rib soup in the pot. I will heat it up for her when she wakes up.”
Zong Jinghao nodded and informed, “I’ll hire another maid, and she’ll be here to help you in a couple of days.”
Aunt Yu grinned and said, “I wish the place will be as lively as this forever. It was too quiet back then. Mrs. Zong’s not going to run away again, is she?”
Zong Jinghao told Aunt Yu that Lin Xinyan would stay before he turned around and left the kitchen. Aunt Yu, on the other hand, delivered the tray to Qin Ya.
Zhou Chunchun hadn’t dug in even though she was famished. The two kids were the only ones at the table, and as a guest, it was inappropriate for her to eat before the host showed up.
Zong Yanxi put some food on Zhou Chunchun’s plate before urging, “Aunt Chun, eat up. Grandma Yu’s cooking is amazing!”
Zong Jinghao picked up his chopsticks and told Zhou Chunchun to dig in. Only then did Zhou Chunchun started eating.
After dinner, Zong Yanxi held Zhou Chunchun’s hand to lead her back into the playroom. The former wanted to keep playing with the latter, but Zhou Chunchun’s phone rang up. Bai Yinning had called and said that he would be there soon to pick her up.
“I’ll come to play with you again, okay?” cooed Zhou Chunchun. She loved the little girl and thought that Baymax was cute.
Zong Yanxi was bored because she had to stay at home. Hence, she was a little reluctant to let Zhou Chunchun go. She doesn’t think I’m immature and likes to play with me. thought Zong Yanxi, who held Zhou Chunchun’s hand and asked, “Aunt Chun, will you really drop by and play with me again?”
Zhou Chunchun promised, “I’ll drop by if I’m free.”
“I’ll walk you out,” offered Zong Yanxi. The duo had played together for quite a while, so Zong Yanxi saw Zhou Chunchun as a friend.
Zong Jinghao didn’t want to see Bai Yinning, but the former couldn’t let his daughter walk out of the house on her own either. Therefore, he had no choice but to follow along.
Zhou Chunchun held Zong Yanxi’s hand as they walked out of the house.
Bai Yinning had already gotten out of his car and was waiting by the entrance. The lights on the door and the wall were all on, and it was so bright that it seemed like the Sun had never set.
When Bai Yinning saw everyone walking towards him, he grinned and said, “Thank you, Mr. Zong.”
Zong Jinghao ignored the guy and reached out to hold his daughter’s hand. “We should go back in now,” said Zong Jinghao.
Bai Yinning didn’t back down. He asked, “Are you worried about us talking? Is that why you won’t let her leave the house?”
“Xinyan is probably sick. She didn’t even join us for dinner,” replied Zhou Chunchun before Zong Jinghao had the chance to respond. Zhou Chunchun let go of Zong Yanxi’s hand and walked towards Bai Yinning.
Bai Yinning frowned when he heard about how Lin Xinyan was sick. “What’s wrong with her?” asked Bai Yinning.
Zhou Chunchun shook her head and pushed his wheelchair as she answered, “I don’t know either.”
Zong Jinghao held his daughter’s hand as they walked back into the house. The kid turned around and waved at Zhou Chunchun before shouting, “Aunt Chun, come play with me again when you’re free.”
Zhou Chunchun agreed to it while waving back at the child.
Bai Yinning stared at Zong Jinghao’s back for a little while. The former was worried about Lin Xinyan, so he asked the latter, “What is she down with?”
Zong Jinghao paused for a few seconds before turning around, “Who said that she’s sick?”
“Why didn’t she have dinner if that’s not the case?” asked Bai Yinning. He turned to look at Zhou Chunchun once before he shifted his gaze back to Zong Jinghao.
Zong Jinghao chuckled and answered, “She’s just tired. Do you really want me to tell you why?”
