Chapter 79
Su Yunzhe wasn’t sure how long the meeting would last. After Shen Yan picked up the little one, he told Su Yunzhe and took the child out to eat.
Shen Yan chose a children’s restaurant, where there was a wide variety of food with smaller portions, allowing them to try a little bit of everything. The plates and utensils were also designed in a playful and child-friendly manner, which the little one really liked.
However, the little one didn’t seem to be very interested. He was unusually quiet in the car, much quieter than he had been the past couple of days.
“What’s wrong? Are you missing Daddy?” Shen Yan, worried that the child might have forgotten him, felt that the little one was relying more on Su Yunzhe.
The little one shook his head. “No, I’m happy with brother.”
“Then why aren’t you talking? Do you not like talking to me anymore?” Shen Yan pinched the little one’s cheek playfully.
The little one tilted his head and blinked, looking at Shen Yan with innocent eyes. “I thought you were upset.”
“Why?” Shen Yan asked in surprise.
“Because of Aunt Lin. I told her that brother came to pick me up, but she said you’re a bad person. Hmph! I’m mad at her! She’s the bad person!”
The little one’s anger grew as he spoke, crossing his little arms in a pout.
Shen Yan was both amused and touched, feeling his heart soften at the child’s words. He couldn’t help but hug him tightly, kissing him all over, reluctant to let go. His son, even if he didn’t remember him, was still thinking of him, and his heart was with him. What a thoughtful little treasure.
The little one wriggled in Shen Yan’s arms, ticklish from the kisses, and giggled, but still clung to his thoughts. “Why isn’t brother upset?”
Shen Yan sat the little one on his lap and adjusted his hair, smiling. “Why would I be upset? Aunt Lin doesn’t know me, so of course, she’s cautious about handing you over to a stranger. She’s just concerned about you. Understand?”
When Shen Yan had picked up the little one at kindergarten earlier, the child had been surrounded by a group of teachers, with Aunt Lin, who was there to pick him up. Shen Yan recalled that she was the same girl he had briefly met a few days ago at Yun Kong Entertainment, the one Su Yunzhe referred to as his “girlfriend.”
But Aunt Lin hadn’t recognized Shen Yan, probably because her attention had been entirely on Su Yunzhe that day, so she hadn’t noticed anyone else.
When she saw Shen Yan preparing to take the little one, she grew uneasy, double-checking with the school and even quietly asking the little one if he really knew Shen Yan and whether he might be a bad person.
The little one wasn’t happy about this, but Shen Yan understood Aunt Lin’s actions and didn’t take offense.
In the end, Shen Yan had called Su Yunzhe on speakerphone, allowing Aunt Lin to hear Su Yunzhe confirm Shen Yan’s identity. Afterward, Aunt Lin apologized sincerely, showing that her concern was purely out of responsibility for the little one.
Shen Yan didn’t mind it, but it seemed the little one had been thinking about it all along.
The little one snuggled in Shen Yan’s arms, blinking up at him as if understanding his words. After a pause, he opened his mouth, “Okay, I guess I misunderstood her. She cares about me, and I shouldn’t have been angry. But…”
The little one propped himself up, wrapping his arms around Shen Yan’s neck, looking into his eyes with a smile that made his eyes curve into little crescent moons. “But I still don’t really like her. I like brother the most, and Daddy too. I love when the three of us are together.”
Ah, who does this little one take after? His words are so sweet!
Shen Yan couldn’t stop smiling, feeling so warmed by the child’s affection. He ended up eating more than usual during dinner.
Afterward, Su Yunzhe called.
Shen Yan handed the phone to the little one, and the father and son chatted for a while. Afterward, the little one handed the phone back to Shen Yan. “Daddy wants to talk to brother.”
Shen Yan took the phone, answering it. “Is it going to be very late?”
On the other end, Su Yunzhe let out a helpless laugh. “You guessed it. I’m probably going to have to stay up late. Hang Hang…”
“Should I take him home?” Shen Yan immediately interrupted, his tone full of hidden anticipation.
Su Yunzhe was stunned. He had planned to ask Shen Yan to either help take the little one home or have the family driver pick him up, but suddenly he couldn’t bring himself to say it.
“You… if you’re not comfortable, you can come pick him up later.”
The silence on the other end made Shen Yan realize that his suggestion might have been inappropriate. No matter how much the little one trusted and relied on him, in the adult world, they had only just met three days ago. Even if Su Yunzhe trusted him, it would still be awkward explaining things to the elders back home.
“Would I ask you to pick him up if I wasn’t comfortable? I’m just worried he might cause you trouble. If you don’t mind, I’m counting on you tonight. I have to go in now.”
Before Shen Yan could react, the call ended with that sentence.
So… does this mean he can sleep with the little one tonight?
Shen Yan couldn’t help but smile as he hugged the little one and kissed him on the cheek. “Hang Hang, would you like to go home with brother tonight and sleep together?”
The little one’s eyes brightened. “Yes, yes! Will Daddy come too? Can we all sleep together?”
Uh…
Although Shen Yan didn’t mind, he thought it was probably still not the right time.
In his mind, he added, I’ll let you sleep with him later, and then pinched the little one. “Daddy’s still working, but I’ll come and keep you company once I’m done. For now, go home with brother, okay?”
The little one obediently nodded. “Mm, okay.”
After settling the bill, Shen Yan drove the little one back home.
Meanwhile, Su Yunzhe’s phone was incessantly ringing during the meeting, with calls pouring in one after another. His family was demanding to know who had picked up Su Zihan from the kindergarten, where the little one was, and when he would be back. Upon hearing that the little one wouldn’t be coming home that night, the Su family nearly exploded with worry.
Since Su Yunzhe’s mother couldn’t get through on the phone, she sent him messages scolding him for being too careless. She said he shouldn’t let the child stay over at someone else’s house. Not to mention, she worried about whether the other person could properly take care of him—what if the little one woke up in the middle of the night and wanted to come home? What then?
Su Yunzhe knew that his mother had a point, but Shen Yan’s hopeful and cautious tone had touched him, and he couldn’t bring himself to refuse.
Moreover, the little one trusted Shen Yan so much, almost as much as he trusted his own father. Shen Yan would definitely take good care of him, so there was no need to worry.
And indeed, there was nothing to worry about. Not only did nothing go wrong, but the little one was also extremely happy.
When they arrived at the Shen family’s house, the little one didn’t act shy at all. He quickly warmed up to everyone there.
Shen’s father, the most serious person in the family, was completely charmed when the little one repeatedly called him “grandpa” and seemed overjoyed. No one else could get close enough to hug the little one as Shen’s father monopolized him.
Shen’s mother, on the other hand, had gone through the house and pulled out nearly every child-friendly food item, as well as some old toys that Shen Yan and his siblings had used when they were young. These had been kept with great care, but now they were all brought out to entertain the little one.
Shen Yue and Shen Fei, sitting on the side, tried to join in and play with the little one, but they couldn’t get a word in and could only watch in frustration.
Suddenly, Shen’s mother paused, her gaze shifting between the little one and Shen Yan’s face. “Hey, I just realized, Hang Hang looks a lot like Yan Yan when he was a kid. Have you guys noticed?”
At first, no one had paid much attention, but after Shen’s mother said that, both Shen’s father and Shen Yue nodded in agreement. “It really does look like him.”
Shen Fei, who was much older than Shen Yan, didn’t have many clear memories of what Shen Yan had looked like as a child. At that moment, she felt like she was being excluded and wasn’t happy about it. She stood up and went upstairs to grab a few large photo albums, bringing them down and laying them out on the sofa. The albums were full of pictures of Shen Yan when he was a child.
Flipping through to a photo of Shen Yan around four or five years old, she compared it to the little one’s face and was struck by how similar they looked.
The little one stared at the photos for a moment, then looked up at Shen Yan. “Is this when brother was little? He looks like Hang Hang. Wait, did brother used to be a little girl? Little girls wear skirts, right, grandpa?”
The little one had spotted another picture where Shen Yan was dressed in a princess dress by his mother.
And it wasn’t just that one picture; in fact, many of Shen Yan’s childhood photos were quite odd, as his family had made a point of recording every awkward or embarrassing moment. They even wrote down the time and occasion for each one. Shen Yan had once hated those photos, and whenever his family tried to show them, he strongly objected.
But today…
While everyone had been curious about the resemblance between the little one and Shen Yan when he was younger, the little one’s comment shifted everyone’s focus. Now everyone was gathered around flipping through the albums and telling stories behind the pictures, and the little one was listening intently, thoroughly enjoying himself.
This lively and joyful scene filled Shen Yan’s heart with indescribable warmth.
He had never imagined that one day his parents would meet his son, holding him in their arms, spoiling him with affection, and treating him just like any other family would.
Originally, Shen Yan had only wanted to spend more time with the little one, not wanting to be separated from him and hoping to sleep together. He had even worried a bit about whether his family would be upset if they found out that the little one was Su Yunzhe’s son. After all, when he had told his family he wanted to pursue Su Yunzhe, Shen Yue and Shen Fei had both been skeptical. They saw Su Yunzhe as an irresponsible playboy, someone who had affairs with women and had an illegitimate child. They had also heard that Su Yunzhe didn’t like men.
Of course, the Shen family was quite open-minded, and they wouldn’t stop him from pursuing his desires, but they probably wouldn’t fully support him either. So, Shen Yan worried that they might not be happy about him bringing home Su Yunzhe’s child with another woman.
But some things couldn’t be severed. Just like how the little one didn’t remember him yet still relied on and liked him, there was an unspoken connection between the little one and the Shen family. This connection made them naturally warm up to each other and enjoy being together.
This was something Shen Yan hadn’t expected, but it made him incredibly happy.
The little one’s biological clock was very strict, and by 9 p.m., he had to go to bed. Amid the Shen family’s reluctant goodbyes, Shen Yan took the little one upstairs at 8:30 p.m. to take a bath.
Since he didn’t have any spare clothes, Shen Yan wrapped the little one in a bathrobe and gently placed him on the bed.
The little one’s biological clock was already kicking in. As soon as he lay on the bed, his eyes began to flutter with sleepiness. Shen Yan covered him with the blanket, lying down beside him, gently patting his back.
At first, the little one tried to stay awake and said a few words to Shen Yan, but gradually, he fell silent and drifted into a peaceful sleep.
Shen Yan gently stroked his little face, becoming more and more fond of him, not wanting to let go.
He had originally planned to wait until the little one fell asleep and then go to the study to revise the script, but now, he found himself unable to get out of bed. He decided to leave his work for tomorrow.
Contentedly, he curled up with the little one in his arms.
It was still too early, and he couldn’t fall asleep. But that was fine. Looking at the little one’s face, he kissed and pinched him, gently flicked his eyelashes, and poked his cheeks—everything he did seemed irresistibly cute.
He had never thought that, apart from Su Yunzhe, there would be another person in this world he would feel such affection for, someone he just couldn’t stop loving no matter how hard he tried.
Hm?
Su Yunzhe?
Remembering Su Yunzhe, Shen Yan quietly got out of bed and grabbed his phone. He sent a photo of the peacefully sleeping little one to Su Yunzhe with a message: “He’s asleep, don’t worry.”
A few moments later, Su Yunzhe replied: “He looks so peaceful. I’ll be done here soon. Send me the location.”
Hmm…
Should he really take him home now?
Shen Yan felt a bit reluctant.
But thinking about it, he wasn’t the little one’s biological father after all, and he had no right to prevent Su Yunzhe from taking his son home. Besides, Su Yunzhe had already been very accommodating, so Shen Yan shouldn’t push it any further.
Reluctantly, he sent over the location.
Su Yunzhe’s “soon” actually took a while. When he called from outside the Shen family’s house, it was already well past midnight.
Shen Yan didn’t wake the butler. He went outside to open the door himself.
Su Yunzhe’s car was parked at the gate. He was leaning against the car door, his suit jacket and tie long gone, leaving him in just a shirt. His hair was a bit messy, and he looked exhausted.
Shen Yan felt a pang of sympathy and wanted to give him a hug, but all he could do was ask, “Tired?”
Su Yunzhe was indeed exhausted.
After all, he had just taken over Yun Kong Entertainment and was newly back in the country, still unfamiliar with many things. To make matters worse, he had run into some tricky issues and had to deal with his mother’s scolding for most of the night.
But strangely enough, seeing Shen Yan and hearing his voice, along with the tenderness in his eyes, made Su Yunzhe suddenly feel much lighter. He put on a pitiful expression and said, “Yeah, I haven’t had dinner yet.”
“Ah?” Shen Yan immediately reacted, pulling him inside while scolding him. “What time is it? You haven’t eaten dinner? No matter how busy you are with work, you shouldn’t skip meals! Let me cook some noodles for you.”
Su Yunzhe was pulled into the house and straight into the kitchen, where Shen Yan pressed him against the counter. Shen Yan went about his task, rummaging through the fridge for ingredients and searching through the cabinets for utensils.
As Shen Yan was chopping vegetables, Su Yunzhe finally couldn’t sit still any longer. He stood up, walked over, and took the knife from Shen Yan’s hand. “Let me do it,” he said, taking Shen Yan’s hand and squeezing it playfully. “Such beautiful hands aren’t meant for cooking.”
Shen Yan paused for a moment, then chuckled. Su Yunzhe really was still the same—every time he saw him with a knife, he would say the same thing.
Well, it didn’t matter. Shen Yan hadn’t exactly improved his cooking skills over the years, and he could only manage to cook noodles that were edible. Su Yunzhe was far better at it than he was.
“I’m hungry too. Make me a bowl too. Thank you, Mr. Su,” Shen Yan teased, flashing him a playful wink.
“You just wanted to eat all along, didn’t you?” Su Yunzhe teased back, though his actions were the opposite.
Although he was good at cooking, Su Yunzhe usually avoided the kitchen, especially after a long day. He would rather go hungry than cook.
But with Shen Yan looking at him with such an eager expression, he felt motivated. What was meant to be a simple bowl of noodles turned into two plates of delicious dry noodles, each perfectly prepared with skill and care.
Shen Yan ate with great satisfaction. He had always loved Su Yunzhe’s cooking, and it was even more delicious after such a long time without it.
After Shen Yan had finished eating and was leaning lazily on the counter, Su Yunzhe couldn’t resist poking his cheek, teasing him. “Was it good?”
Shen Yan, already full and feeling sleepy, nodded obediently. “Mm, it was delicious.”
“Then how about some payback? For example… let me stay the night?” Su Yunzhe asked, lightly brushing his unruly eyelashes and speaking softly.
The drowsy Shen Yan froze for a moment, then suddenly sat up straight and stared at Su Yunzhe. “What did you say?”
“I…”
“Didn’t you come to pick Hang Hang up?” Shen Yan asked, his tone full of confusion. “Hang Hang can still sleep with me, right?”
Uh…
What was this feeling of slight displeasure?
When Su Yunzhe suggested staying over, Shen Yan’s excitement had been too obvious, but before Su Yunzhe could be happy about it, he was pulled back to reality by Shen Yan’s next words. What Shen Yan was excited about was that the little one would stay, not him!
Ugh!
Why was it that, even though they were both from the Su family, he was treated so differently?
He glared at Shen Yan, silently sulking.
Shen Yan realized his mistake and quickly stood up, walking over to him with an apologetic smile. “You’ve had a long day, and I can’t let you drive home like this. I already thought about it—if you really want to go home, I can drive you both back, but it would be better if you stay, right?”