He Jitang stood in the corridor, his figure lonely.
Su Ruanruan handed him his coat, softly calling out, "Third Brother."
He Jitang turned around.
He gazed at the woman in front of him.
After a night of enduring, she appeared less fresh than usual, but her eyes revealed a touch of tenderness.
He Jitang took the coat.
He glanced inside, asking, "How is Ci’an?"
Su Ruanruan replied, "He’s asleep! The old lady is with him!"
He Jitang knitted his brows.
Su Ruanruan slowly moved to his side, whispering, "Third Brother, I never interfere in your matters, nor is it my place to, but since you trust me with Ci’an, there are things I must say!"
He Jitang lit a cigarette.
Taking a slow drag, he said, "Speak."
Su Ruanruan firmly stated, "You allow Lin Xianni to approach you, which might be fine as it could be your mutual interest, but you should not let her get close to Ci’an!"
Her voice lowered, "She doesn’t truly care for Ci’an."
"I know," He Jitang uttered three words.
Afterwards, Su Ruanruan didn’t know what else to say to him.
Clearly, He Jitang was not in the mood to talk either.
Su Ruanruan returned to the sick room.
He looked down at the coat hanging on his arm.
On it, lingered a trace of gentleness.
He Jitang put on the coat and stood silently through the night.
...
It was just getting light.
Little Ci’an woke up.
He Jitang touched his head, "Awake?"
Little Ci’an, still groggy, asked, "Where’s auntie, I thought I saw her last night."
He Jitang gently said, "Auntie went home first, she will visit Ci’an in the afternoon."
Though feeling unwell, little Ci’an was happy at the thought of his aunt visiting.
Today, dad seemed particularly agreeable, he further requested, "Can I see the little beauty?"
He Jitang kissed his little head, "Once you get better, we’ll stay at auntie’s for a few days."
Little Ci’an’s face flushed.
He felt very happy.
But then he remembered that woman and became scared again.
That woman claimed to be his mom.
Little Ci’an told her she wasn’t, and then the woman became very mean to him.
She made him stand on the balcony in the cold wind, saying he was not worthy of being her son because he was disobedient.
Little Ci’an felt scared and wronged, burying himself in his father’s embrace.
He Jitang’s expression turned stern.
...
In the afternoon, as agreed, Su Ruanruan came.
Bao Jingyan was also there.
He brought little Ci’an a toy; the boy liked him a lot and called him Uncle.
He Jitang squinted.
Bao Jingyan suddenly smiled lightly, his gaze meeting He Jitang’s.
A brief confrontation, yet all was calm.
Later, He Jitang excused himself due to some work.
He walked outside, unable to resist looking through the glass again.
He Ci’an got up from the bed; he sat on Bao Jingyan’s lap, wrapping his arms around the man’s neck.
Su Ruanruan was feeding Ci’an mashed apples.
The scene was warm, like a family of three.
He Jitang smiled faintly: he had seen many people, but someone as scheming as Bao Jingyan was rare!
After he left, Su Ruanruan stayed with little Ci’an.
About half an hour later, the He Residence called to say Lin Xianni was causing a scene at the He Residence, alarming even the He family’s elder!
The housekeeper pleaded, "Young Master He has an important meeting, please return for a while."
Su Ruanruan hung up the phone.
She sighed lightly: the feud with Lin Xianni was inevitable.
She told Bao Jingyan, "Please look after him, I’ll be back shortly!"
When she arrived at the He Residence, it indeed was chaos.
Lin Xianni was being destructive.
She called reporters, crying in front of them, claiming the He family mistreated her and kept her from seeing her son.
The Elder Mrs. He, born of high status, could not stoop to the level of a madwoman.
Moreover, with Ci’an falling ill and feeling miserable,
this provocation directly made her sick!