It was almost dawn.
Qiu Tong buried her face in her knees as she pondered Jin Yang’s proposal through the night.
She could not be selfish and choose to hide or escape, while letting the children suffer with her!
Qiu Tong grabbed her phone and stared at the number on the screen.
She took a deep breath and pressed the call button. In the quiet room, Qiu Tong could hear her own heartbeat.
The phone rang for two seconds before being picked up. Jin Yang’s voice came from the other end. Qiu Tong nervously shifted away from the phone.
“Qiu Tong?”
“I need to respect the children’s wishes. If they can accept you, I’m willing to marry you.”
Click.
Qiu Tong hung up quickly. Jin Yang was a little dazed as he grabbed his messy hair. When he regained his senses, he heaved a sigh of relief and smiled.
Meanwhile, Qiu Tong threw her phone far away, forcing herself to forget the call she just made.
The next morning, Qiu Xingyuan and Qiu Xingqiao walked out of the bedroom yawning. When they heard busy noises in the kitchen, they stood rooted to the ground. The two boys rubbed their eyes at the same time, thinking that they were hallucinating.
Jin Yang heard them as he busied himself at the dining table. He waved and called out to them, “Come and have breakfast.”
“I don’t know what you like so I’ve prepared Chinese, Western and fast food options.”
“If you need anything else, just let me know. I’ll try my best to satisfy your requests.”
The corners of Jin Yang’s lips curled up as he tried to mimic the teacher in the parenting video. He felt his facial muscles stiffen, but he didn’t dare to show any signs of fatigue.
Qiu Xingyuan narrowed his eyes and stared at him with hostility.
When Little Yu saw him, an expression of surprise and joy appeared on her face. She hurriedly ran to the kitchen and pulled out a chair. She opened her arms for Jin Yang to carry her onto the seat.
She took two bites of the bread and gave him a thumbs-up. “Delicious!”
Qiu Xingqiao looked at his sister, who had once again “defected” to the enemy side. He pressed his fist to his lips and coughed twice as a reminder.
Qiu Xingyu blinked, her black, grape-like eyes swivelling. She then put on a stubborn stance and pointed at the two boiled crabs in the bowl. “I want to eat this! Help me crack the shells… Eldest Brother, Second Brother, you two love to eat crabs. Come here quickly!”
Qiu Xingyuan surveyed the living room but did not see Qiu Tong. He sat down suspiciously, wanting to probe Jin Yang’s motive for being here.
Jin Yang’s fingers were long and slender. He used a tool to dismantle the crabs, looking as if he was performing a medical operation.
He carefully picked out the crab roe and meat and distributed them fairly to each child. He even thoughtfully prepared grated ginger and vinegar as accompaniments for the crab.
Such ingratiating behavior had no effect on Qiu Xingyuan and Qiu Xingqiao at all.
They quietly pushed the crab meat away and lowered their heads to eat their plain porridge.
Qiu Xingyu and Jin Yang exchanged glances. Qiu Xingyu shoved the crab meat into their bowls and mumbled, “Why are Eldest Brother and Second Brother throwing tantrums like silly kids?! You’ll only have the strength to fight Uncle when your stomachs are full!”
She had just blurted out Qiu Xingyuan and Qiu Xingqiao’s plan. Qiu Xingyuan sighed helplessly and had no choice but to compromise and eat.
A sweet smile appeared on Little Yu’s face. She blinked and exchanged secret signals with Jin Yang.
“Do something to gain sympathy!”
Qiu Xingyu took the opportunity to whisper those words to Jin Yang when he bent over to pick up something.
Jin Yang was momentarily taken aback. But he quickly understood and walked to the living room, bringing over a fruit platter.
He held a sharp fruit knife and purposely sliced an apple in a clumsy manner, “accidentally” cutting his own fingers.
Jin Yang cried out softly. Qiu Xingyu dragged half a box of tissues to his side with exaggerated movements. She glanced at Qiu Xingyuan and Qiu Xingqiao and shouted, “Aiyah, what should we do? Uncle is injured!”
Qiu Xingyuan and Qiu Xingqiao looked up with cold expressions. Their thin lips parted slightly and their venomous tongues spat out mercilessly. “You can’t even do a simple task properly, idiot.”
Jin Yang’s breathing halted. He shook his hand awkwardly. “It’s alright, just a small injury.”
Qiu Xingyuan frowned and asked, “Why are you here? You’re not welcome here.”
Jin Yang knew that Qiu Xingyuan and Qiu Xingqiao would not be convinced so easily, but he did not expect the situation to be so tricky.
He lowered his eyes and handed them some milk without answering. “From today onwards, I’ll move to the villa to take care of you.”
“If you encounter any problems, you can come to me anytime.”
“I hope that you can rely on me…”
Qiu Xingyuan slammed his chopsticks on the dining table. He pursed his thin lips and said coldly with a resistant expression, “Relyh on a stranger? Do we look stupid to you? Don’t think you can fool us again!” He dragged Little Yu out of the dining room.
Jin Yang sighed helplessly. Taking care of a child was even more tiring than being the president!
He dragged his tired body back to the living room, only to see a band-aid on the coffee table.
A glimpse of the corner of Qiu Xingyuan’s shirt flashed past the door. Jin Yang raised his eyebrows in surprise before curling his lips. It seemed like the situation was not that bad.
Qiu Tong stood on the second floor and witnessed the entire process of Jin Yang interacting with the children. Mixed emotions welled up in her heart.
She slowly drew back her fingers and flipped through the marriage agreement that the lawyer had given her.