I Thought This Was a Slice of Life

"Holy crap!"

Wu Ping was completely caught off guard, his phone nearly slipping from his hand to the floor.

His expression shifted several times before he instinctively straightened his face and put on his mask.

He took three deep breaths before finally answering the call.

"Hello? Xiaoyu? What's up, Dad?"

Wu Ping's speech was a bit too fast.

Damn it!

He wanted to slap himself.

It was so embarrassing to be this excited!

But there was no sound from the other end of the line.

It seemed completely silent, yet the faint sound of breathing told him that someone was there.

"Xiaoyu?"

Wu Ping realized something felt a bit off.

He listened carefully and noticed what sounded like singing and music in the background—was that a Japanese song?

Was it coming from a television?

Wu Ping pondered for a moment, and then a voice came from the other side.

"Dad..."

The young girl's voice carried a suppressed sob, as if she didn't want to be discovered but couldn't help herself.

Before the worry hit him, Wu Ping was struck by a sense of shock.

His daughter had actually called him "Dad" instead of "Hey" or "Old Man"!

Wu Ping was deeply moved.

But he quickly realized something was wrong and asked nervously, "Xiaoyu, what happened?"

"I'm coming back right now, don't you worry!"

Wu Ping tucked the phone between his shoulder and ear, hurriedly packing his things.

His heartfelt words completely triggered his daughter's emotions.

"Waaaaah---!"

A burst of crying reached his ears, making Wu Ping even more frantic: "Hey, hey, don't scare me!"

Screw it! Forget packing!

He left his things on the office desk; he didn't think anyone would steal them anyway.

Wu Ping intended to grab his coat and leave.

The man was panicking so hard he was already considering whether he should call the police.

However, as his hand reached for his coat, his daughter's voice made him freeze completely.

"Dad, all this time... I, I'm sorry..."

"..."

His hand hung in mid-air.

The middle-aged man's entire body went rigid.

He felt something surging in his throat.

His eyes were turning red, with a faint shimmer of moisture welling up.

He trembled slightly, his left hand gripping the phone tightly while his right hand waved unconsciously, as if trying to grab onto something, but in the end, he could only clench it into a fist.

Can't cry.

Must not cry...

"Xia, Xiaoyu..."

"Dad, you..."

Wu Ping heard Wu Xiaoyu's voice filled with tension and hesitation.

But in the end, she said it.

"You've worked hard."

Beep, beep, beep...

She hung up the phone.

Wu Ping slowly lowered his phone.

He felt as if his very soul were trembling.

It was worth it.

It is very difficult for a person to struggle for so many years, but when he heard his daughter say those words.

He felt that everything was worth it.

Wu Ping felt as if his heart was about to explode with excitement.

Countless emotions were churning within him.

Regret, sorrow, helplessness, anxiety, grievance...

In the end, they all turned into relief.

"Xiaoyu..."

Wu Ping slowly crouched down.

He covered his face and let out a faint sob.

In the empty office, this man cried like a child.

That night, when Wu Ping rushed home, Wu Xiaoyu was already asleep.

He couldn't sleep at all, so he sat in the living room for the entire night.

When his daughter woke up, he stood up excitedly, but he couldn't speak, only nervously rubbing his hands together.

He saw that his daughter's eyes were red; she must have cried for a long time.

And when Wu Xiaoyu saw him, her tears started streaming down again.

What he didn't expect was that his daughter actually rushed over and hugged him, which made his own eyes moisten as well.

But he didn't cry in front of his daughter.

After Wu Xiaoyu calmed down, the father and daughter had a good talk.

Wu Xiaoyu's knot had been untied, and although their relationship could not return to how it was when she was a child, he believed it would gradually improve.

After the talk, Wu Ping learned that the reason his daughter had changed so much was because of a foreign cartoon.

He was very grateful and desperately wanted to see this cartoon that had changed the fate of his family.

But unfortunately, Wu Xiaoyu did not have the habit of recording, so he wouldn't be able to see it.

However, he worked at a major newspaper; since his daughter said this cartoon was so popular, there must be archives kept as reference material.

Wu Ping immediately rushed back to the company.

He kicked open the door to the entertainment section office with uncharacteristic ferocity.

"Is Old Zhao here? Old Zhao! Find the latest episode of Alien Baby Hikari-chan for me!"

Wu Ping's uncharacteristically wild and unrestrained behavior left the entire room in silence, everyone staring at him in shock.

"Oh, Old Wu..."

The Old Zhao he mentioned glanced at him, gave him a look that said "good luck to you," and then looked to the side.

Wu Ping followed his gaze and saw an old man.

Wu Ping Σ(っ °Д °;)っ

The editor-in-chief, who held the highest position in the entire newspaper, was turning his head to look at him.

"Emmmm."

Is it too late for me to leave now?

Wu Ping offered an awkward but polite smile.

"Hehehe, is Little Wu also here to find that cartoon?"

Unexpectedly, the editor-in-chief did not get angry but asked with a chuckle.

"Yes, yes, could it be that the editor-in-chief is also...?"

"???"

Old Zhao looked at the two of them.

Could it be... that something big is about to happen?

Ten minutes later, Old Zhao and a group of editors were sitting in the conference room.

They looked at each other, feeling that the surreal scene before them was unbelievable.

The television in the conference room was playing a cartoon from the Japan Administrative District.

A group of middle-aged men over thirty and a man in his seventies were sitting in rows, watching the animation obediently and intently.

Wu Ping and the editor-in-chief Li Xue were sitting in the front row, chatting with each other.

From their conversation, Old Zhao had already figured out the reason they had come.

Both of them had improved their family relationships because of this cartoon called Hikari-chan, so they wanted to see what kind of work the original film actually was.

In truth, the Editor-in-Chief and Wu Ping had not asked Old Zhao and the others to accompany them; the Editor-in-Chief had stated that he would just take a look by himself.

However... how could Old Zhao and the others dare to do that?

The Editor-in-Chief, Li Xuenian, was over seventy years old and had worked in the news industry for more than fifty years.

He held the position of Editor-in-Chief here primarily to anchor the organization's fortune, rarely taking action himself, as the deputy editors usually handled everything.

Although he did no actual work, his mere presence was enough to put everyone's hearts at ease.

In the eyes of the staff, he was like an old immortal.

If this old immortal arrived and they didn't serve him well, wouldn't that be asking for death?

Of course, everyone also harbored utilitarian motives, daydreaming about being noticed by the old immortal and getting a leg up in their careers.

Countless inquisitive gazes shot toward Wu Ping, all whispering about what kind of shady deal he must have made to be able to chat so openly with the Editor-in-Chief.

They didn't really believe the reason he had given.

Something about a cartoon changing his daughter's personality and helping them reconcile.

How could such a fantastical thing exist in this world?

But since even the Editor-in-Chief had said as much, everyone remained skeptical yet curious.

And so, half out of curiosity and half out of a desire to seize the chance to butter him up, they all swarmed into the conference room.

Gathering to watch the show.