Encounter

After dinner, at the children's playground.

Tongtong let loose and had a lot of fun.

Zhang Yang didn't know why he was so approachable. In the children's playground, several children mistook him for their father, and several young women with children blushed and stole glances at him while quietly correcting their children's address.

This put Zhang Yang in a rather awkward position.

More than an hour later, Tongtong reluctantly left the children's playground, still feeling a bit unsatisfied.

"Daddy, Daddy, I want to eat that super big lollipop."

"I'll go buy them." Li Xiaoxuan smiled and took small steps forward to buy lollipops.

Zhang Yang looked at Tongtong, who was holding his hand, and squatted down.

"Tongtong, you should still call him Uncle."

"Daddy, Daddy, you are my daddy." Tongtong jumped into Zhang Yang's arms, her two little braids bouncing.

Upon hearing this, Zhang Yang could only feel helpless.

"Tongtong?" Suddenly, a tall, fair-skinned girl stopped and called out in disbelief.

Tongtong, who was still snuggling in Zhang Yang's arms, subconsciously turned her head to look over, her expression a little blank.

"Tongtong, it's your auntie!"

The girl seemed to suddenly realize it, took a few steps forward, and appeared to want to pick up the child.

"Daddy!" Tongtong kept burrowing into Zhang Yang's arms, looking a little timid.

"Dad?" The girl stopped abruptly, her brows furrowing slightly, her expression filled with surprise and uncertainty.

Zhang Yang patted Tongtong on the back.

"Tongtong, do you know this auntie?"

Tongtong turned her head and looked at the girl in front of her several more times, then nodded and shook her head.

"Tongtong, it's me, your aunt. Have you forgotten?" The girl took a small breath, squatted down, and continued to ask persistently.

"Auntie?" Tongtong's eyes were blank, then she seemed to gradually remember something, "Auntie, it's Auntie."

Her expression gradually became more lively.

Zhang Yang finally understood that the person in front of him was indeed Tongtong's aunt, so he easily opened his arms.

Tongtong turned around, looked at the girl in front of her with expectant eyes and open arms, hesitated for a moment, took a few steps forward, and was then pulled into the girl's arms.

Zhang Yang stood aside, watching without saying anything.

After all, she is the child's real aunt, and the blood relationship is undeniable. Although Tongtong calls him "Dad" all the time, he actually has no relation to Tongtong whatsoever.

"Tongtong, what did you just call him?" The girl hugged Tongtong and teased her for a moment, then pointed at Zhang Yang.

"Dad," Tongtong said without hesitation, looking at Zhang Yang.

"Dad?!" The girl's expression immediately darkened, her eyes filled with hostility as she looked at Zhang Yang. "Who are you? What's your relationship with Li Xiaoxuan? Who made the child call you that, you? Or her?"

"No... are you questioning me with that tone?" Zhang Yang said, amused.

"Looks like you must be Li Xiaoxuan's new love interest. So, is this how you teach and guide your children?" the girl said with a cold laugh.

Just then, Li Xiaoxuan, having bought the lollipops, came over in her high heels.

I was stunned when I arrived and saw this scene before me.

"Tongtong, come to Mommy!"

She stepped forward and, without saying a word, hugged Tongtong back into her arms, gently patting her back as she stood next to Zhang Yang.

Seeing the scene before her that resembled a family of three, the girl was immediately filled with anger.

"Great, great, sister-in-law! I'll call you sister-in-law now. It hasn't been that long, and you've already found a man. You're really something!"

"Pei Xue, whether I find a man or not is none of your business. Is it any of your concern?" Li Xiaoxuan said bluntly.

"Whether you find a man or not is none of my business, but I absolutely do not condone your guiding your child to call another man 'Dad'!" the girl named Pei Xue said coldly.

"My brother just got divorced from you, he's not dead. Besides, he still has custody of the children. Have you even understood the situation?"

Zhang Yang naturally shouldn't interfere in other people's family affairs.

"Let's go." Zhang Yang stepped forward and put his arm around Li Xiaoxuan's shoulder. "The child is still here, no need to linger."

Li Xiaoxuan obediently nodded and prepared to follow Zhang Yang.

Seeing that they were about to leave, Pei Xue immediately objected and stepped forward, trying to pull them away.

"No, you must explain this to me clearly today."

"Tsk." Zhang Yang casually grabbed Pei Xue's wrist and gave Li Xiaoxuan a look, signaling her to take the child to the car first.

"Then... then we'll go wait for you first," Li Xiaoxuan said softly, and quickly left with the child in her arms.

In a short while, there was no one else left at the scene.

Zhang Yang casually released his grip on Pei Xue's wrist.

"My hand, you bastard!" Pei Xue glanced at her bruised wrist and clutched it in pain.

Honestly, Zhang Yang didn't use a single ounce of strength. Perhaps some people are just born with a tendency to bruise; that must be it.

"Excuse me," Zhang Yang said casually, turning to leave.

"You two are a pair of adulterers!" Pei Xue said angrily.

Zhang Yang stopped abruptly, turned around and came back, "What did you just say?"

Faced with that tall and imposing figure, Pei Xue took two steps back, but before she could react, she landed hard on her bottom.

People came and went around, each with their own unique gaze.

"What do you want to do?!" Pei Xue bluffed.

"Young lady, why do you have such a foul mouth?" Zhang Yang stepped forward, looking down at her. "Don't think I won't slap you just because there are more of you."

Pei Xue was completely intimidated and remained silent, pursing her lips.

Zhang Yang glanced at her, then turned and left.

In the underground parking garage, Li Xiaoxuan held Tongtong and waited by the Cullinan for quite a while.

Upon seeing Zhang Yang, they immediately came to greet him.

"Did Pei Xue throw a tantrum?"

Upon hearing Li Xiaoxuan's words, Zhang Yang couldn't help but chuckle.

Presumably, Li Xiaoxuan had learned a great deal about how formidable her sister-in-law was back then.

"No, we're not related, she wouldn't dare." Zhang Yang smiled and opened the car door, gesturing for Li Xiaoxuan and her daughter to get in. "This is your own sister-in-law!"

"My ex-sister-in-law," Li Xiaoxuan hugged Tongtong to her side, "Is the most unreasonable and argumentative person ever."

"I can tell. Back when you and she were sisters-in-law, you must have argued quite a bit, right?" Zhang Yang asked casually.

"From the very first day she entered the Pei family, she's been causing trouble in every way." Li Xiaoxuan snorted softly, as if recalling some unpleasant memory.

"My divorce from his brother was partly her doing; in short, she fueled the flames."

Once Li Xiaoxuan started talking, she went on and on.

As Zhang Yang drove, he listened to her gossip with her former sister-in-law, finding it quite interesting.

"Besides, Pei Xue is a total love-struck fool. She had a boyfriend before, do you know where she tattooed his name?" Li Xiaoxuan suddenly remembered something.

"Huh? Where?" Zhang Yang couldn't help but ask curiously.

"I'll tell you, it's in the lower back." Li Xiaoxuan gently coaxed the drowsy child, then said mysteriously.

Zhang Yang blinked, almost bursting with joy.

"So, are she and her boyfriend still together?"

"We broke up a long time ago," Li Xiaoxuan said without hesitation.

"You talked about it later, right?" Zhang Yang continued to ask.

"Of course, and we talked to more than one!" Li Xiaoxuan added.

Zhang Yang seemed to be deep in thought, and a picture was forming in his mind.

I reckon that, apart from the boyfriend who got her name tattooed and wasn't excited, her other boyfriends were probably quite excited.

As night fell, Cullinan fell silent.

With the sound of Li Xiaoxuan gently patting her back, Tongtong hummed a few times and fell into a deep sleep.

The car was parked downstairs at Li Xiaoxuan's house.

Zhang Yang got out of the car, helped carry Tongtong in his arms, and went upstairs with Li Xiaoxuan.

"Get some rest, I have to go back."

Zhang Yang checked the time; his parents were urging him again.

"Wait a minute." Li Xiaoxuan stood in front of Zhang Yang with a smile, gently placing her arms on his shoulders and tilting up her beautiful and mature face.

"Mr. Zhang, how about a kiss?"

"Kiss me if you want, why are you asking for a kiss?" Zhang Yang smiled and went to meet him, his nose instantly filled with a sweet fragrance.

Not far away, Tongtong, who had just been put down, mumbled "Mommy" in a daze.

Zhang Yang wrapped his arms around Li Xiaoxuan's waist, and the two looked over at the same time.

Go ahead.

"Then drive carefully." Li Xiaoxuan smiled, gently opened the door, and sighed, "I wish you were really Tongtong's father."

"No, it's better if our relationship stays pure." Zhang Yang pinched Li Xiaoxuan's pretty cheek. "Goodnight, get some rest."

He smiled as he left the room and entered the elevator.

Li Xiaoxuan stood leaning against the door for a long time until the elevator doors closed and began to descend, and the motion-activated lights in the corridor dimmed, before she came to her senses.

··

Zhang Yang drove back to his building and slowly parked his car next to his father's Maybach.

Looking up, I saw the house was brightly lit, and I could vaguely see figures flashing by.

"So you were really waiting for me to come home?"

Zhang Yang shook his head and walked into the stairwell.

He fumbled for his keys and opened the door at his own front door.

As soon as I entered the house, I saw my father, Zhang Zhaohai, beaming with excitement, talking loudly to my mother in a very loud voice.

"Oh well, we've already bought it, why are we arguing about wasting it? We're not short of a little money, are we?"

"Typical extravagance! Do you even know what 'low-key' means? People in Maybach hire chauffeurs, are you planning to hire one too?" Song Wenqin retorted. "And you drove this car to the class reunion, you really showed off, didn't you?"

"Ah? No, no." Zhang Zhaohai immediately changed his tune, waving his hands repeatedly. "Absolutely not."

Zhang Yang quietly closed the door.

Immediately, both people in the room looked at him.

"Zhang Yang, you're finally back! Come here, your mother has something to ask you." Zhang Zhaohai waved frantically, as if he had seen a savior.

"Mom, what are you asking me? Is it about the car?" Zhang Yang asked with a smile as he stepped forward.

"It's about the car, I'm asking you..." Song Wenqin was about to speak.

"Speaking of cars, Mom, your car is coming out a couple of months later. By the way, what kind of car do you want? Let's talk about it." Zhang Yang interrupted the conversation.

"Huh?" Song Wenqin was taken aback. "What kind of car do I want? Actually, my main idea is..."

Zhang Yang calmly sat down on the sofa and began to talk about the topic casually.

"Mom, how about I buy you a BMW 7 Series, or Porsche would be nice too. I think you'd be better suited to Panamera, Maserati would be good too. Mom, you'd definitely look classy driving Maserati."

"BMW? Porsche? And Maserati?" Song Wenqin was dizzy and her mind couldn't quite process it.

Something feels off.

"Mom, then you can take a good look at it tonight, and let me know when you've chosen it, and I'll order it for you. It's getting late, I'm going to wash up and go to bed." Zhang Yang stretched slightly, grabbed his clothes, and went into the bathroom.

Inside the bathroom, he could still faintly hear his mother's voice outside.

"Old Zhang, tell me, what kind of car is best suited for me?"

"You should see for yourself. I can only offer some suggestions, but personally, I think..."

In the middle of the night, Zhang Yang was lying in bed when he could vaguely hear his parents muttering next door.

He shook his head with a smile, then closed his eyes and fell asleep.

Having parents who don't spoil the fun is really wonderful...

The next morning, seemingly finally coming to her senses, Song Wenqin, with dark circles under her eyes from a night of excitement and lack of sleep, grabbed Zhang Yang.

"Son, you almost fooled me last night. What I really wanted to say was, even though we're rich now, is it really okay to waste money like this?"

"So, Mom, have you decided what kind of car you want?" Zhang Yang asked with a smile.

"You... alright." Song Wenqin said helplessly, "How about we keep a low profile and just get BMW?"

"BMW 7 Series, right? No problem." Zhang Yang nodded.

At breakfast, Zhang Yang finally gave his parents a proper explanation, which put their minds at ease.

"Anyway, Mom and Dad, don't worry, I know what I'm doing."

"You're our son, do you think we don't know your personality? Anyway, just keep a sum of money in your account and don't touch it. As for the rest, whether you start a business or spend money, your parents won't interfere," Song Wenqin said with a shake of her head and a smile.

"That's right, honey. How could you not trust your son to handle things? Oh, and come downstairs later, take a ride in my Maybach and experience it." Zhang Zhaohai smiled and put his arm around his wife's shoulder. "And don't forget, the three of us have something to do at noon."

"What is it?" Zhang Yang put down his chopsticks and asked, somewhat puzzled.

"Your dad was my master when I was learning to cook. Today is his 80th birthday. A teacher for a day is a father for life. I can't possibly not go on such an important day, can I?" Zhang Zhaohai said with a smile.

"He's clearly looking for an opportunity to show off." Song Wenqin saw through Zhang Zhaohai's true intentions at a glance. "I remember, among your fellow apprentices, there are a few who are doing quite well, they're big bosses, right?"

"Well, we weren't on the same path before, so there's no need for me to rush into building a relationship. After all, we're fellow disciples, not blood brothers." Zhang Zhaohai wasn't as smug as Song Wenqin had expected; instead, his expression was quite calm and serious.

"Now is a good time to get in touch. After all, they're both in the restaurant business, so it wouldn't be bad to learn from them."