Ye Chen picked Su Ningwei up and carried her into the bedroom.
"I just got lucky. You're the one with real talent," Ye Chen replied with a smile.
Su Ningwei looped her arms around Ye Chen's neck and said coyly, "You're way too modest. Forget songwriting—you're even better than me at the piano. I don't care; you have to teach me. I want to be as good as you."
"Fine, I'll teach you. I'll guide your hands every step of the way. Happy now?" Ye Chen said fondly.
Su Ningwei answered happily, "Mm. I want to learn guitar too, and cooking."
"Sure. I'll teach you whatever you want to learn," Ye Chen replied with a smile.
"You must be tired. Go take a shower. I've already run a bath for you."
"I can do it myself. You're still recovering after giving birth, so you need to lie down and rest."
"It's fine. The doctor said I can walk around. I'm only running a bath."
"Then go to sleep first. I'll shower quickly."
"Mm. I'll wait for you."
"..."
The next morning.
The sun shone brightly.
As Ye Chen cooked breakfast, he thought about how he'd admitted on the livestream the night before that he had a child. His parents would probably find out soon.
Rather than wait for them to call and demand an explanation, he might as well tell them himself.
With that in mind, Ye Chen called his mother, Li Juan.
The phone rang several times before she answered.
Li Juan's gentle voice came through the phone. "A-Chen, have you had breakfast?"
"Yes, Mom. I have some good news for you and Dad," Ye Chen replied.
As she arranged some fruit, Li Juan asked with a smile, "What good news? Is your new book a hit?"
"No, but it'll be a hit sooner or later. What I wanted to tell you is that I have a child now. My wife's name is Su Ningwei," Ye Chen said, beaming.
Li Juan stared in shock. "What? You have a child? Something as important as having a baby, and you didn't tell me sooner?"
"Mm, it's a long story..." Ye Chen explained the whole situation to Li Juan.
Li Juan was both happy and worried. She sighed. "Ah, it's all our fault for being useless and holding you back. No matter the circumstances, you can't let her suffer. The fruit shop's been doing well lately, and I've saved three thousand yuan. I'll transfer it to you now. Buy that young woman some good food and take good care of her. I'll go borrow some more money and take the train to Magic City to help look after the baby."
"There's no need. We've already hired a postpartum nanny. Mountain City is too far from Magic City, and you need to take care of the shop and Dad. I can manage here. Once Weiwei's finished her postpartum recovery, I'll bring her and the baby back to visit you. And don't worry about money. I recently wrote a song that someone liked, and I'll earn quite a bit from it," Ye Chen said quickly.
Li Juan glanced at Ye Dashan, who had trouble getting around. He really couldn't be left alone, so she could only say, "All right, then. You'll have to manage on your own."
"It's no trouble. Once Weiwei and the three babies wake up, I'll start a video call so you can meet them," Ye Chen said with a smile.
Just then, the doorbell at Ye Chen's home rang.
"Mom, someone's at the door. I'll call you back later," Ye Chen said.
"All right, go see who it is." After hanging up, Li Juan still transferred the three thousand yuan to Ye Chen, then went to tell Ye Dashan the surprising and joyful news.
After hanging up, Ye Chen checked the video doorbell.
It was Gu Jia.
He had both hands full of big and small bags of gifts.
Ye Chen quickly unlocked the entrance and opened the door to let him in.
"Mr. Ye, sorry to bother you. I came specifically to thank you for saving my wife that day." Seeing Ye Chen, Gu Jia hurriedly tried to hand over the gifts.
Ye Chen took them and smiled as he ushered Gu Jia into the living room. "Captain Gu, you're too kind. Come in and have a seat."
Gu Jia followed Ye Chen inside and sat down.
Ye Chen brewed a pot of fine tea for him.
Gu Jia stood up, took out a banner, and handed it to Ye Chen, then saluted him.
The banner read: "Presented to Hero Ye Chen for Saving a Life—Upholding Justice and Doing What Is Right."
Ye Chen quickly stood and accepted it with both hands.
"I saw the case online too. I never imagined you'd done such a good deed years ago. You should have received this banner long ago." Gu Jia's eyes were full of respect as he looked at Ye Chen.
Ye Chen quickly replied modestly, "It was only the right thing to do. I just happened to be there. Anyone else who found themselves in that situation would have done the same."
"Your actions deserve encouragement. That way, more people will step forward to protect the vulnerable and make society more harmonious," Gu Jia said.
Ye Chen put the banner away and handed Gu Jia a cup of hot tea. "Captain Gu, please have some tea. I didn't tell my wife about what happened that night. She's still recovering after giving birth, and I didn't want her to worry. Could you keep it confidential?"
"I understand how you feel. Of course I can keep it confidential. I'll handle it properly, so don't worry." Gu Jia took a sip of tea and replied, "The man who attacked people with a knife that night was named Wu Feng. He died after spending a day in the hospital."
"He died? What happens now? I didn't think much at the time. I saw him about to stab me, so I just..." Ye Chen put on a shocked expression.
Gu Jia nodded. "Yes, he died. But don't worry or feel guilty. It was self-defense, so you're fine. Wu Feng had erotomania and antisocial personality disorder. He'd previously gone berserk at a concert and groped other female performers. He even kidnapped and imprisoned a female performer once. But because Wu Feng had a mental illness, there was nothing we could do about him. Now that he's dead, at least one menace is gone."
"I see." Ye Chen furrowed his brow slightly at Gu Jia's explanation.
So that was what had happened. Wu Feng was truly terrifying. He deserved to die.
Ye Chen couldn't even bear to imagine what would have happened if Wu Feng had kidnapped and imprisoned Su Ningwei.
Gu Jia said with a smile, "I should also thank you for the valuable information you gave us yesterday. It was very accurate. We've already arrested Gao Zuo, the man soliciting prostitutes. The evidence is conclusive, and he's still in custody at the station. Our interrogation turned up a lot more, too. Gao Zuo will get at least ten years. Following his trail, we also busted a group involved in selling women."
"Captain Gu, you've worked hard. Someone just happened to give me the information, so I passed it on to you right away," Ye Chen said with a smile as he refilled Gu Jia's cup.
Ye Chen had no desire to reveal his hacking skills. He didn't want to be summoned for questioning or get saddled with other trouble. He wanted to have time for his wife and children.
Gu Jia asked, "By the way, was Gao Zuo the one who posted that defamatory video?"
"I don't know. But Gao Zuo and I never got along back in school. Otherwise, I wouldn't have reported him for soliciting prostitutes." Ye Chen took a sip of tea and replied calmly.
After a pause, Ye Chen smiled. "But to avoid any unnecessary trouble, please keep this confidential too, Captain Gu."