Zuo Bao'er

Zuo Yi sat in the reception room of Angel Baby Childcare Center for a moment before a delicate-looking woman walked in.

She graciously held out her hand to Zuo Yi and said, "Hello, Mr. Zuo. I'm Wang Juan."

Zuo Yi stood and shook her hand. "Hello, Teacher Wang. Can you tell me what exactly this is about?"

Wang Juan said, "Mr. Zuo, let's sit down and talk."

After they were seated, Wang Juan handed Zuo Yi a file. "This is the childcare contract that Zuo Bao'er's guardian signed with our childcare center more than two months ago. The term is three months, and it will expire in another week."

Zuo Yi took it and examined it carefully. The contents of the contract matched what Wang Juan had said.

Angel Baby Childcare Center was a commercial childcare institution catering to modern families' temporary childcare needs. For example, when parents needed to travel for work or leisure but could not find anyone to look after their child, temporarily placing the child in a childcare center was undoubtedly a good option.

Zuo Yi noticed that the name signed in the client field was Su Wanqing, but he had no impression of that name whatsoever.

Yet in the emergency contact field, his name and phone number were clearly written down, with his relationship listed as father!

In other words, more than two months ago, a woman named Su Wanqing had placed a child named Zuo Bao'er in Angel Baby Childcare Center and designated him as the emergency contact.

Wang Juan said, "We haven't been able to contact Ms. Su Wanqing for half a month, so we could only get in touch with you. I called you many times before, and only managed to reach you yesterday."

"Mr. Zuo, what we need to confirm now is whether Zuo Bao'er is your daughter."

Under normal circumstances, Wang Juan would not have asked such a question. But Zuo Yi appeared completely unaware of the matter, so out of professional ethics and responsibility, she had to investigate it. She could not simply hand the child over to him.

Zuo Yi set down the contract and said, "Teacher Wang, I just returned from abroad. Before you contacted me, I had no idea I even had a daughter named Zuo Bao'er, nor did I know Su Wanqing."

"So when you called me yesterday, I thought you were a scammer."

Although Wang Juan did not know that honesty was among the knightly virtues Zuo Yi followed and that he would never lie, she instinctively believed his explanation. A troubled look appeared on her face. "I see..."

This made things very complicated. The childcare center had rarely encountered such a situation.

If the client had made a mistake and the center handed the child over to an unrelated person, then something happened afterward, leaving aside the question of responsibility, the consequences for their reputation would be terrible.

As the person directly responsible, Wang Juan naturally could not take the matter lightly.

Zuo Yi pondered for a moment and asked, "Teacher Wang, how old is the child?"

This question was very important. If she were only one or two years old, there would be nothing more to say—the other party had definitely made a mistake.

Wang Juan quickly replied, "Bao'er just turned four this year. She even celebrated her birthday at our childcare center half a month ago!"

Four years old?

It was now July 2019. Four years ago was 2015, and in July 2016, Zuo Yi had traveled to South America. While hiking on a plateau, he encountered a rare thunderstorm and miraculously crossed over into the Sadea World.

That meant that when Zuo Yi crossed over, this child named Zuo Bao'er had already been one year old. Adding ten months of pregnancy, it had to be traced back to around September 2014.

Back then, Zuo Yi...

He remembered that he had just broken up with his girlfriend not long before. Then came a long period of decadence, spending every day in bars and nightlife venues. His private life had been quite chaotic. It really was possible that he had gotten someone pregnant by accident!

Zuo Yi stopped reminiscing and asked, "Can I see her now?"

Whether she truly shared his bloodline would become clear with a single look. As a Saint-tier Knight, he possessed that ability.

Wang Juan hesitated briefly. "Of course. Please wait a moment."

Wang Juan rose and left.

Zuo Yi ended up waiting in the reception room for nearly ten minutes before she reappeared, holding the hand of a little girl.

A middle-aged woman accompanied them as well.

Zuo Yi's gaze instantly fell upon the little girl in a plain short dress.

In that instant, Zuo Yi felt as though a hidden string of fate had been fiercely plucked!

What a beautiful little girl!

Her skin was as fair as milk, her large dark eyes bright with spirit. With her delicate nose, tiny mouth, and naturally curly black hair, she looked exactly like a little princess from a fairy tale.

But when Zuo Yi looked at her, the little girl timidly hid behind Wang Juan. Soon, however, she secretly poked half her head out and studied Zuo Yi with curious eyes.

Her eyes blinked, and she looked rather shy.

With only one glance, Zuo Yi could already confirm with absolute certainty that this little girl named Zuo Bao'er truly was his daughter, because the resonance of bloodline could not be forged or faked.

I have a biological daughter!

At that moment, Zuo Yi's emotions were beyond words!!

He had faced the strongest enemies without fear. He had stood alone against thousands of troops and fought to the end. He had endured countless hardships without ever expressing regret.

Even though Zuo Yi's will had long been as unshakable as bedrock, he nearly lost his composure on the spot!

He stared at his daughter and forced himself to calm down.

"Mr. Zuo..."

Wang Juan reminded him, "This is General Manager Zhang from our childcare center. I just reported your situation to her."

She introduced the middle-aged woman who had accompanied them.

Only then did Zuo Yi snap back to his senses. He took a deep breath and nodded to the middle-aged woman. "Hello."

The middle-aged woman smiled amicably. "Mr. Zuo, may I speak with you alone?"

Zuo Yi nodded.

Wang Juan led Zuo Bao'er out.

As she walked through the doorway, the little girl even turned back to sneak a glance at Zuo Yi.

Zuo Yi suppressed the impulse in his heart and sat back down.

The middle-aged woman got straight to the point. "Mr. Zuo, as the designated guardian named by our client, you could originally take Zuo Bao'er away directly. But given your special circumstances, I would like to offer a suggestion."

Zuo Yi asked, "What suggestion?"

The middle-aged woman continued, "Since we cannot contact the client, and in the interest of being responsible to both you and the child, we recommend a paternity test. The childcare center provides this service to ensure the legal rights of both you and the child."

"Our center will cover all testing costs. What do you think?"

There was actually no need for any test. Zuo Yi could already determine that Zuo Bao'er was his child. But the suggestion was undoubtedly reasonable and was not meant to make things difficult for him.

Besides, Zuo Yi needed time to prepare himself, since he had never imagined that he had a child.

He thought for a moment, then nodded. "All right."

"That's wonderful."

The middle-aged woman let out a breath of relief. "Please rest assured, the results will be available within five days."

Afterward, at the childcare center, Zuo Yi provided a strand of his hair. A lawyer was present during the evidence collection process. He also signed a client file, and then all that remained was to wait for the results.

The childcare center itself was not qualified or equipped to conduct paternity tests, but it provided the relevant service. The collected biological samples would be sent to an authoritative professional institution for analysis and comparison. Five days was considered quite fast.

After completing the procedures, Zuo Yi had just left the childcare center and reached the elevator when Wang Juan hurried out after him. "Mr. Zuo!"

Zuo Yi stopped and asked, "Teacher Wang, what is it?"

Wang Juan steadied her breathing and said, "Mr. Zuo, I'll take good care of Bao'er these next few days. If your work usually isn't too busy, it would be best if you could come see her and get familiar with her first."

"Because she's rather timid and wary of strangers."

"I understand..."

Zuo Yi nodded, breaking into a smile. "Thank you, Teacher Wang."

Wang Juan froze.

Zuo Yi's smile was so gentle that it made people feel warmth and kindness from the depths of their hearts, making them unable to resist wanting to draw closer.

Wang Juan was involuntarily dazzled.

For some reason, her mind suddenly short-circuited, and she blurted out, "I-I have a boyfriend!"

The moment the words left her mouth, a receptionist behind her snickered, and Teacher Wang's face instantly flushed crimson—how embarrassing!

Zuo Yi smiled. "I wish you happiness, Teacher Wang. See you tomorrow."

He stepped into the elevator that had just opened, turned around, and waved to her.

If it had been the old Zuo Yi, he might have tried to begin a wonderful story with this adorable female teacher.

But now, his heart had weathered too much.

At the instant the elevator doors closed, the shy little girl's face appeared in Zuo Yi's mind.

She was his daughter!