Chapter 30

An Zimo's little round butt was still sticking up, the handprint left from earlier reddened and slightly swollen.

An Xiang was both annoyed and amused.

He had never shown enthusiasm for task-related matters, nor had he ever made any requests of An Xiang. She knew there had to be something fishy about his sudden desire to attend the dance, but this didn't look like he was trying to cause trouble or set her up again.

"Get up." An Xiang lightly patted his butt. It felt great—soft and bouncy. Afraid her son would misunderstand, she softened her voice. "Mommy won't hit you anymore."

Though it really did feel nice, like slapping jelly, she wasn't some sadist. Why would she keep hitting him for no reason?

An Zimo ignored that irritating inner thought. Turning his head, he said expressionlessly, "If you don't hit me today, you won't get another chance. I'm telling you, my butt isn't something I show just anyone. Today, I'm making a sacrifice."

"Then tell me, why do you want to go to the dance?"

Without changing expression, An Zimo made up a lie. "There'll be cake."

An Xiang's expression froze.

"Is cake something you can only eat on birthdays?"

A faint glimmer flickered in his eyes.

An Xiang's throat tightened, an indescribable ache filling her chest.

Come to think of it... Momo had never celebrated a birthday.

She lowered her head to look at him. The child before her was short because of malnutrition. She had managed to make him a little fairer and chubbier lately, but compared to children his age, he was still thin and frail.

An Xiang had originally wanted to blame him, but the moment she met those clear eyes, every grievance she held vanished in an instant.

She crouched down and took An Zimo's hand. "Momo's birthday is December 24. When the day comes, Mommy will throw you the best birthday party."

An Zimo gave a quiet hum, though he wasn't particularly happy inside.

Pei Yizhou wanted his birthday to be in December, which meant they might have met in April and slept together, then given birth to him.

There was almost no doubt about it. He was Pei Yizhou's child.

Having successfully gotten the information he wanted, An Zimo widened his eyes and asked, "Then are you willing to take me to the dance?"

"I can." An Xiang frowned. "But you have to wear a pretty dress to a dance, and I didn't bring any pretty dresses..."

"The brochure says it's a swimsuit party. You just need to wear a swimsuit." Seeing An Xiang freeze on the spot, An Zimo suppressed a wicked smile and asked, "Mommy, don't tell me you're shy?"

"I-I-I-I'm not shy!" Instantly seen through, An Xiang's cheeks flushed red. "It's just wearing a swimsuit to a party. It's not like I've never worn one before. What's the big deal?" She muttered unhappily as she returned to her room to get ready.

After An Xiang left, An Zimo took the chance to steal the phone she had left on the table.

An Zimo had an excellent memory. He remembered the passcode after one glance. Quickly unlocking the phone, he found Pei Yizhou's number, composed a message, and sent it.

[An Xiang: Thank you very much for today, Mr. Pei. Would you like to attend the pool party with us tonight?]

An Zimo wasn't worried in the slightest that Pei Yizhou would refuse.

That guy was so self-aware, he would probably agree right away.

[Pei Yizhou: Give me a moment. I'll check my schedule.]

Tsk.

What a poser.

An Zimo curled his lips disdainfully. Five minutes later, he received another message.

[Pei Yizhou: Mm, I'm free.]

What a huge poser.

[An Xiang: Then see you tonight.]

After sending the final message, An Zimo swiftly deleted the texts, emptied the trash folder, and put the phone back exactly where it had been, even arranging it the way it was before. After thinking about it, he still didn't feel at ease, so he pulled out a tissue and carefully wiped away every fingerprint.

All done!

It would be best if they fell for each other at first sight today, then had a second child ten months later.

An Zimo licked his lips and raised his brows, smiling like a victor.

The swimsuit party was set to begin at nine.

No ticket was required to attend. The only requirement was that everyone had to wear swimwear.

Most of the people attending were young men and women looking for excitement. When An Xiang arrived at the entrance with a child in tow, she immediately drew many appraising gazes.

She tugged at the hem of her skirt and walked in while pretending to be calm.

There were many people. Most of the women wore sexy bikinis, confidently displaying their figures. The men were no different; everywhere she looked was bare flesh and abs. The party had not even begun, yet it was already becoming livelier as more guests arrived.

Champagne, beer, cakes, and desserts—everything was available.

A professional band was also performing at the far side.

While An Xiang carefully looked around, An Zimo, standing by her feet, was searching the crowd for Pei Yizhou.

He wasn't here.

Was that closeted flirt still standing in front of a mirror, agonizing over what to wear?

An Zimo's face darkened, and his mood immediately soured.

"Momo, have some cake." An Xiang got herself a cup of ice cream, then cut a slice of cake and held it out to An Zimo.

She was beautiful. More beautiful than most of the girls here.

Her clean, pure aura was what made her most special. Her two braids made her look very young, and there seemed to be stars hidden in her eyes. She could very easily stir up a man's desire to conquer her.

An Zimo did not take it.

Since entering, he had already heard more than a dozen malicious thoughts.

"Miss, want to go have some fun over there?"

A handsome blond man came over to strike up a conversation.

Before An Xiang could refuse, a shout came from beside her. "Mom! I want strawberry-flavored!"

That single word, Mom, made the handsome man's expression change. He awkwardly backed off.

An Xiang didn't notice anything wrong and went back to get another slice of strawberry cake.

[She's already a mom at such a young age.]

[Being a mom is great. Married women are so much fun.]

[Later, I'll find a way to lure her out and take a bite.]

[...]

There were too many people gathered here, their assorted thoughts mixing into a chaotic mess that made An Zimo's head hurt.

But he didn't dare shut the voices off completely, afraid he might miss Pei Yizhou or fail to notice some danger.

An Zimo looked at his mother, who was sitting beside him and concentrating on her ice cream, and clearly heard her thoughts.

[This is so delicious!]

[Oh wow, this one's even better.]

[It was worth five figures!!]

[Waaah, mango is number one in the world! My son's flavor is the absolute best!]

An Zimo: "..."

Idiot.

She was such an idiot.

An Zimo's head hurt a little. He gloomily took a bite of cake, occasionally glaring back at every gaze directed their way.

"Momo, do you want some of that?" An Xiang spotted the enormous chocolate fountain on the table. Before An Zimo could answer, she eagerly went to fill a cup.

At that moment, An Zimo finally spotted the late-arriving Pei Yizhou in the distance.

He wore shorts and a T-shirt. His ordinary casual outfit stood out sharply among all the scantily clad men and women.

An Zimo didn't care how Pei Yizhou had gotten in dressed like that. He only wanted to call him over before the party began and create an opportunity for the two of them.

Just as he thought that, the lights around them began to dim one after another.

The glowing spheres overhead drifted, and music suddenly started in the darkness.

People began screaming and cheering, driving the atmosphere to its peak.

The garden pool was not small. After all that commotion, not only had Pei Yizhou disappeared from sight, even An Xiang was nowhere to be seen.

An Zimo turned up the volume of the thoughts again. Holding his cake, he weaved through a forest of long legs, carefully searching for An Xiang.

With the help of flashing rainbow lights, An Zimo finally found her not far away.

Besides An Xiang, there was also a man standing in front of her.

An Yanze...

The thoughts of the people beside him gave An Zimo the answer.

It looked like he wanted to invite her to dance.

An Zimo panicked. If she accepted, wouldn't Pei Yizhou misunderstand when he saw? And if he misunderstood, wouldn't all this effort have been for nothing?!

"An Xiang—!"

An Zimo's cry was swallowed by the tide of music.

His small body struggled through the adults. Just as he was about to reach his foolish mom, his head suddenly slammed into an outstretched leg. His wrist wobbled, and the entire slice of cake splattered onto the beach shorts in front of him.

Before An Zimo could react, a heavy force landed on his shoulder. Then his footing gave way, and he staggered back a few steps before being shoved directly to the ground.

"Whose kid is this?!"

An Ruoming looked at the cake on his pants, his brows drawing together as violence filled his tone.

No one nearby spoke. They carefully stepped back, forming a small circle around him.

An Ruoming had been stood up and had been in a bad mood all day.

He looked at the reckless brat on the ground and suddenly found the child familiar. After a brief moment of thought, a face he despised surfaced in his mind.

An Zimo got up from the ground, pursed his lips, and moved around him to leave.

"Wait. Did I say you could go?" An Ruoming grabbed An Zimo's arm. With enough force to lift him straight into the air by it.

An Ruoming had been holding in a bellyful of anger with nowhere to vent it, and An Zimo's appearance had given him the perfect outlet.

"Where are your parents?"

An Zimo glanced behind him but said nothing.

An Ruoming gritted his teeth in fury. Not caring about the eyes around him, he kept pressing, "Speak. Where's your mom?" Everything came back to that unlucky woman. Ever since she appeared, Pei Yizhou had inexplicably changed his attitude and changed his mind. Besides, that face looked far too much like his useless younger sister's.

The more An Ruoming thought about it, the angrier he became, and he vented all his resentment on An Zimo.

The force tugging at his arm made An Zimo's breathing quicken. His eyes reddened, his small shoulders trembling slightly as he slowly forced out two words through clenched teeth. "Let go."

The madness in An Zimo's eyes made An Ruoming pause, but his anger quickly flared even higher. The next second, pain shot through his wrist, and he screamed as he let go.

Staring at the bloody tooth marks on his wrist, An Ruoming furiously reached for An Zimo.

How could An Zimo let him have his way? He took two steps back, trying to avoid the large hand reaching for him. But what he hadn't expected was that there was a pool behind him...

His foot slipped into empty air, and his body fell completely into the water.

"Momo—!!"

Amid the cries of alarm, An Zimo saw the woman rushing toward him in panic, then jumping in after him without hesitation.

An Zimo could not swim and had been afraid of water for a long time.

He remembered that after making a mistake, his mother had brutally pressed his face into a basin of water.

The suffocating sensation that day was the same as it was now.

He did not want to struggle, nor could he feel fear. Like a heartless puppet, he held no desire for life at all.

An Zimo kept his eyes open. Only when he was pulled into an embrace did he suddenly come to his senses and tightly wrap his arms around the person before him.

An Zimo stared at the face close at hand, his thoughts suddenly drifting.

Splash—!

Panting heavily, An Xiang pulled her son to the edge of the pool. Seeing the marks on his little arm where he had been grabbed, her expression turned icy as she slowly raised her head to look at An Ruoming.

"You actually dared to bully my son."