Chapter 48

They clung to each other on the couch like conjoined twins, showing no intention of separating for ages.

An Zimo found it increasingly unbearable to watch and coughed heavily twice from behind them.

An Xiang jolted and scrambled off his lap.

She turned around and anxiously explained to her son's little face, "We... we were just talking. Nothing else."

"..."

"Really!"

An Zimo stared at Pei Yizhou twice.

His handsome face was calm, like an immortal who had ascended beyond the mortal world, with the words "transcendent and unworldly" written all over his face. The calmer he looked, the more An Zimo despised him.

Covering her burning face, An Xiang did not dare look at either of them. Her voice was muffled and low. "I... I was going to cook noodles for your Uncle Pei. Momo, do you want some?"

An Zimo could not be bothered to speak.

Pei Yizhou crossed his legs, naturally concealing a certain awkward situation.

His expression remained calm. "No need. You're injured, so you don't need to cook for me."

"H-How can that be? You came all this way. How could you not eat? Besides, can't you only eat food made by others?" When An Xiang caught colds or fell ill as a child, she would lose her sense of taste, and everything she ate would be flavorless. It had made her miserable. She simply could not imagine how Pei Yizhou had spent all these decades without a sense of taste.

"Do you not want noodles?" Tilting her head, she asked very seriously.

An Zimo could not help sneering. "Uncle Pei might want curry."

Pei Yizhou's gaze darkened.

An Xiang did not catch the hidden meaning and wrinkled her nose in distress. "...But we don't have any curry at home."

"Don't listen to his nonsense."

Pei Yizhou had already calmed down. He slowly rose to his feet, lowered his eyes to look at her, and said, "Get some proper rest. I'll have someone bring you food tomorrow. Don't move around carelessly again, or your old injury might flare up."

"Got it, got it." An Xiang nodded vigorously, obedient as a child.

Everything about her mannerisms was adorable. Pei Yizhou's eyes brimmed with amusement as his large hand gently rubbed her fluffy hair. Only when he sensed An Zimo's gaze from afar did he reluctantly withdraw his hand.

"Then I'm leaving."

"Okay." An Xiang stood up to see him out, but Pei Yizhou stopped her.

"No need to see me out. Remember to rest early."

"Mm." An Xiang gripped the back of the couch with both hands and watched Pei Yizhou walk toward the entryway.

Her gaze burned against him. After changing his shoes, Pei Yizhou met those eyes again.

He curled his lips into a faint smile. "I'll come over at nine tomorrow morning."

"Okay! Be careful on the way."

"Mm." Pei Yizhou withdrew his gaze. With the sound of the door closing, his figure vanished behind the security door.

An Xiang let out a long breath.

The scent of oolong tea he had left behind still lingered around her. Recalling their intimate contact just now, An Xiang stiffened belatedly. Heat rose from the soles of her feet and shot straight to the top of her head.

She pressed her lips together tightly and reached up to tug hard at her own cheeks.

Mr. Pei won't misunderstand and think I was deliberately seducing him, right???

An Xiang's mind was a complete mess. An Zimo first frowned, then rolled his eyes, and finally could not be bothered with this foolish woman. He returned to his room alone.

It rained heavily that night.

After the rain came clear skies. Brilliant sunlight bloomed outside the window, and the flowers, grass, and leaves washed by dew looked even more lush and vibrant.

At nine sharp, Pei Yizhou's car appeared at the entrance to the residential complex. He did not come upstairs, only sending his special assistant to pick them up.

An Zimo knew he could not avoid it either. Wearing a cap and carrying his backpack, he offered no resistance the entire time and obediently followed the special assistant into the elevator, appearing before the black sedan.

"Not running?"

Through the half-lowered car window, An Zimo saw the teasing look on his face.

An Zimo said nothing. With a sour little face, he climbed into the car.

The sedan started up and drove steadily toward the hospital.

Pei Yizhou continued handling documents. An Zimo looked out the car window for a while, then turned to Pei Yizhou's face, noble by nature.

"Hey."

Pei Yizhou did not even lift his eyelashes.

"Hey!" An Zimo shouted louder.

The driver in the front seat nervously glanced at Pei Yizhou's expression. He knew that his chairman hated rude children most. Even if they were other people's children, he would get angry, let alone his own.

"If you don't know how to address someone properly, I'll never respond to you." Pei Yizhou did not spare him even a glance. He focused on his work, his expression exceptionally cold.

An Zimo's face twisted. Not wanting to waste words on him, he said, "If you like An Xiang, hurry up and pursue her. While you're young, quickly have a second child."

"Hmm?" Pei Yizhou closed the file and frowned at the arrogant, temperamental child beside him. "Was this your plan all along when you tried to set me up with your mother?"

"What else?"

"..."

What else?

Pain throbbed between Pei Yizhou's brows. Patiently, he explained, "Feelings need a foundation. They need to develop naturally. I don't want another accident." An Zimo alone already gave him enough headaches. He had no energy to have another child. Besides... An Xiang would not have a child with him either.

Like a teenager suffering from unrequited love, Pei Yizhou felt bitter inside.

An Zimo glanced at him and muttered quietly, "Useless."

Pei Yizhou found it amusing. "Why are you so insistent on making me have a second child with your mother?"

What else could it be for? Naturally, it was to continue carrying out the original plan.

To put it plainly, even if he was related to An Xiang by blood, being reborn with memories of his past life meant he was destined to be unable to become her child. He could not pretend that what happened in his previous life had never occurred, much less continue living while facing that same face.

"President Pei, we've arrived at the hospital."

Pei Yizhou nodded. Once the car came to a stop, he took An Zimo's hand and got out.

This psychological clinic had been founded by Pei Yizhou's college friend after graduation. His friend possessed the unique ability to see the colors of emotions, and he had naturally used that ability to become an outstanding psychologist.

As soon as the two entered, Lei Yang came out to greet them.

"Pei Yizhou, long time no see." Smiling brightly, he stepped forward and gave Pei Yizhou a hard hug.

Pei Yizhou had been aloof in school, while Lei Yang was warm and naturally sociable. Since their abilities were similar, they gradually became friends. After graduation, they entered different industries. Their busy work meant they could no longer spend every day together as they had before. It truly had been a long time since they last met.

Pei Yizhou smiled faintly. "We can catch up another day. I came to see you today for something else."

"Sure, sure. You more or less told me over the phone." Lei Yang lowered his gaze and examined An Zimo.

Sensing the scrutiny, An Zimo bravely raised his head. Only then did he notice the other man's unusual amber eyes. Those pupils seemed to pierce straight through his soul like sunlight, making him intensely uncomfortable.

"Wait outside first. I'll talk to this child alone."

"Okay."

After Lei Yang led An Zimo into the consultation room, Pei Yizhou waited patiently by himself in the lounge.

Time passed second by second, but the tightly shut door remained unopened. During that time, An Xiang sent many messages, and Pei Yizhou patiently replied to each one.

Finally, the door opened.

Pei Yizhou put down his phone and hurriedly stood.

An Zimo followed behind Lei Yang, his expression unchanged from when he had gone in.

Pei Yizhou looked at Lei Yang. "How was it?"

"Nurse Su, take the child to play in the children's area."

Only after the nurse led him away did Lei Yang hand the diagnosis to Pei Yizhou. He was not a professional, and the dense, obscure terminology on the page made him frown continuously.

"I know you can't understand it, so I'll put it plainly."

Pei Yizhou listened in silence.

"This child has severe Emotional Deficiency Disorder."

Pei Yizhou's brow furrowed even more tightly.

"You could also call it Emotional Apathy Disorder." Lei Yang put both hands in his pockets. "He lacks many emotional colors. This causes him to have no compassion or empathy, no sense of responsibility, and no understanding of kindness or other people's pain. He is distrustful of the outside world at every moment. When we are moved by something, he doubts it, or even mocks it."

Pei Yizhou lowered his eyes to the thin sheet in his hand. The knuckles of the hand pinching the paper tightened slightly.

"So the color of the soul you saw was black too."

Pei Yizhou gave a quiet hum. "Once, he tried to kill his own mother."

Lei Yang was not surprised in the slightest. "Naturally. You can't expect a robot to have emotions."

Pei Yizhou pressed his lips tightly together, suddenly at a loss for what to do.

He was clearly such a small child, yet he lived in darkness at every moment. Any scolding or beating might mean nothing to him. He lived in his own world, unwilling to accept maternal love and even less willing to accept others' goodwill.

Pei Yizhou suddenly realized that An Zimo had been trying to bring them together and urging him to have a second child with An Xiang because he wanted to leave.

"There's one more thing," Lei Yang continued. "While talking with this child, I noticed that he was intentionally or unintentionally using false information to influence my judgment and obstruct our conversation. He's very smart. Ordinary children can't do that, so I suggest taking him to the hospital next door for an IQ test."

Pei Yizhou could not help smiling. "You think he's a genius?"

"Children with Antisocial Personality Disorder usually have extremely high IQs."

Pei Yizhou immediately fell silent.

Only after a moment did he ask, "Is his condition serious?"

Lei Yang nodded. "The emotions he lacks will damage his personality and gradually develop into an extremely violent Antisocial Personality Disorder. We can no longer judge this child's behavior using ordinary ways of thinking. And medication is ineffective for children with Emotional Apathy Disorder. I also don't recommend using medication on such a young child."

"Since he's still young, let him interact more with the outside world and spend more time with children his age. Perhaps there will be some change."

Pei Yizhou slowly nodded, put away the diagnosis, and said to Lei Yang, "Thank you. I'll bring him back next time."

Lei Yang patted Pei Yizhou on the shoulder. "Why be so polite? But this child really looks like you. I practically watched his teeth grow in. Is he your relative?"

Pei Yizhou's eyelashes trembled slightly. His tone was calm. "My son."

"Oh, your so—????"

Lei Yang stared in shock, instantly dumbfounded.

Pei Yizhou straightened his back and walked toward the children's area with the gait of someone showing off, having no intention of explaining. Lei Yang was left standing there, filling in the story himself.

Pei Yizhou then took An Zimo to the hospital next door for an IQ test, wasting several more hours for no reason.

By the time they returned home, it was already afternoon. An Zimo had no desire to speak to anyone, so he returned to his room alone, leaving the space to the two adults.

"One piece of good news and one piece of bad news. Which one do you want to hear first?"

Pei Yizhou gazed at An Xiang's eyes and brows, calmly waiting for her answer.

※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※

An Zimo: He wants curry, mangoes, pineapples, and apricots.

You're all not being enthusiastic toward me again!!!!!!!!! You must have dogs outside!

The first two hundred get red envelopes,