Chapter 8

Early the next morning, An Xiang took An Zimo on the earliest bus to C City, then transferred to the high-speed rail back to Jiang City.

It was already noon by the time they arrived.

Dark clouds blanketed the sky over Jiang City. Perhaps a torrential rain had just passed; the ground was unusually damp, and the air carried the fresh scent of grass and trees.

This city had always been in a hurry. Even rainy weather could not slow the pedestrians' footsteps.

As she left the station, An Xiang held tightly onto An Zimo's soft little hand, afraid that she would lose him in the sea of people if she was not careful.

It was rush hour, and with the unstable weather, it was difficult to hail a taxi. An Xiang led An Zimo beneath a tree, called for an express ride on her phone, and waited quietly.

"Momo, are you cold?"

An Zimo's face remained blank. It was as if he had not heard her at all, and he gave no response.

An Xiang was already used to her son's attitude. From last night until they returned today, he had barely spoken to her. Still, it was understandable. Her son had developmental delays and cerebellar atrophy. It was already good enough that he had taken the initiative to ask her for food last night. What more could she ask for?

Having heard every one of her thoughts, An Zimo glanced at her face from the corner of his eye without reacting.

The car was taking a while to arrive. An Xiang's legs had gone numb from standing. She held her backpack against her chest, then crouched by the roadside, now level with An Zimo in height.

"Momo, are you hungry? Should we get something to eat before going home?" An Xiang checked the time. It was exactly twelve o'clock, and it would probably be too late to cook if they went home now.

She herself was fine, but she was afraid the child would go hungry.

Just then, a black sedan came speeding toward them. There was a puddle by the roadside, and at that speed, it would definitely splash water all over them. An Zimo's mind raced as he swiftly moved out of danger, leaving An Xiang crouching there alone.

Splash—!

Just as expected, the speeding sedan sent up a beautiful spray of water, every last drop drenching An Xiang from head to toe.

Looking at An Xiang, soaked through like a drowned rat, An Zimo raised a brow and smiled.

She did not get angry. Instead, she got up and moved away from the intersection, obediently took out wet wipes from her backpack to wipe the water from her face and body, then casually tossed the used wipe into a nearby trash can before checking on An Zimo.

When she saw him standing safely behind her, An Xiang breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank goodness. Mommy thought you got soaked too."

The smile An Zimo had not had time to hide froze on his face. He frowned but did not answer.

All of a sudden, the car that had just driven past slowly reversed. The front passenger door opened, and a young man in a suit stepped out.

"Sorry, sorry. We were in a hurry, so we drove a little fast. Miss, are you all right?" The young man wore a gentle smile as he looked An Xiang up and down.

Her white shirt, dampened by water droplets, clung to her skin and outlined her lovely figure. Several obvious mud stains marked her clothes, clearly left from earlier.

Xu Chuan immediately felt embarrassed. He pulled several red bills from his wallet and handed them to An Xiang. "Take this and buy yourself a new outfit. My apologies again."

An Xiang had not even recovered from her surprise as she stared blankly at the several thousand yuan.

Xu Chuan thought he might not have given her enough, so he added another thousand. "Here. This should be enough."

An Xiang: "..." Was this guy an idiot?

Seeing that she was still silent, Xu Chuan frowned. "Miss, we're in a hurry. So?"

Coming back to her senses, An Xiang waved her hands. "No, you don't need to give me so much..."

Her voice was pleasant, sweet and soft, like a gummy candy filled with honeyed fruit.

She looked sweet too. Her hair was tied in a loose fishtail braid, with a pale yellow daisy decorating the end.

She smelled nice too.

Xu Chuan unconsciously softened his tone. "Then tell me, how much would be appropriate?"

"Actually, there's no need..."

"Xu Chuan."

An exceptionally cold voice came from inside the car, abruptly interrupting their conversation.

Xu Chuan's back stiffened. Not daring to delay, he hurriedly put the money away, then took out a shopping mall membership card and stuffed it into An Xiang's hand. "This is a mall shopping membership card. Everything there is ninety percent off. I have something to do, so I'll be leaving first. It was nice meeting you." With that, he jogged back to the car.

An Xiang stared blankly at the thin little card in her hand. Only when a horn sounded beside her did she hurriedly pick up An Zimo and get into the car.

"We're going to Star City Mall." An Xiang looked at the membership card. The place they were headed seemed to be exactly the location printed on it.

After the rain, the roads were congested. Xu Chuan had barely gotten back into the car when they hit another red light.

The wait was long and irritating. Xu Chuan could clearly feel the low pressure radiating from beside him. Apparently, his earlier actions had displeased someone.

"Don't do pointless things in the future." Pei Yizhou's tone was icy, and he did not look up. His eyelids were lowered, his excessively long lashes casting dark shadows beneath his eyes.

Xu Chuan pretended not to hear him and scooted closer with a grin. "It was a shame you didn't get out of the car just now."

Pei Yizhou's brows drew together slightly. He closed his laptop and quietly shifted farther away.

"That girl smelled especially good." Xu Chuan carefully recalled An Xiang's scent. The sweet but not cloying scent of her blood was extremely rare. "She probably tastes good too."

Xu Chuan fearlessly bumped Pei Yizhou's arm again. "Did you see the little boy beside her? I figured he was her younger brother. He looked especially like you when you were little. That punchable expression was practically identical to yours." He paused. "I don't mean I want to punch you. I'm just using exaggeration to describe how shocked I am."

"President Pei, we're here."

The car stopped. Pei Yizhou pushed Xu Chuan aside and got out without a word.

At the same time, an inconspicuous Hyundai stopped on the other side of the intersection.

Pei Yizhou vaguely sensed an inexplicably familiar presence. His steps paused as his indifferent gaze swept toward the intersection, but all he saw was the endless stream of passing pedestrians.

Xu Chuan asked, "What are you looking at?"

"Nothing." Pei Yizhou withdrew his gaze and strode into the company building on long legs. Without looking aside, he told the secretary following him, "Tell the planning department to hurry up with the acquisition proposal for North City District. Have them submit the construction plan as soon as possible too. Get all work done by Friday if possible."

"All right, I'll handle it right away."

"Cousin, aren't we eating first..." Before Xu Chuan could finish, that tall figure had disappeared behind the elevator doors.

Xu Chuan pursed his lips, gave the doors the middle finger, shoved his hands into his pockets, and sauntered out of the building.

He stroked his chin and pondered for a moment before heading straight across the road.

Perhaps because it was raining, the mall was not as crowded as An Xiang had imagined.

She first went to the clothing section on the second floor, casually bought a dress to change into, then took An Zimo to find somewhere to eat.

"Momo, do you want KFC?" An Xiang did not know An Zimo's food preferences, so she carefully asked for his opinion.

KFC?

In his previous life, An Zimo had lived to be fourteen without ever eating fast food. His meals, daily routines, even his schedule had all been controlled by his mother. He had never had any room for personal choice.

Seeing that An Zimo did not speak, An Xiang made the decision herself. "Then we'll have KFC. Momo probably hasn't had it before." Kids nowadays all liked fried food. An Zimo had grown up in the mountains, so he was probably no exception.

An Xiang took An Zimo to KFC and found a seat by the window.

"Mommy's going to order now. Baby, watch our things for me, and remember not to go with strangers." With that, she went to line up at the counter.

An Zimo stared expressionlessly out the window. The surroundings were noisy, so he irritably turned the volume of Mind Reading down to its lowest setting.

As he watched An Xiang's back, a flicker passed through An Zimo's eyes, and the thought of running away rose again.

However, a shadow suddenly fell over him, and someone sat directly across from him.

An Zimo immediately recognized him as the person who had given them money earlier.

"Kid, are you watching your mommy's things?"

Xu Chuan smiled kindly, but An Zimo could see the words pervert written all over his face. He snorted and ignored him.

"What's your name?" Xu Chuan stubbornly continued trying to talk to An Zimo.

He leaned back in his chair, his little feet dangling above the floor and swinging from side to side. His hands were tucked into his pockets, and his cute, beautiful face did not carry a trace of unnecessary expression.

Xu Chuan looked him over again and again, growing more alarmed the longer he looked.

Holy shit—he really looked exactly like his cousin Pei Yizhou when he was little!

No, there were still some differences upon closer inspection.

He was much cuter than Pei Yizhou had been as a child!

"Little baby, tell Uncle your name. How old are you?" Xu Chuan coaxed. "Tell Uncle, and I'll buy you candy."

"Sir, if you keep this up, I'm calling the police."

Xu Chuan's expression stiffened as he fell silent before An Xiang, who had returned carrying their food.

He swallowed and quietly scooted his butt farther inward. "Sorry, I don't mean any harm."

An Xiang did not believe him at all. With that smiling face, he did not look like a good person.

She set down the tray and said tactfully, "Sir, we're about to eat."

The meaning was obvious: she was telling him to leave.

Xu Chuan smiled brightly. "What a coincidence, I'm here to eat too. But there aren't any seats around. Do you mind if I sit here?"

An Xiang had taken a table for four, and there really were no empty seats nearby.

"Suit yourself." An Xiang sat beside An Zimo and divided his portion over to him. "Momo, eat quickly. We'll go home after we're done."

The aroma of fried food rushed into his nose. The chicken wings were fried golden, and the cheeseburger was stuffed with thick meat. Even An Zimo succumbed to the temptation before him.

He could not help swallowing. For the moment, he put aside all grudges and hatred, grabbed a chicken wing, and began tearing into it in huge bites.

Seeing her son eat so happily, a satisfied smile appeared on An Xiang's face.

Xu Chuan did not like this type of food. Saying he had come to eat was entirely an excuse. He casually ordered fries and milk tea, then sat nearby and secretly observed the two of them.

"Um... my name is Xu Chuan. What should I call you?"

An Xiang did not even raise her head. "We're not going to meet again, so there's no need for you to know my name."

Xu Chuan suddenly felt awkward. "I don't mean any harm. I just want to get to know you."

"Mm, I know."

She looked gentle, but she would not yield to either soft or hard tactics. She gave Xu Chuan no reason to get close.

Just as Xu Chuan was becoming discouraged, he suddenly saw An Xiang take out the mall card he had given her earlier.

"Mr. Xu, here, take this back."

"Huh?"

"That sales assistant just told me it's a gold membership card, and there is still quite a bit of balance on it. You should take it back."

"Ah, no, I don't really have a use for it..."

Star City Mall was owned by Pei Group. He really had no use for it when buying things at his own family's mall.

"I used the discount on the card to buy new clothes, so that counts as accepting your compensation. I don't need anything extra." An Xiang placed the card on his table. Without caring whether he took it back, she lowered her head and quietly drank the milk tea in front of her.

Xu Chuan's eyes flickered, and something strange was hidden beneath his expression.

As An Zimo slurped his cola, he keenly sensed that oddity. He turned up the volume, and the thoughts of everyone within half a meter became clear to him.

[Wuwu, is this person a human trafficker? Should I call the police? Should I call the police?] ← This was An Xiang.

[McDonald's is still better.] ← This was the person at the next table.

[Could this little brat really be my cousin's illegitimate son? Damn! Why does this woman smell so good?]

[I want to eat.]

This was Xu Chuan.

An Zimo's wrist trembled, and his expression immediately twisted.

An Zimo: There don't seem to be any normal people around me.

An Xiang: You're wrong. None of us are human. You aren't either.

Who said my male lead had no presence!!!! He does!! He does!

Red packets for the first hundred. See you tomorrow.

I would like to apologize to McDonald's and KFC. I didn't mean to pit them against each other; I like both KFC and McDonald's. Finally, sorry for the trouble, KFC, but please pay me for the advertisement.