Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
âIâm really sincere. Is there something I did wrong?â He Ming couldnât understand why Ye Xiaomeng was so averse to him.
âNo, itâs my issue,â Ye Xiaomengâs words finally reassured him. It wasnât that she was averse to him specifically. It was her attitude toward all men.
Watching Joy eat with relish, He Mingâs heart softened.
Taking advantage of their inattention, he took a photo of Joy with his phone.
Having spent some time with Joy, he now understood how challenging Shu Panâs life must be. Taking care of a child was truly not easy.
âJoy is your friendâs daughter, right? Sheâs so cute, and she looks like her mom,â He Ming pretended to ask Ye Xiaomeng.
âYes, and only that fool Shu Pan wouldnât care about anything. She couldnât even take care of herself, yet she had Joy. There was a time when she was really pushed to the brink. Even now, she lives frugally and often works overtime on weekends to earn money. But Joy looks just like her dad. They say having a daughter who looks like her dad is good fortune. Well, I havenât seen any of that âgood fortuneâ yet,â Ye Xiaomeng fumed whenever Gu Shaoting was mentioned.
He Ming didnât dare to say anything. He acted as if he knew nothing because he hadnât gained Ye Xiaomengâs trust yet. Mentioning Gu Shaoting would likely only complicate things further.
During a lull, He Ming sent the photo to Gu Shaoting, informing him that this was Shu Panâs daughter. He didnât know how Gu Shaoting would react, but he believed that Joy needed her father, and Shu Pan wouldnât be too burdened then.
For a long time, there was no response from Gu Shaoting.
In fact, Gu Shaoting wasnât ignoring the message. From the moment he received the photo, he was stunned. He never expected Shu Pan to have a child. Had she remarried?
He stared at the photo, almost as if he could see something through it. The more he looked at it, the more familiar it became. Eventually, he realized that the child resembled him.
At that moment, he couldnât sit still. He took a deep breath and immediately called Secretary Zhang. Secretary Zhang answered quickly, âMr. Gu, what can I help you with?â
âFind out about Shu Pan and her daughter. Send me their detailed information tomorrow,â Gu Shaoting said and hung up the phone.
Secretary Zhang was perplexed, holding the phone, unable to regain his composure. He had no idea what Gu Shaoting was up to. Shu Pan was his former wife, right? Werenât they divorced already? Now Mr. Gu was asking him to investigate Shu Pan and her daughter? Had she remarried and had another child? n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om
He was confused by the intricate relationships. Did Mr. Gu still have lingering feelings for his former wife? No matter how hard Secretary Zhang thought, he couldnât figure it out.
Finally, he sighed and accepted his fate, going to handle the task Mr. Gu had assigned.
Gu Shaoting sat in his office chair, his posture unchanged. He silently looked at the photo of the child. Was this really his daughter with Shu Pan?
Back then, he had definitely given Shu Pan birth control pills. Why had she still become pregnant?
He touched the photo of the child, his fingers tracing her eyes, nose, and mouth, and his heart softened.
The next afternoon, he got the answer he had anticipated. Just as he suspected, the child was indeed his daughter with Shu Pan. He felt a mixture of excitement and anger.
He immediately dialed Shu Panâs phone number.
When Shu Pan saw the incoming call, the number seemed somewhat familiar yet unfamiliar. Without thinking much, she answered the call. But when Gu Shaoting introduced himself, an inexplicable nervousness welled up in her heart..