âI will. I can neglect myself, but I will never treat Luo poorly.â
Nian Junting smiled. After seeing Mo Jin off in her car, he turned to return to his own.
Lu Kang saw that he had been talking to Mo Jin and was concerned. âBoss, did Mo Jin recognize you?â
âHow dare you call my mother-in-law by her name?â Nian Junting shot him a glare.
â...â
Lu Kang coughed and quickly corrected himself. âMs. Mo.â
Nian Junting let out a satisfied grunt.
âSo, what did Ms. Mo say to you?â
Lu Kangâs eyes betrayed a twinkle of hope. How he wished that someone would scold Mr. Nian. He might have been cruel to wish that, but ever since Luosang had gotten pregnant, Mr. Nian had gotten carried away on many occasions, insulting the pride of someone a year older than him, without a rhyme or reason.
âWhat else could she say? Of course she praised me for how capable a son-in-law I was.â Nian Junting closed his eyes and smiled. âTomorrow youâll go to their place to bring them to our villa. Theyâre going to meet with us.â
â... Mr. Nian, you are quite capable,â Lu Kang said between gritted teeth.
âItâs necessary.â
Back at the villa, Luosang had not fallen asleep. She was sitting by the television with Sister Lan eating birdâs nest soup.
Hearing footsteps approach, she turned to see Nian Junting holding a takeaway box in his left hand, and a bag of fruit in his right.
Sister Lan said, âMaster, why did you buy so much fruit? Thereâs still so many at home.â
âI forgot.â Nian Junting placed the takeaway box in front of Luosang. âHave some. I packed these for you.â
Luosang opened the box to take a peek. There was a variety of delectable desserts and a few intricate dishes.
Before, she might have finished the food in a matter of minutes, but now, the smell of the food made her feel uncomfortable.
âIâm craving something spicy.â
She put the box down and sighed regrettably.
Sister Lan said, âSour is for sons, spicy is for daughters, it must be a girl.â
âNot bad.â Nian Junting looked at her approvingly. âYour performance has been stellar lately; Iâll add a thousand to your monthly salary.â
Sister Lan could not stop herself from dancing with joy. âActually, I stand corrected. It must be a pair of twins.â
Nian Junting nodded. âA thousand is too little. Iâll add two thousand.â
Housekeeper Wu, who was passing by, could not help but feel envious. âI think it must be triplets.â
Nian Junting looked at him with disapproval, âYouâre not being realistic; you donât mean it. How can Luoâs little stomach fit three babies?â
Housekeeper Wu, â...â.
Luosang, â...â.
Sister Lan was being phony as well. The doctor had already conducted an ultrasound and had informed them it was a single fetus. How could there be twins?
She sighed. âSister Lan, have the food.â
Sister Lan shook her head. âNo, Iâve been trying to lose weight.â
â...â
All right. Even Sister Lan wanted to lose weight at her age. On the other hand, Luosang was getting fatter.
She turned and saw that Nian Juntingâs wore a pleased expression. âYou look like youâre in a good mood today.â
âMm,â Nian Junting wanted to tell her about Mo Jin, but he was afraid that she might get too emotional to sleep, which might be bad for the fetus.
âStop watching TV and go to sleep.â
âI canât sleep.â Luosang rebelled as he picked her up. âIâve slept too much today.â
âIâll sleep with you.â
Luo Sang was speechless. She could not convince him otherwise.
...
Mo Jin returned to the hotel.
Mo Liuxi was sprawled lazily on the sofa watching a movie. He muttered, âWhat has the director been eating? His mind is full of rubbish. How does a shitty film like this get on the big screen? I am perplexed.â
Mo Jin walked over, grabbed the remote control and turned the television off.
âWhat?â Mo Liuxi sat up, unhappy.
âSleep early. Weâre going to Nian Juntingâs villa tomorrow to meet your sister,â Mo Jin said plainly.
Mo Liuxi froze. âSo soon? I thought you wanted to get to know Nian Junting first.â
âIâve had a brief understanding; heâs passable. I give him a score of 60,â Mo Jin said plainly.
Mo Liuxiâs pretty face fell momentarily. âHow quick of you to change your mind. You were still heavily criticizing him yesterday.â
Mo Jin glared at him. âYou have your opinions. I met him again today, and he treats your sister very well. He also seems like someone with morals. After some thought, he has helped your sister out a lot.â
Mo Liuxi looked her over and commented, âCould it be because he helped you to scold Xu Zhengxuan? So you feel that heâs a better person?â
â...â
Mo Jin turned away and walked towards her room. She said, âDonât spout rubbish. Is your mother someone to fall for such tricks?â
Mo Liuxi looked at her and chuckled. He knew that he had guessed right. A son knows his mother well.
...
The next day, at 8.30 a.m., Luosang realized that Nian Junting was still lying in bed. âYou arenât going to work today?â
âIâve something to settle today, so Iâm not going.â Nian Junting turned over on his side and cupped one side of his face in his hand, looking on at her.
âOh.â Luosang turned over and went back to sleep.
Nian Junting turned her over and asked, âWhy didnât you ask me what I had to settle?â
âHas it got to do with me?â Luosangâs eyes glittered. âIs my father coming out?â
âNo, but this shouldnât come second to your father coming out.â Nian Junting smiled and tousled her hair. Stopping himself, he said, âWhy donât you make a guess?â
Luosang yawned lazily. âUnless you found my mother.â
Nian Junting smiled but remained silent.
Luosang looked on, and her eyes started to widen. She suddenly did not feel sleepy anymore. âI... I did not guess right, did I?â
Luosang was trembling with excitement, but soon she felt helpless. In her conscious mind, the word âMumâ remained strange yet familiar.
If they met, what would it be like?
Would it be like in the television shows, where mother and daughter would be as close as ever? Or would it be strange and would they feel like strangers?
âWhatâs the matter?â Nian Junting noticed that she had gone solemn and pulled her into his embrace.
âJunting, youâve met my mother?â Luosang asked, unsettled. âWhat kind of person is she? How did you find her? Didnât we say we would wait until my father comes out?â
Nian Junting raised his eyebrows. âHm.â
âYou really found my mother!â Luosang sat up suddenly. She could feel her entire body trembling with emotion.
âCalm down, donât hurt my baby.â Nian Junting laid down on the bed. âI asked Lu Kang to fetch them in the morning. Theyâll be here later; your brother as well.â
Luosang blinked a few times. Suddenly, she looked down and rudely slapped Nian Juntingâs face. It hurt. Indignant, he asked, âWhy did you hit me?â
âIâm checking to see if I was dreaming,â Luosang said innocently.
Nian Junting gritted his teeth unhappily. âThen hit yourself. Why hit me?â
âBecause Iâm afraid of pain.â Luosang did not look guilty at all.
â...â