As soon as they returned home, Xu Huanshan looked at Gu Jia, whose face was pale, and rebuked her.

"Didn't we say we should get on good terms with him? Maybe we could buy his chicken essence."

"Why were you so indifferent to him? You didn't even say goodbye after getting out of the elevator."

"And you were pulling such a sour face."

When Xu Huanshan said this, Gu Jia was so angry she nearly fumed.

The man was just hitting on your wife in the elevator, and here you are blaming your wife for not being warm enough to him?

Is that right?

Gu Jia forced herself to swallow her anger, not daring to point it out directly.

She found a reasonable excuse, "Too much is as bad as too little."

"The way you were acting just now, you were practically begging him to know you were approaching him with an ulterior motive."

"Uh..."

Xu Huanshan paused, thinking back.

Just now... he did seem a bit overly enthusiastic.

However, he wasn't thinking about networking or chicken essence at all back then.

He simply thought Chen Cheng's long legs were perfect for a striker.

Xu Huanshan smiled sheepishly, "My dear wife is still the one who considers everything thoroughly."

Gu Jia: "..."

She waved her hand helplessly, "You should hurry and take our son for a bath; you're covered in sweat."

Xu Huanshan nodded; Gu Jia never liked him playing football anyway.

Having just 'made a mistake,' Xu Huanshan immediately became well-behaved.

Looking at his soundly sleeping son in his arms, Xu Huanshan suddenly blinked, "But why did you pick up our son so late?"

*Sniff~* As he spoke, Xu Huanshan sniffed again, "You also seem to smell like alcohol."

"..."

Gu Jia took a breath, "Go take a shower first. After you're done, I'll tell you about our son."

Xu Huanshan was used to being lectured by Gu Jia and didn't challenge her authority. He nodded, "Alright."

He reached out and gently patted Xu Ziyan in his arms, "Son, let's go get all clean and fragrant~"

Gu Jia watched his carefree expression, and the corner of her mouth twitched.

She walked to the kitchen island, turned on the faucet, and put her arm under the running water.

With one hand, she scrubbed the spot Chen Cheng had touched, while through gritted teeth, she cursed Chen Cheng in a low voice.

"What investment genius?"

"He's just a shameless rogue!"

"A scoundrel!"

"..."

"Achoo!"

"Achoo!"

Chen Cheng sneezed twice in a row and cursed inwardly, "Which little lady is thinking about me again?"

Chen Cheng took a shower, poured a glass of red wine, and sat in front of the floor-to-ceiling window.

He started a video call with Anna and began chatting.

Anna was already three months pregnant, and her lower abdomen was beginning to bulge slightly.

Lately, she often suffered from morning sickness, breast swelling, and breast pain, which was very uncomfortable.

Chen Cheng felt a pang of sympathy looking at Anna's somewhat haggard little face.

Looking at the busy night traffic outside the window, Chen Cheng thought seriously.

Anna was still in early pregnancy, her belly hadn't changed significantly yet, so things were still manageable.

Although Chen Cheng had made thorough arrangements and the security team was in America,

Chen Guosheng's wife, Sister-in-law Sheng, had also recently gone to see Anna.

The couple knew very well that this child was special to Chen Cheng.

Since it wasn't convenient for a big man like Chen Guosheng to provide care, he let his wife go.

When he asked for Chen Cheng's opinion, Chen Cheng naturally didn't object.

With Sister-in-law Sheng there, Chen Cheng felt relieved.

But as time went on and Anna's belly grew larger, her psychology would slowly undergo changes.

Without someone she truly felt close to by her side, Chen Cheng was worried Anna wouldn't be able to handle it mentally.

After thinking it over, family was still the most reliable.

As for Anna's socialite best friends, eight out of ten were unreliable.

Chen Cheng exhaled and said, "Baby, you should tell your mother."

"Let her come stay with you; that way I can be at ease."

Anna had always been reluctant to tell her mother.

In South Korea, traditional and conservative values still dominated society.

Women who got pregnant out of wedlock were often stigmatized and seen as 'sinful,' 'promiscuous,' or 'ill-fated.'

Not to mention, if this unlearned girl's mother found out she was being kept as a canary and was going to have someone's child,

She would probably hit her over the head with a pillow.

Well, that would probably be the extent of it.

Without family indulgence, one couldn't raise an Anna who never lifted a finger and had absolutely no ability to live independently.

Nor could they raise that proud and cold aura Anna possessed.

On the other end of the video, Anna was wearing a nightgown, lazily standing in front of the sink to freshen up.

She had been quite sleepy lately, sleeping beautifully every day until she no longer had any morning grumpiness before getting up.

Hearing Chen Cheng tell her to have her mother come over, Anna was momentarily stunned.

It was the first time Chen Cheng had proactively mentioned her mother.

For a moment, Anna didn't know how to react.

Seeing her silence, Chen Cheng laughed teasingly, "Silky girl, what are you thinking?"

Anna blinked her soulful eyes, quickly washed her hands, and wiped them dry.

She picked up the tablet, looked at Chen Cheng, and a sweet smile spread across her face, "Oppa, can I really let my mother come over?"

This silly girl had already started to realize what Chen Cheng meant by this.

Chen Cheng nodded, "Of course, didn't I just say so?"

"Just tell your mother. I'll arrange the plane."

Anna's smile reached her eyes, which were full of affection, and she nodded quickly, "Mm-hmm~"

"Oppa, saranghae~"

Chen Cheng looked at her playful appearance, a slight smile on his lips.

Even though she was a canary, after keeping her for a long time, feelings had truly developed.

But it was only Anna.

Others, like Xing Lu, would only be thought of by Chen Cheng under special circumstances.

You couldn't blame Scum Cheng; who told her to be a doppelganger?

The two talked for a long time. Chen Cheng eventually fell asleep on the bed, but Anna didn't hang up the video. She lay lazily on the sofa, staring at Chen Cheng's face and smiling foolishly.

Rewind two hours.

Xu Huanshan coaxed Xu Ziyan to sleep, walked onto the balcony, and sat down beside Gu Jia.

Gu Jia, wearing her pajamas, was gazing at the night view of the Huangpu River, her expression conflicted as if she were wrestling with something.

Xu Huanshan asked, "What exactly happened with our son?"

"I saw tear stains all over his face."

"Whew~"

Gu Jia let out a long breath, casting aside her stray thoughts.

She began to explain the sequence of events to Xu Huanshan.

"..."

Xu Huanshan frowned, "Are kindergartens so materialistic nowadays?"

"Even for an extracurricular tutoring class, there are kickbacks?"

Gu Jia pursed her lips and nodded, "Before, we were thinking too simply."

"Too impulsive..."

"Later, Mrs. Wang pointed out the reason for Muzi's mother's hostility toward me."

"I didn't take it to heart either."

"I thought if I didn't become the head of the Parent-Teacher Association, I could live in peace and harmony with Muzi's mother."

"I didn't expect... I didn't expect," Gu Jia's face was full of self-reproach.

Xu Huanshan spoke to comfort her, "Oh, alright, alright."

"Wasn't it all resolved perfectly?"

Gu Jia saw that he was taking it lightly and curled her lip, "It's not that simple."

"Our son is still young and forgets quickly."

"But memories of such enclosed spaces have actually been created."

"In the future, when similar scenarios occur, our son might still be afraid."

"In a day or two, I want to train him on how to counter such claustrophobic environments."

Xu Huanshan frowned, "Is that necessary?"

"Doesn't he seem fine to me?"

Gu Jia gave him a look, "Enclosed environments can easily cause psychological trauma."

"If it develops further, it becomes claustrophobia."

Xu Huanshan was all smiles, "Alright, regarding our son's affairs, you make the call. I'll definitely support you ten thousand percent."

Only then did a slight smile appear on Gu Jia's face.