Chapter 10

Seeing Gu Huai sliding down in the boy’s arms, Aunt Wu broke into a cold sweat. Before the car had even come to a complete stop, she pushed open the door and rushed out.

“Aunt Wu!” both Xiao Zhou and Lu Nong exclaimed in surprise.

Aunt Wu quickly took several strides to reach Pei Zheng, extending her hands to take Gu Huai from him.

To her surprise, Pei Zheng nimbly dodged Aunt Wu’s hands, causing Gu Huai to slide down even further.

“Hehe~” Gu Huai thought his brother was playing a game with him and kicked his little legs playfully, clearly enjoying the fun.

“Hey! You can’t hold the child like that!” Aunt Wu gasped, alarmed, fearing she might hurt the child. She hesitated, afraid to make any sudden moves.

Pei Zheng’s three companions paused in their tracks. Seeing Aunt Wu stepping out of the military jeep, they recognized the vehicle and quietly stood behind Pei Zheng, not daring to say a word.

Pei Zheng glanced at Aunt Wu and casually adjusted Gu Huai in his arms, asking, “Who are you?”

As he spoke, his gaze drifted toward the now-turned-off jeep, just catching a glimpse of his father sitting in the backseat, expressionless and staring at him.

Pei Zheng: “…” His scalp tingled, and he adjusted Gu Huai in his arms again, this time with noticeably more caution.

“Hehehe, honk honk honk…” Gu Huai laughed even harder, making silly sounds.

“This child is the son of our young lady. May I ask who you are?” Aunt Wu inquired, puzzled. She didn’t think the boy was a bad person, she simply didn’t understand his relationship with Lu Nong and why he could freely come and go from her home while carrying Gu Huai.

“Young lady?” Pei Zheng responded with a strange expression. “If I’m not mistaken, your young lady is my stepmother.”

Aunt Wu’s expression instantly froze. Stepmother??

Commander Gu looks like such an upright person, but he is actually a double-faced person?

Had he already been married and had children before marrying the young lady?

Aunt Wu swallowed hard. “Are you Commander Gu’s eldest son?”

Pei Zheng thought for a moment and replied, “Commander Gu? Did my dad change his surname? But I didn’t, I still take my grandpa’s surname, Pei.”

Aunt Wu was bewildered. How could there be another Pei in the mix?

Wait, what was the surname of the officer who sent the young lady home? Was it… Pei?

Aunt Wu was stunned in shock.

Nearby, the boys exchanged glances and stifled their laughter. They hadn’t expected such a comedic turn of events, suddenly feeling the chill of a piercing gaze.

Once they realized it belonged to Pei Ji’an, they immediately fell silent.

But it was clearly too late, everyone could only hang their heads like quails in a nest.

The four of them were notorious troublemakers in the compound, fearless and bold. Sometimes, they even dared to mess with their fathers. However, when it came to Pei Ji’an, they all went silent, too intimidated to say another word.

A single glare from Pei Ji’an could make them feel weak in their knees.

Zhang Kaiping, one of the troublemakers, was the first to crack. He patted Pei Zheng’s shoulder and said, “Ouch, I suddenly feel a stomach ache. I can’t hold it anymore, I’m leaving.”

Pei Zheng: “…..” What a lame excuse.

“Me too, uh… I have a headache. I’m going home to take some medicine and I’ll come see you later.” Jiang Yu added, holding his head, ready to escape. Halfway out, he suddenly remembered something, stepped back, and snatched the basketball from Pei Zheng’s hands. “I’ll borrow this first.”

After that, he quickly ran off.

In just a breath’s time, two cowards had bolted. Pei Zheng took a deep breath and turned to the only one left, Shen Jiming. “Why aren’t you running?”

He didn’t believe that Shen Jiming had any sense of brotherhood.

Under the pressure, Shen Jiming leaned close to Pei Zheng and whispered, “I mainly want to see how your stepmother defeated your biological mother, my aunt. She even let you take care of her baby.”

“…”

Pei Zheng couldn’t help but roll his eyes. “What does the kid have to do with his mother?”

“The problem lies right here,” Shen Jiming said, touching Pei Zheng’s head.

Pei Zheng irritably swatted Shen Jiming’s hand away.

Inside the car, Lu Nong felt a headache coming on. Pei Zheng, that little rascal, clearly saw that Aunt Wu didn’t know anything and was intentionally teasing her.

She shot a reproachful glance at Pei Ji’an, silently scolding him for having such a troublesome son.

Pei Ji’an calmly said, “Get out of the car.”

“Okay,” Xiao Zhou replied, following orders. He opened the car door, greeted Pei Zheng and Shen Jiming, and then opened the passenger door to retrieve the wicker basket and Aunt Wu’s heavy bag. He hurriedly ran toward the small red building.

Only Lu Nong and Pei Ji’an remained in the car. She had already forgotten about the earlier awkwardness and gave Pei Ji’an a huffy “hum” as she prepared to explain the small misunderstanding to Aunt Wu.

As they both exited the car, it was just in time for Shen Jiming and Pei Zheng to look up after finishing their hushed conversation.

The gentle evening breeze caressed their faces, lifting the hair that had fallen on their shoulders. A gardenia tree at the neighbor’s house swayed slightly in the wind, sending a fresh and strong fragrance into the air.

For a moment, Shen Jiming couldn’t tell whether the scent was from the flowers or a person wearing perfume. But once he realized, he felt a pang of bewilderment and clarity within himself.

“So this is the scent of gardenias,” he mused.

Pei Zheng nudged Shen Jiming. “What are you mumbling about? Weren’t you supposed to be watching my stepmother? That’s irrelevant. Doesn’t gardenia always smell like this? You’ve been smelling it for years.”

At that moment, Xiao Gu Hai spotted his mother’s figure and excitedly raised his hands, wanting to be picked up. “Mama! Mama…”

Aunt Wu, still in a daze, saw Lu Nong and felt as if she had found her savior.

Lu Nong walked over.

“…Is your stepmother older than you?” Shen Jiming asked a crucial question.

Pei Zheng: “…” Although he didn’t have time to ask Lu Nong, he knew the answer would be disheartening.

“She’s about ten years older than me, but does it matter to you?” Reluctantly, Pei Zheng insisted that his stepmother was the same age as his father.

“Alright, alright,” Shen Jiming chuckled helplessly. “I just didn’t expect someone like your dad to fall for such beauty. It’s true that throughout history, heroes have struggled against the charms of beautiful women. No wonder your mother, my aunt, lost to someone like that.”

“But you have to be careful. There is a kind of beauty called a femme fatale. Be careful that you may have a stepmother and your father may become a stepfather too.”

“Are you really not afraid of death?”

Pei Zheng looked at Shen Jiming in admiration, baffled by his usual composure. Seeing his father’s changing expression, he stepped away, indicating he wanted no part of this.

Then he dramatically proclaimed, “My dad is not that kind of person!”

Lu Nong: “…” Okay, this is just fake brotherhood.

Shen Jiming’s voice wasn’t quiet, and Lu Nong just walked in at that moment. Perhaps he intended his words for her to hear.

Aunt Wu, who heard the same thing, glared at him, feeling very sorry for her young lady. No matter how stupid she was, she came to her senses now. It was very likely that her cousin had remarried a man named Pei.

One kid was the son of the man with the last name Pei, while the other was connected to his mother’s side.

Being a stepmother has never been easy, especially with older children. It’s hard to bond, and if the biological mother stirs things up from time to time, her poor young lady’s life would be full of difficulties.

Aunt Wu sighed, no wonder Lu Nong came looking for her. How could someone who could hardly carry her own luggage compete against these people?

She knew she had to help.

Lu Nong took Xiao Gu Hai from Pei Zheng’s arms, gleefully saying, “Your dad is calling for you.”

“…” Pei Zheng clenched his teeth, asking, “What exactly did you say to that old man?”

After a moment, he pointed at Shen Jiming, saying, “It was Shen Jiming who called you a femme fatale. I didn’t say anything.”

“I didn’t say anything,” Lu Nong replied innocently.

But is he Shen Jiming, the second male lead in the novel?

So those two who ran off earlier were Pei Zheng’s other good friends in the story?

What were their names? Forget it, it didn’t matter.

Lu Nong glanced at him casually. Unlike Pei Zheng’s spirited demeanor, Shen Jiming exuded a refined and handsome aura. If he wore glasses, he would definitely come off as a refined scoundrel.

The novel describes him as kind on the outside but scheming on the inside. People are often deceived by his deliberately displayed kindness, falling into his traps, and even ending up getting sold while counting their own money.

When he and Pei Zheng conspire together, if they target someone, no one can escape.

As the saying goes, the person who knows you best is your enemy.

Lu Nong lowered her head and gently patted the little one’s head. It was this adorable, fair, and tender little baby who almost caused the male lead, Pei Zheng, to part ways with his good friend.

To this she could only say: Well done, son, you avenged your mother.

Lu Nong withdrew her gaze and ignored Pei Zheng. That guy had just teased Aunt Wu and showed no progress in his thinking. She heard him loudly claim that his biological father wasn’t that kind of person, yet he didn’t mention her at all.

What a hypocrite!

As for Shen Jiming, the guy seems to have a bit of paranoia. She should keep the little one away from him in the future.

Haha, but given the little one’s intelligence, who is actually tricking who remains uncertain.

Lu Nong gave Pei Zheng a concerned look and pulled Aunt Wu inside the house.

Once they entered, Lu Nong solemnly said to Aunt Wu, “Aunt Wu, what you saw is true. I have formed a remarriage family with Chief Pei from the car. The boy who was holding Xiao Huai is named Pei Zheng, the only son of Chief Pei.”

“What about Commander Gu?” Aunt Wu cautiously asked.

Lu Nong fell silent and softly replied, “He passed away due to an old injury that flared up during battle.”

“Ah,” Aunt Wu covered her mouth, “What a good person, not even forty years old… My poor young lady, you’ve become someone else’s stepmother at the age of twenty-two. If your uncle finds out you’re a stepmother, he might scold you right to your face, saying that where there’s a stepmother, there’s a stepfather, and that you are a femme fatale. He wouldn’t be at ease even if he left.”

“I have no fate with him…”

Just as she finished speaking, Lu Nong suddenly noticed Pei Ji’an and the others standing at the door. Pei Ji’an had an unreadable expression, while Pei Zheng and Shen Jiming looked extremely awkward.

Especially Pei Zheng, who looked like he might crack under the pressure.

Lu Nong: “…”