---

Those business partners who saw this side of Fu Rong could only shake their heads. It was truly hard to imagine that someone like Fu Rong could love a child this much.

That child didn’t seem to be Fu Rong’s?

But looking at Fu Rong’s expression, full of fatherly love, it was clear that the child was his. No one would show such affection toward someone else’s child, at least not from what people could remember.

It was just too unbelievable.

The news of Fu Rong bringing a child to work soon reached his family.

Fu Rong’s parents didn’t live in Nancheng. Although the Fu family’s influence was there, his parents had moved to a coastal area. As for Fu Rong, they never worried about him. This child never caused any trouble.

But when they unexpectedly heard from someone else that Fu Rong had a child – well, technically someone else’s child – but that Fu Rong was treating the child as his own, it felt strange to them.

There were photos. The child was as cute as a doll, with delicate features.

But that child wasn’t Fu Rong’s. If Fu Rong really liked children, they could easily find someone to have a baby with him.

Raising someone else’s child, especially another woman’s child, what was that about?

It took only two days for his parents to return to Nancheng without telling Fu Rong. They stayed at a hotel for a night and went to Fu Rong’s office the next day.

Their timing was quite fortunate. Fu Rong was in the middle of feeding the baby with a bottle. The baby didn’t seem too hungry, playing while drinking, and some milk spilled onto Fu Rong’s suit jacket. The dark jacket immediately got stained. This was so far from the image of Fu Rong in his parents’ eyes that for a moment, they wondered if something was wrong with their son.

As they walked into the room, Fu Rong noticed them from the corner of his eye and looked up.

His parents’ expressions were filled with shock.

Seeing that the baby wasn’t hungry, Fu Rong took the bottle away and gently wiped the baby’s chin with a soft towel. The baby’s small hands were moving wildly, a little unruly, but Fu Rong’s gaze was full of affection as he stood up with the baby in his arms and walked over to his parents.

“Yanyan, this is your grandpa and grandma,” Fu Rong said softly, his voice gentle in a way his parents had never heard before.

His parents exchanged glances. After a moment, his mother spoke: “What did you just say? We’re his grandparents?”

“Is this child yours?”

“Yes, and he’s your grandson too,” Fu Rong said while teasing the baby. The baby grabbed Fu Rong’s hand and lightly gnawed on it with his baby teeth. Fu Rong removed his hand and wiped the baby’s drool.

---

Fu Rong’s parents exchanged another look. They knew their son well enough. Since Fu Rong said so and didn’t appear to be lying, it seemed that the information they had received was incorrect.

This adorable child, who looked like a little doll, might not resemble Fu Rong when he was little, but if you looked closely, the jawline seemed to have some similarity.

And the way Fu Rong looked at the baby – it wasn’t the look of someone gazing at another person’s child. As Fu Rong said, this was his child.

There could only be one conclusion: due to certain reasons, the child was attributed to someone else.

As to why, with a little thought, the parents could figure it out: the other person must have taken the child.

That person seemed to be called Chi Yao, someone with a bit of status. But since the child was Fu Rong’s, they can say that it’s their grandchild, there was no way they’d let anyone else take him away.

The mother took the baby in her arms, and the baby stared up with big, shiny eyes like black gems. The moment she held the baby and felt the softness of this little life, she instantly grew fond of him.

They had thought they might never get the chance to hold a grandchild in this lifetime, and yet here it was, happening so quickly.

It was simply too unexpected.

This child was their precious grandchild. The mother and father exchanged looks, both clearly sharing the same thought.

After holding the baby for a while, perhaps feeling that the strangers’ scent was unfamiliar, the baby puckered his lips as if about to cry. Fu Rong, who now knew the baby’s expressions very well, understood what was happening and quickly took the baby back, soothing him. The baby, feeling a bit tired, soon fell asleep.

He slept so quickly that within moments, soft breathing could be heard.

His parents stood nearby, watching Fu Rong, who now looked like the perfect father. They were completely surprised by how well he took care of the child.

A servant came over and took the baby away to sleep.

Fu Rong then discussed the baby’s situation with his parents, letting them know he had everything under control and hoped they wouldn’t interfere.

Although his parents nodded in agreement at the time, as soon as they left Fu Rong’s office, they immediately sought out someone from the company and learned a few things – including Chi Yao’s address.

They decided not to wait and made plans to visit Chi Yao’s house around noon.

At that time, Chi Yao wasn’t home, but they gave him a call. It wasn’t difficult for them to find his number. Chi Yao received the call from Fu Rong’s parents while at work.

When Chi Yao saw the unfamiliar number, he was busy and initially ignored it. However, the caller call him again, which made Chi Yao think it might be something important. He picked up, and the voice on the other end immediately identified themselves as Fu Rong’s father.

They explained that they were already at Chi Yao’s house and asked if he could come home if he wasn’t too busy because they had something to discuss with him.

After hanging up, Chi Yao smiled. His colleagues, noticing his expression, sensed that something was different about that phone call.

“What’s up, Mr. Chi?” one of them asked tentatively.

---

“Nothing,” Chi Yao waved his hand. This was his personal matter. “I’m heading out for a bit. Handle things while I’m gone.”

With that, Chi Yao left.

Chi Yao drove himself. His body had recovered quite a bit, so he had sent the driver on a break.

After driving for over half an hour, Chi Yao arrived at his house. It was about noon. The housekeeper was in the kitchen cooking. Two guests had come by, and the housekeeper had also gone out to buy more groceries.

When Chi Yao entered the living room, the smell of food filled the air from the kitchen. Turning to the sofa, he saw two people sitting there.

He immediately recognized who they were. The middle-aged man looked too much like Fu Rong; they could have been made from the same mold.

Chi Yao walked over. The servant had already poured tea for the two elders, but neither had touched it.

They had been sitting there, waiting for Chi Yao.

Chi Yao sat on the sofa and took a sip of his tea. This was his home, and though the two were elders, they were Fu Rong’s family, not his.

Even though Chi Yao had a child, his personality hadn’t softened much, at least not towards others. He was still cold and indifferent, with a handsome but distant face. No matter how strikingly good-looking he was, it was clear he wasn’t the easiest person to deal with.

“Hello,” Chi Yao greeted the two, but he didn’t address them as “aunt” and “uncle.”

Fu’s father stared at Chi Yao’s face. It was undeniably handsome, far more attractive than any movie star. But Chi Yao’s personality was highly unlikable—he didn’t even show basic manners when meeting his elders.

He could guess the relationship between Chi Yao and Fu Rong. They knew their son had no interest in women. Fu Rong had an independent and strong-willed personality. He lived his life the way he had planned, without being swayed by others.

Since they couldn’t interfere with their son, they would have to deal with the people around him.

In just the last half hour, they had managed to dig up Chi Yao’s background. They found out that Chi Yao didn’t have a good relationship with his family. His mother had passed away early, and his father had remarried. Chi Yao now lived alone and had a grandfather, though their relationship seemed strained, with frequent disagreements.

Now, Chi Yao was holding onto a child that belonged to their Fu family. The child was even taking his last name, likely because Fu Rong indulged him, allowing this to happen.

But Fu Rong’s parents were not as lenient. A child of the Fu family had to be with the Fu family, not living with Chi Yao and carrying an outsider’s surname.

“Chi Yao, is it?” Fu’s mother spoke.

She looked quite young, nowhere near her actual age of over forty. She appeared closer to thirty. Clearly, the Fu couple had a good relationship.

Chi Yao quickly picked up on that.

“Yes,” Chi Yao set down the teacup, nodding slightly. His smile was faint.

“I’ll get straight to the point. Since that child is Fu Rong’s, we’ll be taking him.” Fu’s mother was direct.

Chi Yao had already expected this outcome. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have come to his home.

Clearly, these two elders had misunderstood something. But would Chi Yao explain?

For example, would he tell them the child came from his own body? Chi Yao might tell his grandfather, but he wouldn’t explain it to Fu Rong’s father. This wasn’t his issue to resolve.

“You want to take him?” Chi Yao chuckled, as if he had just heard a joke.

“The child isn’t yours, he’s Fu Rong’s. I don’t know why Fu Rong would allow the child to stay with you and even take your last name, but now that we know, we won’t let this continue.”

“You’re young, it’s normal to make mistakes. As elders, we’ll forgive you. If you want to stay with Fu Rong, we won’t interfere in his personal matters. He can be with whoever he wants.”

“Young people often seek novelty, but looking at you, I doubt you’re someone who’s very committed.”

“Much less someone who can take care of a child. He’s from our Fu family, so we’ll take him. If you really like children, we can pay for you to have one. Boy or girl, we’ll get you whichever you want.”

They spoke of surrogacy as if it were nothing.

Chi Yao stared at them, unable to believe that these two people were Fu Rong’s parents. Thankfully, Fu Rong hadn’t inherited their arrogance and presumption.

“Get me one? No thanks. I’m not interested in children born from someone else,” Chi Yao’s gaze turned cold.

“I think it would be best if Fu Rong were here for this conversation. If he agrees, I’ll have no objections.” Chi Yao seemed to relax his stance, and Fu’s mother smiled, thinking she had won.

She stood up and called Fu Rong. On the phone, she directly informed him that Chi Yao had already relented and that they could take the child as long as Fu Rong agreed.

There was silence on the other end for a long moment before Fu Rong’s deep voice responded, “You’re at Chi Yao’s place?”

“Yes.”

“I’ll be there soon.”

Fu Rong entered the resting room where the baby was asleep. As he picked up the child, the baby briefly woke, saw it was Fu Rong, and, comforted by the familiar warmth, smiled and drifted back to sleep.

Fu Rong got into the car. The driver, sensing the tense atmosphere, glanced in the rearview mirror. He was startled by the storm brewing on Fu Rong’s face.

Fu Rong drove straight to Chi Yao’s house, upon arriving he walk in with hurried steps.