Chapter 4 2/2

While waiting for Yan Lei to fetch their child, she opened the wardrobe. Inside, there were mostly women’s clothes, all belonging to her. Various floral patterns dominated, adding a touch of the era.

Closing the wardrobe door, she walked around the bedroom, comparing the memories she received with the current surroundings and familiarizing herself with the room.

The west room served as her and Yan Lei’s bedroom, along with a study. Once she understood this, she proceeded to the east room.

The east room had a similar layout. The inner room was the child’s bedroom, lacking a desk in the outer room but featuring scattered wooden toys.

Qiao Wei noticed a wooden horse with a stick in the corner of the room, and a strange feeling arose in her heart. She walked over, lifted her hand to touch the toy gently, and a strong sense of guilt rushed over her.

Overcoming the original host’s subtle dislike for Yan Lei was one thing, but the deep guilt towards her child made Qiao Wei take a few deep breaths to somewhat control the intense emotions.

At that moment, a tender voice came from behind: “Mom?”

Qiao Wei turned abruptly.

Yan Lei stood at the door of the east room. A little boy stepped in with joy and leaped into Qiao Wei’s arms. “Mom! You’re back!”

In the split second, the small body rushed into her arms, and a sour feeling reached Qiao Wei’s nostrils.

When she regained her senses, she saw Yan Lei’s complex gaze evaluating her. She had already squatted down, hugging the child tightly, tears streaming down her face.

She hadn’t even had a proper look at the child.

She released her arms, and the little boy stood up straight. Only then did the two face each other.

Whether a person looked good or not could be seen from a young age.

As the son of the male protagonist, the little boy naturally possessed handsome features, including well-defined brows and eyes and a beautiful nose. He was undoubtedly a handsome young man.

Qiao Wei stared at the child, her eyes fixed.

The little boy was originally happy and excited, but seeing Qiao Wei in tears, he was taken aback. “Mom, why are you crying?”

Qiao Wei wiped her face.

In her past life, she had cried many times, but always in places where others couldn’t see. Now, with Yan Lei standing by the door, silently watching her, she wasn’t used to having her crying face seen by others.

She forced a smile. “Mom missed you so much that she cried.”

The little boy breathed a sigh of relief and complained, “Xiang Xiang also misses Mom! Mom has been away for several days. I asked when Mom would be back, but Dad said he didn’t know.”

Qiao Wei looked over.

Yan Lei’s hands were in his pockets, and when he saw her glance at him, he turned his face away.

The little boy continued complaining, “I asked Dad to pick up Mom. Dad refused and said he didn’t know when he would go, threatening to spank me if I kept insisting.”

Really wronged.

Qiao Wei asked, “Did Dad spank you?”

“No.” The little boy sniffed, continuing his complaints, “Dad is so bad; he only went to pick up Mom so late.”

As long as he wasn’t spanked, it was good.

Yan Lei didn’t rush to the provincial capital to find her immediately. Qiao Wei guessed that he might have experienced a period of anger, pain, and struggle. His current calmness, even without resorting to corporal punishment, showed remarkable emotional control.

Indeed, he was someone who had been on the battlefield.

“Don’t blame Dad; it’s Mom’s fault.” Qiao Wei hugged the little boy again, speaking softly, “Mom won’t leave you for so long in the future…”

The original host, Qiao Weiwei, had a different sense of guilt towards her child compared to other cinematic memories. This emotion had completely merged with Qiao Wei.

Qiao Wei had taken over Qiao Weiwei’s entire life, and the most important part of it was her son, Yan Xiang.

Xiang, the birthplace of heroes.

This name was chosen by the original host herself, rejecting the names suggested by the male lead, such as Jianjun, Zhenhua, and Patriot.

Now, Yan Xiang belonged to Qiao Wei.

It was truly wonderful; Qiao Wei realized that there were tears in her eyes for herself—in this world, she had a family again, connected by blood.

Qiao Wei held Yan Xiang tightly, burying her face in his small shoulder.

“Mom, Mom, don’t cry…” Yan Xiang, who originally wanted to cry for the grievances of the past few days, found that he couldn’t cry when Mom cried.

The little man had to comfort his mom: “You shouldn’t go away for so long. Otherwise, when you go away, take me with you.”

Qiao Wei wiped her face and smiled, agreeing with him.

Looking up again, Yan Lei was no longer at the door of the east room.

Qiao Wei didn’t bother with him for the time being. She first asked Yan Xiang if he had eaten lunch.

“I’ve eaten,” Yan Xiang said. “Aunty Yang next door made delicious scallion pancakes.”

The Aunty Yang, mentioned by Yan Xiang, was the neighbor to whom the original host entrusted the child. This was the family housing area of the military, and the neighbors around were also military dependents. The lady’s husband was Captain Zhao, a comrade of Yan Lei.

Qiao Wei carefully observed Yan Xiang and noticed that, apart from a bit of emotional distress, the child looked overall well, and his clothes seemed clean. It was evident that Aunty Yang had taken good care of him these past few days.

In the novel, Yan Xiang was portrayed as an introverted and taciturn silent youth. Although it was described that he was well taken care of by his stepmother, was taught to be polite, and later became successful, Qiao Wei always felt that those descriptions looked beautiful on the surface but exuded a subtle sense of melancholy upon closer inspection.

Because the original text never depicted him with such bright eyes and such a cheerful smile as he has now.

Where was that later happiness reflected in his eyes? Where was the sparkle in the little boy’s eyes?

It was gone.

A sense of discomfort surged in Qiao Wei’s heart.

She gently touched Yan Xiang’s face.

From now on, this child would be her son, and she wouldn’t let the smile fade from his face.

She promised Qiao Weiwei.

Now, Qiao Wei was indeed Qiao Weiwei.