Chapter 21

Seeing how happy his son was, how could he not work harder?

Xing Peixuan buried himself back into work. “I got it. You can leave now.”

From the secretary’s perspective, their boss, Mr. Xing, was working even harder than before—like an ox that was about to collapse from overwork.

No, even an ox wouldn’t work this hard.

“Sir… would you like to check on Madam?” The secretary bravely suggested, hoping this would at least get Xing Peixuan to take a break.

If he kept pushing himself like this, she feared their boss would go bald!

“No need.” Xing Peixuan didn’t even lift his head. “This remote village project, I have to secure it as a birthday gift for Xiaochi. In the future, he can use it as a vacation retreat… or a retirement home.”

Secretary: “…”

This was the most extreme case of doting on a child he had ever seen. Their boss was already planning his son’s retirement, but… his son was only—

Three and a half years old!

Wait… remote village?

The secretary glanced at her phone and finally found her opportunity. “Ah, right! Madam and Young Master are in that remote village. Take a look!”

Xing Peixuan looked up and took the phone.

On the screen, he saw Ruan Xizhi carrying a camera into a courtyard while Xing Xiaochi ran toward her, crying and clutching her leg.

The moment Xing Peixuan saw the red marks on his son’s face, his forehead veins popped. He wanted to jump into the screen and shield his precious son.

But then he saw Ruan Xizhi squatting down, looking anxious—very much like a real mother. His clenched fists relaxed slightly.

Ruan Xizhi took one look at the messy state of Xing Xiaochi and couldn’t help but smirk. “Got into a fight?”

Xing Xiaochi, looking pitiful with his messy hair and dirt-covered clothes, pouted.

“I-It was him who pushed me first!”

After saying that, he felt guilty and nervously observed Ruan Xizhi’s reaction.

In the past, every time he bullied the neighbor Old Wang’s kid, Grandma would scold him. He was a little scared now and wanted to explain himself.

But before he could, he heard Ruan Xizhi ask:

“Did you win?”

“…?”

Xing Xiaochi was completely caught off guard by the question.

Seeing his dumbfounded look, combined with his disheveled state, Ruan Xizhi clicked her tongue. “No way… Did you actually get beaten up?”

“Aren’t you usually pretty fierce?” She looked at him with blatant disdain. “Losing a fight? Please don’t tell people you know me—I can’t afford that embarrassment.”

Back in her day, she never lost a fight. Every opponent she had was forced to call her “boss.”

Xing Xiaochi: “……”

Shouldn’t she be scolding him right now?

He seemed to have forgotten that his stepmother didn’t follow normal logic.

“I did NOT lose!” Xing Xiaochi, realizing she wasn’t angry, immediately regained his confidence.

“I figured.” Ruan Xizhi raised an eyebrow. “Did you beat him up so bad he cried for his mom and dad?”

“Of course!” Xing Xiaochi puffed out his chest. “He ran off crying to his mom!”

“Not bad, not bad.” Ruan Xizhi ruffled his hair. “I won’t stop you from fighting, but you must never lose.”

Xing Peixuan, watching from the screen: “……”

The villagers present: “……”

Is this how celebrities raise their kids?!

“But,” Ruan Xizhi said as she tidied up Xing Xiaochi’s clothes, “next time you beat someone up, don’t let yourself get hurt.”

Her gentle actions made warmth spread in Xing Xiaochi’s heart.

No one had ever told him this before. She didn’t even scold him. For the first time, he thought… maybe this stepmother wasn’t so bad.

“Otherwise,” Ruan Xizhi added seriously, “it would be embarrassing for me.”

Xing Xiaochi: “……”

Why does this adult care so much about face?!

He took back his earlier thought—hmph!

【Hahaha, I was actually touched for a second, but my tears got forced back.】
【Sis Zhi, you have a talent for ruining heartfelt moments.】
【I swear, I want to be this kind of mom in the future!】
【Yes, yes! Lose anything, but never lose face!】

Seeing that Xing Xiaochi’s injuries still needed treatment, Ruan Xizhi took his hand and started leading him away—only for the courtyard gate to suddenly slam open.

A furious, heavyset woman stormed in, dragging a crying boy.

“Is it him?!” she pointed at Xing Xiaochi.

The boy nodded, sobbing. “Yes! He hit me!”

Well, well, trouble had arrived.

But when Ruan Xizhi saw how much worse the boy looked compared to Xing Xiaochi, she actually felt quite satisfied.

Look at the state of that brat—he really got beaten up. No wonder he’s the future villain of the novel. It’s almost unfair.

The heavyset woman glared daggers at Xing Xiaochi, as if she wanted to eat him alive.

Xing Xiaochi instinctively hid behind Ruan Xizhi.

But Ruan Xizhi spoke first: “Look at the mess you made of him.”

Xing Xiaochi froze. Just now, she wasn’t reacting like this. So… was she going to scold him after all?

“I-I…” Xing Xiaochi felt wronged.

“Couldn’t you at least make it symmetrical?” Ruan Xizhi clicked her tongue. “Look, only one eye is swollen—doesn’t that look weird? Even violence should have a sense of aesthetics. Ever heard of ‘the beauty of violence’?”

Xing Xiaochi: “Huh?”

This didn’t sound like a scolding…

The heavyset woman, realizing the implication, grew even angrier. “What… what do you mean?!”

Ruan Xizhi smiled, but her tone was cold. “Exactly what I said.”

Ruan Xizhi had a reputation for fiercely protecting her own. Right or wrong, she always had her people’s backs.

“You’re being too much!” The woman’s face turned red with anger. “Just because you’re a celebrity, you think you can bully us rural folk?!”

“You said it yourself,” Ruan Xizhi shrugged innocently. “I never said rural kids are easy to bully.”

The plump woman was left speechless, gritting her teeth at Ruan Xizhi. “This isn’t over! No one is allowed to hit my son! You must apologize!”

“Oh, I like that line.” Ruan Xizhi’s imposing presence didn’t waver as she stood up, towering over the woman. “I feel the same way. Anyone who hits my son will have to answer to me.”

The village chief quickly stepped in to calm the situation. “Xiao Chen, what are you doing?! How can you speak to our guests like this? They just helped us sell the cellar’s fruits. Besides, Tongtong was the one in the wrong for pushing the kids first.”

Xing Xiaochi seized the moment. “Yeah! He pushed me first! And he pushed Tongtong too! He even stole our fruit!”

Su Tongtong, who had been protecting Gu Chengcheng, finally mustered the courage to speak up.

“Yeah! He pushed me too! My shoulder still hurts!” Su Tongtong’s big eyes welled up with tears, ready to spill over.

The villagers had always disliked Xiao Chen’s family. They constantly took advantage of others, but most people preferred to avoid trouble rather than confront them.

But today was different.

Ruan Xizhi had done so much for them, and they weren’t about to stand by idly.

“That’s right! He was already given food but still insisted on stealing from the younger kids.”

“The fight was already broken up, yet Xiao Dong went back and kicked him!”

Hearing this, Ruan Xizhi’s expression darkened. She turned to Xing Xiaochi. “Did he kick you?”

Xing Xiaochi blinked, suddenly aware of a pain that hadn’t seemed so bad before. He nodded, his voice tinged with a sob. “Yeah… it really, really hurt.”

As he spoke, he rolled up his pant leg to show her the bruised spot on his fair little leg.

Ruan Xizhi’s expression turned icy. Her tone deepened. “Ma’am, we need to have a serious conversation.”

The plump woman met her gaze and immediately felt overpowered. She had no real ground to stand on.

She swallowed hard, then turned to her son in frustration. “Is that true?! Why did you steal their food? Haven’t you eaten before?”

The boy sobbed so hard he couldn’t even speak.

“All you do is cry!” The woman jabbed a finger at his forehead. “Useless brat! Is crying the only thing you know how to do?!”

Her voice was shrill, and she kept poking at him harshly.

Ruan Xizhi frowned and spoke up. “Disciplining your child is your business. Don’t put on a show for us.”

The plump woman’s attitude made a sudden shift. “Kids fighting is normal. Xiao Dong was wrong. I’ll make him apologize.”

She grabbed her son and yanked him forward.

“Apologize!”

The boy hiccupped between sobs, feeling utterly wronged. His words came out choked. “S-Sorry…”

Ruan Xizhi knew the woman was being insincere, but since the child was involved, she decided not to press the issue further.

She called out to Xing Xiaochi.

Xing Xiaochi looked up and met her eyes. Slowly, he stepped out from behind her.

Seeing the boy’s swollen eyes from crying and how he was being scolded by his mother, Xing Xiaochi felt a pang of guilt.

Still, he was too proud to fully admit it.

After thinking for a moment, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a piece of milk candy given to him by the village chief. He handed it to the other boy.

“It’s okay. Here, have some candy.” Xing Xiaochi said grandly. “Just don’t steal again. If you ask nicely, we’ll share.”

Su Tongtong nodded eagerly. “Yeah! We can share!”

Gu Chengcheng also chimed in, “We’re all friends.”

Ruan Xizhi raised an eyebrow, impressed.

These little ones really knew how to handle things.

She was especially pleased with Xing Xiaochi. She gave him a thumbs-up.

Xing Xiaochi’s face lit up with a grin.

Maybe this stepmother wasn’t as annoying as he thought.

Maybe… just maybe… he could like her a little more.

Seeing the kids make peace, the adults decided to let the matter rest.

—

Outside the screen, Xing Peixuan watched the scene with a complicated expression. He turned to his secretary. “What do you think of Ruan Xizhi?”

The secretary, thinking he was asking about her handling of the situation, nodded enthusiastically. “She’s amazing! She protects the young master just like you!”

“Hmm.”

Xing Peixuan agreed.

If he had been in that situation, he wasn’t sure he would have handled it as well as she did.

It was clear—Ruan Xizhi cared about Xing Xiaochi.

And he had seen Xing Xiaochi happy.

With that in mind, he made an important decision.

That evening, he sent a message to Ruan Xizhi.

—The child is yours to raise from now on.

When Ruan Xizhi read the message, her heart dropped.

Oh no.

Oh no, no, no!

She could almost see her dream of a lazy, carefree life waving goodbye.

She looked down at Xing Xiaochi, who was brushing his teeth.

If Xing Xiaochi had ultimately turned dark because Xing Peixuan had ignored him all his life, then that meant…

If she wanted to slack off forever, she’d have to make sure Xing Peixuan paid attention to his son!

That night, she made an important decision of her own.

Ruan Xizhi patted Xing Xiaochi’s head. “Kid, we need to rise up. For the sake of my peaceful life.”

Xing Xiaochi, mouth full of toothpaste foam, froze.

“…”

Help.

His stepmother was going crazy again.