Chapter 8

Mu Yao looked helplessly at Mu Yan, who was lying on his shoulder, but didn’t stop him. He understood that this was Mu Yan’s usual behavior.

He raised his head to look at the slender figure in front of him and suddenly wanted to see how Su Qing would deal with this clever little rascal.

“Shut up. Who’s your mom? If you want to go home now, I won’t stop you!” Su Qing turned around and said coldly.

Through the system, Su Qing knew that this kid was an extreme troublemaker.

He especially liked putting on an act in front of others. Besides, she didn’t like being called “Mom” by a stranger’s child, even if that child had lost his parents.

Suddenly, the surrounding atmosphere dropped significantly.

Mu Yan was stunned by Su Qing’s sudden outburst. Although he usually had strong mental composure, this was the first time he’d been caught off guard.

He lay on Mu Yao’s shoulder, curled his lips toward Su Qing, but then quickly returned to normal.

Mu Yao’s eyes also turned cold. He hadn’t expected Su Qing to be so harsh to a child. “Su Qing!”

Su Qing also realized that she might’ve gone too far, but out of pride, she didn’t want to apologize to the two in front of her. After watching them for a moment, she simply turned and walked to the dining room.

At first, Mu Yan was a little scared of Su Qing’s attitude toward both him and Mu Yao, but he also found it amusing—because he saw his father being snubbed for the first time in his life. It felt great!

“Dad, I’m so hungry.” Mu Yan tugged on Mu Yao’s clothes while lying on his shoulder, putting on a pitiful expression and whispering to him.

Mu Yao didn’t want to stay with Su Qing any longer, but the moment he heard that Mu Yan was hungry, he didn’t think twice. He just picked him up and walked toward the dining room.

Dining Room.

At the large round table, Su Qing sat alone at the center in a purple dress, eating elegantly. The butler and two maids stood on either side.

When Mu Yao entered holding Mu Yan, he saw this scene.

Su Qing looked like a queen, dining gracefully. Each time she finished a dish, the butler would instruct the maid to bring more, and he would occasionally lean over to whisper the names of the dishes in her ear…

But when Mu Yao came in, he seemed like an uninvited guest barging in.

“Sir—Commander? You’re back?” The butler was surprised to see Mu Yao. He instinctively glanced at Su Qing.

“What? Do I need to inform you before I come back?” Mu Yao sat across from Su Qing, giving the butler a sharp look.

“N-no, sir,” the butler stammered.

“Butler, hurry up and make me some Mapo Tofu!” Mu Yan plopped down next to Su Qing and put on an adult-like tone toward the butler.

Mu Yao didn’t say anything. When the butler still didn’t move, just one glance from him was enough for the butler to immediately instruct the maid to bring two sets of tableware and notify the kitchen to prepare a spicy tofu dish.

Su Qing paused mid-meal when Mu Yan suddenly sat to her right.

She had never been close to children and suddenly felt a strange feeling. She even admired the child’s psychological strength—wasn’t he afraid she might say something harsh again?

After the butler left, the temperature in the dining room dropped rapidly.

Su Qing continued eating calmly. Mu Yan looked at her with bright, clever eyes and said, “Mommy, I want one of your chicken nuggets. Can you feed me?”

Su Qing initially wanted to ignore him, but then she heard that babyish voice in her ear again, “At grandma’s, all I ever eat is grass. Not even a speck of meat. Yan’er’s gotten so skinny.”

Mu Yao, sitting across from them, watched him start his act again. He closed his eyes wearily and quietly cursed his late comrade in his heart.

When Su Qing didn’t respond, Mu Yan pretended to be heartbroken and said, “Wuwu, Yan’er just wants to fulfill a small wish. Just one chicken nugget, is that too much to ask, Mommy…?”

That voice buzzed in Su Qing’s ear like a fly, and she finally couldn’t take it anymore. Before Mu Yan could finish his sentence, she shoved a piece of chicken from her bowl into his mouth, just to shut him up.

Mu Yan stopped crying and looked at Su Qing in surprise, chewing more slowly.

In reality, he ate far better at grandma’s than here. He just wanted to see how Su Qing would react.

“Thank you, Mommy. Mwah~” He stood up, gave Su Qing a quick oily kiss on the cheek with his greasy little mouth, then hurried back to his seat to continue eating.

Su Qing froze. A strange sense of irritation rose within her. She wiped the grease off her cheek with a tissue, glared at Mu Yan, and thought to herself, This kid is so dramatic!

Mu Yao watched the interaction between his son and Su Qing, and a warm feeling surged in his heart.

It had been so long since he’d seen a moment like this. Even though Su Qing had changed since that day—becoming cold and sharp-tongued—he found himself not wanting this dinner to end too quickly. He wished the moment could last a bit longer, without any interruptions.

But fate often had other plans. Just when Mu Yao was enjoying the moment, an ear-piercing scream from outside broke the peace, making him frown as he looked toward the door and snapped, “Butler!”

The butler immediately ran out to check what was going on.

“So noisy. Whose dog ran off and came yelling over here?” Mu Yan muttered while happily eating, displeased by the commotion outside.

“Yan’er, mind your manners.” Mu Yao gave him a cold stare upon hearing his outburst.

“I’m full now.”

Su Qing stood up abruptly and walked toward the entrance.

Mu Yan saw her leave and quickly jumped down from his chair to follow, saying, “I’m full too, Daddy. You take your time eating.”

Mu Yao saw his son sticking to Su Qing like glue and suddenly felt a twinge of jealousy. He also stood up and followed them out.

“I’m sorry, Miss Ye. Wife has ordered that you are not allowed inside.”

“I just want to keep her company. She hasn’t been in a good mental state lately. She needs me. It’ll only take a moment—I won’t be long!”

Ye Yun pleaded while trying to barge in, but the two bodyguards at the door firmly blocked her path.