Chapter 4: Too Much to Worry About

Jiang Wanting finished greeting Yue Su and turned her attention to Han Si, her smile deepening even more.

“Has Ah Jin come as well?”

Han Si paused before responding, “President Fu is in the car.”

Jiang Wanting teasingly replied, “Why did he come in person? I was planning on having you help pick up the child.”

Han Si chuckled, “President Fu also cares about Xin Xin, so he came along.”

Jiang Wanting’s gaze returned to Yue Su, and the curve of her lips tightened a little.

“Yue Su, it’s been a while since I’ve seen you. Do you still… remember these things?”

Yue Su nodded indifferently, “It’s fine.”

Jiang Wanting’s tone softened, “I just saw you holding a child. Are you married?”

Yue Su responded, “Guess.”

Jiang Wanting’s expression visibly stiffened, and she tightened her grip on her purse.

Only she knew that coming over to greet her was also an opportunity to test her.

“Isn’t the child’s biological father with you?”

Yue Su looked at her deeply, fully understanding her motive for asking.

“No.”

Although Jiang Wanting didn’t show it, a heavy weight lifted off her chest, and she smiled and began chatting casually.

“Does the child’s father do something similar to you? He must be just as outstanding.”

Yue Su replied, “It’s alright, just a working man.”

Jiang Wanting’s smile faltered slightly, “We’re all workers, aren’t we? But effort will always pay off.”

Yue Su smiled, “Yes, although I haven’t earned any money, it’s not all in vain. At least I’ve worked hard.”

Jiang Wanting pressed, “So, what about you? What do you do?”

Yue Su replied, “I’m just pretending to be busy with you.”

Jiang Wanting took a deep breath and forced a smile, “I meant, what’s your work?”

“Oh, I’m the leader of your anti-fan club.”

Jiang Wanting fumed, “I don’t have any ill intentions toward you, so there’s no need to be like this.”

Yue Su lazily lifted her eyelids, “Thanks, but too much air conditioning can make you sick, and interfering in others’ business can kill you.”

Jiang Wanting: “…Our conversation doesn’t seem to be going anywhere.”

But at least Yue Su’s words confirmed that the child had a biological father and that it wasn’t Fu Xijin.

At that moment, Jiang Xin ran out of the car and rushed to hug Jiang Wanting’s leg.

“Mom, Uncle took me to catch claw machines!”

Jiang Wanting reproached, “Uncle is busy. You keep bothering him.”

Jiang Xin pouted, “Uncle is really good at catching them. He got me over ten that I like!”

“Really? Why don’t you give one to this little girl?” She pointed to Yao Yao.

Jiang Xin followed her gaze and saw the two ugly dolls hanging from Yao Yao’s body.

“Did you catch claw machines too? Your dolls are really ugly. I’ll give you two of mine to look at.”

Yao Yao pursed her lips, “No need, I really like these two dolls.”

Jiang Xin tilted her head, “How can anyone like ugly dolls?”

Yao Yao patted her dolls, “They’re not ugly, they’re better than yours. Mom, let’s go home.”

“Okay.” Yue Su closed the car door for her.

She swung a leg into the car, one hand resting on the door.

“Miss Jiang, is there anything else?”

Jiang Wanting smiled and shook her head, “No, goodbye.”

As she watched Yue Su drive off without a glance back, Jiang Wanting slowly exhaled.

No matter how the outsiders viewed it, the people involved knew the truth.

Fu Xijin had indeed had a past with Yue Su, and it wasn’t hard to find out.

But Fu Xijin had buried that past and had severed ties with Yue Su.

If Yue Su now had a child, and it was Fu Xijin’s…

Jiang Wanting took a deep breath, steadied herself, and walked forward.

“Xin Xin, let’s go. We’ll go back with Uncle.”

Jiang Xin huffed, “She’s really rude!”

Jiang Wanting gently patted her cheek, speaking softly, “You don’t need to mind her.”

Han Si stopped them and explained, “Miss Jiang, President Fu still has something to do, and it’s not convenient for him to give you a ride.”

Jiang Wanting’s expression froze, and she blurted, “Didn’t he come… specifically to pick me up?”

“President Fu has an appointment with Mr. Shi,” Han Si replied.

Jiang Wanting clenched her fists, her face paling.

So, she had been delusional. Fu Xijin wasn’t there to pick her up.

An awkward silence washed over her, but she quickly regained composure.

“Are you leaving now? Then let’s go together.”

Han Si hesitated, then returned to ask Fu Xijin.

The cold response came back, “Not convenient.”

Jiang Wanting didn’t speak again, instead, she looked at Jiang Xin.

Jiang Xin obediently cooperated, pouting slightly in displeasure.

“Uncle Fu, aren’t you taking me home?”

Fu Xijin replied, “Go home with your mother.”

Jiang Xin wanted to pout more, but Jiang Wanting stopped her.

“Say goodbye to Uncle Fu.”

Jiang Xin always listened to her, so she raised her hand and waved, obediently saying, “Goodbye, Uncle Fu.”

When Fu Xijin’s car drove off, Jiang Wanting finally let her smile fade.

Jiang Xin grabbed her hand, complaining, “Mom, I hate that kid.”

Jiang Wanting understood that she was talking about Yao Yao, and asked in confusion, “Why?”

Jiang Xin replied, “That kid got on Uncle’s car and even let Uncle pretend to be her dad! Mom, I want Uncle Fu to be my dad!”

…

After Yue Su took Yao Yao home, she finally had the time to check Gu Nan’s message.

Gu Nan: “I’ve confirmed the contract with Director Liang. I’ll send you the electronic copy. You should have a lawyer look over it. Once it’s good, just sign it.”

Yue Su scrolled through the chat history, her expression darkening.

“Yue! Yao!”

The feeling of crisis hit her, and Yao Yao covered her little bottom.

“Grandma said I’m the country’s flower. You can’t hurt me!”

Yue Su’s face darkened. “Who told you to mess with my phone?”

Yao Yao puffed her chest and poked her little face out.

“You let me use it!”

Yue Su sighed, “I didn’t let you pretend to be me and ask for leave from the teacher, nor did I let you chat with Gu Nan!”

Yao Yao shrank back, “That’s because Mom isn’t trying to improve herself, so I’m helping you focus on working.”

Yue Su closed her eyes. She had been away from that circle for years, and even though Gu Nan had urged her many times, she hadn’t considered returning.

“I’m just not working. I’m not without income.”

Yao Yao held her hand, rubbing her soft little face against her hand.

“Mom~ I’ve never been to the beach. Take me there.”

Yue Su looked down, watching her little round face squeeze against her hand, and her heart melted.

This little actress loved to act cute.

Before Yao Yao was two years old, Yue Su hadn’t taken her on any trips far from home.

She was premature and had to stay in the incubator for a long time after birth. Before she turned six months old, going to the hospital was almost a daily routine.

Yue Su squatted down and gently rubbed Yao Yao’s small face.

“Baby, going to an island isn’t just for fun. The main reason is work. We’ll be filming a show. We’ll be on camera, and the whole country will see us. Are you scared?”

Yao Yao tilted her little head, biting her finger.

“Is it like a Douyin video?”

Yue Su paused, “It’s a bit different.”

Yao Yao pouted, “Will you be with me?”

“Of course.”

“Then I’m not scared!”

Yue Su sighed inwardly and picked up her phone to reply to Gu Nan.

Yue Su: “I’ll have a lawyer check it. I’ll sign it tonight.”

Gu Nan: “OK.”

Yue Su: “Who are the other guests besides me?”

Gu Nan: “Yi Xia, Yuan Jin. Those are the two I know so far.”

Yi Xia was a veteran actress, a three-time Golden Award winner, and had a great reputation in the industry.

Yue Su didn’t know much about her, only that she had married at 35 and after several years of trying to conceive, finally had a child. Later, she divorced after her husband cheated on her, raising her child alone.

Yuan Jin was a comedian who seemed to have divorced a couple of years ago.

Based on what Yue Su knew about these three families, they were all single-parent homes…

But these two were both highly regarded in the industry.

That evening, after Yue Su had the contract reviewed, she signed the agreement.

She also took the time to get Yao Yao’s teacher’s permission for her to take leave.

The next day, the official account of Mystical Island announced the first three guest pairs on Weibo.

Liang Fan had been making these kinds of shows for a long time and had accumulated a lot of popularity.

This time, he added a new element of parent-child interaction to the wilderness survival format, making the show even more exciting and entertaining, attracting a lot of attention.

Yi Xia and Yuan Jin were both well-known, the former a powerhouse actress with numerous awards.

The latter was a famous comedian whose films had made billions at the box office, and his reputation among the public was very good.

But no one had expected that the third pair of guests would be the long-retired Yue Su.

“Ha? Didn’t she say she was retiring? So, she had a child and now she’s coming back to make money?”

“She probably realized after retiring that celebrity money is the easiest to earn.”

“Even though she’s been out of the spotlight for years, the internet still remembers her, you know?”

“Can Director Liang pick better people? He’s using a disreputable artist like this?”

Despite the lack of heat for Mystical Island, Yue Su was a walking topic and source of traffic, and she was bound to get trending.

“#YueSu Mystical Island#”, “#YueSu Comeback#” and other trending topics shot to the top of search, and discussions continued to rise.

Jiang Wanting refreshed her tablet again and again, watching Yue Su’s popularity soar, her expression growing darker.

“Xiao Mo, pour me a glass of ice water.”

Xiao Mo carefully reminded, “Tong Ge said your stomach isn’t good, so you shouldn’t drink ice water.”

Jiang Wanting slammed the tablet on the table, her face gloomy, and shouted, “Whose assistant are you?”

Xiao Mo, frightened by her sudden outburst, hurriedly turned to get the water, only to be stopped by Fang Tong, who had entered from outside.

“Go out for now.”

Xiao Mo nodded awkwardly and left.

Jiang Wanting vented her frustration, then realized she had overreacted. She quickly turned her eyes away, looking a bit disheveled.

Fang Tong slowly walked over, towering above her, glancing at the tablet.

“What’s there to be afraid of?”

Even in the sweltering summer of July, Jiang Wanting felt as if she were in an ice cave, her breath shaky.

She didn’t even know what she was afraid of, but it felt like there was a cotton ball blocking her chest, making it hard to breathe.

“Yue Su is coming back!” she finally spoke, only to realize her voice was hoarse, every word painful.