Chapter 19 Dad, This Is My Biological Father

“I’ll go cook.”

Gu Chengze didn’t answer Song Yiyi’s question—he just turned on his heel and left.

Song Yiyi watched his unsteady steps and the faint flush on his ears, her face wearing the smug expression of someone whose prank had succeeded.

It wasn’t often that she saw this “flower on a high mountain” lose his composure.
So easy to tease.

At dinner, Song Yiyi suggested, “Big Brother still has one more day off tomorrow. Let’s go to the park?”

Song Minghui’s face was stern. “Yiyi, you’re not a child anymore. How can you spend every day thinking only about playing? This time your mother and I came here to settle your life—”

“Stop!” Song Yiyi quickly raised her hand to cut him off.

“Dad, how many times a year does my brother even get a break? And how many days in a year does our family actually get to have a meal together?”

She tilted her head, first looking at Song Minghui, then turning to glance at Gu Chengze and Cai Mengjun.

For convenience while eating, Song Yiyi had tied her hair into a low ponytail with a rubber band, loose strands playfully brushing her fair neck. It made her look less aggressive and more well-behaved.

Cai Mengjun smiled softly and chimed in, “Old Song, Yiyi’s right. It’s rare for our whole family to be together—don’t dampen the kids’ spirits.”

If everyone was busy year-round, how was that like being a family? Besides, the very reason she had married Song Minghui was because she liked this kind of simple, steady life.

Gu Chengze also nodded. “Dad, it’s true—I haven’t been to a park in a long time.”

This time, he wasn’t just helping Yiyi out, nor was he speaking against his own feelings. When he was a child, he often went to the park, but he would always sit alone on the side, watching other families laugh together—feeling both envious and secretly sad.

Why couldn’t his parents be like everyone else’s, accompanying him?
Those memories weren’t happy ones. Maybe this time he could make up for what had been missing before.

The park in the 1980s was far livelier than Song Yiyi had imagined.

Before coming, she had thought there would be nothing but paths, trees, and dust. But once inside, she realized how narrow her assumptions had been—there was a carousel, a sugar artist blowing candy figurines, and vendors selling candied hawthorns.

There were slides, seesaws, and swings packed with children. On the lake in the park floated boats of all sizes.

As soon as Song Yiyi saw them, she wanted to ride. She tugged insistently at Song Minghui. “Dad, I want to ride that boat—come on!”

Song Minghui had just eaten and felt his brain being shaken loose by her pulling, completely forgetting to scold her for being so improper in public.

After the pedal boat ride, Song Yiyi wanted to go on the mini roller coaster. This time, Song Minghui and Cai Mengjun stayed below while Gu Chengze went with her.

The mini roller coaster barely gave any thrill, and Song Yiyi didn’t want to get off, so Gu Chengze rode it with her three times in a row.

When they finally came down, Cai Mengjun and Song Minghui went to look at birdcages. Song Yiyi bought two ice pops and returned to find Gu Chengze sitting on a bench, looking pale.

“Big Brother… you’re not afraid of heights, are you?”

His expression was exactly like her college roommate’s when they went to the amusement park together—except back then, the roommate just didn’t want to waste the unlimited ride ticket, so she went on every ride… and inevitably ended up throwing up.

Gu Chengze might simply be unused to such rides.

“I’m fine.” He took the ice pop from her hand, and only after a bite did some color return to his face.

Song Yiyi sat beside him, finishing half her ice pop in just a few bites.

Gu Chengze couldn’t help but remind her, “Yiyi, don’t eat too much cold stuff.”

She just laughed it off.

Later, she would understand what he meant by that.

The four of them played around the park until they were satisfied—mostly Song Yiyi running around wildly—only heading to eat once she got hungry.

Around two in the afternoon, the state-run restaurant wasn’t very crowded. The servers moved lazily and treated them with indifference.

Halfway through the meal, two people walked in.

Song Yiyi was eating when she looked up and met a pair of narrow, cool eyes. Suddenly, the meat in her mouth lost its flavor.

Next to Cen Yue was a middle-aged man whose bearing made it obvious he wasn’t an ordinary person.

The servers’ attitude immediately changed when they saw them.

Cen Yue walked straight over. “Aunt Cai.” He greeted Cai Mengjun.

Cai Mengjun set down her chopsticks, her gaze warm. “A Yue, it’s been so many years—you’ve grown so much.”

After a brief exchange, she introduced him to Song Minghui. “This is my husband, and this is my daughter.”

Cen Yue politely greeted Song Minghui.

Gu Chengze, however, hadn’t said a word for a long time. Song Yiyi found it odd but didn’t think too much of it.

“Sir, would you like to sit and eat together?” She asked—after all, it was just the two of them, and since they knew each other, it was only polite.

To her surprise, Song Minghui agreed. “Yes, join us. I’ll go order a few more dishes.”

Cen Yue glanced back at the man behind him. The man gave a slight nod and sat down beside Gu Chengze.

Cen Yue didn’t sit. “Uncle Song, I’ll go order the food.”

Once he left, the table’s atmosphere grew a little strange.

Since Song Yiyi was the youngest, she stood up to pour water.

The middle-aged man accepted the glass from her, his manner warm and eyes gentle. “Thank you. You’re Yiyi, right? We met in a hurry today—I should have given you a meeting gift. Once we’re back at the compound, I’ll have A Yue bring it over to you.”

Song Yiyi searched through the original host’s memories with all her might—
but found that the original host didn’t know this man at all.

She could only give an awkward smile. “No, no, Uncle, that’s too polite of you.”

The moment Gu Heng saw her reaction, he instantly understood. He took a sip of his tea.

The table fell into silence for a while, the atmosphere somewhat strange.
No one was moving their chopsticks, so Song Yiyi could only keep drinking tea.

Cen Yue came back quickly. The only empty spot left at the table was next to Song Yiyi, and he went straight over and sat down.
It was a long wooden bench, so Song Yiyi quietly shuffled her hips to the side.

Cen Yue seemed not to notice the odd atmosphere at the table and opened his mouth directly.
“Uncle Song, this is—”

“Dad.” Cen Yue had barely started speaking when Gu Chengze cut him off.

Song Minghui looked at Gu Chengze in puzzlement. “What is it?”

Gu Chengze paused for a second. “Dad, this is my biological father, Gu Heng.”

The air seemed to freeze again.

Song Yiyi was in the middle of pouring water, and her hand slipped—almost spilling it onto Cen Yue’s pants.

A hand reached out in front of her—slender, with clearly defined knuckles and a visible scar across the web of the thumb.

Cen Yue’s voice was low, tinged with amusement, and pitched so only the two of them could hear. “Getting back at me?”

Song Yiyi quickly withdrew her hand.

Gu Heng extended his own toward Song Minghui in an open and friendly gesture, speaking with a light smile. “Hello, I’m Gu Heng. This boy Chengze still holds resentment toward me—don’t take whatever he says to heart.”

Song Yiyi put down the kettle and glanced at Gu Chengze.
No wonder she’d felt a sense of familiarity the moment the middle-aged man walked in.
Looking closely now, Gu Chengze really did resemble Gu Heng—especially in that naturally gentle, refined air.

It was just that, at the moment, her eldest brother’s expression was anything but pleasant.