Chapter 9.2

Meanwhile, Sheng Zexi didn’t manage to close his eyes until dawn. For some reason, he felt a dull ache in his head, making it hard for him to sleep. He ended up tackling some work, but his efficiency was poor.

He dozed off briefly around six but woke up again soon after. When he got up, Xu Ai had already left, and Nuo Nuo was in the living room, watching TV and playing with her blocks.

Recalling the time he had spent playing with her the night before, only for the little girl to leave, Sheng Zexi felt a bit frustrated. He didn’t even glance at her and went straight to eat breakfast.

The meal was tasteless. With a meeting scheduled for the morning, he decided to get ready for work. However, as he walked down the stairs, an unexpected scene unfolded.

The little girl came running toward him, her eyes filled with tears as she tried to speak, but her sobbing made it hard to understand her.

Sheng Zexi glanced at Auntie Lu, who explained, “Miss fell while playing with her blocks and broke them.”

No wonder she was crying so hard.

“Broken is broken,” Sheng Zexi said, unsure of how to comfort the crying child. His headache throbbed more as she sobbed, and he didn’t pay much attention to his tone. “It’s not like you can’t put them together again.”

Nuo Nuo seemed to agree with her Daddy’s logic. She hugged his leg and tried to pull him toward the pile of broken blocks.

Finally, Sheng Zexi heard her clearly. “Daddy, help me put it together.”

He felt like he was digging his own grave.

What a joke. He had already wasted an entire evening playing with blocks, and now she wanted him to skip work to play again?

However, looking at the tearful little girl, he realized that since he had already made an effort to win her over, he shouldn’t ruin it by being too harsh. After weighing his options, he said, “Nuo Nuo, be good. Daddy has to go to work first. I’ll play with you when I come back tonight.”

But Nuo Nuo loved her blocks so much. She didn’t even understand how she had fallen and broken them; she was just angry and had stomped for a long time. However, the blocks wouldn’t magically fix themselves.

Daddy often took a long time when he left, and Nuo Nuo didn’t know if he would really come back or if he was just lying. So she wasn’t willing to let go, tugging at him to go to the broken blocks. “Daddy, help me fix it first. It’ll be quick! Once it’s done, you can go to work.”

Her tear-streaked face looked so pitiful and wronged that it made Sheng Zexi feel even more reluctant to leave. He wanted to go to the office, but the thought of her crying made his head pound.

He wanted to walk away, but his feet felt heavy.

In the end, he resigned himself to the situation, picked up the sobbing little girl, and told Auntie Lu, “Clean up her blocks, I’ll take her to the office.”

Take her to the office?

The housekeeper nearly dropped her jaw in disbelief.

President Sheng was actually taking Miss Nuo Nuo to work with him?

While they were still in shock, Sheng Zexi had already placed his briefcase on the sofa, taking out a tissue to wipe Nuo Nuo’s face, a hint of impatience mixed with helplessness on his expression. “I can take you with me, right? Once I finish my work, I’ll help you with your blocks.”

If he took her to the office, it wouldn’t be just for a short while.

Nuo Nuo thought that was an acceptable condition. She nodded her little head, and while Sheng Zexi wiped her tears, she said, “Daddy, I can wipe my own tears.”

Sheng Zexi usually seldom smiles, but Nuo Nuo’s endearing behavior made him chuckle.

He had spent so much time helping her, only to find his own wishes unfulfilled while satisfying hers instead.

Auntie Lu quickly tidied up the toys, and Sheng Zexi had them loaded into the car, taking both Nuo Nuo and her blocks to the office.

It was Sheng Zexi’s first time bringing Nuo Nuo to work. The little girl had stopped crying and now nestled in his arms, her big eyes wide with wonder as she gazed at the luxurious building and the bustling crowd.

This was her first visit to such a place. With everyone curiously looking at her, she felt a bit shy and leaned closer to her dad, though her curiosity got the better of her. She peered around, her little head swiveling, not quite sure what she was seeing, her mouth agape in surprise at times.

When Sheng Zexi had decided to bring her, he had only thought about stopping her tears. But now that she was there, he realized the concern he hadn’t thought of—what if she cried in the office? Would he still be able to work?

Fortunately, Nuo Nuo was quite well-behaved, and instead of crying, she looked around with interest.

The contrast of the stern president holding an adorable little girl caught everyone’s attention, creating quite a buzz in the office. Whispers circulated that this pretty little girl was the president’s daughter and that his wife was equally stunning.

With such beauty running in the family, it made the employees envious.

Once he arrived at his office, Sheng Zexi set Nuo Nuo down on the sofa. “You sit here and be good while Daddy works. I’ll come help you with your blocks once I’m done.”

Nuo Nuo nodded obediently, understanding that she shouldn’t interrupt the adults at work. She swung her little legs while watching her dad focus on his documents. Not wanting to disturb him, she pushed aside some items on the coffee table she deemed unnecessary and opened her box of blocks, spilling all the pieces onto the table. She then bent down to start playing.

Sheng Zexi glanced at the noise. Seeing the blocks spread all over his coffee table made his eyelids twitch, but he continued to bury himself in his work, pretending not to notice.

After a while, someone knocked on the door and entered. The sight of the blocks on the table seemed out of place, and the employee cast a few glances before delivering some documents to Sheng Zexi.

As his father was busy, Nuo Nuo focused on her blocks. However, her intelligence was still limited; after struggling for a while, she finally called out, “Daddy, I can’t put the blocks together. Can you tell me when you’re done?”

Sheng Zexi paused for a moment, his voice cool and distant. “Got it.”

He then returned to his work.

The manager standing beside him felt a twitch in his eyelid. Though he wanted to concentrate on Sheng Zexi’s speech, he couldn’t help but glance at the little girl.

Soon, Sheng Zexi had to attend a meeting. He instructed someone to look after Nuo Nuo, reminding her to be good and listen, before heading to the conference room.

The meeting was crucial, yet Sheng Zexi found it tedious and lengthy. His mind wandered as other employees reported on project progress; he couldn’t stop thinking about whether the little one was scared in the office or if she was crying.

He decided that once the meeting was over, he’d help her with her blocks.

Lost in his thoughts, he ended the meeting early, determining that the reports could wait for another time.

However, upon returning to his office, he was surprised to see that Nuo Nuo’s blocks had already been put together.

A young guy from the technical department had seen the little girl looking bored, and since he was also free, he stepped in to help her assemble the blocks. He hadn’t expected the meeting to end early. When the young man saw Sheng Zexi come in, his expression stiffened, and he weakly greeted, “President Sheng.”

Although the blocks had scattered, they hadn’t broken completely, so reassembling them wasn’t difficult. The young man had been there for less than an hour and had finished the task.

With the blocks now assembled, Nuo Nuo beamed with joy as she showed them off to her dad. “Daddy, look! I put my blocks together!”
But deep down, Sheng Zexi felt a mix of emotions. He had spent the meeting thinking about this very moment.

**

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