Nan Chen nodded, acknowledging his grandpa’s kind understanding regarding this matter.
“Thanks, grandpa,” Nan Chen said as he looked towards the floor.
“I’m only agreeing to this because of you. Otherwise, I would never have entertained the possibility of letting them return,” the elderly man said.
Nan Chen thanked his grandpa again.
“Ok, ok. That’s enough. You shouldn’t worry too much as well. It’s all predestined that we each have our own hour,” the elderly man tried to comfort his grandson.
“Yup. Have an early rest, grandpa.”
Nan Chen could finally let out a sigh of relief after leaving his grandpa’s study.
Now that he had gotten his grandpa’s approval, the next thing to do was to verify the legitimacy of his mom’s illness. After getting confirmation, his parents would be able to return to the country.
However, Nan Chen was having conflicted emotions. If his mom had really faked her cancer, the couple would not be able to return.
As such, even though he hoped his mother was still healthy, he also hoped that his parents would be able to return to the country.
As Nan Chen pondered over the possible scenarios, he had subconsciously walked to his kids’ rooms.
The lights were already switched off and the children were in bed.
After hesitating a few seconds, Nan Chen ended up going into Erbao’s room.
The gentle light coming from the kiddish bedside lamp cast a warm glow on the little girl’s sleeping face.
Erbao fidgeted a lot in her sleep, and one of her chubby legs was sticking out of her blanket.
Nan Chen gently pushed her leg back under the blanket and made sure the little girl was properly covered, before turning off the bedside lamp.
After that, he went into Dabao’s room. The boy was more well-behaved in his sleep and had switched off his bedside lamp.
However, he was a light sleeper and woke up the moment Nan Chen entered his room.
Nan Chen felt bad that he had disturbed the boy in his sleep. He would not have come in if he had known it would wake his son up.
“Third Uncle, you’re back?” Dabao sounded happy to see the man.
“Sorry, I shouldn’t have come in and roused you from your sleep.”
“No worries, Third Uncle. I’ve already slept enough. It wouldn’t affect me.” Dabao suddenly sat up.
“Sleep more, don’t get up,” Nan Chen said, still feeling bad.
“Third Uncle, do you have something to tell me?” Dabao surprised Nan Chen with the question.
How did the boy know? Nan Chen was stunned.
“Nope, nothing. Why did you ask?” Nan Chen was curious.
“It’s just that you feel different these few days as compared to last time. So, I thought you had something to say,” Dabao replied with a smile.
“If that’s not the case, I shall go back to sleep first then. Good night, uncle,” the boy added.
Nan Chen pulled up the blanket for Dabao while asking, “In what way do I feel different?”
Dabao gave it a thought before shaking his head. “I don’t know how to explain it… It just feels different.”
“Actually, something has indeed changed. I wanted to talk to you about it but I’m worried it’ll scare you,” Nan Chen said, testing the waters.
“What exactly are you trying to say, Third Uncle? Just be direct with me, it’s alright!” Dabao tilted his head and looked at Nan Chen.
“I… have something important to tell you, that is… “
Nan Chen was being coy about it, which was definitely unheard of.
“Third Uncle, be brave! I’m listening,” Dabao cheered the man on.
“I’m actually not your uncle, but your Daddy.”
Nan Chen could feel his heart going into overdrive after he said that, as he waited anxiously for Dabao’s reaction.
He was worried that the boy would be taken aback by this revelation and not be able to accept this new reality.
Dabao kept quiet for a while after hearing what Nan Chen said.
It was the first time Nan Chen had felt so stressed due to someone else’s silence.
He was usually the one who used silence to pressurize others. However, he was now experiencing first-hand how it felt to be on the receiving end.
“Do you not like it… “ Nan Chen asked, feeling unsettled.
“Hehe,” the boy suddenly chuckled.
Even though Dabao was still a child, he did not usually laugh or smile often like other kids. It was a rare sight for the boy to be laughing, even more so when it was already so late at night.
“Why are you laughing? Does it sound too absurd?” Nan Chen felt even more jittery after seeing the boy’s reaction.
“No, I just find it funny,” Dabao chuckled again.
“Really? What’s so funny about it?” Nan Chen asked.
“Because all along, I had felt that you were more like my Daddy. I can’t believe you are actually Daddy!”
Dabao got excited and he lifted his covers before he climbed up.
“You should be lying down. Why are you not sleeping anymore?”
“We need to do a formal introduction,” Dabao said with a serious expression on his face.
“Formal introduction?”
“Yeah, our relationship is not the same now. Shouldn’t we properly get to know each other again?” Dabao asked.
Nan Chen immediately understood what the boy meant. He extended his hand and said, “Hi, I’m Nan Chen, your daddy. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
“I’m Ning Sirui, your son. Please look after me,” Dabao wore a solemn expression.
“Isn’t this a little too formal?” Nan Chen asked.
“I think it’s fine,” Dabao answered.
“Why are you not asking me why I have suddenly become daddy?”
“As a child, I don’t have to know every single thing that’s going on in the adults’ world. But my guess is that something went wrong during the DNA testing.” Dabao was behaving in an oddly matured manner, for a child his age.
Nan Chen let out a gasp when the boy finished talking. Why is he speaking like an adult? The boy was too mature; it did not seem suitable for someone his age to be acting that way.
Was this how I was like when I was a child too?
“Do you really not mind at all?” Nan Chen was still not fully convinced.
“Of course not! It’s nice to have you as my Daddy. I have always found you more like my Daddy anyway,” Dabao said.
“OK, it’s a relief to know that. Can I give you a hug?”
“Sure, but I find it a bit awkward if I have to address you as ‘Daddy’ immediately”, the boy frowned as he said that.
“There’s no rush at all. We have ample time to get used to our new roles.”
Nan Chen lifted Dabao from the bed and twirled him around a few times. “I’m a dad now. It feels great,” he smiled.
“Have you told Erbao about it?”
“Not yet, as I don’t know how to tell her. Can you do it for me tomorrow?”
“Sure.”
Nan Chen placed Dabao back down on the bed and said to the boy, “I’m so glad. I was worried you might find it disturbing.”
“Not at all, I’m glad too.”
“I’m happy to know that. You should go back to sleep now.”
Nan Chen covered Dabao with a blanket before tiptoeing out of the room.
When he was back in his own room, he took out his phone and dialed a number.
Ning Ran had just lied down on the bed and was about to drift off to sleep when her phone, which was placed next to her pillow, started vibrating.
Assuming it was Zheng Lunlun who was harassing her to play games with him again, she yelled into the phone in an annoyed tone, “I already said I’m not playing, can you stop disturbing me? Are you crazy?”
The next moment, a cold and husky voice sounded on the other side of the phone, “What are you playing? Why are you shouting?”
Ning Ran was suddenly alert. “Why are you calling me at this hour of the night?”
“Who did you think it was?” Nan Chen asked.
“No one.”
“Then what do you mean by you are not playing? What were you playing? And why are you not playing anymore?” Nan Chen pressed on. It wasn’t so easy to fool him.
“I already told you there’s no one. Can you stop being lame? Why are you kicking up a fuss so late at night?” Ning Ran wished that the man would stop harping on it.
Nan Chen had initially called to inform the woman that he had already made it clear to Dabao that he was the kids’ real daddy.
However, he did not expect Ning Ran to answer the call in such a strange manner. That threw him off.
She must have been talking to another man before I called. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have said those words.
Who is the person though? Could it be that ‘Feng’ guy?
Nan Chen stood up and was about to go to Ning Ran’s place so that he could clarify with her in person.
But he started wondering about the purpose of him doing that. It didn’t feel right to look for the woman just because of a phone call.
