"Hmm?" Xia Ran looked down at Gu Chen in his arms in surprise. This was the first time he had heard the child talk so much about a stranger.
"Well... um... he sits next to me, and he always comes close to me after class. He talks a lot with me, and I don't want to talk to him, but he just keeps coming close to me."
Upon hearing this, Xia Ran chuckled and said,
"Xiao Chen, he probably wants to be your friend. Look how fair and cute he is. Isn't the point of going to kindergarten to learn and make friends?"
“But…” Gu Chen really wanted to say that he didn’t want to make friends, but when he thought of Feng Nianhao’s chubby face, he held back.
"Okay, then I'll be friends with him."
"Okay, sweetie, let's go to sleep now. We have to get up early tomorrow morning. Didn't you say you were looking forward to the parent-child activity tomorrow?"
"Okay!" Gu Chen replied happily, then obediently closed his eyes and went to sleep.
Indeed, he is really looking forward to tomorrow's parent-child activity, but he doesn't know if the younger and older fathers will start arguing.
What if the older father makes the younger father angry?
Gu Chen fell asleep with this expectation, but Xia Ran couldn't fall asleep.
Although he had mentally prepared himself for tomorrow's parent-child activity, the thought of spending several hours with Gu Zheng still made him a little...
Oh well, it's only half a day anyway, what problems could possibly arise?
Xia Ran got up at six o'clock the next day, while the child was still asleep.
The first thing he did after getting up was to go see Grandpa Xia, only to find that Grandpa Xia was already awake.
"Grandpa, why are you up so early?"
Grandpa Xia was already sitting up on the headboard watching TV, but the TV volume was very low. He couldn't hear it when he was at the door, but he could hear a little bit of sound now that he was in the room.
"I'm getting old, so I don't need much sleep. Besides, I went to bed early last night and got enough sleep. By the way, where's the child? Is he awake yet? And why are you up so early too?" Grandpa Xia asked.
"The child is still sleeping. I'll get up and make some breakfast first, because I have to take the child to kindergarten later. Grandpa, are you okay being home alone?"
"No problem, what problem could there be? I'll call you again if there is a problem. Besides, didn't your Uncle Lin say yesterday that he would come over tonight? Don't worry."
Hearing Grandpa mention Lin's father, Xia Ran recalled what Lin's father had said yesterday and couldn't help but say something.
"Grandpa, don't you think Uncle Lin and the others are too nice to us? So nice that it makes me feel a little strange. I'm not saying I'm being wary of them, it's just that it feels a bit odd."
Grandpa Xia paused for a moment before replying.
"Actually, there's nothing to be afraid of. Grandpa has lived to such an old age and can still tell what's genuine. Both he and his son are genuinely good to us."
"Besides, didn't they say it's because I look like Ziming's deceased grandfather? That must be part of the reason too."
After listening to Grandpa Xia's words, Xia Ran thought about it carefully and it seemed to make sense.
"Yeah, I guess I'm overthinking it. They're good people no matter what. Grandpa, I'll go make breakfast now. What would you like to eat?"
"I'm fine with anything, I'll just make whatever the kids like. I'll make them something they enjoy."
"good."
Xia Ran turned and went out. Grandpa Xia glanced at the doorway and sighed.
He had originally intended to ask Xia Ran what she thought about the child living here long-term, but in the end he didn't ask.
The doorbell rang before seven o'clock.
Xia Ran, Grandpa Xia, and Gu Chen had already finished breakfast.
Xia Ran checked the time; at this hour, it was probably no one but Gu Zheng who had arrived.
"Xiao Chen, take the clothes over there and go open the door. Your dad will be right out."
"Okay!" Gu Chen picked up the bag from the chair and walked towards the door. They had already changed into their parent-child activity outfits for today's kindergarten activities.
But Gu Zheng didn't take it yesterday; I don't know if it was intentional or if he really forgot.
Gu Zheng stood at the door full of anticipation, thinking that Xia Ran would be the one to open it, but to his surprise, it was Gu Zheng.
He frowned. "Why did you open the door? Where's your stepfather?"
Fortunately, Gu Chen was still a child and couldn't hear the disdain in that tone, otherwise he would have been heartbroken.
Gu Chen lifted the bag in his hand and said, "Here, my stepfather asked me to give this to you. You didn't take your clothes with you yesterday, so my stepfather and I have already changed."
"Okay, I'll go change first. You go tell your stepfather that you can leave soon."
Gu Chen took the bag in his hand and went into the room opposite without even closing the door.
The house was finished last night, but he still spent the night here.
This was the first time in a long time that he had slept so close to Xia Ran, and he slept very soundly in the latter half of the night.
Although I only slept for a few hours, the quality of my sleep was quite good, and I feel even better than when I slept for a whole night a while ago.
Gu Chen was stunned when he saw his father enter the house across the street.
He tilted his head, turned around, and went into the living room to find Xia Ran.
"Little Daddy, all done. Big Daddy has taken the clothes out to change. He told us to go out."
"Okay." Xia Ran stood up, glanced at Grandpa Xia, and then took the child out.
When he reached the door and saw the door opposite open, he let out a puzzled "Huh?"
He remembered Dazhuang telling him that there were only two households on this floor, and the houses were all empty. He even asked him which one he wanted.
But looking in from here now, there are still shoe racks and shoes in the entrance hall, so it doesn't look like it's been uninhabited for a long time.
“Little Daddy,” Gu Chen tugged at Xia Ran’s hand, “Big Daddy is inside.”
"Huh? What?" Xia Ran looked down at the child.
He can understand what the child is saying, but why does he not quite understand the meaning behind it?
“I just gave the bag to my dad, and then he took the bag inside.”
Hearing this, Xia Ran finally understood.
So, the person living in this house is Gu Zheng? Gu Zheng moved here?
Xia Ran pursed her lips, recalling Gu Zheng's reactions and actions recently, and felt that it was not impossible for Gu Zheng to move here.
Just then, a tall, slender figure slowly walked out of the opposite door.
When the man got closer, he realized that the person was indeed Gu Zheng.
Now, Gu Zheng has changed out of his casual suit and formal attire and into a matching hoodie outfit with his family, making him look much younger and more energetic.
Xia Ran was stunned without realizing it. Even though she didn't want to have any feelings for the person in front of her anymore, she couldn't help but feel a flutter in her heart.
After all, she was the one who occupied his entire youth.
"Ranran."
Hearing the sound, Xia Ran instantly snapped out of his daze. He pursed his lips, turned his gaze away from Gu Zheng, and took the child's hand, heading towards the elevator.
Gu Zheng closed the door, a smirk playing on his lips, and followed.
He hadn't missed the emotion in Xia Ran's eyes just now; there was a hint of amazement in her recollection.
In other words, Ranran didn't completely dislike him as she claimed.
Gu Zheng wanted to say something to Xia Ran, but then the elevator doors opened with a ding, revealing an elderly couple inside.
Xia Ran led the child inside, with Gu Zheng following closely behind.
As soon as the old lady saw the group, she couldn't help but smile and say...
"Did you move into this floor recently? I saw someone moving things on this floor a while ago."
Xia Ran smiled and nodded at the elderly couple, replying,
"Yes, we're new here. We'll see each other often in the future. Xiao Chen, call them Grandpa and Grandma."
Gu Chen, who always obeyed Xia Ran's every word, immediately shouted.
Hello, Grandpa and Grandma.
The soft, babyish voice immediately brought a smile to the faces of the two elderly people, and the grandmother couldn't resist touching Gu Chen's head.
"Hey, hello. This child is so cute, but with two such good-looking dads, it's only natural to have such a cute baby."
Xia Ran paused upon hearing this, glanced at the child, but ultimately said nothing.
Gu Zheng, upon hearing this, smiled slightly and politely said thank you.
"Thanks."
The thank you touched Xia Ran's heart. Fortunately, the elevator doors opened at that moment, and Xia Ran took the child out first.
Gu Zheng knew that Xia Ran was bothered by what happened with the old lady earlier, but he didn't explain anything and just followed her upstairs.
He would love for more misunderstandings like this.
"Ranran, the car is over here," Gu Zheng said, walking to Xia Ran's other side.
Xia Ran didn't say anything, she just glanced at him.
Gu Zheng disliked the fact that the look in his eyes was too calm.
Xia Ran frowned as Gu Zheng stared at him without speaking, and finally had to speak up.
"lead the way."
The community has an underground parking lot, but Gu Zheng didn't go to the basement level, so the car should be parked in the open-air parking lot at the entrance of the community.
There were rows and rows of cars here, and Xia Ran didn't know where Gu Zheng's car was.
Upon hearing Xia Ran's voice, Gu Zheng momentarily thought he had misheard.
"Big Daddy! What are you standing there for?! Lead the way! We're running out of time!"
Upon hearing Gu Chen's voice, Gu Zheng knew he hadn't misheard.
"Okay, it's just ahead."
He glanced at Xia Ran, but Xia Ran had already looked elsewhere.
Gu Zheng wasn't upset and simply led the way.
Once in the car, Gu Zheng couldn't help but talk to Xia Ran.