Chapter 73 Familiar People
Hearing the words "congenital," Xia Ran felt a sharp pang in her heart, and her heart ached terribly.
"But this is congenital, are you sure it's okay? Does it require any treatment?"
Lin Yang: "No need, just stay with him and be patient and understanding. See, he's slowly getting better now."
At this moment, Yu Chao also sat down, put the fruit on the table, and continued talking, picking up where Lin Yang left off.
"Xiao Ran, just trust Lin Yang. Since he said so, then everything must be fine. Besides, Xiao Chen seems to be doing well now, doesn't he? He's so well-behaved and lovable."
Yu Chao reached out and touched Gu Chen's head, but Gu Chen immediately dodged away, clearly showing his disgust.
Yu Chao paused for a moment, then smiled nonchalantly.
Xia Ran, however, was a little embarrassed. "Senior, I'm sorry, Xiao Chen might not be used to being held by other people. Even Aunt Gu Zheng wouldn't let Xiao Chen hug him."
Yu Chao: "It's okay, I understand. We'll get used to it gradually."
In response to Yu Chao, all he got was the back of Gu Chen's head.
Xia Ran didn't notice Gu Chen's disdain for Yu Chao, and could only talk to Yu Chao with a smile.
However, Lin Yang noticed Gu Chen's mood. He raised an eyebrow, said nothing, and simply picked up the grapes that Yu Chao had washed and started eating them.
It's nice and sweet.
After chatting for a while, Xia Ran suggested treating the two to dinner, but Yu Chao said he would cook at home and that Xia Ran's cooking skills were quite good, leaving Xia Ran with no choice but to agree.
However, Lin Yang and Yu Chao went out to buy groceries together, while Xia Ran and Gu Chen stayed at Lin Yang's house.
As soon as they entered the elevator, Lin Yang began asking Yu Chao questions.
"Is this the Xia Ran you keep talking about? You told me you wanted me to take care of his child, but why didn't you tell me he was someone's stepfather?"
Lin Yang asked casually.
Yu Chao touched his nose sheepishly and whispered,
"So what if he's a stepfather? He's doing just fine now, isn't he? The child treats him like his own father, and he treats the child like his own. What's wrong with that?"
Upon hearing this, Lin Yang also looked at Yu Chao. He was half a head taller than Yu Chao, so from his angle, he could see the desolation in Yu Chao's eyes.
A sudden pang of pain shot through my heart, and my gaze shifted slightly.
"Since you know that other people are doing well, shouldn't you let go of that and go live your own life?"
Because Yu Chao had his head down, he didn't see the expectation in Lin Yang's eyes when he said those words.
"I... understand," Yu Chao replied softly, sounding rather listless.
Lin Yang felt a pang of sadness, but his words remained cold and indifferent.
"Now that you know, live your life well and find someone else. If you can't find anyone, I can introduce you to someone."
Upon hearing this, Yu Chao immediately raised his head, stared wide-eyed at Lin Yang, and said,
"No, no, no, please don't introduce me to anyone. I... I need to wait a while. I'm not in the mood right now. Besides, you know I just broke up with my boyfriend, and you're telling me to find someone else? How can you be like this?"
Towards the end, Yu Chao couldn't help but roll his eyes at Lin Yang.
"If you really think I'm feeling down, then as a friend you should keep me company. I might be asking you out for drinks a lot lately."
Yu Chao's half-serious, half-joking words caused Lin Yang's expression to change.
"In that case, why don't you just move into my house? That way you can drink whenever you want."
Yu Chao couldn't help but laugh and said,
"Move in with me? What's the difference between that and living together? I don't want to block your path to finding out. What if someone takes a liking to you and then finds out there's a man living in your house? People will inevitably start to have all sorts of questions."
Lin Yang's face darkened, and although he opened his mouth, he ultimately said nothing.
Lin Yang suddenly fell silent, but Yu Chao didn't think much of it, because he was used to Lin Yang suddenly becoming silent like this.
The two went to the supermarket and bought groceries and beer.
When they got home, Xia Ran had already started cooking. They had just bought groceries and were cooking the vegetables.
Gu Chen didn't want to wait outside with Lin Yang and the others, so he took a small stool and stood at the kitchen doorway watching Xia Ran.
His round eyes were fixed on Xia Ran the whole time, as if he was afraid that Xia Ran would disappear in front of him.
As for Yu Chao, he originally wanted to help Xia Ran, but Xia Ran refused, saying that he could handle the kitchen by himself.
Even though we rushed around, it was already past six o'clock in the afternoon.
Gu Zheng glanced at the time on his watch, picked up his suit jacket, and prepared to leave work.
He glanced at his chat with Xia Ran and sent her a message.
'Wait for me to get back for dinner.'
There was no reply from the other end, but Gu Zheng didn't think much of it, assuming that Xia Ran probably hadn't seen the message.
Gu Zheng did not go back immediately, but drove to a school gate that was quite far away.
There's a cake shop near the school gate, and it was packed with people, probably because it was right after school let out and they were off work.
But Gu Zheng showed no impatience and simply kept waiting in line.
Just as they were about to reach him, a man who was completely covered up came out of the store.
The man was dressed in black, wearing a hat, mask, and glasses, an outfit that drew a lot of attention.
But he acted as if he didn't see it, and just walked out with the cake in his hand.
However, because there were too many people at the entrance, he was bumped when he walked to Gu Zheng's side and fell directly into Gu Zheng's arms.
Caught off guard, Gu Zheng failed to dodge.
The man subconsciously looked up and apologized to Gu Zheng, repeatedly saying sorry.
But when he saw Gu Zheng's face, his voice stopped abruptly, and his pupils, behind his glasses, were filled with shock and disbelief.
Gu Zheng was also looking at the man in front of him. He frowned and a strange look flashed in his eyes.
Why does this person feel so familiar to him?
The man was only shocked for a moment before he quickly recovered and turned to leave, his retreating figure giving off a strange sense of fleeing in panic.
Gu Zheng's gaze followed the man's retreating figure, his doubts deepening.
This person felt very familiar to him, but he didn't quite understand where that familiarity came from.
However, Gu Zheng quickly ran out of time to think about it, because it was already his turn in line. He could only put aside his doubts and go straight into the store to buy a cake.
Chapter 74 Is he good to you?
The man who had just fled was now clutching the cake in his hands, leaning against a corner, his body still trembling slightly.
He took off his glasses and couldn't help but peek out from the corner towards the cake shop, but Gu Zheng was no longer there.
If Gu Zheng were here, he would definitely recognize who this person with the glasses off is, because this person's eyes are very similar to Xia Ran's eyes.
The man, holding the cake, looked away, put on his glasses, and walked forward with a somewhat dazed expression.
He didn't expect to run into Gu Zheng on his very first day back.
But how could he possibly come back now after leaving like that back then?
But that child from back then, and Gu Zheng, he…
The man's back seemed to tremble as he walked forward step by step.
Gu Zheng was completely unaware of this scene; he was currently carrying a cake out.
I just came from the company, and then there was the queue, so it took me some time. It's already past seven o'clock now.
When Gu Zheng got back to the car and took out his phone, he frowned and felt a little puzzled when he saw that Xia Ran still hadn't replied to his message.
At this time of day, people at home are usually eating, and Xia Ran should call or text him to ask how he is doing.
But now there are neither phone calls nor messages.
Gu Zheng frowned and immediately called Xia Ran.
Although it's not far from home, I might be able to see Xia Ran when I get back.
But Gu Zheng didn't want to hold back even for a moment longer, which is why he called Xia Ran.
Xia Ran was unaware when the phone rang, or rather, none of the three adults noticed, because they had already finished eating and were cleaning up.
The only one who saw the phone call was Gu Chen, who was sitting on the sofa that Xia Ran had placed on his back.
Gu Chen blinked, looked at his phone, hesitated for a moment, and then tapped the green button.
He mimicked Xia Ran's usual way of answering the phone, simply placing the phone to his ear without saying a word.
After not hearing a sound for a long time, Gu Zheng on the other side realized something was wrong, so he called out.
"Xia Ran?"
Upon hearing Gu Zheng's voice, Gu Chen's eyes widened, and he stammered out,
"Big...dad...bad guy! Eating at a bad person's house!"
Gu Chen's speech was still intermittent, and even somewhat urgent.
When Gu Zheng heard Gu Chen's words, he didn't understand at first, but he quickly realized it.
"You and your stepfather aren't home? You're eating at someone else's house?"
As for the bad guy Gu Chen mentioned... Gu Zheng immediately thought of Yu Chao.
"Mmm!" Gu Chen nodded vigorously.
Xia Ran, who had finished tidying up the table, walked over and was filled with doubt when she saw Gu Chen talking on his phone.
"Xiao Chen, what's wrong? Who are you calling?"
He thought Gu Chen was just playing with his phone, so he said things in a joking manner.
Gu Zheng, on the other side, also heard Xia Ran's voice.
"Give the phone to your stepfather."