However, Gu Zheng already knew Yu Chao's thoughts, so all he could do was get angry at those words.
"Ranran, we..."
"Enough." Xia Ran interrupted Gu Zheng. "I don't want to hear any more of your so-called nonsense. I'm really fed up with it. Gu Zheng, don't make me hate you even more."
Xia Ran's words shattered Gu Zheng's heart completely.
“How could this be…” Gu Zheng took a step back.
Xia Ran took a deep breath, looked at Yu Chao beside her, and said,
"Senior, you should go back first. It's getting late, so get some rest."
Yu Chao: "Okay, I'll come pick you up tomorrow morning. You should get some rest too."
Xia Ran paused for a moment, and Yu Chao winked at him. He quickly understood.
"Okay, then be careful on the road."
Yu Chao nodded: "Then you go back first, I'll watch you go in before I leave."
Xia Ran didn't refuse much, nodded, and went straight home.
Gu Zheng subconsciously wanted to reach out and pull Xia Ran, but Yu Chao blocked him.
"Mr. Gu, what are you going to do to my boyfriend? Let me tell you, if you dare to do anything inappropriate, I will sue you for indecent assault."
Gu Zheng looked at Yu Chao with a gloomy expression, and finally couldn't help but punch Yu Chao.
"Shut up!" Gu Zheng seemed to be venting his anger, punching him again and again.
After Yu Chao realized what was happening, he began to fight back, but he was clearly no match for Gu Zheng and was obviously at a disadvantage.
Xia Ran immediately tried to pull Gu Zheng away, shouting, "Gu Zheng! What are you doing! Stop right now!"
Gu Zheng did not answer Xia Ran's question, but cleverly avoided Xia Ran to avoid hurting her.
"Xiao Ran, don't worry about us. Just stand aside so you don't get hurt," Yu Chao said to Xia Ran when he had a moment.
His words clearly angered Gu Zheng, causing Gu Zheng to hit him even harder.
"Shut up!"
Seeing that Gu Zheng clearly wanted to beat someone to death, Xia Ran was filled with anxiety and could only hug Gu Zheng's shoulders, trying to make him stop.
Their commotion made Grandpa Xia and the others in the house come out to see what was going on.
When Grandpa Xia and Dazhuang saw this scene, they quickly understood what had happened. Only Gu Chen was frightened by the scene and subconsciously shouted "Dad!" twice.
Xia Ran was startled when she heard the child's shouts. What a psychological trauma it would be for the child to witness such a scene.
"Gu Zheng!" Xia Ran shouted loudly.
Gu Zheng subconsciously looked up at Xia Ran, and Xia Ran, for some reason, raised her hand and slapped Gu Zheng.
Xia Ran's slap silenced everyone, and even the two who had been fighting stopped.
Gu Zheng stared at Xia Ran in disbelief, unable to believe that Xia Ran had just hit him.
At this moment, Xia Ran pursed her lips tightly, not knowing what to say. She only knew that the hand that had hit her earlier was a little numb and was trembling uncontrollably.
But he quickly came to his senses.
"Gu Zheng, can you please stop being so unreasonable? You're really annoying me!"
After saying this to Gu Zheng, Xia Ran immediately bent down to help Yu Chao.
"Senior, are you alright? Do you need to go to the hospital to get checked out?"
He saw it clearly just now; it was entirely Gu Zheng attacking Yu Chao on his own.
Xia Ran's tone and actions, which clearly showed a difference in treatment, made Gu Zheng's heart ache to the extreme.
Yu Chao: "No need, it's nothing."
Gu Chen then ran to Gu Zheng's side, hugged Gu Zheng's leg, and asked with teary eyes,
"Daddy, are you alright? Are you in pain?"
Gu Zheng kept looking at Xia Ran and didn't answer the child's question at all.
Yu Chao's lip was already chapped, and Xia Ran felt a little guilty. After all, no matter what, Yu Chao was injured by Gu Zheng because of him.
"Senior, come into my house first, let me put some medicine on your lips." Xia Ran helped Yu Chao up, and Yu Chao was happy to be helped by Xia Ran.
If being beaten up could bring such treatment, Yu Chao wouldn't mind being beaten up a few more times.
"Okay, then I'll trouble you." Yu Chao nodded in agreement.
Xia Ran took a few steps toward home with Yu Chao before remembering the child.
He turned and glanced at the child clinging to Gu Zheng's leg, but ultimately pursed his lips and said nothing.
They are a legitimate father and son, while he... is just someone who appeared halfway through life.
Gu Zheng snapped out of his reverie, bent down and touched the child's head, and whispered,
"Big Daddy is fine, go find your Little Daddy."
Gu Chen glanced at Gu Zheng with teary eyes, then at Xia Ran who was about to enter the room, and finally ran towards Xia Ran with a pout.
"Little Daddy, wait for me."
His voice was choked with barely concealed sobs. Xia Ran stopped, blinked her slightly sore eyes, and finally turned back to the child and said,
"Don't rush, walk slowly, be careful not to fall."
Yu Chao's eyes flickered slightly as he watched this scene.
He now understood that Gu Zheng was using the child as an excuse to get closer to Xia Ran.
"Little Daddy, I'm sorry." Gu Chen walked up to Xia Ran, tears welling up in his eyes.
Xia Ran sighed and said,
"Why are you apologizing? Your dad isn't angry with you. Be careful when you walk, don't fall."
Gu Chen nodded quickly, but when he saw Yu Chao, he pursed his lips tightly and remained silent.
The younger father seems to be very nice to this uncle. Does he really not want the older father anymore?
Gu Chen's eyes were filled with disappointment, the kind that he couldn't hide no matter what.
Gu Zheng stood there, stunned for a long while, then gave a bitter laugh and turned to go back to the house next door.
He swung his arm; in fact, he had been hit as well, but Xia Ran hadn't seen it.
No, maybe Xia Ran saw him, but just didn't want to talk to him.
But what hurt him wasn't his hand, but the slap Xia Ran gave him on the face.
He never imagined that Xia Ran would hit him one day, and that the pain would be indescribable. Of course, it wasn't the pain on his face, but the pain in his heart.
Xia Ran applied the medicine to Yu Chao, and after thinking about it, she realized that it was really difficult to talk to him in the current situation. She could only apologize to Yu Chao and then let him go back. She would talk to him on the phone later.
After dealing with Yu Chao, Xia Ran looked at the child beside her who was unusually quiet.
Normally, the child would always stick to him when he was around, but ever since he came in through the door, the child hadn't said a word. He probably guessed what the child was thinking.
Chapter 237 Explaining things clearly to the child
"Xiao Chen, let's go back to our room and sleep, okay?"
Xia Ran picked up the child and walked towards the room. Before entering the room, he glanced at Grandpa Xia and Dazhuang.
Although he didn't say anything, Grandpa Xia and Dazhuang understood what Xia Ran meant.
Yeah, it's so late now, let's go to sleep first and talk about it tomorrow.
Xia Ran carried the child back to the room. The two sat facing each other on the bed. Looking at the child in front of her, Xia Ran couldn't help but feel a few emotions.
"Xiao Chen, are you angry about what happened when your stepfather hit your stepfather? Do you think your stepfather is bad? That he's wrong and mean?"
Gu Chen quickly shook his head, "No, no, Xiao Chen doesn't. Xiao Chen's favorite person is his little dad. He doesn't think his little dad is bad."
The child looked at Xia Ran with teary eyes, as if afraid that Xia Ran would be angry.
Xia Ran touched the child's head, and undeniably, she felt a great sense of relief.
If the child is really angry with him, he will indeed be sad.
"Xiao Chen, your dad hit your uncle just now because he did something wrong. He hit Uncle Yu Chao for no reason."
"If your stepfather hadn't hit your stepfather just now, he might have hit Uncle Yu even harder, and then the police would have come to arrest your stepfather."
"In short, it was your eldest father who did something wrong, which is why your younger father hit him. So, Xiao Chen, remember this: never hit someone for no reason, understand?"
Xia Ran said so much, but she didn't know if the child could understand it.
This is also his first time being a father, and he can only figure out how to raise a child on his own, without knowing if he's doing it right.
Gu Chen frowned and thought for a long, long time before finally nodding and saying,
"I know, it's like when the baby misbehaves, the dad spanks the baby's bottom, and then when the baby behaves, the dad kisses and hugs me, right?"
Xia Ran smiled knowingly, "Yes, our baby is so smart."
"But Xiao Chen, there's something else I need to tell you. But you have to promise me that no matter what I say, you're not allowed to be sad or cry, okay?"
After what just happened, Xia Ran decided to explain things to the child as soon as possible.
Gu Chen: "Little Daddy, what do you want to say? Don't worry, Xiao Chen will definitely not be angry, and will definitely not cry."
Xia Ran thought for a moment and then took the child into her arms. After thinking for a while, she said,
"Xiao Chen, you already know that your stepfather and your stepfather separated, right?"
The child's eyes instantly welled up with tears as soon as Xia Ran said those words.
However, the child didn't say much, but nodded heavily.
Xia Ran: "Also, your stepfather and your stepfather separated for some special reasons, and you're too young to understand those reasons."
"When you grow up a little, you'll understand. Since your stepfather and your elder father have separated, they can't live together anymore. But your stepfather's love for you will never change, and it will only increase, understand?"
"Furthermore, you can no longer live with your stepfather. You need to live with your stepfather because he gave birth to you and raised you. As his son, you must stay by his side."