"Really?" Yu Chao asked with some doubt. "I thought he didn't like me. After all, he's not young anymore, and he should understand the relationship between Gu Zheng and you."
"He's probably overthinking things now that he sees you and me getting so close."
Yu Chao had revealed everything, and Xia Ran was indeed somewhat embarrassed. Of course, he wouldn't admit it, and just laughed it off.
"Senior, no, the child is just shy. Um, let's go inside first. It's not good to stay at the restaurant entrance."
Having said all that needed to be said, Yu Chao didn't continue. Instead, he nodded and entered the restaurant as if nothing had happened.
Gu Zheng had been watching them the whole time, and now that he saw the two of them go inside, his expression turned extremely ugly.
But he couldn't do anything about it, so he could only remain silent and follow along.
For now, he can only follow Xia Ran like this; to put it bluntly, he's like a stalker.
The restaurant was packed with people and doing brisk business; the food certainly looked delicious.
Yu Chao and his group found a window seat, but all the nearby seats were already occupied, so Yu Chao figured that if Gu Zheng came in, he wouldn't be able to sit next to them.
But just as Yu Chao had this thought, Gu Zheng walked in and went straight to the seats next to the two girls, saying something to them.
Xia Ran also noticed this place, but he didn't hear what Gu Zheng was saying because Gu Zheng seemed to be deliberately lowering his voice.
Seeing this, Xia Ran lowered her head slightly, still feeling somewhat displeased.
Xia Ran's face turned pale at the thought, but she quickly realized what she was thinking and shifted her attention.
Gu Zheng said something to the two girls, and they nodded with blushes. Then they took out their phones. Gu Zheng scanned one of the girls' phones, and the two girls stood up and made way for him.
She even gave Gu Zheng a thumbs-up, and then glanced at Xia Ran before leaving.
Chapter 246 Mistress
Xia Ran happened to look up and saw this scene. For a moment, she didn't know what to say and could only subconsciously lower her head.
Upon realizing this thought, Xia Ran mentally mocked herself again.
Yu Chao's eyes turned slightly cold, then he handed the menu to Xia Ran and said softly,
"Xiao Ran, take a look at the menu and decide what to eat. The food here is pretty good. Don't waste your time and energy on people who aren't worth it."
Yu Chao's voice was quite loud, so Gu Zheng heard it too, and Gu Zheng couldn't help but let out a loud snort.
Gu Chen glanced at Gu Zheng, then looked at the menu, and muttered something.
"Little Daddy, I don't like eating these things, they don't taste good."
Xia Ran: "Hmm? You don't like it? But you haven't even tried these things yet, how do you know they don't taste good?"
Yu Chao quickly added, "Yes, Xiao Chen, this tastes really good. Trust Uncle Yu, you'll see once you try it."
Gu Chen wanted to say something more, but in the end he said nothing.
Never mind, what if I say too much and my husband gets angry?
Xia Ran ordered a few dishes, and Yu Chao also ordered a few, all of which were chosen to suit Xia Ran's tastes.
After Xia Ran noticed this, her feelings became even more complicated. It seemed that this senior really did have those kinds of feelings for her.
He had originally intended to take this opportunity to clarify things with Yu Chao, but now it seemed impossible, especially since Gu Zheng was also present.
If Gu Zheng found out what they were talking about, they might be misunderstood.
So he could only stop talking about it and sigh silently to himself. It seemed he still needed to find a time to invite his senior to his house for a get-together so that Gu Zheng wouldn't come along.
The food they ordered arrived quickly. Xia Ran had the child sit down next to her and gave the child some food.
Yu Chao, who was sitting opposite Xia Ran and the others, was particularly attentive in serving Xia Ran food before the food was served.
In order to prevent Xia Ran from discovering his feelings, Yu Chao usually kept his attitude and feelings towards Xia Ran very restrained.
But now, he has abandoned his previous restraint and directly revealed his emotions.
Xia Ran felt extremely uncomfortable.
"Senior... I can do this myself, you should eat quickly too."
Yu Chao: "Okay, eat more, this is all your favorite flavor."
"And Xiao Chen, this pineapple fried rice is also delicious, you should try it."
Yu Chao also scooped a bowl of fried rice for Gu Chen. Although Gu Chen didn't like it, he didn't forget Xia Ran's usual teachings to him, so he could only mutter a thank you.
"You're welcome. As long as Xiao Chen is happy. If you have any food preferences, you can tell Uncle Yu Chao, and he can take you and your dad to eat it."
Gu Chen's face tightened. "No need, I have a dad, and two others. They'll take me to eat whatever I want."
Yu Chao tightened his grip on the chopsticks, his dislike for the child growing even stronger.
"Really? But your stepfather has no relation to your stepfather anymore. Are you sure they can take you there?"
"Ah, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to, Xiaoran. I apologize. I just blurted it out because I was thinking of you."
Yu Chao's face showed a hint of guilt, but his eyes were filled with smugness.
Gu Chen's eyes instantly reddened. Xia Ran glanced at the child, patted the child's head, and said to Chao,
"fine."
"I'm sorry, it's my fault." Yu Chao still said sorry, and the guilt on his face made Xia Ran feel a little strange.
Or rather, Yu Chao today made Xia Ran feel a little strange. He had the same face, but he couldn't quite put his finger on what was different.
After thinking it over, Xia Ran could only conclude that he was overthinking things.
Although Gu Zheng couldn't hear their conversation very clearly, judging from the expressions on the child and Xia Ran's faces, he felt that they were saying some very unpleasant things, which made him extremely unhappy.
Gu Zheng felt that he must be the most aggrieved person. These were his former wife and children, but now he could only watch them from the sidelines and couldn't say anything.
After finishing her meal, Xia Ran wiped her mouth with a tissue and said...
"Senior, how about coming to my place for a bit later? Are you free? I have something I'd like to talk to you about."
Yu Chao was overjoyed to be able to be with Xia Ran, so he agreed without even thinking about it.
He'd figured it out. For now, he'd let others keep an eye on the company. All he wanted was Xia Ran. Once he had her, he could worry about everything else later.
Gu Zheng followed the car back, and Xia Ran made a decision in her heart.
He looked down at the child sleeping in his arms, his eyes filled with tenderness.
It's probably time for them to separate. Gu Zheng's constant following him around is making his life very inconvenient and suffocating.
Xia Ran didn't expect that as soon as they arrived at their doorstep, they found a large crowd gathered there, and he could faintly hear Da Zhuang and his grandfather's voices.
As soon as Xia Ran got out of the car, she was met with the gazes of those people, all of whom were her usual neighbors.
Moreover, these people were looking at him with very unfriendly eyes. Xia Ran frowned and was about to speak when he saw these people pointing and whispering around him.
"Xiao Ran, we've watched you grow up, and you're a college student from a big city. How could you do something so shameless?"
"Aren't you afraid of upsetting your grandfather to death by doing this? You're a perfectly normal young man, why don't you find someone to marry? Why do you have to become someone's mistress?"
"I knew it! How could Xia Ran take care of someone else's child and willingly become a stepfather? It turns out she was after his money. Let me tell you, I heard it from my grandson. The car Xia Ran found is worth several million."
…………
The voices of these people kept reaching Xia Ran's ears, causing her expression to change. Gu Chen had also regained his senses.
Seeing so many people pointing and whispering around his stepfather, he became even angrier, his face turning red with anger.
"Stop talking! Stop talking! Don't talk about my stepfather!"
Although he couldn't understand what these people were saying, he knew they weren't saying anything nice.
Xia Ran hugged the child tightly, and Da Zhuang also came over from the crowd, his face full of anger.
"You old folks should go home and sleep if you have nothing better to do. Don't stand around gossiping and spouting nonsense without knowing anything!"
Dazhuang isn't usually this rude, but this time he just couldn't hold back, and Xia Ran also noticed something was wrong.
Chapter 247 The Incorrect Person
"Dazhuang, what's going on? What are they saying? Where's Grandpa?" Xia Ran asked.
Before Dazhuang could speak, Grandpa Xia's voice called out.
"Xiao Ran, you take the child home. I'll take care of things here."
Xia Ran walked through the crowd and then saw Grandpa Xia, who was furious.
Xia Ran pursed his lips, a hint of anger flashing in his eyes. He looked at the group of elderly men and women around him and said coldly,
"Grandpas and grandmas, I really want to know what you were talking about? Who are you referring to as a mistress? If you can't give me an explanation, I'm calling the police right now and suing you for defamation!"
Yu Chao, who had come in earlier, echoed Xia Ran's words.
"That's right, a bunch of you standing around in front of someone's house, anyone who didn't know better would think you were causing a disturbance."
Although the elderly people were initially frightened by Xia Ran's earlier statement about calling the police, they quickly overcame their fear and started talking about it again one after another.
"How can we be talking nonsense? If you don't say you're after someone else's money, why would you be willing to raise a child that's not yours?"
"Exactly, there's no smoke without fire. If you didn't do it, why are you in such a hurry? I think you're not in a hurry, you're just feeling guilty!"
"Bullshit!" Grandpa Xia roared again, "Our Xiao Ran is upright and honest, she would never do such a thing! Get out of here right now! Otherwise, don't blame me for being impolite, cough... cough cough..."
After Grandpa Xia finished speaking, he coughed heavily, and his face turned frighteningly pale.
“Grandpa…” Xia Ran was startled by her grandfather’s expression. “Grandpa, don’t be angry. You go inside first, I’ll handle things here.”
"I...cough cough..." Grandpa Xia could barely speak properly, "How could Grandpa...just stand by and watch you be bullied?"
"Who told you that Xia Ran was a mistress?" A cold voice rang out, and everyone's eyes instinctively turned to look.
Gu Zheng appeared before everyone with a cold expression.
"Who was it that said Xia Ran was a mistress?"
Gu Zheng walked in front of Xia Ran, blocking their view, and asked again in a cold tone.
These people were mostly elderly men and women, and they couldn't help but feel intimidated by Gu Zheng's cold tone and gaze.
Moreover, they also knew that the man in front of them was Xia Ran's boyfriend.