"Mr. Gu, you go out and keep them company first. I'll go get something."
If Feng Ming knew the reason for Gu Zheng and Xia Ran's argument, he probably wouldn't have sided with Gu Zheng.
Similarly, he didn't go upstairs to get something; he just wanted to call his parents. It had been so long, and his parents still hadn't returned. Could something have happened to them?
When Gu Zheng arrived at Xia Ran's place, Xia Ran and He Hao were preparing a barbecue. The two children were each drinking a glass of milk, behaving very well. The difference was that Gu Chen was genuinely waiting, while the chubby boy's eyes were fixed on the food on the barbecue grill.
Gu Zheng had never done this before and was at a loss for what to do.
Xia Ran had noticed Gu Zheng long ago, but he had been pretending not to see him. Fortunately, He Hao finally noticed Gu Zheng and spoke up.
"Mr. Gu, please sit down over there. They have drinks, beer, fruit, and everything else."
Next to the barbecue grill was a large round table, which was covered with food.
Seeing that he couldn't help, Gu Zheng could only sit next to the two children, drinking a cocktail while keeping his eyes fixed on Xia Ran.
He Hao nudged Xia Ran lightly with his elbow and whispered,
"Xia Ran, I didn't realize that President Gu was such a clingy person. His eyes have never left you."
Xia Ran's face stiffened, and she smiled but didn't say anything.
He Hao arrived quickly and immediately took over He Hao's work, also calling out to Gu Zheng.
"Gu Zheng, come here, I'll teach you how to grill. Let the two of them sit there with the child."
Upon hearing this, Gu Zheng immediately stood up and walked to Xia Ran's side.
Xia Ran was reluctant to give up his seat, because that would mean he would be eating Gu Zheng's grilled food later.
But if we don't move aside, what will He Hao and the others say?
Xia Ran only hesitated for a moment before letting it go.
Forget it, at worst he can just treat it as eating barbecue outside, and the waiters will bring all this stuff up. Yes! That's right, that's it!
After Xia Ran finished agonizing over it, she felt at ease sitting there with He Hao, keeping the two children company.
Moreover, the Feng family's butler even brought out a home theater system and set up an open-air cinema for them. They could eat barbecue and watch movies at the same time. Xia Ran felt that this kind of life was so comfortable that the worry on his face disappeared.
Looking at Xia Ran like this, Gu Zheng felt as if he had returned to the time when he had just married Xia Ran. Back then, Xia Ran was also full of energy, and her face always showed an optimistic attitude that no difficulty could defeat her.
But later...
"Mr. Gu, you're still not enough of being all lovey-dovey with your wife every day? Let's get this barbecue done first."
Feng Ming's voice suddenly rang out, and Gu Zheng immediately came back to his senses.
He smiled, a rare softening on his face.
"It's really not enough. I hope I can see him every day from now on. I'm so afraid that one day I won't be able to see him like this anymore."
Feng Ming was very surprised by Gu Zheng's answer; he hadn't expected Gu Zheng to say such a thing.
He shook his head. It seems that no man can escape the changes brought about by love.
If Xia Ran really is his younger brother, then having a brother-in-law like Gu Zheng would be quite satisfactory for him.
"Then you should love him well and let him get used to your presence. I promise that this way he won't think about leaving you in the future."
Because the two were speaking in hushed tones, and Xia Ran and the others were focused on watching a movie with the children, they didn't notice their conversation.
"Hmm?" Gu Zheng asked in confusion.
Feng Ming lowered his head and said a few words to Gu Zheng, whose eyes flashed with doubt and disbelief.
Is this method really okay?
Feng Ming gestured towards He Hao and his group with his lip and said,
"I don't know if you can do it, but I've used this trick and my wife and kids are still here, and my kid is already five years old. Do you think it's okay?"
His tone was filled with undisguised pride; when it came to pursuing wives, he felt he was absolutely number one.
Gu Zheng looked thoughtfully in the direction of He Hao and the others, the hesitation and doubt in his eyes gradually dissipating.
Maybe I can give it a try.
"Hey, hey, hey, this is all burnt! Flip it over quickly!" Feng Ming shouted, looking at the squid skewers in Gu Zheng's hand.
Because they didn't lower their voices, Xia Ran and the others heard it too.
Xia Ran and the others subconsciously looked over and found Gu Zheng stiffly flipping through the skewers in his hands.
For some reason, Xia Ran wanted to laugh when she saw this scene, because Gu Zheng's expression was too serious and funny. This look of being on high alert seemed really inappropriate for Gu Zheng.
He Hao chuckled and said,
"Xia Ran, now I finally know what Mr. Gu is bad at. It seems he's quite weak when it comes to housework."
Xia Ran froze upon hearing the voice, then looked away and gave a nonchalant "hmm".
He Hao looked at Xia Ran, who had changed so much, and a strange look flashed in his eyes, but he didn't ask any more questions.
Gu Zheng and his group quickly grilled some squid skewers. What was different was that the squid skewers in Feng Ming's hands were grilled to a bright color and looked very fragrant.
But what Gu Zheng has in his hands... well... it's a bit hard to explain.
Although there were instructions from the master, this was my first time making it, and there were still some things that were a little embarrassing to show off. For example, it was burnt, but it still looked like it tasted pretty good.
For the first time, Gu Zheng looked a little embarrassed, and he didn't even dare to hand it over to Xia Ran and the others.
But this was his first time making this, and he really wanted Gu Xiaran and the others to try it.
Feng Ming couldn't help but burst out laughing when he saw Gu Zheng's awkwardness. He took the plate from Gu Zheng's hand and placed it on Xia Ran's and the others' table.
"Come on, come on, have a taste and see how it tastes."
Xia Ran and the others hesitated after glancing at the two completely different dishes on the table.
The two adults felt it was a bit hard to put into words, but they didn't say anything. Gu Chen, on the other hand, didn't know what to say. Saying it looked bad seemed a bit impolite.
But little Feng Nianhao didn't think that far ahead and directly asked in confusion,
"Hey? Big Dad? Your cooking skills have gotten worse! Why is there a plate of dark, murky food? It doesn't look appetizing!"
"You brat! You're lucky you even have anything to eat! Stop babbling on and on. If you say another word, I'll ban your snacks!"
He Hao ruffled his chubby son's hair. He was very confident in his husband's cooking skills; that dark, murky dish was definitely made by Gu Zheng.
But this might be their first time cooking, and it's already pretty good that it turned out like this on their first try. And this brat actually said that.
"I..." The chubby boy pouted, but in the end he didn't dare to say anything. He just quietly leaned close to Gu Chen's ear and whispered in what he thought was a smart whisper, "Gu Chen, let's not eat that dark dish later. It must not taste good. Let's eat the pretty one, okay?"
Gu Chen paused for a moment, then looked at Gu Zheng instead of agreeing.
Could this have been made by his great-father? If so, then he… well, he'll have to grit his teeth and eat it anyway.
Xia Ran seemed to understand something at this moment, and her eyes showed a conflicted look again.
Gu Zheng, he can't just let He Hao and the others eat it, can he? What if something goes wrong with them? How could he face them?
So after much hesitation, Xia Ran sighed and made a decision in her heart.
"Oh, come on, come on, try it all, try it all, it must taste great."
He Hao said with a smile, but he didn't reach for the item first. Damn it, he didn't know how to get it either. It was all dark, and he was scared.
But as the owner, he couldn't very well show any disdain.
Seeing that no one had started eating, Gu Zheng instantly understood. He pursed his lips and then decided to take the plates away.
But just as he was about to move, Xia Ran picked up a skewer and started biting into it.
His eyes lit up, and an indescribable sense of excitement rose from his heart.
Does Xia Ran's action mean she's already on his side? Does she still have feelings for him?
While Gu Zheng was excited, Gu Chen also reached out to grab a skewer from the dark plate, but before he could touch it, Xia Ran stopped him.
"You can eat the other things."
"Hmm?" Gu Chen asked, somewhat puzzled. "Why?"
Before Xia Ran could figure out what to say, He Hao immediately handed two skewers of good squid to Gu Chen and Feng Nianhao.
"This is not suitable for you children. You children should eat this."
Feng Nianhao immediately took the two skewers of squid, kept one for himself, and stuffed the other into Gu Chen's hand.
"Gu Chen, we should listen to the adults. Let's eat this. It looks dark and doesn't taste good."
Upon hearing this, He Hao felt even more helpless towards his chubby son. Oh well, it's not really realistic to educate him these days.
Gu Chen held the skewers and looked at Xia Ran. Xia Ran nodded to him, and then he started eating.
Upon seeing this, He Hao reached for the dark-colored plate, grabbed a skewer, and started eating it so quickly that Xia Ran couldn't stop him.
"Hey, don't eat it."
"What's wrong? Why can't I eat it?" He Hao said, taking another bite. "The taste is quite good, very unique."
Xia Ran paused for a moment, then smiled.
When Gu Zheng saw that smile, his heart skipped a beat.
Although he knew that Xia Ran's smile was because of He Hao, now that he saw Xia Ran smiling while eating the squid he had grilled, could he also deceive himself into thinking that Xia Ran was smiling because of him?
Seeing Gu Zheng's dazed expression, Feng Ming patted him on the shoulder and said,
"Alright, Mr. Gu, let's continue grilling. This little bit isn't enough for them."
He finished speaking and went straight to the barbecue grill without waiting for Gu Zheng's reply. Gu Zheng came to his senses and followed him. This time, however, Gu Zheng took the initiative to ask Feng Ming how to grill the food.
Feng Ming didn't hide anything and told Gu Zheng directly. He even added a few extra words in places because he was afraid Gu Zheng might not understand.
As Xia Ran ate the burnt squid, her gaze couldn't help but fall on Gu Zheng, who was listening attentively to her instruction.
"I never thought that Mr. Gu, who is known in the industry as cold and unapproachable, would be willing to cook for his loved one. Tsk tsk tsk... If his business partners or rivals saw him like this, they would be shocked."
Xia Ran was taken aback, and involuntarily began to compare the current Gu Zheng with the Gu Zheng he had first met.
He realized that, based on his previous view of Gu Zheng, he would never have believed that Gu Zheng would one day become like this.
"But that's normal, after all, love really can change a person. You know what? Back then, He Hao was even worse than Gu Zheng. He was a complete hoodlum, a spoiled brat, and incredibly annoying. But although Gu Zheng always had a cold face and didn't like to talk, and sometimes his methods were quite cruel, that was also due to the family environment he grew up in."
"After all, he lost his parents overnight at a young age. Some unscrupulous relatives and company shareholders only wanted to divide the Gu family's assets. His only relative, his aunt, had to stay abroad to stabilize the company. He was constantly running back and forth. But Gu Zheng had to deal with those people even before the seventh day after his parents' death. If he wasn't ruthless, could he have succeeded? By the way, I heard Feng Ming say that he met Gu Zheng when he was a child. Back then, Gu Zheng wasn't cold at all; he was a gentle little prince, is that right?"