"Jay?"
"Yes. Jay really looks like Joel, you'll see when you see him."
Mary stared straight ahead, her eyes shining. "I want to see him!"
"Of course, Mom, soon..."
"No, not soon, it's today, it's right now!"
"But Mom, it's not ready yet..."
"Now!" Mary insisted stubbornly.
David looked around for help, but no one could save him. He tried again to persuade his mother. "Mom..."
“Now,” Mary suddenly shouted angrily, her face darkening.
He stood there for a long while before slumping his shoulders, slowly picking up his cell phone, and muttering, "I'm going to get killed by my older brother. You just wait and see, you can collect my corpse."
"They're here! They're here!"
A group of people rushed towards the door like soldiers charging into battle. In addition to the four owners, there were also the butler, cook, cleaning staff, and so on.
"Damn it! What are you doing back here now?" Mary yelled at her bewildered youngest son. "You used to stay out past midnight, and if you had nothing to do, you could have just stayed out all night. Why did you come back so early to scare people? Don't think that just because you're all grown up I won't pick you up!" She even clenched her fist and waved it.
"What's wrong? What did I do wrong? Didn't you say there was an emergency and I had to come home immediately? How come it's my fault again? What's going on..." Philip cried out innocently.
"Shh, shh, keep your voice down, Mom's getting a little frantic!" Rosanne whispered, glancing cautiously at her mother who was storming back into the house.
Philip, who had followed the listless group back into the house, asked in a low voice, "What happened? Why is everyone acting so strange? Why did they tell me to come back so quickly? What's wrong?"
Rosanne pulled her clueless younger brother to sit on the windowsill. "Big news! Big news you'd never guess!" she said mysteriously. "Let me tell you, it's been almost two hours, what is David up to? He should have walked there by now!" Mary paced back and forth anxiously, muttering to herself.
The others huddled to the side, not daring to utter a sound, afraid of accidentally stepping on a landmine. Rosanne was still chattering away at the windowsill, explaining the whole story to Philip, who nodded and shook his head repeatedly with a look of astonishment on his face.
Mary sat down and then suddenly stood up. "Rosanne, call him!"
“No, Mom, his cell phone is right here.” Rosanne held up the phone in her hand.
Mary slumped down, "Oh my god! This is so worrying!" Then, filled with anxiety, she said, "What if the child doesn't want to come?"
Shana poured her a glass of wine. "Mom, have some wine to calm down. Don't worry anymore. He'll come. Maybe David is waiting for him to finish class or something, so he's a little late..."
"It's here! It's here! This time it's for real, it's David's sports car!" Rosanne shouted, looking out the window.
The entrance was once again crowded with people. Mary took the lead and stood at the front, while the others could only crane their necks behind her. The car slowly came to a stop, and the first to get out was a smug David.
"Hi, Mom, I've brought the person here."
Nobody paid him any attention; everyone was focused on the other side of the car door.
Then, a little boy with a backpack came out and looked at the crowd...
"My God! It looks so similar!"
“David wasn’t lying, it really is exactly the same!” “So this is what Joel looked like when he was a child.”
"He really looks like the young master."
Exclamations of surprise rose and fell continuously.
Du Yunhao walked towards the blonde, blue-eyed middle-aged lady at the front, tilting his smiling face up. "Grandma? I'm Jay, you're so beautiful!" Mary, already in tears, slowly knelt down, cupped his face in her hands, and gently stroked it. "Child, you look just like your daddy! Oh, God, my grandson, my grandson..." Mary hugged him and choked out softly.
After a while, Shana wiped away her tears, walked over to Mary, and helped her up.
"Mom, we should be happy, let's not make the child cry. We can see things more clearly inside, and besides, the child must be hungry, you've prepared lots of food, haven't you?"
Mary nodded and let Shana help her inside, but she still held her grandson's little hand tightly in one hand.
The Rox family's dining room had never been so lively. Everyone from the master to the servants gathered there, piling a mountain of delicacies in front of Du Yunhao, and bombarding him with a barrage of questions. No one heard the door open, nor did anyone notice the footsteps approaching the dining room.
"Jay, do you know what misunderstanding caused your daddy and mommy to separate back then?" Rosanne asked curiously.
"It's Helen."
Everyone turned to look at the restaurant entrance without prior arrangement.
“Joel! You’re back!” Mary looked at him with surprise.
David cried out in panic, "It's over! I'm going to die!"
"Boss, you're amazing!" Philip exclaimed in admiration.
"Joel, you should have told us sooner! Look, Mom has never been so happy!" Shana thought to herself, "If we had told you sooner, I wouldn't have been forced to have a baby."
"Hi! Daddy."
Joel gave David a meaningful look before walking over to Du Yunhao and patting his head. "Son, looks like you're quite popular."
Shana moved aside, making room for Joel in the chair next to Du Yungang. "Joel, sit down first."
Joel affectionately pinched Du Yunhao's cheek, took the cloth he offered, and took a bite. "Mina, are you interested in coming to my place? I'll pay you double the salary so I can enjoy your cooking every day."
“Young Master, you can move back in.” Mina said with a beaming smile. She had served the Rox family for forty years; her husband, Sway, was the butler, and her eldest son was the lady’s driver.
"Joel, what exactly do you mean by Helen?" Rosanne pressed on relentlessly.
Joel raised his head to meet the curious gazes of the crowd, then lowered his head and finished the pudding in a few bites. He wiped his mouth with a napkin, took a small sip of the wine David had poured for him, and then slowly exhaled.