Xia Ran nodded.
"I understand, Zheng, you should eat quickly. After you finish eating, we'll take Xiao Chen to the hospital to get checked out."
Xia Ran's mouth was stuffed with steak, and Gu Zheng frowned again. He looked at Gu Chen next to him and didn't think there was anything wrong with Gu Chen, but looking at Xia Ran's appearance, he didn't say anything.
After leaving the restaurant, Xia Ran asked Gu Zheng to drive to the nearest hospital.
"If there is a family doctor at home, you can go back and have someone take a look at you."
Xia Ran shook her head. "No need. It would take too long to go back, and it's not good to have people come to our house at this time. Let's go to the hospital instead. The hospital has more complete testing equipment."
Chapter 48 is all because of Xia Ran
Gu Zheng frowned, wanting to say something more, but seeing Xia Ran's expression, he said nothing and went straight to a nearby hospital.
Xia Ran's brows remained furrowed. He touched Gu Chen's still-swollen belly, looked at Gu Chen sitting obediently in his lap, and asked again,
"Baby, are you feeling unwell anywhere?"
Gu Chen blinked his innocent eyes, "No..."
Although Gu Chen said he was fine, Xia Ran was still very worried.
"Baby, shall we go for a check-up later?"
He was afraid that going to the hospital would frighten Gu Chen, since children often have an inexplicable fear of hospitals.
Although Gu Chen didn't understand what Xia Ran meant or what she wanted to check, he knew that he would just nod no matter what his stepfather said, so he nodded and simply replied, "Okay."
Seeing how well-behaved Gu Chen was, Xia Ran became even more worried. He hugged Gu Chen tightly, afraid that something might happen to him.
Gu Chen felt a little uncomfortable being held so tightly. He looked up at Xia Ran, wanting to ask his little dad not to hold him so tightly, but when he saw Xia Ran's tightly furrowed brows, he forgot what he was going to say and instead reached out to touch Xia Ran's brows.
"Daddy...it doesn't hurt..."
Xia Ran's eyes reddened upon hearing this.
"Don't worry, baby, Daddy's fine."
Gu Zheng, who was driving, listened to the conversation between the two people behind him and a hint of helplessness appeared in his eyes.
Actually, he felt that Gu Chen was fine; it was just that the child had eaten too much.
But Xia Ran didn't believe it and insisted on going to the hospital to see a doctor.
It's one thing to just look, but judging from Xia Ran's current state, she's probably still imagining things in her mind.
When they arrived at the hospital, Xia Ran carried Gu Chen out of the car and was about to go inside when Gu Zheng saw this and immediately took Gu Chen from her.
"Let me hold him. Don't worry, the baby just ate too much, it's nothing serious."
Gu Zheng held Gu Chen with one arm and pressed down on Xia Ran's shoulder with the other.
His tone was as calm as ever, but it inexplicably put Xia Ran at ease.
He glanced at Gu Zheng, then at Gu Chen, before letting out a heavy sigh.
"Okay, I understand. I... I'm just a little worried."
The reason he was worried was because when he was little, there was a neighbor next door who had a pair of very cute twin sisters.
Because the grandparents spoiled the two children, they kept letting them eat more, and one day they ended up damaging their stomachs, which was quite serious.
They were taken to the hospital; one survived, but the other did not.
He had remembered what his grandfather had said, so when he saw Gu Chen doing the same thing, he couldn't help but feel a little worried.
However, looking at Gu Chen now, he doesn't seem to be in any discomfort, so he was just worrying unnecessarily.
Xia Ran patted Gu Chen's head, then turned around to register and do other things.
Seeing Xia Ran's emotional changes, Gu Zheng felt inexplicably relieved.
While Xia Ran was queuing to register, Gu Zheng looked down at Gu Chen in his arms and asked,
Why do you eat so much?
He had just touched Gu Chen's stomach, and it was indeed a bit bloated.
Upon hearing his words, Gu Chen instantly clenched his little fists and said,
"Grow taller! Hug Daddy!"
His expression was very firm, and he even glared at Gu Zheng.
He wanted to hold his little dad himself and didn't want this bad big dad to hold his little dad!
I wonder how Gu Zheng would feel if he knew what Gu Chen was thinking.
Gu Zheng narrowed his eyes. "You want to grow taller? To hug your little dad?"
He seemed to understand what Gu Chen had just said.
Sure enough, Gu Chen nodded vigorously the next second.
Gu Zheng was so angry he laughed. He didn't know why Gu Chen would have such a thought, or how to continue the conversation with Gu Chen.
He gently lifted Gu Chen up and whispered...
"Only I can hold your little dad. Just eat well and grow up."
"No!" Gu Chen glared at Gu Zheng. "I...I can...hug too..."
This should be the first time Gu Zheng chatted with Gu Chen, but Gu Chen refuted him again.
Seeing the lively expression on Gu Chen's face and the slight displeasure in his eyes, he felt as if a heavy weight had been lifted from his heart.
The fact that Gu Chen has become more lively is what makes him happiest; he feels he has done right by Xiao En.
And all of this was brought about by Xia Ran.
Gu Zheng's gaze involuntarily turned to Xia Ran, who had already returned with the registration slip. As soon as he turned around, he saw Gu Zheng staring at him, and for a moment he couldn't help but feel a little confused.
"Zheng, what's wrong?"
He touched his face; there shouldn't be anything on it, right?
Gu Zheng snapped out of his daze. "It's alright. Is it done?"
"Okay, it's all done. Let's go. There's still a doctor on duty at this time. Let's take Xiao Chen over to see him now."
Xia Ran didn't think much of it and simply took Gu Zheng's hand and walked forward.
Gu Zheng simply glanced down at the hand that Xia Ran was holding, said nothing, and let Xia Ran take him away.
Even though it was nighttime, the hospital was still quite crowded.
There were three people ahead of Xia Ran and her group in line. They waited until those three people had passed before it was their turn.
The doctor, a middle-aged man, listened to Xia Ran's words, then touched Gu Chen's stomach and took his pulse before smiling and saying...
"It's okay, don't worry. It's probably just that the child ate too much. Do you have any digestive tablets at home? If so, give him some when you get home. If not, just buy some from the pharmacy."
Hearing the doctor's words, Xia Ran breathed a sigh of relief, but still asked again with concern.
"Are you really okay? He usually has a small appetite."
The doctor understood Xia Ran's concerns, so he didn't feel questioned at all, and just smiled and answered patiently.
"Yes, it's okay."
Xia Ran finally felt truly relaxed.
"Thank you, doctor."
After thanking the doctor, Xia Ran and the others left.
Since there's nothing wrong, there's no need to get any medication or tests done. I can just go to the pharmacy and buy some digestive tablets later.
Gu Chen kept his head down and didn't speak after leaving the doctor's office. Xia Ran noticed Gu Chen's unusual behavior as soon as she came out.
"Xiao Chen, what's wrong?" Xia Ran asked, looking at Gu Zheng.
Gu Zheng frowned and shook his head slightly.
He didn't know what was wrong with the little guy, only that he fell silent after hearing what the doctor said.
"Daddy...I'm sorry..."
Suddenly, Gu Chen looked at Xia Ran with pitiful eyes.
Xia Ran was even more puzzled.
Chapter 49 Big Boss, There's a Bad Guy
"Hmm? Sorry? Baby, what's wrong? Why are you suddenly apologizing to your dad? Hmm?"
Gu Chen is now gradually learning to use new words, so Xia Ran is no longer as shocked as before.
Normally he would have been happy, but right now all he could think about was the confusion surrounding Gu Chen's apology.
Xia Ran didn't understand, but Gu Zheng did. He couldn't help but chuckle and said,
"I know why. Go back to the car first, I'll tell you later."
"Huh? You know?" Xia Ran was even more puzzled.
These two, father and son, usually don't exchange many words, but today it seems like they have a little secret between them.
However, it was too late for Xia Ran to ask, because Gu Zheng had already carried Gu Chen out, and Xia Ran could only follow him out.
Surprisingly, Gu Chen stayed quietly in Gu Zheng's arms without making a fuss, which is unusual considering that he usually hates it when Gu Zheng holds him.
When they arrived at the car, Gu Zheng handed Gu Chen to Xia Ran to hug.
Xia Ran held Gu Chen in her arms as they sat in the back seat. As soon as they got in the car, she couldn't wait to ask...
"Zheng, you just said you knew the reason, what was it?"
Gu Zheng had just fastened his seatbelt when he heard this and gave a reply.
“When you were registering, I asked him why he was eating so much, and he said he wanted to grow taller so he could hug you.”
Even Gu Zheng couldn't help but feel a little helpless at this point.