The car drove over an uneven road and suddenly jolted. Chen Du abruptly opened his eyes, his expression inscrutable, his thoughts a jumbled mess.

Yuanbao, who was in his arms, rolled over and mumbled something. Chen Du pulled himself out of his thoughts, put an arm around him, and looked at Yuanbao's little face.

The old man and Yan Sen both said that Yuanbao looked like him, but now Chen Du felt that he actually looked more like Ye Zhao. His eyes and nose had the shadow of Ye Zhao, and his expression was especially similar.

When they smile, their eyebrows curve into crescents, their lips turn up, and their eyes seem to hold a pool of clear water, appearing clear and bright, yet captivating.

After Ye Zhao finished her phone call with Jiang Che, she took a shower and was about to chat with her grandmother for a while when she heard from outside that Chen Du had brought the child back.

As Ye Zhao expected, Yuanbao did indeed come back asleep. Seeing him curled up in Shen Du's arms, sleeping soundly like a little pig, Ye Zhao's lips curled up slightly. She reached out to take the child, but Shen Du stepped back, and Ye Zhao froze on the spot.

Chen Du glanced behind her and whispered, "Let Auntie hold Yuanbao, Chen."

Just then, the nanny came up from behind. Shen Du and Ye Zhao passed each other, and Shen Du carefully handed the child in his arms to the nanny, then turned to look at Ye Zhao.

Ye Zhao watched as the aunt carried the child into the house before turning to look at Chen Du. For some reason, she keenly sensed that something was wrong with Chen Du. She felt that he was different from usual, but she couldn't quite put her finger on why.

After a long day with the child, his expression betrayed his exhaustion. The stray hairs on his forehead gave him an unexpectedly docile appearance, even though he was clearly not the kind of person with a gentle personality.

At this moment, he looked at Ye Zhao with a hint of emotion he hadn't shown before, and a touch of seriousness in his eyes. He scrutinized her, and when he saw her slightly furrow her brow, he said, "I'll be staying in B City for a while. If you have something to do... you can go ahead and take care of it. I'll look after the child, so don't worry."

His voice sounded low and hoarse, with a slightly tired quality.

Ye Zhao nodded upon hearing this and asked, "Have you found an aunt?"

Chen Du looked down at her, and replied thoughtfully, "I've found it, don't worry."

Ye Zhao pondered for a moment and said, "Why don't you give me Auntie's contact information? I can tell her about Yuanbao's lifestyle and his diet..."

Upon hearing this, Shen Du nodded: "Okay, I'll have Yang Xu send it to you."

"good."

Ye Zhao thought he would leave after speaking, but to her surprise, he stood in front of her without moving or speaking. She hesitated and looked up at him, when he suddenly asked, "How is Ms. Ye after the surgery? Has she woken up?"

Ye Zhao, thinking that he had some dealings with Ye Feng before, nodded and said, "A-Che called and said he woke up today. The doctor said that if he recovers well, he can be discharged from the hospital in a while."

Shen Du frowned almost imperceptibly, nodded and said, "It's good that you're awake. If you need anything or anything, remember to contact me. Don't hesitate to ask."

"Okay, I understand. Take care."

This meant it was time to see the guests off. For some reason, Shen Du suddenly felt uneasy, but he couldn't quite put his finger on why.

He nodded to Ye Zhao and turned to walk out.

Ye Zhao frowned slightly as she watched his retreating figure.

Little Yuanbao had been playing all day and was sleeping soundly. Ye Zhao wiped his face and body, tossed and turned, but he didn't wake up. She could hear his soft, deep snores. Ye Zhao felt both sorry for him and amused. She even secretly recorded a video and sent it to Jiang Che.

"The little pig is asleep."

Jiang Che replied instantly: "He's cute."

I think so too.

"Like you."

"Smooth-talking!"

"Just take that as a compliment."

"How come I never noticed before that you have such a thick skin?"

"I'm afraid that showing it too early will scare you away."

"Aren't you afraid now?"

"Now you are mine."

"cheeky!"

Jiang Che smiled, a faint sweetness rising in his heart.

Ye Zhao also smiled as the two chatted.

...

Ye Feng woke up, and Ye Zhao was determined to go back to City A no matter what. However, she was worried about Yuanbao, so she stayed with him for another day before packing up to go to City A.

When Shen Du received the message, he was dealing with matters at the branch. He agreed without hesitation and even discussed it with Ye Zhao, planning to bring the old man from City A over so that the grandfather and grandson could get to know each other better.

Ye Zhao had no objections, and even thought it would be good for Yuanbao to spend more time with his relatives. Besides, the old man valued him very much, so it would be good to keep the old man company.

In the Shen family's villa in City B, Shen Du was sitting on the balcony working. He watched the time slowly pass by, his brows furrowing slightly, seemingly lost in thought. After a while, he picked up his phone and called Yang Xu.

"Go to the Yan family and pick up Yuanbao before 10 o'clock."

Yang Xu: "...Okay, Mr. Shen."

After hanging up the phone, he looked puzzled. In the past, Shen Du would personally take care of Yuan Bao's affairs, picking up and dropping off the child himself. What was wrong today? He wasn't that busy.

Although Yang Xu was puzzled, he didn't think much of it. After all, as the president of a listed group, Shen Du always had his own things to do, and even as his assistant, he couldn't possibly know everything.

His supervisor had assigned him the task, so he checked the time and drove straight to pick up the person.

Little Yuanbao became unusually clingy after learning that Ye Zhao was going to City A. Although Ye Zhao repeatedly assured him that she would be back in a few days, Yuanbao still clung to her. Ye Zhao felt both sorry for him and reluctant to let him go. As they lingered like this, Yang Xu arrived.

When Yang Xu carried Xiao Yuanbao into the car, his little face was all scrunched up. He looked at Ye Zhao with reluctance, but he didn't say anything. He just looked at her.

The more he acted like this, the more distressed Ye Zhao felt. Seeing that Shen Du wasn't there, she simply got into the car and prepared to send Yuanbao there first, and then come back to catch her flight.

Little Yuanbao's eyes lit up when he saw her get on the bus.

The Yan family's house was some distance from the Shen family's villa. The mother and son sat in the back chatting away. Ye Zhao gave Yuanbao many instructions, and seeing that Yuanbao obediently agreed to them, she couldn't help but praise, "Baby is so good!"

Little Yuanbao smiled and squinted: "Good boy Yuanbao, don't make Mommy worry."

Ye Zhao felt both heartache and gratitude.

The mother and son were talking when they arrived at the Shen family's house.

As soon as Ye Zhao got out of the car, Shen Du saw her on the balcony.

He saw Ye Zhao gently instructing the aunt about Yuanbao's affairs, patiently coaxing the child before turning to get into the car. But he suddenly stopped in his tracks the moment he turned around, looking down at the second-floor balcony. For a moment, Chen Du felt a long-lost tension, instinctively wanting to hide, but finding nothing to cover himself, his feet remained rooted to the spot.

The two met each other's gazes at a distance that was neither too close nor too far.