"...."

Pei Nian timidly looked up at Pei Wu, his little face still flushed. His gaze followed Pei Wu, his bright eyes falling on her face and then on her hands.

He watched as Pei Wu put the photo frame she had picked up back on the desk. He noticed that Pei Wu was wearing a dazzling ring on the hand holding the photo album.

Pei Wu stood facing the floor-to-ceiling window, bathed in sunlight. The sunlight shone on her face, making her already fair skin appear even more radiant. Her glasses reflected the light slightly, making it difficult to discern her expression, and for a moment, even her features were obscured.

It wasn't until Pei Wu took two more steps back that he could see her face clearly. Upon seeing her, Pei Nian's breath hitched slightly.

Those who caught their breath included Pei Wu, who had just seen Pei Nian's face.

'They really do look alike.'

The two remained silent for a while.

Pei Nian saw the woman adjust her glasses and then ask, "You're Pei Nian?"

Hearing the woman's cold voice, Pei Nian felt his chest heaving even more, and his small hands, hanging at his sides, nervously rubbed the seams of his pants. "I...I am Pei Nian."

The child's voice was still childish, with a lingering babyish tone. His big eyes blinked, and his dark pupils revealed an undisguised panic. He was, after all, just a child with the mind of a three-year-old. He pulled out the neatly folded piece of paper from his pocket again.

He unfolded the paper, stretched out his small arm, and handed it to Pei Wu, saying, "Could you sign your name here for me?"

"..." Pei Wu looked at Pei Nian's dewy eyes, and couldn't help but reach out and take the paper from his hand.

Pei Wu looked down to see the words on the paper. The paper contained notices about the kindergarten's weekend parent-child activities, including the activity time, location, registration fee, and registration method.

The event will take place this weekend. Students will depart on Friday evening after returning to school and return on Sunday afternoon. The event will be held in a neighboring city, and the deadline for registration is today.

Seeing that Pei Wu remained silent, Pei Nian asked again, "Can you sign for me?"

Pei Wu looked at the expectant expression on the other's face but remained silent, only unconsciously clenching the paper in her hand. Pei Wu lowered her eyes as if avoiding looking at Pei Nian's expectant little face, and only asked, "It's dangerous for you to run around like this alone." Pei Wu also noticed that Pei Nian was dressed in thin clothes, and her brows furrowed even more unconsciously. "Although it's already March, you're still dressed a bit too lightly."

“Mom, don’t worry. Dad taught me to use the crosswalk when crossing the street. And the kindergarten is only across the street from here. Although there are a lot of cars, I only cross the street when the pedestrian light is green.” Pei Nian suddenly sneezed as he said this. He rubbed his little nose, making it red. “My coat was hanging in the classroom. I sneezed during lunch break when the teacher was dozing off…” Pei Nian suddenly stopped speaking and pursed his lips guiltily.

Pei Wu, who was still basking in the afterglow of the little baby calling her "Mommy," subconsciously frowned when she heard that the other person had sneaked out while the teacher wasn't looking. Pei Wu didn't say anything, but simply called Ju Heng and asked him to inform the kindergarten.

Pei Nian stared blankly at the retreating figure of the other woman, lost in thought. Pei Wu's black hair cascaded down her back, her posture impeccable, her back ramrod straight...

'She's the woman Dad likes...'

Pei Nian always remembered his mission as a created robot, and he also remembered what his master said when he named him 'Pei Nian,' saying that his mother's surname was Pei. Created robots are unconditionally loyal to the master who activated them.

Just as Shao Sang did for Pei Wu back then, Pei Nian does the same for Shen Yu Nan now. Even though Pei Nian is programmed with the mental system of a three-year-old child, he still doesn't forget his mission.

Pei Nian saw Pei Wu about to walk a few steps away, but subconsciously reached out and grabbed the hem of Pei Wu's clothes.

Pei Wu turned to look at Pei Nian, who was clutching the hem of her clothes. "You should talk to the kindergarten first. Okay, I'll hang up now."

Even after Pei Wu hung up the phone, Pei Nian showed no intention of loosening his grip on her clothes.

"You'll come with me to the kindergarten activity, right?" Pei Nian's little hand, which was gripping Pei Wu's clothes, tightened even more. "All the other children's parents will go with them."

Looking at the other girl's childish face and her little hands gripping her clothes tightly, Pei Wu unconsciously swallowed hard, a deep sense of guilt welling up in her heart, and she tightened her grip on the paper in her hand.

The surroundings were quiet; you could even hear the rustling of paper.

Just then, Pei Wu's phone rang, breaking the awkward silence once again.

The person who called was still Ju Heng.

"Hello."

"President Pei, Secretary Shen has arrived."

"..." Pei Wu paused briefly, then slightly raised her chin and replied, "Understood."

*

After seeing Ju Heng's message, Shen Yu Nan set off for Diana.

On his way to Diana, he called Ju Heng back, and within a dozen minutes, Shen Yu Nan arrived in Diana.

Shen Yu'nan was in poor health, and his body became even weaker in winter. In addition, his body had not recovered from lying in the research institute for a year and a half. Even with the help of the medicine prescribed by Dr. Zhang, his cough had improved a lot, but his body was still severely depleted.

In the March weather, he wore a camel-colored sweater under a black down jacket. Because he had walked there, his already pale face was flushed slightly by the wind, even the tips of his ears were a bright red. He had arrived in a hurry, and two strands of his hair had sticked up from his short nap on the sofa.

It wasn't until Ju Heng came down and told him, "President Pei is waiting for you in the reception room," that he understood.

He belatedly realized what was happening and suddenly came to his senses. Shen Yu'nan's eyes lit up, and he even subconsciously straightened his back and said to Ju Heng, "Please wait a moment, Secretary Ju Heng. I would like to go to the restroom first."

"Secretary Shen, please make yourself at home. I'll wait for you here."

Having learned from his previous experience, Shen Yu'nan went to the bathroom to look in the mirror before seeing Pei Wu again. He wet his hair and tidied it up. Looking at himself in the mirror, he still looked haggard and weak, so he pursed his lips tightly, trying to moisten his chapped lips with saliva.

Shen Yu'nan, who had never cared much about his appearance, always became overly concerned about it before seeing Pei Wu. He even worried that his looks weren't striking enough, or that his skin wasn't fair enough...

When he heard Pei Wu say she wanted to see him, his heart pounded wildly. He stared at his reflection in the mirror for a long time before gradually calming himself down and regaining his usual composure.