Chapter 0060 Exposed

Having settled two major matters, Chen Yan finally felt completely relaxed. But once he had some free time, his true colors were revealed. He couldn't stay at home peacefully; whenever Ruyi was home, he would frequently come upstairs to knock on the door and harass her with various excuses.

Do you have any soy sauce at home? Could I borrow it?

"The toilet is clogged, can I use the restroom?"

Do you have a broom?

...

After knocking on the door for the nth time, Ruyi finally couldn't take it anymore. She opened the door, ready to yell at him, only to see Chen Yan holding Hu Niu in his arms. The latter was a bit fatter than she had been six months ago. She was staring at her with her round cat eyes, looking at her with an innocent expression and meowing as if to greet her.

Ruyi's enthusiasm instantly vanished. Before her brain could even process what was happening, her hand had already reached out and scratched its chin, exclaiming, "Whose kitten is so cute?"

Tiger Girl comfortably squinted her eyes, tilted her head back, and purred softly.

Chen Yan proudly introduced, "Isn't it cute? This is the cat we used to raise together, named Batian."

After hesitating for a long time, Ruyi finally managed to say, "...What a unique name."

Chen Yan said innocently, "Right? Because we want Batian to be a more fierce girl, right, Batian?"

He kept calling her "Overlord," which made Ruyi extremely uncomfortable. Tiger Girl probably felt the same way. She jumped down from Chen Yan's arms, strolled gracefully to the sofa, then lightly jumped on, and lay down comfortably on her side, turning into a cat pancake.

Chen Yan called out to it from the doorway, "Batian, your mother doesn't recognize you anymore. This isn't your home. Let's go back so we don't bother people..."

Ruyi glared at him fiercely: "What nonsense are you talking about? She can stay as long as she wants, I can take care of her." Tiger Girl lazily turned over, her back to the two of them, her tail swaying.

Chen Yan said, "How can that be? I have deep feelings for Batian. I miss it even if I don't see it for half a day. You can't take it for yourself."

Ruyi thought to herself, "Then take her away," but then she thought again, "Tiger Girl is like a hostage in his hands. If he changes her name to Batian today, what will he do tomorrow? He won't even be able to keep a cat's fur." ​​Chen Yan is a notorious villain, so this kind of thing is not impossible.

“...You can come up to see her in the future.” Ruyi was very reluctant, hoping he would be sensible and not come to other people’s houses too often.

But Chen Yan, being the kind of person who wouldn't know when to back down, only knew how to take advantage of the situation. He smiled and nodded, "That's one way, anyway, it's convenient to go up and down the stairs and keep an eye on the cat. But it wouldn't be right for you to keep it for free, how about I help you with the chores?"

With just a few words and a friendly attitude, leaving no room for criticism, everything happened so naturally. At first, they would only stay for half an hour or an hour, helping to change a light bulb or fix a computer, and then it would be two hours, half a day, or even a whole day.

Unlike some men who offer to help but then deliberately make a mess to avoid work, he is quick-witted and skilled with his hands. He can assemble children's toys like rocking horses and slides with just a glance at the instructions.

Sister Li took a last-minute leave to go back to her hometown. Chen Yan encountered Xingxing pooping and needed a diaper change. The moment he tore off the adhesive strip, he pinched his nose, his face turning green, and he almost fainted from the stench. She watched coldly, somewhat disapproving of his exaggerated reaction, and was about to take over when Chen Yan quickly let go of his nose and waved his hand, saying, "No, I'll do it!"

She couldn't help but exclaim, "How can it smell so bad? It's making my eyes water..."

He Caiyu laughed and said, "It's normal for a baby's poop to smell if it's nutritious."

Upon hearing that his daughter was alright, Chen Yan happily carried her to the bathroom to wash her bottom. He let Xingxing lie naked in the crook of his arm. Since it was the first time, his movements were inevitably a bit clumsy, but he was very gentle and careful. He first turned on the shower to test the water temperature before leaning over to rinse her.

The previous disgust on his face had disappeared. While washing his daughter, he said, "Daddy was wrong. It's not that I dislike Xingxing, it's just that I'm inexperienced. I'll get better after a few more tries. Xingxing is Daddy's sweetest little princess..."

Such a heartwarming scene would move any mother. It shows that men are not incapable of caring for children; it's just a matter of whether they have the will. If they do, they will overcome any difficulty and do it just as well as women.

Because of his outstanding performance, Chen Yan gradually infiltrated and participated in every corner of the family, and even naturally asked for monitoring access to the nursery. His reason was also very good: he was Xingxing's father and had this right. The more eyes there were to watch over Xingxing, the less danger he would be in.

He was right, and Ruyi couldn't refute it, nor did she seem to want to.

For the past two months, Chen Yan has been shamelessly thawing, like ice and snow thawing, like a stream silently irrigating the fields, and permeating every aspect of her life again. By the time she came to her senses, the once silent earth had already sprouted and flourished with unstoppable force.

She never imagined she'd be stuck like this forever. Maybe she could try to "recover" her memories or tell the truth?

But she found that she couldn't bring herself to say either of them. The former might sound fake without the right timing, and the latter was simply too embarrassing...

After much thought, Ruyi couldn't come up with a solution, so she could only continue to treat Chen Yan as a quasi-couple, like falling in love again and slowly developing the relationship into marriage. That wouldn't be bad either.

In mid-November, Zhao Nanyue was sentenced to four years in prison for intentional injury, with immediate execution. Upon learning this, Chen Yan surprisingly didn't feel anything special. He now had his own life and didn't want to waste his precious feelings on irrelevant people.

Chen Yan got off work early that day. He Caiyu went back to the industrial zone to catch up with her friends. Sister Li was busy in the kitchen. After washing his hands and changing into clean clothes, he played with Xingxing in the enclosure.

Xingxing is seven months old now. Her hair is already neck-length, piled up on her shoulders like seaweed. Her eyebrows and eyes are very similar to a female version of Chen Yan, while her nose and mouth are like a ruyi (a traditional Chinese ornament symbolizing good fortune). Her skin is as white as snow, her eyes are bright, and her smile is bright and lovely, as if she can illuminate the whole world.

She was wearing the same onesie as Tiger Girl, with a fluffy tail trailing behind her bottom. She was pursing her little mouth and playing intently with her doll in the corner. Chen Yan unscrewed a singing and light-up toy pig, successfully attracting her attention. She happily crawled towards her father with both hands and feet, her two strong little legs moving swiftly and smoothly.

Chen Yan placed the piglet in Xingxing's arms, then lifted her high and praised, "Baby, you crawled so well!" His tone was very proud.

Xingxing loved this height. Holding onto the little pig, she flapped her limbs happily, laughing so hard that she revealed her four little front teeth, and drool dripped down her face.

Ruyi rarely finished her lab work early, and when she got home, she saw this heartwarming scene, instantly relieving the fatigue of a whole day spent in the lab.

Chen Yan, holding Xingxing, turned to face Ruyi and said in a clip-on voice, "Oh, Mommy's home~"

Xingxing is just learning to speak, uttering the monosyllable "mama," throwing away the little pig, and reaching out to Ruyi for a hug.

After dinner, the family of three went downstairs for a walk. Chen Yan carried Xingxing, while Ruyi pushed the stroller. The two were neither too close nor too far apart, and there were no particularly intimate gestures. They simply chatted and occasionally stopped to play with the child together. However, the happiness that emanated from their eyes and brows made it clear at a glance that they were a very loving young couple.

Suddenly, a fully grown calico cat darted out of the bushes, darted past Ruyi's feet, and then gracefully leaped onto the flower bed, licking its fur with its tongue.

Ruyi was startled. Chen Yan put his arm around her shoulder to comfort her. She turned her head to look at the flower bed: "Is it a stray cat?"

Chen Yan said, "It's possible. Guanlan Property Management is very strict and doesn't allow residents to keep stray cats. I don't know where it sneaked in from. Should we talk to the property management?"

Ruyi shook her head: "Never mind, it's quite cute too. Don't you think it looks a bit like Hu Niu at first glance? I mean, its size..."

When Ruyi noticed Chen Yan's unusual expression, she was initially puzzled. Then, under his multifaceted gaze—a mixture of shock, surprise, interest, and teasing—she realized what she had just said—she had directly called Hu Niu by her name!

The strange thing is that the name Batian is really awful. Ruyi just can't pronounce it smoothly. She calls him Batian, but in her heart she's calling him Huniu. How could she not give herself away if she kept doing this?

Chen Yan put Xingxing back in the car. Xingxing faced her parents, blinking her big, dark eyes, observing them curiously.

Chen Yan happily gripped Ruyi's shoulder: "I knew it, you were faking it!"

Ruyi's face flushed red and then turned pale. After a brief moment of panic, she regained her composure and questioned, "So what if I'm pretending? I just can't swallow this! You've lied to me, forced me, and controlled me time and time again. I really hate it, sob sob sob..." As she spoke, her arrogant demeanor was replaced by grievance, and she cried sadly.

Actually, there was a lot of exaggeration involved. The main reason was that Chen Yan exposed her fake amnesia in front of everyone, which made her extremely embarrassed and angry. She covered her burning face with both hands.

Unable to soothe him, Chen Yan apologized again: "Don't cry, it's all my fault. As long as you stop crying, you can punish me as you like until you calm down..."

Upon hearing this, Ruyi opened her eyes, peeked at her through her fingers, and asked, sobbing, "Really?"

Chen Yan said firmly, "It's true."

Ruyi put her hand down, rubbed her nose, and said she would think about it carefully.

Chen Yan felt like he'd been tricked, but he knew he should pamper his wife, so he laughed and replied, "Tell me as soon as you've made up your mind."