Chapter 98 Dad!

Tuesday

In the morning, the sun was shining brightly and the breeze was gentle. Purple, pink and white crape myrtles on both sides of the road were in full bloom, competing with each other for beauty, contrasting beautifully with the green leaves around them. Each flower bloomed warmly and brilliantly, and the air was filled with the joy of the Huangmei Week grand event held in Mei City.

Ren Limeng and Chen Xi walked out of the lobby of the B&B together, carrying their bags. They immediately saw Shen Xingzhi and Guan He standing by the parking lot and talking. They were obviously two pleasing, long-legged handsome guys, but Ren Limeng's mood suddenly became less beautiful.

Even the colorful and beautiful flowers on both sides could not cure her current mood, but considering the cameras set up around her, Ren Limeng still smiled slightly and greeted Chen Xi together.

"Hello, Brother Xingzhi and Brother Guanhe!"

"Um."

Chen Xingzhi nodded slightly, his cold voice full of indifference. Looking at the cold and indifferent man in front of her, Ren Limeng almost fell into a trance for a moment, and the murmur that affected her sleep quality all night inexplicably emerged in her mind.

In the lobby of the B&B we just walked through, at the farthest booths on both sides surrounded by green plants, they were each handling their own private affairs under the camera last night. Through the invisible yet ubiquitous phone signal, the man's clear and calm voice seemed like a breeze caressing his ears, soft and deep, firm and solemn.

"I must fight to the end."

The night outside the hall was hazy. Ren Limeng clenched her phone, and the whole person was stunned for a moment. She subconsciously turned her gaze towards the room and looked in the direction of Shen Xingzhi.

Through the layers of green leaves and the waterscape, Ren Limeng could only see the man's tall and lazy figure sitting on the high stool, and his pair of black eyes that were completely different from his tone. They were like the brightest stars in the night sky, so bright that it was even a little dazzling, making Ren Limeng subconsciously turn her head back.

For a moment, she suspected that she had come back too late at night and was just immersed in dreams and fantasies. She must have opened it in the wrong way. Why would Shen Xingzhi suddenly say such things to her?

Ren Limeng tried hard to keep everything under control. She deliberately provoked him. How could the usually cold and arrogant Shen Xingzhi not just walk away?

His voice just now didn't even contain much gnashing of teeth, but was light and relaxed, with an unquestionable tone of notification, which made her whole body shudder instantly.

Ren Limeng pursed her lips in silence, and noticed Shen Xingzhi's burning gaze without hesitation from the corner of her eye. She swallowed and tried to keep her composure, as calm as if she was just dealing with a simple work call.

She had just thought of the words and slightly opened her red lips when a low laugh suddenly sounded in her ears. Shen Xingzhi disrupted all her plans again.

"Good night, junior."

Without waiting for any reply, Shen Xingzhi simply hung up the call with his thumb, his eyes casually swept around, his right hand continued to hold the mobile phone that was no longer communicating, slowly left the booth, and walked towards the accommodation area at a leisurely pace.

Ren Limeng was left lying there in a mess.

Until this moment, Ren Limeng, facing Shen Xingzhi again, still felt that last night was like a dream, ridiculous!

But it doesn't matter.

Ren Limeng smiled deeply and looked at everyone in the parking lot with ease.

In front of the camera, he can act with ease, so she can naturally accompany him to the end.

Being able to remain constant in the face of change is a host's basic quality, except in some extreme cases.

"Meixiang's people are here."

Guan He looked towards the entrance of the parking lot. Li Chuyue and Han Tai, as representatives of Meixiang Theater, will participate in today's recording throughout. According to the plan, Chen Xingzhi and his team will go directly to Bawang Gorge for rafting, confirm the song selection for the performance on the bus, check in for rafting, and then go directly to Fan County. After resting, they will start formal rehearsals.

Shen Xingzhi and Chen Xi had already boarded the luxury business bus. Ren Limeng was standing behind Guan He, about to get on the bus, when she suddenly heard a familiar yet unfamiliar call.

"Mengmeng!"

The man's voice, steeped in the years of experience, made Ren Limeng turn around suddenly. His eyes were filled with confirmation and a rare loss of composure. "Dad!"

Even Shen Xingzhi and the other person who had already gotten in the car couldn't help but look at Ren Limeng. Chen Xi couldn't help but look at Shen Xingzhi, with a questioning look in his silent eyes.

Ren Limeng's father?

What is he here for?

Didn’t the program crew tell us in advance?

Shen Xingzhi stared calmly outside the bus, silently as if everything was under control, or perhaps he was just more concerned about the situation outside the bus.

The corners of Ren Limeng's mouth inadvertently drew up an irresistible arc, her eyes fixed on the person who got off the car from Meixiang Theater. She tried her best to suppress the moisture that suddenly welled up in her eyes, and tried to remind herself that the recording had already started.

The familiar figure following behind Li Chuyue and Han Tai seemed to have traveled through the corridor of time and space from afar. It was different from the silence in each short video and different from the tall and majestic figure in their memories.

There were now some wrinkles between his always handsome brows, his back was slightly bent, and he was carrying two large square boxes with familiar floral patterns in his hands. Although his pace was a little slow, every step was firm and powerful. Ren Limeng confirmed again and again that the person walking over was indeed her father, Ren Shunan.

After a shout, Ren Limeng became a little at a loss. Her eyes, which had suddenly lit up, suddenly became silent, with a complex emotion of surprise, joy and disbelief intertwined in her eyes. She slowly walked towards her father beside Han Tai.

"Dad...why are you here?"

"...I'm worried."

Ren Limeng looked at the cameras focused around her calmly. Ren Shunan immediately noticed his daughter's voice, which was trying to be steady. He also glanced around, a kind and peaceful smile appeared on his face, and he raised the square box in his hand.

"Aren't you guys going rafting today? Since we're limited by budget, your mom and I made some special pastries this morning. Take some and share them with everyone on the way! We've all made it to Mei City with great difficulty, Mengmeng, so please be a good host!"

Ren Limeng's gaze finally moved down from her father's face. She took the square box from her father's hands. Even without opening it, she immediately guessed the special pastries - baosu, sesame cakes and tea cakes.

The food she had been eating since she was a child was crispy, sweet, fragrant and delicious. The fragrance lingered on her lips and teeth after one bite, and it was also the most profound taste in her memory after many years away from home.

Although her parents were busy with work, they would take time out to make these cakes at home before traveling around the country to perform and bring them as souvenirs to people from other places. Ren Limeng remembered that her parents would be busy for a long time every time.

In the kitchen, the father who had been standing for a long time would always hold his waist calmly. The mother would look at him with a smile, and "drive him away" in a serious and caring tone. However, the father would shake his head and hold the mother with his flour-covered hands, who was full of disgust. As the two of them laughed and joked, even the air was filled with a delicious smell.

Ren Limeng was more like a "troublemaker". She would just run back and forth in the kitchen with a smile on her face. Amid her mother's stern reminders and her father's indulgent persuasion, she would secretly take away the hot steamed buns, sesame cakes and tea cakes one after another.

Even though her mother would always call her name in a high tone at this time, Ren Limeng was not afraid at all, and still rushed back and forth, because she knew very well that her "tiger mom and cat dad" parents were just talking at this moment, and her mother would not stop her when she was cheating, she was just being tough on the outside but soft on the inside.

After leaving Mei City to study and work, and countless arguments broke out, Ren Limeng once mustered up the courage to go home. Every time, her parents were very kind and polite. Her mother no longer gave her those "sharp-tongued" reminders, and her father always carefully observed the expressions of the mother and daughter. Everyone seemed afraid of breaking the peace in the room.

But the more deliberate it is, the more obvious it becomes.

Just like the familiar pastries that Ren Limeng had not eaten for many years, even though she had placed orders from various stores countless times through e-commerce software and spent a lot of money to buy authentic specialty pastries from Meishi, Ren Limeng could no longer find the unique taste of Meishi in her memory.

It is crispy, fluffy, fragrant and sweet, which cannot be concealed even by the square box and floral cloth.

Ren Limeng took a deep breath, half-closed her eyes, staring at the box in her hand. The faint shadows under her eyelids hid indescribable complex thoughts. In the end, she just whispered, "Thank you, Dad!"

"It's my duty. I'm glad you're back!"

Ren Shunan finally couldn't help but sigh softly. He raised his right hand and gently patted his daughter's shoulders which were trying to straighten but were extremely stiff. Being in front of the camera was not the time to reminisce about the past, but looking at his daughter whom he hadn't seen for a long time, some emotions could not be concealed.

"Li Meng, Han Tai and I will go distribute the cakes to everyone first."

Li Chuyue and Han Tai, who were standing aside, deliberately tried to leave some private space for the father and daughter. Ren Limeng finally raised her head and saw the other two large square boxes in Han Tai's hands.

"Well, trouble..."

Ren Limeng felt that she was always on the verge of failing and could not maintain the dignity and composure that a host should have in front of the camera.

She didn't want to think about how long it would take her parents to finish making four large boxes of pastries this morning, as they only found out they were coming home after work last night. She also didn't want to think about whether her father had asked Yan Fangshu, Li Chuyue or Han Tai about the itinerary, as she hadn't mentioned a word about the arrangements.

She suddenly felt that her transformation had failed. She had some hidden thoughts in her heart when she came back this time. She wanted to prove her growth and prove that she was already a mature adult. But when facing her parents, she seemed to have been doing wrong. Her cautiousness was just an excuse to avoid them.

"dad......"

"You're old enough, the camera's still recording. Don't cry like you did when you were a kid."

Father Ren Shunan suddenly frowned, and Ren Limeng seemed to be back in her childhood when she was slacking off while doing horse stance and was caught. But this time, there was an uncontrollable smile on his pretending to be serious face, which made Ren Limeng even want to finish the recording quickly. Going home suddenly seemed particularly important.

"Luckily, Han Tai and Chu Yue are here today, so I got a ride. Okay, you're staying for a week anyway, so we can talk when we get home."

"good!"

Ren Shunan has been working at the Meixiang Theater for more than 30 years. Ren Limeng has no doubt about her father's presence in the Meixiang Theater. Even though the recording of the program is very confidential, it should be easy for her father to take a ride at the Meixiang Theater. Her parents' biggest "failure" should be her "rebelliousness".

Ren Limeng took half a step forward and hugged her father, responding softly to hide all her bitterness.

Suddenly, Ren Limeng's body stiffened slightly.