“Uncle Pan,” Jiang Can said softly, “we have all read your works. Zhixing especially likes them and has to read several pages every night before he can fall asleep!”
Pan Dafu scratched his head sheepishly, his smile revealing a憨憨 (simple and honest) look.
"I'm not as good as you all say. The fact that these few works sold is just luck!"
Jiang Can chuckled softly.
Fate is the excuse of losers; luck is the humble word of winners.
It seems that Uncle Pan is a humble and modest person.
No wonder he was able to win over Fu Xiuyu, who was a powerful figure in the business world; perhaps it was because of the complementarity in their personalities.
Although Pan Dafu was honest and kind, he was very considerate of Fu Xiuyu. Knowing that she had been stressed and anxious about several projects recently, he specially ordered light dishes for her. Fu Xiuyu had a bad back and was prone to fatigue from sitting for a long time, so he thoughtfully brought a backrest cushion and put it behind her back before she even complained of being tired.
Jiang Can chatted with Pan Dafu for a few minutes and found him to be a kind and approachable elder. Not only was he easy to get along with, but he also had no blind spots in his knowledge, ranging from astronomy and geography to humanities and economics—he was practically an encyclopedia.
Halfway through the meal, Xiao Junyu couldn't sit still, so Jiang Can took him outside for a walk.
Only the living devil mother and son and Pan Dafu remained in the restaurant.
However, at this moment, Fu Xiuyu no longer resembled a female demon.
She looked at Pan Dafu with gentle eyes as she happily ate the steak he had cut for her.
Huo Zhixing kept a straight face, and while Pan Dafu went to the restroom, he winked at Fu Xiuyu.
What are you doing?
"Mom, you two haven't done anything yet, there's no need to act like Mrs. Pan, is there?" Huo Zhixing sneered.
"Heh, when did your mother change her surname?" Fu Xiuyu forked a small piece of steak into her mouth. "Before I divorced your father, I never acknowledged myself as Mrs. Huo!"
Huo Zhixing frowned. "What do you mean? Are you suggesting that Pan Dafu marry into the family?"
"To be honest, I haven't thought that far ahead." Fu Xiuyu put down her knife and fork, looking at her son seriously. "I don't think a marriage certificate represents anything. Besides, does a woman have to take her husband's surname after marriage? Doesn't a woman deserve her own name?"
"this……"
“Mom is already this old. Being with your Uncle Pan is because we are compatible and can keep each other company in our old age. But I, Fu Xiuyu, will not change my name or surname. No matter if I get married in the future or who I marry, I will always be called Fu Xiuyu, not Mrs. So-and-so!”
Huo Zhixing paused, then looked at her quietly.
Fu Xiuyu smiled and patted the back of his hand.
"My mother is independent and strong-willed, and that will never change in her lifetime, nor will it change because of any man! Moreover, I always believe that only by maintaining oneself can a woman have the ability to control her own destiny, and only by loving herself first can she receive the love of others."
"So don't worry, Mom isn't love-struck, she won't get hurt!"
Huo Zhixing paused for a moment, then chuckled twice.
As a son, he felt relieved to hear his mother say that.
However, from a man's perspective, he was genuinely afraid that Jiang Can would follow in her mother-in-law's footsteps and become an independent and domineering female tyrant, and then he would be in trouble...
"What are you talking about?" Pan Dafu asked with a smile as he walked over from a short distance away.
At this moment, Jiang Can returned carrying Xiao Junyu and sat down in his seat.
"I overheard a bit," Jiang Can said with a smile. "What did they say, 'love-struck'?"
"No!" Fu Xiuyu blushed slightly. "You must have misheard!"
"Love-obsessed, huh?" Pan Dafu chuckled. "What a coincidence, I was just thinking of changing my writing style and writing about love!"
"Is Uncle Pan going to write a romance novel?"
“Well… not entirely.” When it came to his job, Pan Dafu talked at length. “It’s mostly a suspense novel, but with some romance elements mixed in.”
"That must be really good!" Jiang Can looked at him. "Uncle Pan, could you give me a little spoiler?"
"Wife!" Huo Zhixing winked at her and stopped her with a smile.
He knew that writers often had quirks and didn't like people knowing the plot in advance.
But Pan Dafu was different; he introduced himself very openly:
“Part of this novel is based on true events… I’ve done some research, and there was once a princess from Southeast Asia who fell in love with a street performer in Manchester during her visit there.”
"What?" Jiang Can and Huo Zhixing were both taken aback, looked at each other, and pricked up their ears to listen to what he had to say.
"That traveling performer is a Gypsy, and he's said to be incredibly talented! Of course, he's also very handsome, otherwise how could he have caught the princess's eye?"
"And then... what happened?"
Pan Dafu said, "I only remember that this relationship was thwarted by the royal family, but the princess loved him too deeply and even had a child with him! But the records are incomplete, and a lot of information has been deliberately deleted. Perhaps... this is a disgrace to the royal family, so the royal family would not allow such a thing to circulate among the people."
Jiang Can put down her cutlery, exchanged a glance with Huo Zhixing, and the two seemed to understand something instantly.
Princess, wandering entertainer, unaccepted love, illegitimate child...
Every single one of them matches Helin Yue!
"Uncle Pan," Jiang Can continued, "where did that street performer go?"
“It’s said he’s dead.” Pan Dafu stroked his chin. “After the princess was taken back by the royal family, he wanted to take a ship to Southeast Asia to find her, but he encountered a shipwreck and drowned. Ha, but who knows whether that shipwreck was a natural disaster or a man-made one? So, this is one of the main suspenseful storylines in my novel!”
Jiang Can's expression darkened for a moment.
Pan Dafu smiled gently, "Actually, I searched everywhere for these things to gather writing materials. They may not be true. Maybe they were made up by previous writers!"
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