An Zhao clung to her waist, refusing to let go. Qiao Zhen bent down and picked him up, deliberately weighing him in her arms. "He's too light. He feels like bone."
She carried An Zhao back to bed, then, disregarding the difference between men and women, crawled into the covers herself, saying, "Go to sleep."
An Zhao tentatively reached out and hugged Qiao Zhen, who, realizing his intention, reciprocated. An Zhao contentedly rubbed his chin against Qiao Zhen's collarbone.
Qiao Zhen raised her hand and rubbed his head, coaxing him softly, "Don't cause trouble."
An Zhao, her grievance easily detectable, seized the opportunity to pout and make a request to Qiao Zhen, "You're not allowed to leave!"
“Okay, I won’t leave.” Qiao Zhen answered seriously, which was also a promise.
After she had coaxed An Zhao to sleep, she finally had time to comfort Xiao Ling. "Where's your fiancée?"
Xiao Ling was depressed: [She's fallen for the new system. I've been cheated on by the new system.]
Qiao Zhen barely suppressed a laugh. "What's wrong with you? Why did the new system give you a hat depicting the Hulunbuir Grasslands? You need to reflect on yourself and learn some basic common sense!"
Xiao Ling felt quite aggrieved, [Isn't it all because they have a successful host?!]
Qiao Zhen was filled with confusion: [What do you mean? So this is my fault?]
Xiao Ling, filled with righteous indignation, defended itself: "The new system came from the local to the central government. It was lucky to have a promising host and is already at level three, the most promising new system! But look at me, I'm only level one, two levels behind! Why is your system so miserable? You should at least have some self-awareness!"
Qiao Zhen's mind stirred slightly. She used a little trick to block communication between the main system and Xiao Ling. [But the system hasn't been sabotaging its host. Reflect on yourself—did you come along on this mission with ulterior motives? Since I know you have ulterior motives, how can I trust you? If I don't trust you, how can our mission efficiency be improved?]
Little Zero stared in horror at its severed data: "What did you do?!?!?!"
Qiao Zhen is innocent: [I'm giving you a chance to gain my trust.]
A series of ellipses appeared on Xiao Ling's screen. It sent the pet dog's resources to Qiao Zhen, asking, "Does this task require you to make money?"
Qiao Zhen: [Let's have the baby, just in case.]
Xiao Ling directly blocked Qiao Zhen.
Qiao Zhen didn't pressure it; whether it wanted the main system or its fiancée was up to it to decide.
An's father was unaware that his son was about to be abducted by Qiao Zhen. By the time he found out, it was already nine o'clock the next morning.
According to Yao Qingsi, Qiao Zhen and An Zhao went to bed obediently last night. In the morning, she wanted the two children to sleep in a little longer, but when she asked Yu Ma to wake them up at nine o'clock, she found that neither of them were in the bedroom. So she called An's father to tell him.
But according to her, Qiao Zhen and An Zhao went to sleep obediently, and An's father found them at the hotel. An Zhao couldn't see and couldn't find his way there on his own, so it must have been Qiao Zhen who instigated it.
Qiao Zhen tiptoed and whispered in An Zhao's ear, "You'll have to take the blame for a while."
An Zhao nodded solemnly, "Yes, yes." He knew that Qiao Zhen's identity was awkward at home. Qiao's mother was an elder in the family, and because of this, Qiao Zhen, as Qiao's mother's daughter, had to keep her distance from An Zhao, otherwise Qiao's mother would also be implicated.
An's father and Yao Qingsi arrived at the hotel one after the other. Looking at Qiao Zhen, who was as timid as a quail, and An Zhao, who was calm and composed, An's father felt a surge of anger. He gave them a sharp look.
Qiao Zhen trembled a few times in fright.
On the contrary, An Zhao sat there as steady as a mountain.
Seeing the two of them like this, An's father thought, "Wow, they're quite a good match." He couldn't help but chuckle, a smile carrying a hint of impending storm. "So you know what fear is, huh?"
Yao Qingsi stood gracefully beside An's father, comforting him, "Brother-in-law, the child is young and rebellious. He'll be more sensible in a couple of years."
Qiao Zhen looked up at Yao Qingsi instantly, but when her eyes met An Zhao's father's, she lowered her head weakly and shrank behind An Zhao. "Ms. Yao, you didn't say that yesterday."
An Zhao turned his head and put his arm around Qiao Zhen's waist in a protective posture.
An's father pointed at Qiao Zhen, "Come on, tell me, what did she say yesterday?"
Qiao Zhen rolled up An Zhao's sleeve, which was covered in bruises, all from the two old women pinching him yesterday. "Yesterday, when the young master threw a tantrum, Ms. Yao said that we can't spoil him, and that we can't just let him get beaten and scolded? There were even cockroaches in the food. I don't think even a dog would eat it."
An Zhao agreed, "That's right." His words still carried a hint of grievance.
This touched a soft spot in An's father's heart. When An Zhao's mother was alive, she would act like this with him. An's father felt somewhat relieved. "Alright, I was afraid you'd be bored, so I had Qiao Zhen take you to your aunt's house to pack up and get ready to go back."
Yao Qingsi was somewhat anxious. Since the death of Yao Qingxiao (An Zhao's mother), her feelings for An Zeyao (An's father's full name) had grown stronger. She initially wanted to get close to An Zeyao under the guise of taking care of An Zhao, but she never expected that An Zhao, despite his young age, harbored such great malice towards her.
She genuinely wanted to be good to An Zhao, but her covetousness for An Zeyao was too blatant. Little An Zhao had no mother and was afraid that her father would also be taken away, so she always rejected Yao Qingsi.
An Zeyao respected An Zhao's choice and therefore never remarried. But today, seeing An Zhao acting coquettishly towards Qiao Zhen, he felt that his daughter-in-law had to be Qiao Zhen.
My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
