The little one now speaks with a natural, sweet, and gentle tone that can melt anyone's heart.
Zhou Yan has indeed been visiting the Ning family villa more frequently lately, and Xiao Jiajia has become much more familiar with him.
Ning Yuan stood aside, watching her daughter take the initiative to get close to him, her face expressionless, and she did not stop her.
She even looked at his shoulder with concern: "How's your injury healing, Superintendent Zhou?"
Zhou Yan's heart felt like it had been gently tickled by a feather, a mix of ache and tenderness: "Yeah, it's been over a month, it's nothing!"
He bent down and carefully took the little one into his arms, his movements as gentle as if he were holding a fragile treasure.
When the elevator arrived at the floor, Ning Yuan was the first to step out.
Once inside the room, Ning Yuan instructed the nanny to prepare baby food for Jiajia.
Zhou Yan held the sweet and soft little baby in his arms, his heart burning with warmth.
This is the child that Aning gave birth to for him.
He couldn't help but lower his head and gently rub his nose against Jiajia's rosy cheek, his voice tinged with a cautiousness he himself didn't realize: "Jiajia, be good, call me Daddy, call me Daddy, okay?"
Little Jiajia blinked her big eyes, looked at him, and her little mouth moved slightly, still in that soft, childlike voice: "Uncle~"
He's still my uncle.
Not my father.
A wave of indescribable bitterness welled up in Zhou Yan's heart.
He subconsciously looked up at Ning Yuan.
Ning Yuan walked to the dressing table, picked up a comb, and casually combed her slightly damp long hair.
Looking into the mirror, she met Zhou Yan's gaze and said calmly, "The child is young and doesn't have a father. She doesn't understand the meaning of 'father' or what a father looks like. She'll naturally learn to call him that after spending more time with him."
She was explaining a common phenomenon without any personal emotion.
But this calm explanation, when it reached Zhou Yan's ears, made him feel more uncomfortable than any accusation.
At this moment, the nanny took Jiajia from Zhou Yan's arms and said, "It's time to change your diaper, little miss."
Little Jiajia was obediently carried away, her tiny figure disappearing through the doorway.
Only Ning Yuan and Zhou Yan remained in the room.
Zhou Yan's Adam's apple bobbed as he walked step by step behind Ning Yuan, stretched out his arms, and gently wrapped them around her slender waist from behind.
Ning Yuan's fingers, which were combing her hair, suddenly froze, and her whole body tensed up.
He could clearly feel the tension in her body, and a dull ache spread through his heart.
He pretended not to notice her stiffness, gently resting his chin on the crook of her neck, inhaling the fragrance of her hair, his voice carrying a restrained tenderness—
"Evan was arrested, and he died in prison a couple of days ago. He was most likely silenced by his superiors. You can't be careless when you go out these days, so be careful."
Ning Yuan remained silent for a moment before giving a soft "hmm" in response.
Zhou Yan's heart stirred slightly, and he couldn't help but tighten his arms, wanting to lower his head to kiss her smooth neck and feel that long-lost warmth.
Ning Yuan shuddered as if she had been burned, and suddenly broke free from his embrace, turning to the side to avoid him!
She turned around, putting a small distance between them, her face still calm and expressionless: "I have to go to the company later. If you're free, you can stay here with Jiajia."
Seeing her like this, Zhou Yan could no longer suppress the emotions surging in his chest!
He suddenly stepped forward, grabbed her wrist with his large hand, and pulled her back forcefully!
Ning Yuan frowned as her back bumped against the cold, hard edge of the dressing table.
Zhou Yan took the opportunity to lean in, bracing his arms on either side of the dressing table, completely trapping her between himself and the table.
He lowered his head, his beautiful eyes reddening, staring intently into her clear yet cold eyes.
"It's been so many days, Ning Yuan... can you... please stop treating me like this?"
His voice was hoarse, filled with a dull, suppressed pain: "You can curse me, or you can hit me, take your anger out on me?"
Don't push him away with this calm to the point of being distant.
Ning Yuan looked at his reddened eyes, and the pain surging in his deep eyes was almost overflowing.
Her heart ached sharply, and she abruptly pulled her hand back.
Ning Yuan tried to keep her voice steady: "Zhou Yan, I really have to go to the company. There are a lot of things to deal with there. The first batch of exported goods needs to undergo final quality inspection soon, and we can't afford any mistakes."
Zhou Yan looked at her much thinner figure, at the exhaustion she was trying to hide in her eyes, and at the forced calm she was maintaining.
All the words stuck in his throat.
How could he bear to pressure her any longer?
Zhou Yan released his grip on her arms and took a small step back.
His chest tightened, and his voice was hoarse: "Okay... go ahead and get busy, be careful."
Ning Yuan didn't look at him again. She turned around, walked to the dressing table, opened a brightly colored lipstick, and carefully applied it in front of the mirror.
The woman in the mirror had a somewhat pale complexion, but her eyes were clear. After applying lipstick, she gained a sharp and bright glow.
She closed the cap, put the lipstick back in her bag, and said casually, "You've been coming here often these past two months, and Jiajia is already quite familiar with you. If you're not busy, spend more time with her. In time, the child will naturally start calling you."
After saying that, she picked up her handbag and walked straight towards the door.
Zhou Yan looked at the empty doorway, feeling a deep emptiness in his heart.
She wasn't fierce; in fact, she was gentle and caring.
But why is he in such pain?
He stood there for a long time without moving, until the nanny came in carrying Jiajia and prepared to feed the child complementary food.
Suppressing the bitterness and sorrow welling up in her heart, Zhou Yan looked at the child and smiled, "I'll feed him!"
The nanny remembered her mistress's instructions and handed the child to him.
Zhou Yan unbuttoned the top two buttons and cufflinks of his police uniform, rolled up his sleeves, took the small bowl and spoon from the nanny, and began to patiently feed Xiao Jiajia complementary food.
His movements were clumsy, far less agile than when he held a gun. He even accidentally got rice cereal on Jiajia's nose, making the little girl giggle.
Little Jiajia was very cooperative, opening her little mouth and eating with relish, bite by bite.
She would occasionally grab his fingers with her chubby little hands, making babbling noises: "Silly... Uncle!"
As Ning Yuan reached the door, she paused, turned around, and witnessed this scene.
Her eyes flickered slightly, but in the end she said nothing and gently closed the door.
She didn't go downstairs immediately, but instead walked to another room at the end of the corridor.
Yes, now, besides Ning Man'an and Ning Bingyu, she is the third person in the Ning family generation to have a separate study in the old house.
This signifies a complete change in her status within the Ning family.
Pushing open the heavy mahogany study door, Ning Yuan was surprised to see Ning Bingyu standing in front of the desk, holding an open document in his hand.
She raised an eyebrow: "Didn't you go to see Hongyu about something?"
Ning Bingyu raised his head, his thin face expressionless, his eyes showing the weariness of a battle, yet still sharp.
He laid the document open on the large desk and asked casually, "Have you looked at this?"
Ning Yuan's gaze fell on the document; the first page contained several photos of surgical records taken by the hospital.
The first page of the document contained several gruesome and shocking photos: people in hospital beds with limbs wrapped in thick bandages, deep wounds that exposed bone, and fluid seeping from burns... Each one looked like a horrific scene pulled out of hell!
It's obvious at a glance how much pain the patient is enduring!
Ning Yuan's face suddenly turned deathly pale, and her blood instantly turned ice-cold!
She reached out and slammed the file shut!
Ning Bingyu's voice rang out calmly, one hand pressing down on the document: "So you've already read the documents I gave you about Anan's past experiences."
Ning Yuan's face was deathly pale, devoid of any color. She stared intently at Ning Bingyu: "So what if I've seen it? What do you want to say?"
Ning Bingyu looked at the emotions and resistance surging deep in her eyes, and his tone turned cold—
"Then you should know that when Anan had his accident, it was Chicken from the 14K who found him first, but before they could reach the shore, Bae Yong arrived with his men and secretly took Anan away."
“Pei Yong is from the security department, which is different from Anan’s jurisdiction. Anan’s former teammates all thought he was dead, and Shanji can’t tell you the truth.”
Ning Yuan felt as if her heart was being gripped tightly by an icy hand, making it hard for her to breathe.
Ning Bingyu's voice continued to ring in her ears, unhurriedly: "You should also know that Pei Yong used special channels to secretly send him to the best-equipped hospital in Hong Kong for emergency treatment."
“Anan spent two months in the ICU with multiple fractures and internal organs ruptured. He was critically ill several times, and the doctors said he couldn’t be saved, but he still struggled to wake up from the brink of death.”
"When he woke up that year, he couldn't even speak. The first news he received was that Chashenlou was not dead and had been rescued by the Angsa people before the explosion."
Ning Yuan closed her eyes, bit her lip, and said, "Don't... say it!"
Ning Bingyu ignored her: "He accepted the mission to use this 'death' to change his identity and infiltrate the enemy's ranks. He was sent to the United States before his injuries had healed."
"The person in charge there is Mr. Jin. In order to completely transform into 'Zhou Yan' and complete the critical mission with a life-or-death situation, Mr. Jin arranged for him to treat the serious injuries and scars on his body that would expose his identity."
Ning Bingyu pointed to the photo on the document, his eyes dark: "He underwent major and minor surgeries in the United States...more than sixty times."
"What are you avoiding? What are you resisting? Do you know what he has endured and sacrificed these past few years?"
Ning Yuan bit her lower lip hard, drawing blood, and the taste of rust filled her mouth.
But she couldn't feel any pain.
Ning Bingyu looked at her, his expression complex for a moment, but he continued in a deep voice—
"Ning Yuan, tell me, what price does he have to pay to become a different person in front of his beloved wife without arousing suspicion from the enemy?"
“Even I was only met by Zhou Yan alone more than three months after he returned to the Hong Kong government. That's when I confirmed his identity, learned all this, and cooperated with him to complete this important mission.”
"No one wants to deliberately deceive you! Especially him!"
Ning Yuan closed her reddened eyes, her long eyelashes trembling violently like butterfly wings, her whole body shaking.
Ning Bingyu paused for a moment, then pulled another piece of paper from the folder and gently placed it in front of her.
It was a handwritten lyric sheet for the song "As You Wish," written in delicate handwriting—Ning Yuan's own handwriting.
"You are the bright moon and gentle breeze, and I am the dream you nurture. Whether we meet or not, I will embrace you for a lifetime."
You are the sky where sparks ignite in the long river of time...
"The mountains and rivers are safe and sound, and the fireworks are as usual... I will love the world you love and wish you the smile you desire."
"Please take me to tomorrow, if you have ever tasted bitterness in my sweetness, I am willing to live out your wish..."
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