The little guy was held high by his second brother, his arms and legs spread out like a little bird about to take flight. Shen Lin had long limbs and loved all kinds of sports. A thin layer of lean muscle covered his frame. But after all, he was still a teenager, far from being as sturdy as his older brother or father. Just watching Shen Lin spin the little guy around in the air made Tang Dou’s scalp tingle with fear. After a while, Shen Lin got tired of playing. He carried the little guy to the sofa and sat him down.
“Youyou, Mom is coming to see us soon. Are you happy?”
When Second Brother smiled, he revealed a row of neat teeth and two small dimples on his cheeks. The little guy especially liked poking those dimples with his finger, then letting out a cheerful laugh: “Happy. Youyou is happy.”
Shen Lin held this soft, sweet-smelling little brother in his arms and asked, “What are you happy about? You’ve never even seen Mom.”
Shen Lin’s eyes suddenly felt a bit sore.
“Youyou has seen Mom~.”
The little cub in his arms spoke clearly, his little expression very serious. Little Su Youli wasn’t lying. He really had seen Mom, because there were many photos of her in the house.
The little guy held up one finger: “Big Brother, Second Brother, and Dad all have photos of Mom in their rooms~.”
Hearing this answer, Shen Lin was first stunned, then asked curiously, “Youyou saw Mom’s photo in Dad’s room too? What kind of photo was it?”
Whenever it was Shen Minyan’s turn to sleep with him, the little guy was carried up to the third-floor master bedroom by Dad, not his own children’s room. Little kids have a habit of exploring new, safe environments. Little Su Youli was no exception. Whenever Dad went to wash up, the little guy would wander around Dad’s room since he had nothing else to do.
It wasn’t that Su Youli was being naughty; he just really loved the orchids that were carefully protected under a glass dome in Dad’s room. Oh, and he had learned the name of this orchid before — the Spring Orchid. Remembering his favorite plant, the little guy immediately got sidetracked: “The Spring Orchid in Dad’s room really looks like a little green pinwheel! It’s like this~.”
Afraid that Second Brother didn’t know what the Spring Orchid looked like, the little guy danced around, mimicking the orchid gently swaying. Shen Lin smiled and brought the topic back. “Is that so? So where did you see Mom’s photo, Youyou?”
The little guy climbed onto Second Brother’s body and pointed towards the stairs. “On Dad’s bookshelf! And lots of other places. Also, photos of Second Brother and Big Brother.”
Shen Lin’s scalp went numb. Why would his dad put his photo in his room? That was kind of creepy.
“So when Mom comes home later, will Youyou be able to recognize her?”
Shen Lin was actually a bit worried. Su Youli was quite shy around strangers. What if Youyou’s reaction made Mom sad? Hearing Second Brother ask this, the little guy’s little brain didn’t understand. Why wouldn’t he recognize Mom? He only needed to look at her once to remember what she looked like.
“Mom has long hair and wears a princess dress. Mom is the prettiest girl in the world.”
The little guy got a little excited thinking about Mom’s appearance in the photos. He thought Mom was really pretty~
Shen Lin’s throat tightened, unable to speak. He looked into Youyou’s clear, innocent big eyes. After giving birth, Mom hadn’t even had time to see Youyou before she… The young boy hugged his little brother tightly. The warm, soft little person in his arms was like a warm little sun.
“…Yes, Youyou is right. Mom is the prettiest girl in the world.”
—
At the entrance of the Shen family villa complex, inside a low-key luxury car. Chu Ying sat in the passenger seat, her thin arm resting on the car window, looking at the very familiar scenery outside. The luxury car drove down a tree-lined avenue. A gentle breeze blew a green leaf into the air, where it was caught by a pair of hands with distinct knuckles. Her fingertip brushed over the leaf’s veins. A faint smile played on Chu Ying’s lips, the hair at her temples lifted by the wind.
“Close the window. Don’t you know your own physical condition?” A clear, cold female voice sounded.
Chu Ying turned her head and glanced at her sister, the corners of her lips curving up. She obediently raised the window.
“Sis, thank you for coming back with me.”
The driver was Chu Ying’s older sister, named Chu Lan.[mfn]The author also used Chu Ying as the sister’s name, which became confusing. I took the liberty to switch it to Chu Lan, which had been used in one instance[/mfn] She was still wearing the grey suit she hadn’t had time to change out of after a meeting. In response to her sister’s thanks, Chu Lan couldn’t be bothered to reply. She stepped on the gas and drove in. What surprised her was that the Shen family’s security system opened the gate as soon as it detected their vehicle. Even the security guard came out, stood by the door, nodded at them, and called out with a smile, “Madam.”
Chu Lan scoffed inwardly. Her sister was divorced from Shen Minyan. Why call her “Madam”?
Along the way, Chu Lan looked at the villa complex, which had been designed entirely according to Chu Ying’s preferences from start to finish. Her mouth twitched repeatedly.
“Shen Minyan isn’t still thinking about remarrying you, is he?” Chu Lan turned her head and, sure enough, saw Chu Ying looking touched, her beautiful big eyes glistening. Chu Lan felt like she was about to have a heart attack. Before Chu Ying could even defend herself, she started ranting: “You haven’t forgotten what he did to you before, have you? Chu Ying, I’m warning you, don’t forget the pain once the wound has healed?”
Chu Ying remained silent. She didn’t want to make excuses for Shen Minyan, but in some matters, he was also a victim. Chu Lan didn’t care. She used the same momentum as when she scolded her subordinates: “Your body was already bad when you gave birth to Lin Lin. If he really cared about you, he would have gotten a vasectomy. At the very least, he could have used contraception…”
Thinking about how her sister had almost died back then made Chu Lan furious. She also couldn’t genuinely like the child who had caused her sister so much trouble. No one was more important than her sister. Chu Ying blushed at her sister’s words and said reproachfully, “Sis, Youyou’s arrival was an accident.”
Besides, this was a child she had wanted to keep. Knowing her sister was thin-skinned, Chu Lan shut her mouth and focused on driving.
“Sis, look at Youyou. He’s so cute, I could die.” Chu Ying was watching the first episode of “Little Feet Big Adventure.”
The little boy in the video was adorable. He trotted on his short legs, carrying a flashlight as he walked along a dark country road looking for his brother. Chu Lan glanced at it and looked away. Cute? It should be ‘hateful’ instead. Causing her sister so much suffering. In the passenger seat, Chu Ying was still immersed in Youyou’s cuteness, completely ignoring her sister’s murderous glare.
Actually, Chu Lan hadn’t always disapproved of Shen Minyan. In fact, when she first learned that her sister’s boyfriend was him, she had quite admired him. But what kind of life did her sister live after marriage? Her husband only knew how to work overtime at the company all day, leaving all the household matters to Chu Ying. Especially after Chu Ying became pregnant with Lin Lin, Shen Minyan was away on business trips constantly, gone for ten days to half a month at a time.
Back then, Chu Ying would touch her growing belly and explain to him, saying the company was in a critical period and things would get better in a couple of years.
The result was that when Chu Ying gave birth to Shen Lin, Shen Minyan didn’t arrive at the hospital until the next day.
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