“Heng, please come back. You have not seen Cenbei for a long time too.” Li Xinzhi sighed. “I heard… that woman is back too?”
Li Heng looked up and met Pei Huan’s gaze. “You mean Pei Huan?” Li Heng raised his brows with a smirk. “Did Li Xufan tell you that, or did Uncle Bei?”
“Uncle Bei? How is your Uncle Bei… What do you mean by this?” Li Xinzhi was about to ask further when Li Heng replied, “Since you want me to go back so much, then I shall go back this time and bring back a gift for you.”
Li Heng hung up the call and glanced at Pei Huan with mixed feelings.
Pei Huan felt her heart jolt when she noticed his gaze. She unconsciously tightened her grip around Bao. That gaze of his…
Li Heng approached them and knelt to stroke Bao’s hair. He noticed how Bao’s hair was damp with sweat, so he took out his handkerchief and wiped his sweat for him. “Alright, enough playing? Hmm?”
“But…” Bao was not having enough fun yet, but he nodded his head obediently when he saw her mother’s expression. “Ok. Can you bring me here again one day, Uncle Li?”
“Of course I can. As long as you’re a good boy, I will bring you here again.” Li Heng scooped Bao into his arms and glanced at Pei Huan. “My grandfather just called,” he tried to explain to Pei Huan.
But the woman merely snorted. “Why are you telling me this? I don’t have anything to do with you now.”
Li Heng’s gaze turned icy. “Li Cenbei has returned to the Li Residence.”
Pei Huan looked up in shock. Her lips quivered as she struggled to say something, but nothing came out of her mouth.
Upon seeing how stunned she looked, Li Heng felt a hint of pain flashed in him. “All these years, do you think he has been sincerely nice to you? He hates the Li clan and every member of that family to the core.”
Pei Huan uttered through quivering lips. “But what does that have to do with me…”
“If it weren’t because of me, do you think he would have gotten close to you in the first place? I don’t know what happened between the two of you and how you came across each other, but… Li Cenbei is not like how you know him. He is taking revenge on the Li clan!”
“Then what about you?” Pei Huan scoffed. “Don’t you think I’m oblivious to your plans; I know you plan to do the same as him. Aren’t you taking revenge on them for choosing Li Xufan over you? You were exiled out of the clan because of the words of a mere fortune-teller. Don’t tell me you don’t hate them over that?”
“I do hate them,” Li Heng admitted with pursed lips.
Pei Huan was surprised; she didn’t think Li Heng would admit to her accusations like that.
Li Heng only smirked when he saw how surprised she looked. “Huan, I’m not a saint. I am also a human with feelings. Of course, I will hate them for treating me that way. But even if I want to take revenge on them, I will never make use of you to do so.”
“What makes you think he is making use of me? And what makes you think I’ll believe that you’ll never use me?” Pei Huan cut him off coldly. “As bad as he is, he has been helping me for the past three years. I don’t care if he is taking revenge on the Li clan; that’s all none of my business!”
“Why is it none of your business? You are my wife!”
“Li Heng! How many times must I tell you that we will never get back together! Do you think my heart is made of steel? Do you think I was not wounded by what you did to me three years ago? Have you no idea how painful it was for me? Since you’ve chosen Jiang Xinyuan and her child over me, stop harassing me!”
“How should I explain myself to make you believe that I never had any relationship with Jiang Xinyuan? I was never together with her from the start!” Li Heng growled. “You can easily believe the words of others, but what about mine? Pei Huan, look me in the eyes now. I’m going to say this one last time. Jiang Xinyuan’s child belongs to a member of the Li clan, but the child is not mine! If you don’t believe me, you can come to the Li Residence with me, and I’ll show you!”
Li Heng began dragging Pei Huan to the car park after he finished speaking. Refusing to comply, Pei Huan flung his hand off her. “Enough! I said I don’t want to listen to your explanation. I don’t want to be involved in your affairs with Jiang Xinyuan.”
“You!”
“Mommy, are you angry? Please don’t be mad at Daddy,” Bao pleaded softly. Hearing how he addressed Li Heng, Pei Huan was stunned in her place and looked at him with mixed feelings. Bao then added innocently, “Daddy is such a nice man. Please don’t be mad at him.”
Pei Huan was not the only one surprised by the young boy’s words. Even Li Heng himself was shocked to the core, and his figure trembled in disbelief. “Bao, what did you just call me?”
Bao lowered his head and played with his fingers nervously. “I called you Daddy! You don’t like it? I really like you… I want you to be my Daddy.”
Li Heng’s face lit up with a smile. “Of course I like it! I… I like it when you call me Daddy!”
“Bao!” Pei Huan exclaimed. “He’s not your Daddy! He’s… He’s your uncle… no, he’s your cousin brother!”
Li Heng’s face darkened immediately. “Pei Huan!” he growled through gritted teeth. “Is this the way you teach your son? How can you teach him the wrong things!”
“I…” Pei Huan pursed her lips. “His father is Li Cenbei, who is your uncle. He is the same generation as you, so you are his cousin brother. Isn’t that the case?”
“Pei Huan, I have my limits in my tolerance to you. You’d better correct your words!” Li Heng frowned deeper at her.
He could tolerate her on anything except for this. “You know very well that you have never consummated your marriage with Li Cenbei. I guess even your wedding ceremony is fake as well. As for Bao… he is my son. That’s an undeniable fact!”
Li Heng scooped Bao in his arms and gently placed the latter in his car.
Clenching her teeth in anger, Pei Huan stared very hard at Li Heng’s back before finally reluctantly climbing into his car. “Aren’t you afraid that I’ll say something foul and piss the old goat Li Xinzhi to death?”
Li Heng curled his lips and eyed Pei Huan and Bao. “Don’t worry; he’s not that weak. He won’t die just because you’ve infuriated him.”
He then made a call to Fu Chengyan. “Chengyan, where are you now?”
“I see that you’ve entered your car. You plan to bring Huan back to the Li Residence?” Fu Chengyan leaned on the bench as he spoke. Seeing how Shi Nuan happily ate her ice cream, he grabbed her hand and plopped the spoonful of ice cream she had just scooped into his mouth. Probably because it was too sweet for him, Fu Chengyan had on a slight frown as he ate it. “You know that old bloke has always been hostile towards Huan.”
“Yeah, I know that. Don’t worry; I’ll protect them well,” Li Heng promised. “Li Cenbei has come back.”
Fu Chengyan frowned. “Yeah, I guessed that to be the case. You better be careful, Li Heng. He’s probably returned with ill intentions. Don’t lose your footing while fighting against him.”
Fu Chengyan then ended the call. Seeing how Shi Nuan had chowed down almost half of the ice cream, he stuck out his hand and stopped her from eating further. “Hey, this is too cold and sweet for you. Don’t eat so much of it!”
“But you promised to let me have one.” Shi Nuan pouted in displeasure. “You can’t break your promise like that!”
Fu Chengyan raised his brows in response. “I only promised to get you one. I didn’t promise to let you eat one all by yourself.” Fu Chengyan grabbed Shi Nuan’s hand again and scooped one big spoonful into his mouth. “You should let your hubby help you with the cold and harmful ice cream.”
Shi Nuan widened her eyes in disbelief at the man who stole her ice cream and roasted her at the same time. “You… you shameless man!” She pointed her fingers at him in agitation.
Fu Chengyan raised his brows while staring blatantly into her soul. His gaze was filled with mirth as he smiled teasingly, which rendered Shi Nuan defenseless.
Fu Chengyan took her hand, wrapping it in his while uttering gently, “Well, your hubby has done more shameless deeds to you before. I wouldn’t call what I’m doing now shameless.” He then leaned nearer to Shi Nuan and placed one arm on the armrest before using his other hand to scoop Shi Nuan by her waist into his lap. The moment she fell onto his body, Shi Nuan could feel her heart speed up wildly at the intimate posture.
Seeing how close his face was, Shi Nuan swallowed her saliva nervously while pushing Fu Chengyan away. “Don’t… Don’t come so near me!” She was already having a hard time breathing with him being so close to her. Those electrifying eyes of his were not making things any better for her too.
“Didn’t you call me shameless just now?” Fu Chengyan curved his lips into a smirk.
“No, no, no. You’re not shameless… You’re as clean and pure as the fair white moon and as upright as the tall and mighty sequoia trees. In short, you’re the perfect example of an upright gentleman. You’re miles apart from being a shameless pervert.” The more Shi Nuan tried to shy away from him, the closer Fu Chengyan leaned in towards her. There was no gap between them; their bodies stuck skin to skin no matter how she moved. This made Shi Nuan so embarrassed that she felt herself going crazy at the sensation.
This idiot really goes to the extreme when it comes to being shameless. Shi Nuan couldn’t help but think so when she looked at Fu Chengyan’s annoyingly handsome face. Knowing his character, Shi Nuan decided to take the lead instead. She took a deep breath and kissed his thin lips with her eyes closed.
A hint of surprise flashed across Fu Chengyan’s eyes; he hadn’t expected her to make the first move. With a naughty grin, he took the chance and wrapped his hands around her head to deepen the kiss.
Shi Nuan widened her eyes in disbelief. She thought the man would be taken aback and stunned in his place. She had hoped to be able to push him away then. However, Fu Chengyan didn’t take the bait and react as she wished. Sensing how her eyes were blinking in surprise, Fu Chengyan chuckled and covered her eyes with his hand. “Focus, honey.”
Hearing that, Shi Nuan finally closed her eyes and allowed herself to indulge in the kiss.
Probably because Fu Chengyan had eaten some ice cream, his cool lips tasted sweet with a hint of fragrance. Shi Nuan soon fell in love with the sensation and voluntarily wrapped her arms around his neck.
Curving his lips in satisfaction, Fu Chengyan, too, returned the kiss with more fervor than before.
Meanwhile, Li Heng and Pei Huan sat in silence they drove to the Li Residence. After playing for so long, Bao fell fast asleep in his mother’s arms. Pei Huan carefully wiped his sweat and changed him into clean clothes while he slept. When she was done, she uttered to Li Heng, “Next time, you’re not allowed to bring Bao out alone.”
Li Heng raised his brows. “Next time?”
Realizing her mistake, Pei Huan corrected herself immediately. “I mean, you’re not allowed to bring Bao out anymore. He’s my son.”
“He’s mine too.”
“Li Heng! Why are you so shameless! I told you Bao has no relation to you. You don’t have to forgo your dignity to snatch a child that’s not yours!”
Li Heng narrowed his eyes at her words. “Hey, don’t forget that Bao called me Daddy just now! Now you’re saying that I have no relation with him? Pei Huan, you must be crazy for saying such nonsense.”
“Who said that I’m crazy? You’re the one who’s crazy! Your whole family is crazy!” Pei Huan cursed in annoyance.
Instead of growing agitated, Li Heng grinned. “Yes, my whole family is crazy, and my whole family is you.”
