Chapter 37: The Real Him

The filming on the other side proceeded as usual, though the director had staff bring over a few small stools for the children to sit on while they waited to be picked up.

The guests nearby had overheard what Wen Xulai said and were curious about who these children's guardians might be. After hearing Zhang Xuechi reveal the identity of the blonde boy, the backgrounds of the other children seemed even more mysterious.

"Surely Mr. Leng isn't going to come personally, is he?" someone joked, carrying freshly washed vegetables into the kitchen.

Wen Xiao sat on a small stool, resting his chin in his hands as he watched the staff bustling about and cameras moving back and forth, wondering if this was his mother's work environment.

Beside him were several other small stools. Huo Zhanyan and the others instinctively formed a semi-circle, sitting shoulder to shoulder.

A staff member brought over a few bottles of water and asked with a smile, "Are you little ones thirsty?"

Wen Xiao shook his head. He wasn't thirsty, just incredibly sleepy. He had been running around outside all day and hadn't taken a nap at noon. While walking on the mountain and seeing his mother, he hadn't felt it, but now that he was seated, the fatigue accumulated throughout the day washed over him all at once.

Young children are prone to falling asleep so easily; it was still quite early.

Huo Zhanyan chimed in, "I don't want water, I want cola!"

The staff member smiled and handed him a bottle of water. "We don't have any cola here, and besides, drinking too much cola isn't good for little ones."

Wen Xiao rested his face on one hand and tilted his head to look at Huo Zhanyan, his eyes half-closed with drowsiness. "If you drink cola, be careful that your teeth fall out and you turn into a little old man," he said.

Because he was sleepy, Wen Xiao's voice was soft, possessing a gentle sweetness not usually heard. His eyes lacked their typical alertness and guarded expression, covered instead by a faint mist that made him look very soft.

Huo Zhanyan scratched his head, thinking about how he did indeed drink a lot of cola, and decided not to insist anymore. "Then I won't drink it..."

To avoid losing all his teeth and becoming a toothless little old man, he would definitely drink less cola.

Song Jingbai hummed softly from the side, leaning against Wen Xiao’s shoulder. "The teacher said two parents are coming to take us back. Who do you think it will be?"

Huo Zhanyan immediately said, "I hope it's not my mom!" Otherwise, she would definitely lecture him. Although he wasn't afraid of being scolded, he would lose face if his mother disciplined him in front of Wen Xiao.

Song Jingbai thought about how many times Huo Zhanyan’s mother had visited the school over the past two months and flashed an innocent smile. "I think it will definitely be your mom."

Huo Zhanyan wasn't happy to hear that and shouted, "I bet your dad will come!" As soon as he said it, he noticed Song Jingbai’s expression change—he glanced at him and then looked away, leaving Huo Zhanyan feeling puzzled.

Wen Xiao had a vague premonition that the one who wouldn't come was his father.

Wei Nanxing kept his head down, hands pressed on his knees, sitting quietly. Wen Xiao glanced at him, knowing that Wei Nanxing was the only one present who could be ruled out entirely. Having lost his mother in early childhood and being brought into the Wei family as an unloved illegitimate child, it was impossible for the Wei family to send someone specifically for him, let alone for Wei Zhaoze to come himself.

Wen Xiao lowered his head, tilting it so that even with his head hanging low in dejection, Wei Nanxing could see him. "Look up at the sky."

Wei Nanxing obediently looked up and saw the night sky gradually enveloping the horizon, hung with stars. Because it wasn't completely dark yet, the stars were flickering in and out. His eyes widened, and he couldn't help but exclaim, "It's... stars!"

Wen Xiao sat up straight and nodded. "You can see stars every night. Later on, they'll be even brighter."

Wei Nanxing glanced at him secretly and said, "No... it's different!" Every time he looked at the stars with Xiao Xiao, they were different; they were precious stars in his memory. He wanted to draw them. Moreover, compared to the stars in the sky, he preferred the stars in Xiao Xiao's eyes, which he felt he could never look at enough.

Before Wen Xiao could ask how they were different, he felt so sleepy that his head tilted to the side. He felt himself being caught by something in his daze.

Huo Zhanyan’s eyes widened. Seeing Wen Xiao lean over, he moved his own stool forward just enough for Wen Xiao to lean against him. Seeing Song Jingbai staring at them, he immediately wrapped his arms around Wen Xiao like a bear protecting its food, glaring at Song Jingbai as if afraid he would snatch the boy away.

Song Jingbai looked at Wen Xiao’s closed eyes and knew he was too exhausted. He didn't want to fight with Huo Zhanyan—if he woke Xiao Xiao up... he thought about Wen Xiao’s usual angry expression and felt that the boy would definitely hold a grudge against both him and Huo Zhanyan. It was better to just watch him sleep.

He reached out, meeting Huo Zhanyan’s warning glare. Ignoring him, Song Jingbai gently zipped up Wen Xiao’s jacket to keep the wind out.

The fluffy collar of the jacket looked like snow, and the child wrapped in the fur, eyes closed quietly, looked even purer than the snow. His round face was incredibly cute, like a soft dumpling that made one want to pinch it.

Thinking of snow, he began to wonder if he would be able to watch the snow with Wen Xiao this year. Before, when it snowed, he had always sat by the glass window alone, watching the snow fall all night until everything outside was a vast, blurry white. The sky and the earth seemed to be connected by the snow. His field of vision was nothing but white, just like his name—empty.

Suddenly, Song Jingbai saw two people walking slowly up the stone steps in the distance: a man and a woman. As they stepped onto the stairs, he noticed a third person—a youth, much shorter than the two adults, which was why he hadn't been seen until they got closer.

Song Jingbai recognized them: Wen Xiao's father and brother, and Huo Zhanyan's mother.

The director also noticed them. The guests had just finished cooking and, seeing people arrive, came out to watch, curiously eyeing the newcomers.

"Do you know the parents of these two kids? Why does that man look so familiar?"

"I think I’ve seen him in a business magazine, but I’m not interested in that stuff; I just thought the person on the cover was handsome, haha."

The director didn't recognize the woman, but he recognized the man in the black suit with a dark blue tie, whose stern, cold, and somewhat aloof demeanor was striking. The man had high brow bones, making his features appear deeper and sharper. He was handsome, rivaling some of the best-looking male stars, and carried a unique, steady gravity typical of men his age. However, one would always notice his cold, hard aura before his face.

Chen Ning walked over quickly, scanned the area, and locked her eyes on Huo Zhanyan. Today, Huo Zhanyan was dressed in red—very festive—making him hard to miss in the crowd.

Just as Chen Ning was planning to give this little brat a good scolding, she saw that the lawless, troublemaking "demon king" who wreaked havoc at home and school was carefully holding another child in his arms. She even detected a hint of tension and caution in her own son, who had known nothing but mischief and bullying his peers since he was small.

Chen Ning: ?

Had Huo Zhanyan been possessed by some alien creature? She knew her son better than anyone. Seeing him take care of someone was like waiting for the sun to rise in the west. He usually didn't stop until he had pulled someone’s pigtails and made them cry. She had worried about it for a long time, wondering how she had raised such a rebellious child. She had even thought, thankfully Huo Zhanyan was an only child; if he had a younger brother or sister, he would have bullied them from birth.

But looking at him now, it didn't seem entirely that way.

Chen Ning walked up to Huo Zhanyan and looked at the sleeping child, sighing inwardly. If only such a cute child were her own, but unfortunately, he belonged to the Wen Tianhe family.

She had certainly heard of Wen Tianhe—a notoriously old-fashioned, aloof figure in the business world. How could he have raised such a cute son? Unlike her own Huo Zhanyan, who had been causing trouble since he could remember, getting beaten by his grandfather constantly. The elder Mr. Huo was extremely strict, believing in corporal punishment, but the more he hit Huo Zhanyan, the more rebellious the boy became, infuriating the old man.

Chen Ning deliberately slowed her pace, ensuring her footsteps wouldn't wake Wen Xiao.

Lin Nian also noticed the man and woman who had suddenly appeared and knew they were the guardians of the children. She had been waiting for someone to take them away. Her gaze drifted toward them, and the more she looked at the man, the more familiar he seemed.

This seemed to be the Chairman of the Wenfeng Group, only thirty-three years old and in his prime. The Wenfeng Group focused on real estate and had several major projects in the northern center of Jinhai City; in the eyes of ordinary people, it was a giant. Many people wanted to build a connection with Wen Tianhe of the Wenfeng Group but lacked the path. It was said that he was very low-key, never brought his family to banquets, and had never even disclosed his marital status to the outside world.

He actually had a child?

To be the chairman of the Wenfeng Group at this age was truly a sign of a promising young man.

Lin Nian had thought they were just here to pick up the kids, but the man walked directly toward her. Even knowing he had a family, her heart skipped a beat as the handsome man with a tall, broad-shouldered, narrow-waisted, and long-legged figure approached her. Especially since he was Wen Tianhe, the Chairman of the Wenfeng Group.

Could it be that he liked the show she was filming?

Just as she was about to start a conversation, she saw Wen Tianhe stop in front of someone she knew well.