Su Yue looked at him, her eyes blinking in surprise that Jiang Ci had suddenly brought up the subject. “I know,” she murmured. She had always known Jiang Haoyan wasn’t Jiang Ci’s biological son, but this was the first time he had explicitly stated it to her.
Hearing her, Jiang Ci raised an eyebrow. “Do you believe it?” When he had first returned with Jiang Haoyan to Jiang house , countless rumors had circulated, branding the child as his illegitimate son. He had only denied it once, to the Jiang family, but no one had believed him. In the eyes of many, he was a madman, and an illegitimate child seemed entirely plausible for him . He also hadn’t bothered to address the whispers around him .
“I believe everything you say,” Su Yue affirmed, nodding honestly.
Jiang Ci turned fully towards her, a subtle curve to his lips. “Then I said I want to sleep with you all the time. Do you believe that?”
Su Yue’s face flushed crimson, and she pointedly looked away, refusing to engage with his teasing.
“The little guy is a child of the Sheng family, and his parents are gone,” Jiang Ci stated casually, revealing Jiang Haoyan’s background. Su Yue’s expression immediately shifted to one of shock.
The Sheng family? Is it the Sheng family from City C?
So, Sheng Tian and Sheng Yan, the ones Jiang Ci sent to look after her, are also members of the Sheng family?
Jiang Ci then recounted Jiang Haoyan’s story. Sheng Yan, the patriarch of the Sheng family, and his wife, Lu Xin, had been involved in a tragic car accident, orchestrated by Sheng Minghao, Sheng Yan’s second uncle. Lu Xin had died instantly, while Sheng Yan had clung to his life for three agonizing days before finally succumbing. Before his death, Sheng Yan had not only transferred all his shares in Sheng’s to Jiang Ci but had also entrusted Jiang Haoyan to his care. Sheng Minghao, the treacherous second uncle, had vaguely learned of this arrangement. In a convoluted scheme, he sent someone to abduct Jiang Haoyan, intending to establish the child’s kinship, hoping to further his own nefarious goals, but his plot went awry, and it was during this chaos that Jiang Ci’s eyes were injured.
Afterwards, with his vision recovered, Jiang Ci launched his counterattack, systematically dismantling Sheng Minghao’s power. Sheng Minghao had since fled the country, but Jiang Ci’s subordinates and the police were relentless in their pursuit. Jiang Ci recounted the events with a casual indifference, but Su Yue understood the inherent danger . Sheng Minghao had not only orchestrated the deaths of the Sheng family couple but had also disfigured and blinded Jiang Ci, and now, he was injured again. Clearly, the man was ruthless, a master of insidious schemes.
“What about now?” Su Yue’s voice was laced with worry. Sheng Minghao remained hidden, like a venomous snake lurking in the shadows, ready to strike at any moment.
Seeing the delicate worry etched on Su Yue’s brow, her snow-white face clouded with concern, Jiang Ci, in a rare display of tenderness, lowered his head and kissed her cheek. “Now, he’s a stray dog, waiting to be hunted down and beaten by me. As for Jiang Haoyan, there are only some distant relatives left in the Sheng family. But Lu Xin, Sheng Yan’s wife, I’ve had someone looking for her sister and mother who settled abroad, and they’ll be found soon.”
“Jiang Ci, are you going to send Hao Hao away?” Su Yue gasped, surprised by the implication in his words.
Jiang Ci lowered his eyes, his dark gaze meeting her clear, almond-shaped ones. “The little guy isn’t your own son. Do you still want to raise him for the rest of your life?” he asked slowly.
“However, since he was a child, he believed you were his father. If he knew he didn’t even have a father, he would be very sad. Besides, you’ve raised him for so many years, sending him away…” Su Yue trailed off, her lips pressed into a thin line. Not only Jiang Ci, but she too would be reluctant to let him go.
“He has his own relatives,” Jiang Ci stated. Back then, when Sheng Yan entrusted the child to him, Jiang Ci had been incredibly hesitant, but he couldn’t refuse Sheng Yan’s dying wish. He had reluctantly accepted the troublesome burden of the little boy, resolving to find the child’s maternal relatives and send him to them. But then he lost his sight, and all plans had to be put on hold.
“But he’s only ever had you since he was a child, only you,” Su Yue said, her voice muffled. The mere thought of Xiao Haohao leaving filled her with an unbearable reluctance. Moreover, the child had finally called her “Mom,” truly accepting her. If she and Jiang Ci sent him away, wouldn’t that imply they were abandoning him? How heartbroken would the little boy be? She knew how much Jiang Haoyan adored Jiang Ci, his “father,” always praising him as the best.
Jiang Ci glanced at her. “Let’s talk about it later.” For now, Lu Xin’s sister and mother hadn’t been found.
It was almost evening when they returned to City B. Jiang Ci and Su Yue immediately rushed to the hospital.
“Mr. Jiang, the young master is inside. His foot has already been stitched,” Gu Quan reported, stepping forward as soon as he saw Jiang Ci arrive.
“Mr. Jiang, hello…” A young girl standing nearby approached, her face etched with urgency.
Jiang Ci’s expression remained impassive. He held Su Yue’s hand, opened the ward door, and walked directly inside. The young girl was stunned, taken aback by his cold demeanor.
In the ward, Jiang Haoyan lay quietly on the hospital bed, his dark eyes blinking slowly. His calf had been cut by the sharp corner of a step, requiring several stitches. He had been asleep and had only recently woken up. Jiang Ci and Su Yue walked in. Jiang Haoyan, hearing their voices, turned his head. His large, round eyes lit up instantly. “Dad,” he mumbled, then, with a mixture of shyness and timidness, his milky voice piped up, “Mom.”
Su Yue’s eyes curved into a tender smile. Releasing Jiang Ci’s hand, she moved to the hospital bed. “Does your foot hurt?” she asked gently.
Xiao Haohao, feeling he was a little man and shouldn’t be afraid of pain, was nevertheless an honest child. Hearing Su Yue’s question, he wiggled his small foot and sniffled. “Haohao foot hurts.”
Su Yue stroked his little head. “Why did Haohao get hurt?” In truth, Jiang Ci’s subordinates had already reported the details, but Su Yue wanted to hear it from Xiao Haohao himself.
“Haohao was not good. Haohao was playing with Da Zhuang and fell while running.” Xiao Haohao explained that he and Da Zhuang were playing a game, and Da Zhuang was chasing him. He had accidentally fallen on the edge of the steps, breaking his foot. Da Zhuang seeing him fall had cried on the spot.
“Haohao is a good boy. It was just an accidental fall. It’s okay. Just protect yourself next time. Otherwise, if Haohao gets hurt, we your parents will be worried,” Su Yue said. She saw the little boy readily admitting his mistake, with no hint of blaming Da Zhuang. He was sensible and good-natured.
Hearing this, Xiao Haohao’s eyes widened, looking brightly at Su Yue, then happily at his tall father. He said in his childlike voice, “Okay, Haohao must protect himself and not make parents feel bad.”
At that moment, the young girl who had been waiting outside entered. Her face was a picture of anxious eagerness. She addressed Jiang Ci and Su Yue, “Mr. Jiang, Mrs. Jiang, I am Hao Yan’s class teacher. Due to my negligence and ineffective supervision, Hao Yan was injured, and I am truly sorry to both of you.”
Su Yue looked at the young female kindergarten teacher.
“This matter is indeed my fault. I’m truly sorry. I can cover Haoyan’s medical expenses. I’m still in my probation period. Could you both please speak to the principal for me? I hope I won’t be held accountable for this. This is my first job, and I truly don’t want to lose it,” the young female kindergarten teacher, Lu Xiang, pleaded anxiously to Su Yue and Jiang Ci.
Jiang Ci lowered his head, looking down at Jiang Haoyan, who was still a little pale, his tiny eyebrows unconsciously furrowed in pain. He cast a cold glance at the young teacher and said indifferently, “Since you admit it was your fault, why should we speak for you? Whether you lose your job or not, we do not care.”
Lu Xiang was stunned. She hadn’t expected the parents’ attitude to be so indifferent, their tone so unyielding, so devoid of reason. She was taken aback by his bluntness and looked to “Mrs. Jiang” with a bewildered expression. When they had first met, she had been struck by Su Yue’s astonishing beauty, like a pampered flower in a greenhouse. Surely such a person would be soft-hearted, overflowing with compassion.
She pleaded to Su Yue in a low voice, “Mrs. Jiang, your son is injured, and I am truly sorry. I have let down your trust in the school and the teachers. I haven’t been in this job for long, and there were too many children in the office. Another teacher left temporarily, and I didn’t take care of the child for a while, which led to this situation. I want to assure you that this kind of thing will never happen again in the future.”
Lu Xiang begged, “This is my first job. I really can’t lose it, Mrs. Jiang. You are so beautiful and kind-hearted, please don’t hold me accountable.” She wasn’t lying. This was her first job since returning home. Although it was only a kindergarten teacher position, this kindergarten was a renowned aristocratic school. Every child’s family background was influential. Working here, the treatment and benefits were unmatched by even large companies. If she hadn’t known someone, she might not even have gotten this job. Lu Xiang had never imagined such an accident would happen, and she absolutely did not want to lose this position.
Su Yue frowned. Xiao Haohao had fallen while playing games. The teacher’s supervision might have been lacking, and she did bear some responsibility. However, Su Yue was not an unreasonable person, and she didn’t feel the need to pursue accountability vigorously. With so many children, as the teacher explained, it was normal for them to sometimes be beyond a single teacher’s immediate care. But she did not sense genuine apology from the young teacher, only an anxious explanation and self-defense, driven by the fear of losing her job.
“How the school decides to handle this matter, I will not intervene, nor will I plead for you. Haohao needs to rest; you can go back now,” Su Yue stated, making her stance clear. She would not pursue the matter, but she would not advocate for the teacher either.
Lu Xiang hadn’t expected “Mrs. Jiang,” despite her gentle and beautiful appearance, to be so unyielding, utterly devoid of sympathy. How can these rich people have any sympathy? She offered a strained smile. “I’m sorry, then I won’t disturb you for now. Haoyan, recover well, and the teacher will come to see you in two days.”
Xiao Haohao, a polite child, grinned and said to Lu Xiang, “Goodbye, Teacher Xiangxiang.”
When Lu Xiang returned to her old community, she happened to meet her mother, who was coming back from grocery shopping.
“Xiangxiang, why are you back so late?” Mother Lu asked, holding dishes in both hands. Her daughter’s job not only offered a good salary but also easy work, with good hours and no overtime—perfect for her. Now that it was getting dark and her daughter hadn’t returned, Mother Lu felt compelled to ask.
“A child in the class was injured. I went to the hospital to see him ,” Lu Xiang replied.
“Ah? What happened? Is the child okay? Will it affect your job?” Mother Lu’s anxiety escalated with each question. She knew the tuition fees at her daughter’s kindergarten were incredibly expensive, and every child came from a very wealthy family. Hearing about an injured child, Mother Lu’s primary concern was whether those parents would seek accountability, potentially jeopardizing her daughter’s employment.
“I don’t know yet. I’ll wait for the school’s notice.” Lu Xiang’s tone was somewhat irritable. She had apologized sincerely and begged the two parents, but they had remained unmoved, showing no sympathy.
“Could it be that the school will dismiss you? No, we spent a lot of money to get you into this kindergarten. It’s been less than three months; how can you be dismissed?” Mother Lu’s face was etched with worry.
“I don’t know what’s happening now. I can only wait for the school to decide.” She hadn’t even passed her probationary period, and this incident left a bad impression on the school. Lu Xiang felt depressed. “However, the injured child is very kind. When I first saw him, I felt like he look like someone .”
Now that Mother Lu knew her daughter might lose her job, she too was irritable and didn’t have the patience to inquire further about the child. She asked casually, “Who?”
“Like my sister.”