An An rubbed against Huo Rou's legs as if seeking praise. Zhao Hengyu, who had finally located the information he needed, hung up the phone, feeling utterly dejected as he continued to clean up the mess.
"If I ever find out who found me, I'll make them pay! 'Capture the king' is a saying for a reason, and it's absolutely true!" Zhao Hengyu, for the moment, considered himself the "king."
An An, the very "king" being captured, was basking in his own glory when he suddenly sneezed.
Frowning, he thought for a moment and then gravely said to Huo Rou, "Mom, is someone talking bad about An An?"
His words brought laughter from everyone present.
Seeing Huo Rou's smile, An An felt immensely at ease.
Dad didn't even want to take Mom home or marry her, so he certainly couldn't rely on Dad to protect Mom.
An An gently hugged Huo Rou's soft, slender waist, making a silent decision: he would protect Mom well, just as he had helped Grandpa find the other party this time.
"Mom, now that you're awake and can talk and laugh, does that mean your illness is cured?" An An looked up at Huo Rou after the laughter subsided, his eyes filled with anticipation.
Shen Wuyou turned his head away. Minister Zeng stared intently at Huo Rou. Shen Wuyou wasn't telling them about Huo Rou's condition, only relentlessly giving her pills. Now, he wasn't sure about Huo Rou's physical state either.
"Yes, the illness is cured," Huo Rou replied, nodding, her voice gentle yet firm.
Shen Wuyou looked at her deeply, seeing a familiar light in her eyes, similar to how it was back then. As long as there was a desire to live, there was hope.
After all, she was Huo Rou.
By the time Qin Ningyi arrived at the laboratory, Huo Rou was already wearing a lab coat and working with Shen Wuyou to extract medicine.
Shen Wuyou had had this idea before, but this new attempt required her extraction skills.
An An saw Qin Ningyi arrive and called out to him in a detached, polite, and somewhat distant manner.
As if he had grown up overnight, Qin Ningyi saw a reflection of his past self in the current An An.
"An An," he said, walking up to An An and squatting down to meet his gaze at eye level.
An An nodded, obediently responding, "Mm, Dad."
"Don't be mad at me, okay?" Connecting Huo Rou's movements with what An An had said on the phone that day, Qin Ningyi realized this clever son was even helping to keep secrets.
An An had always been on his side. For doing this, he could only think of that morning's run. "I neglected your feelings due to some concerns of my own. I'm sorry, An An. I'm trying my best. Can you give Dad a chance?"
He wasn't the type to be stubborn, nor did he want to be an aloof father.
Perhaps it was his earnest demeanor and his act of lowering himself to An An's level that softened the boy. An An's small arms wrapped around Qin Ningyi's neck.
Qin Ningyi scooped him up, and father and son looked at Huo Rou inside the laboratory through the glass window.
"Dad, we need to give Mom a home," An An suddenly said.
While waiting for Huo Rou to come out, Qin Ningyi had already collected himself. The panic in his heart had subsided, and the words he had been eager to ask now seemed less important.
Huo Rou pushed the door open, and her eyes immediately fell on Qin Ningyi's face. She smiled softly, "You're here."
Like autumn finally waiting for fallen leaves, her eyes held a long-lost joy.
She didn't say anything else, instead reaching out to embrace both Qin Ningyi and An An.
Qin Ningyi looked at the strange pose and stubbornly pulled his arm out, drawing her into his embrace.
At such close proximity, he noticed the delicate lipstick on Huo Rou's lips. Shen Wuyou nodded at him and walked past. A surge of jealousy suddenly welled up in Qin Ningyi's heart.
The jealousy was more intense than ever before. He impulsively kissed her red lips.
"Eek!" An An exclaimed with a laugh, covering his eyes and climbing onto Qin Ningyi's shoulder, refusing to look back.
Huo Rou's body stiffened for a moment, then, as if in embarrassment or anger, she pushed him away. "What are you doing?"
"You came to help, why are you wearing makeup?"
Facing the tempest in his eyes, Huo Rou showed a hint of hesitation. It was this momentary expression that made Qin Ningyi question what she was about to say.
"My colleagues in the lab put it on me. They said they were trying out their new cosmetics," Huo Rou replied, confused. "What's wrong?"
"The truth?" Qin Ningyi had ways to extract the truth, but when it came to Huo Rou, he always hesitated to use those skills. He just gazed at her and asked, "The truth?"
Huo Rou nodded, changing the subject. "I'm done with my work. Let's go get something delicious to eat."
Qin Ningyi, carrying An An, was pulled along by her.
His eyes were filled with silence.
His feelings just now couldn't be wrong. Huo Rou was hiding something from him. Forgetting to tell him she was helping Shen Wuyou was one thing, and he had believed the excuse about her phone accidentally shutting off. Now, with something as trivial as this, she was still avoiding a direct answer.
This made him even more eager to know what Huo Rou had been doing during this time.
An An struggled in his arms. "Dad, hurry up!"
Huo Rou had only eaten a bowl of millet porridge since waking up, and he felt bad about it. An An poked Qin Ningyi's arm muscles. "Mom's taking us to eat, why are you walking so slowly!"
"Heh, okay, let's go faster." Qin Ningyi bounced An An on his hip, setting the question aside for the moment and quickening his pace to match Huo Rou's.
Huo Rou secretly breathed a sigh of relief, glad for her son's distraction. For some reason, Qin Ningyi's eyes today were sharper than usual, as if they could see through everything.
With secrets weighing on her mind, Huo Rou unconsciously led them down a small alley.
The alley was lined with food carts parked along the sides, with tables and chairs casually placed nearby.
Walking to the very end of the alley, an elderly auntie with graying hair and a slightly plump figure was rolling dough at her stall.
The aroma of meat broth wafted from a pot nearby.
Huo Rou took a deep breath, feeling immensely satisfied. She stopped, her eyes fixed on the auntie's hands as she rolled the dough.
"Want some noodles?" Qin Ningyi asked, seeing her pause and stare intently at the food stall. "It's not very hygienic out here. I have a place nearby, should we go back and I'll make them for you?"
He wasn't usually particular about these things, but when it came to Huo Rou, he always wanted to give her the best.
Hearing this, the auntie looked up. "Young man, that's not right. Don't you know who's most abundant around here?"
Qin Ningyi had no intention of engaging, but Huo Rou smiled and chimed in, "Most abundant of what?"
The auntie looked at Huo Rou, paused, and then smilingly explained, "Around here, there are the most laboratories! They're the most particular about cleanliness. Even though we set up stalls outside, to meet their standards, we pay more attention to hygiene than those restaurants. Otherwise, no one would come to eat!"