"You have to listen to Daddy carefully. If Daddy says not to touch, you can't touch it!" An'an said word for word, "If you catch a cold, you won't be able to."
After An'an finished speaking, he looked at Huo Rou, "Mom, it's cold outside, let's go inside quickly."
Although Pan Yue was angry, she was a little secretly pleased when she saw An'an taking Huo Rou away. She looked at Qiao Yushan, "Brother Qiao, are these jade stones yours?"
Qiao Yushan looked in the direction An'an and Huo Rou had left. He saw An'an turn his head and wink at him. He secretly cursed, "You ungrateful little thing," for running off with Huo Rou and leaving him to deal with this woman.
"Yes." He didn't have the same lively demeanor or sunny smile when facing others.
Qiao Yushan's coldness made Pan Yue feel awkward. This person had been so sunny when he greeted her earlier.
"Can I take a look at this?" Pan Yue smiled even brighter. She really liked cat's eyes. Since they could be used to make snowmen, maybe if she got along with him, she could also...
Qiao Yushan's refusal was very firm, "No."
He warily picked up the pockets on the ground and collected all the jade stones, as if they would be snatched away if he was a moment slower.
"I'll buy it!" Pan Yue shouted as he was about to put the two cat's eye stones into the bag.
Qiao Yushan chuckled dismissively, but continued to pack the jade stones.
Pan Yue gently nudged Yao Jian's arm, "Brother Yao, can you speak up for me?"
Yao Jian hesitated. He had little interaction with Qiao Yushan and didn't want to be friendly. Every time he exchanged a few words with Huo Rou, Qiao Yushan would playfully interrupt and take Huo Rou away.
Only research-related questions could occasionally keep Huo Rou for an extra second.
But then he remembered the leader's words to take good care of Pan Yue...
"Qiao..." As soon as he started speaking, Qiao Yushan looked up at him, his gaze cold and mocking, rendering him speechless.
"These all belong to my master." Qiao Yushan smiled like a fox. "Go ask master if he's selling."
Yao Jian was stunned. "Pan Yue, why don't you buy it elsewhere? It's just a few stones..."
Pan Yue was furious but couldn't just leave, so she stomped into the house.
Huo Rou was pulled into the room by An'an.
"Mom, An'an doesn't like that auntie," An'an said.
He didn't like the deliberate condescension in Pan Yue's eyes. She looked down on his mother, so An'an didn't want to play with her.
Huo Rou smiled and stroked An'an. Her son was really sensitive to these things.
An'an looked at Huo Rou, seeing she wasn't unhappy, he hesitated and asked, "Mom, what about you?"
"I'm the same as An'an."
Huo Rou stroked An'an's head. She was used to masking her emotions. She could smile at people she disliked, but at people she liked...
She just hoped An'an could always have the confidence and honesty to dislike someone.
"Then Mom, do you like Uncle Xiao Shan?" An'an lowered his eyes and said casually.
He had told his father that between him and his mother, he would only choose his mother.
But that didn't mean he didn't like his father.
"Silly child," Huo Rou poked An'an's head. "Don't think too much, you little head!"
She knew what An'an was worried about, but there was no need for that worry. Qiao Yushan didn't like women, which was why she was willing to accept Qiao Yushan's kindness. His childish demeanor made him seem like another child she was taking care of when he was with An'an.
Perhaps it was as Qiao Yushan said, once a master, always a father...
When Pan Yue entered the house and saw Grandpa Nong and Grandma Yao, she returned to her obedient self and was no longer petulant. Apart from a slight frown during dinner, everything was fine.
In the evening, just as Huo Rou returned to the bedroom with An'an, Grandma Yao knocked on the door.
"Little girl, I see you haven't brought any skincare products. It's dry here. I'm used to my own things and can't use these. Take them." Grandma Yao took out the i she had received from Pan Yue.
She had come through wind and rain with a bare face. She wasn't used to using these things yet.
An'an, however, was very interested and leaned over to look, "Mom, what brand is this?"
He remembered that his father's group had skincare brands. He really wanted to see something related to his father. He missed him.
"im Aimei Company?" An'an read out the company name on the bottle. He hadn't heard of it, so it wasn't his father's company brand.
An'an put the skincare products back in the bag, his eyes dimming. "Haven't heard of it, is it very good?"
Better than his father's company?
An'an silently asked himself.
Huo Rou, who was tidying the books by the bed, frowned when she heard him read out the name.
She looked back at the gift bag, "im?"
"Mm-hmm," An'an nodded vaguely. "Mom, do you know?"
Huo Rou certainly didn't know.
But...
She walked over and picked up the skincare set, repeatedly examining the text on the outside.
[... Raw material origin: Ningzhong City]
This line caught her eye.
Fragments of text she had seen before flickered and rushed into her mind.
She had seen these two things appear together elsewhere.
They were in the confidential documents she had obtained from country M on her computer.
She had skimmed through it at the time, and "im" had appeared. But as a noun, it wasn't particularly notable. If it hadn't repeatedly appeared in conjunction with the place name Ningzhong, she wouldn't have even noticed it.
Now, this "im," which had puzzled her greatly at the time, had reappeared.
And it was also associated with Ningzhong City.
Could there be a connection? Huo Rou clenched the skincare product box in her hand, her mind working rapidly.
The information was too vast, she hadn't managed to remember it all, it was all on the computer...
When she left the hospital, she had taken An'an directly to Old Jiang's place. To conceal their tracks, she hadn't even gone back. Her computer was still in Qin Ningyi's study in Yuchang City.
If only she had brought her computer.